LUKE The day after my date with Jasmine, I ran the border of the pack grounds in my wolf form to do a patrol check. When I got to Mike’s location at the northern border, I stopped and mindlinked him to see how things were going. “All good, Mike?” “All good today, Beta. Sent the juniors out one hundred yards at the start of the shift.” “Good.” “That was the first time you witnessed an interrogation on Sunday, wasn’t it?” “Yes.” “You’ll get used to it.” “Yeah, that was definitely an interesting experience.” “Alpha Blake’s so much like his dad it’s uncanny. The sick shit he comes up with, like feeding one guy’s balls to another.” My stomach churned recalling the incident. “His dad used to do the same shit. One time he cut a dick off and shoved it in the guy’s ass. I think his son may have actually been there for that one too. That was many years ago.” I recalled that Blake used to be forced to attend tortures with his father. I couldn’t imagine having to witness what I did at
LUKE I had the evening off on Wednesday night, so I decided to surprise Jasmine once she ended her shift at work. While on my way, I stopped at the grocery store and picked up a bouquet of roses. I removed a single rose and told the cashier that I'd like her to have the rest. I then waited until Jasmine got out of work and met her at the front door as she and Valerie were closing up. "Well, hello there, Casanova. Have you come to seduce me too?" Valerie laughed. She then lightly punched me in the arm and walked away. After Valerie disappeared down the street, I turned to Jasmine and said, "I'd like to exchange a single rose for a single Jasmine." I internally cringed at myself, thinking how corny that sounded. Jasmine giggled, likely out of politeness because that was lame even for me. She took the rose and smiled, saying, "Thank you." "I couldn't wait to see you again. I hope you didn't make any other plans tonight."
LUKE I opened her passenger door and helped her out of the car. I had asked the office manager to get someone in right away to fix the hole in my bedroom, and it had been fixed yesterday, thankfully. That definitely would have been an awkward story to explain. When we entered, Blake was home. He greeted us and smirked at something when he looked at Jasmine. I gave him a hard stare, wondering what he could be smirking about. Then I noticed his eyes glossed over, turned skyward, clearly in a mindlink, and her face turning red. He walked away from us to go do something else. My body tensed in rage that they were sharing secrets, and right in front of me no less! Once we were in my room, I asked, “What did Blake mindlink you?” “Oh, Goddess, it’s so embarrassing. I can’t tell you.” Jasmine covered her face with her hands, covering a flush that crept across her cheeks. “What is it? Please tell me.” She shook her head. “Please,” I asked again, more softly, taking her hands so I could loo
LUKE The following Friday, my whole family came over to the packhouse for dinner. My parents had come home for the weekend after spending the past month in Quebec, my father having taken over my old job. My sister Peyton brought her newborn, whom my mom was desperate to finally meet. Blake and his parents were also in attendance. They’d become an extended part of the family over the years. I invited Jasmine to introduce her as my mate to everyone. I brought her around to all the guests so she could meet my family. My mom pulled her in for a huge hug. “Oh my goodness, Jasmine. I am so happy that Lukey found his mate! And what a wonderful mate the Moon Goddess gave him. I couldn’t have picked a better one myself.” She started dabbing a tissue at her eyes, being melodramatic as usual. All of my nieces and nephews came over to hug Jasmine, welcoming her to the family. Noah, who was ten, asked her, “Have you guys done it yet?” I lightly whacked him on the top of his head. “That’s not h
JASMINE On Saturday morning, I headed to the gym early, before work. I was surprised to see Blake again once I got there, especially with it being so early in the morning. “Why do I keep bumping into you at this gym?” “I told you, the women are hotter at this one than mine.” He smirked. “Actually, I got here early because I have to meet with some of the trainers in an hour to discuss training plans for all of the pack members. Most members come in on Saturdays for their training appointments, since they work during the week, so we thought it would be a good idea to meet ahead of their day. I figured I might as well get my own workout in beforehand. And, since you’re here, you can be my benching partner now.” He winked at me. “I feel like I don’t have a choice.” “Come on, you know you want to watch me work these guns. I’ll even take my shirt off and give you a whole show.” I smiled and playfully pushed him on his arm, shaking my head at how arrogant he was. He led me to the benches
LUCY I was still in shock. I couldn’t believe that I had lost both my boyfriend and best friend in a matter of weeks. Even more shocking was that the Moon Goddess had both shoved a dagger into my heart and then turned it until she could draw every last bit of pain out of me. It’s one thing to lose the man you want to spend the rest of your life with, taking with him your whole future, but the fact that he’s now with your best friend? I wanted to vomit every time I thought about it. It was so heartbreaking that I didn’t think I could ever be friends with Jasmine again. When I told my mom, she held me while I cried. But everyone knew there was nothing I could do except move on, if such a thing was even possible. Both my parents kept reassuring me that I’d eventually find my mate, and then I’d forget this ever happened. But I didn’t believe that either. Luke had been my life—he was the reason I got out of bed in the morning. The fact that he didn’t fight for the two of us still hurt me.
LUKE After Lucy texted me, I agreed to meet with her during her lunch break from work the next day. She asked me to meet her at the central park. When I arrived, I was surprised to see her already sitting on a bench. Punctuality was not something I often saw from Lucy. I felt uneasy about this, like something must be really serious. My heart skipped a beat as I approached. As much as I tried to push Lucy from my mind, I still felt a fondness for her. Seeing her made all my feelings for her rush back to me. I quietly sat down next to her and smiled. “Hi, Lucy.” “Hi, Luke.” She frowned back at me. “What did you want to talk about?” I asked, looking into her blue eyes. I could see how sad they were. Lucy was someone who wore her heart on her sleeve. “I’m pregnant.” I stared at her, wondering if I had heard what she said correctly. I could feel my heart sinking and a sick feeling coming over me. “You’re pregnant?” I asked, trying to confirm if what I had heard was correct. “Yes.” “
LUCY On Tuesday morning, Luke met me in front of the clinic. We walked in together and Luke sat with me while we waited for my name to be called. He went into the examination room with me while the nurse took my vitals, had me produce another urine sample, and took several vials of blood. Luke held my hand while the nurse drew my blood. The former luna came in after and asked me a bunch of questions about my health and eating habits. She then had me sit down on the examination table and gave me a full physical exam. After she was done, she asked Luke if he wanted to see the baby. He nodded and came over. She pulled out the ultrasound machine. After she was able to get the image up on the monitor, she turned it so it was facing Luke and me. Luke held my hand and said, "Wow, that's amazing." I watched as his eyes sparkled, engrossed in the image he was seeing on the monitor. "I calculated the due date for March 24th," the former luna
ALEXANDER Well, that was an interesting way to meet my mate, to say the least. It almost wasn’t surprising when it happened. Okay, it was very unexpected and shocking, but I’m also one of those people who attracts drama and crazy situations. Needless to say, it is never a dull day in my life, and I never run out of stories to tell at parties. So, it was almost expected that I wouldn’t meet my mate the normal way. Most people meet their mates at a party or a café, they lock eyes from across a room, they go to the same park one day. You get the picture—there are hundreds of normal ways to meet a mate. Of course, I’m the one that meets my mate at my father’s murder scene, my mate being the number one and only suspect. If it weren’t so disturbing, I’d laugh about it. The Moon Goddess clearly has a sick sense of humor. Granted, my father was not exactly in the running for father or, heck, person of the year. But I’m not quite sure what crime he committed that deserved murder. Okay, okay,
BLAKE One afternoon, well into September, a mindlink for Luke and me came in while we were in the office together. “I smell a rogue in my patrol area.” Jack’s voice said in our minds. Luke and I both looked up at each other and instantly got to our feet. “Be right there,” I mindlinked Jack back. We both rushed outside, quickly shifted into our wolf forms, and sprinted over. When we got to him, Jack led the group in tracking the scent, inhaling the unpleasant aroma that had clung to the dirt and ferns just outside our territory. Rogues usually weren’t a big problem. It was just a matter of making it clear to them that this was pack land and that they should move away from the area. Every once in a while, we’d encounter a problematic rogue, one that had spent so much time in its wolf form that it became feral and refused to shift, occasionally attacking us. Those rogues were dealt with differently. But hopefully, this would just be the standard, run-of-the-mill, confused rogue. We fo
TALIA Upon finally succeeding in taking every last penny from me, Madam Coco came through and handed me a box with four darts inside. I’d deliberated on it for a while but eventually concluded that the darts were a much more efficient tool for infiltration and worth the extra cost. I didn’t even bother thanking her or saying goodbye, relieved that I’d never have to smell the disgusting mix of old lady perfume and cigarettes, or hear her raspy smoker’s voice, again. A few days later, on a warm Thursday in mid-August, Hugo drove me to his pack. We stopped at the entrance and exited the car, then we were brought to a small room. The werewolves who escorted us there wrinkled their noses at the sight of me, and I realized it must be my rogue smell. I let out a deep sigh. When we were waiting alone, I asked Hugo, “Is the smell really that bad?” He rubbed the back of his neck and said, “No, they’re exaggerating. It’s just a little unpleasant.” I nodded and wondered if he was just being po
TALIA The following day, Madam Coco summoned me to her office. As soon as I entered, I was met with the familiar scent of old lady perfume and cigarettes, the smell now more nauseating than it ever had been in the past. I tried not to breathe it in too much, becoming enraged with each breath. I forced myself to stay calm, digging my nails into my palms, barely able to look at her. She was a tiny woman, petite and always sporing a tan—her skin taking on a leathery appearance from spending so much time in tanning beds over the years. I wasn't sure of her exact age. If I had to guess—I'd say late fifties or early sixties. She gestured to a chair in front of her desk, barely looking up at me, flipping her long, platinum blonde hair behind her shoulders as I entered. I took a seat. She casually played with thick rings on her fingers. She loved jewelry and was always draped in it. Bought using my mom’s body and desperation. After dragging the silence out for far too long, she said, “Tali
Thank you for reading Wolfbane. This now begins book 2 of the series, Wolfblood, which introduces some new characters and also continues Jasmine and Blake's story. Please note that this book is quite a bit darker than the first one, and contains some triggers, but I hope you will enjoy it anyway! Happy reading!*** TALIA Dead. Killed in cold blood. The only person in the world I loved was taken from me, her heart ripped from her chest, leaving a gaping hole behind. The red splatter staining the wall of the bedroom indicated it had subsequently been thrown as if it were nothing more than a rotten fruit. Even through the acrid smell of blood, I could still smell him. He was the one who did it. He came almost every week, sometimes several times a week, going back years. In fact, I could not recall a time when he did not exist in my consciousness. He had always been obsessed with my mother. Now his smell invaded her bedroom; he couldn’t have left long ago as his rancid stench lingered,
JASMINE After getting home Saturday morning, I rushed to take a shower and change into new clothes. I was extremely late for work, having completely forgotten about my shift that day. I checked my phone as soon as I walked through the door of my house to find frantic messages from Valerie. I was supposed to be there at seven thirty and I ended up walking in at eleven to come face-to-face with Lucy. “Looks like Perfect Jasmine finally decided to grace us with her presence,” Lucy taunted me as I walked past her to drop my stuff off in the back and throw on an apron. “Where have you been?” Valerie asked, coming over to me. “Sorry. Late night,” I replied. “Got stuck far away because of the blizzard.” “Far away?” Valerie raised her eyebrow at me. “Never mind, you can tell me later. We have a line of customers. Get to work.” I went up front, taking my place to prepare orders as they came in, trying my best to avoid interaction with Lucy. I noted that she now had a proper baby bump, ver
BLAKE It was an amazing night. We had round two and round three after the first round, barely sleeping. Then, the next morning, after we woke, we had round four. I was practically singing as I drove Jasmine home and dropped her at her parents' house. I snuck into the packhouse and quickly showered and got dressed. Then I made my way downstairs to the office where Luke was already at his desk, concentrated on his laptop. "What's up, what's up!" I said as I walked in, a big smile on my face. "You're in an oddly good mood this morning," Luke looked up at me. "Too much coffee. Maybe I should get some more," I said, getting up and heading to the kitchen. I quickly poured myself a mug. "Good morning, Connie!" I shouted, looking over at her preparing some food. "Good morning, Alpha," she looked at me oddly. "Would you like me to make you some breakfast?" "Yes, that would be great!" I smiled, taking my mug and heading back to
JASMINE After Blake paid and signed the check, he took my hand and led me to a bank of elevators. I was surprised we managed not to break into a run as we made our way to our destination. As soon as we stepped inside the empty elevator and the door shut behind us, his mouth crashed against mine, kissing me urgently, nibbling on my lip, taking my tongue into his mouth. His large hands slid down my back until they found and cupped my ass. He swallowed the needy whimper that escaped my lips and I jumped into his arms. My thighs instantly found his hips, and he easily supported me when I wrapped my legs around him. My back collided with the wall as he pressed his whole body against mine. We were both desperate to be as close to each other as possible. I lost myself in the kiss, aroused with anticipation, fireworks exploding behind my eyes. My thighs were burning, my panties so wet I was sure Blake could feel it through my dress as his erection throbbed against me. The apex of my inner th
JASMINE Blake’s scent entered my nose. I turned to see him sitting down next to me. “Hey,” he said. “Hey,” I replied, looking at him. “Nice speech.” “Thanks.” “Sorry again about your dad,” I said, feeling emotional, touching his leg. “Thanks.” He looked down at his hands. “I see you recovered finally.” “Yeah, I’ve been meaning to text you, but I got caught up in pack duty stuff. I had to visit all the families of the fallen warriors and meet with the priest. It’s honestly been a lot.” He sighed. We sat silently together for a bit and then he spoke again. “Do you want to do something tonight?” “Like what?” “Just hang out. I’ve missed you. I’d like to spend some time with you.” “You know how my parents are.” “One second,” he said, getting up and walking toward my parents. I stood up, shocked by him approaching them so suddenly. I watched as he shook my father’s hand and spoke with him. After about a minute, he returned. “You’re a free woman. Let’s go!” “What did you say to h