Resisting the Rival Alpha

Chapter One: Unbearable Heat

This is so. Incredibly. Unfair.

Any other twenty-two year old girl, wolf or not, gets to bed whoever they please, whenever they please.

But I'm not just any other twenty-two year old girl: I'm Kaelyn Hart, and I will one day be Alpha of the Silverfang Pack.

That is, of course, if I prove to the rest of the pack that I'm capable. And how do I do that? By being strong (check), smart (check check), and incredibly charming (just kidding, but check check check). But not just that. Apparently, I am also supposed to be pure and perfect.

My heats started last year, right after I turned twenty-one, and they were terrible. But I just didn't know how to deal. So I turned to the resources at hand: vodka and super hot Omegas.

When my heats flared, especially in the beginning, I could barely function. Liquor took the edge off, made the sharp, hot corners fuzzy, and the Omegas took my clothes off. I had fun (though a few got kinda clingy) but more importantly, I'd get my mind back. Myself back.

But you see, that's when the rumors started.

"I'm sorry, but Kaelyn? She's more worried about finding her next lay than taking care of our pack."

"I heard that Alpha Davis killed three people in a bar last week just for saying the song he chose on the jukebox was shitty. What do you think he'll do if any Shadowclaws show up in our territory? But Kaelyn? She'd just try and fuck them."

"Silverfang just hasn't been the same since Alpha Timber was killed. She's just not her father."

That last gem was from Tessa, one of our gardeners. I was craving fresh apples, so was on my way to the orchard when I heard her talking to another gardener, Gabe. She was wiping dirt from her brow and sighing as she said it.

That's what got me. Tessa wasn't trying to be mean. She was just lamenting a sad truth.

The price of milk has doubled. The politician I voted for cheated on his wife. The Silverfang Pack is falling into ruin and Kaelyn is failing her father's memory.

I can still remember how my eyes burned, thinking it was my wolf showing her anger, the iris's flashing to a canary yellow. But when I touched my cheeks, they were wet.

I was crying.

There had been a moment where I decided I would fire Tessa on the spot, banish her from the pack.

Instead, I walked into the manor, pulled all the Grey Goose bottles from beneath my mattress, and poured them down the sink. Then, I pulled out my phone and blocked the number of every Omega I had.

That's when I took my vow of celibacy.

Sure, it may be some sexist-ass bullshit. But I can't....

I can't let down Dad.

Even if it kills me.

I can't feel the top of my head anymore. It's numb from standing under the icy rush of water for nearly half an hour. You'd think I'd be shivering, but the goosebumps blooming on my arms and thighs aren't from the cold, but from the needy tingling skirting just under my skin.

I need to get the hell out of here.

In quick, jerky motions, I switch off the shower and stagger out of the stall towards the bedroom door. I'm a little lightheaded as I make my way to my walk-in closet. I need to grab something lightweight and easily rippable and throw it on.

And then, I need to run. My wolf needs to run.

We both do.

I throw on some clothes and push open the doors to my chambers as softly as I can. It's late, and I really don't want to answer any of Aunt Cinda's millions of questions and concerns right now.