ANNALISE
I used all my strength to stay composed while I inhaled the masculinity emanating from the man standing in front of me. He smells of fire, sweat and rain. Annoyingly close to what Zane smelt like when Larissa was taking in the aroma of all of our mates when I shifted.
I sense a bizarre feeling of knowing this person. It’s as if his soul is reaching out to my own. I can only see his backside at the moment as my daddy beckons me forward. Damn, those pants hug his plump, firm ass to perfection. I kept my face stoic because the guy’s wearing pants and is naked from the waist up. He’s down right ripped with masculinity. Jarek has jet-black locks, Zane has dark-chocolate colored hair like mine, and Xillon has wheat-blonde strands. I suppose I could be down with fiery red hair.
I grinned and hoped I could keep my wolf-like ears hidden as I advanced. I don’t want to shock the guy at first sight.
What the hell is wrong with me? I have three mates at sixteen years old, when I shouldn’t know of my mate until I’m nineteen. Man, I’m an anomaly and I’m taking everyone down with me. Perhaps Jarek, Zane and Xillon have been right all these years. I’m a monstrosity.
Plastering a huge grin on my face, I do my best not to freak out when this guy’s face comes into view. My goodness, his striking emerald eyes, chiseled jawline with chin stubble and a mustache that hasn’t been shaved in a while, have my heart beating a mile a minute.
A magnetic pull as his soul continues to cry out to me has my nerves skittering all over the place. I feel as if I’ve known this guy my whole life. Please ears, don't betray me now. After acting civil and introducing myself, Dante barely forces out his name, but his accent has me wanting to jump him. The strange thing is I don’t feel the mate bond as our hands meet, so I figure it’s my hormones going wild, and nothing else. Where the heck is Larrisa when I need her?
However, Larissa comes forth after Zane rudely assaults Dante. She lets me take the reins in whooping his ass, but takes over afterwards and rips him a new one by screaming out that she will never accept him as her mate and I give her a high-five inside my mind as we dash up the stairs. I had to break away from Zane because I knew my lupine ears were definitely visible now.
‘He is also our mate,’ she says, then departs before I can rebut her claim. There’s no way I could have four mates. My wolf’s hormones are worse than mine.
Instead of going inside my room, I sit in the doorway, close my eyes and strive to catch my bearings. I reach up to find that my lupine ears have surfaced.
“Chill out Annalise. You’ve got this,” I murmur, as I lay my hand in my lap and try to relax.
The last two days have been an utter chaos as I endeavored to satisfy Jarek and Xillon by devoting the same amount of time to both of them, and scurrying about to help my father ready for our esteemed guest’s arrival. I’m totally depleted and just desire solitude right now.
Dante’s scent reaches my nose, and I hear him as he ascends the stairs. His bedroom is located a few doors further down the hall from mine. I chastise myself for leaving him to fend for himself and bang my head against my door.
“Do you have a twin?”
“Excuse me?” I ask, as I open my eyes to Dante’s furrowed brows and questioning gaze as he scrutinizes my appearance. I groan upon reaching up and realizing my lupine ears are still on display.
“Could you let your hair down?”
“Listen. I’m not sure what’s happening with you, but no, I don’t possess a twin. You’ll need to get used to my ears. They have a mind of their own. I’ve had them from the day I was born. Accept me as I am or not at all. It makes no difference to me.”
“What? No, I mean no offense. I just… I’m enamored by your ears bonnie.”
“You have forgotten who I am already,” I said, and Dante lent me his hand to help me from the ground.
“No, love; bonnie means beautiful. I could never forget such a beautiful name as yours, Annalise.”
My heart skips a few beats and starts pounding away erratically in my chest as Dante says my name. His accent is to die for. He called me beautiful. My mind appears to fizzle out as if I’ve taken a hallucinogenic and all I can do is grin dazedly at him.
“How old are you, Annalise? If you wouldn’t object to me asking. It appears you already have a mate. You must be eighteen years of age, correct?”
“No, hum. I just turned sixteen two days ago and shifted for the first time. I uh… I have three mates. Larissa wants nothing more than to kill Zane, though.”
“Only but sixteen, with three mates. That’s unheard of.”
“Yeah, well. My life has never been run-of-the-mill. Before my first transformation, my eyes used to flit from sky-blue to gold, then silver. I have combined all three hues now, as you can see.”
DANTE
‘Titan. It’s her, the woman from my vision.’
‘Our mate is stunning.’
‘Did you not hear her? She already has three mates. That’s never happened in all shifter existence. She couldn’t possibly be our mate.’
‘I’m not the one you should be speaking to about this, Dante. Your father should hold the answers.’
Annalise clears her throat, grabs my hand, and pulls me down the hall toward my room.
“Jarek had your bedroom cleaned and decorated the best he could with what little time there was to prepare. We have a mall and shops in the city within the packs boards. You can go shopping and personalize your surroundings as you wish. I must confess, it’s drab currently. I should have done the work myself. Never leave a woman’s job like decorating to a guy,” she said, shaking her head and opening the door.
It looks as if navy blue regurgitated all over the place. Not to say I’m not a fan of the color, but wow. I do my best to school my features and grin.
“Would you have the time to bring me to the city tomorrow? ”
“Jarek, Xillon and Zane could accompany you. My parents haven’t taken me into the city to purchase a vehicle yet. Additionally, I don’t imagine my mates would be content with me taking you. You saw how Zane reacted and you were just standing next to me. Where exactly did you all come from? Your accent is wonderful,” she declares, sniffs the air, exits my room, and glances down the hall.
“Where are you going?”
“Jarek and Xillon are coming. I’ll send them this way,” she says, and walks off before I could answer her questions. It’s for the best. I’m not supposed to divulge that my parents and I are of noble birth. I must create some sort of response eventually, though.
***
“You should choose a car that is less flashy, Dante. At the palace, it didn’t matter. Everyone knows you are of noble status. That is not the case here in the States,” mom says, as she shakes her head at the magnificent midnight and orange Mercedes Benz that has me drooling.
“Fine. I’ll go with the Corvette over there. The silver one.”
“Gabriel, help me out here.”
“Leave the car, talk to us men bonnie. We shall take the silver Corvette for my son, and the onyx one for my wife and I.” Dad says to the salesman, then walks away with him to talk business.
“It’s okay, mother. Jarek has a couple of motorbikes and drives a Porsche, not to mention he also has a truck. The Corvette is cheaper,” I say, and mom scowls while folding her arms in front of her.
Back home in Scotland, my father and I have a garage full of high-performance automobiles and motorbikes. She shouldn’t be surprised that we’re opting to get sports cars.
“Have you found the wolf with the silver crescent Moon?” She asks with a smile.
“I haven’t had the liberty of shifting with the others. I’m unsure of how I will seek her out if Titan and I can’t go for a run with everyone else. There has also been too much going on, mother. I thought Annalise was the one, but she has three mates. I’ve not found the time to speak with dad concerning her.”
“Perhaps she is an ancient werewolf. Initially, it was common to have multiple mates. But that has been unheard of for countless centuries. Your mate will have the silver crescent Moon. Which signifies that she is a descendant of the Moon goddess. That would rank her superior to ourselves. You should get her by herself, so you could shift and hunt together. ”
“What would be the most efficient way to do that when her mates don’t let her out of their sight, mother?”
“I’m sure she gets moments to herself, Dante. All women require their space. Even I allocate time for myself. It’s difficult, but I manage.”
“There was a cave that I came across that’s up in the mountains the day we arrived. Her aroma was powerful there, and I didn’t detect any other scent but hers.”
“Well. I suggest you make your way there and wait for her to arrive, Dante. She will get there in due course.”
“What am I to do if she is my mate? When she has three mates already and they live here? Jarek is the future Alpha to the Blood Moon Howler Pack. Xillon is to be the next beta. I’m quite confident she’s going to pass on Zane. She cannot decline Jarek, for he wouldn’t have the power to rule over the Pack without a mate. She wouldn’t be able to accompany us back to the kingdom.”
“We shall tread those waters once they rise.”
***
For three days now, I’ve taken my mother’s advice. Every afternoon following school, I have concealed myself in Annalise’s cave, awaiting her. But she hasn’t manifested herself. I constructed a stone fireplace, procured chairs and even fashioned a bed from several sleeping bags and blankets. After what she did to Zane the day I arrived, I hope she doesn’t beat my ass for taking over her hidden cave.
I’m deep in thought as I read a book that was assigned to class when I hear movement outside. Glancing at the entrance to the cave, I grin when Annalise steps in.
“How did you find my cave?”
“I found it on the first day my parents and I arrived. When I met you, I knew automatically that you were the owner of this cave. I’ve been coming here for three days hoping you would come. I hope you don’t have an issue with me sprucing the place up a bit.”
“Bullying was something I had to deal with regularly. I have a few other caves and hiding places throughout the edge of the mountain, and some are up high. I suppose I don’t object to you taking up residence,” she says with a grin.
“My wolf Titan has been pushing me endlessly to transform, but I’m not authorized to transform in the presence of anyone else.”
“Why?”
“I’m not permitted to reveal that to you.”
“I’m unable to shift myself unless accompanied by Jarek and Xillon.”
“Why is that? Might I ask.”
“My real wolf’s appearance is unique, and my parents don’t want the public to strike me in terror. I can look ordinary as a lupine, but other issues arise that I cannot disclose.”
“If I were to shift, would you give me your word that you will not reveal any of what you see with others? In return, you could shift as well and I would act as if I saw nothing.”
“I suppose if you were to shift first, then yes, I could do that. Larissa is dying to get out. It’s been a few days since I could shift.”
“Alright. Let’s head outside then,” I say, as I stand, clutch her hand and pull her from the cave. “I have your word that you won’t tell anyone.”
“Yes.”
“Wait for me here. I’ll be back.”