Filed to story: Mated to the Alpha and His Beta Novel Free >>???
It wasn’t until we were in our own truck, leading the way back to Stillwood, that he told me why.
“They feel like good people,” he said. “Tell me differently, and I’ll turn around and tell “No. They do.”
He pulled into the driveway and turned off the truck, He twisted to take my hands in his.
get the answers we need, love. I promise you.”
ck right Lanie–
Isaac and Alaina were still in bed, but at Xander’s request, Gabriela had gotten Stella up. My precious daughter ran into my arms, and I scooped her up the second I got through the door. I pressed my face to her hair and breathed her in, holding her tightly.
“Stella, Mama has some people for you to meet, okay? So I want you to say hello.”
Slowly, I turned and set Stella on her own two small feet. Other children might have clung to their mothers at the sight of strangers invading their home, or cried at being woken up in the middle of the night, but Stella only waved as Greyson and Charlotte came into the room.
“Hello, friends,” she chirped. “I’ve been waiting for you. I’m so glad you’re here!”
Xander and I shared a startled look. Charlotte’s eyes visibly welled with tears she dabbed at with two fingertips. She smiled and knelt to hold out her hands for Stella to take.
At the last second, I wanted to grab my baby back. Charlotte was still a stranger, after all. But a silver warmth flooded me. The Moon Goddess reassured me this was the right path, so I kept my place at Xander’s side and watched as our daughter allowed Charlotte to look her over.
She touched the dark curls and cupped Stella’s precious round cheeks. She peered deeply into her eyes. Something seemed to satisfy her..and take her aback.
“Stella, is that your grandma there?” Charlotte tipped her chin toward Gabriela.
“Yes. She’s my daddy’s momm Stella put a hand over her mouth to hold back a giggle. “Isn’t that a little bit funny? He’s so big, and she’s so small!”
“It’s very funny,” Charlotte agreed and met Gabriela’s gaze as she got to her feet. “Maybe yo would be able to take you into the kitchen and get a snack or something? I know it’s late, but so me you’ve been a very, very good little girl.”
“She always is,” Gabriela agreed with a look at Xander, and then one at me.
He gave her a solemn nod. I could see she wasn’t quite sure what was going on, so I sent out a sm pulse of Luna energy. The instant I did, an answering wave came from Charlotte, mingling with a rise of s from Gabriela, herself.
She looked startled and put a hand on her heart. “Oh “Once a Luna, forever a Luna,” Charlotte told her Our three mingled forces faded quickly, but it was easy to see that they’d soothed at least some of Gabriela’s anxiety. Her eyes shone, actually. I’d, of course assumed that surrendering her role as Luna had left her with a bit of melancholy, but this was the first time I’d ever considered how personally devastating the loss. of that might’ve been. I was more grateful than ever that my mother-in-law had graciously given over to me, been a help to me, and had never once made me feel lacking We all waited until Gabriela had taken Stella out of the room before we spoke. Then Xander offered. Greyson a glass of Scotch while I moved some of the kids’ toys out of the way so Stella could have a seat. It. all felt oddly sociable, but there was an undercurrent of tension rising from Mason and Zane. They only had a part of the story, after all.
“Two Alphas, bonded to the same mate. Luna powers coming through each of you.” Zane shook his head, speaking for the first time since our guests had arrived. “Can you tell me what the hell is going on?”
“There’s so much to tell, but we really don’t have time for it. We’ll have to explain it as we go,” Charlotte said firmly. “For now, it’s very clear to me that what I suspected is absolutely true. Stella has a connection to the Moon Goddess unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Lanie, it’s more even than yours or mine. Stella is…”
“Celestial?” I said when she didn’t continue.
Charlotte nodded. “You’ve heard of it?”
“No, but it’s something Stella told means?”
e. She had a dream about the Goddess. Can you tell me what it Greyson stepped forward. “Begging your pardon, but Charlie’s right. We really don’t have time for a full lecture on the entirety of the situation.”
“Stella must not be around any wolf shifter who are not her immediate family. Her mother. Her fathers, her siblings, her grandma.
Who else knows about what’s been happening with her?”
“Nobody,” I said. “I haven’t even spoken to my mom or sister on the phone since all of this started. I didn’t want them to worry…or be in danger. Everyone around here knows Stella from when she was an infant, but not since…well. Not lately.”
“Perfect.” Charlotte stood. “We need to make preparations for all of you to leave Stillwood immediately. Tonight. Within the hour, if possible.”
My heart pounded. “Tonight? But…where do you expect us to go?”
Greyson took Charlotte’s hand. She faced me and my mates with a determined look, as she gave us the answer.
“To the vampire enclave in Alaska.”
Lanie–
Packing up an entire life, including three little kids, was surprisingly easy to do with four parents, a grandmother, and two new friends to help.
The sense of urgency Charlotte and Greyson had given us also helped.
Still, the fact that we were all rolling up to a freaking vampire enclave less than two days after the first minute I’d walked into that bar to meet Charlotte… I was still struggling to wrap my head around it.
We’d decided to take our SUV instead of one of my mates’ trucks. I knew leaving them behind weighed on their minds, but they hadn’t complained about it. My heart had ached as we drove away from the house I’d come to love so much, and I hadn’t complained about that, either.
Our lives were changing so fast, there wasn’t time to worry about what we were leaving behind. It was taking all our combined energies just to focus on the future.
Isaae and Alaina were still sleeping, but Stella was wide awake and wide-eyed as she looked out the windows of the SUV. I understood her surprise. Sure, they’d told us it was an enclave. They hadn’t said it was a freaking fortress.
Insanely high walls of gray and brown stone rose high?into a clear blue sky unlittered by clouds. A set of huge wooden doors studded with what looked like iron bolts were closed in the center of the closest wall, while smaller, person-sized doors eut into the stone on each side.
Not a window in sight, but I did spy a few of what looked like window slits in the stone. A turret rose in each corner, each with a lookout window, but we were too far away for me to see if anyone was inside.
“Does a princess live here?” Stella asked in her sweet little voice.
“Well, my little love, we are going to live here, and you re my princess. So I guess a princess does live here.” I made sure to keep my voice cheerful, no hesitation or worry in it.
I got out to stand next to the SUV and stare up at the massive stone fortress. My heart pounded, but my spirits were lifting. I opened myself to the Moon Goddess, waiting for her comfort, and it entered me in what felt like rippling sparkles of silver.
“Love? You okay?” Zane slipped an arm around my waist and pulled me close. He kissed my temple.
I beamed at him. “This was the right choice. I can feel the Goddess moving through me.”
Zane’s smile looked a little wary. “Good to know.”
“You’re not convinced.” I faced him, my arms around his neck.
Gabriela was helping Mason get the twins out of the SUV while Xander and Greyson talked next to the truck he and Charlotte had arrived in. Zane looked over at them all, then at me. He smoothed the hair from my forehead and tipped my chin upward with one finger.
“I trust you. I love you. I believe in you, and our family,” Zane said. “You’ll have to forgive me if all of this is taking some time to work through.”
We’d all been through so much over the past year, but it occurred to me that Zane had endured the most. His deal with the witch still haunted him. He didn’t talk about it, but I sensed it in him during the small, quiet moments when he allowed his mind to dwell.
Now, we had left before he could know for sure what had happened.
And we obviously wouldn’t be reaching out to her to check in.
There wasn’t time to ask him about it now, but I made a mental note to keep in touch with him, his feelings, his needs. Zane must have felt my curious probe, because his head tilted as he smiled down at me.
“Luna, Luna, Luna,” he whispered. “How lucky I am to have you.”
“Lanie!” Charlotte called to me with a wave, and the moment between me and Zane dissipated.
Charlotte came closer and gestured toward the massive?stone walls. “We’ll go through those small doors, there. Someone will come and bring in the vehicles with our luggage. Are you ready? We really should get inside.”
“Are we in danger?” I asked, alarmed.
She hesitated, then shook her head. “I don’t know, but I think until we are convinced otherwise, you should consider that unless you are inside those walls, yes. You are all in danger.”
“From who? From what?” Zane asked quickly. “The High Council?”
Again, Charlotte hesitated before she sighed and looked to the sky. She looked past us, to the vast, empty Alaskan plains. Mountains rose in the distance, their peaks snow-capped, but the ground here was bare and brown. When she returned her gaze to ours, her expression was shadowed.
“Wolves are so insular, so isolated…so ignorant,” she added in a low voice. “The High Council did that to you all after the Great War, but it wasn’t always like that.
What I can tell you is that there are threats that have nothing to do with your small wolf world. But for now, let’s get you all inside.”
Lanie–
I had Stella by the hand as we walked throuun ith door into an enormous courtyard with the rest of our mily following.
Gabriela carried Isaac, and Zane held Alama Xander and Mason brought up the rear.
Although they didn’t say it aloud or even send them thoughts through the mind link, I knew it was because ey were flanking us in case some threat came up on us frontechidd The Moon Goddess moved inside and all around meslecting coinotney had nothing to worry about. I as glad for their alertness, though. My two Alphas were straboccoootesand ready to take on anything that e our me way Charlotte moved ahead, past us, with Greyson at her side:
She looked over her shoulder at me with a wide grin. I hadn’t knowwnerseridong, but it was the first time seen her look happy and genuinely at peace. Her satisfaction tobeo of herinromalbouises or energy that dn’t really mingle with mine…but I was glad to feel them.
Itd accepted this path because the Moon Goddess had comforted me but seeriga Ghadotte solat ease fereally cemented to me that we were all going to be all right..
wasn’t sure what I’d been expecting, but it wasn’t this. Lush gardens beneath aaroooorsskyn this more? I could hear the tinkling of a fountain but couldn’t see it. Birds chirpeddSoftigarssswasihned with ng stones making a few different paths leading to several separate area ss Obi Mara,it’s so pretty!” Stella tugged my hand toward one of the winding stone pathss her Toulon,sweetheart. Let’s just be patient, okay?” I shot Xander a look.
He seemed pressed as I was, but a swirling pulse of his Alpha energy reached the. Het vo in cose cornething went down Stelladdockddatt him Cooddy, it’s okay. This is a good place.”
He bent to scoopd her up and kissed her chubby unnm without Maan coronatus You promise mustle cheek. “Let’s just stick together, Stella. N
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?