PROLOGUE
LUSCIOUS POV
“Let us welcome Alpha Luscious and Luna Evangeline Parsley of the Shadow Pack!” the host announced, his voice momentarily drowned out by a wave of applause.
The room buzzed. After years of attending these functions solo, the sight of me with a female companion-a Luna-sent a ripple of shock through the ballroom. I could feel the Council’s eyes on us, their expressions a mix of genuine surprise and thinly veiled skepticism at my sudden change in status.
I straightened my posture, pulling Eva a little closer as her hand rested on my bicep. We were ushered toward the head table, where the elites and Alphas sat flanked by their own Lunas.
“I see you’ve finally found her!” an Alpha greeted us with a booming laugh as we took our seats. “The seat beside you has been empty far too long, Luscious.”
“That is not his mate,” the Luna of the Iris Pack interrupted. Her voice was cool, cutting through the friendly atmosphere like a blade. She leaned forward, her gaze raking over Eva with clinical precision. “She is the daughter of his Gamma, if I’m not mistaken.”
At her words, the table went silent. The smiles faded, replaced by contorted expressions of confusion and growing suspicion.
“She is my chosen Luna,” I stated, my voice dropping an octave to signal the conversation was closed.
“That’s-” Alpha Rigor started, but he was cut short by his Luna. She placed a restraining hand on his arm, offering us a thin, wary smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
We took our seats, the weight of a hundred gazes pressing against my back. Even with the ambient noise of the ballroom, the whispers from the neighboring tables drifted over us like toxic smoke.
“That’s against the laws of the Goddess, isn’t it?” a voice hissed.
“Perhaps. But look at his age? His mating is decades overdue. Technically, he has the right to choose.”
“An Alpha without a Luna is a liability, but still...”
“What about the girl? Does she not have a fated mate of her own?”
“Dead, or so I heard.”
“And his? Is she dead too?”
“I doubt it. He probably rejected her.”
“A pity.”
I gritted my teeth, the muscle in my jaw jumping. I had expected backlash for choosing my own Luna over a fated bond, but I hadn’t expected them to be this brazen, whispering as if we weren’t close enough to hear every word. I respected the laws of nature, the sanctity of the bond. But I refused to let my pack crumble or surrender my title simply because fate was taking its time. Eva might not be the one the Moon Goddess picked for me, but she was everything I needed. She’s strong, loyal, and capable. She was the perfect Luna to stand by my side.
A small, frail hand clamped over mine, grounding me. I looked over at Eva. She wasn’t shrinking away; instead, she gave me a steady smile of quiet assurance. I swallowed hard, forcing the tension out of my shoulders. It was a good thing I’d pushed Rage-my wolf-down into the depths of my mind before we arrived. If he were at the surface, he’d be tearing this table apart.
“It’s okay,” Eva whispered.
Her voice was soft, meant to be an anchor, but it failed to steady me. For a chosen mate, her words were just sounds; they lacked the magical pull, the spark, the electrical feeling, that divine pacification only a fated bond could provide. It was a privilege I had never known, a phantom limb I could still feel the absence of.
The people in this room would never understand-especially those lucky enough to have it all: the pack, the title, and the fated mate. They found their counterparts without the agony of loss or the hollow ache of waiting. I exhaled a long, heavy sigh and fixed my gaze on the stage, where the host continued to drone on, announcing the endless stream of Alphas and elites.
I shifted in my seat, the collar of my suit suddenly feeling like a noose. I reached up and popped the top button, my skin crawling with an agitation I couldn’t name. Deep inside, I felt a familiar buzz from my wolf, Rage. He was already awake. Though weak, he was on alert. Watching everything through my senses. It was as if I hadn’t knocked him back at all.
Something was wrong. For six decades, I had successfully suppressed my wolf through every mating season, fighting to keep my animal half from clawing its way to the surface. Being mateless was a slow rot; I couldn’t reach my full potential because Rage was always a heartbeat away from chaos. But this season, he was abnormally strong, pulsing with a restless energy that defied every pill I took. I need to see my physician, I thought grimly. The dosage isn’t enough anymore.
“...and the representatives of the Tribe of Elves-let us welcome Lennon Turipi and Roff Hank!”
The moment the name left the host’s lips, a violent shiver raced down my nape, exploding across my arms. I froze, startled by the sheer physical force of it. An invisible thread seemed to hook into my chest, pulling me toward something-someone.
My eyes scanned the room with predatory focus until they snagged on a figure standing near our table. A man. A beautiful, striking man stood in serious conversation with another Alpha. He was built with the lean strength of his kind, dressed in the unmistakable, intricate garments of the House of Elves.
The air in my lungs suddenly felt very, very thin.
‘Mate!’ Rage’s voice thundered, a deafening roar that vibrated against my skull.
“No fucking way,” I snarled under my breath, the words tasting like ash. A man? The Moon Goddess had to be joking. I couldn’t have a man as a mate. What kind of sick, twisted joke was this?
‘Mate...’Rage called out again, his tone shifting to one of pure, unadulterated delight. He was humming with an energy I hadn’t felt in decades, desperate to surge forward and claim what was ours.
He was shaking with excitement, and I was shaking with pure revulsion.
I gritted my teeth, my skin crawling at the contrast between my wolf’s joy and my own disgust. When the man felt my gaze and turned his head, I looked away instantly, tracking him only through my peripheral vision. I was itching to storm over there, to tell him how pathetic this entire setup was, and to end it before it truly began.
Then, he moved, slipping away from the crowd and heading toward the exit.
What, does he think I’m going to follow him like a lovesick pup? I thought bitterly. Fuck that.
“Where are you going?” Eva asked as I stood. Her grip on my arm tightened, and inside, Rage let out a low, dangerous hiss of distaste.
“Restroom,” I clipped out. She smirked, her eyes suggesting she thought I was off to find a more private way to celebrate our status. “No. I’ll be back shortly.”
I tracked him from a distance, following the strange scent of ozone and ancient forest into the quiet halls. He vanished around a corner, and I broke into a hurried pace. My nose led me toward the restroom corridors, but I stopped dead when I saw him.
He was stepping out of the ladies’ room, a woman following close behind him, both of them laughing. Rage burned with a sudden, sharp jealousy. Even weakened by the suppressants, my wolf was possessive.
’The fucker is a womanizer, too? ′ I sneered.
‘It’s your fault!’ Rage barked back. ‘You’re a womanizer, Luscious! Look at who is sitting at our table!’
‘Your mate is a MAN, Rage. We need a Luna,’ I reminded him, my thoughts cold.
He growled, a weak, flickering sound. It was a good thing I’d practically poisoned him with suppressants, or he’d have shifted right here and made the mistake of marking a male elf in a hallway. The idea makes me shiver.
‘A beautiful man!’ Rage bellowed.
‘Since when did a man become beautiful?’ I thought, my lip curling. ‘Disgusting little shit.’
The two of them noticed me and halted. I stared at him, searching for any spark of romance, any flicker of attraction. I felt nothing but a hollow, cold weight and yet, the bond... it was a physical force. It was so potent it nearly brought me to my knees.
But my pride was stronger than the magic. 'I couldn’t-I wouldn’t-accept this. Never.
The girl glanced between us-noticed our eyes glued to each other-bowed quickly and scurried away. While the man continued to stare at me. I could see it in his eyes; he felt the pull, too. His expression was one of dawning elation, a soft hope that made my stomach turn.
“What’s your name?” I asked, my voice betraying me with a slight tremor.
“G-ge-Lennon. Lennon Turipi.” His voice should have sounded like a siren’s call to me, but instead, it was just soft-infuriatingly soft for a man of his stature.
I ground my teeth together. In the back of my mind, Rage was clawing at his cage, begging, screaming at me not to do it. But my mind was made up. I wouldn’t be the Alpha who brought another male home instead of a woman as Luna. At least this makes everything easier for me.
“I, Luscious Knight, Alpha of the Shadow Pack,” I began, my voice cold as the grave, “reject you, Lennon Turipi, as my mate and as the Luna of my pack.”
I3mmads
