Prologue - London
“You will stay here as long as you need, London. You are now family.” Princess Sonni hugged me close and smiled at the tiny bundle in my arms.
Looking around the guest room inside Princess Sonni’s house, I cried softly. The sitting area had been converted to a nursery for my son. They created a safe place for my son. The past four months have taught me a lot more than I ever learned in my old pack.
My father, Alpha Robert, was never a warm, fuzzy father. He only saw a female as valuable if she could be used to further his agenda. For my sister, Dallas, and me, that meant arranged matings. While Dallas is twenty-one and above the legal age to be mated, I was only seventeen.
Yes, I was seventeen with a newborn pup to care for. While growing up, I resented my older sister. She was smart, strong, and independent. I was none of those things. I relied on my mother, Luna Vikki, to make things easier for me. I didn’t study in school; I was the popular one, the alpha’s daughter.
I was also the one willing to climb into the backseat with anyone who told me I was beautiful and promised me a future away from my father. That is how I became involved with Jeremy Lang. He was only an omega in the pack, older than me by five years, and the assistant manager of the pack’s grocery store.
Dallas warned me about him. Not because he was an omega and I was the alpha’s daughter, but because Jeremy was apparently planting his flag throughout the pack. I hadn’t listened to her. I had called her names and made fun of her. Dallas was breathtaking with dark auburn hair, classic features, and wide hazel eyes. She also had curves that made me so damn jealous.
By the time I realized I was pregnant, I was seventeen, flunking out of school, and a liability to my father. He had arranged a mating between Dallas and Alpha Thorne of the Blood Moon Pack. When he found out I was pregnant, he changed the contract and offered me to Alpha Thorne.
Did I mention I am only seventeen?
Dallas and I fled the pack before Alpha Thorne could show up and claim me. We made it to the Blue Stone Pack, where Dallas’ boss, Alpha Smoke, lived with his mate and her other mates. That was one weird situation, but it all seemed to work. I actually envied Princess Sonn because she was so cherished by her mates.
While settling into the new pack, Dallas discovered not just one mate, but three. She also found out that we are only half-sisters. We have the same father, but different mothers. Dallas’ mom was the Alpha King’s sister. My perfect sister was also the niece of our Alpha King. I resented her so much and fled back to the Diamond Moon Pack. I couldn’t live in her shadow.
Now, I was back in the Blue Stone Pack after my mother tried to enforce the mating contract with Alpha Thorne. The stress of everything caused me to go into labor early, and when Felix was born, I feared I would have nowhere to go. He was tiny, fragile, and totally dependent upon me. I wasn’t ready to be a mom. I knew we would be turned out and have to become rogues.
I was wrong. Alpha Smoke and Princess Sonni, or technically Luna Sonni, along with the pack alpha, Alpha Griffin, made a special place for me. Now, I stood holding my infant son, wondering if life would ever become normal again.
“Give me that baby, London, and you can get some rest. It was a long trip, and I am sure you are exhausted.” Princess Sonni held out her arms, and I handed my pup over to her.
“Thank you, Your Highness,” I murmured softly.
“Nope. If you call me Your Highness or Princess or even Luna, you will be out on your ear. You are family; therefore, I am just Sonni or Sonnet.”
I had to smile at this breathtaking royal. She may be a shifter, but she spent so many years in the human world that she calls our pups babies, children, or kids. She hated titles and actually seemed very offended when someone used her official titles.
When I am near her, my wolf, Fern, is so calm and settled. It surprises me because Fern has been with me for three years, and she is a bit manic. That wolf can drive me up a wall with her pacing and constant chatter. She hated Jeremy. Hell, she hated my father and my mother. She adores Dallas and is even accepting of Clarke, Levi, and Tyler, her mates.
I shook my head as Sonni walked out of the room with my pup. I trusted her fully with Felix. She was a mother with too many pups to count, so she knew her way around a newborn. I was grateful for a few minutes to myself. Glancing around the room, I pushed my tears back.
When I found out I was pregnant, I was terrified but also hopeful that Jeremy would step up and do the right thing. Instead, the slimeball worked with my parents and Alpha Thorne to get me back to the Diamond Moon Pack. Jeremy may be an omega, but he was also an asshole. He told me to “get rid of it” when I told him about the pup.
I had been horrified. Then, I was just pissed. Dallas found her first fated mate, and he was also an omega, but he was nothing like Jeremy. Clarke was sweet, caring, affectionate, and honorable. Why did she get the good one, and I got Jeremy?
“Jeremy wasn’t your fated mate, and I warned you about him several times. You just chose not to listen to me. He has a dark soul, and his wolf was even sleazier.” Fern snarled in my head.
It is true. She did warn me about Jeremy. But he was exciting and called me beautiful and told me we would have a future together. I looked at him, and I saw someone who wanted me and never looked at Dallas first.
After my nap, I went to find my pup. He was snuggled against Tucker Matthews’ chest. Tucker is a dragon shifter and one of Sonni’s mates. He is an intimidating guy, and seeing him snuggling my tiny five-pound son did something to me.
Tucker smiled when he saw me. “He was fussing a minute ago and gnawing on his hand, so he may be ready for dinner.”
It really didn’t take long to settle into the Blue Stone Pack and feel like I belonged. The only problem was I needed an income. I couldn’t live off of pack charity forever. Dallas had mentioned that Wynter Warrior, the future luna of the Blood Warrior Pack, had opened a bakery. I loved cooking and baking but wasn’t formally trained.
Pushing the thought of asking about any job openings aside, I looked through the job boards for Blue Stone, Blood Warrior, and Blue Rose. One listing kept jumping out at me. A baking assistant at August Legend. The name alone screamed high-end, and I cringed when the listing said five years of baking experience was preferred.
I didn’t have anything to lose, so I filled out the online application and hit submit. My expectations were pretty low. I was certain my application would go into the virtual trash can, and I would have to keep looking. Imagine my shock when I received an email the following day requesting an interview.
Nerves almost did me in, and I picked up my phone four times to cancel the interview. Alex, another of Sonni’s mates, watched me as I paced the kitchen waiting for the pecan shortbread cookies to finish baking. Those were Sonni’s favorites, and I wanted to do something for her since she was letting me live in her house.
“You know, London, I have tasted your baked goods. There is only one other baker I know who can bake better than you. But that is only because Wynter has more experience. I literally ate four cinnamon rolls this morning. I couldn’t stop; they were that good.”
I blushed. “Thank you, Alex. I had wondered where all the cinnamon rolls went. I made forty of them.’
“The pups each enjoyed one; I had four, Smoke had two, Tucker and Cassian each had three. Griffin hid one in his office, and Sonni took one to Blanche. The others fought over the rest. Next time, you may want to make sixty or seventy.”
It was a good thing Sonni was a billionaire. I’m pretty sure they would all starve otherwise! I was glad Blanche got a cinnamon roll, though. She was the office manager at SmokeShield Cyber - Smoke and Sonni’s cybersecurity company. Blanche was a little odd, but very nice.
Stepping into August Legend, my mouth dropped open. It was warm and inviting. Nothing like what I had imagined. There were big windows in the front to let natural light in, bistro tables set up under soft lighting, three huge display cases filled with treats of all kinds, and Wynter Warrior standing behind the register chatting with Storm St. Claire.
Storm was the future beta female of the Blood Warrior Pack. She was also a dancer and an artist, gorgeous, curvy, and, from what Sonni said, sometimes wildly inappropriate. Wynter looked up and smiled.
“You must be London.”
I nodded, then remembered I was supposed to speak. “Yes. Hello. I’m a little early.”
“No problem. Come on back, and we will get started.” Wynter opened the little door leading behind the counter.
Once Storm left, Wynter led me to the kitchen. It was huge, with industrial ovens, stainless steel workstations, and stacks of ingredients. My eyes took everything in, and I smiled. This was where I wanted to be.
“Okay. Let’s see what you can do. I have some paperwork to do, so I want you to make me four things. One cake, one pie, one pastry, and one anything you want that you think will impress me.”
I blinked. She was turning me loose in her kitchen?
After four hours, I had created a simple but elegant double chocolate cake with cookies and cream filling, a cinnamon apple pie with a buttery, flaky crust, a blueberry lemon tart, and the cinnamon rolls that always seem to disappear at home.
Wynter came out and tasted everything. She grinned at me. “Can you start tomorrow morning at five?”
My mouth dropped open. “Really?”
Excitement slammed through me, but then I remembered. I’m a single mom. I had to figure out daycare for Felix.
“Um. Wynter. I have a young pup. I have to line up daycare.”
“That is not a problem, London.” She led me to a small room beside the office. “Sometimes, my own pups have to come with me. Your little one can come, too.”
