Prolouge
In the shifter world, finding your mate is like winning fate’s lottery. Nothing can compare to it; it’s something everyone desires. When your mate is near, you’ll feel it. Your souls will reach for each other, and you’ll feel a pull towards them. Then, when you’re close enough, you’ll scent them, confirming it for sure. The final piece of the puzzle will be the touch: the sparks felt when your naked skin touch. Your inner animal will urge you to claim your mate, driven by a pure hunger, a need so primal it will eclipse every other desire.
You might find your mate walking down the street to buy milk. You might meet them walking in to the office or on holiday. To claim them, all you need is the most mind-blowing sex of your life. Bonding with them, on the other hand—accepting the bond between you and swearing to uphold it—can only be done under a blood moon. These occur twice a year. Not only is that the only time you can bond with your true mate, but it’s also the only time you can bond with a chosen one.
That’s why, for three days every six months, the shifter world comes together in remote areas around the globe. Shifters hope to find their mate, if they haven’t already, and prepare to bond with the one they have found. It’s three days of running wild in the forest; chaos is expected, and at least a dozen fights always break out. When the dust settles, things don’t always go as planned, and not everyone ends up bonded to the partner they intended. The blood moon has a mind of its own.
