Alanis POV
The night of the celebration is here. I am nervous about tonight. Maybe not as worried as Julian. She seems worked up about the arrival of her ex-boyfriend. Julian seems to like her solidarity. She always says I deserve happiness, but she does not realize she deserves the same joy she wants others to have in life.
I wash my hair and wrap it in a towel. I wait for Julian to come help with my hair. She has my makeup and hair all planned out for me. I think she enjoys this much more than I do. Anytime I let her fix my hair, it brings her some sort of happiness. I do miss my long hair, but Julian can always make it look gorgeous. I am positive she will have me looking exceptionally beautiful tonight.
"Are you ready for me?" she asks, standing at my bedroom door, smiling and anxious.
"I am as ready as I will ever be," I answer her.
She removes the towel from my head and goes to work on my hair. She smiles as she works on my hair. I watch her, not a hair out of place, and her makeup is perfect. Julian is a beautiful warrior. I bet she would wear high-heeled boots onto the battlefield. The thought makes me laugh. She looks at me, puzzled.
"I am sorry. I was imagining you kicking someone's ass in high heels and not a hair out of place," I say. This remark makes Julian laugh too.
"You best believe it. I bet you could, too," Julian says.
I look in the mirror at my hair. It is perfect. Julian did a fantastic job. She begins to work on my makeup. I have never worn much makeup, and I do not want to wear a lot tonight. For one, it is still hot outside. For two, I like a more natural look.
"Not too much. I do not like a lot of makeup, remember," I remind her.
"I know. I promise not to paint you up too much," Julian says.
She puts the perfect amount of makeup on me. I look normal. No, I look beautiful. Now, for the dress. Julian helps me into my purple lace dress. The dress falls just off my shoulders and comes just below my knees. I look at myself in the mirror, and I cannot believe it is me.
"Don't cry, please. I do not want to cry. I am older, and I will get all puffy, and I do not have time to deal with that tonight. You look beautiful, Alanis," Julian says. She is not that much older than me. The thought of her have puffy eyes is almost comical.
"I look... I look like a normal person," I say.
"You look like a beautiful young woman, Alanis. I cannot wait for Alpha Sebastian to see you in this dress," Julian says.
"Do you think he... I mean, do you think Alpha Sebastian will like it?" I ask her.
Julian looks me over. "If he does not, then you might get to see me kick someone's ass in high heels tonight," Julian says.
We both laugh as I slip into my shoes. I am ready for the night with Alpha Sebastian and meeting the rest of the pack. I only hope they do not think of me as the girl in the cage. I am Alanis, not a sideshow. I do not want to be treated differently or pitied.
"I need to slip into my dress, and I hear someone at the door. Can you check to see who it is for me?" Julian says as she goes to her room to finish getting ready.
I walk to the front of the house carefully to see who the visitor is at the front door. Alpha Sebastian would not be knocking, and I cannot remember a time when anyone has come by, at least not since I have been here.
I open the door to see a tall wolf with long, blonde hair. "Hello," I say meekly.
"Hi, Alanis, I presume," the tall wolf says.
"Yes, I am Alanis," I answer him.
The tall wolf steps toward the door, and I back up. He startles me for a moment. "Sorry, I am Joshua," he says and extends his hand. I shake his hand.
"Come in. Julian will be out in a second," I say. Something about him looks familiar, but I cannot place him. I wonder if he knew my parents or something. I know I have seen him before; I just cannot remember where or why.
I leave Joshua in the living room and walk back to Julian's room. "Julian, you have a visitor," I say, slightly giddy.
She looks at me in a motherly fashion. I straighten myself like I just got in trouble for talking out of turn. "Joshua is here for you," I say.
Julian immediately looks at herself in the mirror. Miss perfect is suddenly worried about how she looks. Not a hair out of place and looking drop-dead gorgeous, she has nothing to worry about whatsoever.
"You look perfect," I say to her, trying to reassure her.
"I will tell you, but no one else. I am so nervous about seeing him tonight. It has been so long since we were together. How does he look?" Julian asks.
"He looks yummy," I answer her with a smile and a small laugh.
Julian drops her head. "I was afraid of that. Everything is fine. We are old friends. The fact we were engaged means nothing. He is just an old friend that has come to my brother's celebration. I will be fine," Julian says.
"I am supposed to be the nervous one. Calm down; you are making me nervous," I remind her.
"Right, forgive me. I am a bucket of nerves about seeing Joshua after all these years," Julian says. She takes a deep breath. It is strange to see someone who is made of steel so nervous about another wolf.
I hear someone come into the house, and then I hear Alpha Sebastian talking. "Now I am nervous," I tell her.
"You will be fine; we both will be fine. Let us have fun. We can drink some wine, eat some great food, and dance, okay," Julian says, trying to comfort herself and me at the same time.
"Sounds perfect," I say to her. The truth is I am nervous too, but seeing her tense somehow makes me feel better.
Julian walks out of the bedroom in front of me. I walk slowly behind her. Then it is strange; when I see Alpha Sebastian, it is as if time stops and there is no one in the room but him and me. I feel this strange feeling for the first time when I see him. I think he feels it too. He looks at me and rushes to me. It is like we are the only two people in the room. He pulls me to him and kisses me. My body is on fire, and I feel like I belong to him and only to him.
"You are my mate," Alpha Sebastian whispers to me as he pulls me into him and holds me close to him. Could I be his mate? Is this what I am feeling?
I hear the front door close. Julian and Joshua left us to talk. Alpha Sebastian lets go of me just enough to cradle my face in his hand as he looks into my eye. I gaze into his eyes, and I feel such a ball of electricity between us.
"I knew there was something special about you, but now I know what it is; we belong together, Alanis," Alpha Sebastian says.
Alpha Sebastian leans down and kisses me again. His lips on me feel like an electrical current rushing through my body. It feels heavenly. "I never want this feeling to stop," I say when he pulls back from kissing me.
"It never will, my love," Alpha Sebastian says.
His hand is resting on my back, holding me so close to him as he kisses me again. The electrical pull between us feels like fire. I suddenly realize I am breathing heavy and cannot think of anything except being close to him. His image, his heart, everything about him fills my mind and my body. I am his, and he is mine. MATES!
Alpha SebastianSomething about seeing Alanis tonight, everything changed in an instant. I have enjoyed all the time I have spent with her since she has been here, but I thought I was only helping her. I never realized what was happening. How could I not have known that my mate was standing before me? Was I blind to it?The moment I saw her tonight standing there in that purple dress, it triggered something inside me, and I knew right then and there that she was my one and only mate. She is the one for me to live out my days and embark on this journey of life. She is my mate, and I will make her happy, whatever it takes.I could not help myself; I had to take her in my arms immediately and kiss her. I needed to feel her lips and touch her. I need her with me always. After tonight, I cannot be away from her. Just the thought of her not being close to me is more than I can take. I have no idea how to convince her to be min
Alanis POVAlpha Sebastian takes my hand, and we begin the walk to Julian's house. I feel oddly at ease with him. He does not talk so much as we walk back to the house. It is like we are in a moment; something remarkable seems to be happening between us. I think about all of the smiles and laughs we have had over the time I have been here. Was all leading to this moment? A moment of pure joy for the two of us.Alpha Sebastian stops suddenly. I turn to him to see what is the matter. Did I do something wrong? He looks back at his house. "Stay the night with me. I promise to be a gentleman," Alpha Sebastian says.My hands begin to shake at the thought of being all alone with him. He takes my hands and holds them tightly. "I would never hurt you, Alanis, or expect anything from you," he says softly."I know that. The packhouse is loud, and there are a lot of wolves there. I do not want to be there even w
Alpha Sebastian POVI awake in the morning with Alanis lying beside me in a deep sleep. She looks so peaceful. I run my fingers through her hair and kiss her softly on the cheek. I feel like last night was a breakthrough for her. She was able to release her pain. I know that it is not over, but I feel like so much progress was made with simply letting her know that I am here for her and want to help her heal. I want her to heal and be able to have a relationship with me in every way as mates, husband and wife, together.Since she came here, I have tried to be someone she can lean on, but now that we know we are destined to be together, I feel like she trusts me more. I want to give her everything, a good life full of love. I know things will not be perfect, but I want her to feel my love for her. I want to give her family and home. This pack, my pack, can help her heal completely. I can heal her heal and be herself again.
Alanis POVI open my eyes, and I am alone. Alpha Sebastian is not here. I get out of his bed slowly. I feel like last night was a dream. Being with him makes me happy. I walk through the kitchen looking for him, but he is not in the house. I wonder where he went without telling me. Well, he is the Alpha; he does not have to tell me anything.I notice a man who I think is Raul standing outside the front door. Why do I have a guard? Did something happen? I hear some talking and see Alpha Sebastian out on the front porch. I am waiting for him. I do not want to go out, and I only have on his shirt. It would not be appropriate for me to go out like this.I watch him from the kitchen talking to Raul. He finally comes into the house to speak with me. I wrap my arms around him and realize immediately that something is wrong. "What is it? What is going on?" I ask him.Alpha Sebastian hesitates. I can te
Alpha Sebastian POVI take one of my guards, Jamie, and leave to talk with Joshua. I have so many questions. For one, I want to know how in the hell he knew about Alanis and her taking refuge with my pack. I want to know why and how he ended up with Alpha Jordon's pack. I want to know why this son of a bitch thought he could attack my sister and take Alanis from me? Did he really think he could just stroll in here and take her without any repercussions?I get into the truck with Jamie. Raul is staying behind with the other guards to keep an eye on Alanis and Julian. I hope Julian behaves herself. She can be a pistol when she thinks she is not in charge. She has never challenged my authority, but she will let me know how she feels about a situation, especially if she feels like she is losing her independence.Jamie drives me to the pack jail to speak with Joshua. The questions are burning in my brain, and I am trying to r
Alanis POVAlpha Sebastian holds me tightly as I work through the emotions of someone thinking they own me. I know I belong with Sebastian. I can feel it in our touch, our kiss; just being in his presence makes me feel whole. Sebastian is my mate, and I do love him."Are you sure this is what you want? You have a choice, and you know that, right? You can say no. I will not be angry with you if you refuse me right now. We can wait until you are ready to marry," Alpha Sebastian questions me.I hold him tighter and then look up to him. "I do want to marry you; I only thought we would have a little more time to get to know one another; that is all," I say meekly.The thought of taking such a big step like marrying the Alpha should not be made so quickly. We have spent a lot of time together, but do I know him well enough to be his wife? He is so patient with me and kind that I think he will allow me time
Alpha SebastianI take Liam and a few guards with me, leaving Julian and Alanis in the hands of some of my most trusted wolves. I know Julian can defend herself, but I worry about Alanis. The men with them will protect them and look after them, but I still do not want to leave either of them for very long.Liam drives to the pack jail where Alpha Jordon is waiting for me with his wolves. Liam looks nervous. He has come for Joshua and Alanis. Alpha Jordon thinks he can walk into my territory and bark orders he has another thing coming to him. He will not be taking my wife or that asshole, Joshua. Joshua has to pay for what he did, and I want to make sure of it personally.Liam looks more nervous as he drives. He always looks worried, but he seems exceptionally uneasy right now. I do not have time to babysit young wolves today. I need Liam on his game."What happened when Jordon showed up at the
Alanis POVAlpha Sebastian kisses me gently and tells me to wait in the car with Julian. I walk away feeling safe as he handles business at the pack jail. I do not think Alpha Jordon would be stupid enough to come back for me right away. I know Julian and Alpha Sebastian will make sure Alpha Jordon and his wolves pay for everything they have done.The one thing that puzzles me the most is why his wolves would turn on him. Alpha Sebastian treats his pack well and with a lot of respect. They all seem to love him. None of this makes any sense."What is going through your mind?" Julian asks me as we sit in the car waiting for Alpha Sebastian to return so we can go home.I turn to her. "Why would they turn on Sebastian?" I ask.Julian lets out a huge puff of air in frustration. "Sometimes wolves feel like they are treated unfairly even when they are treated well. Maybe they felt like