Angel thought aloud, rolling her eyes and cursing herself for even thinking of such things now.
Back then she had laughed aloud at Reebah's excitement, her heart hammering with childish hope at the thought that one day she would practically be a queen, married to the alphaand having his cubs, furthering their pack and ensuring that everyone was safe and cared for.“Now look at me.”
Talking to herself had become a habit for Angel. After all, she rarely had anybody else to talk to and sometimes she felt as though if she didn’t, she might lose the ability to talk at all. Holding back angry and frustrated tears, Angel turned onto her side and closed her eyes, attempting one final time to get to sleep before she realized that it wasn’t going to be possible.Whenever she closed her eyes all she could see was Layon, his grey eyes glaring at her from the doorway of the storeroom. He was handsome and alluring in an unnerving sort of way and even though she had been about ready to claw his face off then, now all she could think about was how she longed for things to have been different between them.
“Why was I such a bitch to him?”she asked herself, cringing at the reminder of the fact that had been exactly what he had called her right before he stormed out of the room. Determined not to think about him or any of it any longer, Angel finally gave up trying to sleep and glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table. It was almost five in the morning. She had been in bed for almost two hours and yet she felt as though she was never going to be able to drop off.
Knowing that she would have to be up in an hour for university, she decided it was better to go through the day entirely sleepless rather than drowsy after only forty-five minutes, if she was even lucky enough to get that.Stumbling from her bed that creaked and felt threateningly close to breaking, she dressed in her usual running attire of black yoga pants, sports bra, and tank top and shoved her feet into her Nike trainers before wandering half asleep from the apartment block. Perhaps a jog would clear her head.Besides, she ran every morning before university, as it appeared to be the only thing that kept her wolf at bay. Being the lowest member of the Alpha pack she often ran under the radar, but she was certain that the moment she shifted somebody would know about it and it wasn’t exactly accepted, even in the locked community of Alpha where only the supernatural lived, safe from the humans who had found out about their existence only ten years earlier.The only place safe to shift without fear of being accused of being unruly or causing trouble was within the boundaries of the Alpha Manor estate, and Angel rarely dared set foot there unless it was commanded that the whole pack must attend some ritual or ceremony or other.
Trying not to think of how shitty her life was, Angel began to run in the direction of the only other woodland in the locked community that just so happened to be at the very end of her street. It also happened to be her favorite place in the whole world, the only place she had managed to find any peace amongst the trees and sitting beneath her favorite willow tree beside the small lake, where the water sprites sometimes played and splashed her with water on a hot summer’s day.The sprites weren’t judgmental. They barely managed to communicate with her, and Angel doubted if they even knew that she was a social pariah. It was the lake that she had just reached when she realized that she sensed something, something that told her she wasn’t alone. It began as a burning sensation between her shoulder blades as if she was being watched,
but as she slowed her pace, she realized she could hear the sound of footsteps coming from behind her. Tensing her shoulders and keeping to a slower pace, she listened, determined not to turn around until she was absolutely sure shewasn’t being a total idiot.When she could take the feeling no longer, she whipped around as fast as she could, allowing her eyes to flash amber as she warned,“I know you are there! Show yourself or I’ll tear you to shreds.”
Being a werewolf, even a female one, she knew exactly how to take care of herself, and as a traitor’s daughter she’d certainly had enoughexperience at it, especially in the early days when the other pack members had been more physical about putting her in her place.There was no response save for the sound of the footsteps pausing, only to be replaced by the sound of a heart beating somewhere in the trees. Scanning them with her keen eyes, she tried her hardest to pick up movement, but there was none. Still, she could hear the heart beating.“I know you are there! Come out!”
She yelled. It was then that she heard the sound of groaning coming from the bushes beside her and she jumped, stumbling backward and away from them even as they began to rustle on the opposite side of a small ditch. Hackles rising and wolf clawing at her insides, Angel allowed her fangs and teeth to begin to protrude. Just because she couldn’t fully shift into her wolf didn’t mean she couldn’t use her to protect herself.
“Would you keep your voice down? Some of us are trying to sleep,”
came an oddly familiar voice, and a moment later a very tall and very naked Layon appeared from the rustling bushes holding his head as though he was struggling with a major hangover.Biting back embarrassed laughter, Angel quickly averted her eyes. Though it was not the first time she had seen a naked werewolf in human form before, it was definitely the first time she had seen Layon that way. It took her only a glimpse to know that he was a finer specimen than she had ever seen, well-endowed and muscular from head to toe, standing at well over six feet. He towered over her in all his naked glory even with so many feet between them.“Did you seriously sleep in the bushes?”Angel asked, raising a brow even though she knew he wouldn’t see her face with how she had turned away. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him shrug.“Everything is a blur after my father’s scolding last night,”he admitted, his voice pained as though he was feeling the after-effects of all the alcohol he had consumed. Angel knew it must have been a lot to take down a werewolf of his size.“I snuck back out to meet up with the boys again and then…well, it’s blank. Though I could have sworn Jason was out here with me.”
Angel tensed at the mention of Layon’s second. Remembering how he had commented on her being hot the night before, she suddenly began to feel sick, wondering if perhaps he had been the one stalking her just now.All too late she realized that her response had been physical, and Layon asked,“Hey, are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” she said in an all too clipped tone.“Look, I’m not here for another argument…”he began. Feeling angry with herself for making him feel bad all over again, and remembering how they had left things the night before, Angel took a deep breath and quickly interrupted him.“I’m sorry. I’m just a little riled up. I could have sworn someone was following me.”
Even as she said the words, she glanced over her shoulder and into the trees. In an instant Layon propelled himself over the ditch, rushing toward her like a protective slab of pure muscle. All too late Angel realized just how close and utterly naked he was, and yet he seemed entirely unconcerned with it, his entire body tensed, ready to spring to her defense. She barely managed to stifle an eye roll. Alpha males.They remained there for several moments, both listening, though Angel found it exceedingly hard as she felt him standing right behind her, just inches away from touching her. She was cast in his shadow, only able to scent his musky and masculine odor. All she could hear was his heart beating as he growled out a warning to whomever might be in the trees watching them.When, finally, he began to ease off a little, he suggested,“Come on. I’ll take you home.”“Do you think that perhaps you could put some clothes on first?”Angel’s cheeks reddened the instant he skirted around her. He eyed her closely and his grey gaze flashed with amusement as he asked,“What’s wrong, Angel? Has my glorious body got you feeling all hot and bothered?”
A challenging and almost seductive growl erupted from his throat and she instinctively lashed out with a hand, forcing her palm against his chest to push him away from her. The moment she did, she regretted it. The heat ofh him, the spark that erupted between their flesh, made her head spin.“Just get dressed, would you?”she scowled back at him, quickly yanking her hand away, careful not to touch him again.
“Who’s the alpha here, Angel?”“Neither of us,” Angel pointed out with a mischievous grin.After the strange morning he'd had, waking up by the lake to a screaming Angel , Layon almost didn't bother heading into university. He would have much preferred to stay in bed and sleep off what remained of his hangover but as a son of Alpha's founding family, appearances were everything and so instead, he found himself shoving his things into his locker.He heard Jason and a few of the other guys coming from a mile away but didn't bother to acknowledge them until Jason clapped a hand on his shoulder and asked, "Hey man, where did you get to last night? The last thing I remember is meeting you for a late-night shift through the woods."Layon cringed at that and slammed his locker shut before responding,"The woods is exactly where I woke up this morning."The feminine chuckle that erupted the moment he finished his sentence certainly didn't come from Jason or one of the other guys, and so Layon found himself glancing across the hall. Though she had had back to him, Layon could te
The resident on-again-off-again so-called couple of Silverdale University were unbearable to stomach at the best of times, but today Angel was feeling exceptionally sensitive and so she ducked into the nearest restroom with the intention of giving herself a moment to breathe. What she didn’t intend was to find somebody crying inside. Cringing at how loudly she had entered the restroom, she thought for a moment of turning right back around and heading out again. Maybe whoever was having a full-on snot session inside the farthest stall wouldn’t hear them come in over their own crying. Yet the moment the door clicked shut behind Angel, the crying stopped. She held her breath, waiting, listening. “Who’s there?” the voice sounded almost immediately, breaking up on a sniffle before it came again, “Angel, is that you?” Angel cringed all over again. Why did it have to be a werewolf? Super hearing, super sense of smell, always alert even when sobbing their heart out. Yet Angel’s own hea
Training didn't go well. After having bumped into Angel on his way to the men's restroom, he found he couldn't get her off his mind. It was almostimpossible to concentrate and he found that Jason was able to put him on his ass way too many times, more than he'd have cared to admit."Hey man, what's going on?" Jason demanded even as he helped Layon back to his feet for the hundredth time, slapping him on the back in an attempt to dust him off. Layon quickly shook his head and swiped blood fromhis nose where Jason had caught him with a nasty right hook. "Don't tell me it's nothing because I've only ever put you on your ass a handful of times before today and now we're at a dozen!"Layon gritted his teeth in order to stop himself from snapping at his second. It's not his fault I'm off my game, he quickly reminded himself, it'shers."I'm sorry. There's something I've gotta do," Layon said, and with that he darted from the training field, dodging past the runners who were racing t
She wasn't sure how long she lay there in the cocooned sanctuary of the willow tree branches, but the truth was it didn't really matter. Nobodycared about the traitor's daughter enough to come looking for her and make sure she wasn't skipping out on class. So long as she kept up her work and her grades and turned up for the exams, nobody cared.And so she tried not to think of anything, not university or work or even all that had happened that morning. Instead, she merely lay there against the tree trunk where the moss grew thickest. She closed her eyes and breatheddeeply the scents of the tree, the lake, the wildflowers. Nothing could calm her like this place did.Yet it seemed today that it wouldn't remain that way for long. The sound of footsteps approaching caused Angel to sit bolt upright. The sprites who had been dancing about the surface of the lake, zipping through thetrailing willow branches and sometimes Layoning sprays of water at her, now hurried away as though the n
For just a few moments, Layon allowed himself to believe that this was how things were meant to be. Lying in the moss with Angel snuggled upagainst his chest, his arm wrapped affectionately around her, he could almostbelieve he was right where he was meant to be. With eyes closed, he imagined what their lives might have been like if her father hadn't tried to kill his. Reebah had been adamant right up until then that he and Angel would eventually lead their pack. And although Layon had laughed at his sister, too full of male bravado to admit that she might be right, he had imagined it multiple times. Now it seemed closer than ever, and yet the possibility couldn't have been further away. If he were even caught like this with her now, his acceptance into the alpha challenges might be revoked. Although his father was the current alpha, he couldn't imagine that would hold enoughweight if all the senior members of the pack learned he had been fraternizing with the traitor's daughte
Three days. That was how long it had been since Angel had seen Layon since they had slept together beneath the hanging branches of the willow tree with the sprites frolicking just beyond the bank. Though she hadn't picked up on them at the time, she remembered them now, creating magical music with their feet upon the lake's surface as Layon made love to her. Urgh, Angel! Stop it! she snarled at herself as she sat in the back of a lecture hall, tapping her notepad absentmindedly with her pen. It was increasingly difficult to concentrate on university or work or anything else for that matter when all Angel could do was think of him. And the worst thing was, he hadn't even bothered to call her. She did her best to remember that it likely had more to do with the fact that his sister was still missing and far less to do with her or her performance, but with each passing day, it was growing more and more difficult not to read into it. Her need to speak to him and her desire to make sens
"This place is disgusting," Jason grumbled even as they walked down the high street of the human town nearest to Silverdale's locked community. It was just like any other human community in the world, at least those Layon had experienced in his relatively short supernatural life. On the surface, it was quite pretty, with its mixture of old and new architecture, but beneath that surface, there was a place stinging with crime and pain, and the foul human stench rotted in the air. Though Layon didn't hold the same utter disdain for humans as many of his pack members did, he had to admit that even he was finding the stench of so many of them in close proximity hard to handle. "No wonder most supernaturals only see them as prey," Jason continued, "though I've yet to find one that smells good enough to eat." Even as he spoke those last few words, he flashed his fangs and allowed his eyes to spark amber in the direction of a passing human, who sidestepped so quickly that they almost
Two more days had passed and Angel found herself growing angrier and more frustrated by the hour. There had been no word from Layon, not even a text to let her know he'd gotten her voicemail and that he'd call her when he got the chance. Standing in the corridor close to the hall where she'd had her last lecture of the day, Angel found herself checking her cell phone for the hundredth time that day. And again she thought of giving him another call. Part of her, especially her wolf, wanted to call and call and call until she finally annoyed him enough to pick up. Yet she was even angrier with herself for being so desperate and so with even more growing frustration, she shoved her phone aggressively back into her pocket. Just as she was about to turn and head down the corridor in the direction of the front of the school, headed for home, she heard a commotion coming from around the corner. Hackles rising instantly at the sound of rushing feet headed toward her, she braced herself inst