Chapter 1: Lily

“Hey Lils.” My bestie, Calista, says walking up to me as we meet on the road before heading to school. We're in the last half of our senior year.

“Morning Cali.”

Calista and I have grown up next door to each other. We’re the same age and while we may not always be in the same classes, we’ve always gone to the same schools, done our homework together and have literally been best friends our entire lives. We were born a month apart and our parents babysat for each other and put us in the same afterschool activities through our younger years. Thankfully, we liked each other right away. Otherwise, it would have been miserable.

“How was training?” She asks me. The one thing we haven’t done together since she was able to be excluded two years ago. Where I want to be a kickass warrior, Calista is a more gentle soul. She completed the required five years of training but was able to back out after that.

“I got Lucas today.” I tell her beaming.

“You took him down?” Her eyes widen in disbelief.

“Yep, pinned him until he tapped out.” I’m practically bouncing on the balls of my feet. Lucas is set to be our next Lead Warrior and for me to beat him is a huge feather in my cap.

“Lily, that’s amazing! I’m so proud of you!”

“Thanks Cali.”

As we walk, I hear a car coming up behind us. We move to step out of the way, when the car slows down and the window rolls down. Alpha heir Anders looks over at us, Clint in the passenger seat smirking at us.

“Good morning, ladies. Want a ride?”

Cali has stiffened next to me. Anders has been pursuing her for a couple weeks now. Ever since the day he walked up to her and asked her out on a date. His face was priceless when she turned him down flat. You could tell no one ever said no to our future Alpha. Neither one of us understands why he’s suddenly interested. He never showed any interest in her before. It’s almost like he’s enjoying the chase and it’s making him more determined to catch her.

“Good morning, Alpha. Good morning, Guardian. Thank you, we’re good.” I reply for both of us.

“What about you Cali?” Anders ignores me and asks Calista.

She gives him her best fake smile, making sure he knows it’s fake. “As Lily said, we’re good, thank you.”

Clint leans over the arm rest. “Nice job today, Lily.”

“Thank you, Guardian.”

“Clint. Call me Clint, Lily.”

I look at him, but don’t say anything. Other than when we’re at training, Clint has never bothered to speak to me. He’s always too busy chatting with the bevy of women that constantly surround both him and Anders. If it weren’t for training, I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t even realize that we’re in the same pack. That is, until Anders set his sights on Cali. Wherever Anders goes, so does Clint, and Cali and I have always been attached at the hip.

“Last chance ladies, you sure you don’t want a ride?”

“It’s a beautiful morning for a walk, Alpha.” I say.

“Maybe next time. See you in class Cali.” And they pull away.

When they are out of hearing distance, Cali grunts. “Ugh, he is so annoying. Why won’t he leave me alone?”

“Because he’s an Alpha and he’s used to getting what he wants?” I guess.

“Well, he’s the last man I want to be with. He’s practically slept with every girl in our pack. Who would want to be mated to an Alpha that can’t keep it in his pants?”

“Ummm, aren’t all Alphas like that, Cali? And to answer your question, pretty much every she-wolf other than you and me.”

“I hope my mate is a kind, unassuming man who wants a quiet life.”

I look at my dear friend, frowning as we enter the school parking lot. “You do realize we’re werewolves, right? Unless you’re mated to a human, that whole ‘quiet life’ is unlikely.”

She sighs. “Yeah, I know. Hey, what was that with Clint? I don’t remember him ever speaking to you before.”

“He hasn’t. I guess me pinning Lucas made me worthy,” I make air quotes as I say it, “of his attention.”

“He’s cute.”

“First, ‘cute’ isn’t the word I would use for him. Sexy or hot would be words to describe Clint. Second, he’s just as much of a player as Alpha Anders, so no way am I getting mixed up in that.”

As we walk into the school, we see both men standing next to the lockers surrounded by a group of mostly girls. I’m about to roll my eyes when Clint’s emerald eyes lock onto mine. He’s talking to someone, but he makes a point to wink at me as I walk by. Really?

I shake my head just enough for him to see that I can’t believe he just did that, and I get an answering smirk in return.

As we walk toward our lockers, Cali leans into me. “Did Clint just wink at you?”

“Looked like it.”

“Obviously you made an impression on him.”

“I guess. Whatever, it doesn’t matter.” I say as a hand comes down on my open locker door and heat seeps into my back. I look over my shoulder and see Lucas. “I want a rematch tomorrow, beautiful.”

“Are you sure you’re ready for that kind of embarrassment Lucas?”

He leans his 6’2” frame down to my smaller 5’6” frame, his lips grazing my ear. “Winner buys dinner Friday night.”

“Is this your creepy way of asking me out Lucas?” I say closing my locker door and turning toward him. From the corner of my eye, I see Clint scowling in our direction. I wouldn’t be bothered, but Anders is making his way toward Calista and Clint is right beside him.

“What if it is?” Lucas asks me.

“Then I’d say you need better lines, Lucas.” I turn to Cali. “We’ve got to move, fast.”

Her head pops up and she sees Anders and Clint headed our way. Lucas turns too and starts laughing. “Good luck with that.”

We take off in the fastest walk we can without actually running, ducking in and out of other students to get away. “You can run, but you can’t hide Calista.” We hear Anders chuckling as we head to our classes. He’s right, since they have two classes together.

My first class is fine, but my second, Chemistry, I have with Clint. Today, he decides that he is my new lab partner. “Kevin, switch partners with me.”

I raise my eyebrow at him. “Excuse me. Kevin is a great partner and I have no desire to switch.” Okay, that’s not exactly true. Kevin’s a mediocre partner but having to stand close to Clint during our labs every day for the rest of the year, possibly touching him, sounds like torture. I may not want to be with the man, but that doesn’t mean that my body and my wolf are immune to his power and dominance.

‘Mmmm, and have you seen his wolf?’ Andra asks me.

‘Yes, Donovan’s as big or bigger than Zakai.’ Zakai is Alpha Anders wolf. ‘You know that’s because he’s a Guardian. They have the strength of an Alpha, or in Clint’s case, I actually think he’s stronger than Alpha Anders.’

‘I’d love to rub myself all over that fine specimen.’

‘Down girl. We need to get through this class without smelling like we want to jump his bones.’

“Done talking to your wolf?” Clint asks me and I see that Kevin has moved away. It’s not like he was going to challenge Clint to stay.

“Yes.” I say and grab my chemistry book to begin today’s experiment.

I’m trying to ignore Clint, but he leans in. “I bet she likes me.”

“You’re implying that I don’t like you, Guardian.”

A soft growl comes from his chest and he’s standing so close that I can feel it. “I told you to call me Clint.”

“Right, Clint. Well, my wolf is like every other she-wolf out there. She is drawn to strength and power and we both know, that as a Guardian, you have both. So, your statement of the obvious seems like a pathetic way to have me give you a compliment. If your ego is so fragile that you need me to tell you that my wolf finds yours appealing, then consider yourself complimented.” I say before turning back to my book.

I hear him chuckling before I feel his breath against my neck. “Beautiful, there is nothing about me that is fragile.”

“Good to know. Let’s get started, shall we?”

I’m pleasantly surprised that he’s actually knowledgeable about chemistry. He’s a good lab partner and where I had to carry Kevin through the labs, Clint not only keeps up but is one step ahead of me at times. I can feel my competitive nature pushing forward as we both try to show the other up.

At the end of class, as we’re cleaning and putting our items away for the next class, he compliments me. “You’re good at chemistry. I wasn’t expecting that.”

I give him my best fake smile. “Well, I’m not just a pretty face, Clint. And honestly, you surprised me as well. Nice to know that you use all your muscles, not just the ones that the girls swoon over when you flex them.”

“You really don’t like me, do you?” He asks and I swear I hear a bit of hurt in his tone. But that can’t be right, why would he care what I think of him.

I turn to give him my full attention. “It’s not that I don’t like you. It’s that I have no intention of being just another girl in your revolving doorway. I don’t know why you are suddenly giving me attention, but if your goal is to get me into your bed, then I suggest that you walk away now.” I tell him before turning on my heel and heading to my next class.