CHAPTER 1

CRYSTAL

It was the morning of my eighteenth birthday - the most important day in my life, and the life of every werewolf. It was the day when I was most likely going to find my fated mate.

I woke up with a splitting headache that morning and I stretched on the bed. I didn't bump into my roommate, Emily as usual and I opened my eyes, to see that she was not on the bed. That was strange, as Emily never rose up early.

I stood up from the bed and changed out of my nightgown into my work clothes. Yes, my work clothes! It was my birthday, but who cared? I was just another dumb Omega meant to live the rest of my life working as a slave in the Alpha's chambers while waiting for my mate to come and claim me.

As a girl, I had heard a lot of stories about the mating ceremonies - how the males claimed their mates with a bite on the neck, a kiss, or in some cases, mere words. I had always giggled in pure excitement when I heard those stories. Knowing that one day, I was going to feel the thrill of a protective wolf hovering around me was the only thing that kept me from losing my mind while working in Alpha Leo's palace.

Alpha Leo.

He was no doubt the hottest guy in the whole pack. Born and bred in wealth, he always enjoyed the finest things of life. On the day of his graduation from the pack's college two years back, his father, the former Alpha died and Leo had slowly become the favorite to take the position as the new Alpha over his elder brother, Xavier.

Working as an Omega in his palace wasn't very demanding as he mostly ignored me. Of course, we weren't in the same class. Leo had his eyes on the hot and curvy girls in the pack and even though I had a great shape, the baggy hand me down clothes I wore, did a good job of hiding my shape.

Working in his palace meant that I had the privilege of gazing at his rock hard abs when he had his routine morning workout. I never missed it. Call me obsessed if you liked, but he was the type of guy that every girl wanted in their lives.

Devilishly handsome, tall and muscular, and what more? He was set to become Alpha of the pack!

It was already 6am when I started off towards the open field he used as his gym. I tried to hasten my footsteps as I scurried towards the field. The best part of the whole show was when he was taking off his shirt and I didn't want to miss that.

When I got to the field eventually, I was disappointed to find out that it was empty. The equipment he usually used for his workout wasn't even there and I quickly concluded that he was still sleeping.

I scoffed and turned to leave, and just then, I bumped into Emily. Her sea green eyes bored into mine and I knew that she could tell why I had come there. Emily was my roommate and had been my only friend in the pack for eighteen whole years. She knew about my unhealthy crush on the Alpha.

"I've warned you to stay away from him," Emily launched into her usual sermon. "Men like him are not for girls like you. You're not in the same class, Crystal."

I really hated it when she said that. It was nothing more than a reminder of the fact that I had been born into poverty.

"It's just a crush," I replied with a shrug. "You can't deny the fact that he's cute."

"And will probably never look in your direction - " Emily concluded with a tap on my left shoulder. "Remember we have to clean the grand hall for the ball later tonight. Quit daydreaming."

She snapped a finger in my face and I scoffed.

"Okay, okay, I'll stop for now," I agreed.

Not like I had any plan to. It was already a part of my own daily routine. The image of a shirtless Alpha Leo had already been ingrained in my head, but yet, I couldn't resist spying on him while he worked out. He was so damn hot.

As I made my way back to my room, an unfamiliar scent hit my nostrils. I couldn't tell what it was exactly, but it was the most intoxicating thing I had ever scented in my life.

I followed the scent right through the corridors and it led me down to the royal family's private quarters.

My wolf, Nala purred gently and a thought crossed my head.

It was my mate! He was somewhere around! That was why my wolf was feeling restless.

But who was he? Was he a fellow Omega like I was? Or one of Alpha Leo's guards perhaps?

I followed the scent right up till the end of the corridor where it seemed to get stronger. There was a dead end there, and I stopped, wondering how on earth I was going to find the owner of that scent.

As if on cue, a door opened on the right. I turned my head to see that Alpha Leo was approaching me.

His long blonde hair fell in ringlets across his shoulders and the only piece of clothing he had on was the navy green pair of trousers he was wearing.

Alpha Leo walked up to me and I watched as a smile danced across his lips. He looked even more handsome when he smiled.

"Where have you been, Crystal?"

His question took me by surprise and I jerked backwards. How the hell did he even know my name was Crystal? He barely looked at me, up until this day. And what did he mean by the question? Had I done something wrong?

A thousand thoughts flew through my head all at once and when I looked up at him again, I noticed that his head was still cocked, as he waited for my reply.

"I - I - I have been working, Alpha Leo," I stammered.

I looked up to see if my answer pleased him, but he remained calm, with his unwavering smile, and a stoic expression on his face.

"No, Crystal," He said in a low whisper, as he cupped my cheeks in his hands.

"I meant, where have you been, mate?"

My brain froze at that exact moment and all my senses stopped working.

Mate? Did Alpha Leo just call me his mate?