* Nick *
I choose to be late for a couple of minutes inside the palace comfort room in order for everybody to be at the table. But, when I saw all of them standing in front of the table and all their eyes are on me when I arrived I wanted to kick myself for being late. My mother who stand beside my father has her eyes full of conviction when they meet mine. Then my father motioned his hands to make me sit beside my brother Brad who's face is a little bit excited? If I am right.
"Thank you for coming later than usual Nick, we were all standing and waiting for you. I told everyone we couldn't sit except for Mr. Bates. But he insisted to stand with us, don't you know that he has a fragile bone condition which makes it difficult for him to stand on longer period of time?"
I let out an exhausting breath when Maleficus and Mrs. Bates made a low chuckle. Then I notice a female wolf standing beside Mrs. Bates, her slim and alluring figure then my eyes move slowly to her skin revealing due to the tiny straps of her gown. She has a body that every she wolf would envy and her eyes, are they emerald or forest green? I gulp down a lump in my throat when she meet my gaze and a shadow of admiration passed through her vision. She has the most expressive gaze of all the female wolves that I have ever encountered. Is she Emma? The Emma Bates that my brother is going to marry!
"Everyone! let us all be seated now that both of my sons are here. I am sure Nick will be bothered by making us all stand for a few minutes this evening."
I cleared my throat and raised my defined chin. "I sincerely apologize to everyone here tonight and to my brother, as for this event is more important to him than me."
Before we all took our seat, Brad elbowed me slightly. Then I feel his eyes towards the lady sitting opposite of us. I shifted my gaze from her when I felt the disappointment eating my heart. Maybe I was never envious or jealous of my brother before but for now I have no doubt that it is what I'm feeling. The old man Maleficus raise his glass and then made an introduction.
"Once again, I would like to thank the presence of the Bates family but more importantly to Miss Emma Bates who accepted the fate that lies on her hands and that of Brad. By the permission from our Alpha King Vincent and Luna Queen Ashley, I am formally announcing the engagement of Miss Emma Bates to Brad Langston. As we continue the celebration it is my honor to declare the public celebration one month from now and let all the wolves in the palace and of the world be aware of the two hearts union in the next full wolf moon!"
She made a low gasp, I could hear it despite the loud voice of Maleficus. I am not liking this feeling which is slowly eating my heart out. Am I going to like my brother's mate too because we are twins or what?
Brad Did not say a word as I felt him stiffened, this was not informed to him and I was not able to hold myself back when I directly look at Emma. Her beautiful green eyes are wider now and then her soft pink lips slightly move to say something but I saw her mother's hand squeezed her shoulders. There was a moment of silence before Mr. Bates clap his hand and then followed by my father and mother and Dylan, whom I only notice now. He slightly bows his head to recognize my gaze and I then clap my hands to join them. I have no valid reason not to support my brother in this.
We all cheered and made a wine toast except for Brad and Emma who look at each other silently. Her mother squeeze her shoulder softly and then she let out her beautiful voice.
"Thank you wizard Maleficus and also to the great Alpha King Vincent and Luna Queen Ashley."
She lowers her head slightly. My ears immediately notice the soft and pleasant sound of her voice. I didn't mean to sniff the air but I swear to the Moon Goddess I could smell her sweet scent lingering in the air. It made me want to destroy the table that separates us and pull him up from the chair then crush her body in my arms. I have to shake my head in order for the thoughts to go away.
"You are welcome Emma. Please Brad, why are you so silent on your seat? This is so unlike you."
My father questioningly raised his arms towards Brad. I saw how my brother's jaw flexed before he calmed himself down. This is unlike him, the Brad I knew will not agree easily if being manipulated by anyone even if it is our father.
"Well, what can I say? My mate is the most beautiful girl tonight it rendered me restless and I lost my tongue but not totally lost for I am asking for everyone's permission that after our dinner I speak with her privately. This is important if I am to take her as my mate."
I held my breath and look at my brother whose eyes are of that someone who has been happy and calm. My brother never treats women or female wolves seriously and is now agreeing to this. His eyes meet mine but he did not say a word. Mr. Bates nodded as everybody listened but begin to start getting the food which the Palace's maids are offering.
"Of course you may talk to my daughter Brad! You two could have this evening for as long as you both wanted, get to know each other and stuff."
Emma fake her cough as she look at her father, I saw how her cheeks turned red in embarrassment. My blood is rising when I saw how she and Brad both exchanged looks like they have a secret agreement in the mind link. Damn them! And I am not understanding why I am deeply frowning and I hated the idea of them talking alone. So I opened the mind link and ask my brother directly.
"Hey, what are you trying to do? Don't tell me that you wanted to already mark her on the first night? Isn't this too early for both of you?"
Brad groaned secretly in the mind link. "That is why I wanted a private conversation with her, meaning that none of our family members must hear. And why are you so interested to know dear brother?"
His question was challenging which made me silent and think of the right words to answer him back. He is right somehow but there is something that is not settling right with me.
"I am just wondering and look at her! She is scared, and she obviously looks like she has just been manipulated by her parents. You know every family would be delighted by the idea that their own daughter is mated to the heir of the Alpha King."
"Are you saying that there could be a possibility that she doesn't like me? Oh, why? Thank you so much for that Nick. I am more than willing to find out if that theory of yours is real."
Brad is being sarcastic so I stop our conversation and just gritted my teeth. What can I do to stop them from talking privately? What if my brother kisses her or takes her to his bed? Would she agree to that? I know him when it comes to wolves and women, he may have a high standard and taste for wolves but he could eat the Bates's daughter alive!
As I look at Emma I know that she is still in a little bit of shock, her eyes are a bit wider. I keep to myself for almost an hour, while the others are chatting laughing and getting to know each other. The party is getting lively but I am feeling down and weary or just emotionally not feeling up to it and I couldn't stop my eyes from following my brother's mate around.
* Emma *When I saw Brad Langston and Nick Langston after many years of meeting them when I was younger, I could tell the big difference! It's hard not to notice how they are both hot and so good-looking. Brad is taller by just an inch compared to Nick however the latter is bigger and looked like he could just carry me in one hand. The thought sent shivers on my skin which made me wonder, this is not the first time I saw handsome men in my life. In fact, I am always surrounded by them in the industry that I worked for. However, the big difference are, these men are not what you call normal due to the reality that apart from being filthy rich and powerful. They are also wolves just like myself.Nick's eyes when he looks at me, speak a hundred meaning more than his few words. While Brad give me recognition and a signal that he wanted to speak with me privately, I could feel Nick's eyes not leaving me and it made me shiver inside. I wonder why his gaze affected me more than Brad's and I
* Emma *"Brad?"I uttered his name but his presence is different as he is standing against the light of the moon and the palace, it took a couple of seconds before I realize that he is not Brad. His form seemed to be Brad yet it doesn't feel like him, is he, Nick? He did not answer me, not after a few seconds has passed."For goodness sake can't you tell the difference between me and Brad? I'm sure that I look more good-looking by a few points than him not to mention that I am more charming."His voice is deep and distinctive and I detected a little bit of humor with his words, or is it just my imagination? He sounded more irritated by the fact that I called his brother's name which confirms his identity. "Nick!? What are you doing here?"My heart turned erratic when he move forward and I see his face. A muscle in his jaw flex, and I notice how his face is well-shaven and clean unlike Brad who let his stubble grew an inch. Not like it mattered against his beauty but I prefer men with
* Nick *"Bring me a bottle of tequila in my room Riza!"As I passed by the busy kitchen of the palace, I saw Riza who was the only one with empty hands while everybody around her is busy preparing something for the wide dining hall. She shot me a questioning look but begin to move away into the door of the wine room. The Palace maids lowered their heads as I walk past them, they can sense my controlled temper. My feet walk faster as I will rather be in my room than in the dancing hall where my brother could be leading a dance with Emma!I am not sure what triggers my anger but it is evident that I wanted to kill somebody or perhaps challenge someone in a fight. Emma look so lovely that despite the fact of being mated to my brother I couldn't take my eyes off of her. "Shit!!"I utter a series of explicit words while slamming the door of my room shut. I took everything off, I must take a cold shower to cool down before I start drinking. This night is too long for me, and I could not g
* Nick *I look up at the sky with dark clouds and felt the weather changing from sunny to having a storm brewing fast. The smell of rain that is about to fall is evident in the air surrounding the outside of the Palace. We finished the rounds for the day and are ready to go home early because of the bad weather coming."Come on! Let's hurry up guys before the rain falls down heavily!"I lead the run towards the road heading back to the palace."Alright Nick, we are following behind you!"Beta Derek and the rest of the warriors are already left behind as I speed up my pace. This is the second day of my brother's test and I heard that he was taken on a yacht toward an island where they should finish before sunset. However it is already starting to rain, and it is just an hour before sunset. I am left with double the task since his hands are full giving his best to prove that he is worthy of being the crowned prince that will take my father's place in the future.The wind blew faster th
* Emma *"Enjoy your vacation in the palace Ems, I have to go back to my post now."My brother did not even get out of the car when he saw the Palace maids coming towards us to help with my things. This vacation is suggested by the Alpha King and the Luna Queen and my parents agreed to it faster than a bullet. He told me that on this side of the Palace, the Alpha King and Luna Queen keep the guests and visitors it is far from where they live. But it is near Brad's chambers."Take care Dylan, thank you for bringing me here." I gave him a peck on the cheek before I got out of the cat and open the compartment.My brother's schedule is full together with the warriors due to the storm last night. Brad entrusted him with duties that a lead warrior must do since he had other significant matters to attend to. I believe that Brad might not work with the warriors during my stay here, and he promises to spend time with me and make our parents believe that we are getting along pretty well.I don'
* Emma *The soft knocks on the door reminded me of the time and what I have to do next. I must have booze off after fixing all my things up and taking a warm bath."Miss Bates, dinner is ready now I am waiting to escort you to the dining hall.""Just a minute, Asha!"I look at my reflection of myself in the full body-length mirror of the walk-in closet. I have on a silky flowered dress that plunges on the neckline and the length reaches my knees. My hair is tied in a knot so I just let it loose and comb it with my hand, then I walk towards the door."I slept a little, did the Alpha King and Luna Ashley call for me?"Asha smiled. "The Alpha King together with Luna Queen Ashley is on a trip to the island that they recently bought. They will not be here for a week, but his majesty Prince Brac is already at the table waiting.""Oh! Let's go then."I don't know if I would feel relive or slightly disappointed that there were only the two of us dining for the evening. Brad has many things t
* Nick *I must have scared her with my words for she stayed silent in front of me, her emerald eyes shining against the lighted bulbs inside the dining hall. She looks so ravishing in her silly dress which compliments her soft glass skin. And her figure that has no ounce of fat is driving me insane, all I could think about at the moment is pulling her hand and then bending her over against the table. Make love to her right there until my heart is content. A low groan erupted from me.The situation has made me restless ever since my father insisted I pretend to be Brad. This will put me in deep trouble when he comes back and find out that I am flirting with his future wife. His mate that I will marry if he did not come back soon, and for goodness sake! I cannot promise that nothing will happen between me and Emma. I can hear her gasp for air, and her eyes mirrored the attraction that I felt.I can sense the heat of her body and the desire that both our bodies understand. I wanted to t
* Emma *I swear that there is something different about Brad, his aura has changed and the way he looks at me is not the same as the first time we met. His hand that covers mine on top of the table, its warmth and how it affected me so. He is not the same Brad who took my hand in a friendly manner. The feeling I describe as the same as what my brother Dylan is making me feel is different now!I am affected by the way his eyes roam over my face down to my body even with my clothes on. It is as if he is caressing my skin like I am wearing nothing at all! Does the attraction I feel for him now mean something? Something like mates should feel when they are with their fated pair?The dinner was finished with a little bit of awkwardness on my part but we decided to do a run the following morning. Brad offered to take me into the forest where the Langston family hunts, it is exclusively for them and he said that we are going to visit the wooden cabin beside the waterfalls. Sounds perfect to