Chapter 4

Aiden POV

“So, you’re telling me you don’t remember anything?”

“Nothing, no one does. The whole night is a God damn blur. Must have been some good whiskey”

My Beta Blake was one of the unmated wolves affected last night. But as was the case with each of them, he had no memory of the beautiful she-wolf that seemed to cast some kind of spell over every unmated male in the vicinity. Every unmated male that is, except me. Don’t get me wrong. She was the most striking she-wolf I had ever seen, and when I saw that Neanderthal groping her body without her consent, I wanted to tear his throat out. I wanted her alright, but I didn’t turn into a rabid animal like the others.

I was beginning to think I was going mad. But she was real. Of that much I was certain. And I couldn’t get her out of my head. Before I could continue questioning Blake, we were interrupted as my father burst through my office door.

“What the hell happened last night? That was the least matings we have seen come from any harvest in centuries?”

She happened. But I wasn’t going to tell him that. My father was the Alpha of the Druid Pack. One of the most ancient packs in Ireland, spanning back to the Celts themselves. We had the pleasure of hosting the harvest on our territory this year, and now the questions surrounding what strange occurrence had derailed it.

“I’m endeavouring to find the answers, Father.”

“Still no mate then, son?”

“No such luck…” I feigned disappointment. In truth, I’d never really cared about the whole mate-bond thing. I was a future Alpha, the last thing I needed was a woman clouding my thoughts. But, it is well-known amongst wolves that a lone Alpha is vulnerable. A Luna makes us strong. And if the Luna is our fated mate, we are able to reach the pinnacle of our powers as Alpha. If we were to take a chosen mate, it would still make us stronger, but nothing compared to our fated mate. At 29, it was almost unheard of to be an Alpha heir and unmated. But I had attended every harvest since I turned 18, and a mate was never delivered to me by the Moon Goddess.

“Have you thought about what we discussed before the festival?”

“No, I haven’t Father. I suppose I thought I may find her…”

“I am an old Alpha son. As the years pass by I grow weaker and therefore the pack grows more vulnerable. I had thought you would have inherited the position long before now. I think it is time you consider taking a chosen mate. For the good of the pack.”

He was right. It was selfish of me to put it off for this long. He knew as well as I did Ciara would accept me. She was of Beta blood and had rejected her fated mate in the hope of becoming Luna. A promise I never made her and yet a guilt I have long carried. They say rejecting the mate bond is the most painful thing a wolf can do, aside from their fated mate dying.

It’s a common misconception that fated mates are soulmates to werewolves. This is not quite accurate. Our soulmates are actually our wolves, we are connected through two halves of the same soul. One wolf and one human. Fated mates are our perfect match, our physical and mental equals. Our bodies and minds are designed to perfectly complement each other. It is our hearts that bond, rather than our souls. So, when we reject the bond, or our mate dies, it is the true definition of a broken heart.

“Alright…” I sighed, dejectedly. “I will ask her…”