CASSANDRA BLACKWOOD
“Come to bed, Your Highness, it's late already,” I purred, widening my legs for the dark-haired Alpha but his penetrating iron-grey eyes were noticeably turned away from me.I was wearing nothing underneath my pink night slip and I could already feel the tingle of arousal stirring in my sex where I had dipped my fingers, hoping to catch my husband’s attention.“Did you see that woman back at the welcoming dinner Sandra? What the hell were the elders thinking, summoning a human for the surrogate match? Why, I could kill her if I snapped my fingers hard enough,” Ezra murmured, and my heart skipped a beat in my chest.Why was he asking about her now, when he should have been in bed with me?Something painful hooked the back of my throat and I struggled to blink back the tears that had already pooled in my eyes.There was a part of every woman that knew when her man was drifting away and every alarm bell in my body went off as I slid my fingers slowly out of my pussy, taking my time to respond.There was no mistaking the air of wonder that marked his gravelly voice or the way he kept his back deliberately turned to me so that I wouldn't see his face.Had I seen the woman? I snorted.Every wolf at the dinner with a good long cock between their legs and half the sense to recognize a good thing when it came had SEEN the bitch, strutting into the royal dinner chambers with her chest thrust out…like she owned the fucking castle!I could still remember the way my heart raced in my chest when I caught the lustful look on my husband’s face as he stared at her……that…that HUMAN!What the hell did Elizabeth Milkhart have that I didn't?!I glanced down to see that my knuckles had gone white where I gripped the pillows before I relaxed my hold, carefully breathing through my nose.“Why does Your Highness bother himself with a mere human? When he has his Queen’s unmatched beauty and submission?” I whispered, my face straining into a smile when he suddenly turned to face me.I was stunned at how a man so cold could be so beautiful. His darkly kohled eyes raked over my body with interest, and I allowed mine to roam over his tan chest that peeked through the V of the black shirt he was wearing. My breath caught in my throat at those large hands hanging by his sides…the full pink mouth that formed tugged down into a small frown…what that mouth could do…Alpha Ezra Blackwood was not an easy man to please, and with each passing night that my belly remained flat, I could feel him pulling away, returning my kisses more reluctantly than the last time.I needed to act fast if I wanted to keep being Queen Luna of Stone County and the Blackwood pack. I wasn't going to let some red-haired human with tempting green eyes steal my man away. Not without a mother-fucking fight.“Indeed, I'll see you in the morning Sandra…rest up,” Ezra rumbled in a cryptic voice after contemplating for longer than I would have liked as he towered over the Queen-sized bed of my chambers. He had turned to go before freezing at my words.“W-Wait…you’re not staying?” I stammered, the panicked edge showing clearly in my voice as I rushed to my feet, tugging on the stunning Alpha’s bicep.My heart was beating a jagged rhythm in my chest as I begged him desperately to stay, knowing he would go out there to find the naughty human girl instead.“Please…i need you-” I whispered, squeezing my nipples and watching his gaze darken with lust.Something flickered across his chiseled face before I could spot it and just like that…my spell was broken.“Maybe another time.” My husband growled, clasping his hands around my cheeks and pressing a dutiful kiss to my forehead before storming out of the room.A sob rose in my throat as I watched his broad back stride toward the doors which opened automatically to let him out, shutting with a heavy thud behind him.I fell to my knees, shaken. My eyes met my reflection of the stricken woman in the mirror.My blonde wavy hair was expertly curled, falling over my shoulders and brushing against the hard pink nipples that showed through my transparent pink nightgown.I traced the full mounds of my breasts with my hands, my breath catching at the tingle that ran through my body when my hands followed the small of my waist over flared hips and into the engorged lips of my pussy.I was the ideal woman every wolf in Blackwood hoped for! A goddess in the flesh! And yet, some wide-eyed bitch from the slums was about to take my man away.“What's wrong with you Cassandra?” I gasped, sniffing and wiping at my cheeks as my thoughts jumbled inside my head.It had been hard getting to where I was, Queen of Blackwood and Stone County. It had taken years for me to seduce Alpha Ezra, to grace his bed enough that my scent followed him everywhere he went until the elders intervened and he had no choice but to marry me.I hadn't been worried when there was no child two years after our mating. We’d been fucking like wild animals, his thick cock pinning me in the bathroom, the drawing rooms, and even out in the garden under the silver light of the moon!Those were the days! Breakfast in bed and dinner in his chambers where he treated me like I was the only woman on Athena’s green earth who was worthy of his time.We were in our tenth year now…and my spell had long run dry. I was painfully aware of his coldness…the snide remarks of the elders about when I was going to give the mighty Blackwood an heir.I couldn't even raise my head in the throne room with dignity anymore without being reminded of the countless whores that trooped in and out of my husband’s bed chambers every night!And now this…this new obsession! There was something different about her…something about the way he gazed at her that scared me.“You have to do something, Cassandra. You have to keep your man no matter what it takes. It's a wolf’s world out here…playing nice would have you back on the streets.” My mother’s stern voice echoed in my head and I shuddered.I was suddenly transported back to my old life. I could still smell the moss back in our old bathroom, as my mother applied her makeup in the cracked mirror, her leather tights peeking through the short dress she wore. A whore’s attire.No…that life was behind me now. Something I had made sure Ezra could never find out about!I'd be damned if I let everything I had worked for up until this point go to waste!“Theresa? Theresa!” I yelled, gritting my teeth when only the wind whistled through the big square windows into the room.Where the hell was that girl? Ezra had insisted on gifting me a handmaiden as his Luna and yet, it seemed like the stupid girl much preferred gossiping around in the commons than doing any actual work!“Theresa! Where is that stupid girl?!” I shouted for the maid angrily through the intercom, watching with narrowed eyes and tapping my foot impatiently when the double doors finally opened and the timid-looking maid shuffled in.“Your Grace-” She rasped but I raised a hand to cut her off, sickened by her slowness. Did no one in this bloody castle have a sense of urgency? My entire life and luxury was about to fall apart but the silly girl couldn't be bothered to rub her two brain cells together and put one foot in front of the other!Why the hell did Ezra even waste money on lowly wolves like her? Ugh! I could never understand it!“Summon the new girl. Sarah Sossen. I want to have a word with her…your discretion would be appreciated.” I growled, watching the maid’s eyes widen at my meaning before she stammered something I couldn't hear, nodding and hastily leaving the cold room.The woman with the orange tattoo. She was all wolf like the rest of us and still my enemy. And yet…i couldn't say I hadn't seen the green, envious look in her eyes when the human had waltzed into the dinner party an hour late.If anyone was going to be the Alpha’s surrogate, I wanted it to be Sossen. The bitch was pleasant enough…lowly enough for me to break and control and keep under my foot where a surrogate belonged. Surrogates were an abomination in wolf law…meant only to be whispered about and not fucking seen.Sarah Sossen was just Ezra’s type too. Blonde and regal. With enough sense to know not to bare her cleavage before a Luna and her husband.“Goddess help me,” I prayed, watching the dance of flames in the fireplace until it turned to smoldering ash.Help me so I don't kill anyone…not this time.ELIZABETH MILKHARTThe shrill sound of an alarm bell tearing through the quiet air of my room made me groan, throwing my hands painfully over my ears to shut out the awful noise.“Come on up girls! Today is the day you all learn how to be dutiful surrogates to this pack! Out of bed now!” The head maid’s manly voice bled through the corridor walls and my heart skipped a beat when I heard her heavy knuckles bash angrily against my door.Shit. I stumbled out of bed with bleary eyes, splashing water on my face and cursing the dark circles under my startling green eyes in the mirror.I hadn't been sleeping well since I came to Blackwood and I found myself longing for the small, rundown comfort of my old slum house instead. The wild curls of my red hair were braided into a ponytail by one of the quiet maids who never replied to anything I said and I was out of my quarters before I knew it.“Just this way, Miss.” The girl breathed, pointing me at an open courtyard where all the surrogates sa
ELIZABETH MILKHARTI was going to have sex with the Alpha tonight…there were no doubts in my mind about it.It was the third time I had brushed my sweaty palms on the lovely orange taffeta dress the maids had put me in. I could hardly recognize the luxurious woman in the mirror, the way my hair had been removed from the messy pigtail braids and curled into loose waves that fell over my shoulders and bare back.“I think you're ready Miss,” Theresa whispered, her warm brown eyes meeting mine in the mirror before she smiled reassuringly.I tried to smile back but it came out as a grimace instead. The fluttering in my belly only got worse when the girl led me through the corridors out into the mouth of the beautiful garden.“Here?!” I groaned, hoping she could have at least been with me when I saw the Alpha but knowing it was a crime that would have her executed if she dared.She shrugged, giving me another regretful smile before pausing to squeeze my hand. If I didn't know any better I
ALPHA EZRA BLACKWOODExquisite…it was the only way I could describe the red-haired human with bewitching green eyes that had run away from me.I could still taste her cherry lips in my mouth as I stormed into my chambers, ignoring the temptation to punch a guard who stood too close to me.Could they not see that I was losing my mind? I fucking hated breaking character like this.Who the hell did she think she was? Refusing me like that? And why the fuck couldn't I get a simple human out of my head?“Your Highness, the elders have assembled as you requested, for the surrogate showing-” Rudolf, my best man and guard announced from the doorway and I half-turned to face him, nodding my consent before exhaling a deep breath.“The Queen has requested Your Highness choose Sarah Sossen as the royal surrogate. She says to tell you she is more…at ease with the maiden.” Rudolf whispered as he stalked into the room, his bald, tattooed head glinting in the mirror where I watched him from.He had b
ELIZABETH MILKHARTI could hardly hear the girls’ angry murmuring above the frantic beating of my heart as we tumbled out of the gothic throne room into the cool air of the castle outside.My cheeks were wet with tears and it was all i could do to reign in the frustrated scream that rose to my throat when I felt a hand shove me roughly from behind.“What the fuck did you do cunt?! I should have known a whore like you would try to one-up us by sleeping with the Alpha!” Sarah Sossen’s vile insults cut through my heart like a knife.“I didn't sleep with him! I didn't even WANT to be here!” I wanted to scream, instead, I wrapped my arms around my body, shaking my head weakly for lack of anything better to say.There was no denying the fact that I had just made the entire wolf pack my enemy…a fate that was worse than death itself.“Enough. This way please, Miss Milkhart.” The big guard I had seen earlier interrupted us, his orange-brown eyes locking on mine with an intensity that made my
ELIZABETH MILKHART“Please-” I croaked, beating desperately against the tall Luna’s hard chest as darkness surged in my vision before a woman’s shrill voice made her drop me instantly.“Your Grace!” Theresa shrieked as I tumbled to the floor, catching only a glimpse of the fear in her reddened face before pain exploded in the side of my head as I hit the ground. HARD.“Miss Milkhart! I-Is everything alright?!” Theresa wheezed, rushing over to kneel beside me with her soft hands moving comfortingly inside my hair.I gasped, tears filling my vision as I scrambled away from the woman who towered above me like a wraith, her narrowed hazel eyes and long blonde hair billowed around her shoulders like waterfalls.“Listen to me, Elizabeth Milkhart, because I will only repeat this over your grave.” Cassandra Blackwood hissed, pointing one crooked black claw at me as a scream lodged in my throat.“You will not see MY husband outside of the council’s permission, do you understand? And no jewelry
ELIZABETH MILKHARTLace, chiffon, and silk dresses and suits shimmered in the low candle-lit room of the banquet hall as the melody of the opera and piano drifted softly through the air. I felt my shoulders sag as the sweet wine Theresa had slipped me earlier dissolved on my tongue.It was beautiful…rich, and my head whipped from side to side to take it all in.My dress was a silver, silk slip that hugged my curvy body and plunged low at the neckline. It had been Madam Burter’s choice and I wiggled uncomfortably in the right dress.“God help me,” I whispered under my breath and my eyes moved through the crowd as the murmur of conversation boomed around me.I didn't have anyone to talk to, but I was fine with that, I was staring right at the Alpha who seemed to have all the women entranced by his presence.The King stood nearly two heads above everyone else, his tall stocky frame draped in an all-black suit with stars and beads on the shoulders. Ezra Blackwood was striking, with his wo
ALPHA EZRA BLACKWOODBlood roared in my ears as I pounded my way into my royal chambers with the Luna of Blackwood snapping at my heels.“That was too far, Cassandra-” I started, whirling to face the tall blonde woman and watching her face redden even more as the dark arched brows drew together on her head.Her exquisite, ball gown had come undone at her shoulders, exposing the rounded white curves that made my groin tighten with lust.She looked wild, with platinum blonde hair falling down her back in straight sheets and her full red lips turned down distastefully. She did not look like my wife at all.“TOO FAR?! You were all but fucking here right there in the open for everyone to see Ezra Blackwood! Do you know how much of a disgrace that is as your wife?! Have you forgotten your duty to me-” She screamed, pointing at the empty doorway behind us.Me? Disgrace her? Her words sparked a dark fury inside me that made my vision blur and I was pinning her against the wall before I realiz
ELIZABETH MILKHARTThe woman’s black glare fixed on me like a hawk on prey until I felt what little sanity I had left unravel. Madam Burter yanked at my wild red curls brutally with her comb, her hot eyes burning my face in the blue glass of the mirror.It was almost time for my first night with the Alpha, but I couldn't push back the painful bitterness that had lodged in the back of my throat.“Three nights Elizabeth,” She ground out, but my name rolled off her tongue as “eel-isabed”, the harsh sound of it making my teeth set on edge.My scalp was on fire when she finally dropped the comb, allowing waves of red to frame my long porcelain face beautifully.“Tonight is your first chance to impress the court and get pregnant with Blackwood’s heir. Now what happened with the Queen was unfortunate…but it is a disgrace for a surrogate to come to the royal castle also barren.” She hissed, her coal-black eyes pining my face in the mirror.I felt my throat burn as panic wound tight knots in m