The Fated Mates

The twigs didn't stand a chance against the pounding of the paws along the forest path.Fast and steady, the grey wolf raced along the trail, the strap of the bag in his mouth fraying little by little as he ran.Darting into the clearing, he stopped so quickly that he stumbled over himself, landing at the feet of a very pissed off blonde.She taps her foot, her arms folded across her chest, and her brows drawn into a scowl."You had a meeting at eleven," she growls, spinning on her heel and walking towards a large house.The wolf makes a fluid transition into a man, quickly jogging after her as he slips on a pair of shorts."Avery, no, stop, please don't ignore me," the man whines, finally catching up to her."I had to deal with that insipid bastard for twenty minutes, York. You've skipped two meetings with him this week. You're the alpha, not me," she snarls, shooting him a look that would kill any sane man."Ave," he whinges, "you could have been alpha!! If you want to, you still ca

The next day is dull. Clouds hang over the pack, and everyone looks at the sky fearfully. Avery can't bring herself to get out of bed. It's like this every time it's cloudy.The day she turned twenty-three, there was a historic storm. That storm marked the occasion and realisation that Avery Wilcott was mateless. York and her parents checked in on her, but they all know - it's best to leave her alone when she's like this. The sadness sat in her chest, and she felt defeated. This is what the problem was with being Unfortunate. A mate bond helped to prevent negative overwhelming emotions. Without one, you were entirely left to your own devices. She sat up, bored of staring at the ceiling, that emptiness still there. It was always there, she supposed, but being surrounded by people helped. She scrambled through her bedside table drawers, searching for the medicines she was given for these moods. She dry swallows two tablets, wincing as they ease their way down.The day passes

"You're not as clever as you two think you are," Marie smirks, laughing a little as she observes her son hiding in the kitchen with her."What do you mean?" York hisses, shushing her as they peek out the kitchen door and watch Richard walk into one of the conference rooms with Avery and Roman, the former looking smug, and the latter still looking a bit lost."So where are your guards, oh all-mighty Alpha Lancaster?" Avery grins, throwing herself into one of the spinning chairs around the table.Richard clears his throat, sending a silent message to his daughter to behave, and she shuts her mouth and sits up properly. Her dad is rarely serious with her, so she knows to zip it and pay attention.She still doesn't appreciate that she's been left entirely in the dark about whatever is about to happen. Richard throws a set of clothes at Roman, and he catches them with an appreciative look on his face, walking into the bathroom to change, and emerging in under a minute, the dress pants and

The journey is quiet and long, without much chatter in the vehicle.Avery gets restless after sleeping upright for seven hours, and her phone only amuses her for so long, until she turns to Roman."So, how much longer is it going to be until we arrive?" She finally blurts out, her voice breaking the silence, and giving the driver in the front a bit of a fright.Roman looks up from the files he has open in front of him, and observes her with a mild smile on his face."Your brother warned me you don't do well with long car journeys. It should only be another few hours, we're crossing through pack territories instead of the highways," he chuckles, pushing a pair of glasses back up his nose.I like those, Sonya chirps up in Avery's mind, giving her a bit of a fright too - so the little bitch had decided to come back. Avery liked the glasses too, but she wasn't going to tell him that - his ego seemed big enough."How long is a few hours? I need to go to the bathroom," Avery frowns, crossi

It was a minor miracle that she had a set of workout gear that matched.She had a lot of half sets with her, but none matched, bar the bubblegum pink set she had put on.Dousing herself in sunscreen, she eats some of the pretzels she got on their journey to here, rubbing her face to try wake herself up.Securing her bun with an extra hair tie, she laces her trainers on, and throws a sweatshirt over her sports bra - she isn't sure where these guys prefer to train, and if it's indoors, she'll probably be cold.Grabbing her phone, and securing it in the pocket of her leggings, she bounces out of her room, trying to figure out where the gym is.Sonya snarls at her, and Avery rolls her eyes, tapping into her sense of smell to find her way downstairs. She manages to catch Alpha Roman's scent, and decides to follow it - he was the one who brought her up through this maze, so he should lead her out of it.Following the trail intensely, she sticks to one side of the wall, noting the immense nu