Riley
“It’s time for school, Riley!” Dani, the woman who has raised me and I view as my mother calls out to me.
I huff as I force myself to get out of bed. I look in the mirror, my dark brown hair looks like a bird’s nest and I grimace at the thought of trying to brush it out. I grab a brush and some detangling spray and get to work when I hear my door open. I glance up and see one of Dani’s sons, Harry, leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. He says, “Mom says you have to drive me to school.”
I roll my eyes, Harry is the one that’s closest to my age. He’s only a year younger than me and some days we get along like best friends and other days we are at each other’s throats. I close my bathroom door as I quickly throw on a bra and a t-shirt, the leggings I’m wearing should be just fine. As I walk back out, I say, “That’s fine, but you might have to drive yourself home.”“Why? You want to hang out with Zane?” He asks me teasingly.
I can't help the small smile that appears on my face at the thought of my boyfriend. We've been together for two years now and being around him just makes me feel happy. I push against Harry's arm as we walk downstairs and respond, “Well, he is my boyfriend.”
Once I get to the kitchen, I grab a protein bar and give my mom a quick hug and ask, “Is it cool if I hang out with Zane later?”She looks at me disapprovingly, she doesn’t think I should be dating Zane. As werewolves, we all have a mate waiting out there for us and due to me being royalty there’s a silent expectation that I should remain “pure” for my mate.Besides, my relationship with Zane is based on a lie. He thinks I’m a human. Everyone outside of this house, aside from my biological parents, believes that I am a human. My biological parents used some potion that they got from a trusted witch to hide my scent and aura. No one will know who I truly am until I turn 18 and at that point, it will be time for me to return to the Royal Pack so that I can go through whatever training I need so I can become the Luna Queen.
My mom is angry with me for leading Zane on, but to be honest, he’s leading me on too. He’s a werewolf and from what I’ve been told he’s the next Alpha of a nearby pack. So, he knows that this relationship won’t last unless we are actually each other’s mates and the likelihood of that happening is slim.
My mom sighs, “If that’s what you want, Riley.”
I nod as I grab a bottle of water and the car keys, and I head out the door with Harry right on my heels.
We get in the car, and he asks as I put the keys in the ignition, “Do you think you and Zane are mates?”
I huff, I hate having the mate talk with anyone but especially these boys that are like my brothers. I hope they’ll have girls that are better than me… girls that waited for them.
I know I could be better, but I have a whole world of responsibilities waiting on me that I want to be carefree while I still can. I mutter, “I don’t know.”
Harry picks up on my attitude and nods to himself while I start the ten-minute drive to school. I’m so grateful that today is the last day before summer break, I cannot wait to enjoy my last carefree summer. By this time next year, I’ll be turning 18 and forced to come out of hiding so that I can take my place as Luna Queen.A part of me is excited to get my wolf and be reunited with my biological parents, but a part of me is dreading it. I will be in danger just because of 'who' I am. The only Gemstone Wolf that can continue the royal lineage.
The only Purple Sapphire Wolf to exist- which makes people fear me.
As soon as we get to school, Harry and I go our separate ways. I look around for Zane and when I’m unable to find him I search for his twin sister Breanne. I smile when I see her, we were friends before I got with her brother, and I’ve always been grateful to have her by my side.
I ask, “Hey, do you know where Zane is?”
She huffs as she shakes her head at me playfully and says, “Always ditching me for my brother.”Before I can respond an arm snakes around my waist and I get pulled against a hard chest and I smile looking up at my boyfriend. I notice his and Breanne’s eyes glaze over and I know that they’re mind linking each other.
I find it odd, they’re normally really careful not to do that in front of me, but today they didn’t bother to hide it. Zane says, “I need to talk with you, Riley.”
My eyebrows furrow in confusion, normally he calls me Ri or some cutesy nickname… what’s with the formality?He grabs my hand and I wave goodbye to Breanne as Zane whisks me away. What has gotten into him?
He brings me into a janitor’s closet, and I look at him in confusion as I ask, “What’s going on?”
He presses his lips together and I reach my hand out to brush away some of his jet-black hair from his forehead. But he grabs my hand and places it back down against my side. I furrow my eyebrows in confusion, and I ask in a firmer tone, “Zane? What’s going on?”His ice-blue eyes meet mine and he says with his voice cracking, “I’m sorry, Riley. I can’t do this anymore.”I tilt my head to the side as I try to figure out what he’s talking about. I ask, “Can’t do what?”
He breathes out slowly before spitting out the words that shook me to my core, “I, Zane Phillips, reject you, Riley Ford.”The bond that I wasn’t old enough to notice yet snaps between us bringing tears to my eyes and causing so much pain that I fall to my knees.
Zane slips out of the closet, leaving me alone as he mumbles, “I’m sorry, Ri.”
I sit in shock. Zane was my mate. And… he rejected me. Why?Mates are a gift from the moon goddess. We were blessed and lucky for her to match us together after us dating for the past few years.
Then I remember… he thinks I’m human. I was never supposed to be more than a fun pass time for him. I wipe the tears from my eyes as I force myself to get up from the floor.
He doesn’t want me as a human, fine. He doesn’t deserve the title that I bring, he doesn’t deserve the great life we could’ve had.
I run out to the car to drive home. I can be strong tomorrow, but for now, I’ll let myself hurt. I didn’t expect this to hurt so bad.
I didn't expect to get rejected. I'm the future Luna Queen, why wouldn't someone want me?
Riley The rejection weighed heavier on me than I expected. I honestly thought that I would be able to get up the next day and act like it never happened. I don't have my wolf yet, the pain shouldn't be this bad, right? It should be equivalent to a normal breakup. Maybe it was different because I'm a Gemstone Wolf, maybe I'm connected to my wolf already even though she isn't present and I can't shift yet. My family allowed me one week of mourning. When I got home so early, I startled my mom but as soon as she found out what happened she told me not to worry about it and that she’d pick Harry up later. I went into my room and crumbled onto my bed. I’m only 17 and I’ve already lost my mate and I feel like it’s because I’m not good enough. I cried a lot, I stayed in bed, and my family would bring me food. The boys, Harry and Todd would come into my room to keep me company and watch TV with me. Todd is the youngest an
Archer Coming home feels weird. After my dad, Alpha of the Dark Moon Pack, died from a rogue attack, I was sent to various packs to learn from other Alphas what my responsibilities will be. My mom stayed as Luna and my dad’s Beta stood in his place until I was old enough to receive my wolf and take my place as Alpha. I turned 18 last week and was sent home. Tonight, is the first full moon since my birthday which means tonight, I will shift for the first time. And I will take my place as Alpha of the Dark Moon Pack. My Beta and Gamma will be the sons of the current Beta and Gamma. I’ve met them a handful of times… when we were kids we were like best friends. Archer, Brandon, and Caleb, we were like the three musketeers! Or as our parents enjoyed calling us: the ABC’s. But after 5 years of only seeing each other at Christmas, we obviously aren’t as close as we were. I think everything will be okay though, they’ve been trained fo
Riley Harry and Todd talk animatedly as we get to the bowling alley. I smile watching the two of them interact, I’ve always been a people watcher and I can tell most of my night I’ll be observing others. The boys don’t know how to react around me because they know I still feel sad. They don’t know how to handle my sad times because if I’m ever sad I normally try to hide it from them. But right now, it’s weighing me down so much that I don’t feel like I can. As we walk up to grab our shoes I hear Harry gasp as he says,“Oh my, Taylor’s here.”I glance in the direction that Todd is looking while Harry tries to hide himself between us. I smirk, how cute, he’s got a crush. Once we get our shoes we walk to our lane and I pull my hair up as I begin to make a game plan on how I’m going to embarrass my brother. As I do this someone bumps into me causing me to stumble backward. I quickly realize that I can’t catch myself and br
ArcherWell, this isn’t how I planned on meeting my mate.But things seem to be going well. Her younger brothers, Harry and Todd, are having good conversation with Brandon and Caleb which leaves me to have some time alone with Riley.She sits with her legs crossed and leaned forward as she watches her brothers intensely. She seems worried about them, even though there’s no one else here besides the owners. But after that scare with Zane, I understand her apprehension. I’m just grateful she isn’t scared of me. I ask, “Is everything okay, Riley?”She looks at me and seems startled by my voice. She nods, “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. Sorry, just thinking.”She pulls her hair out of its ponytail and nervously begins to braid it. I press my lips together and say, “I know this must all be overwhelming for you.”She shrugs her shoulders as if silently telling me that it isn&rsq
RileyHarry was right. Our parents were pissed off about what happened at the bowling alley and for the fact that we didn’t head home immediately.In fact, this was such a big deal that I received a phone call from the Alpha King and Luna Queen… my biological parents.I walk upstairs to my room feeling nervous as I call the number that Dani and Rich gave me. The only time I ever heard from my biological parents was on my birthday. So, I know this isn’t good at all.The phone rings and I hear king Carter, my father, answer, “Rieka.”It’s weird hearing my real name. Aside from me reminding myself who I really am, I never hear my name.I say, “Yes sir.”My mother, Camille, asks, “Are you alright, Rieka?”I respond, “I’m fine, really it’s no big deal.”Carter grumbles, “If it’s not a big deal then why d
RileyMy parents practically drown themselves using the potion to hide scents. When I told them that Archer is an Alpha, they wanted to make sure he wouldn’t be able to sense their scents at all. They tell me and the boys multiple times how we’ll go outside for them to meet Archer and he’s not allowed inside because it smells like them, and they don’t have enough time to cover the scent.I sit on the front porch watching Todd and Harry throw a football while listening to their parents get ready inside.The noise of a car on gravel greets my ears and I sit up as I hear Todd yell, “Mom, dad, he’s here!”I hear dad mutter, “Damn it.”And mom goes, “It’s okay, be cool, be cool, we got this.”I roll my eyes, I think they’re a little too nervous for this meet up. Archer gets out of the car and runs his fingers through his dark brown hair and then he smiles at me nervously and
Archer I could rip Caleb’s head off with his constant insinuations and flirting with Riley. I try not to show how possessive I feel and just have fun with her but he’s really starting to get on my nerves because he’s taking advantage of the fact that he knows I won’t react poorly with her around. Riley asks to sit in the spot where I sit and I would normally say no to anyone asking that, but… she’s my mate and I’m trying to impress her. So, I agree to it and I sit beside her as I teach her how to play. She looks at me with such wide-eyed innocence that I mind link the guys and say: Go easy on her… we don’t want her to hate playing with us after our very first game. They both mumble in agreement and after 30 minutes of letting her get used to the game, we start a real match. It doesn’t take long to realize she was faking as she soon wiped the floor with us. Brandon even calls out to me, “Um, Archer, I’m not going easy!”Ril
Archer The night with Riley couldn’t have gone better. I brought her home at 11, not wanting to push her parent’s boundaries. She smiles at me as we pull up to her house and says, “I had fun, Archer.”I nod with a smile, “Me too, Ri, maybe we could do this again soon?”She gives me a coy smile as she says teasingly, “I think we could arrange that.”I chuckle and get out of the car to go open her door. I take her hand and start walking with her to the front door, but she stops and looks at me as she says, “You can go ahead and go, Archer, I’m fine.”My eyebrows furrow and I shake my head no and say, “I’d like to see your parents if they’re still up.”“Oh, well, they’re probably asleep. You know how the old folks are.” She responds with a nervous chuckle. I nod looking at her curiously, why doesn’t she want me to come to the door?I take her hand and say, “Come on, Riley.” She lets out a soft groan that confuses me and she fid