The Swan Alpha's Mate

AARONNE No!! This is a joke!! The moon goddess cannot play with me like that. I think this is not true and Anya is just out of breath because she wants to be dramatic. I try to lift my hands but rather, wings flap and the droplets of water splash on my face. I bend my head in shame. It is true. I AM A SWAN!!What could have caused this? Did something bite me? Or could it be the cursed cove? Does it turn people into swans and hand them over to the bears as food? Horror!!!I should’ve listened. I should not have lured Anya to this place. Why didn’t I stay at home? Why did I enter the water? Why did I defy my father’s orders? This is all my fault!My swan’s feathers glows faintly in the twilight and its neck curves in a perfect way. It's dark eyes, wide with terror, are all that holds a faint reminder of the girl I had been.I am in far too much pain, trying to understand why I am even a swan in the first place. Would Anya run from me? Where would I go? Would I ever transform bac

AARONNE“What is it about extinction?” My father stands in the doorway, arms crossed.My heart stutters. “I thought—”“Your beauty is still as radiant as the morning sun,” Father takes a step inside. “Or, are you scared about your wolf who has delayed to come? I had asked you to have patience. Is that what you are afraid of?”“Father, I didn’t hear you.” I shift, trying to block his view of the fallen book.“Anya said you felt sick. Is this your remedy? Hiding in the library?”“I need to read about Ronan’s pack,” I lie. “They seem so powerful. I need to have a bit of knowledge.”“Read? With a headache?” He scoffs. “That's quite unusual.”After all these years, Anya is still a terrible liar.“The ceremony is starting. You are the center of it. The library is not a place for a lady's daydreams. Besides, all this dust can make you sick. What if a spider bites you?”That's true, I did not think of that. He turns, expecting me to follow him. As his back is to me, I scramble, using my han

Aaronne’s POVThree weeks pass and I am sitting at my dressing table, dressed in a silk robe as some of my maids fuss over me.Today is the beginning of the coming of age ceremony. I will be doused in precious oil, chalk, native glitter and perfumes daily till the day my father officially hands me over to Ronan.My mother is to prepare me for the ritual but for some reason, stepmother Lyra claims to be very busy. I am missing my mother. If she were here, if lay on her lap and tell her all my worries.I stand at the window, staring at the full moon and thinking that I am left with two more moons. Two more moons and I'd be mated to Ronan.‘The first moon….’ I think, trailing off as I watch how it glows. It is so beautiful, I think to myself, wondering if I can go to the cove tonight.I keep dreaming of the waters, thinking of the boy I met that day. Who is he? And what was he up to? Why was he loitering around the cove? Is he a wolf too?Sigh...I didn't even get a chance to know his n

AARONNE “Why are you even here?” I mutter, turning back towards my bed where I sit, staring at her. Luis doesn’t answer immediately as she closes the door behind her.I watch as her eyes roam my room curiously over everything but when her eyes stay on the expensive jewelry I received from Ronan, I clear my throat to draw her attention back to me.“It’s beautiful,” she says lightly, trailing her hand along the edge of my vanity. “Your room always smells like flowers. Even now.”‘Of course,’ I think, my face forming a small frown. Shifting slightly, I return a smile of my own… or at least I try to but I know it must seem so fake.We've always been like this. Luis and I shared the same birthday. We had grown up together, trained side by side in noble etiquette, and laughed in the same corridors. But somewhere along the way, I noticed the conniving attitude and the greed that simmered behind those soft gaze.“You didn’t answer me,” I say, a little too sharply.She turns then, tilting her

ALEC I can't breathe.The pink swan is still in the water, but she's changing again. Her beautiful rose-gold feathers are receding, shrinking back into her skin. Her neck is shortening, her wings folding into shoulders. It's painful to watch. I can see it in the way her body convulses, the way her head thrashes. She's not in control. She's drowning in her own transformation."She's going to hurt herself," I say, my voice tight.Raymond grabs my arm. "Alec, wait. Think about this. You don't even know her."“I have to save her. Can you not see she is hurting herself?” At this point I don't think. My heart is beating fast and my feelings are all over the place. I just want to hold the beautiful swan in my hands.“You're our Alpha. You're to lead us to the promise land when we migrate. If anything happens to you, we're done for. You know that, don't you?” "I know she's one of us," I snap. "I know she's a Royal. And I know she needs help."The swan lets out a sound—a terrible, choked cry