Chapter 1

Eva's POV

I could barely keep my eyes open as I rested my head heavily on the palm of my hand. My cheek went slightly red from the impression my fingers and palm had made.

My brain barely took in the words my English Literature teacher was relaying, my mind unable to comprehend the information she was providing.

What I did hear seemed to follow straight through one ear and out the other.

My absence of attention or care was due to a lack of sleep and exhaustion. I hadn't gotten home until past 1 am last night, and for a reason unknown to me, I could barely get an hour of sleep.

My wolf had been scarce, she had moved further into the back of my mind since my parents passed but lately, she had made her presence more known.

I had thrown myself into border patrol shifts, doing more than 4-night shifts a week and the occasional double shift. It was a distraction and it allowed me to grow stronger and stronger.

Something the Beta of my pack, Jaxon, had agreed with. He would encourage me to take more patrol shifts ever since my wolf turned up on my 16th birthday. The date a werewolf finally gets their wolf.

That was nearly two years ago, and I only had two months until my 18th birthday.

Jaxon had been a close friend to my father before he died, he had promised to look after me. My father had been a pack warrior which was why Jaxon had been tougher on me lately.

My wolf was a pack warrior and with the reputation my father had, I needed to be up to par. To follow in his footsteps.

When my dad died, my mother took her life shortly after. He had died while protecting his Alpha, rogues had attacked them during a visit to a pack up north.

The pain was instant, my mother's heart and soul left the moment my father took his last breath. She couldn't bear the thought of being on this earth without her soul mate, the person who shared half her soul.

A mate connection is so delicate and precious; that the moment you see the person who holds half your heart and soul, time stops.

Only werewolves have the ability to identify who their soulmate is. Unlike a human, they can sense their mate through touch, smell, and eye contact. To a werewolf, a mate is their entire universe and more, they complete you in every way.

It was because of that, that I understood my mother's reasons for taking her own life. I watched her become a shell of a person, a lifeless soul who walked with no purpose or value.

I had grieved for a long time, but Jaxon and his mate Linda helped ease the pain. They took me into their home and had looked after me since. Taking me on as their responsibility and I was more than grateful

"Miss Johnson?"

The sound of my name rolling angrily off Mrs. Kelly's tongue had my attention moving from the window to the direction of Mrs. Kelly's voice. Her slim tall figure standing in front of my desk only a few feet away from me.

I removed my hand from my cheek before looking up.

Her scowl was evident as her eyebrows furrowed, clearly unimpressed at my lack of concentration.

"To prove that you were listening, please repeat what I just told the class." She requested, her eyes never leaving mine.

Her request made my face scrunch up in distaste and I simply stared straight back at her. My eyes blank hoping she would catch onto my answer.

We both knew I hadn't been listening, my focus elsewhere.

Thankfully, she turned around, walking back to her desk to sit down before telling me to turn my book to page 156 of Pride and Prejudice by Julianne Nicholson.

"Please read for the remainder of the lesson, once the bell rings you may leave class. I have lots of marking to do for a class this afternoon so read quietly.”

Everyone followed her instructions except two girls in the back, a desk behind me. They were both from my pack and they whispered softly, gossiping about a house party on the neighboring territory

It seemed to be the hottest topic of conversation the past week, everyone wanted to attend.

"Alpha Torey turns 18 next week and he's invited everyone from our pack to his party next Saturday. I'm definitely going, are you coming with me?" Debby questioned excitedly.

"Yes!" Claire replied enthusiastically.

"Of course, everyone is going to be there. I'm not missing out."

I tuned them out after they began giggling, whispering breathlessly about what they were going to wear.

The bell soon rang loudly, echoing throughout the classroom signaling the end of the lesson. Students quickly packed up their belongings, throwing their books into their bags, and heading straight to the door.

I filtered myself through the halls. The heavy crowds of people compacted the hallways, blocking lockers from being accessed. I decided to head straight for the canteen, my stomach rumbling from hunger.

I passed both humans and werewolves, since this was a mixed school both werewolves and humans occupied the hallways. Obviously, the humans didn't realize that werewolves were among them unless they had a mate.

Hearing my name being called, I immediately looked in the direction of where my friends and I sat in the canteen. Lucy stood up, her eyes shining brightly from the grin she was giving me.

"Away with the fairies today?" She teased as I approached, receiving an eye roll in reply.

She laughed, giving me a further grin before passing me my lunch. She had owed me from when she forgot her lunch the other day. I told her not to worry about it, but Lucy didn't listen anyway.

Within a few minutes, our friends arrived, and the spaces on the table quickly filled up. Feeling too tired to share much today, I stuck with listening to their discussions instead of joining in on their conversations.

I laughed a few times as Kelvin and Lucy both bickered over what movie they would be watching tonight, with Kelvin instantly losing the battle. In his own words, deciding the easiest way to a mate's life is to agree with your mate especially if she is female. He received a scuff of a laugh from me and a smack on the head from Lucy.

Luke and Jason chuckled further when Lucy hit him again, Kelvin grinning widely at his mate.

Luke was the future Alpha of the Blood Walkers Pack, once he turned eighteen, his father, my Alpha would be handing down his title to his only son. He shared the exact same facial features as his father, deep green eyes with gelled-back blonde hair.

Feeling someone's eyes on me, I turned slightly to see Jason catching my eye line. He smiled a slightly teasing smile on his face from catching me staring at Luke

I shook my head at him, a slight smile stretching across my lips. Jason was Beta Jaxon's son and of course, the future Beta

Both Luke and Jason were due to turn eighteen in three months, and a celebration and ceremony followed the day after Luke's birthday.

He moved slightly, his position changing as he angled himself to face me.

“Staring at Luke, are we?” He teased, smirking.

His voice entered my mind clearly, he was communicating with me through the pack mind link. It allowed all pack members to access you through a mental phone line.

I pursed my lips at him and smiled, I wasn't intentionally staring at him. I couldn't disagree that Luke was attractive, but he wasn't my mate. I didn't want a relationship of any kind with anyone but my mate.

“Oh, shut up. You know how I feel about finding my mate.” I replied, giving him a smile.

“Yeah, I know Eva.” Jason said, returning my smile before his face turned more serious and concerned.

“So, I heard you coming in late last night. Did you do another double shift last night? Is everything okay with you, I know you've been hectic lately with border patrols.”

“I did, I've just had a lot on my mind lately. You know what I'm like, I want to keep busy when my brain is overloaded. I hate this time of year; it gets closer and closer to the anniversary of my parent's deaths.”

“Just promise me that you won't overdo it. If you do get tired, I'll always take over your shifts. You need to learn when to take a break.”

I smiled at his concern; he had taken on the role of bearing all my emotions when they had died. The anger, the fury, and the sorrow as I buried myself in grief.

I openly rolled my eyes at his words, a smile appearing on my face at the same time from his worry.

He had stayed with me, protected me, and never left my side. He was the brother I never had and helped me along with Jaxon and Linda to feel whole again.

He didn't add anything further after that, he simply turned to Luke, slapping him on his shoulder to get his attention. Luke turned around to see what Jason wanted and gave me a smile.

"We're still going to Torey’s party next week, right?"

"Yeah." Luke replied with a duh expression on his face, his full attention on Jason.

"Have you seen the girls from the Black Moon Pack? I'm not missing out on that opportunity.".

They both chuckled as I pulled a disgusted face, typical guys.

Jason's dimples were prominent as he beamed at me.

"Why don't you come to Torey's party with us next week? I know you haven't got a patrol shift as I checked this morning."

His words were promptly met with squeals from Lucy and Elizabeth. They had been on my case about it for the past few weeks, they were desperate for me to go with them.

I hummed slowly, suddenly feeling everybody's eyes on me. My friends are all eagerly waiting for my response.

"I'll think about it."

Lucy huffed but sent me a smile.

"Only you would have to think about whether to go to Alpha Torey's party. It will be the most insane party of Senior year along with Luke and Jason's of course!"

Alpha Torey was due to take his father's Alpha title next week, he was the heir to the Black Moon Pack. It was common knowledge that Black Moon had the largest pack and territory in America with over 300 wolves.

They were immeasurably impressive with a highly respected reputation.

"As I said, I'll think about it." I repeated, standing up to throw my empty box in the trash can.

Lucy grinned back at me one more time making me shake my head in amusement, my eyes rolling at her reply once again.

"Fine, I'll take it as a yes until you confirm."