Helena
I was trying my best to avoid Liam, who kept calling me when a question popped into my thoughts. Was I doomed to only have mates who hated me? I sighed as I tried to find a more comfortable position. No, I was cursed! I had done something to anger the moon goddess! That had to be it!
There was no other explanation. Other than the woman hated me! After the moon goddess revealed her cruelty by choosing that bastard as my mate, I just wanted to find somewhere that I could just live a peaceful life! Why couldn’t she just leave me be?! I wasn’t bothering anyone! I was happy, dammit!
Getting a second chance mate was rare enough as it was. If I rejected the Lycan king … I was sure I would never run into another male destined to break my heart ever again. Liam and most of the pack were trapped in cages. My mind was running a mile a minute as I tried to process the surrounding scene. If Oliver was the king of the Lycans and my old pack were his captives, did that mean he was taking over?!
What did not go unnoticed by me was that we were being taken care of. Although everyone looked a little worse for wear and definitely scared, they all seemed to be well-fed. Everyone was dirty, but nobody had major injuries. If Oliver wanted to get rid of us, why was he taking care of us? I shuffled a little to try and find a comfortable spot again.
I had been put in a different cage to that of Liam and the pack, but I knew they had smelled me. Liam kept calling, and I knew that soon all would be revealed. I wasn’t sure if I wanted it revealed. How would Oliver react if he found out that he was my second chance mate?
Oliver
Finding my mate after so long was not part of the damn plan! In my anger, I crushed the metal cup in my hand and glared in the direction of the cages. I didn’t have to see her to know exactly where she was. I could smell her scent all the way over here, and it is driving me crazy! All I wanted to do was grip that beautiful body of hers in my arms and make her mine.
I wanted to protect her. I want to make love to her until all she could do was scream my name! It was taking every bit of strength I had not to do that. She was a werewolf. She was everything I had been trying so hard to get rid of. Her eyes came to mind and I wondered what could possibly have happened to her. Her eyes were filled with so much emotion that it hit me right in the damn gut.
So far, all I knew about her was that she was a rogue. That just proved my point about werewolves! What kind of people throw away a female! What kind of alpha allowed a female to leave?! I needed to know more. I had to find out everything about her! I wanted to find out who her alpha was. Yeah, that was where I would start.
I could have him executed under my laws. I wasn’t sure which one, but I would damn well write one if I had to. I didn’t care if she was the one in the wrong. I couldn’t for the life of me imagine that anyone would leave a female on her own. In rogue territory of all places! Which made me wonder how she had survived on her own and for how long she had been alone.
Maybe she didn’t even have a pack … I shook my head and grabbed a new cup. Pouring myself a drink, I downed it and took a deep breath. My mind was still running a mile a minute when my beta appeared beside me.
“Hey, leave some for the rest of us.” He laughed but as soon as he saw my expression, his face turned serious.
“What?” I sighed, trying my best not to show what was going on.
“You know that little rogue female?” He hesitated and I nodded. “I think we might have found out something.” I frowned. Nobody knew she was my mate yet. Not even my beta. I pulled him aside, not wanting anyone else to hear what he had to say. “I think that arrogant alpha might be her mate.” As he said it, a growl escaped, making my beta’s eyes grow wide!
“He can’t be!” Fury burned in my eyes, making my beta take a step back. I took a deep breath, closing my eyes for a moment to compose myself. “I am her mate.” We stood there just gaping at each other for a moment while that information sunk in.
“Well,” He shrugged. “I don’t know what’s going on, but he is demanding to see her.” My beta looked amused but straightened his face the moment he saw the fury building up again. I nodded. I was going to get to the bottom of things even if it killed that entire damn pack!
“Bring her to me. I want to hear what she has to say first, but before you do …” I looked around my tent and started to clean up just a little. Throwing clothes his way while he ducked. “Get her some food and fresh water.” He nodded and disappeared with my dirty clothes while I straightened things out. I looked around my tent and thought how ridiculous it must be to walk in there and not see all the fanfare. I didn’t live like a king.
Half an hour later, an omega appeared holding a tray, and I was pleased to see that there was some fresh fruit as well. My beta appeared with Helena, who was glaring at me and quickly left us alone.
“Please, sit, eat.” It sounded more like an order than a request and I cleared my throat. If I was going to win her over, I would have to check my tone of voice!
“I’m not hungry!” She glared at me. Crossing her arms over her chest, she stood there like a porcelain statue not realizing she had just accentuated her assets even more! Her hourglass body would fit perfectly against mine! I shook my head to clear my thoughts and took a deep breath.
“Please, let’s not lie to each other. You must be hungry.” I waved in the direction of the chair and sat down to show I wasn’t going to hurt or try to intimidate her. She studied me for a moment and finally took a seat. Looking at the food for another second before digging in. I could see from her facial expression that she was enjoying it and I had to fight the urge to smile.
HelenaI didn’t care if he poisoned the food. I didn’t want to die, but it would be better than anything he had planned for me. Okay, so my opinion of mates was warped. Finding out that Liam was my mate was probably the worst experience of my life, although finding out the Lycan king was my second chance mate turned out to be a close second.“I came here because of werewolves like you.” He broke the silence and I frowned. What did he mean by that?! Did he come here because of rogues? Females being kicked out of their packs?! What the hell did I do that was so horrific that the Lycan king felt he had to take everyone prisoner?! When I didn’t say anything, he continued.“I heard stories of how some packs treated their lower ranked wolves badly.” He frowned as though he was straining to tell the story, and it piqued my interest. Did he also have a secret he wasn’t ready to share? I patiently waited for him to continue. “I myself lost someone important because of the greed of werewolves.”
HelenaI gave him a quick overview of how I worked my way up in the cleaning teams. I told him that I suspected it wasn’t because my work was so good. As the emotions flashed over his face, I could feel he wasn’t happy about what I was telling him.“As you probably already know, the pack didn’t treat their omegas very well.” I rolled my eyes picking at a piece of bread I was trying to eat. “I tried to do things the way they wanted, but you didn’t have to do much to upset one of the ranked wolves and earn yourself a beating.” I shrugged.“On my eighteenth birthday, I was hoping to meet my mate just like any other girl. I only prayed he would save me from my circumstances. I hoped he would protect me.” I felt tears stinging the back of my eyes. “When I found out that he was my mate, I didn’t hesitate. I rejected him. I wasn’t going to live my life as his sex slave. I had seen the remnants of his work.” I honestly didn’t feel like going into it any further.“And he exiled you because you
HelenaAll of my things were there. Even the old blanket I found in one of the trash cans a couple of months ago. My fingers slipped over the books on the desk and as I ran through the list in my mind, I realized every single book was there. Nothing had been damaged. It seemed they had taken great care to bring my things to the camp and that was a little surprising.Especially after the way they treated me when they first showed up! I looked around the tent, and it was more luxurious than my little cabin. As my hand slipped over the soft material of the bed cover, I thought of how expensive it must have been, and I wondered if all the tents had the same bedding. I heard a male clearing his throat outside my tent and jumped.“Miss, the king would like to know if you want to take a bath.” He didn’t come in, but I felt incredibly self-conscious all of a sudden. The tent suddenly felt too open! The only way to get in was through the door, but if you really wanted to get in, you could simp
OliverI wasn’t surprised to hear that Helena had refused the bath. I wouldn’t have accepted it if I was in her position. I quickly called my beta, and he made sure all the arrangements were made so that she could take a proper shower in the morning. The closest thing to a bathroom the warriors found in her cabin was the small pond nearby.I had to dig deep to figure out what would make her more comfortable. All I had to go on really was what my sister enjoyed and wanted while she was still alive. Over the years, I had had the odd one-night fling, but I had never had anything serious. I always tried to treat the ladies in my life as best I could, but I always made sure they understood that they weren’t my mates.It was strange to be on the other side now. Helena was my mate. I wanted to give her the world, but she looked like a frightened bunny who was at the ready to run at any moment, so I had to be careful not to overwhelm her. At the same time, I could see her strength shining tho
Helena“You aren’t going back into the cages.” He stopped walking so abruptly that I ran right into him. We jump apart instantly, almost as if we were hit by lightning or something. He sighs and pulls his fingers through his tick hair as he takes a couple of steps away from me. “You have to understand. I started a war against the werewolves. All werewolves.”He looks at me with such a pained expression that I just want to run into his arms and comfort him, but I don’t. Even though the bond is pulling harder and harder for us to be together with each passing second, I had to resist. I can’t allow myself to fall for the Lycan king. I can’t allow my heart to be broken again. I know this time I might not survive it.It took a moment, but when his words hit home, I felt a second bolt of shock run through my body. Taking a step back, I studied him carefully. I wouldn’t stand a chance if he decided to kill me! He is larger, faster, and stronger than I am. Even in our wolf forms. Especially i
HelenaI wanted to know what the hell was going on. I wanted to see, but I wasn’t allowed. It was beyond frustrating! I have spent the past two years doing what I wanted when I wanted! Now I had to do as I was told all over again! I caught a glimpse of myself in the small mirror in my tent and my cheeks turned bright red. My hair was disheveled, and my cheeks were flushed!Everyone could guess what happened between me and Oliver if they saw me now! I grabbed my brush and fixed my hair quickly before splashing some cold water on my face. Oliver might not care about what people thought, but I sure as hell did. I didn’t want anyone thinking I was fucking the king to save my life! I rolled my eyes at my own thoughts. What did it matter what people thought?! I wasn’t a pack member of the Lycans, or any other pack for that matter. I didn’t have more time to think about it when Oliver burst into my tent.“Come with me.” He gripped my wrist and pulled me outside. I didn’t fight him. I was his
HelenaHe was different this time. We were different. There was no rush to get naked like there was in the forest. He took it slowly. Kissing every part of my body after slowly removing my clothes. It didn’t matter that we were in a tent and that the entire world could hear us. When he entered me it felt as if it was our first time! It was the first time after we accepted each other.It felt as if the mate bond was cemented by that one single movement. I gasped, feeling a rush of hormones as Oliver started to move. My mind was telling me this wasn’t real! That I shouldn’t trust Oliver. That you couldn’t love someone this much so quickly. That my heart was lying to me! My heart was telling me I would never leave this man. He would always love me. That I was finally where I belonged.Oliver pushed me over the edge over and over again until I didn’t even know what my own name was anymore
Helena“Oliver,” I gaped at him. “We hardly know each other.” I started pacing back and forth, suddenly feeling as if all my limbs were in the damn way. I didn’t know what to do with them. My entire body felt as if it had suddenly turned into lead! “YOU …” I whipped around and glared at him. “You declared war on the werewolves. What are your people going to say? You can’t make a one-eighty and just expect them to accept it.” I shook my head, feeling completely overwhelmed.“My people will do what I tell them to.” He frowned, but I could see what I said was starting to sink in. We heard the ruckus long before his parents arrived and were waiting outside his tent side by side when they walked into the camp. His parents were nothing like I expected.“Mother, father. This is Helena.&rdq