They all stood in a line, like cattle waiting to be inspected, and Connor felt bile rise in his throat.
Ten young women, handpicked by his mother and father according to their respective bloodlines, each of them raised in preparation to fulfill the duties of a Luna, and Connor could barely stand to look at any of them.
The day was drawing to an end, and the Alpha's residence was filled with outside pack representatives, all hoping to ally with the union of marriage.
Tonight was his fucking engagement party for Goddess sakes, and Connor had never felt more alone in his life; any minute his father would call for quiet in the ballroom, and Connor was expected to announce his three choices for Luna, and by the end of the evening one of them would bear his mark.
The very idea of fucking someone else made him physically ill; actually putting his mark on another woman caused his wolf to growl in rage, and Connor honestly had no idea how he was meant to control his inner beast.
His mark belonged to Aimee Carter, his fated mate, the one the Moon goddess had molded specifically for him, and yet she couldn't be further away from him now if she tried.
Against his father's wishes, Connor had gone back to their apartment a few days ago. He just wanted to make sure Aimee was alright.
He hadn't planned what to say or how to justify his sudden appearance as he stood outside her door. It was a case of seeing how things went, he supposed, only Aimee didn't answer when he'd pounded on the door.
Connor stood there, knocking and calling out to Aimee for ten solid minutes before one of her neighbors poked their head out and told him she was gone.
Frustrated and not wanting to believe him, Connor had kicked the door down...and then there was nothing.
Her small lounge and kitchen area were bare, no photos on the mantlepiece or throws on the couch; the cupboards were empty, and every personal effect was gone.
Connors texts went unanswered, his calls straight to voicemail.. further prying found that Aimee had left her part-time position at the cafe down the road, and her University professors informed him that she withdrew from all her classes... Aimee had made sure to leave without a trace.
And there was nothing more than Connor could do but accept his fate.
The music died down, and Luther Salvatore strode powerfully up onto the stage; Luna Soraya, Connors mum, stood proudly at his side, and the whole room bowed their heads in respect to the power emanating from the Alpha couple.
Luther's murky green eyes found those of his son's as he began his speech, the warning in the older Alpha's eyes clear, don't mess this up, boy.
"First of all, thank you for your attendance tonight to witness my son Connor announce his chosen mate and the next Luna of the Armageddon pack," Luther paused briefly as the ballroom erupted in applause. It was no secret that his boy was considered a catch in their world. The Armageddon wolf pack was the largest globally, with almost 6000 members, most of whom were Gamma blood or higher, all lethal and completely loyal to the Salvatore family.
There were ten other Alpha's here tonight, each presenting their daughters for consideration, and Luther felt he was being more than generous in allowing Connor to make the final decision, hellfire anything was better than the weak human the Goddess had tried to pair him with.
"All of the candidates are beautiful, and each woman brings something unique to offer my son and this pack; Connor has spent this evening mingling and getting to know each of your daughters, and in a moment, he will take the stage and let us know his top three selections.
After that, each young lady will have an hour alone with my son without the pressure of all of us breathing down their necks, to see if there is sufficient chemistry there; of course, there will be guards outside the doors chosen from the pack each lady is from to ensure no impropriety occurs, although I have the utmost trust in Connor's control of his wolf."
Again Luther's eyes drilled into Connors as he silently let his son know it was almost time.
"At the end of the third hour, this ball will come to its conclusion, and Connor will announce his new Luna. The marking and mating ceremony will commence immediately, and that will end our evening. Thank you again for taking time out of your busy schedules to witness the dawning of a new era!"
As the howls of approval and thunderous applause reached its crescendo Connor realized it was time; with his Beta and Gamma by his side lending their support, he forced himself to make his way to the stage where his father awaited him.
ARIAL (VENGENCE PACK) POV
Nineteen-year-old Arial could smell the lesser she-wolves arousal as Connor Salvatore made his way to the stage and her button nose screwed up in disgust at their inability to mask themselves; make no mistake, Ariel could feel her own arousal pulsing between her legs and had no doubts that if she were to spread them, her sexy red panties would be soaking wet, but in the public eye, she was a lady, and knew that controlling the scent of one's arousal was one of the first things a wolf with a higher blood rank was taught as soon as she began her cycle.
Like Connor, both of Arial's parents were of Alpha blood, and a union between the two packs would solidify her family ranking within the global werewolf community; She was well aware of how much was riding on Connor choosing her tonight, and she fully intended to win him, looking forward to an intense night of vigorous fucking afterward, he certainly looked like he could go all night, she thought, biting her bottom lip cheekily at her naughty thoughts, it didn't help that her wolf was in full agreement and kept sending graphic images of Connor bending her over and having his way.
Arial knew how to please a man, and while technically she was still a virgin, unbeknown to her uptight parents, from the tender age of sixteen, most of her nights had been spent eagerly getting fingered by the cook's son Hendrick.
Hendrick was a thorough teacher, and Arial loved nothing more than sneaking into the packhouse at night and finding Hendrick's door unlocked.
They would spend the early hours licking and sucking each other, Hendricks talented mouth eating her pussy like a starving man all night as she lay on top of him, returning the favor sucking his massive cock like the tasty lollipop it was until he would cum all down her throat and over her breasts, causing Arial to come undone, jerking her hips against Hendricks face until he inserted his tongue as far into her tight pussy as he could. At the same time, his thumb teased and entered her other hole, making her explode instantly.
They had pseudo fucked for three years in secret until her parents informed her that she was about to be offered to an Alpha's son; after that, Hendrick refused to touch her, stating that he had no wish to have a pissed off Alpha hunting him down because his luna had another man's scent on her.
Things had gone a bit south after that.
However, the moment Arial laid eyes on Connor Salvatore, with his sexy green eyes and fuck me, blonde hair, her insatiable lust had made itself known. She quickly got her head in the game, grasping little moments with him during the evening, subtly taking a breath to ensure her c cup cleavage strained against the tight lavender bodice of her strapless ball gown.
Like Connor, Arial had blonde hair, falling in sensual waves to just below her butt. Her smoky blue eyes often caught his attention as he scanned the room, yes she had played the perfect game tonight, easily standing out, and Arial had every confidence that her name would be one of the three about to be called.
Connor took the mic from his father, and it squealed in protest, causing his brow to furrow, and he passed it off to one of the wolves by his side, he projected his voice clearly, and the words were easily heard even in the back of the room.
Once again, his eyes made contact with Arial's, and he sent her a small smile before he began to speak.
'Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out...'Connor felt himself going under, drowning in his panic as he stared out into the sea of faces, all waiting on his choices, like some goddamn winning raffle or something.Risking a glance at the line of young ladies, he found himself calming slightly as a beautiful green-eyed blonde met his gaze and grinned back at him.Arial O'Connor was the daughter of the Alpha and Luna from The Vengence pack, she was easy to talk to, and Connor knew his mother and fat
The sound of grown men barking was enough to frighten the most seasoned fighter.Dust, being kicked around, leaned a hazy look to the ring, and someone had decided to put the loudspeaker on, blaring 'Roxanne' at full tit.Brax grimaced at the fact that he could probably sing the whole song by now since the old Police cd had had pride of place in the dilapidated stereo for a good ten years at least.He stood off to the side, as was his custom, assessing the area, picking up on the different smells that told him who was scared, excited, angry, or even sexually frustrated. This was the hardest thing about being a wolf livin
Braxtons wolf howled in approval as the petite woman took down the prospect faster than a hooker spends money, 'MINE' his wolf asserted dominantly and he received no argument from The henchman, Aimee Carter was his, and he would stop at nothing to claim her in the eyes of his kind, vowing to love and protect her always.But first, he had to seal Aimee's re-entry into the Aces and Eights, his woman would need to equal or beat him, and Brax would give her no quarter.She would earn her place back into the club and into his heart, one fight at a time.WILD BILLS POV
Her name had been called out and there was nothing she could do about that now.Of the three names Connor had called, Phoenix was the lowest in blood rank; the second daughter of the Howling Moon packs Gamma family, she was barely a Gamma, her Mom was an even lower ranked Omega working in the kitchens; not that Dad ever treated Mom like anything less than royalty, he made it clear that Demelza Grimmer was his everything, which was the kind of bond Phoenix wanted for herself one day.She was almost twenty-six now and most of her peers had mated and settled down, some even had pups or were proudly expecting, but her job as one of the packs trackers had kept her away most of the time, and she was never in a position
Connor led the young Beta female into his father's study, she appeared confident but not arrogant, and Connor liked that about her.Phoenix Grimmer was a few years older than him, maybe he needed that though after the hash he made of his last relationship, and as she sat down on the couch she looked at him with honest eyes. ¨Tell me a bit more about yourself,¨ he invited softly, and she shot him an almost boyish grin.¨Well, there isn't much to say really, my father is a Beta, my mother's a cook for the dining hall, I have an older sister with a recessive gene, that made her wolf unable to phase, but she has made the best of her situation and holds a high position on the Alphaś council. I am a tracker
Aimee was sweating profusely, despite being dressed in less than what Braxton was wearing in the ring. The Henchman was certainly making her work for her place back in the club.Using his own momentum against him, Aimee rolled with Brax, spinning her body like an alligator causing him to lose balance and overshoot the roll, giving her just enough time to scramble to her feet before he was on her again, opting to throw the knife away and engage in hand to hand combat with his smaller opponent. Aimee tried to hide her smile as he relinquished a serious advantage.It was a mistake as Brax soon learned, Aimee was like a freaking psychotic octopus, grabbing the hair under his arms and ripping them out by the roots, ca
Aimee cautiously opened her eyes, slowly taking in her surroundings. There was the undeniable thump of bass music going on downstairs, so she must still be at Club HQ.The room was clean, and the furniture of good quality; a few expensive-looking pieces of art hung on the walls, and as Aimee sat up slowly, she noticed that there were some personal effects lying around, boots by the door, a coffee cup resting on the small table in the corner, just little things really, but enough to let her know she was in someone's personal space, and not one of the spare rooms like she'd assumed.Aimee was lying on a large bed, with a matching pillow and duvet cover set, and smelling like fresh linen-well that narrowed it down a
CONNORBefore he realized what was happening, Connor's erect cock was free, and Arial was sinking her sweet pussy down on him. There was a brief whimper of pain from the she-wolf as her virginity was taken, but she handled it like a pro, grinding her hips in a figure 8 as she rode him for all he was worth.If he was going to choose anyone as a Luna, it would have been Arial anyway, so forcing himself to relax and closing off any intrusive thoughts, Connor grabbed her by her hips pulling her closer to him as he thrust up like a piston.It turned out that Arial was quite the screamer, moaning lustfully as he sunk deep into