As I fell to the stage, surrounded by flashing cameras and concerned faces, I couldn't believe what had just happened. My heart was racing and I was hyperventilating, trying to process the fact that a Lycan was my mate.
All around me, my family rushed to my side, trying to help me up and calm me down. My mother's caked-on makeup was smudged with sweat, a proof to her concern and worry. And all around, people were talking and trying to make sense of what was happening.
'Breathe, Rissa,' I encouraged myself, breathing out of my nostrils.
Why was the moon goddess doing this to me? My brain couldn't process this at all. I'd been mateless for twenty-three years only to become a forbidden Lycan's mate?
Fucking great!
My mum squeezed my hand to comfort me. She was going to keep blaming me for months for disgracing her.
"Here, sip some water," she said. My brother, Bryon, held my head while my dad checked my temperature. I felt lightheaded and was breathing quickly, inhaling and exhaling rapidly.
"Do you need anything? Can I get you a doctor?" My dad asked but I couldn't bring myself to say anything and my brother's hand closed around mine. He helped me to my feet and led me to an empty, quiet room.
Alone with Bryon,my racing thoughts begin to calm. He made me sit on a couch and sat by my side holding my hand as I tried to compose myself.
"Are you okay? You know you can tell me anything."
I pulled my hand away from him. "I'm not in the mood to talk."
He nodded in understanding and I got on my feet."I'll be back. I need to use the restroom. "
I walked away hoping to get a few moments of peace. As I entered the female toilet, I sighed, gazing at the white tiles on the walls and floor that gleamed in the harsh fluorescent lighting, the smell of disinfectant assaulting my nose.
When I was heading out I overheard two girls mentioning my name.
"I think Clarissa is weird. She's so proud and stuck up. Look how she embarrassed herself in front of everyone."
"It's no surprise she's single at twenty-five," the other female said, and they burst out laughing. I seethed with anger as I listened to them speak, wanting nothing more than to shut them up. The idiots didn't even know my age.
I stepped out from the restroom staring at them and recognizing one of them as the spoiled brat daughter of my dad's Beta. They froze and began speaking in fragments.
My movements were automatic as I made my way to the sink and washed my hand glancing in the mirror, my reflection staring back at me. I walked away not wanting to give the gossips the satisfaction of knowing that their words had affected me.
As I walked down the hallway, my mind was a jumbled mess of thoughts. I caught sight of someone outside the glass wall. It was my Lycan mate and despite my better judgment, I felt drawn to him. He sat on a chair, his eyes fixed on the mast, lost in thought.
My heart raced as I took in the sight of him. He was handsome and alluring with his chiseled features and dark hair.
My wolf begged me to go to him but my human side resisted. Werewolves and Lycans weren't supposed to be together and the only reason we were even coming together was that we all shared the moon's Bond.
I rushed outside to confront him and when he saw me, he froze.
"You."
"Yes me," I snapped. His gaze made me feel hot and flustered and my body responded to him. I forced myself to believe that it was the desperation to have a mate that caused my reaction.
My wolf side begged me to claim him as my own. It was a primal, animalistic urge that I struggled to control, knowing that I couldn't let myself get caught up in the mating bond. There was too much at stake.
But as I looked into his eyes, I saw something there that made my heart ache. His face twisted with disgust, and I took a step back, feeling a chill run down my spine. I needed to clear the air once and for all, to make it clear that I couldn't be with him.
"Reject me," I commanded him, my voice low and steady.
He stared at me for what felt like an eternity, his expression unreadable.
"Are you dumb or something?" I snapped, my frustration getting the better of me.
"I can't reject you," he said flatly, and I stared at him in confusion. Was this some kind of sick joke? How could he not reject me when I was trying to push him away?
"What do you mean you can't? I'm a werewolf and you're a Lycan. We're like water and oil that can never mix."
"Who said I wanted to be with you?" he sneered, his eyes raking over me in a way that made my heart race.
"Great. We're on the same page then because I'd rather die single than be with you, so please reject me now," I said, trying to keep my voice steady.
"I won't, but you can do whatever you like and I wouldn't bat an eyelid," he said, his voice dripping with irritation.
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. This dude was impossible, and my blood boiled with anger and frustration.
"My dad will kill you if he finds out," I threatened, hoping to scare him into submission. But instead, he burst out into a loud, hearty laugh that filled the air around us.
"I dare him to lift a finger at me, and I'll be more than happy to tear him to shreds," he spat out, his nails turning into claws and my heart raced with fear.
"Rissa," I heard my brother's voice and I quickly hid behind a shrub, trying to get out of sight. The Lycan didn't take his gaze off me, his eyes burning into me with a mixture of anger and something I couldn't describe.
"Stay away from me. I never want to see you again," I warned him, trying to keep the tremble out of my voice.
"Copy that," he mockingly saluted, a smirk on his lips. And with that, he turned and walked away, leaving me standing there alone, my heart heavy and my head spinning.
The overpowering smell of old, musty leather filled my dad's beat-up sedan, and the sound of his angry voice rose above the roar of the engine as he scolded me for shifting into my beast form. Tension filled the car, and my anger radiated off me in waves."Is it such a difficult task to control yourself in public? Have you never seen a girl before that you had to shift into your beast form? Now everyone in the pack will yap about how my son was aroused by a stupid werewolf.""I wasn't aroused by her," I lied, trying to defend myself, but he was too far gone in his rage to listen."Griffin, please hear him out. There may be other reasons why he shifted, and besides, Jalen can't be attracted to that spoiled brat.""Oh, shut up," my dad barked at my mom, who had stepped in to try and calm the situation. "That's all you do, make fat and silly excuses for him. He never does anything right. I'll be retiring in a year, and I don't even know the future of our pack."She sat in silence, her ey
Alone in my room, I sat on a plush white loveseat. I couldn't sleep because I kept thinking about my Lycan mate and imagined how my parents would react if they found out.Maybe love wasn't meant for me. That was the thought that kept swirling through my head as I stood in front of the full-length mirror, my red dress pooled at my feet and my neck, sore from rubbing it wearily. My mother hadn't said anything about my fall, and I was relieved to have avoided the topic.I checked my phone. Several texts had flown in. I stared at the screen scrolling through the barrage of messages. A video of my fall had circulated online, and it had quickly become a trending topic.Those gossiping bloggers must be grinning behind their screen, alight with excitement to gossip about my personal life and why I might have fallen. One even suggested that I might be pregnant and feeling dizzy.I hadn't even had sex before. Maybe I was destined to be an old, lonely lady living in an old mansion, surrounded by
I woke up to a world of pain, my entire body screaming in protest. Struggling to sit up, I took in my surroundings and realized I had no idea where I was. My head spun as I tried to remember what had happened, but it was all a blur.I was in a dimly lit room, with peeling wallpaper and cobwebs in the corners. I was lying on the floor, my wrists and ankles bound tightly with a rope that cut into my skin. Just as I was starting to panic, a giant rat hurried past me, its beady eyes and sharp teeth, and a terrified shriek escaped my lips. I tried to get to my feet, but my hands and feet were tied and I couldn't move.My heart pounded in my chest as I shouted for help, realizing with a sinking feeling that I had been kidnapped. My bag was nowhere to be found and I couldn't even mind-link my dad for help. It was like I was nothing but chaff, and the tears started to flow down my cheeks as I cried out in desperation.I sobbed until there were no tears left, then tried to shift into my wolf
ClarissaThe moon cast a pale light through the broken window, making my panic intensify. The Lycan beast loomed above me and I lay on the cold, hard floor, screaming for help at the top of my lungs.My voice was rough, and my throat was raw from all the yelling, but I couldn't stop. I was afraid and had no idea what to do. The beast standing in front of me was fierce and angry, its eyes glowing a bloody red. It kept growling loudly, baring its sharp teeth and claws at me. I was sure it was going to tear me to shreds at any moment.The sight of its claws glinting in the moonlight made me cringe in fear. My body was paralyzed by the poison and when I tried to shift into my wolf form, my wolf was too weak to emerge, leaving me weak and at the mercy of the beast.The Lycan's hot breath washed over my face as it leaned in, its jaws dripping with saliva."Please don't hurt me," I stuttered, tears streaming down my face as I begged for mercy. My heart pounded in my chest as I imagined feel
ClarissaJalen's explosive shout took me by surprise, leaving me momentarily speechless as my heart raced in my chest. His anger was palpable, a seething heat that reminded me of the previous evening when his inner demons had taken control.As he loomed over me, the tension in the room was almost suffocating. I could feel the knots in my stomach tighten with fear, and I wisely chose to stay quiet, not wanting to further incite his wrath.Despite the anger he had displayed just moments ago, I thought I saw a hint of something like regret flash across Jalen's face as he ran a hand over his face and slumped against the wall. But he was skilled at hiding his emotions, and I couldn't be certain of what he was feeling.With a final, piercing look in my direction, he stormed out of the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts. I let out a sigh and cast my gaze around, hoping that my father would somehow find me and rescue me from this tumultuous situation.But deep down, I knew that it was a
As I crept out of the abandoned building, I looked left and right making sure that no one was watching me. There was no one in sight among the tall grasses. I quickly made my way to the van which had seen better days, parked close to the building. The building was hidden among the grasses except for a barely visible roof and peeling painted wall. I drove behind the wheels and my hands gripped the steering wheel tightly navigating the twists and turns on the road. My mind was consumed with thoughts of Clarissa. The abduction had proven to be more complicated than I had anticipated, especially when Cade and I visited the elderly herbalist, who informed us that the hypnosis potion would only be effective if Clarissa willingly consumed it.Also, the abduction could lead to a war between the Lycans and the werewolves. Clarissa's dad was surely looking for her by now, and I knew I had to act fast. The consequences of my actions weighed heavily on my mind as I raced home.I killed the en
ClarissaIt has been over twenty-four hours since I was kidnapped and tied up in this hellish, depressing building. My brain was going into overdrive and I couldn't even sleep for fear of what Jalen and his friend would do to me. Ever since I heard their plans to try to hypnotize me, I knew that I couldn't trust either of them. If his friend was really as nice as he pretended to be, he would have reported Jalen to the authorities for kidnapping instead of being an accomplice.The situation was so frustrating because I had a lot of work to do in the office. One of my clients had given me a project, and the testing and debugging was set to take place the next day. I also had a marketing and advertising campaign to oversee, but instead of working on these important tasks, I was stuck here, all thanks to my supposed mate."Did you feed her?" Jalen asked, treating me like a pet that needed to be fed."She said she wasn't hungry," his friend replied.Jalen pulled his friend to the window a
Downstairs, Jalen led me to a navy blue beat-up van and we both reached for the passenger door handle at the same time, our hands brushing. He stared at me with a mix of longing and sadness in his eyes, but quickly masked it and returned to his stoic, guarded self."Get in the van," he commanded, but his tone was not angry, instead my foolish wolf found it sexy. Jalen walked around to the driver's seat and I climbed into the passenger side. As he drove I felt the mating scent in the air and whenever I stole glances at him out of the corner of my eye, I felt a shocking sensation that ran from my head to my toes. I knew that he felt it too, the powerful pull of the bond between us."You know, it's funny that you think you can just pull a stunt like this and go scot-free without getting punished," I said, trying to start a conversation. "Do you know what my father would do if he found out that you kidnapped me?""How many times do I have to let you know this? I'm not scared of your fath