Jaxon's POV"Very well. I see you're ready to join your mate," Mel says eerily calm. “Just get the children out of here first.""Get the fuck out of here. Now!" she growls, making the children scamper into the packhouse.Wow, she deserves to die just for that. Nathaniel orders the rest of the pack to stand down and not attack if Mel touches their Luna. Then, he lets her go and saunters beside me. Both of us stand folding our arms as we watch the event in front of us. Shadow is excited to see our mate in action. I share his excitement, and of course, I'm confident she will win, but also a little nervous about her getting injured again. This is a fight to the death, so neither will hold back."Are you okay?" I ask, noticing his arms beginning to heal."Yeah, just preparing to watch my Luna die,” he says, tensing up, “I can feel how powerful your mate is, she will be an amazing Luna."I smile proudly. "She will."We will both be more powerful once the mate bond is sealed, Shadow reminds
Jaxon's POVI turn to Nathaniel. "Are you interested in becoming Alpha of this pack? I would like to create an alliance with you instead of absorbing this territory, as ours is large enough as it is."His mouth parts in shock. "Wow, you're nothing like Alpha Damon was. I was expecting you to come wipe us out. I mean, it's not like we didn't deserve it.""We believe in giving second chances," Melanie adds.He nods, a ghost of a smile on his face. "Well, thank you both for giving me a second chance to right my wrongs. I will be the Alpha they deserve,” he promises.We spend a few more hours getting to know the rest of the pack and Alpha Nathaniel and I create a contract that says we are allies and if he betrays us, I will kill him. Mel and I plan to visit next month and check in on them. I hope to see a lot of good changes by then.The sun is setting by the time we start driving back to the packhouse. "Well that went pretty well," I say, grabbing Mel's hand and rubbing my thumb back and
Mel’s POVJaxon is not in bed when I wake up in the morning, but when I mind-link him, he just says he decided to begin patrol a little earlier today so he can complete any paperwork that needs to be done before the party.I actually sit down and eat breakfast today before heading to the training grounds. There are only two more weeks until camp is over. Everyone buzzes with excitement about the party tonight, so they're a bit distracted, but Charlotte and I manage to get them through the day's material.As the pack starts down the trail for our end of the day run, Ayla, Dusk, and Rubeus appear in their normal, obscured spot.Ayla is pressing her lips together, her face hardened with displeasure. She must have heard about us allowing Nathaniel to be Alpha of the IronClaw pack.Go ahead, I got it, Charlotte mind-links me, jogging in the direction of the recruits."You know Ayla, I do have a job to do here," I shout as I march over to them.Her cocked eyebrow infuriates me. I gesture to
Mel's POVRubeus meets my gaze for the first time in days. "You ready?" he demands curtly.I smirk. "Alright, but I have a party to go to tonight. Try not to break anything."We spend the next hour training hard. Rubeus is strong, but I don't do too bad against him. He pins me a few times, but I always hop back up and try again. By the time we're done, I'm covered in grass, dirt, and sweat.I'm going to have to hurry and wash up, or I'm going to be late to the party."Thank you, Rubeus," I smile, giving his hand a firm shake.His face remains emotionless. "No problem.""Why have you been acting so strange around me?" I ask, surprising even myself.I don't even know why I care so much, but I do.Guilt flashes on his face, but he quickly hides it. He leans down, placing a hand on my should as he gives me a serious, solemn look. "Just be careful, Melanie. Don't trust anyone. Things are not what they appear."With that, he disappears through a portal, leaving me to decipher his cryptic as
Mel's POVI spot Jaxon's car in the parking lot and park beside him. Walking into the building, my eyes widen in astonishment at the scene in front me. The dining hall has been completely transformed for the party. There's a DJ booth in the orchestra pit and a pop-up bar table on the platform where the higher ranks usually sit. The long table for the rest of the pack has been pushed further back to make the dance floor larger.The bass of the music thumps loudly in my ears. Vibrant lights move back and forth across the dance floor now crowded with wolves swaying and dancing in sync.I find Jaxon amongst the crowd busily chatting with a group of warriors. He's wearing dark jeans and a black button-down shirt with a black blazer over it. Both my heart and vagina flutter at the sight of him.Holy Goddess!My aura divides the crowd, making it easy to get to my mate. He greets me with a smile that doesn't quite meet his eyes."Looking rather slutty tonight," I say, checking him out.He smi
Mel's POV"Love in this Club" by Usher comes on next. I sway my hips to the beat, gazing intently at my mate. He watches me for a moment with amusement, but then turns his attention back to the guys talking to him.I growl, flaring my nostrils and stomping my feet like a frustrated toddler. This is not how I wanted tonight to go. This is our first night officially being public, and I want him to want to dance with me.After drinking another cocktail, I approach one of warriors I recognize. I think his name is Cameron or something like that. "Wanna dance?" I ask, reaching for his hand.He chuckles nervously, running his hands through his hair, "not if I want to live to see tomorrow."He looks around like Jaxon will appear out of anywhere, but he won't. Not until I finally do something naughty enough to gain his attention.I bat my lashes at him. "Oh c'mon, Alpha won't mind."His friend nudges his shoulder. "Don't do it, it's a trap," he warns.Suddenly, a strong arm wraps around my wai
Mel's POVfind Jaxon in front of the sink splashing water on his face. When he senses me, his silver eyes snap to me in the mirror's reflection. "Mate,” he growls in his wolf’s voice.His eyes flash green and silver as he battles for control. "Get out of here, Mel."This time it’s Jaxon speaking."Jaxon, what's going on?" I demand, "you were gone before I woke up this morning. You didn't want to ride with me here. Then, you finger me out there, which was fucking hot by the way, but now you're in the bathroom hiding from me.""Get. Out."He uses his Alpha tone this time, demanding obedience. Instead, I take a step closer to him. A wave of pain from defying his order crashes into me, but I still refuse to leave."Stop pushing me away. I'm not going anywhere," I demand through clenched teeth.He turns around to look at me, his wolf's eyes glowing in the dimmed bathroom.Our mate needs to mark us, Nina answers, they're in incredible pain having to hold back this long. My eyes widen. What?
Jaxon’s POV"I want revenge, Jaxon," Alpha Philip states, taking a swig of the bourbon in his glass. His hazel eyes burn with hatred after recalling what happened to his warriors.And what the hell does this have to do with me? Instead, I ask, "isn't this something you should call the Council for?"I'm having a difficult time hiding the irritation in my voice that my special moment with my mate was disrupted. Of course I didn't plan to mark her in the bathroom tonight, but I'm glad it finally happened.All day Shadow was out of control, clawing and thrashing against my skull to get to her. That is what he had warned me would happen eventually, but I didn't know it would be that intense and unbearably excruciating. It felt like my head was splitting in two.Shadow is quiet now, satisfied that our mate is wearing our mark. Everyone knows she's ours now, and no one will dare try to take her from us. Not even Ayla and her henchman if they're smart."I don't want those corrupt bastards an