*Leroy POV*I turn my eyes to the Epsilon who has not responded to my question. “Is she my mate?” I repeat my question. He sighs and momentarily closes his eyes. “I need to know,” I insist even though my breathing is becoming laboured. “Down the line mate.”I glance at him, my frustration building up. Mate, second chance mate and rejected mate are all familiar terms, not this. “What the fuck does that even mean?”I don’t mean to shout at him but this is all so messed up. “You cannot handle her right now, Your Highness. There is too much animosity between her pack and ours. And her upbringing under us has been terror at most.”“I had nothing to do with that.”He sighs again and shakes his head. “It does not matter. The Alpha bares the sins of his pack.”I know that arguing with him will not change anything. I focus on getting the facts instead. “When will I be able to handle her?”“When the time is right. When the sins of your father have been righted. When the suffering has bee
*Leroy POV*Even her authoritative voice sounds golden. Oh how I missed talking and even fighting with her. I catch a glimpse of my warriors shifting into their wolves. They are getting themselves ready to fight. More like to die because this woman is ferocious. “Stand down and let all her people go.”They shift back, bow and disperse. I sigh when I see her eyes burning with fury. I had no idea that all the nameless slaves from our pack were the children from her pack. Our pack killed their parents and made them nameless slaves. No wonder even the Lycan king shuddered at the discovery. Marcus, Linda and I rescued several nameless slaves and moved them far from here but majority are still here. They were abused and assaulted on a daily basis. No wonder she’s so mad. “I will give you the list and locations of the ones we rescued.”I see her eyes warm up momentarily before her rage returns. I walk closer to her. The Epsilon said I will transverse hatred and love. My heart hurts just
*Cali POV*I leave the Ruber pack palace emotionally exhausted. I walk into Marcus’ study with my head spinning. A part of me refuses to believe it, but I doubt that Phoebe would lie about something like this. “Leroy tells you everything. Is it true that I am his mate?” I ask the moment my eyes meet Marcus’. He sighs before getting up and embracing me. His actions are a confirmation of what Phoebe told me, but it can’t be. I frantically shake my head. “No. It just can’t be.”“I told you before that you two have a connection I cannot understand. It was like that way before Phoebe and before your wolf. I know that it’s hard for both of you, but it now makes complete sense,” Marcus says and I can’t refute his statement. I hate Leroy, yet something changes when our eyes meet. It is out my control, always has been. “He has a mate and will have others. He does not feel anything towards whoever will be his mate after Phoebe. Why the hell am I feeling this?” Marcus shakes his head. “I d
*Cali POV*“Good morning, My Queen,” Betty greets while opening the curtains, letting the sun in. I rub my eyes and sit up on the bed. It’s been three months since I found out who I am. My pack and I currently all live in the Fallow pack house. “Morning Betty. What time is it?” I ask with a yawn. “It’s five o’clock and our guests are here,” she tells me. I quickly get off the bed and head to the bathroom to take a shower. My guests can be irritating, but the alternative is worse. The alternative being their mates. I walk out of the bathroom to find my bed made and a golden gown laid out on the bed. I am loosing track of how many gold gowns I have. I go to the shops intentionally looking for anything not the colour, but I somehow always return with the same colour. My Lycan loves everything gold. I mean everything. I slip on the gown and Betty helps me with my hair. She leaves a few curls in front and clips the rest of my hair up. “Beautiful!” she exclaims, her eyes sparkling. S
*Cali POV*I sit up in bed and look at the shirtless man beside me. Something is wrong because my heart starts pounding like it used to when we were bedmates. “What?”“What did you do to my lycan?” I ask, looking suspiciously at him. My pack would have missed him coming to my chambers because we have the same scent, but there is no way my lycan missed him. Gold hates Leroy and Sky, yet we are in bed together. How the hell did this happen?He laughs and plays with my hair lock. “You may hate me, but it’s not real. What is real is our connection. It’s getting stronger each day,” he says while I frantically shake my head. “No, it’s not!” I snap with a hushed tone, careful not to wake up Phoebe. “I don’t think you can wish this away, Cali,”“Gold,” I correct him and he grins at me. “You will always be Cali to me. We have a history, a foundation. All these idiots can try, but ultimately, you are mine. I told your lycan to kill me and she curled up in my arms instead.”I shake my head
*Cali POV*Three months later, I pace up and down my chambers, contemplating if I should answer my phone or not. Phoebe has been calling me several times every single day. I know what she wants. I turn her down everyday. I would do anything for her, except this. I should ignore her, but my stupid heart won’t let me. I let out a sigh and answer. “Phoebe!” I exclaim excitedly. “You are ignoring my calls,” she accuses with that tone that pulls on all my heart strings. Not even Leroy can do that and he is apparently my mate. “I wasn’t, I promise. I left my phone behind when I went for a walk,” I lie through my teeth. Phoebe is by far the only person I can never be mean to. She has this strange impact on me. We have this bond that even the Epsilon cannot explain. “You are a bad liar, Gold.”I can’t help but laugh. “Fine, I know why you are calling and I hate turning you down. I promise you that I will come when my godson is born,” I come out clean. I have accepted that her and Leroy
*Leroy POV*Cali’s pack is surprised to see me in their pack house. The ones Linda, Marcus and I rescued, bow before me and are thrilled to see me, but I can feel the hatred from the rest. I don’t blame them, considering everything we did to them. There is also the matter of their burial ground I can’t return to them. It is a quiet ride back to Ruber city. We are both sitting at the back of the SUV. The shield separating us from the driver is down. We have privacy, but Cali keeps her eyes focused outside the window.“Don’t overthink it. You love me and I love you too.”“I love Phoebe, not you!”She does not even look at me as she snaps. I can’t help but laugh. How I have missed this cute ball of stubbornness. Sky is in heaven at the prospect of having her and Phoebe under the same roof again. “You’ve always been really hot and stubborn. Funny how I love even that.”She finally looks at me, those gold alluring eyes making my heart flutter. “Stop talking,” she instructs with the sam
*Cali POV*It has been a week since I moved to Leroy’s castle. Phoebe is thrilled, but Leroy and I are both really worried. Both Sky and Gold are behaving strange. It’s like they are in cahoots and planning their so called pup behind our backs. It’s just after seven in the morning. I am standing on the balcony sipping coffee when Leroy joins me. He stands a foot away and electric impulses spread throughout my body. This used to happen when he touched me, now it’s just being in proximity. “You feel it,” he says and I nod my head. I avoid him, but all my dreams are about our union now. It makes me feel so guilty when I see Phoebe. She, of course, thinks it’s all normal, but this is the most frustrating mate bond ever. “We need to keep a distance from each other,” I tell him. “I can’t and I don’t want to.”“Leroy!”“I am tired, Cali. I am being punished for the sins I did not commit. Sins I have no idea how to intercede for. Your ovulation is in a week’s time and every Alpha and Lyc