Ash and I had breakfast. He looked at me intensely after we were done. His eyes felt like they were staring into my soul. I looked back at him and felt myself reddening.Ash suddenly asked, "When do you want to get married?" He added, "I'm hoping for sooner than later."I frowned and said, "I don't think we can until my training is done. I'm sorry." I looked into his green eyes and added, "I really do want to get married, Ash."Ash suddenly got a mischievous grin on his face and asked, "Why don't we just elope? We could go today." He ran a hand through my hair and added, "It isn't crazy. Other people do it."I shook my head no and told him, "We can't. That wouldn't be right. I…" I paused and took a deep breath and continued, "I met my destined mate. But I rejected him. I only want to be with you." Ash's face looked as if I had struck him. His mouth was set into one of disgust, and no sign of his previous happiness held. I reached up to touch his shoulder, but he pushed my hand aw
Zander POVI drove to the café where I had a date set up with Cleo. My rock music was set to a higher volume to drown out my thoughts. I hoped the date would go wrong. If only I could've gotten out of it.I couldn't believe Cleo had actually agreed to go on a date with me. I'd bet her parents had convinced her to do this. She may have been my mate, but I wasn't excited to see her again. I sat with a bored expression on my face.There was no point in hiding how I felt about the night. I rested my hand under my chin and looked out the window. I wished to be anywhere but the café.The café was a French style and had simple white tablecloths and triangle folded napkins with pictures of Paris scattered throughout the place. There were even authentic berets placed on a table near the cashier's counter. I was told to wear one but would never wear something like that.Cleo entered the café. She wasn't trying hard to impress me. A thin purple shirt hung on her loosely, while her jeans were
Zander POVHe stood beside my chair. Great. I needed to be bothered by a stranger. I set my hand underneath my jaw and stared at him unamused.The guy gave me a death glare and had his arms crossed over his chest. I assumed this was Cleo's fiancé. His testosterone was showing. How did he know we were even at the café? I found it a little creepy. We hadn't openly told everyone about this date. I thought her parents were the only ones who knew about our plans. Had someone within our pack spread rumors that reached his pack? I've never seen him around ours, so I knew he was from a different one."Ash, what are you doing here?" Cleo's voice sounded up an octave than usual as she asked the question. She seemed almost scared with her unusual pitch of voice. I wasn't scared at all. He didn't look intimidating. He wore a dress shirt and top of the line jeans and shoes. Ash seemed like someone who thought he was better than everyone else. It was the way he stood up straight and tall.
Zander POVI strolled through the mansion and walked past Cleo's room. I wasn't sure why I headed that direction, because I tried to not to see her much after the date. She probably hated me after that night. I had almost punched her fiancé in the face after all.Who wouldn't hate someone after that happens? I'd be surprised if she actually didn't hate me. Plus, our date was pretty bad. My wish had come true.I stopped when I heard her voice say, "Mom, do I seriously have to go off to train at another pack? Why can't I stay here?"I heard her dad's familiar voice sternly state, "You've got to train at another pack, since you aren't with your mate. It'll help make up for the loss of strength you have." He added, "This isn't optional Cleo."Cleo sounded angry and said, "Okay. I guess I'll go."Her mom added, "Zander is going to be going with you."I had to hear what she was going to say about me and stayed a little longer. Cleo's voice rose to anger and she said, "He has to go with
Zander gazed into my eyes before pulling away quickly. My heart was racing so fast. I wondered if he heard my heart beating. It felt as if it would leap out of my chest.He said apologetically, "I don't know what came over me. Please forgive me."Forgive him for trying to kiss me? He shouldn't have apologized for that. Wait, what was I saying? I had Ash. But I couldn't ignore what I felt for Zander. He still had my heart rate up just by looking at me.Finally, I said, "It's okay. Let's just forget about this.""Good idea."I turned my gaze away from him and tried to calm myself down.He seemed different tonight, and I felt more aware of him than usual. Part of me wanted that kiss from him. I shook my head and noticed he was watching me."What are you thinking about?""Nothing." I tried to avoid eye contact and added, "We should get back on the road."He nodded his head in agreement and paid the bill for us without asking me. On the way out the door he held it for me. I tried t
I stood in the training room facing my sparring partner. We were randomly paired up with someone. I was stuck with a girl who was a couple of inches taller than me and had a nose ring and eyebrow piercing. She didn't scare me, however.Within minutes she knocked me down with her wooden staff. I tried to get back up and was quickly pushed down. That was only the first partner I went through.The Alpha came into the room and said, "You all have to learn how to fight against an opponent who may have an advantage over you."She paired us up with people who were either taller, stronger, or faster than us. I got paired with a guy who was quite taller and more physically built than me. He looked down and me and said, "This will be a piece of cake.""That's what you think. You don't know what you're up against."I held back from punching him in the mouth and readied myself for our fight. Before we started, he added, "I want to do hand-to-hand combat.""I can handle that. You're on."
The following day, I stood in the living room near the couch. We were off from training from the day which made me grateful. I was already healed from my bruises from the day before because of the healing abilities I got as a wolf.I had been debating for the last hour if I wanted to call Ash. He'd been on my mind since last night. This had been the longest we'd gone without talking.I wasn't sure if he had messaged me or not. I'd been too busy with training to even look at my phone. It also didn't help he didn't pick up the other day.What if he was mad at me for going on the trip with Zander? I knew he disliked Zander and had a good reason to be jealous. I mean, Zander was a very good-looking guy. I needed to shove that thought to the back of my mind.I glanced at my engagement ring and missed Ash.I picked up my phone and decided to call him without a doubt. He needed to hear from me. I'm sure he worried about how I was doing with the Full Moon pack. My hurt ached for him. As
Emerald had punched me in the face and dragged me to my feet. She was stronger than her body build would've suggested. I mean, she was shorter than me by a couple inches and on the skinny side. How had she packed such a punch?She knocked me back down and kicked me hard in the ribs and hovered over me. Her face twisted into an ugly scowl. At that point, I was drained of any previous energy.I knew she had won and tried to keep my face empty of any strong emotions. I kept my face empty of any strong emotions. No way would I let her think she'd knocked down my confidence. I'd try to keep as much dignity as possible.She threw a couple more punches at my face and said, "You're a poor excuse for a future Alpha."Emerald took my phone and walked away before I could answer her back. Pain spread through my face, side, and ribs. Blood dripped from my nose and bottom lip. I looked down and my shirt had blood on it. I wasn't sure if it was hers, mine, or a mixture of both. I guessed the latt