Embracing the Wolf - Book #2 (Anna Avery) (10 page)

I swallowed around the lump in my throat.
What if I failed? What if my failure resulted in Adam’s death? I was no longer just in charge of my own fate. What if …

“So why do I feel like everyone is just waiting for me to crumble?” I saw it every time I met someone’s eyes. My own pack watched me with curiousness, as though they’d betted when I would crack and were just waiting to collect their bounty. Some of the visiting wolves watched me with sympathy as though my fairytale was about to end, while others watched me with contempt. What Elle said was a pretty idea, but it didn’t come with pretty conditions. The phrase
thrown to the wolves
, held a literal meaning for me.

“They’re waiting for you to step up and embrace your wolf, Anna,” Elle said. I looked up at her. “We’re
all
waiting,” she added, coming to sit down beside me. “You’re the white wolf, the
made
wolf that captured the prince’s heart. You’ve already made history, and you haven’t even come into your own yet.” She laughed to herself. “I can’t wait to see what happens once you do.”

A tear slipped down my cheek, too overwhelmed with her assurance to hold it in. Elle slung an arm around my shoulders and pulled me into her. She leaned her head against mine, and said, “You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for. You just have to believe in yourself as much as I do.”

I swiped the tear away, shaking my head. “You’re right,” I told her. “I have to put on my grr face and not second guess myself.”

Elle laughed. “Exactly. Convey with your eyes that’ll you’ll cut a bitch if she even sniffs in your mate’s direction. Make
them
second-guess everything they
thought
they knew about you, my lean, mean, alpha-bitch Queen.”

I burst out laughing. “What would I do without you, seriously?”

“Oh, you would be a mess. A complete and utter mess.” She bumped my shoulder playfully. “Now, let’s get you ready for the ceremony.”

My lungs constricted, making it hard to breathe. I concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, the drag of my long, white silk gown against the grass, and the beautiful man awaiting me up front. Anything but the weight of eyes that was pressing down on me, or the abusive slam of my heart. I wasn’t ready for this, but then, would I ever be?

Elle spent the last hour and half doing my hair, makeup, and tried her best to make me laugh. Her company had helped, but now that it was time, all of that relaxation left my body, and I was as tightly wound as I’d been before.

Whoever set up the ceremony had done an awesome job. I walked down an aisle lined with pots of pink and white roses. Twinkle lights crisscrossed over my head, illuminating my face. White chairs sat on either side of the raised stage, too many to count. All of the wolves were here, faces I didn’t recognize or hadn’t met yet. The sky was twilight. Purple and orange smeared across the clouds, lending a beautiful backdrop.

Two women in midnight blue gowns held flutes to their lips, serenading the ceremony attendees. The music was so gentle, just a whisper of wind instruments, but it soaked through me. My wolf metaphorically puffed up her chest at the Native American tune. Pride leaked through me and helped me down the aisle. Elle and Jill were right; this was history in the making. I was a
made
wolf on her way to becoming an alpha. I held my chin high, relishing in my wolf’s strength. While I’d been unsure about where I belonged and what I could handle, she’d never wavered in knowing this was right where she was supposed to be. From day one, she thought of herself as an alpha, and now she would be—we would be.

I clenched my gown as I ascended the stairs to the stage. Adam was waiting for me with an outstretched hand. My eyes found the mark on his palm, and all semblance of doubt washed away. I clasped his hand and allowed him to lead me to the center. My pack circled around us, knelt on one knee with their heads bowed. My lungs no longer constricted, but my heart did. If there was one sure way to humble a girl, it was this moment. Tears stung my eyes, but I kept my chin high and my face blank. I could not break down, not before the ceremony even started.

“I am honored to share this moment with you my friends,” Adam began. He was wearing ivory linen pants and nothing else. His chest gleamed against the golden hue of the falling sun. When he looked over at me with pride-filled eyes, my own blurred more.

“To find one’s soul mate is a legend we long thought was lost,” Adam continued, looking out into the audience. “As wolves, we breed and mate all in the name of forming alliances. But love rarely fits into the equation.” He looked over at me again, squeezing my hand in reassurance. I tried for a smile, but it felt shaky on my lips.
I will not cry. I will not cry. I will not cry.

“I am not a man who experiences insecurities,” Adam said with a smile. A hushed round of laughter circled around the crowd. “But when Anna walked into my life she caused just that.”

Hmm, that didn’t sound good.

“I was raised with one way of thinking, and this woman,” he signaled to me. “This beautiful, stubborn woman knocked me off my axis. The mere sight of her caused me to call everything I knew into question. We are each born with a piece missing, and it’s only through the sheer design of fate that we find that missing link. Anna is mine—the piece that makes me whole.” Adam stared into the audience. Aside from the soft music, silence settled over the ceremony as though everyone was holding his or her breath. I know I was holding mine.

“To know that sort of love, that completeness,” Adam paused. “I wish that for each and every one of you. So when I say that I am honored for all of you to stand witness to one of the most important rituals of my life, I say it with truth and humbled pride.” Adam bowed to the crowd. I wasn’t sure if I should follow suit or not … maybe curtsy? I nodded my head slowly instead, hoping I hadn’t offended anyone.

Adam leaned into me and whispered in my ear. “I have never seen you look more beautiful, my Chante.”

All I could do was nod. My voice left with my breath. My legs trembled beneath my dress, and a single tear escaped and slipped down my cheek. With a soft graze, Adam brushed the drop away, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

“Are you ready?”

I cleared my throat and managed to whisper, “Yes.”

Adam must have given the orders telepathically because Elle and Joe stood from their bent positions and came to me. I noticed all of the men were dressed like Adam: linen pants and nothing else, whereas the women were sheathed in swaths of steely gray silk. Elle and Joe both smiled at me, but did not say a word. Together they undressed me, slipping the silk gown off my body so that I stood in my bra and underwear. Thank goodness I’d known about this part and had made sure to wear some decent underwear. I kept my eyes forward, not allowing my modesty to ruin this moment for me. At least I wasn’t naked in front of all of these people.  Once Elle and Joe were done, they took their places back in the circle.

The drums grew louder and louder, mimicking the rapid beat of my heart. My pack began to fidget around me, their bodies writhing almost sensually. Clothes began to shred from their bodies as their wolves pushed forward. Within moments, a pack of wolves surrounded me. They sat waiting, their heads tipped back so that their noses faced the now dark sky. A cool breeze whipped across my stomach causing the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end.

My gaze shifted when a group of women ascended the stage, each holding a small clay bowl. They formed a circle around me and knelt down, placing the bowls in front of the wolves. When each wolf had a clay pot sitting in front of him or her, the women disappeared off the stage. My eyes found the icy stare of Maggie and Donald. They sat in the front row, Anthony beside them. Maggie arched a sculpted brow at me, her displeasure loud and clear. Donald’s face was all hard lines and scorn. His jaw was clenched so tight; I wouldn’t be surprised if he cracked a few teeth. Anthony, on the other hand, smiled and winked at me, but there was something mischievous in his eyes that put me on edge.

“We’re here tonight to pledge our loyalty to you, Anna,” Adam said, coming to stand beside me. I smiled down at him, that tingly warmth bursting through my stomach. “Each wolf is here on their own accord. They have acknowledged you as their alpha female and wish to give themselves to you, as do I.”

My smile turned into a cheesy grin, and I had to restrain myself so I didn’t look like a teenager who’d just been asked to prom by her crush. Grinning like a fool wouldn’t help the witnessing wolves change their minds about my ability to rise to alpha status. I had to be serious and controlled. The smile slipped from my lips and straightened into a straight line while I looked ahead, chin held high.

“Let the ceremony begin,” Adam announced. He reached out a hand to me and helped me descend the small stage I stood on. Together, we walked over and stopped in front of Joe.

“Joe, do you promise to protect and obey Anna Avery, putting her life before yours and others as your alpha female?”

Joe, a salt and pepper wolf, lowered his head in a bow. When Adam nodded toward him, he dipped both of his paws into the clay bowl and stepped toward me. Sitting on his hind legs, he pressed his paws against my stomach, leaving two perfect prints on my skin. I watched in awe as the red liquid slowly faded as though my body had absorbed them. Energy swirled through my body, causing my wolf to bristle beneath my skin.

Adam moved me around the circle, asking each wolf the same question, and each one dipped their paws in the red liquid and stamped my body with their paw prints, only for my body to absorb them. By the end of the line, I was so amped up, I felt like I’d taken a bunch of speed. Power surged through my veins like I was connected to a live wire.

“How are you doing?” Adam whispered in my ear as he helped me back onto the small stage.

I had to take a deep breath before answering—afraid if I didn’t, my response would come out as a squeal.  “I’m fine.”

“Now it’s my turn.” He winked, and all of that energy racing through my veins headed between my legs. All of my senses amplified, my sudden desire for Adam caused my panties to dampen. Realizing that there was a huge crowd watching us, I tried to reign in my desire. Easier said than done, especially since Adam was stripping out of his linen pants. A couple females in the crowd whistled, and I growled in response, my eyes zeroing in on the admiring females. The clarity of my vision told me that my wolf was waiting right at the surface. I was sure my eyes were burning orange as I searched out the women ogling Adam.

When a hand brushed the small of my back, I looked down to find Adam smirking at me, an almost proud sparkle dancing in his eyes. With a wink, he shifted, and an ebony wolf now stood in front of me. He was huge, his shoulders coming to my feet on the stage. Adam dipped his paws in a clay pot, and just as he was about to place them on my body, a whizzing sound caught both of our attentions. Adam faltered, his ear perking up as he looked toward where the sound was coming. A deep growl echoed up his throat as he opened his mouth and roared. Momentarily distracted by his anger, when I looked up, it was at the silvery sharp edge of a broad-head arrow sailing right for me.

Adam leapt up, knocking me over right before the arrow found its way into my heart. I fell off the stage in a hard thump, Adam’s wolf a mass of fur and teeth acting as my shield. The adrenaline from the pledging part of the ceremony surged through my body making any and all pain I’d feel tomorrow nonexistent. But a tight wrenching in the pit of my stomach told me something was wrong with Adam. When he shuffled off me, I could see the cause of my panic. The arrow meant for me was sticking out of his side, buried at least four inches.

“Adam,” I yelled, crawling on my knees. I ran my fingers through his long, dark fur and tried to move around him, but he nudged me back with is head. He stood at attention, ignoring the arrow and my worry. The surrounding wolves all formed a tight circle around us, and the witnessing wolves all scrambled to their feet. I wasn’t sure if they knew what had happened, but it was evident enough that someone disrupted the ceremony.

Joe shifted beside me and grabbed my arm, trying to haul me up and away from Adam. I fought against him, needing to help Adam before another arrow found its way into his body. Through our bond, I could tell he was in a lot pain.

“Adam wants you inside,” Joe said.

Using both hands, I shoved against Joe’s body. “Too fucking bad. He’s been shot. He’s the one who needs to get inside. The arrow could have punctured his organs.”

Adam spun on me and bared his teeth, nodding with his head toward Joe.

“Uh-uh, not until you go inside, too. Let the pack figure out what happened. You’re in no shape to go running after the shooter.”

Adam’s black wolf made a sort of huffing nose, his eyes cutting to Joe. I didn’t need to know what he was saying to his second-in-command to know it had to do with me.

“So help me, Joe, if you touch me, I’m going to drop kick you in the balls.”