Turn of the Moon (A Royal Shifters novel Book 1) (18 page)

He tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear, his finger grazing my neck. “And I know how
I
feel. I’ll protect you no matter the price, mated or not, even if it costs me my life.” His serious green gaze locked into mine. “I love you, angel.”

A tear escaped the corner of my eye. I knew he was going to say it, but it was different seeing it in a vision compared to actually experiencing it. “I love you too.”

Grinning wide, he wiped away my tear. “Did you see me say that in your vision?”

I nodded. “It was a lot better hearing you say it for real.”

Even though he was smiling, I could feel the turmoil inside him. My vision had already come to pass, meaning our future was uncertain. The only thing left to do was take each other’s blood and see what was to come.

“You need to stop stressing about the future,” I whispered the words across his lips. “At the next full moon, we’ll complete the bond and I’ll be yours for the rest of our lives. Nothing is going to change that. You can’t let some vision be the judge of everything.”

He nodded, even though his expression was grim. “I know. I just can’t shake the feeling that something’s about to get fucked all to hell.”

Biting my lip, I took his hand and placed it between my legs. “You got that right. And I think now’s the perfect time.”

A deep rumble vibrated in his chest. He slipped his fingers inside my underwear and I spread my legs. I gasped when he pushed one inside me and then another.

“I just want you to focus on what’s right in front of you. We make our own choices.”

He slid my pants down and freed his cock. Sitting up, he pulled me on to his lap. “That we do. Now show me what you want.”

Taking him inside me, I moaned as my body stretched around him. “Gladly.”

Bailey

“A
nd why are we going to the bar again?” I asked.

Tyla checked her makeup in the rearview mirror. “For drinks, why else?” She winked over at me. “Don’t worry, I’ve been sworn to keep all men away from you.”

“By Ryker or Sebastian?”

“Both.” She giggled.

Groaning, I sat back in the seat. “I swear, they’re both going to drive me insane. Although, I never thought I’d see them actually getting along.” For the past week, Sebastian stayed close, while Ryker continued with his ranger duties; it was all Ryker’s doing. They still gave each other a hard time and were quick to inform me that wasn’t going to change.

“That’s a good thing though. Having two sexy wolves guarding you is a dream come true. If they weren’t both alphas, with one being your mate, you could probably have yourself one hell of a ménage a trois.”

I burst out laughing. “Not going to happen with those two. Besides, even if Ryker and I weren’t mates, I don’t see Sebastian in that way.” I shivered and pretended to gag.

She snorted. “You’re the only female in the pack who doesn’t drool over him. Even I’d love to have a bit of royalty in me for the night.” She drove around downtown Jackson Hole until we got to the bar. There were cars everywhere, even more than a usual Friday night.

“What’s going on down here? It’s never this crowded,” I stated.

Luckily, she found a parking space right in front of the bar. It was the only one open in a three block radius. “What do you know . . . a spot right out front. Someone must love us.”

We got out of the car and I put on the fitted denim jacket I bought to go over my dress. The night was breezy and cool, exactly how I loved it. Turning my attention to inside the bar, I could tell it was packed, and not with your normal human patrons; there were wolves. A lot of them. I narrowed my gaze and looked at her.

Smiling wide, she took my hand and walked me to the door. When she opened it wide, my mouth hit the floor. Everyone inside stopped what they were doing and regarded me with their attention. Some even cheered and hollered out my name. I didn’t know what to do other than give a stupid little wave.

I recognized some, but there were a lot I didn’t know. Right in the middle of them all was Ryker, dressed in a plaid button down shirt and jeans, smiling devilishly at me. “What’s going on?” I whispered to Tyla.

She waved at someone from across the room and Kami bounced over, dressed in a cute pink dress and cowgirl boots. Hugging me, she said, “You made it just in time!”

“Just in time for what?”

Ryker walked through the crowd toward me and grabbed my hands. “To show everyone you’re mine.”

Kami snickered and put her arm around Tyla. “We wanted to tell you sooner, but we thought it’d be better as a surprise.”

“Surprise?” I looked up into Ryker’s mischievous green gaze and searched his mind. Wolves never had weddings like humans, where you exchanged rings. We could never wear them or any kind of jewelry when shifting. The magic of the moon was stronger than any verbal vow or wedding ring.

Smiling, he pulled me close. “We can always have a wedding if you want, but we thought having somewhat of a reception would be similar. Everyone came from all over to meet you.”

It was amazing seeing everyone together, laughing and talking without animosity. “I don’t need a wedding, Ryker. This is perfect.” Squeezing his hand, I nodded toward the crowd. “Let’s mingle.” There were a ton of faces I didn’t recognize but Ryker introduced me to every single one. “I can’t believe you know every person here,” I whispered in awe.

He chuckled. “I have a good memory.”

“All right it’s time for me to steal him away,” Cedric announced, slapping a hand on Ryker’s shoulder.

I put my hands on my hips. “Oh yeah, why is that?”

“Stripper time, why else?” When he saw the expression on my face, he balked and held up his hands. “Holy fuck, Xena Warrior Princess, I was kidding. I’m not stupid enough to have done that; I’d like to keep my balls.”

Ryker burst out laughing. “You sure as hell weren’t going to have any if you were serious.”

“No shit. Good thing I am only taking you to the bar.” Cedric looked back at me, “You don’t want to see Whitemore dance without a little bit of liquor in his system.”

With a smirk on his face, Ryker pushed him away. “Cocksucker. I dance better than you.”

“I never claimed I was good. Now let’s go. I think the ladies want to steal your woman away.” He nodded toward something behind me and when I turned, Tyla and Kami were there.

Tyla grabbed my hand. “He’s right.”

Ryker kissed my cheek and nipped my ear before disappearing with Cedric to the bar. All the alphas were there, lifting their shot glasses.
“Don’t get into too much trouble over there,”
I sent through our bond.

Lifting his glass, he peered back at me and winked.
“Same goes to you, angel.”

“So what are we going to do if we’re not getting drunk with the guys?” I asked the girls.

They giggled and pulled me over to a corner where at least thirty unmated female wolves waited for me, including Seraphina. “They all wanted to ask you questions,” Tyla informed me.

I sat down and smiled at all the women. Some were old, but a lot of them were around my age. “All right, let’s hear it.”

A girl in her mid-twenties from one of the red wolf packs spoke up. Her name was Emma Redding, cousin to the alpha of her pack. She had long, strawberry-blonde hair and green eyes. “How did you know Ryker was your mate?”

The question made me smile. “I didn’t at first, but then again, I’m stubborn. You also need to take into account that the people who raised me never told me about
true
mates. Were your parents true mates?”

She nodded, her gaze sad. “My father was killed by a rogue a couple years back while hunting. My mother doesn’t like to talk about him because it pains her. We only have one mated couple in my pack and they’re much older. It’s hard to get a fresh take on things.”

“I understand. Is that how it is with the rest of you? I know Tyla’s parents are true mated.” I glanced around and they all nodded. “Tell me about your parents, Tyla. What have they said about it?”

All eyes turned her way. “Not much other than it’s just a feeling they got. They said I would
know
when it happened.”

“And you will,” I began, catching their attention, “it’s just again . . . I was stubborn. I had to have proof and when I got it, it was still hard to grasp. None of it made sense to me.”

“That’s because she had her memories taken away by the Yukon pack witch,” Kami interrupted.

“She’s right, I did. I met Ryker a long time ago when I was just a girl. We were friends and it was because of that close friendship I think our bond was formed. I’d give anything to remember that time with him. Maybe one day, I will. However, I don’t think the Great Luna just randomly chooses two wolves to be mates. I think it happens over time when a connection is formed.”

“So we don’t need to sit on our asses and wait for them to come to us?” Tyla asked.

Everyone laughed and I shook my head. “No, I think you need to get yourselves out there, talk to them. Ryker and I were not born a part of the same pack. Just because your mate isn’t with your own pack, doesn’t mean he’s not out there. Take a look around,” I said, waving my hand about. “There are wolves here from all over the country. If you have brothers, cousins, friends, introduce them to some of the women here in this group. I fully believe the magic will come back to our people. You just need to believe in it—have faith.”

I could see the determination in their eyes and it brought me joy. The magic of the moon would come back to them; I had no doubt.

“And I think I just found the wolf I’ll introduce myself to. He just walked through the door,” one of the girls said happily.

I didn’t even have to look to know it was Sebastian. He winked at the group of females and marched straight to the bar. The little stinker knew exactly what he was doing. The women all separated and flocked around him and the other men at the bar. There was a strong chance their mates were in that very room.

“Sebastian sure can be a conceited jackass sometimes,” Tyla grumbled.

I chuckled. “That he can. He just needs a woman to tame him.”

“I’m sure he has a fair share to choose from. Look at them all lining up to talk to him.”

He sat at the bar with three females, hanging on his every word. Tyla watched on, her jaw tense and eyes blazing. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were jealous,” I told her.

She rolled her eyes and turned her back on him. “Don’t think so, B. He has a smokin’ hot body, but I don’t want a wolf who’s fucked more women than I can count. I bet he goes home with one of them tonight.”

“I doubt that. He may be a ladies man but he’s not a douche, well, at least not around me. Have you ever tried to talk to him? Like
really
talk to him?” I inquired.

She huffed. “No. I doubt he’d want anything to do with me.”

Grabbing her arm, I squeezed, hissing my words so only she could hear. “Are you even listening to yourself? You are an amazing woman who deserves to find her mate. You said it yourself, you can’t wait on them to come to you. Grab the reins and take control.”

“Take control of what?” Ryker asked, coming up behind me with his arms around my waist.

Tyla backed away. “And that’s my cue to go. Have fun tonight, guys. You both deserve it.” She sauntered off quickly and I wasn’t surprised to see she didn’t head in Sebastian’s direction.