Turn of the Moon (Royal Shifters #1)
L.P. Dover
One girl. Two wolves. Promised to one. Destined for the other.
To escape the cruel, overbearing, Kade, the Yukon Pack alpha she’s been promised to, Bailey Whitehill flees her home in search of a new life, one of freedom where she can make her own choices. However, Kade will stop at nothing to make her his and begins the hunt.
As Bailey starts her new life, everything she’s known to be true, is not. Time is of the essence and choices have to be made or consequences suffered. Not only does Bailey fear Kade, but another danger lurks deep in the recesses of the forest. Unbeknownst to her, that danger is what she’s been searching for all along. At the turn of the moon, her fate hangs in the balance . . . and it’s up to her to make the right choice
This is my first dabble in paranormal and I have to say I fell in love with it. My wolves remind me of my MMA fighters (Gloves Off series) just with the ability to shift. I’m sure that’ll make some of you happy. I love me some alpha males. Anyway, I just want to say thank you for giving my new adventure a chance. It was fun being able to write about hot, sexy shifters for a change.
Bailey
“I’m sorry but there’s no other way, Bailey. We gave you a whole extra year to come to terms with this,” my father grumbled.
I quickened my pace toward the meadow, my jaw aching from clenching too hard. “I was hoping you’d come to your senses, but obviously not. I can’t believe you did this to me! I’m not going to agree to this . . . I won’t.”
“You have no choice, Bailey. We did what we thought would keep you safe. You’re of age now, and mating with Kade will keep you safe and pass on our bloodline.”
Actually, I did have a choice. My father was alpha of our pack, but my loyalties remained my own. I didn’t feel the pull that everyone else did when it came to following orders. While they had to follow them; I didn’t. Growing up, I had often wondered if there was something wrong with me. But as I got older, it all began to make sense. I had a gift—I was a rare female alpha—and it needed to stay hidden.
“Keep me safe? You’ve got to be kidding me. I’ve kept myself safe my entire life. Maybe I should’ve left when I had the chance.” They both tensed and hung back while I took the lead.
They were angry, yet it was almost as if they were scared of fighting against me, afraid I would leave and never return. I wanted to do what was best for our pack, I really did. But mating with Kade wasn’t the answer. I was basically being given away like a mail-order bride.
There was a time when I lived for the pack, when I would do anything to save my people. The white wolves were slowly reducing in number, and now everyone was desperate, struggling to make ends meet before we were wiped into extinction. I was twenty-four years old, and a daughter of the Northern pack alpha. It was my duty to continue my lineage. The only problem was, there were no other unmated alphas around other than my best friend, Sebastian, and the supreme douche, Kade Whitemore.
There was no way in hell I was going to alliance myself with that rat bastard. He was alpha of the Yukon pack, violent, and an overbearing ass who’d rather see me on my back with my legs spread open than being his equal. I’d rather die than be forced to be his mate for all eternity. Why couldn’t I mate with Sebastian? Thinking of f*cking him gave me the willies, but anything was better than Kade.
Anger racked my body and I sat there, seething . . . until I felt him. He was coming for me; I could sense him drawing near. The closer we got to the meadow, the more I could smell Kade and his excitement—his lust. Hopefully, he could smell the rage and disgust coming from me.
Wolves mated for life; it was a sacred union. It wasn’t like a human marriage where you could end it by signing a piece of paper. Our unions weren’t something you did lightly. It was also not a decision I was going to let my parents make for me. The only way to escape would be to kill him, and the last thing I wanted to do was start a war between packs. There had to be another way.
Up ahead, in wolf form, Kade kept his stare dialed in on me. He was large—like all alpha males tended to be—but I wasn’t impressed. He could smell my indifference and in return growled low, challenging me. I glared straight at him, not backing down, nor lowering my head. No one would ever make me submit.
Shifters needed the magic of the moon to change into their wolf form, but the strongest of our kind could transform at any time of the day. Most of the wolves in our pack had that advantage, except on the nights of the new moon. Only alphas had the ability to change on those nights. Tonight, there was no moon, so being the arrogant jackass he was, Kade decided to show up as his wolf. Figures.
Everyone backed away except me and my father. Kade sidled up to us and brushed his body against mine, marking me. Next, he pushed his nose between my legs and sniffed. Anger consumed me and I was close to shifting, but held back. “You do that shit again and I’ll have me a nice, white fur coat for the winter.”
His lips pulled back in a wolfish grin before he transformed into his naked, human self. “I was only getting a taste of what’s mine.”
Most white wolves had similar traits—light colored hair and blue eyes, with the occasional exception of green. My parents both had the bright blonde hair and had passed it down to me, along with their crystal blue eyes and immaculate strength. However, their strength wasn’t with them today which made me wary. My father didn’t even attempt to defend my honor.