Turn of the Moon (Royal Shifters #1)(18)

Opening the bedroom door, Ryker slipped his head inside. “You ready, angel? Everyone’s here.”

Tyla put her arm around me. “You can do this. I’ll see you downstairs.” She squeezed my shoulder and then disappeared, leaving Ryker and I alone.

“So how many wolves are in your pack?” I asked him.

“Our pack,” Ryker reminded me for the umpteenth time as he pulled me in for a kiss. “Why don’t you go take a look?”

He opened the door wide and I held in my surprised gasp as we entered the living room. Dozens of men, women, and children all turned to gape at us. “Oh my God,” I breathed. The sight was absolutely amazing. I had never known a pack to be so large.

There weren’t just Arctic wolves either. There were reds, grays, and even a small number of Arctic wolves all congregated in one place, smiling at each other with no rivalry. I could feel the power of their blood calling to me, giving me strength. It was something I’d never felt before with my own pack.

“Do you feel that? I’ve never felt it before until now,” Ryker mentioned through our bond.

“Me neither.”

Taking my hand, Ryker walked me through the crowd, and I said my hellos to everyone as I passed. In the corner was a group of wolves that had immense power pouring off of them. When they saw us approaching, they bowed their heads. I had already gotten to know a few of them at the bar, including Cedric. I didn’t realize how strong they were until they were all together.

“Everyone, this is Bailey Whitehill, my mate,” he announced.

One by one they introduced themselves, but of course it was Cedric’s smart ass mouth that caught my attention as he made his way toward us.

“Ready for the full moon,” he quipped, punching Ryker in the arm. “The guys were wondering when he was ever going to catch you.”

Ryker rolled his eyes and punched him back. “Yeah, well I would’ve liked to see you do any better. She wasn’t exactly an easy girl to follow.”

Cedric turned to me and grinned even wider. “On behalf of the pack, I want to thank you for getting him out of the shitty ass mood he’s been in for the past year.”

Lifting my brows, I glanced up at Ryker and smiled. “So basically, he’s saying you’ve been a dick? I thought you could control yourself better than that, Mr. Alpha.”

He leaned down, whispering in my ear. “You’re one to talk, angel. I can feel the desire inside of you when you look at me. Trust me, it makes things very hard.”

Cedric watched our interaction, clearly amused. “If you’re done mind-f*cking each other, I just wanted to officially welcome you to the pack and tell you that we’re all happy you’re here.”

Nodding, I smiled and said, “Thank you.” Knowing very well they weren’t going to be too happy when we told them about the two packs most likely hunting me.

Ryker rubbed my back and sighed. “It’s time.”

Taking a deep breath, I let it out slowly and walked with him to the front of the room. Ryker walked up with confidence and it was the only thing that kept me going. He believed in his pack, and knew without a doubt they would stand by and protect me. I just didn’t want to ask them to.

“You’re not, angel . . . I am.”

All eyes turned our way as Ryker cleared his throat, ready to make his announcement. It was amazing how so many different wolves were part of his pack, with an Arctic wolf as the alpha. Never in a million years would I have thought such a thing possible.

“As you all know,” he began, “I spent the last five years watching over Bailey, and then some in the previous years. When the time comes, she’ll be your alpha as well. She didn’t initially come here willingly. Through reasons I have yet to figure out, her family had promised her to another wolf, not telling her about the magic of mates. It turns out, that other wolf was my brother.”

The energy in the room spiked as words of rage and disgust spewed from everyone’s mouths. Questions were thrown at us, asking why my family would do that to me, but Ryker and I didn’t have the answers. Instead, he held up his hands, signaling for silence.

“We don’t know why her family didn’t tell her about mate magic or why she was promised to Kade, but I do know that—”

“I know why,” a voice called out.

The room fell silent as an elderly woman with long white hair and weathered skin approached the front wearing a white, silky robe. She was old, much older than any wolf I’d ever seen.

“Seraphina,” Ryker replied in my mind.

Slowly, she waltzed up to us, keeping her solemn gaze on mine. My heart thundered in my chest, but Ryker grabbed my hand, and it calmed me. I wanted answers, but I had to admit, I was nervous about hearing them.

Ryker bowed his head out of respect. “Thanks for coming, Seraphina. As always, I am open to your wisdom.”

Seraphina held out her hand to me. “Come, child. Take my hand.”

Her crystal blue eyes were kind and gentle, but had a sadness behind them. I took her hand and she pulled me to her, holding on tight. Her eyes closed and she mumbled something under her breath. “Too many secrets and lies have befallen you. Especially from those you love.” More mumbled words escaped her lips, and then out of nowhere, a spark of power radiated through the room and through me. Gasps erupted from the pack as it traveled through each and every one of them. The magic was familiar, like I had felt it before.