At 28 Rosalie Summers has still not found her mate, she has all but given up looking. With her brother now Alpha of the pack, Rosalie is free to follow her own path. But when her path takes her to the heart of the rugged English countryside her life changes in more ways than one. Has her mate been hiding in a completely different century? What will she do when she discovers him, return home to her own time and loving family, or give up everything to live in a more rugged and simplistic way.
Some steps need to be taken alone.
It's the only way to figure out where you really need to be.
-Mandy Hale
Prologue
There are often times when I wonder how I got to be where I am in my life right now. At 28, I'm the oldest unmated she-wolf in my pack by at least 5 years.
Its not through lack of trying. For over a decade my parents shipped me off to every ball, picnic and diplomatic meeting that, not just the US, no, the world had to offer. All in the hopes that I would find my mate. I think I can safely boast that there is not one pack that I have not either visited or attended some form of function with. Either my mate died young and I never got the chance to meet him, or has not yet come of age. If it is the latter I might as well shoot myself now because I'm pretty sure that would make me the definition if the word cougar.
No, I'm pretty sure my mate is just not out there. Which makes me the main focus of everyone's sympathy in our pack. I hate it. Even widows and orphaned children don't receive the sad looks, and "are you OK dears" that I receive on a daily basis.
There are often times when I wonder how my life would have been different if I had of met my mate. I watch my brother, now an Alpha ruling over the pack, his Luna by his side and he is happy. The love that shines on his face for his wife and children is the most wonderful thing. My heart aches to feel just a fraction of the happiness he possesses.
On the other hand, I am not bound to anyone or anything. I am free to come and go as I please. I feel blessed to have experienced the world and see things that no one else in our pack would dare to dream about seeing. I have met some amazing wolves along the way, wolves that have become lifelong friends.
So yes, I have a lot to feel sad about, but I have so much more to feel joyous about.
No, I will not meet my mate, but maybe I can still have a chance at feeling love?
It was on my 28th Birthday that I decided that I had spent too much time waiting for my mate to appear. I was going to take life into my own hands.
I know my parents are going to be so upset when I tell them, but I have to do this for me, before I'm too old that no one will want me.
Two summers ago, my parents sent me to a pack in the south of England. The Eclipse Pack. The English packs are much smaller that here in the US, but it was during my stay with them that I met my best friend. Steph Black. We clicked straight away. She was bubbly and bright. Like me she was the oldest daughter to the Alpha and we had so much fun together. She had been widowed several years after finding her mate. She had no children. Just a zest for life that was contagious.
Many wolves who loose their mates, young or old, end up giving up on life. Some even die of a broken heart, half of your soul dies along with your mate, and that must be one of the most difficult things any wolf will have to overcome. Steph never let it get the better of her, her mate told her that if anything ever happened to him, that he wanted her to keep on living. That is exactly what she did.
I think that is why I clicked so well with Steph, she was the complete opposite to everyone in my pack. She wasn't happy to dwell on the past or missed opportunities.
The one thing that did not happen whilst I was with the Eclipse pack, I did not get one single sympathetic look or pat on the shoulder. I was just accepted for who and what I was. Treated like any other member of the pack. I didn't want to leave.
Steph's parents offered me a place in their pack if I ever wanted to come back to them. Richard and Joanne Black were the most down to earth Alpha and Luna I had the pleasure to meet. There whole ethos seemed to differ from the rest of the werewolf community.
To start with, they didn't get hung up on titles. Everyone in the pack knew who they were, and they gave them the respect they deserved because of how amazing they were at leading, not because they demanded it of their pack. They had easy going nature, their home was everyone's home. It was the hub of the community, wolves coming and going. Food was always waiting for the next hungry wolf to walk through the door. It was like one big family.
Some may deem this as a weakness, an easy target ready for the taking. Richard knew how to defend his land. His warriors were ready to charge into battle at a moments notice. Every wolf from the age of 12 was trained to defend themselves. Those that showed an altitude for fighting would go up in the ranks and become a warrior.
My favourite part about the Eclipse Pack was their location. They were nestled right in the middle of the New Forest. Not only were there vast area or woodland, but also rugged heathland that is covered in wild gorse and pines.
The pack settlement was built within the confines as a what would have been a massive castle once upon a time. The castle itself is long gone and was now just a pile of stones that had a tendency to slip down ever so often, but outer walls, moat and drawbridge are still very much intact.
I have never felt a connection to one place like I did to the Eclipse pack.
So on my 28th Birthday, as I blew out the candle on the cake my beautiful niece made for me, I made a promise to myself. That I was going to move away from home, and I was going to forge my own path.
That is what lead me here, to the Alphas office, waiting for my brother to answer the door. I know he would not be happy. I also knew that he would not stop me. His main concern is my happiness.
I truly believe that the Eclipse pack is where I'm meant to be.
Rosalie has crossed over the void of time, and overcome a mountain of obstacles to find her one true mate Alexander Black. She has given up everything she holds dear to be with him. But fate is now beginning to catch up with the Black family. Whilst Alexander is faced with a rival from the past, baying for his crown, Rosalie is dealing with a foe much closer to home... Rosalie is a white wolf, the Goddess' own assassin and protector of the werewolf species. Will Rosalie find the power within to defeat a new dark evil? In order to save the life she has made for herself in the past, she will now have to once more leave everything she loves behind and venture back to the future to defeat what lurks in the shadows..... Landon Coombes has know that Rosalie Summers was his second chance mate the moment that he laid eyes on her. But when she mysteriously disappeared without explanation, he begins to fear that he will be alone forever. That is until Rosalie reappears just as unexpectedly as she left. Landon finds himself doing all that he can to help Rosalie defeat a new dark evil which threatens to destroy the Eclipse pack forever, all in the hopes of proving how much he cares for her. But Rosalie is nursing a broken heart, can Landon be the glue to hold her together once again, or are somethings just too hard to put back together?
The pagan festival of Samhain is upon us. For Melinda Walker, it will be her first festival where she is of age to partake in the ceremonies. But when she is introduced to a dark and seductive warlock, she willing follows him down a path that leads her to trifle with the veil that separates the mortal and spiritual realms. Can she return the natural order of things before the end of all hallows, or will she be stuck in the realm of spirits for all eternity....
Avalon Taylor is one of the best Hunters that has graduated from the academy in a century. But when her past life collides with her new she realises that the world was not so full of darkness as she was lead to believe. Are the true monsters those who have raised her for the last 10 years? Her fate is entwined with another, will she find out the truth of her parents death before the world of creatures is snuffed out forever?
"I heard you're going to marry Marcelo. Is this perhaps your revenge against me? It's very laughable, Renee. That man can barely function." Her foster family, her cheating ex, everyone thought Renee was going to live in pure hell after getting married to a disabled and cruel man. She didn't know if anything good would ever come out of it after all, she had always thought it would be hard for anyone to love her but this cruel man with dark secrets is never going to grant her a divorce because she makes him forget how to breathe.
For three years, Shane and Yvonne were wed, sharing heated nights, while his devotion clung to his ex. Yvonne strove to be a dutiful wife, yet their marriage felt hollow, built on desire rather than real warmth. All changed when she became pregnant, only for Shane to thrust her onto the operating table, warning, “Either you or the baby survives!” Broken by his cruelty, she vanished in grief and later returned, radiantly accomplished, leaving everyone awestruck. Haunted by remorse, Shane begged for another chance, but Yvonne only smiled and replied, “I’m sorry, men no longer interest me.”
Rena got into an entanglement with a big shot when she was drunk one night. She needed Waylen's help while he was drawn to her youthful beauty. As such, what was supposed to be a one-night stand progressed into something serious. All was well until Rena discovered that Waylen's heart belonged to another woman. When his first love returned, he stopped coming home, leaving Rena all alone for many nights. She put up with it until she received a check and farewell note one day. Contrary to how Waylen expected her to react, Rena had a smile on her face as she bid him farewell. "It was fun while it lasted, Waylen. May our paths never cross. Have a nice life." But as fate would have it, their paths crossed again. This time, Rena had another man by her side. Waylen's eyes burned with jealousy. He spat, "How the hell did you move on? I thought you loved only me!" "Keyword, loved!" Rena flipped her hair back and retorted, "There are plenty of fish in the sea, Waylen. Besides, you were the one who asked for a breakup. Now, if you want to date me, you have to wait in line." The next day, Rena received a credit alert of billions and a diamond ring. Waylen appeared again, got down on one knee, and uttered, "May I cut in line, Rena? I still want you."
"There will be no falling in love, we will only act as a loving couple when we are in public, we will share a room to make it believable, but no intimacy, touching is off-limits. We'll only have sex once a month, and that's solely to produce an heir. You won't interfere in my business, and I won't interfere in yours. You will be my wife in every sense and you will not be involved with any other man," he said, arrogance seeping from every word. I watch his mouth move, I'm not ready to fall in love with any man, especially not one as arrogant and egoistic as him. I can handle acting as a loving couple, and as for intimacy once a month. I can agree to that just to satisfy my sexual cravings with no strings attached. "Where can I sign?" I asked since I had nothing to lose. *** Nadine's wedding dreams turned to nightmares when she caught her sister and fiancé cheating! With a secret recording, she's ready for revenge. But then mysterious billionaire Logan West offers a deal: A Contract Marriage to take down her ex's empire. But what Nadine doesn't know is her life is getting complicated as she takes her chance to get revenge or risks everything for a chance at love?"
After two years of marriage, Sadie was finally pregnant. Filled with hope and joy, she was blindsided when Noah asked for a divorce. During a failed attempt on her life, Sadie found herself lying in a pool of blood, desperately calling Noah to ask him to save her and the baby. But her calls went unanswered. Shattered by his betrayal, she left the country. Time passed, and Sadie was about to be wed for a second time. Noah appeared in a frenzy and fell to his knees. "How dare you marry someone else after bearing my child?"
They don't know I'm a girl. They all look at me and see a boy. A prince. Their kind purchase humans like me for their lustful desires. And, when they stormed into our kingdom to buy my sister, I intervened to protect her. I made them take me too. The plan was to escape with my sister whenever we found a chance. How was I to know our prison would be the most fortified place in their kingdom? I was supposed to be on the sidelines. The one they had no real use for. The one they never meant to buy. But then, the most important person in their savage land-their ruthless beast king-took an interest in the "pretty little prince." How do we survive in this brutal kingdom, where everyone hates our kind and shows us no mercy? And how does someone, with a secret like mine, become a lust slave? . AUTHOR'S NOTE. This is a dark romance-dark, mature content. Highly rated 18+ Expect triggers, expect hardcore. If you're a seasoned reader of this genre, looking for something different, prepared to go in blindly not knowing what to expect at every turn, but eager to know more anyway, then dive in! . From the author of the international bestselling book: "The Alpha King's Hated Slave."