I rejected my fated mate and didn't regret it for a second. Until now. Shipped off to Ravenscroft University, a graduate school for the supernatural elite, I have a lot to live up to. As the heir to America's most powerful pack, my life up to now has been spent in a gilded cage. But not for the reason you might think. I was locked away, not to be protected, but because I was born broken. A disappointment to them all. A wolf who couldn't shift. This is supposed to be my fresh start, but my past won't leave me alone. Not when he's here. The arrogant wolf shifter who ruined my life after I turned him down seven years ago. Now, I'm a pariah, followed by the rumors my rejected mate has spread, hated by my classmates, isolated again. From everyone but them. A vampire prince. A forbidden priest. A powerful demigod. A bully wolf. I'm playing a dangerous game, and the rules say I can't be with them. Then again, rules are made to be broken. And when every moment spent with them brings me closer to finding my wolf, how can I stay away?
Chapter
One
THORNE
It was a shame Sunday Fallon had to die tonight. And that I would be the one to kill her. But there was nothing I could do now that I'd caught her scent. Not after two solid days of her existing in my space.
Blackthorne Hall was my domain, the place I ruled without question because it bore my family name. Until now, I'd spent the last three years in complete control. Until her.
She called to me. Drew me to her with that irresistible, decadent scent.
Made me mad with hunger. Desperate with need. Obsessed.
My father told me stories of how mother had tempted him, how her blood had been like no other. I'd never experienced it until now. I was hunting her. Not because I wanted to. I had to. I had to sample this irresistible creature. To know if she could possibly taste as delicious as she smelled.
Each one of her rhythmic footfalls teased me as she jogged through the campus trails, her measured breaths and elevated heartbeat strong in my ears. It took everything in me not to rush to her and sink my fangs into her throat, just as it had each night as she went about her routine. Tonight, I was within arm's reach, ready to take her, but that would mean it was over almost before it began. The monster in me wanted to draw it out, to savor the chase, because once I had her, that would be it.
She slowed to a walk, hands on her hips as she stared up at the moon and sighed. "This is it. This is what you get for being different. You finished college but still ended up being shipped off to a glorified boarding school for the supernatural's elite to keep you out of trouble."
Her voice was smooth and silky with the barest rasp to it. Music to my ears. If I killed her, I'd never hear it again. Perhaps I'd turn her instead. Make her mine forever. The thought had merit. Except, of course, for the fact that she was the princess of the Fallon wolf pack. Something told me her family would take issue with a Blackthorne vampire draining her dry and then making her one of us. We didn't want to start a war now, did we?
Her sharp intake of breath had me slinking into the shadows as she glanced over her shoulder in the direction where I'd been standing. "Is someone there?"
I smirked. Someone was definitely there. A predator. A hunter. The creature who'd change her life irrevocably.
Not tonight, though. I'd keep myself on the edge of euphoria a little longer. It was more fun that way.
As she rounded the corner, I kept my distance, now following just to ensure my prey returned safely home. I couldn't risk someone else catching her. She was mine. Whether she knew it yet or not. Her dark hair swung back and forth in the high ponytail she wore, the ends brushing her shoulders and calling attention to her slender white neck. I wondered if her skin would change from porcelain to pink when she blushed and her blood rushed to the surface. Instinct took over, lengthening both my cock and my fangs. Arousal pulsed through me, eclipsed only by my hunger. I wanted her with every cell in my body.
"Everything all right there, Thorne?" The Irish lilt of Father Caleb Gallagher's voice stopped me mid-step.
"Priest." I acknowledged him with the barest tilt of my head.
His jaw clenched at the title, a reminder of his past life as a man of God before he'd been turned into one of my kind. "Leave her be, Mr. Blackthorne. She's not for you to toy with."
"My instinct says different."
"Do not think your family name will exempt you from consequences if you kill her. The war-"
I waved my hand. "Yes, I know. The Families are on thin ice as it is, a war will start, death, bloodshed, etcetera." We had shared a relative peace between the head Families of our supernatural kinds the last twenty-five years. Since my father took control of the Blackthorne vampire kingdom and created a sort of treaty with the remaining shifter packs and witch covens. The alliance was nothing short of fragile after our kind spent centuries trying to rule over every preternatural species in existence.
I sighed heavily into the darkness. "No blood was spilled." He arched one dark brow. "Yet."
"I will keep my distance."
"See that you do. You may be a prince, but I'm still in charge here." I scoffed. "You're a professor. You have no control over me."
"One call to your father and you'll spend a week in the well. You know as well as I that he won't hesitate to isolate you if you pose a risk to the stability of our world, Noah Blackthorne."
I shrugged, trying to play it cool, but I'd spent two days in the well back home once simply so I'd know to fear it. My father was still ruthless when he needed to be.
"Keep her away from me if you want to ensure she's safe." "You're hunting her."
I swallowed past a burning throat. Yes, I was. "I can control myself."
"Perhaps she'd be safer living in my quarters until you've found a new distraction."
A low snarl escaped before I could stop myself. The thought of Sunday spending any time in this man's home, sharing his space and his air, made unreasonable jealousy unfurl in my gut. Vampire or not, he was still a priest. A veritable eunuch, castrated by his faith and vow of celibacy. He couldn't have her, even if he wanted her. She was mine to claim.
"She's fine here. We're separated by three floors of concrete. I won't ravish her until she asks for it."
He shoved his hands into the pockets of his dark slacks, a wary expression on his face. "Goodnight, Thorne. Best get behind closed doors before you lose hold of your monster."
I shook my head before turning away and heading off in the direction Sunday had.
Which of the dorms in this hall was hers? My gaze swept over the doors, senses on high alert as I searched for her, but all I smelled now was a mixture of creatures, from vampire to shifter to witch. Until I caught it again as I stepped into my elevator. Sweet and rich with a darkness I couldn't name. Unlike anything else. Sunday Fallon called to me, begged me to claim her. To taste her. I palmed my aching cock as the doors to the top floor opened, and I strode to my suite.
I would have the beautiful little shifter if it was the last thing I did. And it just might be.
At my old school, I saw the effects of bullying firsthand; I felt them. I felt them in ways I can never forget, never erase. My heart begins to thunder in my chest, and my palms grow so sweaty I have to put down my fork. Heat rushes through my body, and it feels suddenly hot, like I should take off my jacket and loosen my tie. Tristan’s fixing the buttons on his white first year shirt as he makes his way over to me with long, confident strides, his hair glossy and raven-black, his mouth too dangerous to be tempting. My fingers curl tight around the side of my book bag and my heart races, sweat beading at my temples. Bullies don’t quit until circumstances force them to. It’s the nature of the beast, and humans are the worst animal of all. For the moment, I’m drawing a blank, but give me time, and I’ll work it out. There’s a reason I got chosen for this scholarship, and it wasn’t my ability to roll over and take it. No, I’m a fighter, always have been. I just think I’m going to have to fight harder than I ever have.
Linsey was stood up by her groom to run off with another woman. Furious, she grabbed a random stranger and declared, "Let's get married!" She had acted on impulse, realizing too late that her new husband was the notorious rascal, Collin. The public laughed at her, and even her runaway ex offered to reconcile. But Linsey scoffed at him. "My husband and I are very much in love!" Everyone thought she was delusional. Then Collin was revealed to be the richest man in the world. In front of everyone, he got down on one knee and held up a stunning diamond ring. "I look forward to our forever, honey."
COALESCENCE OF THE FIVE SERIES BOOK ONE: THE 5-TIME REJECTED GAMMA & THE LYCAN KING BOOK TWO: THE ROGUES WHO WENT ROGUE BOOK THREE: THE INDOMITABLE HUNTRESS & THE HARDENED DUKE *** BOOK ONE: After being rejected by 5 mates, Gamma Lucianne pleaded with the Moon Goddess to spare her from any further mate-bonds. To her dismay, she is being bonded for the sixth time. What’s worse is that her sixth-chance mate is the most powerful creature ruling over all werewolves and Lycans - the Lycan King himself. She is certain, dead certain, that a rejection would come sooner or later, though she hopes for it to be sooner. King Alexandar was ecstatic to meet his bonded mate, and couldn’t thank their Goddess enough for gifting him someone so perfect. However, he soon realizes that this gift is reluctant to accept him, and more than willing to sever their bond. He tries to connect with her but she seems so far away. He is desperate to get intimate with her but she seems reluctant to open up to him. He tries to tell her that he is willing to commit to her for the rest of his life but she doesn’t seem to believe him. He is pleading for a chance: a chance to get to know her; a chance to show her that he’s different; and a chance to love her. But when not-so-subtle crushes, jealous suitors, self-entitled Queen-wannabes, an old flame, a silent protector and a past wedding engagement threaten to jeopardize their relationship, will Lucianne and Xandar still choose to be together? Is their love strong enough to overcome everything and everyone? Or will Lucianne resort to enduring a sixth rejection from the one person she thought she could entrust her heart with?
Blinded in a crash, Cary was rejected by every socialite—except Evelina, who married him without hesitation. Three years later, he regained his sight and ended their marriage. "We’ve already lost so many years. I won’t let her waste another one on me." Evelina signed the divorce papers without a word. Everyone mocked her fall—until they discovered that the miracle doctor, jewelry mogul, stock genius, top hacker, and the President's true daughter… were all her. When Cary came crawling back, a ruthless tycoon had him kicked out. "She's my wife now. Get lost."
Anabel found out she was pregnant and dialed her husband's number to share the good news to him. They have been married for two years without a child. Desmond's mother had been accusing her of being barren and unproductive. When the call was picked, she was flabbergasted and broken. She was hearing a loud moan of feminine voice. "Ohh! Yeah! Don't stop fucking me! Fuck me harder baby!" accompanied with sound of skins slapping against the other. She went home to confront her husband and end up receiving a divorce paper. Desmond divorced him for a lady his mother was rooting. Few months later when he found out that his ex-wife is a billionaire heiress and she is pregnant with twins, he went crazy!
To the public, she was the CEO's executive secretary. Behind closed doors, she was the wife he never officially acknowledged. Jenessa was elated when she learned that she was pregnant. But that joy was replaced with dread as her husband, Ryan, showered his affections on his first love. With a heavy heart, she chose to set him free and leave. When they met again, Ryan's attention was caught by Jenessa's protruding belly. "Whose child are you carrying?!" he demanded. But she only scoffed. "It's none of your business, my dear ex-husband!"
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?"