"A man like me usually has patience. But with you, I've exhausted it all. Everyday, you leave me craving you, needing you in my bed like a mad man. Scarlet, what do you want from me?" He growled, staring deep into her green eyes. "Time." She whispered, her voice barely audible. "I don't have time!" His voice rumbled with slight annoyance and a hint of jealousy. "Your heart is torn between me and Brad, isn't?" "Brad is my mate, my fated mate. And -" "And who am I to you?" He pulled her closer to himself. "You're mine, Scarlet. Every inch and depth of you is mine. And I won't let that undeserving boy have you. May the best man win your heart." ********************** Bullied and mocked her entire life, Scarlet always dreamed of the day she would find a mate. Someone to love and cherish her. But on her eighteenth birthday, she was rejected by the boy she was fated to love. Unusual red hair, awkward social life, and a complete nerd, she did not expect to be ever wanted again by anyone. But everything changed when she realized she was given a second chance mate–a lycan prince. Driven by jealousy, her first mate wants her back and the prince would rather die than let her go. Now desired by the two most powerful boys in college, what choice would she make? And how would she navigate her complex love life with them?
Scarlet's POV
"Wake up, Scarlet!!" My eyelids fluttered, then flew open as I sat up with a sharp intake of breath. My sister, Sylvia, was standing at the edge of my bed with a huge smile on her face. "Happy Birthday Red!!!"
I groaned as I rubbed my eyes. "What time is it? And why do you always have to yell?"
"It's 6:30." She replied, beaming. "You're going to find your mate today. I can't wait to see him."
With a gulp, I jumped up from my bed as if it had burned me. Her words had suddenly jolted me back to reality. Today was my eighteenth birthday and I would find my mate.
"Get out of my room," I said, pushing Sylvia to the door. "I need to get dressed." When she exited the room, I heaved a heavy sigh.
The thought of finding my mate, feeling the mate bond and his desire for me, caused me to tremble. I didn't know how to feel but I knew I needed to look good because today was the most important day of my life.
I studied myself in the mirror, frowning at my bundle of messy red hair. I wondered if my mate could reject me based on my looks alone.
When I was born, my mother was frightened by my red hair and refused to look at me for hours. As I grew up, I endured a lot of bullies because of my hair color which was very unusual for an omega like me. I felt the fear of my wolf, terrified that my mate might not like us.
I could sense my mate already and it seemed like he was so close to me. His scent was everywhere in my room, like a familiar fragrance that I had been craving for so long. My wolf seemed to be distracted, filled with the desire to find and claim my mate. Whoever he was.
I couldn't help but get excited although I was incredibly nervous. For years, I had dreamed of this day. My sister and I had started a countdown six months ago, my stomach rustling with bubbles of excitement each time a month went by. As someone who was barely noticed in the pack, it was my day to feel wanted, to feel desired by someone. Anyone.
I quickly had my bath, drenching myself in my favorite body wash. I put an extra effort into my hair, hoping I could get it to look less messy.
I was torn between wearing the dress my mum got me for my birthday or just going with my usual hoodie and jeans. In the end, I settled for a tank top and white jeans because the dress was too short. I styled my hair into a curly wave and for the first time, I was impressed with the way I looked.
"Hello baby," my mum said, as I trotted down the stairs to the dining room. "Happy birthday darling. Are you excited for today?"
I plopped down on a chair. "I don't know. I'm so anxious that I want to throw up but I'm also excited."
"I know," she replied, handing me a plate of strawberries, waffles, and yogurt. "I can remember how anxious I was on my own day as well. Trust me, it's going to turn out great."
"What if he doesn't like me?"
"That's absurd!" My sister chipped in as she walked into the dining room. "Who wouldn't love you? You're the prettiest girl I know."
"Yes, that's right. It will be a shame if he doesn't fall head over heels for you." Mum added. I couldn't help but smile a little.
After forcing down yogurt and some waffles down my throat, I grabbed some strawberries and headed out to campus. Before leaving, I promised my mum I would call her if anything went wrong.
On my way to college which was a fifteen minute walk, I spent the entire time contemplating on who my mate could be.
Could it be Daniel from my art class? No. He smelled like aloe vera and cheesecake-nothing like the scent of my mate that lingered in my nostrils.
Was it Jacob from the Humanitarian club? I didn't know what he smelled like but he had once winked at me during lunch.
By the time I made it to campus, I was sweating profusely and my heart was hammering against my chest with intensity. My wolf became restless the moment I walked into campus. She was fighting to be let out, to take control and salvage our mate.
I took long strides as I walked through the hallway to my locker. The scent was stronger now, and my mate smelled awesome. I knew he was close and I trembled with excitement and desire.
I followed the scent, completely giving in to my nostrils. I could vaguely hear the bell ringing for my first class but I couldn't focus on anything except the scent of my mate.
My nose led me to the front of the boy's changing room. Then suddenly, I found him. Brad Wilson was my mate and I knew the second I laid my eyes on him.
He was just leaving the changing room with a backpack draped on his shoulder. He looked majestic, like he was molded from a different cast.
Just like every other girl in school and in our pack, I was electrified by his looks. Brad was the next Alpha of the Breakstone Pack and he was quite popular in school. My inner wolf howled with joy and nudged me to stake my claim on him immediately. But I had one thing on my mind-Brad Wilson had a girlfriend, and not just any girl but the most beautiful she-wolf in our pack.
I froze at the entrance of the locker room, staring at him. Then, he turned toward me and our eyes met. Caught off guard, I waved at him wearing a nervous smile but immediately regretted my decision when he started to walk toward me.
"Hello," his low, masculine purr stirred my wolf intensely. "You're Scarlet, right?" I stiffened, bracing myself, then looked up at him.
Brad's incredible good looks still hit me like a fierce blow. He was even more gorgeous than I remembered. He was tall, around six foot two, with broad shoulders and a hard muscled body. His green eyes were electrifying against his tanned skin and black hair. In spite of my best effort, Brad left me tongue-tied.
"Are you going to say something?" My cheeks turned pink when I realized I hadn't said a word for minutes.
"Hi," I swallowed nervously. "Yes, I'm scarlet."
"Follow me," he said gruffly, and swiftly began to walk to the back of the cafeteria. I followed him, my feet working faster than my brain.
A thousand thoughts were flitting through my mind as I followed quietly behind him. Brad was my mate and he knew that. But was he going to make me his? Would he break up with his girlfriend, Valerie, to claim me?
He halted close to a small tree at the back of the cafeteria and I did as well. My heart was thumping hard as I waited for him to speak, to choose whether he wanted me or not.
"Gosh, this is so embarrassing." He whispered, running his fingers through his hair. My heart dropped as I heard him. I didn't know if he was embarrassed about being my mate or even speaking to me at all.
"You're an Omega, right?" He finally asked, his eyes completely cold and distant.
"Yes."
"You should obviously know who I am," he said and I nodded. "Good. Since you know that, you should also know that I have a lot of responsibilities to fulfill. I am going to be the next Alpha of our pack and I need to have a strong Luna."
I already knew where our conversation was heading to and I felt nauseous. I wasn't prepared for it, I wasn't mentally ready to be rejected. A tear escaped my eyes and dropped to my feet.
Brad sighed and pulled me closer. "Look, you're beautiful, no doubt. I can feel the connection between us and you would be a wonderful mate. But.." But? I waited for the words that would crush my heart. "But I have already chosen a Luna and I love her. Valerie is perfect for me and my father believes she would be a great Luna."
My wolf cried out in pain and my soul cracked to its core. My vision blurred as hot tears filled my eyes. "What does that mean? Ar–are you...."
"It means that I can't accept or claim you as my mate." He leaned away from me. "It means you have to forget about me and find someone else to love you. I've made my choice and it's not you, Scarlet. I'm sorry."
He rejected her, and then he realized she was the center of his world. Such a shame! ************* Unwanted, dismissed, cast away. Daisy Channing was rejected by her boyfriend, Alexander Harding, who was also the Alpha of the Lightcrest pack. She never expected that her boyfriend of three years would dump her and worse, pick her best friend over her. She was betrayed by the two people she trusted the most. Filled with the pain of a broken bond and betrayal, she fled the pack. But under the moonlight, she found her way to her second chance mate. Turns out her life was only getting better or perhaps, more complicated. Cursed, broken, dejected. Landon, the Lycan Prince of the Crescent pack was cursed with the inability to ever feel the mate bond or know true love. For over a hundred years, he had searched for his erasthai and a way to break the curse. Until a prophecy revealed his mate would come to him under the red moonlight and free him. Sounds like a pretty straightforward deal....but soon, Daisy and Landon realize they got more than they bargained for. Their mating instincts to protect and possess each other are weighing on them, they crave each other's touch and company, and their inner wolves don't like it whenever they're apart. And they are forces threatening to break them apart everyday. What kind of cruel moon would torture them like this? They can't go on, but they must!
"Yes, I know you have changed your mind. But has it occurred to you?" He paused, a cold smile appearing on his lips. "That I might have changed my mind about marrying you?" "What?" She blurted out. There was no way he could reject her. He was her last plan. Her final backup plan, and without him, she would lose her sister to the dangerous Billionaire Mafia Prince, Andrei Andreevich. She would be his possession forever. A slave. ************************* Lyra Bennet heart pounds as she stares at the formidable Prince Viktor Andreevich. She had caused her sister to lose her freedom to her mafia ex-boyfriend, so now, she had to save her by selling herself in marriage to Andrei Andreevich's worst enemy. His younger brother. Viktor Andreevich. She might have agreed to marry him to save her sister but the icy glitter in his eyes warns that he is not a man to be toyed with. But Viktor was unprepared for her purity and innocence. He desired her and he wasn't supposed to. He wanted her in his bed and he wasn't supposed to. And Viktor got everything he desired.
Andrea Deciding that I was going to skip a day at work so I could have first time sex with my boyfriend seemed like the most absurd decision I could ever make. Or at least that was what I'd thought. Until I'd walked in on my said boyfriend cheating on me with some redhead and decided to get my revenge by losing my virginity to his wealthy billionaire father instead. Crazy, right? Trust me, I know. Like that's not enough, things take a drastic turn for the worst after I realized I was in love with him and pregnant with his child. Before I could get the chance to come clean about every including my feelings formhim and the pregnancy, he finds out about my trickery. Alejandro's not one to condone being lied to and deceived so he immediately tells me he doesn't want to see me again. So what do I do? I pack up and leave the country. But it seems like the universe isn't done with us just yet. . . Alejandro I should have known better than to get involved with someone way younger than me. It was something I've never done before. But like the saying goes, there's a first time for everything. The first time I met Andrea I was captivated by her beauty. More than that there was this innocence in her that called out to me like a moth to a flame. I ignored all the warnings in my head and went after what I wanted. And what I wanted was her. Unfortunately what she wanted was revenge against my son. I told myself that it had to be some kind of mistake. There was no way she had been playing with my feelings and planning some silly revenge this whole time. But she had. It had taken a surprise visit from my son for me to find out her true intentions. Even then it had been hard to believe it. But I couldn't deny that she'd fooled me real good alright. So naturally I cut ties with her. And that's supposed to be the end, right? Wrong. Turns out that our story was never destined to end just there. . .
There was only one man in Raegan's heart, and it was Mitchel. In the second year of her marriage to him, she got pregnant. Raegan's joy knew no bounds. But before she could break the news to her husband, he served her divorce papers because he wanted to marry his first love. After an accident, Raegan lay in the pool of her own blood and called out to Mitchel for help. Unfortunately, he left with his first love in his arms. Raegan escaped death by the whiskers. Afterward, she decided to get her life back on track. Her name was everywhere years later. Mitchel became very uncomfortable. For some reason, he began to miss her. His heart ached when he saw her all smiles with another man. He crashed her wedding and fell to his knees while she was at the altar. With bloodshot eyes, he queried, "I thought you said your love for me is unbreakable? How come you are getting married to someone else? Come back to me!"
Three years ago, Cecilia was left battered and alone by the man she loved most, Alston, yet she bravely completed the wedding ceremony while pregnant. Three years later, although they were married, they grew apart over time. Cecilia focused on her career, no longer foolishly believing in love. But her transformation instantly threw Alston into a panic... And what is the secret from 11 years ago that Cecilia has always been reluctant to reveal? *** "She went to a law firm, met with a lawyer..." A lawyer? Is Cecilia suing someone? Who? Is there any recent litigation against the company? Alston suddenly chuckled coldly, "Who could she sue? I'm the CEO of this company. How come such a matter doesn't come to me first?" The assistant swallowed nervously, speaking softly, "Sir, there's no litigation against the company. She met with... a divorce lawyer."
After hiding her true identity throughout her three-year marriage to Colton, Allison had committed wholeheartedly, only to find herself neglected and pushed toward divorce. Disheartened, she set out to rediscover her true self-a talented perfumer, the mastermind of a famous intelligence agency, and the heir to a secret hacker network. Realizing his mistakes, Colton expressed his regret. "I know I messed up. Please, give me another chance." Yet, Kellan, a once-disabled tycoon, stood up from his wheelchair, took Allison's hand, and scoffed dismissively, "You think she'll take you back? Dream on."
After three loveless years, Neil's betrayal deeply wounded Katelyn. She wasted no time in getting rid of that scoundrel! After the divorce, she devoted herself to career pursuits. Rising to prominence as a top designer, skilled doctor, and brilliant hacker, she became a revered icon. Neil, realizing his grave mistake, tried in vain to win her back, only to witness her magnificent wedding to another. As their vows were broadcast on the world's largest billboard, Vincent slid a ring onto Katelyn's finger and declared, "Katelyn is now my wife, a priceless treasure. Let all who covet her beware!"
Jennifer Bennett, the rightful heiress to the Bennett legacy, fought hard for her family's recognition, only to be eclipsed by an impostor. Faced with false accusations, bullying, and public humiliation, Jennifer eventually gave up trying to win their approval. Vowing to rise above the injustice, she became the bane of those who wronged her. The Bennett family's efforts to break her only fueled her success, leading her to heights her rivals could only dream of. Someone asked, "Do you feel let down by your parents?" With a calm smile, Jennifer said, "It doesn't matter. In the end, power prevails."