Page 88 of Unwanted Fate
Jackson and I gape at him. How can she not know? It doesn’t make any sense. The sizzle of the steaks on the grill is the only sound as Jackson and I are left in complete confusion. Ryan doesn’t explain, and for the night that’s in it, I let it go. Because tonight isn’t about him. It’s about Sofia.
Dinner passes with the hum of voices and Sofia at the center of it all. She doesn’t even realize how the room orbits her now, but I do. Ryan listens as she talks through the changes she’s made—new patrol rotations, a mentorship system for younger warriors, her refusal to let the council push us around. Pride softens his face, the same way it settles in my chest.
“Are we doing this?” Sofia asks, a wide grin on her face.
“You know I’ll always be behind you, Princess.”
Sofia and Emily slip into the bedroom and bathroom, respectively, to get undressed and shift while Ryan, Jackson, and I shift in the living area and wait for them outside.
It’s only a couple of minutes when she pushes open the door with her nose. Sofia’s wolf—rich brown, sleek and strong—stepsinto the moonlight, followed by Emily’s small white form. The sight of my mate steals my breath, even though I’ve seen her a thousand times. Tonight is different. Tonight, she radiates power as well as her usual beauty.
She leads us through the trees toward the lake, and wolves fall in behind. Ten, twenty, fifty, a hundred—until the forest floor shudders under the rhythm of paws. Elliot isn’t here. He has been showing up a lot more, but he’s not ready for pack runs yet. I’m not sure he ever will be.
Sofia turns, her golden eyes taking in the hundred-plus wolves of different colors and sizes. We wait in silence. No one moves. It feels like even the trees are holding their breath. Anticipation tingles in my blood, my wolf bracing for the moment.
Sofia’s wolf finally throws her head back and lets out a howl that pierces the night. The sound slices through the dark: pure power and pride. It vibrates in my bones, rattles my ribs.
The answering chorus of howls rises like thunder. A wave of loyalty, showing their support for the new Alpha of Lunar Eclipse. My fur bristles with awe.
And then she turns and takes off, setting the pace like she always has. The pack follows as she leads us on a lap of the lake. I keep behind her, always watching her back. Wolves peel off in pairs, driven by the moon’s magic to mate, to fight, to release. But I don’t stray. My place is here—her shadow, her shield.
At the lake’s edge, she glances back, eyes gleaming. I nudge her flank, and she lets out a sharp yip before veering off into the forest, away from the pack. Game on. We race forward, faster nowthat it’s just us. Leaping over fallen ditches and ducking under low-hanging branches, she leads me deep into the forest. Until it’s just us, hearts pounding, lungs burning, the scent of pine and earth wrapped around us. Interrupted only by the scent of my forever.
And finally, she turns towards me in the center of a small clearing. We circle each other, almost like we are about to fight, and my body is taut with anticipation. Then her body shifts, fur receding, limbs lengthening, until she stands bare and magnificent, hair tumbling wild around her shoulders. She’s a goddess bathed in the silver light of the moon.
I push my humanity forward, and my bones crack as my fur recedes. I’m on my knees as I return to my human form, gazing up at my beautiful mate. Fates, she is glorious. Sofia strides towards me. Her steps are purposeful.
“Why’d you stop?” I rasp. “I was just about to catch you.”
“You already did,” she whispers before dropping to her knees, cupping my face, and kissing me. Slow, languid, decadent. Her tongue strokes mine as my hands roam her body, pulling her close, needing her everywhere. I lower her to the ground as we continue to kiss. Sofia hooks her leg over my hip. She guides my cock to her entrance, and I push inside her, lying side by side, facing each other.
We both moan as I push in fully and she clenches around me. She’s so tight, I could come already. We have fucked in every part of the pack lands in a hundred different ways—rough, punishing, frantic. But this is different.
It’s reverent. It’s making love to the female I will spend the rest of my life trying to please. It’s everything I never knew how much I needed.
Sofia rolls me onto my back, moving with me so that she straddles me. Her hips rock, and I press my thumb against her clit, making small circles. I have to grit my teeth to hold back, but as soon as she tenses and her muscles contract around me, I follow along with her. She drops forward towards me, and I flip her onto her back.
I push my cum back inside her body and tear another orgasm from my perfect mate with my fingers.
“How did I get so lucky that you were the one for me?” I ask.
“No idea, Beta. But I’m glad you did.”
Sofia’s eyes shine golden in the moonlight, and I know I’ll never stop loving her. Even if there wasn’t a mate bond, even if we weren’t made for one another, I would choose her in every lifetime.