full moon

regardiess if her wolf chooses or not."

My heart thuds against my breastbone. I don't want to have to be mated to anyone especially not any of these mongrels here.

"What if her inability to shift is contagious?" one of Casey's friends asks and the others nod along with him. They're shorter than Casey and wear tattered clothing, like refugees from some tragic dystopian novel. Anything not to stand out against the Alpha's son.

Which is one of many reasons he hates me when I shot up two inches taller than him during puberty.

"That's what condoms are for." Casey laughs and cups his crotch.

Gross. Leave it to Casey to be willing to fuck anything female but mating is a whole other game. It's locking with someone's body, heart, mind, and soul. It's forever and only death can ease the pain. Mom told me she had to get the Alpha to do a mock bonding with her before she was able to function enough to take care of me after my father died.

Then again, a functioning alcoholic isn't saying much.

"Other packs are joining from

the area including the Crescent Moon park 

Casey snarls. "You're going to give them her?"

The Alpha smiles and it has my gut twisting. "We need to let them think she's our prize. Go get her to the healer."

"Don't bother. I can go myself." I scramble to my feet and flee, not daring to look behind me. Not daring to hope that Casey won't follow me or wait for another time to attack me. And now he wants to force me to have sex with him? There's no way I can stop him if he and his buddies gang up on me.

I race home, tears of humiliation and frustration stream down my cheeks. I don't know how to stop Casey or if I even should. He's the Alpha's son. And the Crescent Moon pack? I've heard they're worse than Casey and stomp on our hunting grounds.

Mom is going to fucking kill me.

I stumble into our house and slam my bedroom door shut. I lock it, hoping to keep the others out, but the house is silent.

Once my heart stops racing, I replay what Casey did to me over and over. The look in his eyes. The tone in his voice. The rage he showed me like 

I wasn't worth being alive.

I don't remember getting into the shower or washing the blood from my face. I don't remember getting dressed or lying down, but I do remember his words, tormenting me.

I'll be waiting for your first heat, jessic

I shudder. Whoever a wolf mates with at her first heat is who she will pine for the rest of her life even if she mates with another. Omegas are just built that way and it fucking sucks. Which is another reason I had sex at sixteen. I wanted it to be my choice and I'd hoped doing so would bring the heat and my wolf, but it did neither.

Hours pass by, and I finally fall asleep before someone's shaking me and I groggily open my eyes.

Jessica this I hear about you giving Casey a hard time?"

It's still dark outside, and I struggle to get out of bed. I know the drill. Whatever Casey wants, he gets. I push to my feet, my jaw throbbing from where he struck me and I wobble on my feet.

"Are you okay?" Mom's words are slurred and I know she's been at it

again. The pungent smell of alcohol burns my nose and I look away, not wanting to see her flushed face. "Answer me."

"Yes, Mom."

The slap across my face doesn't sting nearly as much as the too-fresh memories of this pain I'm so used to and my heart feels like it's bruised every time she lashes out with fists or words.

"You ungrateful little slut. I bet your wolf hasn't come out because you've spread your legs for every wolf who asks."

I grit my teeth, wanting to take all the pain I have since Dad died when I was seven and throw it back in her face. Only that won't gain me anything. She'll still side with Casey and our Alpha no matter what they say. They could tell her I'm evil and to cut out my heart and she'd run to get the ax.

No, I'm better off trying to get into one of the other packs. I need to do it before they realize how broken I am. 

The next morning, I skip the visit to the healer because our town is alive with dozens of new werewolves from neighboring packs. Not to mention I've always healed freakishly fast.

This bruise is already faded like it's days old rather than from last night. And with a little concealer, I salvaged on the last outing to the nearby town, the mark isn't noticeable.

I drift deeper into the throng of new wolves. There's even a group of Irish wolves who came here at the turn of the century. Their wolves are a bright red and look more like foxes, but larger.

Whole families have tents pitched up in people's yards, in the forest, it's like an explosion. I've never seen this many people in my entire life.

A river of tents leads down the road to the town. Woven, brightly colored fabric overlaps like an archway, bursting into a wild explosion of colors.

The tents are made of soft wool and bound with cords showing they're roamies. No land of their own and I wonder why the Alpha allowed them here.

I inhale and the air is ripe with the

smell of breakfast cooking, oatmeal and berries, and spices. Sounds of the camp fill the morning.

A family of campers begins a song and the tune is quickly picked up by others, the singing growing louder and the words more accented by the forest's acoustics.

Their voices blend and make me feel warm all over as they sing.

The song is about a lone wolf mourning the death of her love. Twin souls who will be reunited in death. How she will hold strong until then.

An ache spreads across my chest, and I rub my breastbone to ease the pain.

"Didn't think the rumors were true," says a male voice behind me, and I spin around. A man is leaning up against a pine tree that lightning burnt and broke off the top leaving it looking like a wooden stick with blackened tips where branches used to sway.

I ignore his comment about rumors because I already know it's probably Casey and the others tearing me apart to the outsiders before I even get a chance to see if my wolf can resonate with one of them and

allow me to shift finally.

"I didn't hear you approaching." I try to keep my voice cool, but I can feel the pounding of my heart in my throat at the sight of him.

His hair is golden like my father's and his eyes are a deep brown. His mouth is wide and his lower lip is fuller than the upper. A dark golden goatee and mustache frame his face.

His arms are crossed across his chest and he stares at me. He has a leather harness on with leather pouches for tools and hanks of twine. The scent of leather and something sweeter, and wilder floats around him.

I can't place his pack because the scent of his wolf is one I've never smelled before.

"I know who you are," he says. My heart flutters in my chest. "You do?"

"So the rumors aren't wrong," says another man appearing from behind a black tent. His hair is dark brown and his eyes are grey, a warm color even though he's watching me with a cold stare.

"What rumors?" I ask.

"That your pack had the most unique wolf in the world," the blond guy answers for him 

Heat caresses my cheeks. Three times I tried dying my unique hair with hair color boxes leftover from the turn and nothing worked.

"Are you going to introduce me to your friends?" Vella runs up to us like I've taken the last brownie from someone's birthday.

Her bone-straight brown hair sweeps down her back and her dark eyes sparkle at seeing the new men. Her lips are always painted a soft red and she has the confidence and

curves to back it up. She's the one girl in the pack that all the guys drool over. The one that all the girls wish they were like. Well, except me. I've seen through her fake

smiles and banging every guy she can Jessic asks, batting her eyelashes at them and puffing out her chest to show her breasts.

I roll my eyes, fighting back the tension that builds between my shoulder blades at her using the same stupid nickname that Casey does. Then again, I shouldn't be surprised, because she and Casey are two bullies that I could see together, since they have so much in common. Mostly being irritati

Heat caresses my cheeks. Three times I tried dying my unique hair with hair color boxes leftover from the turn and nothing worked.

"Are you going to introduce me to your friends?" Vella runs up to us like I've taken the last brownie from someone's birthday.

Her bone-straight brown hair sweeps down her back and her dark eyes sparkle at seeing the new men. Her lips are always painted a soft red and she has the confidence and

curves to back it up. She's the one girl in the pack that all the guys drool over. The one that all the girls wish they were like. Well, except me. I've seen through her fake

smiles and banging every guy she can Jessic asks, batting her eyelashes at them and puffing out her chest to show her breasts.

I roll my eyes, fighting back the tension that builds between my shoulder blades at her using the same stupid nickname that Casey does. Then again, I shouldn't be surprised, because she and Casey are two bullies that I could see together, since they have so much in common. Mostly being irritating as fuck.

"Sorry, I don't know either of them." I scoot back so they can ogle her all they want as I'm on a mission to find out about the Crescent Moon pack and hoping my wolf will finally come out at sensing our mate.

"I'm Dex," the golden man says, then nods to the man beside him. "And this is Aspen."

When I don't say anything, Vella huffs and dips into a curtsy that I'm sure flashed them her boobs. "I'm Vella and looking forward to the ceremony tonight. Aren't you both?"

To avoid hurling into my mouth, I turn away and take the path down to the river. Let those three do whatever they want. I don't have time to waste on anyone except finding the one who can coax my wolf out of hiding.

I've never been one for sappy romances, but I can't stop the way my heart flutters that one of the wolves here could be the one. I imagine that he'll be from another pack, of course, and able to take me back with him. Then I'll never have to experience Casey's bullying or the pitying looks or snide comments from anyone ever again. And Mom will probably be glad

I'm gone anyway.

Tears sting the back of my eyes,

but I brush them away quickly with my hand.

"Hey, there's no need to cry." A guy skips a rock across the water. He's wearing a snug T-shirt and jeans with bare feet. His hair is tied behind his neck and is the color of the night sky. His eyes are the bluest silver I've ever seen. "It's the full moon tonight."

His smile lights up his whole face.

"Are you okay?" He looks at me with concern and takes a hesitant step toward me.

"Yeah." I force myself to breathe. Don't get too excited, Jessica. "Yeah, I'm good."

He cocks his head to the side as though he's studying me or does his wolf sense something about me? "What's your name?"

" Jessica." I swallow and damned if I don't feel light-headed. What's going on with me? Meet a handsome guy and I lose all sense of myself.

"Michael." He picks up another rock and hurls it at the lake. It skips once then sinks. "Do you want to go for a run?"

And his words twist in my gut 'cause I know how this is going to end. "I-I can't"