Brie
Tempest Valley is everything I’d been told it would be. It’s rocky, mountainous, but with flat, sprawling beaches with pristine, white sand that shimmers against the shallow, turquoise water. Palm trees bend at odd angles along the beach as the sunset sets the small village in shades of gold and crimson. Small houses made of wood stick out of the trees and along the rocky rise of the mountain. The village spirals upward against the mountain, small trails connecting each house and shop.
On the beach, several huge bonfires erupt as the sun finally drops below the horizon, the sound of lively, thrumming music and conversation mingling beneath the twinkling stars.
I’m looking down at it all beside Monica, both of us in our wolf forms. We’ve been out in the mountains for hours–sprinting. Jumping off of rocks, skirting around trees and chasing small tropical creatures and birds–anything to burn off some serious nervous energy.
Another group of wolves rushes up behind us, but she pays them no mind. She’s a strange looking wolf–a color I’ve never seen before. Her strawberry-blonde hair makes her nearly pink as her wolf counterpart, and she glows in the starlight while she licks her pale yellow paws.
Comparatively, I'm dark brown. My fur is thick, just like my hair, and even though I trained in the heat and humidity of Veiled Valley, I’m having a hard time keeping my temperature regulated here in KiloKilo. It’s hot as hell, and I’m damp with sweat when the group of male wolves comes up to bug us, yipping and chittering at Monica, who snarls at them, pawing their leader with her claws until they finally give up their game and leave us alone.
She shakes her head, her amber eyes meeting mine. I don’t need the mind-link to know what she’s trying to say to me. I think it goes something like, “Men, huh?”
I bark a wolfish laugh, rising from my belly to stretch out my aching legs, feeling like myself again after what feels like weeks on the water.
In fact, I think it has been weeks. I have no idea how long it’s been since the yacht went down. Time is a construct on the water. Some days felt like they sped by, while others dragged. Monica tilts her head back to the beach, beckoning me to follow with a little friendly nip to my shoulder, and I do, letting her lead the charge down the rocky wolf trail that flows toward the village.
She comes to a stop near a large wooden house with giant windows overlooking the water below. It’s higher than the rest–the Alpha’s house, obviously, positioned on an overlook that takes in the entire view of the village, the docks, and the sprawling ocean beyond.
We arrived several hours ago. I’d woken up tangled on the window seat with Logan, his fingers drawing lazy circles over my scalp as he gently woke me up.
After that, it’s a blur. We arrived to excited chaos, the first ship out of the trio, and in the worst wear. The Asteria needs work–repairs that could take days, if not weeks. The Artemis showed up an hour later followed by the Atropos, and the entire village broke out in song and dance in celebration for their Alphas' long awaited return.
I lost Logan in the fray. That was hours ago. I haven’t seen him since.
Maybe that’s a good thing because I’m… so incredibly conflicted as to what to do, to say, and to feel right now.
My chest feels heavy and tight as I shift back to my human form, accepting the robe Monica holds out for me, helping me into the sleeves.
“You have a beautiful home,” I tell her, and she smiles softly, shrugging as she laughs.
“I do, don’t I? I’ve never been here before.”
I watch her face as she guides us through the open concept house, passing the windows overlooking the beach and bonfires below, and into a room set up like a walk-in closet, where her exquisite clothing already lines the racks and shelves, sent up and put away while we were shifting.
She grabs a few things off a shelf, handing me a bikini and swim cover, saying, “I had some stuff sent down to your cabin. Shirts, pants, toiletries… the works, but let's go down to the beach, to the party.”
I give her a short smile, but she turns before that smile shatters, that tightness in my chest growing worse and worse as the minutes tick by. We walk side by side through the village, stopping every few feet when unfamiliar people approach us, approach her, their new Luna. She had six months to get to know the crew of Alex’s three ships. The women and children don’t know their new Luna yet, but Monica’s met with excitement and gratitude I think makes her feel more at ease with the situation.
It must be hard for her. I know how she feels, actually. She left the only place she knew as home–lost her family, her home, possibly even whatever friends she could trust, and chose her mate.
While our situations are different, I get it because I’m on the precipice of choosing Logan knowing my life will change forever, and that there’s a chance I’ll never see my family again.
The worst part is… that I will choose Logan, if he lets me.
The air is hot despite the darkness. Fires burn toward the stars as music drifts through the air–chaotic and beautiful in a sensual way that sets heat coursing through my veins. It’s the kind of music that would play in a club deep in Moonrise, when the lights would dim and the air would shift to dark and dangerous, lust fueled by alcohol thick in the air.
I wouldn’t know, seeing as I’ve never been to a club, even during my trips to visit family in Crescent Falls, but I’ve had to go fetch Maeve enough times to know that I’m drawn to it. I’ve just never let myself give in.
Freshly shifted, showered, with my hair piled on top of my head and a belly full of delicious food, I rest on the sand beside Monica, who watches the group dancing along the beach, Alex being a part of it.
“He’s so happy to be home,” she smiles, stars in her eyes. “He’s been talking about this for so long.”
“Does he have family here?”
“No. Not really. Friends he considers family, yes, but he was an only child, and his mother passed when he was young, and his father never mated again. But Sawyer’s parents are here and his sisters and their families.” She sighs heavily, glancing at the village. “Everyone loves it here, but…we have to leave–soon, I fear.”
“You said you have your witches and wizards that live here?”
“We do, but they’re not as powerful as the royals. Their magic can only stretch so far, and if the royal armada can break through their shields and find this place, we’re dead. It’s that simple. So, we’ll leave–because of me.”
“It’s not totally because of you. Alex and the other Alphas on this chain of islands wanted to go.”
She nods, looking down at her lap and taking a deep breath. “It doesn’t matter now. We’re home, we’re on land, and we can rest. But first, we dance.”
She grabs my hand and yanks me upright before I have a chance to prepare myself. I dig in my heels, and she laughs, tugging me along the sand.
“Don’t be such a sour puss, Princess. Dance with me! Have a little fun.” She laughs, spinning me in a rough circle. “I know you can dance. I’ve seen you move. Just loosen up, Brie. You’ve been through hell, what’s the worst that can happen? You enjoy yourself? Goddess forbid!”
We spin past a group of men resting on the sand. I catch Logan’s gaze out of the corner of my eye where he’s sitting next to Sawyer, shirtless, his skin bronzed from several days spent in the sun.
I tighten up immediately as Monica spins us through the sand, the gentle waves lapping at our feet. She notices my sudden stillness and stops, grabbing my arms. “What is with you and him?”
“I–I don’t know what you mean?”
“Are you joking? You’re the sharpest female I’ve ever met, the smartest. I mean that. You act like you’re totally oblivious to the fact that he loves you–”
I pull away, shaking my head as the light of a nearby bonfire illuminates her face in shades of amber and crimson, the rest cast in shadowy starlight.
“He doesn’t love me.”
“He’s looking at you right now,” she hisses, keeping her voice low. “Longingly.”
I close my eyes for the space of a breath. I’ve never had close female friends. I was too busy–always going to meetings with my mom, my grandma, always tending to Maeve and her schedule. My social life outside of what I made my royal duties was non-existent.
I’m not used to this–being prodded, shaken, by someone who… wants to be my friend. Who wants to help me come to my senses and break out of my delusions.
“Look at him,” she says, gripping my upper arms. “He’s looking at you like you are the center of his world–”
“Did your mate tell you where you’re going after this? Where your new home will be?” I interrupt.
“Yes, of course. Logan’s taking us to Emberfyll, where he’s Alpha King–”
“A war torn kingdom trapped behind another veil.”
Her grip on my arms tighten, her face washed with sympathy, which isn’t what I expected.
“It’s better than here. And you’d be his Luna–”
“My family,” I whisper, shaking my head. “My sister–she needs me. She’ll be queen in three years, and she’s not ready–”
“Are you her keeper?”
“What?”
“Is her success your responsibility? Are you not allowed to have your own life?”
“Logan and I rejected each other. It has nothing to do with her–”
“Why did you reject him?” Her hands fall to her sides. She arches her brow, shooting me an expectant look. “Why would you reject him? I take you as a religious person, am I wrong? Do you not believe the Goddess knows what She’s doing when She pairs mates?”
“I do–I–you don’t understand.”
“Make me.”
I suck in a breath, losing my patience. “I’m a princess. He’s a warrior. We can’t–we’re not–I just–” I hate myself for this–for feeling this way, being torn in two different directions. Being pulled apart by my love and worry over my sister and my… love for Logan.
Love. The words barrels through my brain like a heated blade, cutting me to ribbons.
“He won’t take me with him,” I tell her through gritted teeth. “He won’t take me away from my family, I already know. It doesn’t matter what I want, Monica. It’s not up to me. He knows that once we reach Emberfyll, the chance of me ever going back to Eastonia is slim, and that’s if we survive the journey. You have to understand… I made a mistake when I rejected him, but it wouldn’t have ended in a different way. We’d still be separated. He made his choice to return to his homeland.”
She looks… conflicted. Her brows raise as the gears turn behind her eyes, thinking my predicament over. “You want him to stay. Stay in Eastonia with you?”
“I do but… he’d always long to see his home again. Years from now, when we’re settled with a family of our own, he’d still wonder if he made the right choice. He’d resent me for it eventually, and I can’t live with myself knowing that. That I made him choose between me and what he actually wanted.”
“Then go with him.”
“My family,” I whisper, shaking my head. “They think I’m dead. I can’t do that to them after everything they’ve done for me.” She has no idea I’m adopted and how that came to be, but it doesn’t matter. “And… even if I told him that I wanted to go with him, he wouldn’t allow it. I already know.”
She takes my arms again, her touch sailing over my skin as she knits our hands together. “Then… love him now. Are you going to let this opportunity pass you by? You have him now, Brie. This moment, this night, this… journey ahead us. Are you going to take that opportunity, or live with the regret of not experiencing being with your mate–forever?”
I look into her eyes, unable to answer her question, but something shifts inside of me.
She’s right. We’ve wasted so much time already.
“Just dance with me,” she whispers. “The rest can wait until tomorrow. We’ll be sad and worried tomorrow, okay?”
I feel Logan’s gaze on my back as she tugs me toward the fire and lets me go, holding her hands high above her head as she spins with the music. I let the beat seep into my bones, let my mind wander to a quiet, empty place, and give in, letting myself be… Brie, for the first time in my life.
And it feels good.
Like I’m forever changed.