KADE STONEWELL - ALPHA OF THE MOON PACK
Kade clutched the Styrofoam cup filled with his too hot Sumatra blend coffee and studied the brown lid with an undeserved intensity.
Then he sneaked another look at the beauty two tables away from his own.
The floral scent of the female's perfume mixed with her pheromones. He felt a stirring within—dark sensuality, unquiet need. His nostrils flared, and inwardly, his wolf's snout rose, sniffing the air, breathing her in, growling in approval.
As the alpha of the Moon Pack, he had the right to choose his own mate. However, if he failed to make that choice—or the woman declined the privilege—he would then be subject to pack rule.
Accepting a mate chosen by pack vote wasn't quite as barbaric as the bride lottery favored by some packs. Unfortunately, in the Moon Pack there was only one elder-approved eligible female: Nicole Mills.
Plenty of successful alpha unions had come about from arranged marriages. But Kade knew from experience that Nicole would not be a good mate. After all, he'd tried to develop a relationship with her. Last year, when he became alpha of the Moon Pack, he began dating Nicole in the hopes they would bond—and mate.
It took less than a month for his hopes to be dashed.
Nicole was a pampered and spoiled only child of her parents, and she expected the princess treatment from everyone, especially him. She was shallow and self-centered, caring far too much about spa treatments, shopping trips, and expensive jewelry. He realized quickly that Nicole's self-centeredness would never allow her to put anyone else's needs above her own. So he'd ended it and immersed himself into running the Pack.
But pack law was clear.
The alpha had a priority to mate and breed, and if he didn't find a bride on his own—then the pack would find one for him.
From the moment he'd gained the honor of becoming alpha, the countdown clock started ticking. One year to find a mate of his own choosing or he forfeited choice to pack vote.
And that left only Nicole, who was not only a werewolf, but she was also willing to marry him and have his pups. Her personality flaws were irrelevant so long as she remained loyal to him and to the pack.
And that's why he was here.
For her.
Lilly Addison.
Fifteen minutes until midnight, on a Friday night no less, so the bookstore coffee shop was mostly empty. Tired clerks enjoined customers to bring their purchases to the front registers, but last-minute browsers still scurried among the shelves.
Kade sipped the coffee, deemed it too hot, and took another longer look at the woman. She wore her blonde hair long. It was obviously dyed, with multi-toned highlights and loose curls that flirted with her shoulders. She was rounder, more fulsome, than so many of the stick-thin human females who tied personal worth to numbers on a scale.
For him, beauty did not come in bony packages. Most werewolves preferred women with curves, with substance—women who would not break during mating.
Her concession to summer was a pair of khaki Capri pants, and a filmy patterned shirt with three-quarter sleeves. Yes, she was beautiful, but he recognized camouflage when he saw it.
She was tall, too, her long legs stretched out under the table, her ankles crossed, her feet shucked from cork wedge heels. He noticed the pretty red toenails and the little yellow moon tattoo above her ankle. He had the insane image of him flicking his tongue there. What would she taste like? His cock was already half-hard.
It was time.
He got up, taking his coffee with him, and sauntered to her table. "May I sit?"
She flicked her gaze from her laptop to him, and frowned. He was nearly struck dumb by the intense blue of her eyes. He smiled to hide his discombobulation. She was softer in the face, too, but her beauty wasn't faded and her make-up wasn't applied in desperation. That's what he enjoyed so much about Lilly—she was comfortable with her body.
Her gaze revealed nothing, and then she smiled.
The impact of her curving lips was nearly as devastating as her eyes—especially with the dimple that appeared like an exclamation point on the left side of her mouth. She closed the laptop and gestured for him to take the seat opposite of her. "Kade Stonewell. New alpha of the Moon Pack. It's been a long time."
"Too long, Lilly."
She eyed him, gauging his youth. "You were what the last time I saw you? Nineteen?"
"Twenty. The last time I saw you we were at Saul's internment ceremony."
"Six years." She shook her head. "I still miss him."
"I do, too."
Lilly had once been a member of the Moon Pack—the mate of one of its most respected betas. When Saul had died, Lilly had left and returned to the human world. Kade wondered what kind life she'd had since then, what had shaped her to become the woman she was now.
As much as he liked Saul, he didn't want the memory of her dead husband floating around in her thoughts while they discussed their own mating. Some ghosts needed to be exorcised.
"You've considered my offer?" He'd sent Lilly an email at first, and when she'd responded, he'd called her directly and asked the question: Will you be my mate?
She'd asked for twenty-four hours to think about it, and made arrangements for them to meet here just before midnight. It had less to do with the howling hour and more to do with Lilly's schedule as the owner of this bookstore.
"Yes, I've considered your offer," she said. "Why do you want to mate with me?"
"Because you're still respected in the pack. And Saul is still honored for his contributions. He was a great man." It was the truth, but not all of it. He could hardly admit he'd crushed on her. No. He couldn't reveal the secret longings of a college boy who'd lusted after his own mentor's wife. He still felt ashamed.
"I'll give you some street cred, huh?"