Annabelle’s POV
I woke up in an empty bed. I frowned at the thought of Jonathan leaving again. I got out of bed and walked to the living room. Sunlight was shining through the open curtains as Alyssa played with Claire.
“Hey” I greeted her while walking closer.
Alyssa smiled at me. “Morning”
I picked up Claire and started tossing her in the air as she giggled. Even though she was born a few weeks ago, she looks like she’s two. Werewolves age faster until they are five, then they age normally. Since Claire has Alpha Blood, she grows even faster than regular werewolves.3
“Do you know where Jonathan is?” I asked Alyssa after I put Claire back down on the carpet.
“He had some pack stuff. Thomas was supposed to stay here, but he got a call from Jonathan” Alyssa replied.
“Why would Jonathan need Thomas?” I voiced my thoughts.
A huge smile spread across Alyssa’s face. “His mate” she said simply.
Thomas finally found his mate. I know how much he wants a mate. He’s dreamed about finding her. It must’ve been hard for him when everyone found their mates. Thomas’s dad had him training to take over the Royal Beta title.
Instead of finding his mate, he was stuck at the pack house learning how to be a good Beta. After his training, he still didn’t go out to find her. He said he would just “let nature take its course” or some shit like that.
“How long have they been gone?” I questioned.
Alyssa shrugged. “Thomas left an hour ago”
I wonder who his mate is. She’ll probably be all nice and shy, but not around Thomas. She’ll love Thomas, like all mates do. She’ll love his short black hair, his cocky attitude, and his scent. What if she hates his scent? I know a lot of people who can’t stand the smell of Thomas. What if she’s like allergic to coconuts and whenever she smells Thomas, she like passes out or something.
“What’s with that face?” Alyssa asked, snapping me out of my thoughts. “You look scared”
I shrugged. “Just thinking scenarios about Thomas’s mate”
Alyssa laughed, but stopped when her phone started ringing. She grinned and held it up to me. “Your mate’s calling” she sang, waving the phone in my face.
“You have his number?” I raised an eyebrow. I don’t even think I have his number. And he’s my mate! She shrugged and handed me the phone.
I answered the call and held it up to my ear. “Is Anna okay?” Jonathan blurted when I answered.
“Yeah. I just woke up” I said.
“Oh. Hey, babe” Jonathan replied.3
“Don’t ‘hey babe’ me. I woke up alone this morning”
“I’m sorry. There was some rogue business that I took care of. I’m coming back now”
“Mhm” I mumbled.
“I’ll see you soon. I love you” Jonathan said before hanging up.
I took the phone off my ear and looked down at the blank screen. I will never get used to hearing those three words out of his mouth. I didn’t imagine him saying it before. “Oh. My. God!” Alyssa screeched. “He said ‘I love you!”
Smiling, I nodded my head. “He’s been saying it for a while” I admitted.
“But you didn’t say it back” she said. I nodded and Alyssa tilted her head in confusion. “I thought you turned on your emotions though”
“I did”
“Do you not love him?” she asked.
“I love him” I assured her.
“Then why don’t you tell him?”
I shrugged. “I guess I’m just scared? Like what if he cheats again, then it’ll hurt even more since I developed these feelings. I think that if I tell him how I feel, then I won’t be able to get back from that. I would be too deep in what we have, and I would be the one hurt in the end” I blurted.
“Oh, sweetie” Alyssa said softly. “You have nothing to be scared about or worry about. Jonathan loves you. I can see it when he looks at you. You’re the only thing that matters to him”
“So you think he’s changed?”
Alyssa nodded. “He will never intentionally hurt you” she said with pure confidence.
A few minutes later, Scott walked into the living room and greeted us. “Princess Annabelle. Luna Alyssa”
“Hello Scott” I replied.
“Do you need help with something?” Alyssa asked.
Scott nodded. “There is a girl here to see the princess. She said that her name is Kelly”
She said she will find me. Kinda creepy if you think about it. “What does she look like?” I questioned. Just because he says Kelly, doesn’t mean its the same girl. I’m not taking chances here.
“Long blonde hair and blue eyes” Scott answered.
I nodded. “She can come in”
Scott left to get Kelly, while Alyssa picked up Claire. “I’m gonna give her a bath” Alyssa announced.
I nodded and sat on the couch to wait for Kelly. “Annabelle” her soft voice said from behind me. I got up and greeted Kelly.
“Am I needed here, Princess?” Scott asked. I shook my head. “I will be out front”
“Did you figure out what the message is?” I asked Kelly.
She shook her head. “I asked the Moon Goddess about it. She just said that I will figure it out in time”
I groaned. It is never the right time for anything. I’m supposed to do a certain thing at a certain time in my life. Everything is planned out for me and its like I’m not even living anymore. I feel like the Moon Goddess’ puppet.
“I’m trying really hard to figure it out” Kelly said. “I still don’t even know who ‘he’ is”
“He imbalances life” I repeated the last part of the message. “How can someone imbalance life?!”
Kelly shrugged. “Maybe he’s like dead, but living at the same time?”
“Like a zombie?” I asked while giggling. Zombies don’t even exist.
Kelly rolled her eyes. “Maybe he’s immor-”
“Stop!” Jonathan’s Alpha voice echoed through the castle. I strained my hearing to hear a soft whimper made by a female wolf.
She sounded scared. “Jonathan?!” I shouted while running toward the front doors. Jonathan was standing in front of the castle in a protective stance. Scott was off to the side, letting Jonathan handle the situation. Thomas was across from Jonathan growling and pushing someone behind him.
Both guys sneered and growled at each other, their wolves were close to the surface. “Jonathan” I said softly. It was like he was in some trance as he was focused on Thomas.
I saw a small figure hiding behind Thomas. “Thomas” I said raising an eyebrow at him. He ignored me and growled at my mate again.
Suddenly, Mia took over. I felt claws extend out of my hands and my canines grew. It was like I was shifting, but not all the way. This never happened before, Mia never had full control. I had no idea what was gonna happen. I was in the back of my own mind watching the scene before me.
Thomas’s gaze snapped towards me and his eyes widened. “Anna?”
I loudly growled and the ground started to shake. It scared me, but not Mia. It was like she knew what was happening. She knew what we were doing.
“Babe” Jonathan said softly. “Calm down” I felt the claws go back into my skin, and Mia slowly gave me control.
“What the fuck was that?!” Thomas shouted at me, still in a protective stance in front of a person. Like he was protecting them from me. I narrowed my eyes at him and growled lowly. It wasn’t as loud as my first growl, but the ground faintly shook.
‘Mia. What is happening?’ I questioned my wolf.
‘Kelly will explain’ Mia responded before going into the back of my mind. Wolves are so helpful- please note my extreme sarcasm.
I slowly approached Thomas to look at the person behind him. He pushed her farther back and growled at me. I used a strong voice to shout, it sounded stronger than Jonathan’s Alpha voice. “Move!” When he didn’t flinch, I shouted louder. “Now!”
Thomas whimpered and had no choice but to bow his head in submission. He slowly inched away from a small girl. “Please don’t hurt me” she pleaded with tears running down her face.
I shook my head at her. “I’m not gonna hurt you” I said softly. “What’s your name?”
“B-Ariana. I-I’m Thomas’s m-mate” she stuttered.
“I’m Queen Annabelle” I introduced myself. Then I actually heard what I said. I just called myself queen. I referred to myself as the future queen, but now its like I was claiming the title. I’m no longer a princess. I’m the Queen. I didn’t have that much time to ponder over it, because Ariana spoke again.
Ariana slightly bowed her head. “I-I’m sorry for c-causing trouble”
I shook my head. “It is fine. Would you like to explain what’s going on?” I questioned.
She stood up straight and glanced at her mate. “I thought I smelt something, so I started running. Jonathan blocked the entrance and shouted. Sh-Thomas got mad and…” she trailed off.
I nodded in understanding. “What did you smell?”
“I thought I smelt my sister” Ariana said quietly.
“But she’s dead” Jonathan said from behind me.
I slapped his chest. “Don’t be so blunt about it” I scolded him quietly so only he could hear.
“There is someone’s scent here though” Jonathan said while sniffing the air. “Who’s here?” he asked.
“I have a visitor” I stated. “Her na-”
“Olivia?” Ariana whispered while looking behind me and Jonathan. I turned around and saw a pale-faced Kelly standing between the doorway.
Ariana ran towards Kelly, but Kelly backed away. “You’re not supposed to be here” Kelly said.
“What?” Ariana asked. “What’s going on?” Kelly just shook her head and ran into the castle. “Olivia!” Ariana shouted and moved to run after her, but Thomas stopped her. “Let go of me!” she thrashed around in his arms. “She’s my sister! Let go!”
“Aria” Thomas said softly. “She can’t be your sister”
“That’s her, Thomas. That’s my sister” Ariana whispered.
Thomas frowned and his arms tightened around her. “Your sist-”
“She’s right” I stated, cutting off Thomas. “May I speak to you alone?” I asked Ariana.
Ariana slowly nodded her head. “I’ll see you later” she told Thomas before following me into the castle. Thomas frowned, but didn’t follow.
I sniffed out Kelly’s scent and followed it through the castle. We walked through hallways and rooms, until I found the library, where her scent was the strongest. I led Ariana into the room full of books, and I saw Kelly leaning against one of the shelves.
“Olivia?” Ariana said softly.
Kelly’s head snapped up. “You’re not supposed to be here” she told Ariana.
I saw that Ariana was on the verge of tears. She didn’t let any fall though. “Why not?” she questioned.
“No one is supposed to know I’m here. She told me to keep it a secret” Kelly answered as she looked back down.
We fell into a silence, but it wasn’t awkward. It was more sad, like no one knew what to say to each other. For the first time since we entered the room, I spoke up. “I think Ariana supposed to be here. The Goddess made her and Thomas mates, and she specifically sent you down here. She wouldn’t have made them mates if She didn’t want your paths to cross” I mused.
Kelly thought about it before nodding in agreement. “This doesn’t change anything though. I have a mission, and that is why I’m here” she stated.
“So you are her guardian” Ariana said quietly. Kelly nodded. “So you….” Ariana trailed off.
“I died” Kelly said.
“How?”
Kelly sighed and pulled her long blonde hair into a ponytail. “I found my mate. He was an alpha of a pack of rogues. I didn’t care about him being a rogue and leading rogues. I loved him, but he didn’t want me. I thought it was just some act so he wouldn’t seem weak in front of the rogues. I was wrong” She wiped away some tears and continued. “He started hitting me, so I ran away. Then he found me and he killed me. My own mate killed me” Kelly started sobbing.
Ariana sucked in a large breath before walking over to her sister and engulfing her in a hug. “I’m so sorry” Ariana whispered.
After Kelly calmed down, she looked up at her sister. “You’ve grown up so much” Ariana nodded. “I missed you” Kelly muttered.
“I missed you too” Ariana said before they started hugging again. “I love you so much” I quietly left the library, letting them have their moment. Jonathan and Thomas were leaning against the wall outside the door.
“Were you guys listening?” I asked.
Thomas nodded before walking away from the library. Jonathan walked towards me and wrapped his warm arms around my waist. I buried my face in his shoulder and inhaled his citrus-y scent. “I’m sorry for leaving this morning” Jonathan mumbled as he pulled away.
I quickly pecked his lips. “Its fine” I moved to walk away, but Jonathan picked me up by my waist and threw me over his shoulder. I squealed as he started running down the hall. He pushed open my bedroom door and tossed me on the bed. “I could’ve walked here” I stated.
“But that wouldn’t be fun” Jonathan jumped onto the bed, making me bounce up. I giggled as he hovered his body over mine.
He used his elbows to hold himself up. I stared at his flexed muscles and his hard chest. I moved my gaze up to his eyes that were filled with desire and lust. He moved his face closer to mine until our lips were barely brushing.
“I have to speak to Ford” I mumbled.
“We can do that later” Jonathan said before smashing his lips on mine.
I felt him shift on top of me, and his hand made its way into my hair. He gently bit my lip and I opened my mouth, letting him deepen the kiss. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him impossibly closer. I moaned as his tongue tangled with his. I felt like I was on cloud nine. But of course we need oxygen.
We pulled away, and I was panting. My lips felt cold without his connected to mine. But Jonathan didn’t stop kissing me. He trailed kisses down my jaw and neck, until he reached the spot where he would mark me. He lightly sucked the spot, earning another moan from me.
He stopped and studied my face. I answered his unasked question. “Mark me, Jonathan” I said breathlessly. Mia has been telling me to let him mark me. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be marked yet. But my conversation with Alyssa had given me more confidence.
Right as the words left my mouth, Jonathan face was back in my neck. He kissed the spot before extending his canines and sinking them into my skin. I didn’t feel pain at all. I felt safe and warm. After a few seconds, Jonathan pulled his teeth out of me and licked my mark. I marked him and licked the open wound.
We pressed out foreheads together, as we both struggled to get air into our lungs. “I love you, Anna” Jonathan said. I smiled then gently pressed my lips to his.
“I love you too”