I permit him that much with a brisk nod, and his voice is questioning when he asks, “How can we be sure that the omega is being truthful?” Thane’s eyes flicker to Aurora accusingly, and an intense wave of anger washes over me. “What if she’s lying to save her own skin? How is it even possible that she has the ability to get psychic visions? She’s just an omega, not an oracle.”
A rumbling growl grows in my chest, vibrating off me like a siren of white noise that comes as another warning. Thane reels back, drawing his chin to his chest remorsefully.
“I don’t care if anyone here believes me or not,” I affirm with a grunt. “What matters is that Omega Aurora Sinclair is my mate, and her prophesy told of a child being born between us that will help us defeat the demon and end the threat once and for all. In the same breath, I hereby declare that I, Alpha Elias McGruff, will partake in an official mating ceremony with the omega and then proceed with the consummation of our mate bond. Are there any objections?” I ask irritably, huffing as if it’s my wolf that wheezes through my nostrils as I wait for anyone in the room to object.
Only Grandfather Silas stares at me despondently, wary eyes deep with concern and confusion as the rest glance between Aurora and me, growing more skeptical the tighter their brows knit.
I offer Grandfather a nod to acknowledge that this comes unexpectedly, but I know exactly what I’m doing. I have no doubts, and it’s only for him to trust my judgment and discernment on this.
“Good,” I say when I’ve allowed for sufficient time to pass, and no one chooses to question me further. I know they have a million thoughts and doubts on their minds, but I’m about to defuse those with what I say next.
Their distrustful glances at Aurora are unnerving, setting my pulse alight with the ramifications of my angry wolf.
I don’t need this—to be put on the spot as if I’m making the wrong decision. Every decision I ever make is with the Snehvolk Pack in mind, and I’m always determined to do what’s best for them.
“Since there are no objections…” I grouse, noting the wary twinkles passing their eyes despite how they keep their lips pursed. “I will have you all know that this decision is final. No one from the Snehvolk Pack will be offered as a sacrifice to the demon, and we will proceed with the mating ceremony between Aurora and me.”
Turning to the side, I notice Aurora staring blankly at the floor, her face paling with horror and disbelief as she probably tries to make sense of what just happened. It doesn’t matter—at least her life is spared, and she won’t attempt to flee from me again. Soon, we’ll be bound by a ritual ceremony that will officiate our mate bond, and she’ll have nothing to worry about except carrying our child to term if the prophecy turns out to be true and she’s conceived my child.
However, her lingering dread is evident in the way she gulps, refusing to look up despite giving her hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze. She must be wary of the sub-alphas and the elders of the pack, who appear unsettled and wildly skeptical about my decision.
“Remember…” I begin, addressing the room while keeping my solemn gaze fixed on Aurora. “Aurora will be this pack’s luna, and we will all serve to protect her.” I look up and tilt my chin with a dominant air as I stare at the others. “If anyone dares to touch her or harm her in any way, forget the demon. You will have my wrath to face.”
With a parting grunt to affirm how serious I am, I grab Aurora’s hand tighter and pull her out of the pack den. The wooden door bangs behind me, the screeching sounding out my resolute claim once Aurora and I are outside. The gentle flakes of snow whistling past my face bring with them crisp air that allows me to tame my inner wolf momentarily, and I take a deep breath to calm down.
“Come on,” I tell Aurora as I take her hand more firmly and pull her around the wooden structure of the den, trekking through the snow and heading in the opposite direction from her cabin on the outskirts of the town.
I can feel her question hanging in the air, caught on the tip of her tongue where she refuses to speak it, so I decide to respond anyway.
“We’re going to my place. You’ll be staying there from now on.”
***
It’s almost unbelievable to reflect on how quickly things unfolded between Aurora and me, and now she’s standing in the dining room of my home on the south side of Girdwood.
Although it’s the largest house in town, it feels awfully constricted, suffocating as I’m faced with the realization that this is the step I’ve been avoiding taking since I turned eighteen.
It’s been seventeen years since I became the leading Alpha of the Snehvolk Pack, living in the empty expanse of a home that once housed the love my parents shared. It doesn’t feel as empty as it did since my parents died now that Aurora is here, but from the wry look of disconcertment on her face, I can tell that filling this home with a semblance of the joy it once witnessed isn’t going to be easy.
“This is the dining room,” I say as I gesture around the room. “That’s the kitchen, and there’s a guest bathroom in the corner. The library…” I point around to all the rooms on the ground floor, naming each one.
“I’ll show you to the upstairs section. You can take the guest bedroom if you want.”
All Aurora does is shrug diffidently, avidly avoiding meeting my eyes as she follows me to the leveled staircase. I shake off my trepidations, not wanting to worry myself with how she’s feeling right now.
It must be overwhelming. Things progressed pretty quickly, and just yesterday, she’d been set on running away. Now she’s meant to live in the alpha’s home, as my mate, so I can only imagine what’s going through her mind.
I’ll have to give her some time to process all of this, hoping that my efforts will help to ease her into this new position as the future luna. I keep my eyes forward as we reach the landing upstairs, rounding the corner to lead her down the passage and to the closed door of the guest bedroom. Once there, I unlock the door and push it inward, then step aside to gesture inside.
“You can have this bedroom,” I say with my head lowered, trying to gain control of my raging senses when my airways are hit with the potent scent of sweet jasmine. It takes every ounce of self-control to ignore the obvious signs that to my wolf, Aurora is the most attractive she-wolf. I can’t seem to make sense of it, but after the knotting last night, it seems pointless to put logic to a phenomenon like the fated mate bond dealt to us by the Moon Goddess Herself.
Right now, I shouldn’t be focused on what Aurora’s mere presence does to my being. I need to give her space, and nowthat her life was saved from becoming the sacrifice to the demon, that’s exactly—
“Why didn’t you tell me?!”
Aurora’s sudden exclamation catches me off guard, and I lift my head to find her glowering at me.
“Tell you what?”
