Alpha looks up from the sofa he is sat on, a tray of what looks like hot soup and bread are on a coffee table in front of him. The fire casts dark shadows across the parts of his face his long hair doesn’t hide, and his dark eyes just watch me. Curious. Angry. Confused. I see it all, but I do not understand why he feels any of them for me.

  “Alaric will join us shortly. Your words upset him,” he tells me. Ah, the overprotective brother. Their relationship confuses me the most. They are so loyal to each other, even with Alpha in charge.

  “I didn’t mean to upset him,” I honestly say.

  “I understand you far more than you would know, Elodie. I understand never wanting to trust anyone when your life has been nothing but one of a worthless slave’s,” he tells me, much to my surprise.

  “How could you know that?” I ask, confused as he waves a hand at the seat right next to him on the sofa.

  “Come and eat with me. I want to tell you something about us,” he says, and I have the feeling it is a big thing that he wants to tell me anything about himself. I quickly make my way over, sliding off my shoes by the back of the sofa before walking around and sitting next to him. Alpha shocks me by pouring me a glass of red sparking liquid and handing me a roll of bread before getting the same for himself. I’m not used to anyone doing anything for me, let alone serving me, so I don’t know how to accept this moment for what it is. I stay quiet, drinking the fizzy red drink that tastes sweet and eating the bread before Alpha decides to begin speaking.

  “We don’t have mates. You know this and what it means,” he finally admits, casting his dark, coal like eyes on me.

  “Were all three of you no claims?” I ask since that is the only conclusion I have managed to come up with. I’ve never heard of an alpha being a no claim or of a no claim who can shift into a wolf form. These three are a complete mystery to me—one I want to find out. If they can shift into their wolves, then maybe there is the slight chance I could too one day. Lucy used to tell me it was simply impossible. That if you don’t shift between the ages of five and ten, then you will never shift.

  “Yes, we were no claims. We never found mates, and our father didn’t want us around much longer after he figured out we wouldn’t choose a mate. Or no female was of interest to any of us. I was eight when our father tried to kill me and my brothers. We all shifted, even Letric who was only four. We ran and kept running until we got to the sea, and we had to swim to escape the pack chasing us. That’s when we found this island,” Alpha tells me, and I try not to show how sorry I feel for him in my expression as he looks at me. I can see he knows it.

  “Alpha…I’m sorry,” is all I can think to say, and I place my glass and half the roll back on the tray as Alpha stares at the fire. “We were nothing, worthless to everyone, so we decided to fight and make ourselves more. We decided we are not worthless, and we decided to get revenge, to change the world that made us the monsters you now don’t trust.”

  “I never said I don’t trust you or Alaric or Letric. I said I don’t know how to trust anyone,” I admit, and Alpha almost smiles as I reach for his hand and hold it tightly. I don’t think Alpha is a monster, not deep down in his soul. There is good in him, I can sense it.

  “You are so very like me, sweet Elodie,” Alpha says and reaches over, pulling me by my waist onto his lap. Alpha doesn’t make a move to kiss me, he just slides his hands very slowly up and down my back, the movement making me shiver as I stare into his eyes.

  “Is that a bad thing?” I ask, my voice quiet, but I know he can hear me.

  “No. I am strong, and nothing can hurt me. No one can hurt me,” he tells me, but I suspect he is lying. I don’t know why, but I think he is. I don’t reply to him, but instead I move closer, pressing my lips to his just to remind myself what he tastes like. Alpha groans against my lips, pulling my hips closer as he deepens the kiss in a way that makes me very quickly want nothing more than to repeat last night. Alpha grabs my dress, ripping the bodice open as his large hands grab my breast, teasing my nipples with every squeeze as Alpha never breaks the kiss. I reach down, pushing my dress out of the way, undoing his trousers’ belt, and freeing his long, hard erection. He groans when I rub my hand down it, and I love the slight bit of control I have over him in this moment. Alpha doesn’t wait long before he pulls my hand away and lifts my hips, lining his cock up at my entrance.

  “Fuck me how you want, sweet Elodie. Show me how naughty you can be,” Alpha says, his dirty words sending desire all through my body as I slowly inch myself down on his cock, letting him fill me up until our hips meet. There is a slight burn, but the pleasure and the way Alpha looks at me with his dark eyes soon make me forget all about it. I roll my hips, noticing how Alpha throws his head back, and a low growl escapes his lips. He likes that. I place my hands on his chest and roll my hips again. Every time I do it, it hits a spot inside me that gets me close to the overwhelming pleasure. Suddenly, the tower door opens and I freeze, Alpha’s hands tightening on my hips as Alaric comes in the room and pauses before he shuts the door. The cold breeze blows against my nipples, making them somewhat harder than they were before.

  “Don’t mind me. Can I join?” Alaric asks.

  “Yes,” I find myself saying before Alpha can say a word then bringing my gaze back to Alpha, who smirks before grabbing my hips and rolling them once more. I gasp as Alaric comes right behind us and pulls my dress completely off me, leaving me naked and pressed between them both. Alpha thrusts in and out of me as Alaric kneels behind me, his hand going to my breast, rubbing my nipple. I throw my head back on his shoulder, and his other hand slides down my flat stomach before finding my slit, and his fingers start rubbing circles on my clit. I cry out only moments later, unable to stop the explosion of pleasure that shoots through my body. Alpha roars loudly as he thrusts a few more times and finishes deep inside me. I gasp as Alpha lifts me off his lap, laying me down on the sofa and looking at his brother as he stands.

  “I want to watch you fuck her,” Alpha says, his words making my eyes widen as I imagine Alaric inside of me. I want that. Alaric strips all his clothes off slowly before sliding over me, his cock resting at my entrance as I widen my legs for him.

  “You can tell me to leave, and I will,” he grumbles.

  “But I don’t want that,” I admit, and he keeps his eyes locked on mine as he very slowly pushes himself inside of me. He feels amazing, perfect, and I shiver from the pleasure. Alaric grabs my face, kissing me hard as he thrusts in and out of me, every thrust of his cock sending me closer and closer to the edge. His tongue swirls against mine, his hands grab my breasts as his cock fills me, and I cry out as a shocking orgasm ripples through me. Alaric growls loudly before I feel him finish inside me, his whole body shaking for a moment as he moves his lips from mine. “Fucking hell. You are different. So perfectly different.”

  “Here,” Alpha offers me a blanket, and I tuck it around myself.

  “I think we might need to get you a new dress,” Alaric says, pulling me into his lap as Alpha pulls on his trousers.

  “I will buy you one tomorrow,” Alpha comments.

  “So, I will have to stay naked all night?” I ask, and Alaric laughs.

  “I’m pretty sure we can come up with something to do to make sure you don’t get cold,” Alaric whispers into my ear.

  “I have the perfect idea.”

  I smile at Alpha’s words just as he walks over to me.

  Chapter 14

  Elodie

  “Good morning, Mary,” I say, stretching my arms out before I sit up in the empty bed, smelling another cooked breakfast and hearing the bath running in the room. Mary turns the water off as she looks over at me and sighs.

  “As you are clearly staying for more than one night, I think we should have a little talk before you go about your daily activities with Alpha Alaric today,” she tells me, and I nod, happy that I’m spending the day with Alaric, not so much that Mary wants to talk to me about god knows what.

  “I’d like that,” I say, and she nods before walking out of the room, and then I spot the red dress hanging on the hook by the door. It’s a long, dark red dress with black flower patterns around the bodice of it. Again, the dress is beautiful, and I don’t know how I will ever thank the Alpha Brothers for that gift. Or the dress they ripped off me yesterday. My mind drifts back to last night and all the things they did to me, the pleasure that never stopped all night. I lost count of how many times they were inside me, making me lose my mind in pleasure before I fell asleep with them in the early hours.

  I am kind of sad they weren’t here when I woke up, but then the sun looks high in the air, so I bet I have slept for a lot longer than I thought I did. I sink into the bath, seeing there are green herbs instead of roses floating in the water like yesterday. They give off a minty and refreshing scent that I’ve never smelt before, and I actually really love it. I rest back for a little while, relaxing in the water before noticing that I should eat the food rather than relaxing in the bath for too long.

  On my plate this morning are two eggs, bacon and a sausage. All of it looks amazing, and I literally can’t believe my life right now. I don’t even know how I got lucky enough to get to this point, and it feels like life just couldn’t get better. I eat all the food before washing my hair and getting out of the bath. I take my time drying my hair and brushing it with a hairbrush I find on Alpha’s chest of drawers that wasn’t there before. It makes me think he bought it for me. I brush all my hair out and dry myself off before putting the dress on, which pushes my breasts up until they look like they are going to fall out of the bodice. Ah well, I’m sure they won’t. I run down the stairs to find Mary sat on the sofa, looking at the fire. The sofa makes me blush just remembering what we did on it last night until Alpha carried me upstairs with Alaric following.

  “Do not fall in love with the brothers, Elodie,” Mary warns, standing up and turning to face me. “Many girls like you have fallen for them, only to be hurt in the long run.”

  “So, they have kept lots of girls like they do me?” I ask, knowing it will hurt for her to tell me the answer.

  “No, not like you. I did not lie when I said the Alpha only keeps women around for one night. I don’t know why they have kept you for longer, but I do not wish to see someone like you hurt more than you need to be.”

  “I won’t love them,” I firmly reply. I am not that stupid. I know what I am to them.

  “Good. You will eventually become a shadow in their minds that they do not want around. I will find you somewhere to live in the pack, a good, safe home. You will find a good wolf to settle down with. To eventually have children with and be happy,” she says like she has it all figured out, which I have no doubt she does by this point. I bet she planned my entire life out from the moment she met me, only to be confused why I am still here.

  “Aren’t the Alpha Brothers good wolves?” I ask, crossing my arms.

  “No. They are not, and do not forget it. They are cruel, brutal and kill without hesitation. They are not good wolves. They are wolves who will do anything, sacrifice anything to become alphas of this world and fix the world order,” she says, and I know it is true. What Alpha told me of their childhoods, it makes sense that they will do anything to fix the world to make sure it never happens to anyone else.

  “Even me.” I whisper. “That’s what you mean, isn’t it? You think if I fall for them, they won’t blink about getting rid of me if I become too much of a distraction from the war.”

  “Exactly,” she says and crosses her arms. “I am the constant in their lives because I am not distracting and have always been there, so they do not notice me.”

  “When did you meet them?” I ask, guessing it has been a long time.

  “I was thrown out of my pack because I interfered with the beating of a child. They beat me instead until I could not see my skin under the bruises and blood, and then left me on the beach. I swam across to the island when it was clear I was in more danger with outcasts than I was of my old pack finding me. No one lived on the island, so it seemed a good idea. When I got to the island, I found the Alpha Brothers. Alpha was ten and Alaric eight. Poor Letric was only six, but they never needed me. They had made a home, and they let me in. I repay the debt by looking after them for the rest of my life,” she tells me.

  “Alpha told me that they came to the island to escape,” I say, understanding their past all the more now.

  “They were running just like me. Hiding from the monsters of the world we live in. I helped them make better shelter in the ruins of the old town, and then over time, I brought them up. They built the town on their own at the start, then slowly they took outcasts in, and it became the town it is now. Their pack is full of people who never had a pack, those who ran from the packs because they didn’t fit in or follow the barbaric rules. This pack is worth fighting for,” she says. “Nothing can get in the way. Even love, my dear.”

  “The pack is free and happy. I understand why,” I reply, and she nods.

  “So, you understand why nothing must come between them and finishing their war. The world needs a new order, and the Alpha Brothers will bring about that order with blood and war. It is the only way,” she explains to me.

  “I get it,” I reply, and she nods before walking to the door and pulling it open. “Alaric is waiting with two horses in the courtyard for you. You should go,” she tells me, and I nod, sliding my shoes on before walking past her to the door.

  “Thank you for helping them as children, and I am sorry your old pack kicked you out. They made a mistake, because I think you were, and are, brave and wise,” I say, not waiting for her reaction before walking out the door and going to find Alaric. Mary may be wrong about some things, but she is right about others. Falling in love with the Alpha Brothers could be the end of me.

  Chapter 15

  Elodie

  I relax my arms to my side as I see Alaric in the courtyard, two dead horses standing at his side, and he is holding the reins to them. They say the dead horses are born in death and normal horses are born in life, though I’ve never actually seen how a horse is born in death. I want to ask Alaric about the pregnant horse later on. If they are born, then they are alive, right? The horses are pure black with long hair just about hiding their eyes from me, and they are so tall, so much that I am curious how I am going to climb up onto one of their backs.

  I step closer, placing my hand on one of the horses’ neck as I smile at Alaric who steps closer to me. He doesn't say hello or anything at all as his one hand slides into my hair, and he pulls me into a kiss. A small moan escapes me as I enjoy the hot, demanding kiss until he breaks away from me and grins. I run my eyes over his black shirt that stretches across his muscular build, his even tighter trousers made for horse riding, and how his sleeves are rolled up, showing off his tanned skin. As I look at my own skin, I see I have a tan already even after only being out here a little time. Everything from his vanilla scent I can now smell to his powerful appearance draws you in. It is apparently a born alpha thing.

  Alphas are meant to be seductive, smart, and draw attention, no matter what they do. Usually alpha children are the next alpha, but anyone with an alpha wolf could challenge an alpha of a pack and kill them, then becoming the pack’s alpha. The rules are tricky. My old pack should have submitted to Alpha when he killed Alpha Bishop, but because he didn’t claim the pack and attacked them instead, they fought back. I clear my throat, wondering why my thoughts went off track for a moment then.

  "Morning, my sweet El. Are you ready for a horse ride? I want to show you the beaches of the island," he tells me, offering me the reins of the horse on my right. The one I touched when I stepped closer. I look up at the horse, knowing that he must trust me to let me touch him. It took months to befriend the dead horses around my pack, when they would run from anyone else. Trust has to be earnt, and it is important never to break it.

  "Morning, and yes, I'm really looking forward to this," I admit, and he smiles, walking back and nodding his head up as he pets the side of my horse’s neck.

  "Good, now I'm going to lift you up on Darkness. Don’t worry, he is one of the laid back horses of the bunch. Derek over there is the wild one,” he says, and Derek lets out a little huff like he can understand what we said, and it makes me chuckle. “You ready?" Alaric asks with a grin, and I step closer, turning my back to him, and he grabs my waist. Like I am a weightless child, he lifts me into the air, and I swing my leg over the saddle before pulling myself on as Alaric lets me go. I get comfy, pulling the reins closer into my lap as I watch Alaric walk back and then run, jumping at the last second and seamlessly sliding onto Derek’s back. I pat Darkness’s mane as Alaric sorts his reins out and gets settled.

  "Impressive," I admit, and he grins, before making a ticking noise and directing his horse forward. I do the same, squeezing my legs around the horse as he moves to follow Alaric out of the courtyard and towards the town. Alaric guides us into the town, taking a left in the middle of the market and past a long row of houses until we get to the beach.

  "Time to really ride, sweet El," Alaric calls before he digs his heels into the horse’s sides, and his horse races down the beach.

  "We can beat them, don't you think?" I purr to my horse before copying Alaric's movement, and my horse races off. I laugh as the salty wind whips my hair around as we catch up to Alaric and overtake him, racing off down the beach. My horse goes to the right a little so he is running in the water, the warm water splashing up my legs as we go faster. There is nothing like this in the entire world. The free feeling of riding a horse, the knowledge that you are truly free. We eventually stop when we come to the bridge, and I slow my horse down before waiting for Alaric to stop next to me. He climbs off and comes over to me, his wide grin matching my own. It’s strange how something like riding can just make you feel so much better.