Chapter 1

Storm

18 months later, present day.

The music in the club was blaring out of the speakers, and the pounding of the beat of the bass was enough to make my ears ring. The air was thick and heavy, with the stench of alcohol, sweat, cigarette smoke and pot, which was mixing in with the smells of sex, lust and arousal which were also thick in the air. I moved my body seductively to the beat of the music.

My body was on display to the lust-filled eyes of every male in the room. Dressed in a black mini skirt, matched with a silver halter neck top and silver high heels, my clothes certainly didn't leave much to the imagination.

I had left my hair out tonight, so my long brown hair was hanging freely, cascading down my back like a waterfall. My fit and well-muscled, sun-tanned body was drawing the eyes of the men around me just like moths to a flame. My scars had been covered up by a top-quality foundation, allowing me the opportunity to at least pretend to be normal while I was out having fun with my best friend.

As I danced to the beat of the music, I tried to keep a safe distance from the other people on the dance floor, not wanting to deal with drunk and sex-crazed men with wandering hands. I was proud of my toned physique. I worked hard to stay in top shape. But, like a lot of young women, I had a problem with people pushing up on me and gyrating on me.

In my little space on the dance floor, I moved my hips around just like a Latin belly dancer, just letting loose and having a good time. Tonight, I was trying to dance and drink away my problems. I just wanted to forget everything that was going on in my screwed-up life right now and live for the moment. So tonight, I had come here to let loose and forget.

I continued to move my hips to the beat of the music, and as I did, a few guys made their way over to me, getting closer than I would like. One man grabbed me by the hips from behind, pulling me up against him. As he pushed up against me, I felt the evidence of his arousal pressing into me. Ripping his hands away from me and pushing away from them, I threw the guy who had grabbed me a hard glare before I quickly turned away from the group of men and made my way over to the bar.

Hastily pushing through the crowd of bodies on the dance floor and doing my best to avoid the hands of sleazy guys who were trying to grope me as I made my way past them, I quickly approached the bar. I decided I had had enough of dancing for the time being, and I needed a drink or three. Truth be known, I shouldn't even be here. I was only seventeen, but my best friend and I had been sneaking into this club for a while now with our fake ID's.

The mere thought of getting away with breaking the law was a rush for us. Standing at the bar, I wiped the sweat off my forehead with the back of my hand. Seeing me standing at the bar, the bartender came over to me.

"Two shots of tequila and a bourbon neat, please?" I shouted, so that the bartender could hear me over the loud music.

The bartender nodded in acknowledgement and began getting my drinks. As I stood and waited for my drinks, my attention was drawn to a guy who was standing on the other side of the bar watching me. I had never seen him here before. But the way he was watching me was incredibly unnerving.

I will admit he was an extremely attractive guy from a physical standpoint, and from the arrogant smirk on his face, he knew just how good looking he was.

From where I stood, at a brief glance he appeared to be about six foot four, he had tanned skin, and it appeared as though he spent a substantial amount of time outdoors; his physique was like that of a Greek God. His hair was as black as the ace of spades, and his eyes were a brilliant shade of green.

As the bartender placed my drinks in front of me, I watched as my admirer slowly made his way around the bar towards me. I quickly knocked back my two shots of tequila and reached for my glass of bourbon. As I took a mouthful of bourbon, the tall drink of water from the other side of the bar approached me.

Giving me a smile, he said in a teasing voice, "So, you're the one who has been getting my friends all hot and bothered on the dancefloor?"

"If they think they are getting into my pants tonight, then they are mistaken," I replied, not sparing him a glance. I tossed back the rest of my bourbon in one gulp before setting my now empty glass back on the bar.

He smiled at my response and said, "I should warn you they don't like to be played with. At least, not the way you have been playing with them. If you keep it up, you could get hurt."

"Are your friends the sleazy guys on the dance floor, who think it is okay for them to manhandle a girl?" I asked.

"They have a skinful at the moment, so I am sure they are acting sleazy right now as you so eloquently put it," he replied raising an eyebrow at me, clearly amused by how I was talking about his friends.

"Do I know you?" I asked him. "No, but we can change that, I'm Asher, and you are?" he asked holding his hand out to me.

"Not interested," I replied, ignoring his outstretched hand, and making my way towards the entrance of the club. I was thinking of calling it a night and heading home. As much as I didn't want to be at home and dealing with my brother Mason and his mate. I knew I should leave the club before the men here got even more drunk and became even more difficult to deal with.

My relationship with the members of my pack had taken a turn for the worst eighteen months ago after the death of the former Alpha at my hands. My pack had turned on me on account of my brother's rumours. Rumours which had painted a dark, twisted picture of me. I used to be well respected by several members of my pack, but now I got treated abysmally by all of them. There was a time when I only had to deal with my father and oldest brother harming me regularly. Now I had to watch out for members of the pack attacking me as well.

Whenever one of them got the nerve to have a go at me, I fought back with everything I had, not caring how much I hurt them. As I made my way towards the door of the club, my best friend Kat grabbed me and dragged me into a bear hug. She was as close as a sister to me. We had been inseparable ever since childhood.

As we hugged it out, the music continued to reverberate around us, pounding through my bloodstream, making me feel as though I was on an adrenaline high. Kat moved us in a swaying motion as we moved to the beat. My body took over and soon the two of us were dancing, our bodies moving to the sound of the music pulsing through the speakers.

I had been trying to spend as much time with Kat as I could because I felt guilty for the secret that I had been keeping from her for the past several weeks. She had no idea I was going to be leaving town soon. Only my twin brother Logan knew I was planning on leaving the country in the next couple of days and that I wouldn't be coming back. My twin brother Logan was helping me to leave the country. After everything that had happened in the past nine years since my mother's death at the hands of rogues. I couldn't be around my family or my pack anymore. I needed to get out before someone killed me.

Kat had no idea that in less than thirty-six hours, I'd be gone, out of her life for good, and as much as it hurt me to admit it to myself, we'd never see each other again. As we continued to dance to the music, beads of sweat gathered on my forehead. We had been inside this club for hours now. It was hot, and the sweat covered my body as my hair stuck to my neck. I needed another drink or five.

As if reading my mind, Kat grabbed my hand and dragged me back towards the bar. Leaning over the bar she yelled, "Vodka and orange juice please," the bartender nodded and looked at me, "Can of Jim Beam please," I shouted. The bartender nodded to us, then walked over to the fridges that were behind the bar.

As we waited for our drinks, Kat hugged me to her once again and leaning in closer to my ear, she said something to me, but I didn't catch what it was she had said. Her voice was drowned out by the loud music. I looked up to tell her I hadn't heard what she had said when her lips were suddenly on mine.

Caught by surprise and stunned by her actions, I didn't react to her kiss. I knew that the only reason she had kissed me was because she was drunk. Before I knew what had happened or could react to the situation, I had just found myself in. A hand wrapped around my upper arm and dragged me away from Kat.

I looked up at the owner of the hand that was wrapped around my arm and saw Asher looking at me, disapproval written upon his face. Annoyed with his macho attitude, I ripped my arm out of his grip and put a little distance between the two of us. Glancing back over at Kat, I took in her appearance. Kat was what people called a classic beauty. With her long black hair and ivory complexion coupled with her beautiful emerald green eyes rimmed with thick lashes, and a body that women around the world would happily kill for, she was stunning. No wonder men drooled over her wherever she went. She was gorgeous enough to easily grace the covers of magazines around the globe, and I was proud to call her my friend. On her face was a smile as big as Texas.

I glanced back at Asher, trying to figure out what was up with him. What did it matter to him that my friend had just kissed me? Who cares? It was just a kiss given in harmless drunken fun! I turned back to Kat as I waited for our drinks. It took me longer than it should have to realise that Kat's attention wasn't on me or Asher any longer.

Her attention was now on a man who was standing a few feet away from us. The man she was looking at was tall, roughly the same height as Asher and he had brown hair with blonde tips, light blue eyes, and he was of muscular build with a healthy tan. He could be a model gracing the cover of GQ with that body and those looks.

"Kat, want to play a game of pool?" I asked her, breaking into her ogling session. She looked over at me and nodded.

Picking up our drinks off the bar, we made our way over to where the pool tables were in the back of the room. Two members of our pack, Cameron and his friend Josh were there playing a game of pool. Josh and Cameron, ever the womanizers, were trying to sweet-talk their way into the pants of two blonde bimbos who were hanging onto their every word. They were human, so as far as the boys were concerned, the girls were easy targets for a night of fun. Still, I felt a stab of anger as I watched them. Josh wouldn't ever change his womanising ways.

I was turning eighteen in two weeks and when I did, I would find my fated mate, or soul mate in human terms. Josh's birthday was three days after mine. There was once a time when I was still a kid when I had been friends with Josh. Back then, I had hoped my fated mate would end up being Josh, but now? Now I was constantly worried that in two weeks, I'd find out Josh is my mate and I'd be stuck with an unfaithful mate for the rest of my life.

"Well, well, well, lookie who finally showed up! Had enough of getting the men worked up on the dance floor, have you?" Josh asked, looking at me with a smirk on his face.

Before I could respond, Cameron said, "Oh there you are! Girls, may I introduce you to Emma and Alice," as he gestured to the two bimbos standing beside him. The two bimbos were looking at Josh with stars in their eyes, clearly not realising that after tonight he and Cameron wouldn't remember either of their names or think of either of them again. Hell, come tomorrow morning, the boys would be out looking for new conquests. That was just how they were. They went through girls the same way a new mother went through baby wipes. These girls were so naïve that it was beyond stupid.

Suddenly, realising what he had said, one bimbo piped up and said, "Um, our names are Amberley and Annalise."

Her tone was super bitchy and filed with annoyance at Cameron's mistake. At her words and the look of annoyance on her face, I couldn't help myself. I burst into laughter, spitting my mouthful of drink out of my mouth onto the floor at the exact moment that Kat snorted before breaking out into hysterical laughter at Cameron's predicament.

They had forgotten the girl's names already! Hell, that had to be a new record for those two! Cameron looked uncomfortable at his stuff up. He looked at the girls, then glared at Kat and me for laughing at his mistake, not liking to look stupid in front of the girls. Before anyone could say anything though, Josh stepped in as smooth as silk with his rich Italian tanned skin, jet black hair and bright blue eyes.

Ever the trusty wingman, he said, "Ladies you will have to excuse my friend here, he has had a long day at work, and he has had hardly any sleep, it was an honest mistake, just a slip of the tongue, I can assure you."

"Yeah, that's what it was," Kat snapped in a sarcastic tone.

"Are we able to play a game of pool or are we going to have to waste our night watching you hit on bimbo one and bimbo two?" I asked, feeling annoyed.

Cameron glared at me, then turned his glare back onto Kat. Before Cameron could say a word, Kat threw up her hands up in front of her and said, "You know what, forget it, I won't play!"

"Looks as though you will need a partner hot stuff," said Asher, throwing his arm around my shoulders. Normally I would have thrown his arm off of me. Ever since my father had started abusing me, I hated men touching me. But deciding to take this opportunity to get my own back and annoy Cameron and Josh a little bit, I turned to Asher and in my most seductive voice I said, "Well, maybe you could be my partner."

Asher wrapped his other arm around my waist, pulling me into him he said, "Yes, I could be yours, for as long as you want me, you little cutie."

"Ooh my baby Storm here would love that, wouldn't you Storm?" Kat asked giggling and winking at me. She turned back to Asher and said, "No one can keep up with our girl Storm here, you will have your work cut out for you with this one."

"Kat!" I snapped, making her laugh out loud. Don't get me wrong, she really was a good friend, and I loved her, but when she had been drinking, she got mouthy and obnoxious. When she said things about me that were nobody's business, that is when I really got annoyed with her, because truth be told, I was still a virgin. The last thing I needed was for people to think that I was a pack slut. And that is exactly what people would think of me if they paid attention to what Kat was saying.

"Kat?" a voice broke in.

I looked over to my left and saw the man who had been by Kat's side since our impromptu kiss at the bar.

"My name is Lucas, and while I am sure my friend Asher here is undoubtedly happy you are spilling Storm's deepest darkest secrets to all of us. I'd relish the opportunity, to get to know more about you and your hidden talents."

I watched in satisfaction as Kat broke out into a bright blush at Lucas' words. Wow, the guy had managed to render her speechless. That had to be a record. I had never met someone who could shut Kat up before.

"Well, I will break then. Smashing balls is what I am good at," Josh bit out, his voice dripping in venom, breaking through my reverie. I looked at Josh and seeing the resentment on his face, I thought to myself, 'suck it, Josh.'

Josh broke, and the game began. Throughout the game, Asher and I paid no attention to Cameron and Josh. Instead of paying them any attention, whenever we weren't taking our shots, we appeared to be too busy, lost in a deep, quiet conversation with each other.

For me, though, the conversation was just nonconsequential chitchat. I will admit, I felt a little bad that I was using Asher just to get back at Josh. But when I started thinking like that, I reminded myself that in a few more days, I would no longer be here, so it didn't matter what I was doing tonight. I could constantly feel Josh's eyes on me throughout the game, and I knew that mine and Asher's so-called flirtations were driving Josh insane. He was so hypocritical! He could take other women home, or screw them in cars, and janitorial closets, or in pools and swimming holes, and wherever else he chose to get his rocks off. But Heaven forbid other men should give me the slightest little bit of attention or find me interesting enough to divulge in simple conversation with me!

I knew the only reason Josh would want me to be his mate, is because I had Alpha blood. My Alpha blood would provide his future children with a better standing within the pack, if we were to have children. Given who Josh was, I hoped with everything I had that he and I weren't fated mates. Honestly, I could well do without being stuck with someone as self-absorbed as Josh as my fated mate.

Being stuck with him for the rest of my life would be a total nightmare!

I glanced over and saw that Kat and Lucas were oblivious to everything taking place around them. They were so wrapped up in each other and completely lost in each other's eyes. I was so happy for Kat, she just seemed so happy! As I watched her, I knew beyond any doubt she had found her fated mate. The thought of this made the fact that I would soon be leaving her easier to live with. Knowing she'd have someone to help her cope with my abandonment when I left here, had me feeling a little less guilty.

I was listening to the story that Asher was telling me of what he and his friends had gotten up to the previous weekend. I had my back to Cameron and Josh and the pool table, and I was so caught up in Asher's story, that when an extremely heavy-handed tap pounded on my shoulder. I assumed it was Josh or Cameron being annoying, and I hissed "Piss off," shrugging my shoulder to remove the hand. "Language little girl! Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" an annoying but familiar voice taunted me. I felt a pang at the words when the voice continued saying. "Just kidding, no one is game enough to kiss you! You'd more than likely go all psychotic rabid wolf on them if they did!"

I turned around and looked into the eyes of my twin brother Logan, who was smirking at my obvious annoyance at his words. I glared at him in mock anger as he stood there in front of me with his arms folded, looking at me with an amused look on his face.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, faking a bitchy voice.

"Storm, you aren't meant to be here, you know that!" he stated.

"Logan, come on, I was just dancing with Kat and shooting eight ball," I replied, trying to placate him.

I could tell by the look on his face he understood why this time with Kat was so important to me. Mine and Kat's time together was running out, and soon she would be nothing but a memory to me, and I was determined that I was going to make the last memories I had with her, good ones.

Logan leaned in towards me so that he wouldn't be overheard by anyone around us. "I understand that baby girl, but it is nearly two in the morning. You were supposed to have been home hours ago. I am not trying to ruin your final bit of time with your friend, but I don't want you getting on Mason's nasty side either. We don't want to give him any reason to look in your direction, not with the plans we have in motion, so you need to keep off his radar. We both know what will happen if you end up on his nasty side," he stated.

I took in his words and after a moment, I nodded. He was right. If I wanted our escape plan to go off without a hitch then I needed to stay on Mason's good side, or at the very least, out of his way. I needed to fly under the radar and not attract any unwanted attention. If I were to get on his nasty side now, it would throw a spanner into the works. Effectively ruining our escape plan and seeing me trapped in this never-ending vicious cycle I had been caught in with Mason for the last eighteen months. Longer if you included the years of abuse that I had lived with from both him and my father.

Logan was flying out to Germany in two days to join his mate CJ's pack. CJ's father was her pack's Alpha and Logan had met her last month when she and her parents had flown over here to America to attend a conference with our pack and several other packs in the Texas area. CJ and her family had flown back to Germany two weeks ago. I would not be joining CJ's pack. CJ knew nothing of mine and Logan's plan to get me out of the states and away from my pack.

Logan had stayed here an extra couple of weeks before flying out to be with his mate so we could put this plan of getting me out of here into action. He was flying out forty-eight hours earlier than he had told CJ he would be leaving. This was so he could fly me out to Ireland and drop me off at NUI, the National University of Ireland which was in Galway. Soon, I was going to be attending classes there and living on campus in the dorm. It was exciting for me. I was going to be studying a Batchelor of Arts in Music.

Ever since I was a little girl, I had been writing music and lyrics, although Logan was the only person who had heard me sing. My singing and song writing were two things I had hidden from people my whole life. Logan had understood my reasons to hide my passion, but he had always encouraged me in my music, buying me whatever equipment and software I needed, thus allowing me to produce the best music I could.

Writing lyrics was one way I coped with processing my thoughts and feelings. Logan was the only one who had ever heard me perform any of the songs I had written. I never sang them in front of anyone else, preferring to spare myself my pack's criticism.

"Logan, can you please just give me a moment to say goodbye to Kat?" I asked. My brother nodded, and I walked over to where Kat was laughing and joking with Lucas.

"Kat, I have to get going," I told her, before giving her a hug.

"Okay, no worries, I will come with you," she said. I saw the disappointment in her eyes when she glanced back at Lucas.

Not wanting her to be unhappy, I interrupted her. "No, it's okay, you stay. I am going to head off with Logan," I told her.

"Logan's here?" she asked, looking around shocked by this revelation.

I nodded as she leaned in to hug me once more. I couldn't resist asking her the question I was dying to get an answer to. "Is Lucas your mate?"

She pulled back and grinned a grin like that of the Cheshire Cat, while she nodded at me. I hugged her back to me and whispered, "I am so, so happy for you."

I began to make my way back over to Logan, who was now talking to Asher. Asher was physically larger than Logan. So much so, that his bulk hid Logan from my view. As I was making my way over to where Logan and Asher were standing, Josh stepped in front of me, blocking my path. "Are you planning to go home with him?" he asked, pointing to Asher.

Looking at Josh, I decided I had had enough of his annoyingly macho attitude and chauvinistic double standards. I was still a virgin, but Josh didn't need to know that! My life was none of his business. I was glad I was getting out of here before my eighteenth birthday. I didn't want to know if he was my mate, but I hoped that he wasn't. Josh had spent many nights and days ignoring me, leaving me to watch as he flirted shamelessly, and hooked up with girls by the dozens. He would flirt with anything with breasts right in front of me, and then brag to his friends about his sordid exploits right where I could hear him, as though it was something to be proud of. Then to add insult to injury, each night, after this shameless flirting and his sleazy sex-capades with these random women, he would call me on my landline which was a dedicated line assigned to my bedroom in the Alpha residence.

These calls I would receive from him in the middle of the night, I wouldn't bother to answer. So, on my answering machine he would leave his whispered declarations of love and undying adoration until he fell asleep on the phone. I had never answered a single one of his calls whenever he rang me. I would just lay there in my bed, in the dark, listening to the same old messages, and when he stopped talking, I would just close my eyes and fall asleep knowing deep in my heart that he was never going to change. This was who he was, and all he would ever be. A womanising man whore.

Now, standing here in front of him, I had had enough of his crap. Now that he could see that someone appeared to be showing an interest in me, he was annoyed about it and he had begun to think he had the God-given right to sabotage what he interpreted to be my new love interest by acting in the manner of a typical jealous boyfriend.

"Thank you for your concern Josh, but you can leave now, and take those two bimbos with you. Screw them and then just throw them away just like you always do. Like you have done with every other girl you have ever slept with and then thrown away, as though she was nothing more than yesterday's trash. I don't give a stuff what you do anymore. I couldn't care less. But I am going home with whoever I want to and there ain't a damn thing you can do or say about it."

As I spoke, the venom in my voice was coming through plain as day. Cameron was standing back, a short distance away from us with bimbo one and bimbo two, not wanting to get caught up in the crossfire of my heated exchange with Josh.

"Storm, is this what our friendship has come too?" Josh asked, looking a little shocked by what I had just said to him.

"Josh, since when have you ever cared about our so-called friendship? If you did care, you would never have treated me the way you have been treating me all this time. The only reason you care now is because it worries you that Asher is going to take me away from you, which is totally absurd, because I am not yours. It bruises your ego, that is all this is about. Someone else has taken my attention away from you, and you don't like it. Your ego can't handle it. So, now you are acting just like a tantrum throwing child. So, for the good of both our sakes, just go away. Run along and screw your way through a few more STD farms just like you always do, and stay the hell out of my damn business," I hissed, glaring at him in distaste.

"Storm, you don't mean that. You are just upset right now, that's all," he said, looking shocked at my words.

"The hell I don't! You had your chance. You have had plenty of chances to be a good friend, and a decent human being, but you couldn't do that and now I am done with you. I am so over putting up with your crap. I am finished with your mind games and having you mess with my head. And I am well and truly over your crappy behaviour. You can keep your crappy high and mighty attitude, and your suckful behaviour, and your pathetic definition of friendship, because I don't need your friendship and I don't need you!"

I looked over to where the two bimbos were still standing with Cameron, watching, and listening to our exchange in open interest. "You girls should do yourselves a favour and get the hell out of here and away from these two before you make a mistake. These two will screw you tonight and then tomorrow they will act as though they don't even know who you are. See, that is what they do! They use girls, then throw them away as if they are nothing but trash. They are a pair of arseholes and they are not worth the heartache. Save yourselves the heartache and get out while you can!" I told them.

At my warning to the girl's, Josh gave me a scathing look, then he turned towards Cameron and the two girls. The four of them then turned away and left the nightclub without another word.

Well, what could I say? I had warned them about what the boys were going to do to them, so whatever happened next, that would be on the two of them! I glanced over at Logan and saw the look on his face. He was trying to hide his smile at what he had just witnessed.

For a long time, Logan had known of the screwed-up mess I was caught up in with Josh. He understood better than anyone just how frustrating the whole mess was for me. I walked over to him and he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into a bear hug.

"I am so proud of you. He deserved your words and your temper. He is nothing but a selfish prick," he told me, laughing.

A few minutes later, Logan and I made our way out the door of the club and headed home.