The Millennium Wolves Series by Sapir Englard Chapter 31

The Millennium Wolves Series Book Three Chapter: 01

SIENNA 

The water beat against our naked bodies as we stood facing each other in the warm summer rain, 

Our glistening figures were bathed in an amber light that turned the whole meadow bronze. 

His eyes wandered over my curves in shameles. 

desire. 

I blushed, not used to the attention. 

The run had lasted hours and brought us to the top of a hill overlooking the entire island. Far in the distance, the glowing towers of the resort barely registered on the horizon. 

We stopped only when we knew we were completely alone. 

“Come here,” he beckoned, holding out his hand. 

My heart raced as I stepped toward him, steam rising from his bulging shoulders. 

I felt his rough hand against my cheek as he pulled me in for a kiss. 

Soon he was on top of me, our bodies sliding against each other on the soft grass like we were trying to start a fire. 

His tip brushed against the outside of my sex in a tantalizing rhythm, spreading my lips but refusing to enter 

It was a torture that I couldn‘t take. 

I pulled him into me, gasping in pleasure and a little bit of pain. He was deeper than I had ever felt before. 

I moaned in delight, calling his name, begging him not to stop as the rain showered down on us. 

I turned the handle to off, letting the last trails of water escape down my chest. 

It was winter now, and our honeymoon had long been over, but hot showers still reminded me of that day on the island with Aiden. 

The steam hugged my skin like a warm blanket as I stepped out of the shower. 

It was funny to think that, one year ago. I had stood in the same bathroom, furious that I had been tricked into staying with Aiden, but now here I was mated to the alnha of the East Coast Parl 

I was, mated to the alpha of the East Coast Pack and wanting to be nowhere else but here in this house with the man I loved. 

“Do you need help in there?” he asked through the door in his growly baritone voice. 

“No. I‘m perfectly capable of drying off on my own, thank you very much.” I replied, smiling myself. 

Over the past twelve months, he had become more playful, letting down his guard and showing me a side that was different from the dominant alpha he had to display to the rest of the pack. 

“I‘m happy to help,” he continued, with a charming persistence that made me giggle. It‘s truly no problem at all.” 

“Down, boy.” I said, wrapping myself in a towel and laughing. 

“But I‘ve been so good,” he protested, 

“Good things come to those who wait.” I answered, wiping the steam off the mirror and tousling my damp locks. 

I opened the door and took a step forward. pressing my wet body against his broad chest, wrapping my arms around him, and gripping his muscular back 

He tilted his head as if to kiss me, and I pulled away. “I said good things come to those who wait...and you didn‘t wait.” 

I pushed him away and sauntered into my closet, making sure he had a good view of my ass. Once around the corner I tossed out my towel so he knew I was naked and pulled the sliding door closed. 

I had barely put on my underwear when the door flew open and I found myself wrapped up in Aiden‘s arms, his lips on mine in heated passion. 

I felt myself dip back, and we crashed into the pillowy mattress. Aiden‘s weight pressed against me with powerful longing. I could feel how hard he was, and I felt myself getting wet in anticipation 

He tore off his shirt, revealing his chiseled torso and bulging arms. His chest heaved with desire, and his golden–green eyes flickered with lust. 

I leaned down and kissed my alpha. His lips were soft and warm, and every time we touched it felt like I was melting into them. 

“I want to start a family with you, Sienna,” he said suddenly 

“I know,” I replied. “We will.” 

“I mean right now. I want to start trying.” 

Aiden‘s words caught me off guard. I knew we would have to talk about it eventually, but I had put it out of mind over the past six months. 

There was so much to get used to being mated to the alpha of the second most powerful pack in the United States. I could no longer dress the way I used to. I couldn‘t go out in public with bodyguards, and I was constantly under the microscope. 

No more spontaneous meetups with the girls at Winston‘s. 

No more peaceful afternoons in the park, where I could be alone with my sketchbook and my thoughts. 

I had duties now, like the one I had to perform this afternoon. It was the first day of the Fertility Festival, and pack tradition required me to shift with Aiden in front of the entire pack and let him mount me. 

I thought Aiden had been joking when he first told me about it, but I guess when you‘re brought up as an alpha, you don‘t question the status quo and outdated ceremonies. 

But I didn‘t come from pack royalty. Before I was his mate. I was an adopted nineteen–year–old with one human parent and a severe aversion to the 

spotlight 

The idea of being so vulnerable in such a public setting was absurd, not to mention humiliating. 

I had tried confronting Aiden about it, but every time I brought it up, he would go off on some tangent about how it wasn‘t a big deal and how important it was for the pack. 

We weren‘t actually having sex or anything, but I still considered him getting on top of me as a fairly intimate, and private, affair. 

“Sienna?” Aiden asked, grabbing my thigh, 

“Yes, sorry. I was someplace else.” 

“Do you want to keep going?” 

“Aiden, I don‘t know if I‘m ready yet.” 

“What do you mean? It‘s been a year. Alphas and their mates are supposed to start trying for pups at the beginning of the first Haze after they‘ve been mated. It‘s tradition.” 

There was that word again. “Tradition. ” God, how I was starting to hate the sound of it. And the Haze, that lustful craze that possessed every werewolf during the Mating Season, was about to make matters ten times worse. 

“Can we talk about this later?” I asked, trying to salvage the romantic moment, which was quickly slipping away. 

“Of course, we can talk after the ceremony.” Aiden replied, gazing at me with his soft. unsuspecting eyes. The longer I looked into them, however, the more confident I became that I couldn‘t go through with the ritual this afternoon. 

It killed me to do this to him, and I knew it was my fault for letting it go this long, but something deep inside me didn‘t feel right. 

“That‘s something else I wanted to talk to you about,” I said, breaking his gaze. 

“What do you mean? Are you nervous?” he asked. rubbing my arm. 

Damn it, why does he have to be so sweet right now? 

But I couldn‘t back out again. There wasn‘t any more time to put it off. I had to tell him how I felt. 

“Aiden. I don‘t want to do it.” 

A confused look came over his face, and I hoped we could sort through this without it blowing up into a fight 

“Why? It‘s only a short display for the pack so they can give us their blessings as we try to conceive.” 

“If it‘s just for the pack‘s blessing, then why do we need to shift and do all the other stuff?” 

“It‘s symbolic.” 

I was hoping Aiden would take a moment to listen to himself and realize how weak an argument he was making, but his genuine expression meant I would have to spell out my objection. 

“May be for you, but I think it‘s degrading.” 

“My mother did it, and so did my father‘s mother. You’re my mate, Sienna. No one will think less of you” 

“It‘s not what about other people think, Aiden. It‘s what I‘m comfortable with.” 

“Listen,” he said, getting out from under me and sitting up on the bed. “This only happens once or twice in a lifetime. We‘ll be shifted for less than a minute. Tradition is what keeps a pack together. Without it, we lose our identity.” 

There was that stupid word again. “I feel like I‘m losing my identity having to follow all these stupid rules, ” I shot back 

I put a stern look on my face, letting him know he wasn‘t going to sway me. 

“Look, Sienna, forget the pack. Can you do this for me? And I swear that I‘ll never ask you to do something like this again.” 

Aiden was my world, and I would do anything to make him happy, but right now I hated that he wasn‘t listening to me. As an alpha, he wasn‘t used to compromise, but if our relationship was going to continue growing, he‘d need to figure out how. 

“Do you seriously not understand where I‘m coming from?” 

“It‘s just this once, Sienna,” he replied, “After this, you get to call the shots, my love.” 

I could tell he wasn‘t going to budge. 

“I need to finish getting ready.” I said, hopping off the bed and heading back to the closet. 

“Do you need any help?” he called out with a playful tone. 

“No, I can manage on my own,” I answered unenthusiastically. 

“Don‘t take too long now.” said Aiden picking up 

“Don‘t take too long now,” said Aiden, picking up his shirt and blowing me a kiss before sauntering out of the bedroom. 

I put on the festival dress and looked at myself in the mirror, thinking about all the alpha mates who‘d endured this before me and wondering whether or not they felt as disgusted as I did. 

Its less than a minute, Sienna. It‘s less than a 

The stage was built in a clearing in the forest. Giant trees had been hewn and their bodies bound together to create the gigantic platform that Aiden and I now stood on. Behind us was the rest of the council and a surprise VIP. Raphael Fernández, the Alpha of the Millennium. 

No wonder Aiden didn‘ want to call off the festival 

All around on the ground, looking up at us with excitement, was what seemed like the entire East Coast Pack 

For a moment I thought I saw a pair of purple eyes, but it must‘ve just been my imagination. 

I hadn‘t seen Eve since she‘d stopped by my gallery over six months ago. Nor had I gotten 

any clarity on that vague warning about my birth parents that she‘d left me with 

If my parents really had been alphas. I wondered if they‘d had to participate in this horrid ritual too. 

As the opening declarations were made, my heart started pounding. I couldn‘t believe I was going to do this. I‘d run through it dozens of times in my head as we drove to the festival. 

I felt Aiden‘s hand grab mine and squeeze it in reassurance. He then shed his robe, revealing his dark, statuesque figure, and began to shift. 

This is it. There is no turning back. 

I stood in place, not moving. A gasp rippled through the crowd like a tidal wave. 

Aiden‘s massive wolf now stood beside me. gazing expectantly at my human form. 

I walked up to the microphone and scanned the dumbfounded faces in the crowd. My hand shook as I pulled down the microphone so it was pointed at my lips. 

It‘s not too late. You can still shift. 

No, you‘re doing this, Sienna. 

I tried to force the words out, but they refused to budge. My adrenaline was spiking, constricting my throat and every muscle in my body. 

You ‘re an alpha too, Sienna. Start acting like it. 

I closed my eyes, blocking out the sea of people and marshalling my nerves. My throat relaxed, and the words came pouring out before I had a chance to think 

“I will stand with my mate but only as his equal, not as his prize. I still ask for your blessing. but I will not shift.” 

There was a moment of silence as my words sank in, but angry howls soon pierced the growing tumult. I stepped back from the podium, unsure of what to do now that I had made my protest. 

The shouting intensified, and the spectators‘ faces teemed with malice. I started to feel frightened, threatened 

Had I just made a huge mistake?