I was unpleasantly surprised when I came downstairs. Sienna was standing in my kitchen looking at me like she wanted to kill me.

She is my brother’s and Alpha’s best friend. She is 25, just like my brother and Alpha, and she has been hanging out with them since childhood. Now, she is clinging on to them like they are a lifeboat. She was devastated when she found out that neither my brother nor Alpha were her mates. That didn’t stop her from trying to become Luna. She is always around Alpha, proving herself and trying to convince him to take her as his chosen mate.

Werewolves can do that. If their mate dies or they don’t find their true mate, they can take a chosen one. It is frowned upon, especially in our pack, because we take mates very seriously. Most packs do, actually. But some have a milder attitude toward chosen mates.

Sienna was tall, blonde, and perfect. Her make up was always on point. Her hair was always combed and styled to perfection. But she destroyed all that with the way she behaved. She was bitchy, mean, and disrespectful. She hated me and treated me like I was trash. But only when we were alone. When we were around my brother or Alpha, she was a totally different person. She was nice to me, and she once told my brother that I was like a little sister to her. Yuck. I tried telling my brother about her, but he didn’t believe me. He told me I was jealous of her and how much time they spent together.

“Sienna.” I said coldly and grabbed a mug from a cupboard.

“Good morning, ugly.” she said and smirked. “It must be good to sleep as long as you do.”

“Maybe you should try it to.” I said as I poured coffee into my mug. “You need as much beauty sleep as you can get.”

I turned towards her with a smirk on my face. She was pissed.

“You little bitch.” she said through her teeth. “I will become Luna soon and I will exile you so soon you will not be able to blink.”

She always did this. She threatened to exile me when she would become a Luna. I knew she would actually do it, and I could only hope she didn’t become a Luna.

I wanted to say something back, but I heard the front door open. My brother and our Alpha walked into our kitchen. Sienna quickly put on the biggest fake smile on her face.

I rolled my eyes. How didn’t anybody see how fake she was?

“Good morning, little one.” my brother said and kissed my forehead.

That was his favorite nickname for me. I was small, smaller than any wolf my age, and he liked to point that out. Especially because he was huge. 6’4, and had muscles all over his body, just like Alpha.

We looked a lot alike. We both had brown hair and bright blue eyes. He was more tanned than me, though. I inherited my mom’s pale complexion. I wa out in the sun all the time, but I couldn’t seem to get tanned.

“Good morning, Andrew. Good morning, Logan.” I said and smiled.

I get to call Alpha by his first name only in the privacy of our homes. On other occasions, I must refer to him as Alpha. Or Alpha Logan.

Sienna didn’t like that. She gave me an ‘I will kill you’ look over their shoulders.

“Good morning, Emma.” Logan said as he sat at our kitchen table.

“What are your plans today, Em?” Andrew asked as he poured coffee for himself and Logan.

“Nothing much.” I responded. “I have a training session in an hour and then I will just hang out with Amy and Jacob.”

“Tomorrow is your first shift. Are you excited?” Logan asked me and took his coffee mug from my brother.

“Yes.” I said and smiled brightly. “I can’t wait to meet my wolf.”

“Maybe you will find your mate, Emma.” Sienna said coldly. “And maybe we will lose you to him tomorrow.”

She gave a fake sad look to my brother. Goddess, they were so blind if they didn’t see through her act.

“Don’t worry, Sienna.” my brother said. “She will always be our little sister. No mate will take that away from us.”

I wanted to scream and throw up. She was not my sister! She was a fake bitch who couldn’t wait to get rid of me! But I couldn’t say anything, so I just gave him a fake smile.

“After your shift, you can start working at a pack house.” Logan said. “You went to high school to work at the pack office, right?”

“I did.” I said and smiled. “I can’t wait to start working.”

“Good.” Logan said and smiled.

He was handsome, even more when he smiled. And that was rare. He was usually very serious and focused only on his job as an Alpha. He always did what’s best for his pack. That was why he was so successful.

He was as tall and as muscular as my brother. Maybe even more. The alpha and beta of the pack were always the strongest wolves. And it always showed. You could always see who alpha and beta were. He had dark blonde hair and green eyes. His jaw and his nose were chiseled perfectly, and his lips looked soft. He was hot. No wonder Sienna was all over him.

She drooled after my brother as well but being Beta’s mate wasn’t good enough for her. Although, if my brother took her as his chosen mate, she would accept that as well. She was only after the title and power. Too bad they couldn’t see that.

A doorbell interrupted my thoughts. Jacob was here.

“Is that Jacob?” my brother asked.

I nodded and put the mug in the dishwasher.

“I will see you tonight. Goodbye, Logan. Sienna” I said and gave my brother a kiss on the cheek.

Logan smiled at me, and Sienna gave me a cold stare. Bitch.

I walked out of the kitchen and opened the front door. My friend Jacob was standing there, smiling at me.

I always had a crush on him. I still do. He is handsome, tall, muscular and has black hair. His dark brown eyes look like a pool of chocolate. And I love chocolate. Sometimes I wish he would be my mate. We would be great together, and I know he likes me. He told me himself.

We never dated or even talked about it. We saved ourselves for our mates. It isn’t forbidden to have sex with others, but it is frowned upon, mostly by our pack elders. The rest of the pack agrees that we should wait for our mates but turns away when they see someone dating outside of a mate bond. Not all of us saved ourselves for our mates, though. I know for a fact that my brother and Logan had their share of she-wolves. I think Logan even slept with Sienna, which only added to her belief that she would be his Luna. Jake and I never talked about it, but I think he slept with some she-wolves as well.

Jacob is 22, but he still hasn’t found his mate. So maybe he is mine and I am his. I will not be happy to know that he slept around if he is my mate, but I don’t want to hold his past against him.

“Good morning, beautiful.” he said and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

“Morning, Jake.” I said and closed the front door.

“Are you excited?” he asked and took my hand in his.

“Yes, I am.” I said with a big smile on my face. “I can’t wait to shift.”

“It will be amazing.” he said. “You will be amazing. I am really honored that you asked me to be there.”

“Of course, I did.” I said. “You and Amy are my best friends. I want you there.”

“Maybe I will be something else to you as well.” he said and winked.

I laughed. “Maybe you will.”

We walked over to the training grounds together.

Amy was already there, waiting for us. She is a year older than me, and we met at high school. She introduced me to Jacob. They are cousins.

She and Jacob look a lot alike. She has the same black hair as he does. Her eyes are a little bit lighter than his, though.

“Well, if it isn’t my two favorite wolves.” she said and smiled brightly.

“Hello, Amy.” Jake said and gave her a kiss on her cheek.

She gave me a big hug. “I can’t wait to meet your wolf tomorrow, Emmy. Our wolves will be best friends, I just know it. Just like we are.”

“Oh, I am sure Alora will love my wolf.” I said with a huge grin.

Our wolves have their own names. Amy’s wolf is named Alora, and Jake’s is named Jared. I can’t wait to learn my wolf’s name.

“Enough chitchatting, girls. Time to train. I will see you later.” Jake said and walked over to his training ground.

Jacob works as a patrol wolf, so he trains harder and differently than us. Patrol wolves train separately from the rest of us. Amy works at a greenhouse. She is amazing with plants.

Jacob and I sometimes trained together. He taught me a little bit about what they do at their training sessions. He said he wanted me to know as much as possible to be able to defend myself. He wanted me safe.

After an hour and a half, we were done with our daily training session. Jake still had an hour left so Amy and I went home to shower and change.

We would meet at a diner we always went to.

When I came home, Andrew was not there. He is out dealing with pack stuff. Being a Beta is not like other jobs when you work from nine to five. There is always something to do. Especially when your Alpha is Logan.

I quickly showered and changed into a pair of jeans, a white sweater and my black Converse sneakers. I dried my hair and let it fall down to my waist.

When I came to the diner, Amy was already sitting at our usual booth.

“Hey, lady.” she said. “You look amazing.”

“Thank you.” I smiled. “Not as amazing as you do.”

She is gorgeous, tall, skinny but with curves in all the right places and totally confident. All the boys want her.

“So, tomorrow is a big day.” she said, sipping her chocolate milkshake.

“Yes. I am so excited.”

“Maybe Jake will be your mate and we will be family.” she said with a big smile on her face.

“I would love that.” I said. “You know I love Jake. He would be a great mate.”

“And he is totally in love with you.” she laughed. “Most boys are, actually.”

“What are you talking about?” I said and frowned.

The waitress brought me my strawberry milkshake, and I thanked her before taking a sip. It is amazing.

“Come on, Emma.” she said and rolled her eyes. “You are beautiful and hot. I can’t believe you never noticed the looks you are getting. It makes Jake totally jealous.”

“I always thought they were looking at you.” I said and smirked.

Amy laughed. “Well, they do. But I am not the only one they are looking at.”

I blushed and looked down at my hands. “Well, I don’t care. I will wait for my mate.”

“And here he comes.” Amy said and pointed at the door.

Jake was walking in. He gave us a big smile and walked over to our booth. He sat down beside me and kissed my cheek.

“Hey, girls. What are we talking about?” he asked.

“Mates.” Amy said with a huge grin on her face.

“I can’t wait to revisit that topic tomorrow.” Jake said and winked at me.

I laughed and blushed. “Okay, stop making me blush.”

Jake laughed and pinched my cheek. “Why? There is no prettier sight.”

“Okay, love birds. Enough.” Amy said and laughed. “Emma, when are we meeting tomorrow?”

“Well, I will have lunch with my brother and spend the day with him, and we will meet at the shift site at 8 pm.” I said.

My brother and I have a tradition of spending our birthdays together. No other people. Just him and me. We always have breakfast and lunch together. After that, we watch a movie and eat as much cake as we can. I love our tradition.

“Great. I can’t wait to see if your wolf will be as small as you.” Amy said and laughed.

Jake joined her as I glared at them. “You bitches.”

“Oh, come on, Emmy.” Jake said laughing. “We love how small you are.”

I frowned but joined their laughter.

We spent the rest of the day talking, laughing, and making plans for our first run together.

It was late when I came home, but Andrew was still out. I quickly showered, put on my pajamas, and got under my covers. I can’t wait to see what’s to come tomorrow.

‘Good morning, Emma.’

I turned towards the door to greet my brother, but nobody was standing there. I am alone. But whose voice was that?

‘It is me, silly. Your wolf.’

I flinched. Of course, it is my birthday. I got my wolf today. It is weird, though, to hear a voice inside my head.

‘You will get used to it.’ A voice said.

‘It will take some time.’ I responded.

‘We have all the time in the world.’ My wolf said.

‘What is your name?’ I asked her.

‘Eliza.’

‘I like it.’ I told her.

‘I know you do, Emma. Now, get up and go spend the day with your brother. Asher has already sensed my presence, and he can’t wait to meet me.’ She said.

I got up excited and full of energy. I can’t wait to see Eliza.

I brushed my teeth, showered, and put on sweats and a hoodie. Perfect for a lazy birthday day with my brother.

When I came downstairs, Andrew had already made pancakes. It was our traditional birthday breakfast.

“Happy birthday, Emma!” he yelled and gave me a big hug. “Asher sensed Eliza. He is so excited to finally meet his sister.”

“She can’t wait to meet him too.” I said and gave him a big smile.

I adore Asher. He is the best wolf there is.

“Come on, let’s eat.” he said and pulled me to the table.

After we were full, we went to the living room to start our first movie of the day. We always watched the Avenger series. Humans did a great job on those movies.

At around 1 pm, Andrew and I went to the kitchen to start making lunch. On my birthday we have my favorite meal, lasagna. On his birthday, we have his favorite meal, pizza.

I started making the lasagna while Andrew sat down at the kitchen table.

“Maybe you will find your mate soon.” he said.

“Maybe.” I said, not looking up at him.

I don’t like talking to him about this. He is my brother, and talking about mating is weird. And I don’t want to leave him, ever. It will be really hard for me to leave with my mate.

“Maybe it will be Jacob.” he said.

I looked up at him. “Would you be okay with that?”

“Yes.” he said and shrugged. “He is one of our best warriors, so I know you would be safe with him. And I know you like him already. It would be easier for you to go with him.”

I walked over and sat beside him. “It won’t be easy for me to leave. No matter who my mate is. You are my family. I don’t want to leave you.”

“I know, Em.” he said and smiled. “I don’t want you to leave. But if you find your mate you will. And we will be okay.”

“Maybe I won’t find him.” I said and got back up. “You never did.”

“Yes.” he nodded. “But I have a pretty good feeling you will, and it will be Jacob.”

I smiled and rolled my eyes. “We will see.”

He got up and helped me finish our lunch. After we ate, we went back to the living room to watch another movie.

At around 7 pm, Andrew told me to go and get ready. We had to walk for about 20 minutes to reach the shifting site in the forest.

It is a small clearing in the middle of the forest where all wolves go for their first shift. It is special because it is the only place in the forest where the moon can shine on you completely. Our forest is so thick that moon can barely shine through the trees. The clearing is the only place it shines freely.

I put on my white dress, chosen especially for this night. It is tradition to wear white on the night of our first shift. I put on my shoes and went back downstairs.

Andrew was waiting for me at the door. He handed me my jacket and we left the house.

My heart was pounding in my chest. Andrew probably heard it because he grabbed my hand and pulled me closer to him.

“Don’t be scared, Emma.” he said quietly. “It will be amazing. And I will be there for you.”

“Thank you.” I said. “I love you.”

“I love you too, little one.” he said and gave me a side hug.

After about 20 minutes, we arrived at the clearing. My friends and Luna Gloria were already there, waiting for us.

Luna approached me first. “Happy birthday, sweetie. I can’t wait to meet your wolf.”

“Thank you, aunt Gloria. She is excited to meet you too.” I said with a big smile.

Amy and Jacob came towards me with big smiles on their faces.

“Happy birthday, Emmy.” Amy said and gave me a tight hug.

“Happy birthday, Emma.” Jake said and kissed my cheek. “Now, let’s meet your wolf. It is cold and I don’t want you to get sick.”

He is right. It is December and the only thing I am wearing is a dress. I do have a jacket, but it is not keeping me warm. The only reason I am not shivering is excitement.

“He is right, Emma.” Andrew said. “Give me your jacket and stand in the middle of the clearing.”

I did what he said and stood in the middle of the clearing. They all gave me an encouraging smile and turned around to give me some privacy to remove my clothes.

I carefully removed my dress, underwear, and shoes and folded them neatly into a pile. I stood back up and looked up at the moon.

‘Are you ready, Emma?’ My wolf said.

‘I am.’ I responded. ‘How do I do this?’

‘Just let go. It will hurt. But don’t fight it. It will be over soon. Let go and give me control.’ She said.

I did what she said. I took a deep breath and let her take control of our mind and body. I started to feel my bones break. I let out a little scream and fell down on my knees.

“That’s right, Em.” I heard my brother’s voice. “It will be okay. Just let go.”

The pain was unbearable. It was like breaking all of your bones at the same time.

I fought the urge to throw up and focused on letting go of my control.