Children of the Moon: Book Three
Page 16
What happened between Bree and Nathaniel? I think it’s time we found out. Read on for a sneak peek into book number four in the series.
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Yvonne x
CHILDREN OF THE MOON
Book Four
PROLOGUE
Bree Donovan effortlessly pulled herself up onto the tallest branch of the huge white oak and settled down to watch over the compound as the morning mist was beginning to clear.
Lights came on and wolves were beginning to stir, getting ready for work or school and she liked to watch them unobserved. The smell of bacon and pancakes nearby would normally make her stomach growl but for once in her life she wasn’t hungry.
Three wolves ran directly beneath her and she recognized Jay, Roisin and Anjelica. Jay lifted his snout and sniffed, he could sense her here above him. His senses were sharp but he didn’t stop to engage her.
She knew she was being a coward and would have to face Nathaniel sooner or later but she wasn’t ready to do it just yet. She tried to pull Hope aside yesterday to ask her advice but she heard the loud, angry words between her and Rafe as she walked into the clinic and backed away before they saw her. Something wasn’t right with those two either and Bree wondered if she and her sister were destined to become two old maids, the path of true love hadn’t even winked in their direction and Bree wasn’t sure it ever would.
Hope and Rafe had an instant connection but they had yet to mate and she doubted if they would now, it had been months. Not all mating’s happened as quickly as Seann and Imogen and even India fought so hard before eventually giving in to her feelings for Garrett, but there was something lacking in her sister’s relationship. She knew Hope loved him and he was crazy about her, but something was stopping her from making that commitment to him.
‘You’re one to talk’ a little voice in her head whispered.
She had been so certain Nathaniel was hers and the brief time they had spent together was the best of her life but she couldn’t trust a man who pledged his love for her when he already belonged to someone else. Maybe if he had told her he was already engaged when they first met, she would have been more inclined to trust him but he hadn’t said a damn word.
When the woman in question had shown up unexpectedly in the restaurant, Nate had asked Bree to give him time to explain to Renee that he had met someone else, but she had gone back to the hotel, packed her bags and gone home.
He was just another cheater and a leopard doesn't ever change his spots.
She was better off without him.
Then why the hell did it still hurt so much...it had been two long agonizing years?
She wiped the tears from her cheeks and touched a hand to her lips where he had kissed her again just a few weeks ago at the pack run and her heart remembered every touch, every taste, every long agonizing minute since she had fled from him. Her wolf whined deep inside her.
She had serious trust issues! Her father had never been very warm or loving and she recently found out that he had pined for another woman the whole time he had been with her Mom and had even fathered a child with her. Garrett Adair was the product of that union and although she was angry at her father, she was more than happy to have another brother. He was one of the good guys, as was her brother Seann, despite his gruff exterior and crusty demeanor.
Thankfully, Nathaniel had been missing from the compound for the last week, he was helping Kandis and Liam with the proposed move to their new mountain home. She overheard Liam say he was coming back today and she wondered if she should go away somewhere for a while to get her head straight before seeing him again.
She dropped down to the branch below and climbed back down to reality, landing like a cat on all fours.
She also knew that she would never have a moment’s peace as long as she kept avoiding him. Imogen told her to tackle it head-on and she knew she was right but she was so afraid he would hurt her all over again
‘Damn you, Nathaniel.’ she started to cry in earnest, her bruised heart was aching for him all over again.
She ran home through the trees, avoiding other wolves along the way and slipped in through the front door. She could hear Imogen and India’s voices in the kitchen and she tip-toed upstairs to her room before anyone noticed her.
She sighed with relief when she reached her bedroom undetected, but when she opened the door her sister was stretched out on her bed, hands behind her head and she looked like she had been crying too.
“I need to talk to you Bree,” Hope said sitting upright and Bree wondered when her sister had last slept. Her eyes were red-rimmed and the black circles underneath were a giveaway that all was not well in her world.
Bree sat down beside her and pulled her close. Hope was her twin, her other half and she bled when her sister bled.
“You don’t look any better than I feel, Bree. Is it Nate?” she turned to face her and Bree nodded.
“But first, what’s going on with you and Rafe, Hope.” she gently probed, “I thought you loved him.”
“I do love him, Bree. We enjoy the same things, we work great together, on the face of it, he is perfect for me.” her eyes filled with tears.
“But…” Bree asked.
“I’m not in love with him. I will never settle for less than my true mate and I know in my gut it’s not Rafe. Look what settling did for Mom and Dad. She was miserable because she knew he wanted someone else the whole time they were married and he was miserable because he couldn’t have her. Rafe knows how I feel but he thinks what we have is enough, that we could be happy.”
“But you don’t think your love for him will grow?” Bree asked softly brushing her sisters now dark hair back from her face and tucking it behind her ear.
“No, not in the way he wants it to. I love him and want what’s best for him, but that’s not me. I know it in my gut, my wolf knows it too. I have never once been tempted to bite him, to claim him.”
“You need to make a clean break then, Hope, it’s not fair to him if he thinks there is still a chance for you both.”
“I have tried, I swear, but he just won’t hear it. We just end up fighting.”
“You need to get away for a while, love. Put some distance between you so that you can think clearer. Take Rylee up on her offer to stay with her for a while.” Bree said. “Or you could both go to the mountain cabin, Seann and Imogen won’t be going for a few weeks yet and Liam and Kandis are staying in their own cabin up there.
“Are you coming with us?”
“No, I have some things of my own I need to settle. I ran away from Nathaniel once before, this time I need to face him.” her heart fluttered at the thought of seeing him again and she jumped up, angry with herself.
“Pack enough for a couple of weeks, Hope. I will talk to Seann and let him know what’s going on. You call Rylee and see if she can make it.”
“I don’t want to see Rafe, he will only try and persuade me to stay. I will write him a letter if you would give it to him for me.” Hope asked.
Bree nodded and hugged her sister before going downstairs in search of her brother. As alpha, he was as tough as nails but he loved his sisters fiercely, he would only want Hope to be happy.
She found him in his office and he leaned back in the chair while she told him what was going on. He only nodded and threw her the keys to the cabin.
“Tell her to take as long as she needs and she is right not to settle for less than her mate. That goes for you too Bree, if Nate is meant for you, you already know it in your gut.” he put a hand on his abdomen. “Everything else is secondary to that bond.”
She threw her arms around him and he surprised her by hugging her back. Imogen had smoothed some of her brother’s rough edges since she came here. She and little Everly were the center of his world.
An hour later she watched as Hope�
�s car disappeared around the corner and fanned herself with the envelope she had promised to deliver to Rafe. She liked the young doctor and knew he would be pissed when she gave it to him but why would he want Hope when she had made it clear that she wasn’t the one for him.
India came out onto the porch and handed her a coffee and they sat on the swing.
“Is the baby asleep?”
“Yes, that kid eats and sleeps most of the day. I know I’m blessed.” she grinned.
Bree took a sip of her coffee. She could feel India’s eyes on her and eventually she said.
“Are you gonna make me beg or are you going to tell me what the hell happened between you and the extremely gorgeous Mr. Wade?”
Bree sighed and blinked back the tears that threatened and began to tell India her story.
*****
Other books by the same author: -
Vampire Brides, book 1 - To Have and to Hold - Luca and Sierra
Vampire Brides, Book 2 - From This Day Forward - Ettore and Greer
Vampire Brides, Book 3 - For Better, For Worse - Aeric and Sorcha
Vampire Brides, Book 4 - For Richer, For Poorer - Ronan and Darci
Vampire Brides, Book 5 - In Sickness and in Health - Finn and Brynna
Craving the Love of a Vampire Queen
Cuckoo in The Nest - Lauren, book one
Cuckoo in The Nest - Madison, book two
Cuckoo in The Nest - Angel, book three
Picture Perfect
Children of the Moon - Book One
Children of the Moon - Book Two
Check them out on my Amazon author page here: -
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B07GQ7J3NQ
Contact: -
web: https://yvonnerobertsonauthor.com
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