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Harlow’s stomach clenched as she waited to see Vincent. Until now he had been kept separate from the rest of the pack, a sign he was different. He wasn’t just a part of them. He was their leader.
“Tonight, my son becomes who he was always meant to be. Tonight, we become stronger knowing that our blood is powerful. The Hollow Grove pack goes from strength to strength, and someone will always be at the helm, leading us forward.”
The crowd erupted into more howls and cheers. “Vincent, come out here!”
At the sound of his name Harlow’s heart warmed, her stomach still clenching with the strange concoction of feelings that had taken her over—nerves, hope, love, fear, and whatever she’d experienced from many of the pack tonight, especially the women.
Vincent appeared barefoot, dressed only in jeans. He walked toward his father who took him into a masculine embrace before pulling back and taking his son’s head in his hands. He nodded, nostrils flared and eyes narrowed.
“My son has now reached his twenty-fifth year. As the full moon rises, I can now tell you Vincent ascends to the head of this pack. He will take you forward. He is the new alpha!”
Lincoln took off his jacket and placed it over his son’s shoulders. It was a seemingly humble act—no crown, no inheritance of anything of material value. But to a wolf shifter, it was everything. A sign that he now wore the skin of his father, the alpha.
Tipping Vincent’s head up to the sky, he held it there, one hand at his throat and chin, the other at his nape. “Look up, son. See what’s been given to you.” The silence was deafening, as if every creature for miles held its breath while Vincent looked up at the heavens and to the moon that would guide him and his pack. “Do you swear to lead Hollow Grove pack as a true alpha?”
Harlow waited with bated breath as the man she loved seemed to change right there in front of her, not in form as she’d seen many times before, but in nature. He already oozed something different, and it was strange to think the man she’d spent months getting to know may already be different. Maybe she should have expected it, but then she was often told how naïve she was.
“I swear!” Vincent’s voice sounded lower and deeper than it ever had before.
Lincoln released him and then circled him several times, sniffing at the air before finally standing in front of him, pulling him close and whispering something into his ear that he allowed no one else to hear.
Then Lincoln raised his voice to be heard by the crowd once more. “Vincent will take this pack forward; his blood will run on. But to do that, he must have someone who will bear him the next generation of alphas.”
Harlow’s heart thudded in her chest, and she could hardly hear for the pulse pounding in her ears.
“Son, have you made your decision about who this will be?”
Harlow smoothed her long, red hair down over her shoulders and gathered herself. She wasn’t one for being the center of attention—far from it—but if it was what she had to do as her duty, she would.
“I have,” replied Vincent.
She closed her eyes and waited for her name, surprised that he hadn’t already sought her out among the crowd. Still, it was all so intense she reasoned maybe this was why.
“I choose Isla Gregory,” Vincent answered, a definite growl in his voice.
Harlow’s head spun, and she opened her eyes, wondering if she’d misheard. But… but she hadn’t. As a tall brunette made her way toward Vincent and he took her by the hand, she knew her worst fears had finally come true.
Her breath caught in her throat, everything crashing down on her with a cruel certainty. She’d known something wasn’t right, and that Vincent had more than just his ascension going on recently, yet she hadn’t challenged him. Now it was obvious that all along someone else had captured his attention, and she would be the one who forged a life with him.
Not only that, but other pack members knew. The pity, the way that people actively ignored her earlier—that’s what it was all about. How could she be so stupid?
Tears welled in her eyes, so hot she thought they might scorch her, but no way would she shed them in front of the pack. And no way was she going to watch as Vincent now took his new partner in front of her.
Pack dinner or not, she was out of there.
Chapter 3
Harlow
Harlow ran as fast as two legs could carry her, though she would’ve preferred four. Her mind swirled with the events—not just of the evening but of the past months and how she’d sensed something wasn’t right at home. To all the nights spent alone when Vincent should have been next to her and the times when his eyes met the floor instead of her own.
“I’m so stupid!” she cursed as she ran, angrier with herself than she was with Vincent or even Isla. Because she should have known, should have listened to her gut and her instincts instead of whatever bullshit he fed her.
Just as bad was the fact she seemed to be the only one who didn’t know about this. How the hell did that happen? Every look of pity, every flat smile and dismissive wave she’d experienced at the pack dinner ran through her mind, and it was torture.
This was her pack. These were supposed to be her people. So why would they keep something like this from her? Make her look like a prize idiot? It would’ve been bad enough not saying anything to her about Vincent and Isla, but knowing it would end up with her being humiliated at the pack dinner—in front of everyone—well, that was a betrayal she didn’t think she’d ever get over.
In the distance her house sat empty and unlit, and her heart broke just a little more. This was her home, and Vincent was the one she shared it with. Except that wasn’t all. She’d shared him, too.
