THE AWAKENING

“How can there be two?”

The question, delivered in Tieran’s quiet, deliberate tone was edged with uncertainty and echoed throughout the closed room.

Cassandra remained rigidly silent as the seer removed her weathered palms from Cassandra’s slightly rounded belly and looked as bewildered as the rest of the Barrachius clan inside the room.

Tieran, the Alpha of Clan Barrachius glared at Cassandra as if she were to blame for this upset in his plans. Cassandra glared back. It wasn’t her fault she had an overactive womb.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” she snapped, moving away from the seer and straightening her shirt. It was bad enough she already felt like some kind of lab experiment gone awry, now she had to deal with this? “Maybe the prophesy is wrong.”

“Impossible,” Tieran retorted, though his eyes told a different story. He turned to the grizzled woman looking pensively at Cassandra’s belly. “What does this mean?”

“I do not know,” she answered truthfully. “But it cannot bode well. The prophesy clearly stated there was one child. I must consult the Mother Goddess for answers.”

“Great, get her on the phone and get some answers so everyone can stop staring at me like I’m the devil,” Cassandra grumbled.

Jandin bowed low to whisper in her ear, “The Mother Goddess is the moon.”

Oh.

She cast a thankful smile Jandin’s way for his explanation but she felt like an idiot. Of course, the Mother Goddess was the moon.

How obvious. Not.

have been part of a kooky religious cult instead of some paranormal underground species that just so happens

she asked, ready to leave this room and all the pairs of eyes staring at her for answers

bring food,” Tieran said and immediately Cassandra bristled. She hated when he bossed her around like she was an

and stalked from the room, not because Tieran told her to, but because she couldn’t stand another minute being scrutinized for circumstances that

all manner of unpleasant things had been forced upon her — including losing her virginity and being kidnapped by two separate people on two different times — and now she

was hungry enough

as she waited. Tieran, the Alpha, and consequently, one of

a big deal that Tieran felt obligated to feed her, but as it was, neither wanted the roles that had been handed to them and chose to take

it weren’t for the bone-melting sex between them, Cassandra might’ve tried to find a way to rip his throat

not exactly rip his throat out, that was a bit over the top, but lately, her hormones had been kicking into overdrive and sometimes she couldn’t quite help the thoughts in her head or the words that popped from

Tieran was gorgeous — the picture of male perfection — and it was no small tragedy to be in his arms or beneath him, but when he looked at her, there was nothing but pure lust glazed over the veneer of anger

of stupid that it mattered

of her Breeding Time and now that

wanted sex. And considering that the one person who would oblige couldn’t actually stand to be around

the biological blueprint etched on their DNA, Cassandra didn’t think Tieran would have sex with her ever again but as it was, he couldn’t help himself just

sex, an invisible thread wound itself tighter around them, drawing them ever closer to one another. Which was why Tieran tried to avoid her.

to want her now that she’d conceived his child. Cristophe had told

his

about werewolves?” Cassandra had groused after Cristophe had educated her in the finer points of being a werewolf. She’d been shocked to learn Cristophe was with the werewolves when previously he’d disdained their presence like a man who disliked dogs and was suddenly asked to clean out the dog kennels at an