* Nick *
The noise outside my bedroom is confirming the start of a fancy dinner held in the palace's private dining hall. It's a family discussion first before we make it public. I look at my reflection in the mirror, wearing semi-formal attire. A light color blazer paired with skinny slacks and a belt. I am sure that my brother would be wearing more formal clothes than me.
"Nick, are you ready honey?"
My mother's voice outside the door of my bedroom made me quickly finish wearing my shoes.
"Come in mother, I am ready."
She turned the knob and went in, I turned around to see her. Despite her age, my mother would still pass as a woman in her mid-twenties. Her hair was tied in a French bun wearing diamond earrings and a black long dress well fitted her slim figure.
"The Bates family are already here son, they came on time and I don't want to make them wait on our table. Brad is already there with your father and Maleficus, come on, they are waiting for us."
She smiled knowing that I am not even a little bit excited about this event. Well, I guess I have a slight feeling of gladness for my brother but other than that nothing. The Bates family are rich and famous that they could almost rival us. However, we are the chosen family to lead the wolves so they are only under my father's command.
"Alright mother, let us go and meet my brother's bride."
She sighed and place her hands on my right arm. "You look handsome as always Nick but I am not happy with what you are doing outside the palace."
As we walk outside my room, my mother reminded me of the last time. I am sure that Riza has already told her everything.
"We should not talk about this right now mother, remember this event is important for my brother."
I squeezed her hands lightly as she laughs. "Oh, yes you are right. I am so happy for Brad, finally one of you is ready to become the crowned prince of the Royal pack."
"Mother about the Bates woman, did she know that her mate is my brother? Did her family already tell her?"
I ask out of curiosity. "She was here when you two are still young. She usually visits with her parents but that was a very long time ago before you two studied outside the Langston lands. I am not sure if Brad remembers that. Maleficus must be certain when he said that one of you is mated to Emma Bates and that it is Brad. However, I am not sure if her parents informed her."
I nodded as we continue our walk. A memory suddenly flashes inside my head. It was when my brother and I are about ten years old. The Bates family visited us bringing a very pretty little girl wearing a fancy white dress with flowers. She looks unreal, almost like a doll that we couldn't take our eyes off of her. She is about seven or six.
"Nick and Brad this is our daughter Emma, you can call her Ems! Say hi to the princes of the Langston palace Ems!"
I could remember the smiling face of Andrea Bates holding the little girl's hands as she introduces her to us. Emma looks so pretty her naturally brown hair framing her face like a doll and she has the most interesting eyes, forest green. She must have taken it from her father.
"Hello! I'm Emma. Do you boys know to want to play house with me?"
Brad immediately goes near her. "Yes, come with us to the garden we can play there in the wooden shed we will show you the beautiful flowers too. Mrs. Bates, can we take Emma to play?"
Her mother nodded. "Of course!"
"Yes!"
Emma and Brad look very happy as we all go out to the back of the palace. The flowers are blooming that night and the Moon shone so bright, I thought it was a full wolf moon. In our young hearts, we must have felt something as we all stared at it above the sky.
"Boys! Who's gonna play like father and mother while someone is the baby since we are three? I am going to be the mom because I'm the only girl here. Look! That would be our house!"
Her eyes sparkle against the brightness of the moonlight and she runs towards the wooden shed. It has a stone table and chairs enough for six people. We followed her like dogs waggling our tails.
"How did you become a mother? You can't be a mother without a mate and the sanctity of marriage."
Brad being the smart-ass brother thought of something as he continued. "Let me be the wizard and the priest Maleficus, I will stand as the witness to your marriage with Nick!"
He grinned and elbowed my side I know that he is making me follow.
"Alright, I will marry you, Emma Bates."
As I said that her face looked surprised but she understands. "Thank you, Nick, then come stand beside me and let the wizard priest start the ceremony."
I smiled and walk towards her. Brad stands firmly and says his words, I pick up a stem of red rose and then slowly tuck it behind her ear. She is very lovely, I thought about calling her the fairy of our garden. I think my heart beat faster as she smiled at me.
"Now that you two are married, the groom may kiss the bride."
My eyes suddenly turns to Brad and made a questioning look. His teeth shone brightly against the light of the moon. I was waiting for Emma to say no and shake her head but to my surprise, she turned towards me and meet my gaze before her eyes slowly close. I don't know what to do! To be honest Brad said it was easy, and that he had kissed a few she wolves even before our tenth birthday.
I look at him asking for something and he is motioning me to hold her face. Then I lifted my hands and did as he told me, her skin so soft just like a piece of cotton in my hand. My eyes look at her soft pink lips I am slightly trembling as I hold her face and slowly bring my mouth down to match hers.
A part of me is saying no to this game that we are playing yet I feel my heart beating fast. She smelled like roses and powder mixed together in the garden. I hesitated and almost pulled away when Brad's hand moved to the back of my head and pushed me. My lips pressed against hers, her sweet young lips felt softer than velvet it almost shocked me to the core.
"Yeah! You are now officially married now we can celebrate by drinking!"
Brad clapped his hands and cheered while I pulled away as fast as I could like I was being electrified. Her face look surprised when she opened her green eyes and look at me. I am sure that I'm her first kiss and she is also my first! Brad made a thumbs-up when I glance at him.
"Then can we drink something?"
I ask Brad when Emma did not say a word. She just looks at me wide-eyed. She's probably wondering what just happened. I felt guilty but it was just a game she was the one who suggested it in the first place. Then my Brother Brad manipulated everything in order for me to get my first kiss.
"Yes! Of course, we can but Emma should not drink or her parents will kill us."
Emma groaned and stomp her foot to the ground. "Who says I can't drink? Of course, I can drink juice, I am feeling thirsty so let's go and get something to drink as a celebration."
Brad laughs loudly as he looks at her.
"My dear Emma we don't drink juice to celebrate a big event like marriage."
She turns to me and then asks. "What are we going to drink then?"
I shrugged my shoulders. "You can drink fresh fruit juice Ems then me and my brother would drink some wine to celebrate tonight."
She frowned then we heard her mother's voice calling out her name.
* Emma *I thought I would go mad at what my father just said, my eyes searching for his deep eyes wondering if he is joking or telling the truth. The event at the Langston palace is tonight, if my decision will be considered by my family I wouldn't go with them."It is real Emma, Malificus and the Alpha King talked to me about all this. They need to choose a crowned prince very soon, so the wizard's vision is being looked at by Alpha King Vincent. You are fortunate that one of the princes is your mate Emma, any wolf would die to take your place. But also the prince is lucky to have you."My father looks very proud and the smile on his face as he looks at me shows how he is thrilled with the idea. I wanted to object and tell him that I don't want anything to do with the Langstons. The vision of the old wizard must be a mistake. As I recalled the two boys when I was younger, they both look spoiled and rich. That's a fact that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth and I am not even attracte
* Nick *I choose to be late for a couple of minutes inside the palace comfort room in order for everybody to be at the table. But, when I saw all of them standing in front of the table and all their eyes are on me when I arrived I wanted to kick myself for being late. My mother who stand beside my father has her eyes full of conviction when they meet mine. Then my father motioned his hands to make me sit beside my brother Brad who's face is a little bit excited? If I am right."Thank you for coming later than usual Nick, we were all standing and waiting for you. I told everyone we couldn't sit except for Mr. Bates. But he insisted to stand with us, don't you know that he has a fragile bone condition which makes it difficult for him to stand on longer period of time?"I let out an exhausting breath when Maleficus and Mrs. Bates made a low chuckle. Then I notice a female wolf standing beside Mrs. Bates, her slim and alluring figure then my eyes move slowly to her skin revealing due to
* Emma *When I saw Brad Langston and Nick Langston after many years of meeting them when I was younger, I could tell the big difference! It's hard not to notice how they are both hot and so good-looking. Brad is taller by just an inch compared to Nick however the latter is bigger and looked like he could just carry me in one hand. The thought sent shivers on my skin which made me wonder, this is not the first time I saw handsome men in my life. In fact, I am always surrounded by them in the industry that I worked for. However, the big difference are, these men are not what you call normal due to the reality that apart from being filthy rich and powerful. They are also wolves just like myself.Nick's eyes when he looks at me, speak a hundred meaning more than his few words. While Brad give me recognition and a signal that he wanted to speak with me privately, I could feel Nick's eyes not leaving me and it made me shiver inside. I wonder why his gaze affected me more than Brad's and I
* Emma *"Brad?"I uttered his name but his presence is different as he is standing against the light of the moon and the palace, it took a couple of seconds before I realize that he is not Brad. His form seemed to be Brad yet it doesn't feel like him, is he, Nick? He did not answer me, not after a few seconds has passed."For goodness sake can't you tell the difference between me and Brad? I'm sure that I look more good-looking by a few points than him not to mention that I am more charming."His voice is deep and distinctive and I detected a little bit of humor with his words, or is it just my imagination? He sounded more irritated by the fact that I called his brother's name which confirms his identity. "Nick!? What are you doing here?"My heart turned erratic when he move forward and I see his face. A muscle in his jaw flex, and I notice how his face is well-shaven and clean unlike Brad who let his stubble grew an inch. Not like it mattered against his beauty but I prefer men with
* Nick *"Bring me a bottle of tequila in my room Riza!"As I passed by the busy kitchen of the palace, I saw Riza who was the only one with empty hands while everybody around her is busy preparing something for the wide dining hall. She shot me a questioning look but begin to move away into the door of the wine room. The Palace maids lowered their heads as I walk past them, they can sense my controlled temper. My feet walk faster as I will rather be in my room than in the dancing hall where my brother could be leading a dance with Emma!I am not sure what triggers my anger but it is evident that I wanted to kill somebody or perhaps challenge someone in a fight. Emma look so lovely that despite the fact of being mated to my brother I couldn't take my eyes off of her. "Shit!!"I utter a series of explicit words while slamming the door of my room shut. I took everything off, I must take a cold shower to cool down before I start drinking. This night is too long for me, and I could not g
* Nick *I look up at the sky with dark clouds and felt the weather changing from sunny to having a storm brewing fast. The smell of rain that is about to fall is evident in the air surrounding the outside of the Palace. We finished the rounds for the day and are ready to go home early because of the bad weather coming."Come on! Let's hurry up guys before the rain falls down heavily!"I lead the run towards the road heading back to the palace."Alright Nick, we are following behind you!"Beta Derek and the rest of the warriors are already left behind as I speed up my pace. This is the second day of my brother's test and I heard that he was taken on a yacht toward an island where they should finish before sunset. However it is already starting to rain, and it is just an hour before sunset. I am left with double the task since his hands are full giving his best to prove that he is worthy of being the crowned prince that will take my father's place in the future.The wind blew faster th
* Emma *"Enjoy your vacation in the palace Ems, I have to go back to my post now."My brother did not even get out of the car when he saw the Palace maids coming towards us to help with my things. This vacation is suggested by the Alpha King and the Luna Queen and my parents agreed to it faster than a bullet. He told me that on this side of the Palace, the Alpha King and Luna Queen keep the guests and visitors it is far from where they live. But it is near Brad's chambers."Take care Dylan, thank you for bringing me here." I gave him a peck on the cheek before I got out of the cat and open the compartment.My brother's schedule is full together with the warriors due to the storm last night. Brad entrusted him with duties that a lead warrior must do since he had other significant matters to attend to. I believe that Brad might not work with the warriors during my stay here, and he promises to spend time with me and make our parents believe that we are getting along pretty well.I don'
* Emma *The soft knocks on the door reminded me of the time and what I have to do next. I must have booze off after fixing all my things up and taking a warm bath."Miss Bates, dinner is ready now I am waiting to escort you to the dining hall.""Just a minute, Asha!"I look at my reflection of myself in the full body-length mirror of the walk-in closet. I have on a silky flowered dress that plunges on the neckline and the length reaches my knees. My hair is tied in a knot so I just let it loose and comb it with my hand, then I walk towards the door."I slept a little, did the Alpha King and Luna Ashley call for me?"Asha smiled. "The Alpha King together with Luna Queen Ashley is on a trip to the island that they recently bought. They will not be here for a week, but his majesty Prince Brac is already at the table waiting.""Oh! Let's go then."I don't know if I would feel relive or slightly disappointed that there were only the two of us dining for the evening. Brad has many things t