TWISTED FATES BOOK 1: The First Twist
Chapter 23

Sammie

At the dawn of the new day, I awoke to replace that Jareth was already at his desk working, per his usual diligent self. So, I decided to keep myself occupied and get some exercise time, outside of the bedroom, of course. It’s astonishing the number of things I could accomplish now that I am a vampire. I got in a thirty-minute yoga workout and an hour sparing session in the penthouse’s private gym. I then went for a good fifty lap swim in the gorgeous pool that’s out on our balcony. It was already past noon, so I decided to give my muscles a relaxing dip in the huge Jacuzzi tub located in the master suite.

The thing is ginormous; I swear you can fit a good three to four people easily. I leaned back, let the warm pulsing jets soothe the muscles in my back, and closed my eyes, enjoying the relaxing sensation. I’m not sure how long I was in there when I felt the presence of another person joining me all of a sudden. I opened my eyes and smiled as my beautiful vampire climbed in behind me, encircling me with his strong arms. “This is utter heaven.” I moaned.

Jareth chuckled and gave me light butterfly kisses along my neck as I leaned into his firm chest.

“What time is the dinner meeting with the wolf guy anyway?” I inquired lazily. Not gonna lie but I was enjoying myself too much just lazing around with my Jareth. I could tell Jareth found my terminology amusing as he smirked.

“Oh, Samantha, you are truly a delight. The wolf guy, as you so jestingly put it, is, in fact, the Alpha for the Blood Moon Pack.” He continued, “The meeting today is to come to an amicable agreement between his pack and the Vampire Council. It seems that the Blood Moons are the largest wolf pack in the Midwestern region, and they recently acquired a hundred or so additional pack members. Evidently, several rogues have decided to succumb to the pack’s Alpha for protection and will be requiring homes. Unfortunately, the Blood Moon’s territory is not large enough, and they are asking for the Council to allow a few parcels of our lands in exchange for an alliance.”

“That seems like a good deal … doesn’t it,” I ask curiously.

“Well, technically, yes, Samantha. There are benefits to forming an alliance between the Blood Moons and the Council. But we also need to ensure that stipulations are in place in order to maintain a diplomatic balance. I have submitted several proposals with the Council. It seems that finally, we have all come to an agreement on which one we shall be presenting to this Alpha Montgomery.” Hmmm … why does that name sound vaguely familiar? I asked myself as Jareth continued. “The proposal that I have devised will be such that we shall allot one hundred parcels within the southwestern portion of our territory. This new border will still be a safe distance from the Council members but shall place our property, yours and mine Samantha, within approximately five miles from their pack.”

“Whoa, wait … isn’t that dangerous? Why are we having these rabid mutts so close to our home, Jareth?”

I was not too fond of knowing that a pack of wild dogs would be living so close to Jareth and me – not one bit. Mostly since I’m still a newb at being a vampire and fairly sure Jareth won’t be able to take me with him on all his business dealings. This little dilemma would mean that there are times when I’d be left alone. Yep, I definitely don’t like it.

“Samantha …” Jareth replied pacifyingly. He must have sensed my anxiety, not that it wasn’t pretty obvious. “I assure you love; you have nothing to fret about. As I said, there will be stipulations on both ends, ensuring that things remain peaceful. While the Blood Moons shall be rather near the proximity of our home, the Council is also placing several of our own strongest members alongside the border as well. We have also necessitated that the Alpha, his Beta, and his Gamma reside along our border. This was set up as a safeguard to ensure that their pack does not cross into our territory. Placing the pack’s leaders so close to the vampire’s border ensures that there will be accountability. If the wolves get past their leaders, who can force the lesser pack members into submission, it shall be deemed an act of war; if that should happen, then the Vampire Council shan’t hesitate to strike. The same accountability falls into my responsibility as well. Those whom I will be placing along the border are all linked to me through our sire bond, and I, in turn. I am linked directly to the Council, who can force our kind to submit as well. Should any vampire cross over into the Blood Moon’s land without consent, then it would mean that the Council or I allowed it as a pronouncement of war. So, I assure you, my love, there is no imminent danger. Neither party wishes to wage war against the other. Although, if that would ever happen, I would ensure that you remained unharmed and safe always.”

Jareth wrapped his arms tightly around me and kissed me in an attempt to appease my discomfort. I could feel the love and comfort he was trying to relay through his actions, and it warmed my non-beating heart to no end. I would have to have faith in what he and the Council are planning and trust in Jareth. If I knew anything, it was that I trusted Jareth without question. It was these wolves that I knew absolutely nothing about other than what I saw in the movies and TV that had me nervous. I was glad that Jareth was having me accompany him to this dinner meeting with the Blood Moon Alpha, Mr. Montgomery. I wanted to see for myself if this wolf guy could be trusted or not. And if he so much as acted the least bit suspish, I wouldn’t hesitate to call his muttly ass out on it.

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By the time dinner came around, I was a bit apprehensive. I know that Jareth explained that this was a lovely peaceful dinner meeting, even if vampires and werewolves don’t have a friendly history. Jareth even asserted that if by some odd occurrence, things did get heated, I was safe. He assured me by explaining that the entire inside of his hotel was warded from any supernatural attacks.

The funny thing was that I wasn’t necessarily nervous about the meeting per se. It was something else that I couldn’t quite put my finger on, and it had been eating away at me ever since he told me the name of the Blood Moon Pack’s Alpha.

I again tried bringing up my concerns with Jareth, but he reassured me that there was nothing to worry about.

So, I chalked it up as my own paranoia.

As soon as we stepped into the elegant five-star hotel restaurant, my senses were on high alert due to two discerning scents that were infiltrating my nose. The closer to our destination we approached, the more intense the aromas became. The first scent was definitely a wolf, male and powerful yet vaguely familiar. The second was female, yet for some reason, her scent made me more agitated.

Once we arrived at our table, there were already two others sitting there waiting for us. The first was the seriously hot werewolf, Alpha Montgomery. He stood up and greeted Jareth and me. There was something familiar about him that was drawing me to him. He had a captivating scent that began to envelop me; it was reminiscent of my favorite holiday beverage, peppermint, white chocolate, and whipped cream.

That, of course, surprised me a lot. I mean, he’s a wolf, so my first inclination was that his scent should repulse me, but rather it was quite the opposite; it attracted me to him.

I stood motionless, staring at his intense black-violet eyes for a brief moment before I noticed his eye color suddenly reverted to an icy blue coloring. Suspish…

Not wanting to keep staring at the werewolf, I quickly turned away.

Oddly, the man seemed to be studying me as well with the strangest expression. Did he feel this strange pull towards me too? And what the heck was up with his weird eye color changes?

But just as with everything I encounter, any positives tend to come hand in hand with a negative. My senses picked up the pungent second scent, which was the most problematic. It was a manifestation of my own. Yes, I am aware of my own scent, and this one was very similar, although there were subtle differences within the fragrance. The similarities were uncanny, and when I noticed who was emitting that odor, my body stilled in revulsion. The crimson-haired woman looked up at us between her long lashes, and a snide grin crept along her bright cerise-colored lips.

“Well, well, well. Long time no see Sammie.”

I snarled at the she-bitch in front of me. “Hello, Dasha.”

Yep color me, surprised folks.

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This is bad, really bad.

I wanted to lunge for Dasha’s neck, but Jareth quickly held my arm. He shook his head, sending a silent warning that now was not the appropriate time to go Mad Max Beyond Thunder Dome on her ass.

So I controlled myself.

For now, at least.

Luckily, my demeanor towards his mate didn’t seem to affect the Alpha, or he just chose to ignore it.

He and Jareth exchanged pleasantries as we were seated while Dasha and I just glared at each other from across the table. Well, this should be a fun-filled evening.

Not.

It turned out Dasha was not his mate but only the Alpha’s longtime girlfriend, which was why she had accompanied him. I laughed at myself, wondering if the Alpha knew what a conniving bitch she genuinely was. I assumed he didn’t and felt a tinge of pity towards his ignorance. I almost wanted to warn him but then decided against it, seeing that he and Jareth were in the process of going through with their negotiations. I didn’t need to cause any unnecessary problems, and I knew any negative behavior would reflect poorly on Jareth. Besides, why did I even care? I’ve never even met this person before, so whatever his and Dasha’s deal was, was none of my concern.

Dinner seemed to drag on as I remained silent, listening to the two men finalize their arrangement. I silently stewed in frustration while sipping on a glass of Merlot. In the end, my irritation with Dasha being so near me was becoming too immense. I decided that it might be safer for all parties if I feigned a headache and retired to mine and Jareth’s room. I leaned over to Jareth and let him know my intent apologizing for my discourtesy to both him and the Alpha.

But of course, just as I stood up, someone else had the same idea.

I glared at her and rolled my eyes.

Annoying much?

“Excuse me, gentlemen.” Dasha stood up and placed her napkin on the table. “I am still feeling a bit jet-lagged from our trip. I hope you don’t mind if I excuse myself and return to my room for the evening” She leaned down and gave Alpha Montgomery a heated kiss while smugly staring at me.

WTF really?!!

As if I care that she’s sucking the face-off of some hot-ass werewolf! Wait … what?

OK, clearly he’s hot but still, whatever. Why should I care?

She went to try and slither her way past me. Instinctively my arm clasped hers as she stepped forward, catching Dasha entirely off guard.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing, Sammie?” She hissed through gritted teeth. “Get your hands off of me this instance!”

Jareth and Alpha Montgomery both stared at the events that were unfolding in front of them. It was apparent both were ready to intervene any second should the situation escalate.

I glared at Dasha. I was not letting her leave without saying my piece. “I will release your arm once I’m finished saying what I need to say to you bitch. Because this time, I want to make damn sure you listen before you slither away like the snake you are.”

She rolled her eyes. No surprise there. “You certainly are pathetic, Sammie, you know that? How more obvious do I have to be for you to get that our friendship is over. Caput. Finito. No matter how much you ludicrously beg, I have no intentions of rekindling that friendship.”

Dasha’s venomous words spewed from her mouth. I laughed. The nerve of this bitch. She ludicrously thinks this is about being friends again.

Narcissistic much?

“Oh, Dasha. You’re the pathetic one. What I have to say has nothing to do with being your friend again. Hell, I doubt we were even friends in the first place. Which is fine because I am so much better off without a backstabbing piece of trash such as you.” I began. “No, I just wanted to give you a little word of advice.”

Dasha regarded me indignantly. I hit a nerve, and I knew it. “I know it was you that tried to have me killed, but because your little minions were so stupid, you failed. So, heed my words here and now, Dasha. If you ever try and have your little lackeys kill me again, think twice. I’m a lot more dangerous than I was before.” My eyes grew black, and I extended my fangs as I growled to emphasize my intention. “Next time, I won’t hesitate to kill you.” I released Dasha’s arm, and she glowered as she walked away and grumbled,

“Neither will I, Sammie. Neither will I.”

Seriously does this bitch always have to get the last word in or what??