The Golden Eyed Alpha

Prologue

The Alpha’s roar echoed throughout the estate, making the servants jump and the windows rattle.

“Oh, pipe down you big baby,” his wife playfully admonished, studying the tiny rose thorn pinched between the pointed ends of the tweezers. “Look at this tiny thing I pulled out of that big paw of yours,” she smiled, holding the tweezers for him to see.

Truth be told, Alpha Trey couldn’t even remember exactly where the thorn had been lodged, but it didn’t stop him from attempting to get more sympathy from his wife. He rubbed the palm of his hand and pouted. “It hurt,” he whined pathetically.

Luna Daphne smiled indulgently at her husband. He had been outside helping the gardeners prepare the garden for the following day’s celebration. Their eldest child and only son, Micah, was turning fifteen and would shift into his wolf form for the first time. It was possible the Alpha and Luna were more nervous than their son was about the event. “Maybe if I kissed it better?” she whispered in a low, sexy voice.

Alpha Trey held his hand out excitedly. Luna Daphne didn’t bother to remind him the thorn had been in the other hand. She licked his palm seductively, holding his gaze. He loved to watch her, no matter what she was doing, but especially when she was teasing and tempting him. Her blond hair, so light it was almost a silvery white, was currently in a thick plait that hung to her waist. Her crystalline blue eyes twinkled with a hint of mischief, as she cradled his giant hand in her delicate fingers, driving him wild by flicking her pink tongue over his skin. Her generous pink lips turned up in a playful smile as she climbed into his lap.

She ran her fingers through his tangle of long black hair. He had been so eager to help set up for his son’s party that he hadn’t taken the time to braid it or, by the feel of the tugs of knots on her fingers, even to brush it. His golden eyes glowed with his arousal, and she sighed as his hand slid under her skirt to find her already wet for him. She leaned down to capture his mouth with her own, enjoying the rough sensation of his beard on her skin. His tongue slid into her mouth, echoing the movements of his fingers slipping between her moist folds. She quickly unbuttoned his pants and pulled out his fully erect member. There was still too much to get done in the afternoon, but a quickie would help to calm both their nerves.

His fingers slipped free of the intimate warmth between her legs to grip her hips, pulling her down forcefully onto his shaft. She moaned out as he filled her, her hips undulating, grinding onto him. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. After sixteen years of marriage, they still felt like newlyweds. The sound of her coming was possibly his favorite sound in the world.

She moved faster and his fingers gripped even harder as he felt his own release building, just waiting for hers. “Baby!” she gasped, digging her fingers into his shoulders. His guttural grunt answered her breathless cry.

The door to his office flew open and his Beta, Jackson, rushed in, turning several shades of pink when he realized what his friends were doing.

“What the hell?” Trey growled. “Out!”

“Sorry, to interrupt, but it’s an emergency,” Jackson turned away, but the smell of s*x was overpowering and he found himself suddenly craving his own mate. Too bad it would have to wait. “Rogues have been spotted on the eastern border.”

“Sh*t,” Trey muttered. “Maybe we can continue this later, my love,” he whispered to his wife.

Daphne huffed out a disappointed breath, but wasted no time in standing up, shielding her husband to let him adjust his pants. “I’ll go change and be downstairs in five minutes,” she told him.

“No, you’re staying here,” Trey said in a firm voice, not inviting argument on the matter. He knew the chances were slim that she wouldn’t fight him on his decision, though. His beautiful Luna was a skilled warrior in her own right and there was no one, save possibly his Beta, that he wanted by his side in battle more than her. “There is too much to do here,” he smiled charmingly at her. “I can handle a few rogues.”

She gnawed on her bottom lip. He was right, of course, but something felt off. “Everyone has this under control, except maybe the roses, she grinned. “I’m coming with you.”

Trey sighed and squeezed her shoulders. “No, my love. I need you to stay here to keep everything running smoothly.”

She opened her mouth to argue, but was interrupted by their youngest daughter, Leigh, crying in the doorway. Whereas their eldest was the spitting image of his mother with his pale skin, fair hair, and clear blue eyes, and their middle daughter, Allegra, looked much like her father with black hair, caramel skin, and piercing yellow eyes, Leigh was the perfect combination of both her parents. Her curly black hair was a riot of tangles, her blue eyes swimming with tears, and the light skin around her mouth and down her chin were currently stained the same purple as the stain on the new white dress she wasn’t supposed to be wearing before the party the next day. “Leigh, what happened?” her mother said with a deep sigh.

The small child, only six years old, hiccoughed out a sob. “I spilled my juice!” she wailed loudly.

Allegra ran around the corner, finally catching up to her little sister who she was supposed to be watching. At fourteen years old, babysitting duty was becoming her most common chore. “This is not my fault!” she panted as she saw her mother crouched in front of Leigh.

Daphne glared at Allegra, but her husband distracted her with a kiss on her cheek. “I’ll leave you to deal with this,” he smiled, happy for the excuse to avoid further discussion about her coming with him to deal with a few rogues. He kissed his youngest daughter’s sticky cheek. “You’re ok, princess,” he soothed. As he passed his middle child, he winked at her. “Good luck, pumpkin,” he whispered. He knew he wasn’t supposed to have a favorite child, but he and Allegra had an unspoken bond that no one could deny.

Daphne rolled her eyes and watched her husband walk out the door, trying to ignore the strange feeling of foreboding that clawed at her belly. He was right, a few rogues were nothing to be overly concerned about. Shaking off the feeling, she looked at the sticky purple mess that was her baby girl. “Ok, ok, enough tears,” she said gently. Glancing up at Allegra, she said, “I’m not even going to ask why she’s in this dress. I don’t want to know.”

“She wanted to put it on and promised to stay in her bedroom and I didn’t think it would be a big deal for just a few minutes,” Allegra rushed to explain. “And then the little creep ran from me and you know how fast she is and I don’t even know where she got the juice and…”

“I’m not a creep!” Leigh wailed in a high-pitched voice, making her mother and sister cringe.

“Of course, you’re not a creep, baby,” her mother crooned, trying to keep the laughter out of her voice.

Allegra sighed and shook her head. She loved her little sister, but sometimes she could be such a pain! “Come on, creep,” she ruffled the little girl’s hair affectionately. “Give mom your dress and we’ll get a popsicle, ‘k?”

“I want a purple one,” Leigh sniffed. She was currently obsessed with the color, so everything had to be purple.

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Allegra rolled her eyes, but a soft smile turned up the corners of her lips. “You can have a purple one.” Allegra shot her mother an apologetic look, but her eyebrows quickly drew together in concern at the worried frown on her face. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

Daphne shook herself, realizing she’d been scowling. “Oh! Sorry, no, it’s nothing,” she waved her daughter away. “Listen to your sister, Leigh. Give me your dress and try to stay out of trouble.” She sighed as she took the ruined garment from the girl’s sticky fingers. Hopefully, she could get the stain out. Or maybe she should just dye the whole thing purple.

Allegra sent her mother one last look over her shoulder as she ushered her little sister to her room to change, but Daphne was already moving towards the laundry.

As she set the dress to soak in whatever concoction their maid kept in the bottle on the shelf, one of the guards came running in, breathless. “Luna,” he panted, “I need to speak to the Alpha immediately!”

Something in the tone of his voice set her hair on edge, goosebumps raised on her arms. “The Alpha has left on business. He’ll be back later this evening,” she explained. “What do you need?”

The guard shifted uneasily on his feet. He was older and felt uncomfortable with the amount of power his Luna held. Females were there to take care of the household, raise children, and satisfy their mates. But he’d heard of Luna Daphne’s exploits on the battlefield, and she scared him a little. “Rogues, ma’am,” he told her dutifully.

“Oh that,” she waved him away. “We know. A small band on the eastern border. The Alpha has left to deal with them,” she assured him.

“No, ma’am,” the guard shook his head emphatically. “A large contingent on the western border. They’ve already killed several warriors.”

Daphne’s blood ran cold at what she was hearing. Rogue attacks were fairly rare, and for so many to be on their land was bad enough, but the timing was suspicious. Shoving the idea out of her head, she pushed past the guard and raced to change into her battle gear. She would have to think more about the strange behaviors of the rogues, and talk to Trey. Right now, however, she needed to focus on the task at hand. Knowing Trey would already be too far away for their mind link to work, she sent a young warrior to relay the new information to him. She hoped that she and their personal guard would be able to hold off the large group of rogues until he and the rest of their warriors could join her.