My cell phone ringing loudly from somewhere bolted me upright in bed. I blinked and looked around, trying to remember exactly where I was.

A moan to my left. I looked over and saw the ruffle of hair and flash of skin that was the girl I met last night. What was her name? Jennifer? Jackie? I felt bad for not remembering, but then again, she probably didn’t remember mine, either.

“Mm…” she groaned, turning over. “Loch, what is that?”

Damnit.

My phone kept ringing. The last place I had it was… my pants. Which were on the floor.

Sliding out from the bed, I scooped my trousers up from the floor and pulled them on. My phone kept on ringing, and I got it out from my pocket. It was Christophe, my elder brother. I thought about letting it go to voicemail, but decided against it. Christophe was first in line to be the leader of the Crescent Moon Pack, and he took that responsibility very seriously. Extremely seriously. To the point where I basically had a mom and two dads. I could do without getting chewed out when I got home.

“Yeah?” I said, answering it. I picked up my button down from the floor and held the phone to my ear with my shoulder while I put my shirt on.

“Where are you?” Christophe asked.

“School,” I said. It wasn’t a lie—I was in someone’s dorm.

“Uh huh,” he said. “Get dressed and get your ass home immediately. And… try not to let anyone see you? You’re a Luna. You’re a representative of the Crescent Moons, and you need to act as such.”

“Hey.” I grinned, buttoning up my shirt. “I’m just practicing some friendly diplomatic relations with other clans.”

“I don’t think I need to remind you that co-ed visits aren’t allowed in the Dawn Academy dorms, Loch. Get home. Mother and Father want to see you.”

“Mom and Dad? What do they want?”

My new friend sat up on the bed, holding the blanket cross her chest. “Will you stop talking so loud? My RA will hear you.”

I smiled and waved to her before plonking down onto the floor. Funny; you didn’t say anything about that last night. I pulled my socks and shoes on.

“I don’t know,” Christophe replied in my ear. “But they’re gathering the family, so it’s something serious. Any trouble you’ve gotten into lately you need to fess up about?”

I laughed. “If there was, what would you do?”

“I’m your big brother. You can tell me about things like that.”

“Right… I’ll see you at home, yeah? On my way now.” I disconnected the call and stuffed the phone back into my pocket.

“I’ll see myself out,” I told the girl whose name I still couldn’t remember. Really, I should’ve made my exit last night. These awkward morning talks were always the worst.

“I had fun,” she said. “See you around campus?”

I gave her a non-committal smile before pulling the window open and sticking my head out. It was a three-story drop—no problem. I climbed through and pushed myself out, dropping into a tight roll when I hit the ground. I brushed off my clothes and strolled towards the parking lot.

* * *

The moment I got home, Christophe ordered me to wait in the dining room while he went to gather my other two brothers, Arthur and Vander, along with my parents. The truth was, I hated being at home. The Crescent Moon Clan was one of the oldest in the country and had always been strong—but recent financial trouble had put a stress on my parents, who were already intense enough as it was, and hardly seemed to approve of anything I did.

I couldn’t help but feel like a burden in some ways. Christophe and Arthur were both older than me, and both of them had graduated from the Dawn Academy. Vander was 17—nearly time to start thinking about his choice of study, and seeing as all of his older brothers had gone to Dawn, he would want to choose it too. It was my parents’ alma mater, so I couldn’t imagine them refusing, even though the Dawn Academy was expensive. Actually, “expensive” was a bit of an understatement; the place served only the best or wealthiest students in the world.

I was the third alpha. Christophe was in line for taking over the pack, Arthur would support as the second oldest, and I was… well, as third, I really didn’t have a role. Vander was an omega, so he would always get special treatment in the family.

So, I spent as much time out of the house as I could, usually at a girl’s place—even though I knew my parents frowned on it—or with one of my buddies from the FAS. Anything to relieve some of the extra burden of having to deal with me. If I could, I would just move out altogether if tradition didn’t frown on it, and if I wasn’t living on my parents’ coin.

I strummed my fingers on the dining table, wracking my brain trying to think of something I’d done to deserve a meeting like this. The last time I’d been called for an official family meeting was… when I was eighteen, and they’d wanted to tell my brothers about my acceptance to the FAS at Dawn. Before that, it was when I was fifteen, when I was dating Sherry. She was a beta from a low born family, and of course, a high-status alpha like myself wasn’t allowed to be with someone like her. I’d gotten a lecture from both my parents and Christophe, and in the end I wasn’t allowed to see her again.

That whole ordeal was part of the reason why I hadn’t given any further thought to serious relationships. Even when I got into Dawn, and my parents encouraged me to find someone, it was just easier to fuck around and not risk bringing home someone who’d make my parents disappointed—again. That, and the Fighting Arts School was my life now. I didn’t have time for a relationship, not with my training schedule.

Whatever this was about, I couldn't imagine it was because I did something wrong. My parents might not have complete approval of how I lived my personal life, but I was hardly a trouble maker.

Still… I couldn’t shake the feeling that whatever news I was going to receive was not going to make me happy.

After ten minutes, the doors to the dining room opened. I turned around to look at the entrance, and I watched my three brothers filed in, with Christophe at the front. I was at the end of the table, and the three of them took the seats adjacent to me. Christophe sat straight backed, his glasses perched on the bridge of his nose, looking proper as always. Arthur looked distracted and in his own thoughts. Van put his bare feet up on the edge of the table and tilted his chair back.

“Sooo… what the hell are we all doing here?” he asked me. “Loch?”

I shrugged. “Hell if I know.”

“Did you do something?” Arthur asked.

“What would I do?” I replied. “I’m a good boy.”

Van laughed and nearly tumbled his chair backward.

I grinned. “What? I am.”

“You didn’t get someone pregnant, did you?” Van asked.

I pointed at him. “Hey, you watch your mouth,” I said, before mumbling, “I sure as hell fucking hope not…”

“Shh.” Christophe held up his hand. “Van, sit properly, will you? Get your feet off the table.”

Van rolled his eyes and mouthed, “okay, dad.”

“What is this, Christophe?” I asked him. “Do you have any idea?”

“No, I told you, I don’t know. Mother and Father didn’t say.”

As if on cue, the dining room doors swung open again, and our parents entered. The four of us quickly rose to our feet. Van caught my eye and gave me a little wink. I grinned and winked back at him before taking a serious expression to address our parents. “Good morning, Mom. Good morning, Dad.”

Dad’s face was as stern as always. My brothers and I (minus Christophe, who had taken Dad’s seriousness) always used to joke that Dad’s constant scowl was where the Crescent Moon Clan got its name. I resisted the urge to crack a grin thinking about it.

“Mm,” he grunted. “Good morning, son.”

For a moment, I wondered if they were going to scold me for having spent the night out without giving any notice, but Mom turned to Van and told him that he needed to comb his hair.

“Sit down, all of you,” Dad said, his voice a stiff growl. We did as we were told.

My parents took seats at the opposite end of the table, facing me. Our dusty old dining room table was unnecessarily long, and it felt like they were a mile away. I sat silently, waiting for them to say what this was all about. All four of us were looking at them.

Dad folded his hands on the table and spoke with a voice that sounded like he was addressing the entire clan. “I’ve spent the past three days meeting with Julius and Desmond Croc in regards to the peace between our two clans.”

The Ice River Pack. In my grandfather’s time, it was customary to spit on the floor whenever their name was mentioned. When my father took over as leader, he put a stop to the habit after the peace pact was made between our clans. I knew that a lot of the older generation Crescent Moons still held a hate for them, but personally, I never fully understood why. The bad blood between the clans originated from some stupid disagreement from like, 200 years ago.

“As much as it stings my pride to talk about our financial predicaments, we aren’t in a position to ignore the situation, as you all know.”

My brothers and I all nodded our heads. If our finances were teetering on the edge, it meant a wavering in our authority and power and would put our family in a position to be challenged by one of the other Crescent Moon families, or even an outside family. Something like that would most likely end in someone getting seriously hurt, or even killed. I couldn’t imagine what I’d do if anything happened to any of my family members.

Mom spoke now. “The Crocs, similarly, are in a delicate situation. We’ve been negotiating with them to make an arrangement between our families to tie us together.”

“We already have a peace pact with them,” Van said, not without a tinge of viciousness in his voice. “What could we possibly gain from those Icers?”

“Vander,” Dad said, his voice stern. “I’ve known Desmond Croc for over thirty years. I held hate for him, believe me, your grandfather made sure of that… but when I fought and trained with Desmond, I learned just how honorable an alpha he was. If you make judgements about a person without taking the time to understand them, then you’re useless.”

“Sorry, Dad…” Van said, sinking so low in his chair I thought he might slip away under the table.

“What negotiations?” I asked. “And how do they involve me?”

“The Crocs are still one of the wealthiest families in the country,” Mom said. “To unite with them would mean the security of our family.”

“Desmond and Julius have a son. An omega.”

“Tresten,” I said. “He’s at the FAS with me.”

Van perked back up. “He’s an omega and he’s in the FAS? That’s fucking awesome!”

“Correct,” Dad said, ignoring Van. “He’s also their only son. Desmond came to me with this proposal when he discovered that Tresten had gotten his mark.”

Arthur snorted, and Christophe pushed his glasses up and leaned back in his chair. I frowned. Apparently, they’d realized something I hadn’t.

“Okay. What proposal?”

“Yeah,” Van piped in. “What proposal?” He was touching his hair where his mark would show in a few years.

Christophe looked at me over the rim of his glasses. “Seriously, Loch? You’re not that slow, are you?”

“What? Don’t be a jerk, not everyone went to the Leadership Arts School like you two smartasses.” I waggled my fingers in the air.

Dad’s voice cut over us. “Loch.”

I straightened. “Yes, Dad.”

“It’s been agreed upon that you and Tresten Croc will be married, in order to bind our families and our clans together.”

I leapt to my feet, sending the chair bouncing back across the floor. “What?!”

“Wasn’t it obvious…?” I heard Christophe mutter to Arthur. Normally I would’ve said something smart to him, but right now I was too fucking bewildered to do anything but stand there and try and collect my jaw from the floor.

“The Crocs have arranged a house for you two to move into after the union, and—”

“H-hold on! Dad! Mom! Wait a second. I am not getting married, especially not to Tresten Croc! A forced marriage? This is ridiculous.”

I looked to my brothers for help. Christophe, of course, was straight faced and serious. Arthur looked like he was going to laugh. Vander, who I would’ve thought would be the one cracking up on the floor, looked freaked out and was obviously coming to grips with the fact that he could be the next one to be married off to someone.

Married. What the fuck?

“It’s decided,” Mom said evenly, her lips a thin line.

“It’s not decided,” I said. “I should have some say in this, right? It’s my life. Besides, I’m in the FAS. I don’t have time for that kind of shit!”

Mom flinched, and I realized I’d made a terrible mistake—I’d not only cursed in front of her, I’d talked back. I was 22 years old, but she still had no tolerance for any of that, and I prepared for her bite. She looked like she was about to explode on me, when Dad put his hand up. The room fell completely quiet and the energy that smoldered in the air faded.

“Tresten,” he said.

“Dad,” I replied, staring angrily down at the table with my teeth clenched. I thought of Master Graffer’s lessons about presence in the moment, trying my hardest to maintain calm.

“Where does a wolf of honor, strength, and pride tread?”

Just like that, the tension disappeared from my body. I stood straight and looked into his eyes.

“Beneath the Crescent Moon,” I replied.

He nodded, his chin slowly dipping once. “I know you understand what’s at stake here. And that I wouldn’t be asking this of you if it weren’t for the strength of our family, and to preserve our position in this clan. A position we’ve held for 400 years.”

I took a deep breath, collected my chair, and sat down. I did understand. It certainly didn’t make me like what had been so suddenly thrust on me, but it did make it easier to accept. This was happening. I had to do it. “Yes.”

“Good. Then we’ll complete the arrangements to hold a legal ceremony.”

Dad continued to talk, but his voice was distant while my mind filled with a whirlwind of thoughts. My life as I knew it was over. I was going to be married. And to who? Fucking Tresten Croc, the stuck-up omega with something to prove. He was cold and standoffish, and given he was an Ice River Pack member, I wouldn’t be surprised if ice water was pumping through his heart.

After my parents dismissed us, I retreated to my room to contemplate my fate. I felt numb about it. The reality probably hadn’t completely struck me yet. But I couldn’t be angry. I was upset, but not angry. I fully understood the reason for this arrangement.

Besides, this whole thing was just for the title and clan politics. We’d be married in name, but that was it. It wasn’t like I would be living with him, or sleeping with him. We’d see each other more often—I could deal with that. In the end, this would be a bump in my life and things would be basically back to normal. Word would spread at school of course, but that was fine.

And maybe, by doing this, I could finally prove to my parents that I could honor my family just as much as my brothers did.