She risked her life to save his, believing she'd never see him again.

But he has returned, challenging her destiny as an alpha wolf, leaving her doubting her past and fearing her future.


When I entered the kitchen, my family fell silent. I made a beeline for the coffee. My mother rushed over, grasped my hands, and turned me to face her.

"Oh, honey, you are a vision," she said, kissing me on both cheeks.

"It's a skirt, Mom. And a short one at that." I wrenched free. "Get over it."

I grabbed a mug from the cupboard and poured coffee. At the last second I managed to push my long hair out of the way before bronze tendrils dunked in the black liquid.

Jeremy tossed me a Luna bar and tried to hide the smirk on his face.

Traitor, I mouthed as I sat down. Two bites into my breakfast, I realized my father was gaping at me.

"What?" I asked around a mouthful of soy protein.

He coughed, blinking several times. Then his eyes darted from my mom to me. "Sorry, Allison. I guess I didn't expect you to take your mother's suggestions to heart."

She glared at him. My father shifted in his seat and unfolded the Denver Post. "You're quite fetching."

"Fetching?" My voice jumped up a couple octaves. The coffee mug shook in my hand.

Jeremy choked on his Pop-Tart and grabbed for a glass of orange juice.

My father lifted the newspaper to hide his face while my mother patted my hand. I allowed myself one glare at her before losing myself in the haze of caffeine.

We spent the rest of breakfast in awkward silence. Dad read and tried to avoid any eye contact with me or my mother. Mom kept throwing encouraging glances in my direction, which I deflected with cold stares. Jeremy ignored us, munching happily on his Pop-Tart. I threw back the last dregs of coffee.

"Come on, Jer." Jeremy bounced from his chair, grabbing a jacket on his way to the garage.

"Good luck, Ali," my father called as I followed my little brother toward the door. I didn't respond. Most days I looked forward to school. Today I dreaded it.

"Grayson." I heard Mom's voice rise as I walked out the door and slammed it shut behind me.

"Can I drive?" Jeremy's eyes were hopeful.

"No," I said, heading for the driver's seat of our Explorer. Jeremy gripped the dashboard as I squealed out of the driveway. The scent of burnt rubber filled the cab. After I cut off the third car, he glared at me, struggling to buckle his seat belt.

"Just 'cause wearing panty hose gives you a death wish doesn't mean I have one too."

"I am not wearing panty hose," I said through clenched teeth, swerving around yet another car.

Jeremy's eyebrows shot up. "You're not? Isn't that, like, unseemly or something?" He grinned at me, but the dagger glare I threw at him made him cower against his seat.

By the time we reached the Mountain School's parking lot, his face was ghost white. "I think I'll get Josh to drive me home," he said, slamming the door behind him.

When I noticed how white my knuckles had become as a result of my grip on the steering wheel, I took a deep breath. They're just clothes, Ali. It's not like Mom made you go get a boob job. I shuddered, hoping no such ideas ever entered Miranda's mind.

Bonnie intercepted me halfway across the parking lot. Her eyes widened as she looked me up and down.

"What happened?"

"Finesse," I grumbled, and kept walking toward our school.

"Huh?" The waves of her brown hair bounced around her head as she trotted beside me.

"Apparently being an alpha female involves more than fighting off Travelers," I said. "At least according to Jane-Anne and my mother."

"So Miranda's trying to give you a makeover again?" she asked. "What's different this time?"

"This time she's serious." I adjusted the waistband of my skirt, wishing I were in jeans. "And so is Jane-Anne."

"Well, I guess you'd better get with the program." Bonnie shrugged as we passed the chalet-like residences from which bleary-eyed human students stumbled.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." I couldn't figure out how the skirt was supposed to lie, so I gave up trying to straighten it.

We walked in silence through the entrance and down the hall to the long row of senior lockers. The smell of the school that greeted me each day had changed. The sharp metallic of the lockers, acrid floor polish countering the freshness of the ceilings' cedar beams were familiar, but the fear that usually seeped from the skin of the humans was missing.

Instead they smelled curious, surprised, a strange reaction from the boarders, whose lives were carefully segregated from the local Siphoners and Hybrids. The only activities we shared were our classes. Having their eyes on me as we moved through the crowd of students jostling through the narrow space proved more than a little unsettling.

"Is everyone staring?" I tried not to sound nervous.

"Yep. Pretty much all staring."

"Oh God," I moaned, tightening my grip on my bag.

"At least you look hot." Her cheerful response made my stomach flip.

"Please don't say stuff like that to me. Ever." Why did my mother do this to me? I felt like a sideshow freak at a carnival.

"Sorry," Bonnie said, toying with the multi-hued metallic bangles that jangled along her arm. I switched out my homework for the books I needed in first and second period. The din of the hallway dropped to a buzz of curious whispers, and Bonnie abruptly straightened from her casual pose.

I knew what that meant. He was nearby. I slung my bag over my shoulder, slammed my locker door, and hated that my heart sped up as I looked for Nikalus Mikaelson.

The crowd of students parted for the Lockwood alpha and his pack. Klaus, flanked by Rebekah, Luke, Bonnie, Liv, and Matt, seemed to float down the hallway. He moved as though he owned the school. His eyes darted from side to side—ever a wolf, always predatory.

I'll bet he's never had to suffer a makeover.

When Klaus found me, a half-cocked smile played along his mouth. I stood perfectly still, matching his challenging gaze. Bonnie stepped closer. I could feel her breath on my shoulder.

Activity in the hall stilled. Eyes fixed on our meeting, whispers traveling from mouth to ear.

A movement to my right caught my eye. Katherine, Kol, Josh, Jeremy, and Caroline emerged from the throng of students and took flanking positions around Bonnie. I stood a little taller.

Not the only alpha now, are you?

Klaus's eyes narrowed as they focused on the Devereaux wolves behind me. An abrupt laugh escaped his throat.

"You going to call off your soldiers, Lily?" I glanced at the Lockwoods, who stood like sentinels around their alpha.

"As if you're flying solo?" I leaned back against my locker. His laugh became a low chuckle, not unlike a growl. He looked at Rebekah.

"Get out of here. I need to speak to Allison. Alone." The blonde, protective girl to his right stiffened, but she turned and walked back in the direction of the commons. The other wolves fell in behind her, though Matt cast a glance back at his alpha before they melted into the crowd.

Klaus raised an eyebrow. I nodded.

"'Lena, I'll see you in class." I heard the rustle of her waves as she bobbed her head. Out of the corner of my eye I caught Kol and Caroline leaning in and whispering to her as they moved off. I waited, but Klaus's eyes remained focused over my shoulder. I turned to see Jeremy still standing behind me.

"You too. Now." My little brother ducked his head and dashed after the other Devereauxs. Klaus laughed. "Protective of you, eh?"

"Whatever." I tightened my arms over my chest. "What's with the show, Klaus? You've got half the student body watching us."

He shrugged. "They always watch us. They're afraid of us. It's the way it should be."

My lips thinned, but I didn't respond. "That's a new look," he said, letting his eyes move slowly over me.

Damn you, Mother.

I gave a reluctant nod and looked down. Klaus's finger caught the underside of my chin and tilted my face upward. When I raised my eyes, he was wearing his most appealing smile. I jerked away from his fingers. A soft, low growl rumbled in his chest.

"Easy, girl."

"The look doesn't matter." I pressed closer to the locker. "Stop toying with me. You know who I am."

"Of course," he murmured. "That's why I like you."

My teeth clenched as I struggled against the warm, bubbling tension that the alpha boy provoked from the tips of my toes to the crown of my head.

"I'm immune to your charms," I lied. "Cut the act, Lockwood. What do you want?"

He laughed. "Come on, Lily. I thought we were friends."

"We are friends." I let the phrase hang between us. "Until October thirty-first. Then it changes. Those are the rules. You're the one acting like a buck in rut today. Just tell me what's on your mind." I held my breath, wondering if I'd gone too far. But no angry retort came, and for a split second his expression was tender.

"The Siphoners are coming down hard on us," he said. "I, for one, am tired of being scrutinized twenty-four seven. I wondered if you were interested in doing something about that.""

I waited for the joke. None came.

"H-How?" I finally managed to stammer.

He took a hesitant step closer. "What's the stick up their ass?" he murmured, leaning toward me. Breathing became a challenge.

I am in control. I am in control.

"The union. The new pack," I said. He was close enough that I could see the flecks of silver inside his dark eyes.

Klaus nodded. His smile became a grin. "And who has control over its success or failure?"

My heart hammered against my rib cage. "We do."

"Exactly." He straightened, and I could breathe again. "I thought we might do something about that."

"Like what?" I watched his neck and shoulders tighten and almost shivered. He's nervous. What has the power to make Klaus nervous?

"Like spend more time together. Get the pack's loyalty transferred to us instead of the elders," he said. "Maybe convince our friends to stop hating each other. Could make the Siphoners relax, lay off a bit."

I pulled my lip between my teeth as I considered his words. "You want to start moving toward the union now?" He nodded. "Ease in. It will make the adjustment easier for everyone instead of going cold turkey in October. I thought we could hang out."

"Hang out? Together?" I bit my lip hard so I wouldn't laugh.

"Couldn't hurt," he said quietly. The laugh died in my belly when I realized how serious he was. Unless they rip each other's throats out.

"It's risky," I said.

"Are you saying you can't control your Devereauxs?"

"No. Of course not." I glared at him. "If I say so, they'll toe the line."

"Then it shouldn't be a problem. Should it?" I sighed. "The Siphoners have been on you too?"

Klaus pulled his gaze from mine. "Richard expressed some concerns about my . . . habits. Worried that you'd be unhappy or concerned about fidelity." He chewed on the last word like a piece of gristle.

I doubled over laughing. For a minute he looked chagrined.

"Serves you right, Romeo." I aimed my fingers at his chest, miming a cocked pistol. "If you weren't Mikael's son, your pelt would already be nailed over a fireplace belonging to the father of some brokenhearted girl."

Klaus flashed a wicked smile. "You're not wrong." He put his hand against the locker just above my shoulder. "Richard has visited our house once a week for the last month." His grin didn't fade, but his eyes looked troubled.

Fear curled my fingers around his shirt, pulling him closer. "Every week?" I whispered.

He nodded, passing a hand through his espresso dark hair. "Don't be surprised if he's packing a shotgun at the union."

I smiled, but my breath caught in my throat as he leaned down. His lips brushed against my ear. I pulled away. The Siphoners took this purity thing seriously, even if he didn't. We'd already defied them once when, at the same time, we tried to please them. Being teenage parents hadn't exactly been planned, but it only moved the union to one year earlier.

"I think they're worried the next generation might not fall into line. But I'd never leave you at the altar, Lily." I punched him in the stomach and instantly regretted it. Klaus's abdomen was rock hard. I shook my aching hand as I drew it back.

He braceleted my wrist in a fierce grip. His smile didn't fade.

"Nice hook."

"Thanks for noticing." I tried to pull my arm away, but his lock on my wrist remained firm.

"So what do you think?"

"About hanging out?" I couldn't meet his eyes. He was much too close. I could feel the heat of his body, and it was making my own temperature rise.

"Yes." His face was inches from my own. He smelled like leather and sandalwood. "It might work," I said, certain I'd melt into the locker at any second. "I'll think about it."

"Good." He pulled back and dropped my wrist. "See ya, Ali." He danced out of reach. I could hear him laughing as he disappeared into the crowd of students.