Chapter 40

Glancing around, Rayne couldn’t help thinking of the last time she had driven here. She’d been scared, heartbroken and had no clue which direction to go. Her future had been vague and riddled with so many questions she was sure she would never have any answers.

Now, today she had answers. She was no longer scared. In fact, she had a confidence that she’d never had. Her breath was steadier than it had ever been, and she finally had a sense of belonging.

The last few weeks had opened her eyes to a whole world she could never have imagined existed. Strangers that now felt like family she’d known her whole life, had come and offered her patience and knowledge to help get her through the heart-wrenching moments.

Rayne was still processing the history she was told of the shifter world and the Alliance. How could an entire race live with such violence and so many threats over their heads? How could they overcome them to thrive as they were? She felt humbled and honored when many of the elders she’d met asked for her to be the Princess to rule by Devin’s side. Her parents, and their parents she was told were highly respected members of the pack and many still mourned their loss. She was overwhelmed to think that if Devin and she did stay together as a mated pair, their children would be Princes and Princesses and revered above all. That was a lot to digest in such a short time.

Having met her relatives, she couldn’t believe the love and closeness of them. She had family, in blood and spirit. This alone was the hardest and best thing to grasp. Rayne wasn’t alone in the world anymore and never would be again.

The problems that waited were what to do with Devin... She had been carefully schooled in the rituals and ceremonies of the pack—fast lane lessons but still ones she welcomed. Now all she had to do was decide what to do with all the knowledge.

Her heart ached for Devin the entire time they were separated. Her body craved him, inside and out—even just his touch would ease her discomforts and stress she’d been told. She’d had many moments where she didn’t think she was going to last another second without him, but the new strength she’d discovered kept her steady enough to stay where she was and think things through.

The moment Rayne realized she was going to go back to see Devin, his parents had gotten quiet, the elders thoughtful. Everyone was leaving it up to her to bring their Prince to his senses. In truth, she wasn’t even sure if she wielded the power they thought she did.

Did she want to bring to their Prince home? Yes, but for the entire shifter world, not just her. He held strength and she knew after watching his father for the last few weeks that he hid more away. Did Devin know he was so similar to the man that had sired him? She doubted it, but he was just the same. She knew he thought his mother was a hard person, but had he ever stepped back and watched the interaction between his parents? Probably not. They functioned as one most of the time, always sure of the other and what they were doing.

Rayne wanted that. She wanted oneness with someone that would carry her through anything life wanted to toss at her. Could she have that? She wasn’t sure.

Part of her wanted to crawl back to Devin and ask him to shelter her from life once more—that small part was the only part that remained of her prior self. The part that still thought she was a vulnerable, shy woman.

Most of the time now Rayne knew she wasn’t that any longer. She had strength that many would only dream of. She’d been told by the women that coached her through the last few weeks that she held a strength that was rare to the females in their pack. Giddiness still flushed through her when she thought of it in those terms.

Glancing around, she realized she was almost out of time. She would be there soon and she couldn’t go back and fail. She knew she didn’t want to give up the family she’d just discovered or the togetherness that was so new to her.

When she pulled the car into the drive, she stopped and opened the window. The scents filled her and her heart said she was home. Immediately a faint smell riddled through her nose, her wolf sensed her mate and she cried for him.

Taking a deep breath, she parked the car right there, inside the gate and decided she needed to walk the rest of the way. Rayne needed to gather the strength from the nature surrounding her and go to Devin at a new stronger level than she had the first time they’d met.

The breeze blew softly over her skin, sending her hair back away from her face and she even felt, at that moment, that nature was welcoming her home. Rayne was thankful it was blowing her scent away from the house—and was surprised to realize she thought of things like that now. With its help to keep her presence hidden, it also brought the scent that was only Devin and her heart skipped a few times.

Her mind may still have questions and doubts, but her heart knew what she wanted and what she was going to do.

Calum was still here, she could tell his scent now as well. Rayne wouldn’t be standing before him this time feeling small and insignificant, she’d be what he seemed to believe she was the last time they spoke face to face.

She was going to be the alpha female, even if she was shaking in her shoes and trying to remember to breathe.