My size 16 figure wasn’t always excepted at school, I was teased and bullied for most of my childhood. By the time I hit 14 I was the only girl in my class that had an a*s and tits. The boys quickly changed their minds about me, suddenly they all wanted me to be their mate and wanted me to bare their pups. I rolled my eyes at the stupidity of male species, I decided to focus on myself. I wanted an education and a career and I wanted to be fit and healthy. When I was 14 I begged my mother to let me start training with the men. I wanted to be able to defend myself and I didn’t want to just be another pretty face that got swept up in the being the perfect mate. Fast forward four years later, I was one of the fiercest fighters in the pack. I went from being a chubby little no body to be a thick and ferocious goddess. The intense training helped me build muscle and melt my extra fat. I still had my large chest and wide hips but I carry my weight in all the right places and now have an hourglass figure. All of the rigorous training really helped when I shifted for the first time. I had always heard that shifting was painful so I was terrified for my first time. Because of my sudden increase in strength it didn’t hurt as much as I thought. That was the day that I met Scarlet.

I took a deep breath and pushed passed the door. Dad didn't look up from the stack on his desk right away. He lingered on the page, as if finishing his thoughts. I waited a moment longer, he closed the book with a loud clap and finally looked up. He huffed loudly, again out of character for his easy-going personality. I watched carefully as he lowered his glasses off of the bridge of his nose and rubbed his skin. "Come have a seat Andy." He gestured to the chair across from his desk and I obliged. "Please tell me that nobody died." I cracked a small smile, expecting him to reciprocate, but it didn't appear. I knew that this was serious. I crossed my right ankle over my left knee and leaned further back into the plush, leather armchair. Surprisingly, dad stood and started pacing behind his desk. I have never seen him like this before. My stomach instantly knotted at the tension in the room. "I have to tell you something. I don't know how you will react. Just know that your mother and I are not particularly happy with the situation." I urged him with my eyes. "Tell me. I'm sure it's not as bad as you think it is." Dad stopped pacing and muttered under his breath. It sounded something like, "we'll see about that." He turned to face me and put his hands down on the top of his desk. "I just got off the phone with Alpha Robert, from Red Moon." My heart dropped momentarily, there was a reason why we avoided Red Moon like the plague. They were not the most caring of wolves and had a reputation for their extreme violence and lack of compassion. They may not have started many wars over the centuries, but they were known to finish them. They were a ruthless pack that didn't take kindly to strangers. They were one of the few packs in this century that still believed in contractual marriages. They never matched and mated outside their own pack, they did this to keep their bloodlines "pure." They were extremely old-fashioned and their views and values were more than archaic. I swallowed the large lump in my throat. "And what did he want?" I asked out of pure curiosity, although I didn't know if I wanted to know the answer. It must have been dire if Alpha Robert reached outside his own pack for help. "That's the part that you're not going to like." "Wait, this has something to do with me?" Dad stared at me, but didn't say anything. My mind was reeling about what it could be. What could I do for them? Other than... fuck.

My responsibility is to be married off to the son of the MacKenzie clan. It is supposed to strengthen the bond between clans on either side of the river. We would be able to solidify our trading opportunities and double the man power when it came to our defenses. In other words, the lives of not just one clan, but two, rested on my shoulders. I would be expected to marry a perfect stranger and pop out a couple of his kids, and strengthen the morale of our clans and keep the peace. I was supposed to do all of that while keeping a pretty face and keeping my opinions to myself, sounds easy enough, right?