Desert Heat (Complete)

{Michaela’s P.O.V.}

When I heard that J.D. had returned to the pack, I couldn’t ask for anything more. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine he would come back so soon. I knew that once he saw the damage Claude did to that blonde bimbo, there was no way he’d want her anymore. I mean, the things Claude told me he did to her, no man would want that. It was only natural he would come running back to me as soon as he figured it out.

I made Claude disappear to whatever hole he made into his hideout within the pack territory and took off to find J.D. I ran down the stairs of the packhouse as fast as I could and ran smack dab into several pack members along the way. “Watch it!” I screamed at them without bothering to stop. They were all in my way and kept me from getting to J.D. faster. I would have to deal with their dilly-dallying in the packhouse later.

When I saw Dad’s office door in my view, I noticed Seth coming out and he was about to close the door. “DON’T CLOSE THE DOOR!” I screamed and pushed past him. I barged into the office, trying not to trip over my feet, and saw J.D. “IT’S TRUE! OH MY GODDESS! YOU’RE REALLY HERE!!” I screamed and jumped into his arms. Goddess, he smelled so good, and it felt amazing being in his arms. But instead of hugging me back, he was trying to push me away.

“THE f**k!? GET OFF OF ME!” I held on tighter, but he shoved me off so hard that I landed on my a*s. I rubbed my tush from how hard I had fallen and then heard a female growl. I looked up and saw that b***h with him.

“WHY IS SHE HERE!?” I shouted and jumped to my feet. All he said was that she was his mate and that it was obvious as to why she was here. I couldn’t believe that he came all the way back here and brought her with him. I wanted to give them both a piece of my mind, but that’s when I had the most brilliant idea. I almost couldn’t contain my excitement. Then I saw J.D. look at me, so I made sure to fix my facial expression into a hard one before I gave him a piece of my mind.

When he just dismissed me as if I meant absolutely nothing to him, I was really ready to ready to give him hell, but then that brute Dorian Shaw got in my way. I poked him in the chest because no one talked to me like that in my own pack. Then Daddy had to be the dickhead that he’s been lately and ordered me to leave.

I only left because I couldn’t disobey him when he used his Alpha voice. It didn’t matter anyway; I had more important things to deal with. I needed to make sure that I got Claude back here so he could take that b***h away from J.D. as soon as she was alone. If anything, I would have to get her alone with me, and I could just bring her straight to Claude. Yeah, that would work best. Claude would have what he wants, and I could have J.D. It was a win-win situation.

Why are you trying to give our mate to someone else!?

Ugh, not now, Alana!

No! You already rejected one mate as it is. Then you rejected our second chance mate! At least he still wants us occasionally!

Alana! Are you serious right now!? You want that old, one-armed, b***d-sucking piece of trash for the rest of our lives!? When we have J.D. so close? He’s downstairs, right within our grasp!

J.D. and Gunner are mated and marked! I don’t even want Gunner! I want Claude!

And as always, you don’t know what you want! You’re just a mangy mutt! You don’t know s**t! Just like the moon goddess doesn’t know s**t! She doesn’t make mistakes. She mated J.D. and me for a reason! And I will have him back! He was my mate first!

The mother doesn’t make mistakes! You made the mistake of rejecting him six and a half years ago!

And I’m trying to undo that mistake!

How? By pissing him off to the point he would rather kill you!? Us!?

Deep down, he still loves me! I know he does! Why else would he come back here!?

You’re hopeless.

I shoved Alana into the back of my mind while I signaled for Claude to come back to my room. Where he was hiding, he had a clear line of sight to my main window, so I always used a laser to get his attention. It only took a few seconds for him to shimmer back.

“Ready for another round, mate?” he seethed.

“f**k you, old man. I have something that you want even more than my sweet p***y.”

“Oh, and what’s that?”

“Vivienne.”

“What?”

“Vivienne is currently in the packhouse.”

“You’re lying?”

“Take a whiff,” I said and pulled my shirt towards him. “I was just in a room with her. I’m sure you can smell her on me.” He grabbed me by the collar and inhaled deeply. I saw a smile appear on his face, but as soon as it appeared, it quickly transformed into disgust. “What’s wrong?” I questioned him when he dropped me out of nowhere, and his vampire side came out full-blast.

“Filthy mutts,” he muttered.

“What?” He looked at me and only shook his head. He was hiding something from me, and I wasn’t very happy about it. “Nevermind. Where is she?”

“She’s down in my dad’s office with J.D. and a few of the ranked members of Desert Moon.”

“Who is here?”

“The Alpha, the Beta, and I think her brother? He looks just like her and he smelled like a vampire too,” I answered.

“f**k! Alexandre is here too!?”

“I guess,” I replied nonchalantly.

“How do you expect me to get to her? Huh? It’s broad daylight outside, and she’s not alone!”

“Well, I can get her alone. It shouldn’t be that hard.”

“Oh? And how do you expect to do that?”

“I mean, I do hate her, but I can always pretend to play nice to get her alone. I’ll bring her here to talk—in private. You wait at your hiding place until I signal you to come for her. Voila, problem solved,” I explained with the utmost confidence.

“Vivienne does not trust you. She will not come with you willingly!”

“Oh please, she’s a naïve little t**t. As long as I’m nice, she will find it in her sweet little heart to forgive me and come with me. Trust me. You’ll have her,” I told him. As soon as I did though, Alana growled in the front of my mind, and I shoved her back again. I didn’t have time for her stupid jealousy. Just as I was about to say something, I started to hear the guards from outside. I ran to the window, and I could see pack members running around all over the place.

“What is going on!?” Claude shouted.

“I don’t know, but I think we’re being attacked! Stay here!” I ran out of my room and down the stairs. The screaming and shouting were getting louder, and when I got to the platform of the second flight of stairs, I peeked around. All I could see were pack members running in all directions.

“WHERE IS MICHAELA!?” I heard J.D.’s voice.

“I don’t know, Jedediah!” someone answered him. I was about to go down all the way when I heard someone shouting at the pack members.

“This way! Hurry! Follow the pack member in front of you!” I peeked further down and could see Vivienne leading pack members to the basement with Seth right behind her. What the f**k did she think she was doing? She was acting as if she belonged here. J.D. expressed his objection to her helping, but Dorian suddenly patted his shoulder and told him to leave it alone. I couldn’t hear what else he said, but J.D. seemed to listen. They suddenly ran out of the packhouse and that’s when I realized that Vivienne was alone. This was my chance. I was about to head down, but then I heard them talking.

“Is that everyone?” she asked Seth.

“I think so. Come on, let’s get you to Jed’s room before he decides to come back and kill me for letting you help,” Seth replied. J.D.’s old room. He was going to let her go in there? I heard their footsteps getting closer, and I used my wolf speed to get back to my floor. I waited until I knew they were inside the room before going back to get Claude. This was f*****g glorious. I didn’t even need to convince her. She came to me all on her own. The gods were on my side. I knew they were.

“Hey!” I shouted as I opened my door.

“What is going on?”

“No clue, but that’s not why I came back. Vivienne is in J.D.’s old bedroom here in the packhouse. She’s with a single guard.”

“Really?” I nodded my head. I gestured for him to follow me, and I led him directly to Vivienne. I had to play as if I was checking for pack members, so I started to bang on all of the doors to make sure they were empty. When I got to J.D.’s old room, I did the same thing. I slammed my fist on it.

“Is anyone in there!?” The door flew open, and Seth stood before me.

“Michaela!? What are you doing here!?”

“I was checking to make sure no one was up here! What are you doing here!?” I grilled him as I tried to look into the room. I could smell her, but I couldn’t see her.

“Michaela, you need to go back to your room and stay there!” he told me and tried to slam the door in my face.

“Seth! Why not just let me in with you!? I mean, you could keep me safe!”

“Michaela, I can’t! I have other orders I have to handle. Just go back to your room!”

“Why won’t you just—”

“Enough of this!” Claude hissed and shoved Seth aside.

“What the f**k!?” Seth quickly got to his feet.

“You should have just let me in,” I sneered at him. I looked around and saw no one. “Where is she!?”

“Where’s who!?” Seth disputed.

“I saw you bring her in here, Seth! WHERE IS THAT b***h, VIVIENNE!?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about! I didn’t bring anyone in here!” Seth retorted, holding his place.

“YOU’RE LYING!” I growled and started to look everywhere for her. I checked the in-suite bathroom, the closet, the linen closet, under the bed, and even on the balcony. This b***h was gone. “WHERE IS SHE!?”

“YOU STUPID b***h!” Claude hissed at me.

“Hey, bloodsucker!” Seth called out to him. Claude looked in his direction, and Seth opened the curtain. The sunlight directly hit Claude.

“AHHH!!” I screamed. Claude was screeching before he shimmered away. “YOU BASTARD!!! YOU COULD HAVE KILLED HIM!!” I cried and tried to hit him. Seth grabbed both of my arms and held them tight. “Ow, you’re hurting me!”

“Why are you with a vampire, Michaela?” Seth gritted his teeth.

“That’s not just any vampire. That was Claude Buntaine, the man who kidnapped me.” I turned my head to see Vivienne. “Why are you with him, of all the vampires in the world, hm?”

“You!? But you—”

“Did you forget that I am a hybrid and that I, too, can shimmer?” she asked me and smirked. “The moment the door opened, I could smell you and that a*****e, Claude. So, I shimmered outside. You have a lot of explaining to do, Michaela.”

“I don’t answer to the likes of you!” I shouted in her face.

“That is okay. I don’t need to know your reasons because, frankly, I just don’t give a s**t. I think you may want to go outside though. There is someone who would like to speak to you,” she insisted. She nodded to Seth, and he let me go. I backed away and stared at her. “Go on. Trust me, you do not want to miss this.” I growled at her before leaving.

As I made my way downstairs, I couldn’t stop but wonder if Claude was going to be okay. He was hit directly with sunlight. I shook my head of the unnecessary thoughts. I didn’t have time to worry about that a*****e. It’s not my fault he got distracted with me and allowed Seth to get the upper hand.

When I got to the front door, it was wide open, and I could hear voices shouting at each other. I recognized one as my dad and another as J.D.’s. The third voice was female, and it sounded so familiar. I couldn’t place it until she said “not-so-dead Luna.” My eyes shot wide open, and I ran through the door, and I vaguely saw my mother. Very much alive.

“MOM!?” I called out to her in shock.

“Oh, my sweet girl.”

“Mom, you .. you’re alive!?” I couldn’t believe it. All these years, I thought she was killed by rogues.

“Yes, honey, I am, and I am so disappointed in you!” she railed at me with disappointment without missing a beat. What the f**k?

“What?” was all I could respond to that. Instead of just easing into her explanation of her sudden disappointment, she went all-in and called me out for all the s**t that I had done over the last several years. How did she even know about any of the things I’ve done, especially me rejecting J.D? Where had she been this whole time? I tried to save myself by explaining the reasoning behind my actions, but instead of being comforting, she tore into me again and basically called me a w***e while comparing me to my dad.

I never thought the truth could be so painful, and yet, here was my mom throwing the truth in my face, and she wasn’t even trying to hold back. She made zero attempt to not hurt my feelings. Who was this woman? She was never this hard on me. Why was she suddenly turning her back on me? If that didn’t sting enough, then she had to call me out for something that I thought no one would ever know.

“…not only that, but you teamed up with a vampire to get Jedediah’s mate kidnapped.”

“WHAT?!?!” I heard J.D. roar and before I could even comprehend the shithole my mom just threw me in, I felt my neck being grabbed and my body being slammed against the wall of the packhouse. Never in a million years did I think that J.D. could hurt me, but he was actually hurting me intentionally.

“J.D., please, you’re hurt..ing…me,” I begged, trying to loosen his hold on my neck.

“You conspired with Claude to have Vivienne kidnapped!?” he snarled into my face while adding pressure into his hold, choking me. I was at least three feet off the ground, and my feet were kicking on their own as I struggled to breathe. “ARE YOU THAT f*****g SELFISH!? THAT f*****g SELF-ABSORBED!? Do you realize that he could have killed her and my pups!?” My eyes snapped open.

“P-p-pups!?” I snarled in disgust. This b***h was pregnant!? J.D. could sense my disgust, and he threw me with all of his strength. My back hit the pillar outside of the packhouse. I yelped in pain. I pushed myself up as I held my neck. I could feel the bruises starting to form.

“Give me one good reason why I SHOULDN’T RIP YOUR F*****G HEAD OFF!?” he roared into my face. I squeezed my eyes shut, and I screamed in fear. I had never once heard him roar so loud. I looked up at him, his eyes were black as night and his wolf had taken over. He almost sounded like a …

“You… You’re … You’re an Alpha!?”

“Oui, he is.” I watched as two pale arms wrapped around his waist. I visibly saw J.D.’s composure relax, and his wolf subsided as he interlocked their fingers together. She came around from behind him and smirked at me. I looked at her closely and could see the baby bump. “He is my Alpha. Guess what that makes me?” she taunted. I couldn’t stop the tears of rage that formed in my eyes.

“NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!” I kicked and screamed. I grabbed my hair and screamed at the top of my lungs. “WHY!? WHY!? YOU WERE MY MATE FIRST!! I DESERVE TO BE LUNA!!! AHHHH!!! WHY ARE THE FATES SO CRUEL!?!” I cried and slammed my hands on the ground.

“The fates aren’t cruel, Michaela!” my mother shouted at me. J.D. and Vivienne backed away as my mother came and kneeled in front of me. I kept crying, seeing the amount of anger in her eyes. Anger geared towards me. “The moon goddess gave you the most precious gift, and instead of accepting it wholeheartedly, you turned it down and spat on it. I told you from the very beginning that if the moon goddess gives you a mate, it’s for a very specific reason and to never, ever take it for granted. But that’s what you did, and so the fates are punishing you. Not only are you being shown what could have been yours had you just accepted him for who he was, but they’re punishing you for making your second chance the enemy of that gift.” I gasped when she said that and whipped my head up to face her.

“How did you …” She snapped her fingers and J.D.’s dad handed her an iPad. She tapped the screen and showed it to me; it was me and Claude having s*x against the packhouse wall the other night. Sound and everything. I shook my head in denial. This couldn’t be happening. My own mother was against me, and she showed this video with the sound turned up all the way so everyone could hear, even J.D. and Vivienne.

“Holy f**k,” J.D. spat in disgust. He just shook his head at me and walked away with Vivienne by his side. The fact that he didn’t bother to say anything else just showed the amount of hatred he had towards me.

“Mom, why? How could you?” I asked her with poison in my voice.

“I had no choice. I wanted to do everything in my power to get you out of here after everything was in its rightful place, but when I saw this video, I knew that there was no turning back for you. I could have forgiven you for all of the mistakes that you made over the years, Michaela—because you’re my daughter, and I love you. But this,” she said as she showed me the iPad, “I couldn’t believe it when I saw it. You were an accessory to the kidnapping of someone else’s mate. You knew how much I treasured the mate bond, even after all of the emotional pain your father put me through. And yet, you did something like this?” She paused for a minute, and I could see her shaking her head in my peripheral vision.

“What’s going to happen to me?” I sobbed.

“I don’t know. That’s going to be up to Jedediah and his father.”

“Father? What does Duke have to do with this?”

“Not Duke.” I furrowed my brows. “His biological father. Alpha Bartholomew Ricard. The true Alpha of Red Mountain.”