OH MY GOD. ITS FINALLY HERE. ASDFGHJKL;

Gosh, I am actually really excited about this book. And yes, I know you are probably like, WHY IS NIKOLAI GAY? WAEE~~ Well, because I wanted him to be. I was going to actually have Scarlet have a girl and then the girl become the Alpha, since that was like a taboo, but then I had another brilliant idea and thought this was perfect.

So yes, Nikolai likes guys, and yes, this book is a boyxboy. BUT, that does not mean that the rest of the books will be that way. In fact, unless I change my mind later on, this will be the only boyxboy book in the Playful Series. Also, there may or may not be any sex scenes in this book, seeing as its rated I am still new to writing them and they are VERY amateur, lol.

But I do encourage you to read this book, because if you don't, the third book will come as a big confusion. And just for any of you people that just don't like reading lovey-dovey scenes between two men, then I will put a warning before each chapter that might have sexual content in it. 

But there most likely won't be any scenes like that. Maybe... :D

ANYWHORE, YAY! THE GANGS ALL BACK AGAIN. Well sorta, their children are back, and that counts for something, right? Right. That's what I thought.

This book is going to be a roller coaster of emotions, laughs, BETRAYAL(maybe) and a hint of sass, so lets get prepared for a bumpy ride ^_^ Now admire Nikolai's sexiness over there :3

Chapter One

Young Blood

If I heard one more person say, "Its my duty as future Alpha." I think I might just slit their throat. I was so tired of having to constantly repeat myself, saying how I wasn't interested in being Alpha. Plus, I looked nothing like one. Where most Alphas were huge, buff and had a kill-everything-that-disobeys-me attitude, I was skinny, fit, and had a I-just-hate-everybody attitude.

And if the events that took place eight years ago with my dad as Alpha happened to me, I would much rather shit myself than solve the problem.

I, Nikolai Savage, was just not...an Alpha.

I could pick out at least twenty guys in our pack that were more fit for the title, but my dad would have none of it, and to make matters worse, I had four days until I was crowned King of all Wolves in Golden Valley. 

So you know what that means?

Four days of secret scheming of how I'm going to get out of this town and away from my responsibilities and duties. Sound like you're average teenager, right? I couldn't do this alone however, because also just like your average teenager, we have to drag a friend down with us. 

And I knew just who to take down with my sinking ship.

"Nate!" I yelled as I saw my best friend sitting at our usual table in the cafe. He looked up at the sound of his name and groaned when he saw it was me.

"Oh god. Its you." I chuckled as I took the seat across from him. The waitress came over and took my order. I looked back at Nate and put on my best Cheshire cat grin.

"You know, you have got to be the best friend a guy could ask for." I said smoothly, stretching my arms across the table. He looked at me with disgust, but I knew it wasn't actual. Nate loved me, whether he wanted to admit it or not.

"Jesus Kolya, spit it out all ready. Your sweet talking is giving me diabetes." He scoffed, some of his white blond hair falling into his face in the process.  He brushed it back to the top of his head and took a long sip of his drink, which I assumed was Pepsi seeing as it was all he drank. I'm sure his kidneys flipped shit when he drank water. "Besides, when you normally involve me in your evil plans, which is always, you just come right up and say it. But this one is being drawled out so now I'm curious as to know what you have planning."

"I want to get out of here. Before my birthday. Somewhere far away and I want you to come along with." Nate's parents were killed in a raid on our pack a couple years back. We lost a lot of people that day, but his parent's death was by far the worst. They were literally torn limb from limb, and poor Nate was just sitting there, covered in their blood. It took a couple years of intense therapy to get him to act normal again. But even now, he still has moments where he just shuts off from the world.

"Normally I would reject this type of offer, but seeing as we're going to be eighteen soon and I hate this town so fucking much. I'll go." My eyes widened and a huge smile spread across my face.

"Are you for real right now?"

"Totally."

"Like one hundred percent."

"Uh huh."

"Really really?"

"Yes Nikolai, really. Holy shit." I clapped my hands at how much easier this was going to be. Now, I just needed a place to go.

"So where exactly are we going?" Nate asked the question running through my mind.

"I was just thinking that same think."

"You mean you came up with the idea of leaving, but had no place in mind?" I shyly smiled at him and he groaned, rubbing his hands along his face.

"What place?" I gave out the girlest shriek at the sudden voice behind me. Everyone in the cafe turned to look at us with looks of distaste and I quickly met them with my evil glare.

"Navaeh, why would you do that? You know he sounds like a girl when he screams." Nate groaned.

"Yeah---Wait what? I do not sound like a girl. That was a very manly scream." I scoffed offended.

"Clearly." Navaeh murmured as she took a seat at our table. "Now, where are you planning to go that you have told no one about?" Nate opened his mouth to tell her, but I quickly threw my hand in his face and turned to look at Navaeh.

"Don't worry about it. You aren't even invited to come with us." I said in a snotty tone, pointing my nose up to add emphasis.

"Okay Gretchen Wieners." Navaeh scoffed. "But don't come crying to me if Tyler and Ryder come to destroy your stupid plan that you think is so fool-proof."

"You mean, I won't come crying because I am a man and we don't cry, and you won't tell your dad or mine because its clearly a fool proof plan that you are going to help with."

"But you just said that she wasn't invited." Nate said from behind me.

"No comments from the peanut gallery." I snapped at him and he looked at me like I had grown another head and smacked his forehead. He started mumbling something about being best friends with a brick, but I shrugged it off and looked back at Navaeh. She was my cousin after all. Well, not by blood, but seeing as my dad and her dad were like brothers, we kind of just fell into the cousin category.

"I don't have a place yet, or a full plan, but when I get it together, I will let you know. Your job as of now, however, is to make sure that no one, and I repeat, NO ONE, find out about this." I sat there for a couple minutes as Navaeh scrunched up her face, signaling that she was thinking this through. She finally took a deep breath.

"All right." I smiled and turned to smack Nate on the arm.

"She'll help!" I yelled at him. He grabbed his injured arm and looked at me with a face of horror.

"Ow!" 

"Shut up. I know you get hot and heavy over someone whacking you with a whip, so don't even say it hurt." I looked at Navaeh from the corner of my eye and saw she was watching us. She smirked and stood up, bringing my best friend and my attention to her.

"I'll see you guys later, I have to go shopping with my mom in a little bit." She pointed a finger at me and I jumped back a little. "You better let me know very soon about this plan. My patients is very thin, so I suggest you go home and get to work on finishing you oh-so-brilliant plan." And with that, the lovely Navaeh left the cafe. 

She was so like her mom.

I took a sip of my coke that I had just now realized was at the table, looking around the cafe. There never were many people in here, seeing as a new restaurant opened up down the road. We were a small town, so whenever a new something opened up, everyone ditched the old, and went for the new. Of course, no one from our pack made a move to go check out that restaurant because it belonged to the very people that killed many of our people and Nate's parents.

The shapeshifters.

We had believed for the longest time, we were the only supernatural beings out there, but a couple years ago, they showed up, claiming they wanted our land. But there was no way in hell we were giving up the home my ancestors had worked so hard to settle for us. Even now, we still were fixing it up, but that is what made a home, a home.

When my dad refused to give them our land, they just left. We didn't see or hear for them for months, until one night, they ambushed us. No one saw it coming, and no one was fully prepared, but we all banded together and pushed them back. When we finally got them to leave, the losses were too great a number. Almost half our pack had been slaughtered. That day was marked as the day we made official enemies with the shapeshifters.

Now they have taken up residents on the opposite side of town, far away from us.

I personally didn't like them at all. They were sneaky and that just didn't float well with me. I mean, what if your mom comes home and you go on through your day and then while you sleep, your "mom" comes into your room and rips you apart. Then you see them change into someone else. That's some fucked up shit, and that's why I hated them. They took the form of anything they see, meaning, someone in our pack could actually be a shapeshifter.

But I already brought that point up to my dad, so he has weekly blood test done. I suggested we do finger scans, but apparently these shapeshifters take everything, including DNA. Only think that can tell them apart, is their blood, seeing as we have werewolf blood and they, well, don't.

"Well as much as I love an awkward silence as anyone, I think I would much rather enjoy being at home watching some porn." I snapped out of my thoughts and looked at my best friend with a mixture of disgust and horror.

Way to much info buddy.

"I was kidding." He deadpanned, but when my facial expression made no changes, he sighed, threw a ten on the table and left. I was going to run after him, but decided that I would just sneak in through his window and scare the shit out of him.

That always made a better entrance than simply knocking on the door, and I was anything but simple.

I copied Nate, sighing and throwing down my money before getting up and taking my leave. The walk back to the pack was a quiet and quick one, and once inside, I was greeted with constant 'Hellos' and 'Good days'. 

These people were way too nice. That is until the pack is threatened, they make Cerberus look like a puppy.

I walked to the Alpha House, which was my house, even though I didn't like it. It was smack dead in the center of town and felt more like a mansion than a house. I remember when we moved in here after my parents got married, and I kept getting lost. It took me about a month to finally pinpoint my rooms location and remember it. I quickly moved out of the way from a maid carrying a vase of flowers and watched her retreating figure go in the direction of the dining room. Huh, well that was strange. The maids were never this busy and quick moving. They normally leisured around, even caught some kicking back and watching a movie or show. My head remained turned around as my legs started moving, but as soon as I looked ahead of me, I was met with a face full of muscular chest.

"Hey dad." I said in a monotone voice and he gave me a droll stare.

"Bout time you got here. I was about to send out some people to look for you." I rolled my eyes and shook my head at his comment.

"Dad, I'm about to be eighteen in four days, shouldn't you be treating me like an adult?"

"With that sour attitude, nice try." I huffed and he chuckled, ruffling my hair. I smacked his hands away and he frowned.

"Navaeh told me and your Uncle about your plan." My face paled as the words left his mouth and I looked at him with shocked eyes. She left the cafe not even ten minutes ago! How the hell did she tell them so fast? My brain started firing up to make as many excuses as I could, and my dad saw that because he sighed and rubbed at his chin.

"Listen, I know this Alpha thing is a really huge responsibility." Oh, she told them about that~. I zoned out for half of his speech, mostly because I had heard it almost a million times now. I sighed heavily and patted his arm.

"Right, yeah. I'll be happier making everyone bow down and kiss my feet. Where's mom?" He looked at me, his mouth slightly open,before narrowing his eyes at me.

"Were you even listening?" 

"Yeah, just like I was listening all the other times you gave the same speech. Now, where's mom?"I asked, sounding impatient, because I truly was. My mom was blind, but she always popped up out of nowhere and was so difficult to find.

"She was in her room, but knowing your mom, she's probably wondered off somewhere else." I rolled my eyes and my dad worried tone and started for the stairs. Every time anything dealing with my mother left his mouth, he sounded worried or scared. Even when the pack was ambushed by the shapeshifters, he was so scared we would get kidnapped again, that he hid us in the basement-slash-dungeon. I could, however, understand his reasoning for being so protective. He was scared about what had happened to us last time, would happen again. But he also failed to see how capable and strong my mom and I were. He would see eventually though.

I walked down the narrow hall, passing the many doors that filled it until I came to the one I was looking for. My parents room was, pardon my french, fucking amazing. Like there were no other words to describe it except that. It had a modern theme, but was also very Victorian so you couldn't decide if you wanted to bust out some champagne or enjoy a cup of tea by the fireplace. The walls were a cream color, outlined in gold along with little gold details in various places. The ceiling was painted to look like it was a glass top, which actually still fooled me most of the time because I always threw something at it, hoping to break the class, but ended up getting a slap in the back of the head.

There were two set of french doors that led out to a set of balconies and two sheer fabric curtains the same color as the walls kept the light from coming in the room, along with the same curtains hanging over the windows. There was a fireplace on the far end of the room, with there fucking California king size bed sitting straight across from it. The door next to the fireplace led to the gigantic bathroom and on the wall next to it was another door, leading into their walk-in closet. There were other various things around the room, but they were also things you find in just about every room. Only difference was that you couldn't figure out whether it was contemporary or Victorian.

I shut the door behind me, looking around and not seeing my mom anywhere, decided to at least open the curtains before searching again. After pulling back the curtains on the last window, I saw the door to the walk in closet slightly ajar.

"Mom?" I called out. I waited a couple seconds, and after hearing no answer, walked over and flung the door, finding the racks upon racks of clothing the only occupants of the room. I closed the door and took a deep breath before walking out of my parents room and running smack into a leather covered chest.

"Jesus Kolya, knock over your blind mamma why don't you?" I gave a small smile at my mothers remark, but then remembered she couldn't see it so I quickly discarded it. 

"Uh - I wanted to know what everyone was getting ready for?I almost got knocked over and killed by a vase of flowers." My mom snorted and held her hand out, meaning she wanted to hold onto my arm, which I greatly supplied to her.

"Lets get into my room first." She said softly and I obeyed, walking into the room and kicking the door shut. Wait - "Nikolai Carter Savage, if you kick my door closed one more fucking time, I will castrate you. Now take me to the closet." I flinched at my moms threat and felt the urge to cup my manhood. 

Never threaten to take a mans junk. Just never.

"Sorry." I muttered out, walking over and opening the closet door. We walked in and I flicked on the lights, almost jumping out of my skin when I saw how close my mom was to me.

"Your grandparents are coming." I groaned loudly at the news and buried my face into my hands. I hated my grandparents. My dad's parents had died when he was twelve, so I had no grandparents from him, but my mom, Jesus Christ. They were controlling, manipulative and so fucking annoying. When my mom had told them she had a child and was married, they immediately rushed over here. Of course, it was a reunion because my mom up and disappeared so there was some crying, mainly my grandmothers, and then scolding and then I was introduced. Right away they already started discussing scholarships, and how I was going to be the star-athlete and become a doctor, but my mom put her foot down and told them to back off, so they did, but they still talk about every time they visit.

Only thing, is that they only visited when ever we had news or they did, and seeing that they were old and boring, it was normally us being the ones with news. 

"Why? I mean, there's nothing left for us to tell them, except that your married to the Alpha of a werewolf pack and your child, along with you and everyone else are werewolves and there's vicious shapeshifters that could kill you whenever they please." My mom gave me a blank stare and shook her head.

"Sarcastic as ever I see. But no, I don't intend, nor plan to ever tell them about that," She paused and scrunched her face up, letting me know she was worried about something.

"Mom?"

"Your grandparents know about you and they knew I was pregnant, but they don't know about the - " She didn't finish the sentence, but she didn't need too because I knew what she meant.

A week after we got rescued, we found out my mom was pregnant again. Everyone was so happy and shocked seeing as she was able to change into a wolf and still carry a child. It wasn't until three months later that I woke up to screaming, only to find my dad running out of the house with my mom. I found out later that day that she lost the baby. It took a lot from us, but mainly from my mom. She became depressed for what felt like forever, but eventually we broke her from it. I knew she still had times when she let the depression take over, but it was easier to fix now than before.

"So, their coming over so you can tell them that?" I asked and she nodded. 

Well, guess asking her if she would be okay with me leaving was out of the question because now, I had a bigger concern.

The arrival of my grandparents. Yay, not.