When Ash learns she is a royal werewolf's mate and the key to breaking his curse, paying her studio rent becomes the least of her problems. ***** When the opportunity of a lifetime presented itself, Ashlyn was quick to catch the first flight to Scotland to photograph the wedding of a prestigious family of Dukes and Duchesses. What she didn't expect was to meet a handsome duke with a dark secret who couldn't seem to keep his eyes off her. Little did she know that her handsome duke is cursed and she is the key to breaking the evil spell that binds him to a witch. Ashlyn's world turns upside-down as she embarks on a life-altering journey where werewolves exist, where dark curses are real, and where she's the mate of a respected alpha - all while being awfully human. Beauty and the Beast takes a royal, howling twist in this epic rom-com novel.

11/5: #71 He waited in the shadows of the overgrown forest watching her silhouette move around her room. He was growing impatient by the minute wanting to claim and possess what was rightfully his. Tonight will be the night that he claimed her, even though she had already rejected him. He hadn't taken it lightly when she had walked away from him, so now he will have her in any way possible. The light shut off letting him know that in a few minutes she will fall into a deep slumber. Dashing across the field reaching the bottom of the Inn, he noticed the opened balcony doors. It's as if she had known he would be arriving to claim her. Turning back into his God given shape, he jumped up onto the second floor with no difficulty. The night's cool breeze woke up his senses as he smelled her intoxicating scent... "MINE!" he growled. Once inside he smirked at the sight of his Mate sound asleep. Walking over to her, he breathes her in to ease the beast within. "The potion should be working now. Catalina." calling out to her she stirred. His body settled on top of hers, his hardened manhood brushing her bare thigh causing him to growl lowly. His beast was trying to convince him to take her, after all, he is the Alpha King and she was his. Lowering his head, he kissed her neck causing her to moan. Sucking the area he would mark her, he extended his canines grazing her skin. "You can't escape me know my Queen." Sinking into her neck, her body arched involuntarily as he held her down. Pulling away he licked the blood droplets away then kissed it, she let out a loud moan. "You are bound to me forever my beautiful Catalina... only me." whispering in her ear he then crashed his lips on hers tasting them like he had wanted too since he first saw her. Kaden Hendry is the Alpha King of his kind ruling all werewolves from England. Cold, disconnected and detached he finds his Mate who rejects him. Catalina Luna is the foreigner visiting his country and the runaway Mate.

The characters are highly complex and they exist in a world that values strength over compassion, only the strong survive. The life inside the pack mimics that of a real wolf pack with a strict hierarchy that is established through fighting and power. It is also comparable to a medieval court, the king holds his divine right to rule and the queen exists solely to please and support the king. Throw in scheming courtiers with the ability to change into wolves with sharp claws and fangs and you have the pack construct. As the characters are basically wolves housed in a human skin and the story is laced with animalistic references and traits displayed by all. We first meet the main characters Meela and Grey it is on a bloody battlefield where they recognize each other as their soul mate, and Grey takes Meela as tribute for his pack's help in her brother's fight. From this point on Meela belongs to Grey, and in this world, a highly spirited female with a propensity for impulsive actions matched to a dog stubborn, self-assured, dominant male is going to cause problems. We follow Meela in her journey to become the pack's Luna, a pack who are even more wolf than the one she comes from, and with a mate who has set the highest standards for her to reach as his Luna(female Alpha) and will accept nothing less than perfection. In the midst of all this and the struggle they face to form a personal and public relationship, there is one incident that will change them both and the fate of the pack completely. From that point on both Meela and Grey are inevitably changed and for them to be together, either one or both needs to change, but when you live in a world where you are taught that weakness is easily exploited and to admit defeat can potentially lead to your destruction. Thank you @chortle for the great summary