His smile lit up the whole world.
And Marc kissed me.
I held on to him, hardly daring to believe he was real. That he’d truly come back.
My struggles with the council weren’t over—hell, my fight with them might not even be over—and something told me that my Alpha growing pains had just begun. But this first hard-won victory proved that anything was possible. Jace could be an Alpha. Manx could marry for love. Owen could be a husband and father. My mother could welcome Angela into our lives and openly spoil a human grandchild. Abby, and Melody, and Kaci, and all the other young tabbies, could have options, and both the privilege and responsibility to fight for them.
And I could handle anything life saw fit to throw at me with my men at my back and Marc at my side.
Together, we represented a new page in werecat history: a stray and a tabby, leading the country’s largest Pride. The next generation might label us rebels, or—if we were lucky—revolutionaries. But however we’d be described down the road, looking forward, I was content to know that from that moment on, we’d be running things our way. The right way, politics be damned.
And by doing that, maybe I could make my father—forever my own Alpha—proud.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thanks to Kim, who first saw potential in me and in Faythe. Yours was the first real vote of confidence in me, and I will never forget it.
Thanks to my agent, Miriam Kriss, who made it all happen.
Thanks to my editor, Mary-Theresa Hussey, for kick-starting this project and seeing it through. I appreciate both your gentle nudges and the occasional neon flashing arrow. ;-)
And thanks to Number 1, who takes care of so many practical concerns, so I can spend so much time in my fantasy world. This series would not have been the same without you.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-6882-5
ALPHA
Copyright © 2010 by Rachel Vincent
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher, MIRA Books, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
MIRA and the Star Colophon are trademarks used under license and registered in Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, United States Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries.
For questions and comments about the quality of this book please contact us at [email protected].
www.MIRABooks.com
Alpha Page 39