Novels by Calliee

KAYLAHis car pulled up exactly on time, which felt deeply unfair. Late would have given me an excuse. Late would have meant I could text Zara saying he didn't show and spend the day aggressively reorganizing my closet instead.But no. Seven fifty-nine, and there he was.I grabbed my bag and walked out before I could think too hard about it.He was leaning against the passenger side when I stepped outside, looking all casual. Like a man with an entirely clear conscience, which was offensive."Morning," he said."Morning."I reached for the door handle at the exact same moment he did. Our hands landed on top of each other.I pulled back like I'd touched a stove. "Sorry."He opened the door without a word. I got in without looking at him.The drive started fine. Zara's voice filled the silence through his phone speaker, talking about paint colors and whether the accent wall should be sage or terracotta, and I contributed exactly the right number of mm-hmms and I like the sage to sound l

KAYLAI spent the entire morning telling myself I was ready. I was not ready.But that was tomorrow's problem. Tonight, I just had to survive getting home.The cab ride back from the café felt longer than it should have. I kept my eyes on the window and watched the city blur past, buildings and streetlights and strangers living completely unbothered lives, and I envied every single one of them.By the time I got to my floor, I had almost convinced myself I was fine.Then Mrs. Cassia's door swung open."Kayla!"I stopped walking. "Hi, Mrs. Cassia."She was already in the hallway, arms open, slippers on, reading glasses pushed up on her forehead. She pulled me into a hug before I could prepare for it. She smelled like shea butter and rice and everything warm, and some stupid part of me nearly teared up."You're back," she said, holding me at arm's length to look at me properly. "You look thin.""I'm not thin.""You're thin. Come, let me give you something.""I just ate…""You ate café f

KAYLAI woke up exhausted. Not physically… morally. The second my eyes opened, last night came crashing back .The kiss. The panic. The look on Darius's face before he left.I groaned and immediately buried my face in my pillow. "Nope."Unfortunately, my brain wasn't interested in cooperating. Every embarrassing second replayed itself anyway.I kissed him. The realization hit me all over again.Not only had I kissed him. I had kissed my best friend's boyfriend.I rolled onto my back and stared at the ceiling. "Okay." I pointed at the ceiling. "We are not doing this today."No flirting, staring, thinking about him, or replaying the kiss.Last night was a mistake. A massive, catastrophic mistake, and from this moment forward, I was going to act like a mature adult with functioning self-control.My phone suddenly rang. I reached for it, and the screen lit up.Zara was Calling.I closed my eyes. "Of course."I considered pretending to be dead. Instead, I answered. "Hello?""Good morning,

KAYLAI didn’t even know what I was thinking anymore. That was the terrifying part.It felt like my brain had completely disconnected from the rest of my body. Like every logical thought inside my head was screaming that this was wrong while the rest of me stood there melting anyway.Zara was my best friend. His girlfriend.Every single fact was still there in my head, clear as day, and somehow none of it was enough to stop whatever this was.I opened my mouth to speak. To tell him to leave. To finally say it properly this time.“I…” The word came out uneven. “You should…”But the sentence died completely when Darius suddenly pulled me closer again.A soft gasp escaped me as my body pressed fully against his this time.His hand slid slowly up my back, firm and warm through the fabric of my dress, and every tiny movement sent another wave of heat through me.God.Every single hair on my body rose instantly.He noticed that too. Of course he did.His head dipped slightly, his eyes fixed

KAYLAI was unsettled.Completely. Deeply. Irritatingly unsettled.The moment Zara said she was sending Darius back, my entire body had reacted before my brain even caught up. My pulse had jumped. My stomach had tightened. And the worst part is I hadn't recovered from the way his hand had felt on me earlier.That stupid squeeze had burned itself directly into my brain.I exhaled sharply and hurried upstairs again, clutching the folder against my chest.“Nope,” I muttered under my breath. “Absolutely not.”If he was coming over here acting stupid, then I was at least going to make sure I looked as unappealing to him as possible.I went straight to my suitcase and yanked out the longest dress I owned. It covered me from collarbone to ankle like I was preparing for winter in another century.Perfect.I changed quickly, then stared at myself in the mirror afterward. There was nothing visible, tempting and nothing for him to look at.And somehow that realization annoyed me too.I brushed m

KAYLABy the time the food was gone and the tea had been refilled twice, something in me had unclenched properly for the first time since the plane landed.This… Zara talking with her whole body, both hands moving, nearly knocking her mug off the counter twice. Her laugh filling every corner of the room. I'd missed her in a way I hadn't let myself fully feel until right now.Darius had been quiet for most of it, he laughed when something was actually funny. Asked exactly two questions, both of them good ones. Refilled my mug once without being asked and I told myself that meant nothing and I almost believed it."Okay." Zara stood up suddenly. She stretched both arms above her head and groaned. "We have to go.""Already?""It is… " She checked her phone and made a face. "Kayla. It's almost midnight.""It is not.""It genuinely is and you just got off a long flight and I have a seven AM and if I don't leave right now I'm going to keep you up until three talking about nothing and you're

ELIASIt was race day. I'd barely slept, not because I was nervous, but because someone had refused to let me stop training.Raina had stood by the edge of the track almost the entire night, insisting I do "one more lap" every time I thought I was done.I honestly didn't need that much practice. Being a wolf already gave me an advantage over every human racer out there. My reflexes were sharper, my stamina was better, and my senses picked up things no ordinary person could.Still… I didn't complain.Every time I looked over and saw her watching me with those worried eyes, I understood why she was doing it.She wanted me to win by all means. So I trained until she was finally satisfied. By the time we got home, the sun had already begun to rise. I expected her to go straight to bed. Instead… she disappeared into the kitchen.The smell of breakfast drifted through the house a while later. I walked in to find her placing food onto the table, looking exhausted."You should've slept."She

RAINAThe moment the last word left his mouth, his hand was already at the back of my neck, pulling me forward.The kiss was nothing like the teasing almost-kiss from before. His lips pressed hard against mine, and I felt the heat of his palm against my skin, the way his fingers curled into the nape of my neck, holding me in place. His tongue swept across my lower lip and then inside, tasting and stroking.I made a small sound against his mouth, and he swallowed it.My hands found his chest, curling my fingers into his shirt, feeling his heartbeat under my palm. He kissed me like he was starving for it, his other hand slid down my back, pressing me closer until there was no space left between us.When he finally broke the kiss, we were both breathing hard."Turn around,” he commanded. I opened my mouth to say something… maybe a witty remark or a protest just to be difficult… but the look in his eyes made the words die on my tongue. He wasn't playing anymore.I turned. My hands landed

RAINAThe meeting with the Vice-Chancellor went far better than I had expected. After reviewing my documents and asking a few questions, he smiled warmly and extended his hand."Welcome," he said. "We'll be happy to have you here. Your classes begin next week."I shook his hand, still feeling as though I was dreaming. Next week, I was really going back to school to study medicine.When we stepped out of his office, I let out a slow breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.Elias looked at me and smiled. "So," he asked, "future doctor... how does it feel?"I laughed, still overwhelmed. "I don't think it's sunk in yet.""It will."He slipped his fingers through mine as we walked toward the parking lot. "Alright, let's head home. I'm sure Kai is losing his mind by now."I nodded. "Yeah... we've been gone longer than we planned."A few minutes later, we were back on the motorcycle. The ride home felt lighter than before. The wind rushed past us, and this time I hugged Elias without him h

RAINAThe bathroom door opened, and I looked up instinctively.My eyes landed on Elias. His hair was still damp from the shower, tiny droplets of water trailing down his neck before disappearing beneath the towel wrapped around his waist.I quickly looked away. Get yourself together, Raina.After everything we'd been through, I wasn't about to let him catch me staring.Out of the corner of my eye, I watched him pull on a black T-shirt and a pair of dark jeans before slipping on his watch."I'll be right back," he said, grabbing his keys. "Don't disappear on me."I rolled my eyes. "I don't think I know this place well enough to disappear."He chuckled, walked over, pressed a quick kiss to my forehead, and headed out.The room fell quiet.I wandered over to the large window and looked out across the pack. Warriors trained in the distance while children chased each other between the houses. Smoke curled lazily from chimneys, and people moved about their morning as though this had always

ELIASI woke up to the warmth of her body against mine, and for a moment, I didn't move.Raina was asleep on my chest, one arm rested loosely across my stomach, breathing slowly and peacefully.A smile found its way onto my face. God... I'd missed this.Carefully, I wrapped my arms around her a little tighter, savoring the feeling of having her back where she belonged… in my arms.I'd been given another chance, and I wasn't stupid enough to waste it. Never again. I'd spend every single day proving it if I had to. I was going to love her with everything I had.My gaze drifted to her sleeping face, and yesterday replayed in my mind. Watching her heal those warriors… watching everyone stop and stare in disbelief...She had no idea how extraordinary she really was. She was so much stronger than she believed, and now I knew exactly what I needed to do first.She needed real training. Not because she was weak, but because her gift was far greater than she understood. If she could do all tha

RAINAHis mouth moved to my neck, his teeth grazing the sensitive skin just below my ear. I gasped, arching into him. His tongue soothed the bite, then he moved his lips lower, trailing hot kisses down the column of my throat.I gripped his hair, pulling hard. "You're…" My voice broke as he sucked a mark just above my pulse. "You're an asshole.""Mm." He dragged his mouth lower, over the neckline of my dress. "Tell me something I don't know."The fabric of my dress was thin, and flimsy. He pulled it down, exposing my breasts to the cool air. My nipples tightened instantly, and I saw the hunger flash in his eyes.He didn't wait. His mouth closed over one nipple, and I cried out. His tongue circled the peak, then he sucked hard, making me scream. His hand came up to cup the other breast, flicking across the sensitive tip with his thumb. "Elias…" His name came out broken from my lips."You like that," he murmured against my skin."Shut up."He laughed softly, and slid his hand down my s

OLIVIA It was a small laugh, kind of rusty, like something that hadn't been used in a long time… but it was real, and it moved across his face and made him look, for just a moment, like someone I remembered from a long time ago. Someone from before everything went wrong.From the doorway, Axiel was no longer pretending the cough was a cough."I'm going to accept it," I said, "and I'm going to make my own changes. Real ones. Not adjustments to the existing structure — a genuine rebuild from the ground up. New resource strategy, new alliance approach, new internal policies. The council will advise but they will not override me. Everything gets examined." I looked at my father directly. "All of it. Including things that have been done a certain way for thirty years simply because they've been done a certain way for thirty years.""Yes," he said, still recovering from the laugh. "Yes. Anything you need.""Good." I stood up, and he looked momentarily startled. "But not today.""Not—""I

OLIVIAThe drive back to the main pack grounds felt different in the morning.Yesterday, coming in, everything had looked like a wound… the peeling paint and the overgrown paths and the hollow-eyed pack members had landed on me like evidence in a case I was still deciding whether to take. This morning, with proper sleep and Axiel's eggs and the particular clarity that comes from having actually made a decision, it looked different.Not better, exactly. The problems were all still there, plain as ever in the early light — a loose shutter hanging off the community hall, a fence line that needed replacing, a garden that wanted serious attention. Nothing had changed overnight.But it looked like a list now instead of a verdict.*That needs fixing. That needs replacing. That needs someone who actually cares to spend three hours with it and a set of tools.*Manageable problems. Hard, expensive, time-consuming, emotionally loaded… but manageable.I'd spent the drive making mental notes, and

AXIELThe pack grounds were quieter now, the last lights going out in the windows as I crossed back toward my chambers. Overhead the sky was clear and I stopped for a moment and looked up at them.Two months I'd been living in this place, watching it slowly come apart and holding the whole operation together. Two months of careful conversations and long evenings and learning which elders were reachable and which were calcified beyond help. Two months of not knowing if any of it would work.And today Olivia Hunter had walked back through those gates and in the space of an afternoon had looked at a seven-year-old boy on a fence post and shaken his hand like a promise.Yeah. She was going to say yes.I walked back inside, and she was exactly where I'd left her… one hand tucked under her cheek, the covers pulled to her shoulder, breathing slow and even.I gently carried her to my room, placed her on the and laid beside her.I kept to my side, but the moment I settled against the pillow Ol

AXIELShe was asleep.I noticed the exact moment it happened… the way her breathing changed, slowing and deepening, the slight release of tension across her shoulders that had been there all day like something she'd been carrying and hadn't been able to put down. One moment she was watching the film with that expression she had… and then her head drifted, and then she was simply gone.Her head was on my shoulder.I stayed very still.I was aware that I was smiling in a way that probably looked ridiculous, and I was equally aware that there was nobody here to see it, so I let myself have it anyway. She's here.After everything… after months of living in a deteriorating pack and having difficult conversations with a dying Alpha and navigating the very delicate question of how to reach a woman who had every justifiable reason to want nothing to do with anything connected to the situation… she was here. In my space. Asleep on my shoulder, with the film still playing softly in the backgro

OLIVIAHe drove us off the main pack grounds to a smaller cluster of residential buildings on the territory's north edge… newer construction than the main residence, less grand but better maintained. He parked and led me to the second floor of the end unit, and when he opened the door I stopped in the doorway for a moment.Okay. He hadn't been exaggerating.It was warm, first of all… genuinely warm, with soft lighting. He'd rearranged the furniture into something that actually made sense for the space. There were books stacked on the side table and a decent rug under the coffee table and curtains that matched, which given what I'd seen of the rest of the pack's current state of resources seemed almost miraculous."Did you just… bring all of this?" I asked, stepping inside."Some of it. Some I found in the pack's storage." He shrugged out of his jacket and hung it by the door. "There's a lot of decent furniture buried in that storage building on the west side. Nobody's been using any

OLIVIAAxiel was waiting in the hallway outside, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed."How'd it go?" he asked."He wants me to take over as Alpha."Axiel blinked. "Well. That's... not a small ask.""No. It is not." I started walking and he fell into step beside me easily, matching my pace. "He's also in worse shape than I thought. The famine is real, the pack numbers are down, and half their alliances have dissolved." I glanced at him sideways. "You knew all of this when you came to get me.""I knew some of it.""Axiel.""I knew most of it," he amended. "But I also knew that if I led with *your father's pack is in famine and falling apart and he wants you to take over as Alpha,* you might have said no before you'd seen it for yourself.""You were probably right," I admitted. "I'm still slightly annoyed.""Noted."We walked in silence for a moment, down the corridor toward the main entrance. Through the windows, I could see the pack grounds… the overgrown paths, the building