LOGINDerek immediately looked at me like he expected me to save him. To lie for him or to change the subject, and Lucas noticed it too. His eyes narrowed slightly before he folded his arms.“Well?” he asked again. “What were you doing out here this early in the morning?”Derek cleared his throat. “I don't know, man. Walking, maybe.”Lucas stared at him flatly.“In the woods.”“Yes.”“This very early? At sunrise.”“…Yes.”“In torn clothes.”Derek looked down at himself briefly.“…Fashion choice?”I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Derek.”He looked at me again immediately, and there was something nervous in his eyes now, like he was trying to read what I wanted him to say.I tilted my head toward Lucas slightly and lowered my voice.“Just answer him,” I whispered.Derek frowned faintly. “I am answering him.”“No,” Lucas deadpanned, “I don't know what this is, but you're not answering me.”Derek sighed dramatically.“You people are exhausting.”Lucas took a step forward.“What were you doing
My chest still felt tight even when I was in the cold waters. And every time I looked at Derek standing waist-deep in the lake beside me, wet hair clinging to his forehead while he scrubbed sweat and dirt from his arms, all I could think about was the way he had kissed me like he was starving, like he had lost his mind the second he saw me.I looked away quickly and splashed more water onto my face. Neither of us spoke much while we cleaned ourselves up.After a while, we stepped out of the lake and pulled back into our dry clothes. My shirt stuck slightly to my damp skin as I tugged it down properly.Behind us, Lucas still lay unconscious near the cabin. Derek glanced toward him once before turning away casually, like knocking people out was a completely normal thing to do.I stared at him.“…Seriously?”“What?” he asked.“Why did you have to hit him really hard? What's wrong with you?”Derek shrugged. “It's not like I killed the guy. He's still alive.”“That’s not the point.”“He’ll
In a fluid motion, Derek unzipped my pants and took them off me. My throbbing cock almost tore through my drawls but then with a slip of his fingers through the fabric, he freed it from its cage. Then he took off his pants and drawls off and fell down to his knees.I gasped as I felt his fingers wrap around my cock. He spat on it and began jerking me with sure strokes."Derek... oh fuck," I breathed, blinking my eyes that were glazed with lust to gaze up into the beautiful, bright blue eyes above me.Before I could speak another word, his tongue twirled around the tip of my cock. Slowly, he sucked it with his wet mouth till he shoved my entire hard rod inside.I knew I had been away from him for less than forty-eight hours, but I couldn't hide how much I had missed being this close to him. So I grabbed his hair and pulled him off my cock."What—"I didn't even let him finish his sentence. I threw him off my body and got on top of him before he could fully roll onto his back. It was as
My father moved toward the other warriors as they regrouped.“As you all might already know by now... that's if you were paying attention. The scent is gone,” he said. “Completely.”Murmurs spread among them.“But that doesn’t make sense—”“It doesn’t just disappear—”“It does,” my father cut in, “There are several beings that can hide their scent. Even Ashbounds do it too. But it also could be that we weren't supposed to follow this scent. I don't know. I haven't chased a werewolf before.”That quieted them.He continued, “We may have been led out here deliberately. If there’s another Alpha involved... which there is, then this could be a diversion.”The tension rose again.“So what do we do?” one of the warriors asked.“We have to return for now,” my father said firmly. “The pack comes first. We regroup, reassess, and prepare.”There were nods as everyone was in agreement. But then Lucas spoke.“What if we keep going?”My head snapped slightly toward him.My father turned. “Lucas? C
I blinked at Lucas, then I let out a short, disbelieving laugh.“…What?”But he didn’t laugh back. His expression didn’t even change.“…Lucas,” I said, shaking my head, “come on, that’s a stupid question.”His jaw tightened slightly. “Answer it.”“No,” I scoffed. “You answer me first. How does that even make sense to you?”“The scent—”“The scent doesn’t mean anything!” I cut in sharply. "It could be that he probably came along this way or something."His eyes narrowed.“It means everything, Ethan,” he said. “You felt it too. Don’t lie.”I stepped closer, lowering my voice.“We've both spent a great amount of time with him,” I said. “A lot of time. If Derek was a werewolf, don't you think we would’ve known that? Or are you saying we've become so stupid that we can't tell when someone's not a hundred percent human and when that person is a half part of us?”Lucas shook his head.“No, not necessarily.”I frowned. “What does that even mean?”“It means,” he said slowly, “if he was turned
When we went back to finish the ceremony, it felt very hollow like something important had already ended, and everything after was just noise, trying to pretend it still mattered. The drums resumed, but it was weaker. The singing followed, but without the same fire and excitement. Even the cheers felt forced.That howl had cut through everything, and it hadn’t left me.When it came time to complete the final step, which was marking my chosen mate, I stepped back because marking my mate was something special and important. I couldn't do it to someone I didn't love and wasn't actually my mate.“I won’t do it tonight,” I said.The murmurs started immediately. The elders didn’t like my decision at all, and I could see it in their faces.“This is the way it has always been,” one of them said.I shook my head.“I’ll mark her when we’re older,” I replied. “I want to be able to mate with her the same day I mark my mate.”That got more reactions. Some were surprised, some showed disapproval, w
By the time I stepped back into my pack's territory, the moon had climbed higher. It looked silver and watchful above the treetops.The boundary line hummed faintly against my skin as I crossed it.No one stood at the edge waiting for me. There was no patrol wolf that stalked out of the shadows, de
I started walking now as the forest had swallowed me whole again, and the further I moved from Derek’s house, the easier it became to breathe.My jaw tightened as I followed the familiar trail back toward pack territory. Pine needles crunched beneath my boots. Birds fluttered above, startled by not
The silence stretched so tight it felt like it would snap as Derek’s father stood in the doorway, shoulders squared, eyes blazing. His gaze moved from me to Derek, then back to me again, slower this time.“Who,” he asked evenly, “is the boy in your room?”Derek opened his mouth, but nothing came ou
The way he said they were here made me bite the inside of my mouth“Who’s here?” I asked, my voice sounding smaller than I meant it to.My father didn’t look at me when he answered.“The witches.”The way he said it in a flat, heavy, final way sent a cold ripple down my spine. Before I could say an







