Chapter 3 - The Price of Temptation

Luna knew she shouldn’t return.

After what happened in the woods—Kael’s mouth, his hands, the way her body trembled under his touch—she should’ve vanished across the border and never looked back. But her wolf was restless. Hungry. Unsatisfied.

And her heart? It beat like a war drum, calling her back to the one place she was least safe—near him.

She moved like a shadow through the outer ridge of Bloodfang territory, every sense sharpened. The night air was thick with tension, the scent of pine and moss mixing with the masculine musk that made her pulse race.

Kael. His scent still clung to her skin. His growl still echoed in her ears.

She told herself it was just lust.

But deep down, something was stirring—something ancient, dangerous, and terrifyingly real.

---

Kael stood at the edge of his war room, eyes locked on the map spread across the table. The patrols were uneasy. Rogues were gathering near their borders, whispering rebellion. And in the center of it all, one woman haunted his every thought.

Luna Cross.

She was unlike any wolf he’d ever known. Wild, unpredictable… and breathtaking. He couldn’t get the way she moaned his name out of his head. The way she surrendered to his touch—and still kept her power.

His Beta Rafe entered, eyes narrowed.

“She was spotted again,” he said. “Near the Shadow Ridge.”

Kael didn’t look up. “Did she harm anyone?”

“No. Just... watching.”

“She’s not a threat.”

Rafe frowned. “You don’t know that.”

Kael’s voice dropped. “I do.”

The truth was, Kael should’ve ordered her captured or killed. But his wolf wouldn’t allow it. It clawed at his insides, demanding her—wanting to claim her in a way that went beyond lust. Beyond instinct.

Something was happening between them. Something neither of them understood.

And that terrified him more than any war.

---

Luna perched on a branch high in the trees, eyes scanning the territory below. She watched the guards move, her mind racing.

She wasn’t just here to tease the Alpha.

She was hunting something.

A scent had hit her the previous night—a rogue male from her past. Dren. A traitor who once tried to force her into submission. He was cruel, unhinged, and the only wolf Luna ever truly feared. If he was near Bloodfang borders, it meant trouble.

And Kael didn’t even know it.

Suddenly, movement below caught her eye.

Two Bloodfang wolves on patrol… and behind them, a flicker of black fur. Too fast. Too quiet.

Luna’s heart jumped.

Dren.

Without thinking, she leapt from the tree, landing with precision and shifting mid-air. Her black wolf sprinted silently through the brush, closing the gap between the rogues and the patrol.

One of the Bloodfang guards turned at the last second, sensing danger—but it was too late.

The rogue lunged.

Luna slammed into the attacker mid-pounce, teeth sinking into fur and flesh. They tumbled through the underbrush, snarling and snapping, claws raking against each other. The rogue’s yellow eyes locked onto hers.

“Luna,” he growled in her mind, voice oily and cruel. “Still playing the hero?”

“Still rotting like the scum you are,” she snarled back.

She shifted mid-fight, rolling off him as he broke away, injured but alive. He darted into the darkness, blood trailing behind him.

The guards stared at her, stunned.

“Tell your Alpha he’s got worse problems than me,” Luna said coldly, then vanished into the trees.

---

Kael burst into the clearing minutes later, fury burning in his eyes. The guards explained what happened. How she saved them. How she fought off the rogue.

“She said he was called Dren,” one of them said. “A rogue she knew.”

Kael’s stomach turned. That name wasn’t unfamiliar. He’d heard whispers—of a wolf who preyed on females, marked without consent, challenged Alphas and vanished before punishment.

If he was here, Kael had more than territory to worry about.

He turned to the trees, fists clenching.

Luna. Why hadn’t she told him?

Because she didn’t trust him. Because she didn’t belong to him.

Yet.

---

Hours later, she emerged near the riverbank, body bruised but victorious. She dipped into the water, letting the chill numb her thoughts. Her hair clung to her neck, her skin marked with dirt and blood.

A rustle.

She didn’t look.

“I knew you’d come,” she said softly.

Kael’s voice was low. “Why didn’t you tell me he was near?”

She turned, eyes sharp. “Because I didn’t come here to ask permission. I came to finish something.”

He stepped closer. “You could’ve died.”

“But I didn’t.”

They stood inches apart, water lapping at their ankles.

“Why do you keep coming back?” he asked.

“Why do you keep letting me?” she shot back.

He didn’t answer. Instead, he cupped her face with rough, warm hands and kissed her. Slower this time. Deeper. His lips devoured hers with a hunger that wasn’t just lust—it was need.

Luna moaned into his mouth, her hands curling into his chest as his tongue slid against hers. He lifted her easily, her legs wrapping around his waist as their lips collided again and again.

He pressed her back against a tree, her thighs parted, heart pounding.

But this time, he didn’t rush.

This wasn’t dominance.

This was surrender.

And neither of them knew who they were surrendering to anymore.