The diner was a 1950s style burger joint, complete with black and white checked flooring and too-shiny red seats. The waitresses were wearing the same type of uniforms I’d seen in old movies, and Elvis played quietly over the speaker. One of the booths seemed to be made out of a classic car.Elroy l
But he hadn’t told me his feelings, hadn’t told me how close he wanted us to be. He could just mean he wanted a strong partnership as Alpha and Luna, like we’d discussed at the very beginning of it all, or it could be he cared for me as the mother of his child but didn’t love me. Not like I loved hi
I rose with the sun, brushing aside the veil of last night's uncertainties. Elroy had left early, and even though he was usually gone by the time I woke up, his side of the bed felt colder than normal.I moved through the morning with my thoughts in a tumult, incessantly repeating the same questions
“Jordan,” I said, “I think it’s time to hold a banquet.”The low light of my bedside lamp lay across Elroy's face, casting a warm glow on his furrowed brow as we settled down to sleep. It was hard to believe that I’d once been so reluctant to lay near him, and now this protective little cocoon we fo
Olivia POVI had no idea what to say. I needed to do so many things, but right now I needed this man to continue to be the kind, playful husband he was being. My whole body seemed to light up inside from his touch, and all I wanted was for him to keep smiling and be happy.“Do you mean that?” I aske
But Jordan was right. What Ines and the others had described was a caste system in all but name.“People aren’t going to like our using that word,” I muttered.“People aren’t going to like a lot of things,” Fay said.“Yes, but there’s a knee-jerk reaction to the term ‘caste.’” I knew we were all thi
Olivia POVI had always admired blood woods. Unlike the rather ugly bloodwood trees of southern Africa (so named because they seemed to “bleed” red sap when cut), blood woods’ deep scarlet color, elegantly twisted trunk, and thickly canopied dark green leaves made them a delightful focal point of an
Olivia POV“He seems to know you,” Elroy said, and there was some accusation in his tone.“I promise I have no idea—”“Alphas! Betas! Omegas! And ladies and gentlemen!” the man said, his voice easily reaching over the chamber music to every corner of the room.Elroy signaled for the music to stop, a
Elroy POVAs we ran, I felt more powerful than I ever had before, and the feeling was so heady I could almost understand how some alphas fell prey to its corruption.But along with that new power came an increase in my balance and in my self-awareness. I knew it was because of Olivia at my side, fly
“First, please, why was Louisa talking about how you were kidnapped? You think she was lying?”I waved the question away. “Louisa only lies when she’s talking. Obviously, she’s trying to con me into something, but I’m not going to waste my time listening to her.I could tell Elroy wanted to keep tal
Olivia POVLouisa stared at me, but while I tried to look back at the actual woman speaking to me, all I truly saw was my bully, the woman giggling in delight as she slept with my fiancé, and the person who had tried to take everything from me. I wanted to challenge her to combat, transform, and bre
How could I explain myself to her now? How could I ever make up for my actions?The door to the antechamber opened, and a young servant walked in. I had made a study of Olivia’s life in the palace since her wedding, and I knew the servant’s name was Jordan.I stood, and Jordan looked at me with impa
Louisa POVI sat in some anonymous antechamber in the palace and basically felt like shit.I was young, but I’d had many experiences. I’d run with the pack under a full moon. I’d attended, and excelled at, Lunaris’s top schools. I’d challenged an alpha who wouldn’t respect my space, and I won, thoug
Elroy POV“Your political affiliation with a woman you ‘married’ while she was unconscious is of no concern to this council,” Elder Juarez scoffed.“Moonshadow holds a proxy marriage as binding,” Greg said.“But I don’t,” Olivia told him. “The thought of the political power you exerted over me is si
Olivia POVIris and I rode back to the palace in a car Elroy sent to the Moonshadow Keep at dawn. Rodin was with us because Iris refused to leave him behind.It would have been different if the beta actually had a passion for cooking or dreams of being a chef, but once Iris told him he’d make an exc
Olivia POVI had achieved a kind of patience while waiting for Iris to finish her analysis. Rodin was quietly helpful, and Brady had returned from her errand to organize getting Iris whatever equipment she needed.I was so impressed watching her. How nice it would be to have a demonstrable skill, so
Elroy POVHer room was empty, but that didn’t alarm me at first. There were many places throughout the palace where she could be reading or napping or hosting a return visit from one of the pack leaders.But even as I walked the halls, I knew she was doing none of these things. I could feel her miss