LOGINCalebThe drive into town is quieter than I expected.Not uncomfortable.Just calm.June sits beside me with one arm resting near the open window while warm air slips through the car. Every now and then she points something out casually, usually with a short explanation before falling quiet again.She looks more relaxed today.Not completely. June never fully lets her guard down that easily.But lighter.I can feel it through the bond between us every time she glances out the window instead of sitting trapped inside her own thoughts about training.I rest one hand loosely against the steering wheel while looking toward her briefly.“You’re thinking too hard again,” I tell her.Her eyes shift toward me immediately.“You can feel that?”“Yes.”“That bond thing is invasive.”I smirk slightly.“You like me being obsessed with you.”“I tolerate it.”I huff out a quiet laugh as the town finally comes into view ahead of us.The faded welcome sign passes by first, worn from years of weather a
Caleb Jake’s place smells like coffee and chicken pasta that Anastasia might have cooked earlier before leaving. I lean back against the couch with a beer in my hand while Jake sits across from me at the small kitchen counter, wiping it clean before cleaning his hands. “So,” he says, looking at me properly now. “How’s June doing with the wolf training?” I exhale slowly through my nose. Not great. Jake reads the answer on my face immediately. “That bad?” I shake my head and stare down at the bottle in my hand for a second before answering. “She’s trying hard. Really hard.” A faint frown pulls at my mouth. “That’s the problem.” Jake stays quiet while I continue. “I can see how much effort she’s putting into it, but every failed attempt keeps getting into her head.” I rub a hand across my jaw tiredly. “She thinks because everyone else here can call their wolf easily, there’s something wrong with her.” I clench my jaw, hating seeing how disappointed she looks. “Which is bulls
JuneSilence.Nothing but silence.I squeeze my eyes shut harder, frustration twisting tighter inside my chest while sweat slides down the back of my neck. My breathing comes heavier now, not from physical exhaustion but from pure irritation.“Come on,” I whisper internally. “Please.”Nothing answers me.Not even a flicker.The training field feels strangely too quiet despite the distant sounds of protectors sparring farther away. Dust clings to my skin from where I have been sitting cross-legged in the grass for nearly an hour trying to do the one thing Caleb keeps telling me should become easier with time.Calling my wolf.Except apparently my wolf enjoys humiliating me.Because ever since she started speaking inside my head nonstop, she suddenly disappears the moment I actually need her.I try again.I reach inward the way Caleb taught me. Toward the bond. Toward the warmth I know exists inside me. Toward the place where I felt her so strongly the night he marked me.Still nothing.
JuneThe mark on my neck still feels warm.Every time I touch it, heat spreads through me all over again, followed immediately by the bond wrapping around my chest like something protective and impossibly comforting. Even now, hours later, I can still feel Caleb through it. His emotions brush against mine in quiet waves. Possessiveness. Relief. Affection.Mine.My wolf practically purrs every time that thought crosses Caleb's mind.The problem is that I still have not marked him back.And the longer that fact hangs between us, the more anxious I become.Not because I do not want to.God, I want to.That is the problem.My fingers brush lightly over the mark on my neck again, while my stomach twists itself into knots.Caleb trusts me completely.He keeps acting like there is nothing to worry about, like I am incapable of hurting him, but he does not understand what my wolf is capable of when she loses control. I do. I have seen the damage she can do.And I cannot risk that with him.No
JuneHis hand slides slowly down my back, pulling me closer against him until I can feel the hard warmth of his body surrounding mine completely. The bond between us hums stronger with every passing second, almost like it is reacting to every touch, every breath, every emotion pouring between us.I feel it everywhere.In my chest.In my pulse.In the strange ache inside me that no longer feels painful.Caleb kisses me like he is trying to memorize me. Like every second matters to him. His lips move against mine slowly at first, then deeper when I lean into him without hesitation. My fingers curl against his shoulders as warmth spreads through me so intensely that it almost makes me dizzy.No one has ever touched me like this before.His forehead presses briefly against mine as he breathes heavily, his eyes dark and fixed on my face. I can feel his wolf pressing hard against the surface now. I feel him through the bond almost as clearly as I feel Caleb himself.Possessive.Protective.
JuneHis body goes completely still.Not just surprised.Still in a way that makes the air between us feel charged.At the same time, his hold around me tightens instinctively, pulling me closer against his chest. I can hear the sharp change in his breathing as I slightly turn my head to look at him.And the look in his eyes almost steals the breath from my lungs.They are darker than I have ever seen them before, his wolf sitting so close beneath the surface that the intensity of it wraps around me completely.“Do you know what it means when a wolf exposes its neck to another wolf?” he asks roughly.Each word sounds strained, like speaking itself takes effort right now.I stay quiet, watching him carefully.“It means submission,” he says.His fingers slide slowly along the side of my neck, tracing the skin there with a touch so light it sends a shudder rushing down my spine.“You are submitting to me.”My eyes flutter closed for a second.Not because I am afraid.Because my wolf like
AlexeiI’m half-dressed and standing in front of the mirror, towel hanging from my neck, shirt unbuttoned, hair still damp from the shower. The bathroom’s steamed up, so I crack the window to let some of the heat out while I run a hand through my hair to push it back.There’s a black shirt and dark
AnastasiaThis is it.This is what I couldn’t figure out before. The missing piece. The thing Pete kept just out of reach.My eyes lock onto one of the rogues. A massive wolf with a thick, dark coat and a long, ugly scar slicing down the side of his neck. I know that scar. It’s the same one I saw wh
AnastasiaI lead Pete through the trees, staying just a few steps ahead of him. The farther we move from the fight, the quieter it gets.I don’t look at him. I can feel his gaze, heavy with curiosity and ego. He thinks I’m leading him to his victory, to the prize he’s been desperate for. He has no
JakePete’s voice cuts through the silence like a knife dragged slow across glass.“Before we demolish you mutts,” he says, loud enough for everyone to hear, “everyone’s gonna see what happens when someone thinks they can mess with me.”My jaw tightens, and my hands curl into fists without thinking







