ANMELDENLillian’s POVI stood at the window watching Dorian’s car disappear down the driveway, a hollow feeling settling in my chest as the distance between us grew. A week felt like an eternity right now, especially with everything that had happened with the elders and the strange threats I’d been receiving.“You should have told him,” Alanna said from behind me, her voice tight with worry. “About the shadow, about the note, about all of it. He has a right to know someone’s threatening you.”I turned away from the window, wrapping my arms around myself. “What was I supposed to say? That I think I saw someone spying on me but we searched everywhere and found nothing? That I got a threatening note that could have come from anyone? He would have worried himself sick or worse, cancelled the trip and lost out on important territorial negotiations.”“Better than leaving you here vulnerable and unprotected,” Alanna countered.“I’m not unprotected,” I argued, though I didn’t feel as confident as I
Dorian’s POVI looked at Lillian, seeing the vulnerability in her eyes, the need to know what the elders really thought of her. Part of me wanted to lie, to tell her everything was fine and they’d come around eventually. But I could feel through our bond that she’d know if I wasn’t being honest.“I’ll handle it,” I said instead, reaching for her hand. “The elders are set in their ways, but they’ll learn to accept you once they see….”“Dorian,” Lillian interrupted, pulling her hand away. “This is our life now. I need to be updated too, not sheltered from uncomfortable truths. What did they say about me?”I hesitated, not wanting to hurt her but knowing she deserved honesty. “They think you’ll betray the pack,” I admitted quietly. “They believe that when it comes down to it, your blood ties to Moonstone will override your loyalty to Fangshade. That you’re still connected to your birth pack in ways that make you untrustworthy.”Lillian’s face went pale, and I saw pain flash across her fe
Dorian’s POVI sat in the private conference room with three of the most senior elders, Carter, Marcus, and Patricia their expressions ranging from disapproving to outright hostile as we continued the argument that had started in the full council meeting days ago. “You do not have the right to dictate who I marry,” I said firmly, my patience wearing thin after an hour of circular arguments that kept leading nowhere productive. “I am Alpha of this pack, and the choice of my Luna is mine alone to make. That’s not a suggestion or a request for your approval, that’s simply how pack hierarchy works.”“We’re not trying to dictate your choice,” Elder Carter said, though his tone suggested otherwise, his words contradicting the very stance he’d been taking throughout this entire meeting. “We’re simply advising you that if you insist on taking a bride, she should be from our pack. Someone whose loyalty is unquestioned, whose blood is Fangshade through and through. Not from Moonstone Pack, not
Dorian’s POVI looked at Lillian, seeing the vulnerability in her eyes, the need to know what the elders really thought of her. Part of me wanted to lie, to tell her everything was fine and they’d come around eventually. But I could feel through our bond that she’d know if I wasn’t being honest.“I’ll handle it,” I said instead, reaching for her hand. “The elders are set in their ways, but they’ll learn to accept you once they see….”“Dorian,” Lillian interrupted, pulling her hand away. “This is our life now. I need to be updated too, not sheltered from uncomfortable truths. What did they say about me?”I hesitated, not wanting to hurt her but knowing she deserved honesty. “They think you’ll betray the pack,” I admitted quietly. “They believe that when it comes down to it, your blood ties to Moonstone will override your loyalty to Fangshade. That you’re still connected to your birth pack in ways that make you untrustworthy.”Lillian’s face went pale, and I saw pain flash across her fe
Lillian’s POVI’d feared this exact scenario, had known deep down that my presence in Fangshade Pack wasn’t quite as welcomed as Dorian believed it to be. For five years I’d felt the whispers, the sidelong glances, the subtle ways some pack members made it clear they saw me as an outsider who’d gotten too comfortable in their territory. And now, standing before the elder council while they looked at me with stone, cold disapproval, all those fears were being validated in the worst possible way.My union with Dorian was being opposed, just like I’d known it would be. The elders saw me as damaged goods from a rival pack, as someone who would bring shame and weakness to Fangshade rather than strength and legitimacy. And no matter what Dorian said about my contributions or my character, their minds were already made up based on where I’d come from rather than who I’d become.“Elders, please,” Dorian said, his voice strained with the effort of staying calm. “You’re letting prejudice cl
Dorian’s POVI woke up the next morning with Lillian still wrapped in my arms, her hair spread across my chest and the mark on her neck visible in the early sunlight filtering through the curtains. I felt a satisfaction so deep it made my wolf purr contentedly, knowing that she was finally, truly mine and ready to make it official.“Good morning,” she murmured, stirring slightly and looking up at me with sleepy eyes.“Good morning, future wife,” I said, unable to keep the grin off my face.She smiled back, though there was nervous energy underneath it. “Are we really doing this? Making it official with the elders?”“We can take our time if you need,” I offered, even though every part of me wanted to move forward immediately before she changed her mind. “There’s no rush.”“Actually,” Lillian said, propping herself up on one elbow, “I think we should meet with them tomorrow. Get it over with before I lose my nerve or start overthinking it again.”I studied her face carefully. “Tomorrow







