FAKE MATE, REAL BOND

Chapter Two. Gina. It had been a few days since our altercation, I hadn't seen or heard from Brandon, not even to check in on me. Until today when I was summoned into his office, a part of was scared but I was also glad he had summoned me. After losing my baby, and him making it clear he wanted nothing to do with me I had also made a decesion. I was leaving the pack. I was marked by him so no one in this pack will ever be interested in me and I wanted to find love still and have a family of my own. And my only option if I wanted to find that was by leaving the pack I sat stiffly in the wooden chair across from Brandon’s desk, my hands clenched so tightly in my lap that my nails bit into my palms. He hadn’t looked at me once. Not since I’d been called in like some disobedient servant.He flipped a page in the report he wasn’t reading, pretending I wasn’t even there. Pretending I hadn’t just lost our child. Pretending I didn’t bleed on his floor while he drank himself into oblivion

Chapter FourGina.I hardly registered the gasp that rippled through the hall, or the sharp intake of breath as Alpha Ryan’s lips met mine. My mind was a riot of sensation his kiss was firm, commanding, and electric, as if he’d pressed a live wire to my skin. For one timeless moment, the world dissolved: no Brandon, no Ashley, no pack politics just the fierce heat of his mouth on mine.Then came the shout, cutting through the hush like a blade.“She is not your mate!”I jerked back, breath coming in ragged gasps, my cheeks burning recognizing the voice, Across the glittering floor, Brandon stood, face twisted in fury and humiliation. His voice echoed off the marble pillars. Even Ashley turned, eyes narrowed in anger.Alpha Ryan released me as if my skin had scorched him. He stepped back, his gaze ruthless and unblinking as it shifted to Brandon.“How do you know that?” Ryan demanded, voice low but threaded with steel.I swallowed hard. Everything slowed, the edges of reality blurring

Gina. When I stepped back into the ballroom, the air felt different, thicker, heavier, crackling with tension. The music was gone, replaced by murmurs and gasps, as if the whole pack was holding its collective breath. All around me, wolves huddled in tight groups, whispering, watching. Watching me.I held my head high, even as my stomach churned. My cheeks still burned from the kiss Alpha Ryan’s kiss. The man everyone feared. The man whose name alone sent shivers down spines and made even Brandon stutter like a child.He was gone now, slipped away after making his announcement in the most dramatic, public way possible. Mate. That word still echoed in my ears. That kiss still lingered on my lips.I was still reeling when I saw her, my mother making her way through the crowd, her tray abandoned, her apron stained with wine. Her gray streaked hair was frizzing at the ends, her hands shaking. But it was her eyes that struck me most: wide, terrified, wet.“Mama,” I called, meeting her hal

Rose. (Gina's mom) I stare out the SUV window as the trees blur past in a rush of green and gray. Gina is asleep beside me, her head resting against the cool glass, her features finally peaceful after days of tension. She looks younger when she sleeps, like the little girl who used to cling to my apron strings and beg me to sing her lullabies.She has no idea.No idea who she’s really running toward.No idea what I’ve done to protect her.I swallow hard and look away, my fingers knotting together in my lap. The leather seat is smooth, luxurious, too foreign against my worn skin. This vehicle, this journey it’s a world I was never meant to step into again.And yet here I am.Because I couldn’t let her go alone.Because the moment I saw her walking toward that SUV, looking too small and too brave for her own good, something in me snapped.I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t let history repeat itself.I close my eyes and breathe in deep, forcing myself to stay calm.'Don’t think about him. Don

The Devil’s CastleThe gates creak open with a slow groan, revealing a long stone driveway flanked by towering pine trees. Beyond them, the estate rises like a beast carved out of shadow and steel impossibly tall, sprawling, and cold. Even from here, I can feel the power humming in the air, thick and ancient.My chest tightens. I swore I’d never set foot on this cursed land again.But here I am.Beside me, Gina leans forward in awe, her lips parted, eyes wide. “It’s… beautiful.”It’s not.It’s a graveyard wrapped in silk.“It’s big,” I offer instead, keeping my voice even. She doesn’t need my fear. Not now.The SUV slows as we pass the inner gates. Uniformed guards stand along the entrance, their expressions blank, their eyes sharp. Bloodfang wolves. They don't nod. They don't smile.They watch in silence. Ryan says something into a headset I can’t hear, then pulls the SUV into a stone-carved circle drive in front of the main building.He gets out first.The moment his boots hit the