INICIAR SESIÓN“You look kind of creepy.”My eyes snapped to the corner of the room, where I sensed Vesper lingering. “Shouldn’t you be asleep?”“I wanted to check in before I went to bed.”I glanced at the window at the sun already in the sky. The apartment was dark enough for him to move around freely, but as soon as the sun was high enough, he would be too tired to stay awake.“Go to bed, Ves,” I ordered.He lingered for a few more seconds and then disappeared. Letting out a sigh, I shifted in the chair but froze when Xan stirred. He stilled for a few seconds and then shot upright in bed. Golden eyes narrowed on me.“You drugged me!” he croaked.My eyes narrowed. “You were attacking us.”His lips parted, but he pursed them and looked away. Pushing the sheets off, he moved to the edge of the bed and sat up. The man didn’t even flinch when he stood and slowly made his way into the bathroom.I leaned forward with my elbows resting on my knees and waited. A few minutes later, the toilet flushed and a
I was torn between going after Knox and staying to make sure that Xan was okay. Seth touched my arm, snapping my attention to him.“Go,” he ordered softly. “I got them.”Glancing at them one last time, I hurried after Knox. My steps faltered when I spotted him crouched against the wall with his hands buried in his hair.Swallowing, I took a seat next to him and stared out at the tall trees surrounding us. Letting out a sigh, he dropped to his ass and rested his arms on his bent knees.“What the hell was that?” I asked Knox. “You never use force unless it’s necessary. What happened to the calm man who always makes us sit down and talk things out if there’s a problem?”“He wanted out, and he was planning on using you to get that,” he growled.Turning to face him, I folded my legs and leaned forward to try and get a look at his face. Knox still looked grim, and I could smell the anger that still clung to him.“He wouldn’t have hurt me.”“You don’t know that!” he snapped. “He was panickin
“Who’s Axel?”I froze in the hallway, holding my breath to listen to his answer, but no reply came. Vesper muttered something else, but a second later, a door clicked closed.Axel.Was he a mate? Family? An enemy or friend?There were so many questions I had to ask him, but I knew that he wouldn’t answer them, or if he did, he might be lying. I wasn’t sure how to feel about the stranger who suddenly appeared in our life, and the fact that Wilder claimed him as his mate.If I touched him, he’d kick me on my ass.I hesitated in the hallway for a few more seconds and then pushed the door open to enter the room. Vesper stood staring at the closed bathroom door.“Did you feed?” I asked him.His eyes narrowed.“Did you bite our guest, Ves?” I growled.“No.” Turning, he frowned at the door again. “I tried to sneak up on him.”Lifting a hand, he pressed it to his throat, and then he did the most unexpected thing: he smiled and walked away. I shook my head and walked over to the bed, where I t
I pursed my lips to stop the words from tumbling out. The last thing I wanted was to give them something more to use against me. These people were strangers.Strangers helping you heal.Forcing the voice of logic from my mind, I closed my eyes and slowed my breathing, hoping that she’d think I’d fallen asleep. The mattress dipped when she moved. I flinched when something cold touched my skin and then silently cursed myself.“Wilder is mated to me, Knox, Seth, and Vesper,” Talia said softly. “Basically everyone in this apartment, and now you.”Whatever she was putting on the wound burned slightly.“He doesn’t need another mate, but I also don’t want you to reject him.”“He already has mates,” I muttered. “He doesn’t need more.”“You seem so sure of yourself.”I opened my eyes but got distracted by the sight that greeted me.Her hands were hovering a few inches above the wound, and a blue-white light was seeping from her skin into mine. She was completely focused on whatever she was doi
The timer went off, breaking the tense silence that hung in the apartment. Dropping the pen on the table, I grabbed the gloves and pulled them on as I walked over to the oven. I pulled the pan out, set it aside, and pushed the next pan into the oven.Staring down at the muffins, I pulled off the gloves and dropped them on the counter before taking my seat at the table again.My shoulders slumped as the weight of everything hit again. The books of the bar were open in front of me, and I’d been busy looking over things to make sure we could manage being closed for a few weeks.We’d still break even if the place stayed closed for a month. There were enough savings to last a few years before we’d have to look into working again.I tensed when a sound reached my ears.Seth and Knox went into town to buy some more groceries. Wilder was in the garage working on a few of his orders, and Vesper was fast asleep. So it could only be one person.When a few minutes passed and nothing happened, I t
I frowned as I watched Knox storm out of the bar without a glance in my direction. It made me even more curious about what happened, because he said he was just going to check up on things.Had that man hurt them? Was there trouble waiting for us outside that he was going to take care of?Most of the time, I was fine with Knox taking care of pack business, but this time was different.There was an injured stranger upstairs who was the same kind as me. Something I hadn’t even considered or wanted to consider. When my pride banished me, I had accepted the fact that I might never encounter another panther again.And I hadn’t.Until now.Until a fucking stranger showed up in our town, in our bar, injured. A part of me expected this to happen. I knew from Talia’s reaction that the bastard wasn’t just going to disappear again.He was her mate.Another fucking mate.I slammed the glass down onto the bar, a little harder than I intended, and winced when it shattered. The few customers already







