MasukDenver.By the time I returned, the weight of the day hadn’t left me.It lingered in the quiet way the pack moved, in the conversations that stopped too quickly when I passed, in the unspoken expectations that had begun to settle more heavily than before. I had dealt with the elders, listened to their concerns, and responded in a way that carefully addressed loyalty, all while maintaining order intact.Control.That was always the answer.And yet, as I stepped into our room, something told me that whatever waited here would require a different kind of control entirely.Selena stood near the window, her back partially turned, her posture composed in a way that would have passed for normal if I hadn’t learned to notice the difference between stillness and restraint.I paused for a moment, watching her before speaking.“I got something for you.”Her head turned slightly at that, her expression softening just enough to acknowledge me as I stepped further inside. I reached into my pocket,
Selena.The corridor outside Queen Luna’s chamber always felt different from the rest of the pack house, as though even the air there had been trained to move more carefully. I noticed it every time I came out of that room, as the silence followed me a few steps longer than it should have before dissolving back into the normal rhythm of the packhouse.I adjusted the sleeve of my dress as I walked, more out of habit than necessity, trying to steady the faint pressure still sitting behind my ribs from the visit.Denver's mother had been more awake today than usual, her voice a little clearer, her gaze lingering longer when she spoke. It should have been comforting to see that, but instead it left me unsettled in a way I couldn’t quite explain, like I had been standing too close to something fragile without knowing where to place my hands.By the time I reached the corner leading away from her wing, I told myself I just needed air. Something ordinary. Something that didn’t carry weight
Denver.The office was quieter than usual, the low, steady hum of the air conditioner stretching the silence into something heavier than it should have been.I leaned back in my chair, fingers steepled beneath my chin, my gaze fixed on the pack healer as she arranged her notes with deliberate care.She didn’t look at me immediately.She never did.Careful. Controlled. The kind of woman who understood that words carried weight long before they were spoken.“You called,” she said at last, her voice even, professional.“I did,” I replied. “I need answers.”Her eyes lifted then, settling on me with quiet understanding. “About Selena?”“Yes.”There was no point circling it.“Why hasn’t she conceived?”The question settled between us, heavier than the room itself.She exhaled slowly, setting her notes aside before folding her hands together. “I’ve been monitoring her closely. Her cycles, her hormonal patterns, her response to treatment. I’ve adjusted everything within my capacity to give he
Denver. By the time I stepped into the room, the lights were low and the silence had already settled into something deeper than quiet.Selena was in bed.Sleeping, or that was what she wanted me to believe. I closed the door behind me without making a sound, my gaze resting on her immediately as I took a few steps further inside. She lay on her side, facing away from me, the soft rise and fall of her breathing just steady enough to pass for sleep, but not enough to convince me.She wasn’t asleep, her breathing was yet to even out.For a moment, I said nothing, just stood there watching her, letting the weight of the evening settle properly in my mind now that I was away from the noise, away from the careful conversations and controlled expressions.Tonight had not been easy on her.Not with the way the room had shifted, not with the things that had been said, and certainly not with the pressure that had been sitting unspoken beneath all of it.The expectation.The quiet, constant nee
Talia.The walk back to my room was quieter than the one that had brought me to dinner.Not because anything had changed.But because everything had gone exactly as I intended.I let the door close softly behind me, the faint click echoing just enough to settle into the silence of the room before I moved further inside. My mind is replaying every moment of the dinner we just had. For a moment, I stood there.Then, slowly, I exhaled.A small smile touched my lips, subtle, controlled—but real.It had gone well.Better than well.Selena had held herself together, just as I knew she would. She had smiled, responded exactly as expected, and maintained that careful composure she wore like armor.But I had seen it.The hesitation.The stillness.The moment something landed just a little deeper than she wanted it to.And that was enough.I moved toward the dresser, reaching up to remove my earrings, placing them carefully on the surface as my reflection caught in the mirror.Calm.Measured.U
Selena.When I stepped back into the dining room, nothing had changed.The candles still burned with the same steady glow, their light dancing softly across the polished surface of the table. The plates remained untouched, the arrangement precise, undisturbed, as though time itself had paused in my absence.And yet, something felt different.Not in the room.In me.I walked back to my seat with measured steps, aware of Denver’s gaze before I even looked at him. It settled on me the moment I crossed the threshold, steady, quiet, observant in a way that made it clear he had noticed more than I would have preferred.I didn’t acknowledge it immediately.Instead, I took my seat, smoothing my dress with practiced ease, allowing my movements to remain as composed as they had been before I left. If there was anything unsettled beneath the surface, it would stay there.Across from me, Talia watched without appearing to watch.Her posture was relaxed, her expression calm, but there was a stilln
Denver.I was halfway down the hall to my room when one of the guards walked up to me.“Alpha, Tiana was here asking for you,” he said. “She’s waiting.”I didn’t think twice. “Give her access.”The door to my room had barely shut behind me when I started pulling off my jacket. My body felt heavy, t
SelenaMorning came quietly.Not with noise or chaos, but with the soft movement of a house already awake. I could hear distant footsteps in the halls, low voices, and the sound of doors opening and closing somewhere far away. The pack house felt alive before I even left my bed.A maid arrived wit
Selena.As we entered the car and headed toward our pack house gates, I found myself glancing back.Some small, foolish part of me still hoped they would come. That they would say goodbye. That they would choose me once, just once.I kept expecting to hear my mother call my name. I kept believing m
Selena.Just as I had the previous night, I did not sleep. I lay awake until morning, staring at the ceiling as the light slowly changed in the room. When the sun finally rose, it did not bring comfort. It only made everything feel more real.This room no longer felt like mine.The walls were the







