1. Prologue.

Dane - 19

Cara - 18

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TWO YEARS AGO

DANE

"Recruitment into the Greenwood Defense Academy is open!"

Cara screams out the news happily and jumps up to her feet beside me, not caring that her pretty legs are so dangerously close to the blazing bonfire right in the middle of our small circle of friends.

Pretty legs that I helplessly, always fucking dream of having them wrapped around me as I thrust up into—

"Damn, when is the date?" Alex whistles in surprise, his sudden voice instantly cutting off my eyes from his sister's legs. Like a looming warning.

I gulp down a mouthful of whiskey from my cup, relishing in the punishing burn of it as it sinks down my throat.

Dear goddess….  I should not be fantasizing and dreaming about sinful ways of fucking my bestfriend's sister, my alpha's only daughter.

"Fourteenth of this month." Cara responds, giggling in pure joy as she sits back down beside me.

Her arm brushes lightly against my skin as she adjusts herself on her seat, the soft touch sending pleasurable sparks rushing through me.

And it feels so fucking good—

"Shit, that is barely two weeks from today." Rhia laughs, her voice dragging me out of my head.

Focus, Dane.

I take another shot of my drink to calm down my thoughts and nerves. Rhiannon Gahill is Beta Edward's daughter and his only child. The man loves her more than life itself.

She takes a sip of the vodka drink in her red cup. "I can't fucking wait to get recruited and finally have the official chance to kick Al's butt right on the training field."

She sighs out happily and chuckles with a mischievous glint shining in her honey brown eyes as she stares at Alex. A glint that we all definitely know is up to no good.

"We will see about that." Alex retorts with a smirky smile, his oceanic blue eyes not leaving her face for a second. He relaxes back into his chair and crosses his leg over the other.

"I am sure my mum already has my recommendation letter waiting for me on my desk." Killian mutters quietly. "I will miss her so much."

Killian is the son of Imogen Creed, the only High Emissary of Greenwood pack. My pack. And today is his nineteenth birthday.

He wanted to celebrate it tonight quietly with just the four of us by this bonfire near the pack lake.

"Hey, you won't miss her that much." Cara smiles comfortingly at him. "Besides, she is the high emissary and can come visit you all the time if she wants." She concludes with a funny wink at him.

A stab of jealousy hits me instantly like a hurtful punch in the stomach. Did she just fucking wink at Killian!?

'It is just a fucking wink Dane.' Storm, my wolf scoffs.

'Well, she shouldn't have.'

'Stop being so possessive. Your emotions are going to kill us both if you do not find a way of—'

'Bye Storm.'

I shut him out immediately and take in a fast, quiet, deep breath.

Storm is my twin. My signet wolf. The inner voice in my head. And just like his name, he reflects the core of my being.

Of who I really am.

I tend to fuck up delicate, beautiful things, whether it is my fault or not. Just like I am on the verge of fucking up the best thing that has ever happened to me in my entire life.

Cara Griffin. My Caramel.

Storm was going to tell me to control my feelings for her, my emotions, just like he always does.

He was also going to ask me if I will do what we discussed earlier before coming here. My heart squeezes painfully just at the thought alone.

But I know he only means well.

Besides, Cara and I can't keep messing around with each other forever. Yes, we make out and explore and play dirty sometimes.

But we never, ever, cross the ‘fucking’ line.

That is the one decision I vowed, and keep reminding myself again and again, never to forget. Never to cross that line with her. No matter the multiple times her innocent sinful body has silently begged me to.

But lately, I am beginning to lose my control around her. Storm is also fighting hard not to bond to Sky, Cara's wolf.

Cara's soft whimpers whenever we are together only makes me want to bend her over any surface and claim her just like she is fucking with my head every single time. 

But as always, my fear of the truth never fails to rear up its ugly head to the surface like a poisonous snake, promising to destroy—

"Dane?"

All my raging, unstable thoughts come to an abrupt halt at the instant sound of Cara's soft voice calling out my name, replacing the terror and fear flooding inside me with soft, blissful waves of peace.

Dane….  the way she utters that one syllabic word of my name out of her lips is just—

"Dane?" She calls me again, tapping my arm this time.

I flinch a bit and look up from my black boots, only to find everyone gone.

Except her.

"Where is everyone?"

"They all went for a swim in the lake." She says cheerfully, but the smile on her face wanes off the instant she sees my face.

"Oh.” I mutter, looking away from her and focusing down on the cup in my hand. My mind registers splashing water and faint giggles. 

"Is everything alright? You have not said anything since I announced the recruitment news in front of everyone. And you look…lost." She says quietly, resting her hand on my lap. 

Her touch sends sparks rushing through me once again. I can't stop it. I can't fight my feelings for her.

But then, I remember who she is, and the terror and brutal fear returns instantly.

She is my best friend's sister. My alpha's daughter. The blonde, fearless descendant of a powerful alpha bloodline.

Me, I am just the Gamma's son. The disobedient boy who simply watched a group of rogues murder his father in the woods just because he could not fucking adhere to a simple instruction.

The Gamma Mantle of leadership passed on to my mother afterwards. For years, she isolated herself from me and buried herself in the ocean of pack duties.

Even though she has never said it, I can feel the anger and the hatred she has for me whenever she barely even spares me a look, or whenever we barely even talk.

We do not even talk much anymore.

Breathing out and releasing myself out of my thoughts, I take Cara's hand off my lap and place it back gently on hers.

Something rips open inside me like a sore wound when I see the hand I placed back curling into a tight fist on her lap, the sight nearly tearing me apart.

Dear goddess….