My mother’s expression softened. Just a little.And I felt my stomach sink.Because I knew that look.My mother was starting to thaw.Great. Just what I needed—another person quietly voting Team Derek.She caught me staring and arched a brow. “He’s good with him,” she murmured quietly.I pressed my
MAGGIESeven Years AgoThe wind had that sharp, early-autumn bite to it—the kind that whispered of coming frost and longer nights. I moved through the trees in silence, the familiar rustle of leaves beneath my boots soothing in its predictability. Carly and Erin were back at the cabin, patching up t
I let the silence hang for a moment, then nodded. “Set it up. I’ll go.”***They chose a neutral site. An old roadside motel two towns over—the kind of place where the front desk clerk didn’t ask questions, and the walls were thin enough to hear secrets bleed through.The stucco exterior was cracked
DEREKThe sun hadn’t even fully cleared the tree line when I was up, boots on, keys in hand. I’d barely slept—not because I was restless, but because I was… eager.Which was new.I’d never been a morning person. I wasn’t the guy who whistled while putting on a shirt or drank black coffee with a grin
MAGGIESeven Years Ago“I don’t believe this,” he murmured, eyes wide as he took a step closer. “We actually found each other.”We stood there in the clearing, surrounded by tangled branches and mist, the world narrowing down to this single moment. This stranger—this beautiful, solid, stunning stran
CASSANDRAI’d been avoiding Derek for days, ever since that damn sonogram machine showed up at Silverclaw. But now, I was ready.The next move in my plan was already in motion, and if I’d learned anything about Derek King over the years, it was that he couldn’t help but rush toward someone who looke
ELENAThe silence Derek left behind was louder than anything he'd said all night.Aiden stirred the melted remains of his ice cream with the tip of his spoon, not looking up. The happy chatter from nearby tables felt like it belonged to a different world—one where parents didn’t rush off to the side
Derek didn’t hesitate. He stripped off his shirt and stepped forward, every inch of him radiating authority.“You’re formally challenging my station as Alpha?”“I am,” the other wolf said.“I accept.”The fight was brutal.The challenger was older, heavier, but Derek was faster—more precise. Every m
The temperature in the room shifted.Not dramatically, but enough. Like a subtle drop in pressure before a storm. Erin straightened, her laughter tapering. I smoothed the sample fabric in front of me and didn’t look up right away.“Hey,” Logan said casually. “What’s so funny?”Erin glanced at me. “J
ELENAThe Moonstone packhouse was a flurry of motion and color. Fabric swatches fluttered like flags in a breeze as pack members carried bolts of cloth up the stairs. Someone was arguing loudly in the hall about whether “frosted lilac” was different from “lavender fog,” and a delivery of beeswax can
ELENAThe metronome was ticking again.That steady, deliberate rhythm that Dr. Voss insisted helped center my recall—though half the time, I wasn’t sure if it helped or just made me hyper-aware of how fast my thoughts were spinning.I sat back in the reclined chair, palms resting against the fabric-
“A silver claw?”I nodded. “Yeah. The first. The only. It seared his flesh every time he used it. Every swing hurt. But he used it anyway.”“That sounds… awful.”“It was,” I said. “But he made that pain his purpose. Every battle, every fight he walked into—he carried the silver claw. And with it, he
DEREKThe room still smelled like fresh paint.The new bedding hadn’t quite lost its store scent either—crisp fabric, a little too new, the faint chemical undertone of being unboxed that morning.But it didn’t matter. Aiden was already halfway under the covers, head turned toward the window, blanket
DEREKIt all slammed into me at once.The office, the old leather chair beneath me, the taste of whiskey still lingering on my tongue—and Maggie’s name reverberating like a bell that wouldn’t stop ringing in my head.Maggie. Pierce’s daughter.A rogue who had saved Elena’s life, who had helped her e
I gasped against him, and his tongue slid in—deep, claiming, desperate.I should have shoved him off. Should have screamed at him, reminded him what he was, what I was. But my body betrayed me.I kissed him back.Hard.My fingers curled into the front of his shirt, dragging him closer as his hands s
MAGGIE“Bastard.”It was the first word out of my mouth as I shoved open the grimy motel room door. The air inside was stale—sweaty sheets, old coffee, the reek of damp carpet and desperation. Logan looked up from where he sat on the edge of the lopsided bed, one foot resting casually on the ratty h
I froze, inhaling again, trying to find it.“Elena?” Derek’s voice was cautious behind me. I could feel him watching me, could hear the faint shift of his weight in the needles.I didn’t answer right away. My head turned slightly, following where I thought the scent had drifted. I took a step, then