I exhaled slowly, keeping my expression cool despite the fire crackling beneath my skin. “That’s unfortunate for you, then. Because this dress is mine.” I said, turning my gaze to the Vanessa. “I love it, thank you.”Cassandra’s face darkened. “You’re still trying to provoke me, aren’t you?”I tilte
ELENAThe night air was crisp as Logan guided Aiden and me to his car. The tension still crackled in the air, a lingering reminder of the chaos back at the boutique. My fingers trembled slightly as I adjusted Aiden’s seatbelt, my mind replaying Derek’s accusations over and over.“You were already ch
It was a masterpiece, if I did say so myself. Towering stone columns wrapped in twisting ivy framed the open-air space, their bases adorned with intricate carvings of wolves and moon phases. The lanterns I’d pictured looked lovely, suspended from hidden riggings, casting a soft, ethereal glow over t
ELENAThe moment Derek and I stepped onto the gleaming, polished dance floor, I hesitated. I wasn’t sure if it was the tension between us or the sheer arrogance on his face that made my pulse spike."Is Elena too afraid to dance with me?" His voice was low, an unmistakable challenge in it.I should
DEREKThe moment my hand left Elena’s, I already regretted it. The dance was over, but my wolf was still pacing beneath my skin, growling, restless. She had been in my arms for mere minutes, yet it was long enough to remind me of everything I had lost. Everything I had thrown away.The Alpha in me v
DEREKThe Alpha Ball was meant to be a display of strength, of unity. Instead, it had become a personal battlefield, and I stood in the center of it, seething in silence.Elena was radiant. The deep blue of her gown hugged her frame, the copper mass of her hair swept up to expose the delicate curve
ELENAI kept my expression serene, my shoulders squared, my chin high. The room erupted into applause, but the sound barely registered. Inside, I was frozen, my mind racing to process what had just happened.Logan had just announced our engagement.He had done it without asking me. Without a proposa
I had smiled, slow and certain. "I am yours."He kissed me then, hard and desperate, as if he could claim me with the press of his lips alone. And maybe, for a while, he had.That night had been the first time I had truly believed in the possibility of a future with Derek. We had talked about marria
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