Jaxon's POV "I felt it the moment I saw you at the bar. Before I knew your name, before I knew you'd be part of my family. The Moon Goddess has a twisted sense of humor, doesn't she?" Maya bit her lower lip, a gesture that made my cock twitch in my jeans. "What does this mean for us? I mean, we're family now, even if we're not blood related." "I don't know," I admitted. "All I know is that I can't pretend I don't feel this pull toward you. I've tried, Maya. God knows I've tried to stay away, to treat you like a sister, but I can't do it." She was quiet again, but I could practically see the wheels turning in her head. The silence stretched between us, filled with tension and unspoken desires. "Nurse Patty said you've been here every day," she finally said. "I couldn't stay away. My wolf was going crazy not knowing if you were okay. I barely slept, barely ate. Dad was ready to have me sedated if I didn't calm down." "And Professor Ronan?" Something dark and possessive flared in
Jaxon's POV My hands shook as I gripped the white roses tighter, their thorns digging into my palm through the plastic wrapping. Three days. Three fucking days of sitting in that sterile waiting room, watching the clock tick by like torture. Every time a doctor walked past, my heart jumped into my throat, wondering if this was the moment they'd tell me something was seriously wrong with Maya. The guilt had been eating me alive. If I hadn't been such an ass to her when she first arrived at the pack house, maybe she wouldn't have been so stressed. Maybe she wouldn't have collapsed on her first day of university, scaring the hell out of everyone. "You can see her now," Nurse Patty said, appearing in the doorway with that knowing smile she always wore. "But remember what I told you about keeping things calm." I nodded, not trusting my voice. My wolf had been pacing inside me like a caged animal ever since Maya collapsed. The mate bond made it impossible to stay away, even when the log
Maya's POV Great. Just what I needed to be known as the crazy girl who hallucinated about werewolves on her first day. "But that's not the interesting part," Patty continued, her eyes practically sparkling with intrigue. "It's your visitors that have everyone talking." "Visitors?" "Oh honey, you should see the drama playing out in our waiting room. Every single day, like clockwork, two very handsome young men show up to see you. And let me tell you, there's been some tension." My heart started beating faster, and the monitor beside me began beeping more rapidly. "Two men?" "Jaxon Cross, that's the ice hockey player, tall and blonde with the most gorgeous blue eyes. Then there's Professor Ronan, dark hair, green eyes, looks like he stepped out of some romance novel." Patty fanned herself dramatically. "Thank goodness, that man is fine." Even in my weakened state, heat flooded my cheeks. The feelings I'd had for both of them in my dreams felt incredibly real. Too real. "They've
Maya's POVWhite ceiling tiles stared back at me, each one perfectly square and boring. My head felt like someone had stuffed it with cotton balls, and my mouth tasted like I'd been chewing on sandpaper for weeks. Where was I?The steady beep of machines filled the quiet room. A heart monitor. An IV drip. The antiseptic smell that screamed hospital hit my nose, making me scrunch up my face in disgust."Oh good, you're finally awake!" A cheerful voice made me turn my head slowly. A nurse with kind brown eyes and graying hair smiled at me from the doorway. Her scrubs were covered in tiny cartoon wolves, which seemed oddly fitting given my recent... dreams?"Where am I?" My voice came out as a croak, barely recognizable."Blackstone University Medical Center, sweetie. You've been our guest for three days now." She bustled over to check my IV, her movements efficient but gentle. "I'm Nurse Patricia, but everyone calls me Patty."Three days? My brain felt foggy, like trying to see through
Ronan's POV She turned to face me fully, and I had to fight not to step back from the intensity of her gaze. "Something I'm not? Or something I've always been?" She tilted her head, studying me like I was an interesting insect. "Tell me, Ronan, when you use your shadow magic, how does it feel?" "Dangerous," I answered honestly. "Addictive. Wrong." "Wrong?" She laughed again. "It feels like coming home to me. Like I've been holding my breath my whole life and can finally breathe." "That's the corruption talking," I said desperately. "It's not really you." "Isn't it? Then explain why I'm stronger now than I've ever been. Explain why I'm not afraid anymore. Explain why, for the first time in my life, I feel like I have control." She was right, and that terrified me more than anything. The power was giving her everything she'd never had - strength, control, freedom from fear. But it was also taking away everything that made her human. "Power without compassion is just destruction,
Ronan's POV I stayed on my knees not because Maya's power forced me to, but because I was too stunned to move. The woman I loved was gone, replaced by something beautiful and terrible and completely inhuman. Her eyes were pools of absolute darkness now, and when she looked at me, I felt like she was seeing right through to my soul. The energy radiating from her made my own shadow magic feel like a candle compared to a forest fire. "Get up," Maya commanded, her voice echoing with unnatural authority. We all obeyed instantly. Even the Shadow King rose to his feet, though he looked pleased rather than afraid. "Magnificent," he said, pride filling his voice. "You're even more powerful than I hoped." Maya turned to face him, and I saw something flicker across her features. For a moment, she looked like herself again - confused, scared, overwhelmed. But then the darkness reasserted itself. "You left me," she said, her voice hurting beneath the power. "My whole life, I thought you wer