LOGIN"Selene was totally right about my wolf needing to touch the dirt today," I tell myself, dropping my canvas bag onto the thick lawn.I promised my pack-brother I would find some peace while she took her shift at the den lines. Besides, I haven't had a single Saturday moon-cycle off since I packed up my life and migrated back to this giant territory.I reach down and drag my fingers right through the sharp green grass blades, just so I can tell her I literally touched the earth. The afternoon sun is glaring down, and the heavy heat feels amazing against my bare arms. While I keep scanning the pages of my book, a massive shadow suddenly blocks out the bright light on the parchment. It isn't a stray cloud floating by. It's a wolf.I spot the polished leather tracking boots first, my eyes instantly sliding up the sharp lines of his dark slacks. I follow the view past his thick leather belt up to the crisp white tunic shirt, tracking the heavy tribal tattoos twisting down his muscular arms
No. Are you clear on Friday night?" I counter.It’s only six sun-turns away. It gives my wolf enough time to purge the nonstop travel stress from my blood.He lets out a loud bark of a laugh. "Considering I am no longer chained to the wicked witch of the frost peaks, my calendar is wide open until the end of time. I'll scout us a spot.""Somewhere with zero dress code, Ryker." I am completely done putting on a show for the high-borns. I want to sit inside a low-tier dive den, drink cheap, burning whiskey out of a cracked glass, and pretend like the tracking sirens aren't hunting my scent across the city blocks. I spotted their lenses the second my feet touched the tarmac yesterday."I have the exact tavern in mind. I've missed your ugly face," he says, his tone softening just a fraction."Yeah, yeah." The truth is, my wolf missed him too.Ryker is my ultimate pack-brother, and we are completely thick as thieves. We always have been. In the outer territories, the elders call us double
"You dominated the floor, Alpha," Lucien grunts, keeping his broad shoulders squared as the final ceremonial growls of the Lunar Crest Gathering die down.The massive assembly hall clears out without a single territorial border dispute. Thousands of weapon-smiths, deep-trench raw stone miners, and elder pack representatives packed the fortress today. When I stepped away from the main iron pulpit, the entire room erupted into a roaring, foot-stamping ovation. A hall full of killers, and every single one of them secretly wants to sit in my high seat. Two separate clan lords told me I should claim the supreme throne of the outer territories. My leather tunic pocket is literally overflowing with heavy bone-carved tokens from alphas begging for an audience.Just because my wolf prefers the quiet doesn't mean I can't unleash a flood of absolute dominance and predatory charm when the empire requires it. I am dangerously masterclass at steering this dominion, even if the endless socializing l
"My chest is about to burst right open," I huff, dragging Selene behind the heavy metal supply crates by the scent-neutralizing station.My paws are shaking so hard I can barely hold my scraping rags. My wolf is pacing in circles inside my gut, which is the first big warning sign that my stupid plan completely imploded.Selene stares at my face, her eyes wide. "What happened up there?""Blow on my nose," I tell her, waving my hands frantically to cool down my burning cheeks. "Seriously, just blow on it before I literally explode."You want to know how I know Selene is my ultimate pack-brother? She doesn't even question it. She just steps up and blows her sweet cinnamon-root breath right against my muzzle. I squeeze my eyes shut, taking a deep, shaky breath. Whenever my inner wolf gets too overwhelmed by dominant pheromones, this weird little trick is the only thing that snaps me out of it."You were entirely right," I groan, wishing I could rub out the last ten minutes of my life. "I
"Get the scent-neutralizer ready for the gathering tonight," I command, ripping a thick silver-threaded towel off the rack and walking straight into the expansive stone-carved master chamber.My ceremonial leather tunics and formal dark linen shirts for the next three days of the Lunar Crest Gathering are hung in the massive cedar closet, exactly as my personal guards were instructed to arrange them. I slide into a pair of tailored midnight slacks and a heavy, dark silver-buttoned tunic, then tighten the leather collar strap around my throat. Before descending to the lower levels to meet with my beta enforcer, Lucien, I drop onto the edge of the massive fur-lined mattress to pull on my tracking boots. My hand reaches out automatically toward the stone nightstand to grab my lineage piece, but my fingers hit empty air."What the literal fuck?" I growl, snapping to my feet as my eyes fixate on the bare stone where it always sits.Right there. It was right fucking there.My eyes slash acr
"Can you even fathom living like this?" Selene asks, her jaw practically on the floor."No," I say with a hollow laugh. "It's gorgeous, but a sickening waste of resources.""But if your vaults are overflowing, why the hell not?" She stares up at the vaulted ceiling.When high-ranking Alphas rent the high sky chambers, flawless perfection is a legal requirement. If a single hair or speck of dust is found, the Moonveil's prestige takes a massive hit. The wealthy customer is always right, mostly because they possess enough liquid gold to buy the entire hotel and execute the staff.Selene follows close behind me, but the moment her communication crystal begins buzzing violently in her apron pocket, she freezes."I have to take this," she says, her tone shifting instantly.If I had to guess by the sudden spike in her pheromones, it’s the alpha bartender she brutally dumped last weekend."No personal calls during pack hours," I mimic our boss's grating voice perfectly."Yeah, yeah. I’ll go







