MasukAVAI stood over the wolf's body on the damp forest floor, my knuckles raw, my shoulders aching where his claws had scraped across my skin. The satisfaction of the victory was so sweet on my lips.I knelt beside him, grabbing his jaw to force his head up so I could look at his face. He was bleeding from his forehead. But as I leaned in closer, I saw a different person.The air around him felt cold. Empty.My brow furrowed. I pulled back his neck, looking for the Alpha crest that most Alphas had tattooed on their neck.There was nothing. Just smooth, scarred skin.He isn't an Alpha.My stomach sank. I grabbed the coat he wore, searching his pockets for anything. But there was nothing. I heard some movement behind me. Thinking it was just an animal, I dismissed it. Until the sounds became louder. I turned my head to the direction of the sound, only to be met with the view of a man's back. In a coat. It's him."Hey!" I yelled. "Get back here you crazy sonofabitch!"I chased him
AVAThe hallway outside the medical wing exploded into pure chaos.The moment the news hit Ethan and Dean, Dean lost his mind.He didn't care about pack protocol. He didn't care about the guards trying to maintain a perimeter. He came barreling down the corridor in his wolf form. He didn't even slow down, he slammed one guard hard against the wall, and moved past them like the wolf that he is."Maya!" he screamed, his voice cracking with terror as he changed back to his human form. Naked human form. But he clearly didn't give a shit about that right now.He dropped to his knees in the middle of the room, practically shoving me aside as he gathered Maya into his broad arms. He didn't care about the blood soaking through his clothes. He buried his face in her hair, his massive chest heaving with choked sobs as he cradled her."I've got you," Dean choked out, his voice trembling violently. "I've got you, baby. You're home. You're safe."I stood frozen beside them, watching the way
AVAI shouldn’t have gone into his room. I shouldn’t have kissed him. Because now, I don't know how to stop.It's been five hours since I left Jaxson’s room. The memory of the kiss was still replaying in my head. We had done so much more than kissing, but yet this kiss just seemed….different.The moment I got a whiff of what Jaxson was unintentionally sending through the bond, I couldn't stop myself any longer. I put on one of Jaxson’s shirts that I smuggled before taking a shower. Then I heard him moaning. Gosh, what those sounds were doing to me. I could also hear Cassandra, but I was so distracted that I hadn't bothered to ask what the fuck she was doing in my mate's room. I made a mental note to tell her off later.Even if me and my Jaxson were technically not the ideal lovey dovey couple, my wolf and I still felt territorial as he did. Maybe not as much, but I'm not gonna let some bitch claim any right over my mate.Now…back to the kiss. Fuck, I was already so wet and dripping
JAXSONI opened the doors of the medical wing. I didn't know how to feel about this. My dad and I had always been on neutral ground, but that didn't mean I didn't care about him. I was more interested in who attempted the attack though. Cassandra and my mother appeared in front of us. Their recent closeness unsettled me. Cassandra touched my shoulder, but I shrugged it off immediately.“Where have you been? My mother asked. “Your father was hit, and there was no sign of you.”She looked behind, as if finally noticing Ava. “You!” She said, pointing a finger at her. “You took my son away didn't you? You planned this! You just keep ruining things. You will be the end of this family?”She turned to face me again. “Jaxson, honey, it's not too late to break this marriage. That girl is bad luck”“Watch it.” I muttered quietly. “That girl is my mate. Watch how you speak to her.”“Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like to see my father.” With that, I walked past them and left for my father's ro
JAXSONThe motel room was suffocatingly quiet, except the sound of the rain and the ragged breathing of Dean in the far corner. Ethan retired for the night, leaving just me and Ava. I can tell she looks disturbed by the look on her face.She sat on the edge of the mattress, the faded photographs still resting on her lap. She didn't look at me when I stepped into the room, but the air between us was different now. The anger from earlier seemed to have faded into something else."Get some rest," I said softly, my voice low so as not to break the calm atmosphere. "I'll be right outside the door."Ava didn't reply right away. She smoothed her thumb over the edge of a photo, her hair falling over her shoulder." Jaxson?" she murmured, her voice barely a whisper.I stopped near the door. "Yeah?""Don't go far."The request hit me square in the chest. It wasn't forgiveness. It wasn't an invitation. But it was a thread, and right now, I’d hold onto whatever thread she gave me."I'm
JAXSONBecause he loved her first.The five words rang in my head for who knows how long.Ava wasn't mine because I loved her. She was mine because the Moon Goddess had decided it. Because of a bond she never asked for. Because somewhere along the way, fate had tied her life to mine and expected me to simply accept it.That was all.He didn't want her for political leverage, territory boundaries, or power.He wanted her because he loved her. Because he had been watching her in the dark, craving her, holding onto a ghost from her past while she was sleeping under my roof, wearing my mark, and breathing in my space.Loved her. The phrase made my blood run hot.Jaxson? Ava’s voice reached me through our bond. I felt murderous rage pouring through our bond and also dare I say it, a hint of concern.I didn't answer her. I couldn't. If I opened my mouth, I might say something stupid. I turned abruptly, shoving past Ethan, and kicked open the rusted door open, going straight outside.
I stood in the center of the Alpha suite, staring at that white lace dress on the bed like it was a pile of ash. It looked like a gothic dress from the 80s.My skin still felt cold from where his fingers had clamped around my wrist earlier. I paced the room, my heels clicking sharply against the
"Go to hell, Jaxson."I didn't even have time to blink before the world tilted. Jaxson lunged forward, his shoulder slamming into my stomach as he lifted me into the air."Jaxson! Put me down! You arrogant, overbearingg son of a—"I hammered my fists against his back and swung my legs uselessly in
JAXON'S POV"The search is over!" I said to the crowd. "Ava Thorne is your Luna!"I suddenly began to hear whispers explode all over the room."Ava? The one who ran away?""The weakling? She’s the Luna?""Look at her... she doesn't even have a pack mark." Ava didn't scream. She didn't cry. She j
I hoped it wasn't what I was thinking. I prayed to a moon goddess I hadn't spoken to in years that the sudden, violent pulling my chest was just a small heart attack.But as Jaxson's eyes locked onto mine from the podium, the air became still. The bond didn't just snap, it roared.Please don't feel







