로그인Zahra's POVI can't stop crying.I swear the bath has gone up by at least a couple of centimetres since I got in. My eyes are stinging and my throat aches, but I can't stop.Fuck, this hurts.I don't know what's worse: the idea that Max wanted to reject the bond before, or knowing that even after we've partially completed it, he still wants to reject it.I'd let myself hope. That's the worst part. For a few glorious minutes, I'd believed everything was going to be okay. That Max had finally accepted us. Accepted me. And now that hope feels like a knife twisting in my chest.‘We don't know that,’ Zanthe hums soothingly.‘Why else would he leave?’ I sob back at her.She doesn't reply.She has no answers for me.When the water becomes too cold to be comfortable, I climb out. Lincoln has left a fluffy white towel warming on the towel rail for me, and I grab it, wrapping myself in it before heading into the bedroom.The towel is warm and soft against my skin, and the simple thoughtfulness
Xander's POVMy mind blanks out at the contact, and I watch her slowly climb the stairs like I’ve forgotten how to do anything else. When I finally blink back into myself, I realise Tobias and Lincoln look just as lost as I feel.“Fuck. What can we do about this?” Tobias asks, running a hand through his hair.Lincoln flops into a chair, sighing heavily. “I don’t know. We don’t even know where he is.”I sigh. Knowing Max, he’s probably in a bottle somewhere.“I’ll ask his unit to track him down and keep an eye on him,” I say, rubbing at the ache forming behind my eye.“And I thought maybe we could have a small birthday celebration later for Zahra,” I add.I see the objections forming in their eyes and hasten to clarify.“Just us lot. Maybe a picnic tea, with a cake and her presents?”They relax when they realise no one else will be joining us, then seem to consider the idea properly.“I think that’s a great idea,” Lincoln says with a grin.Tobias nods slowly.“I think she'd like that,”
Xander's POVI watch as Zahra snuggles into Tobias's broad chest, his chin resting on top of her head. I want to do something nice for her.Actually, what I really want is to take her on a date, but I think that might be a little insensitive right now. I doubt she's in the mood.What else would work?‘Why not do something altogether?’ Atlas muses, flashing me an image of all the wolves eating together.Yeah, we're not doing that again for a while.But maybe I could cook a nice dinner... or maybe a picnic?The island has plenty of space around the house. There's the small copse of trees, the rose beds and shrubs Mum planted, and the stretch of lawn overlooking the water. We could get some blankets and eat outside. Maybe watch the sunset.It's an idea.We could even get a cake and have a little birthday party, seeing as we never celebrated her birthday.I lurch to my feet.Shit.Zahra hasn't had any of her birthday presents.Not only did we miss her birthday, but she spent the day uncons
Xander's POV:I must have drifted off, because I come back to awareness as Atlas trots along the shoreline behind Zanthe and in front of the others. We're in single file as we approach the area where we left our clothes.I turn to check on the others but startle when I realise there are only two wolves behind me, not three.‘Medus took off after he ate. He wouldn't speak to any of us,’ Atlas says, his tone dejected.I can feel the rejection and worry rolling off him.‘Why? What happened?’I feel him internally shrug, the familiar sensation strange when he's in my mind.‘No idea. He just left. Zanthe's upset because he didn't even say goodbye.’Shit.I look back at Zanthe. She's approaching our bundles of clothes with her head and tail low, the joy from earlier completely gone. She looks heartbroken.I don't understand it. Medus marked her. He chose her. Every instinct in me says that should have meant something settled, not shattered.Fuck.I trot to catch up with her and the others,
Xander's POVLex and Atlas stand side by side as we watch Zanthe move to Medus and rub her head over his shoulder, scent-marking him. Then she slowly and carefully starts to clean the wounds Thor inflicted on his flank, neck, and belly. Medus stands stoically, his head following her movements around his body.No one moves.I’m still reeling from the fact that Medus just marked Zanthe, and then doubly so from the fact that Zanthe alpha commanded him and Tobias.‘I think it’s more surprising that it was Tobias. He’s the future Alpha King. No one other than his father is supposed to be able to command him,’ Atlas says, sounding as stunned as I feel.And he’s right. Tobias isn’t just another Alpha. He’s the future King. The idea that Zanthe could command him at all is enough to make my head spin, but the fact that he obeyed? Fuck. None of us understands what just happened.The events that happened before this all seem to have paled into insignificance now, even though the wolves apparentl
Tobias's POVOkay, I am not prepared to witness my wolf taking his mate.Like, not at all.I think I might be sick.Thor's lust and want are driving him hard now. It's all he can think about. Claiming his mate. Her scent is heavy in the air, and he's salivating, the need to mate her all-consuming.Lex and Atlas are either side of us, purring and rumbling themselves, and fucking hell, are they queuing up?Here's the manuscript-style version, with the one-liners folded back into prose so it reads like a novel rather than a beat sheet.Atlas brushes against Zanthe as he circles past her, rubbing his shoulder along her side. She leans into it, returning the gesture before nudging her nose beneath Lex's jaw. The three wolves exchange scent and touch so naturally it's almost impossible to miss.Wait, are they actually taking turns?Atlas settles down a few feet away, completely unbothered, while Lex looks equally relaxed. Oh Goddess, they're coordinating. The wolves have worked this out alr
Tobias's POVThe women bustle out, chatting animatedly, and Greyson follows, giving my dad a nod as he goes. Aiden follows behind him, flashing me a look and a small nod. It eases something very small inside me. But I’m still tense. I will be, until I can see her progress with my own eyes.The room
Zahra's POV“Zahra…, I am coming for you, white wolf.”A massive shadow wolf lunges at me and I jerk back with a strangled gasp, waking instantly.Fuck.The remnants of last night’s dream cling to me like wet cobwebs, sticky and suffocating. The same forest. The same voice. The same claws scraping
Max's POVI can’t stop smiling as I shower and change. I feel fucking ridiculous, grinning at the tiles like some love-sick idiot, but I can’t help it. I throw on a pair of cargo shorts and a T-shirt. I am not training today. I literally do not give a fuck what Baxter has to say about it. If I avoi
Zahra's POVMy stomach tightens. Goddess, why am I reacting like this. He probably just went for food or a shower. Or the toilet. Something normal. He didn't leave. He wouldn't leave without saying goodbye… would he? Surely not after that kiss. This is Max we are talking about.Except the silence s







