LOGIN"Me neither. Caden, we're both—we're both learning. Both trying. That's—that's okay. As long as we're honest. As long as we—we talk instead of assuming. As long as we give each other chances to fix mistakes." "Honest communication. No assumptions. Multiple chances." He was still holding my hand. S
"You felt it?" My voice was small. Hopeful. Terrified. "Caden, you actually felt the mate bond? You—you recognized it?" "Yes. Not immediately. Not when we were talking at the gathering. But after—after I was alone and thinking about why you looked so upset—it hit. The certainty. The pull. The—the
The Next Generation Hope pov I lay on my bed facing the wall, knees pulled to my chest, trying not to cry anymore. The mate bond was—excruciating. Every instinct screaming that Caden was mine. That he should be here. That watching him with Emily was wrong on fundamental level. But he'd looke
I went upstairs. Found the second door on the right. Knocked quietly. "Come in." Hope's voice. Muffled. Like she'd been crying. Fuck. I'd made her cry. Had devastated my mate before even realizing she was my mate. I opened the door. Hope was sitting on her bed, eyes red, looking—looking vulner
"I didn't want to hurt her feelings. Didn't want to—to make things awkward since we're friends and train together and—" I stopped. "I was being a coward. Should have been honest months ago instead of letting her build expectations." "Yes. You should have." No judgment in Dad's voice. Just observat
The Next Generation Caden pov I watched Hope Reed-Castellan leave with her family, and something in my chest twisted. She'd looked—gutted. Devastated. Like something had broken when we were talking. And I—I didn't understand why. We'd just been having normal conversation. Me and Emily planning
Jeremy's phone buzzed. He answered immediately. "Report." I couldn't hear the other side of the conversation, but I watched his face. Saw the tension increase, the lines around his eyes deepen. "Understood. Keep me updated." He hung up and finally turned from the window. "That was my father. The
My Cheating Mate Emma pov I shouldn't be doing this. That's what I told myself as I let myself into Jeremy's house with the key I'd kept, armed with cleaning supplies and groceries. He was meeting with his father about the rogue situation, and I'd decided—impulsively, maybe foolishly—to take a
My Cheating Mate Jeremy pov The plan had been for Emma to stay at the pack house in the fortified safe room with maximum security. She'd agreed. Promised. Said she'd follow protocols. But when the alarms blared at 3 AM, she was still at my house. We'd talked strategy until midnight—my father
"I know. I'm done making that mistake." I paused. "Dad, I slept for twenty hours yesterday. My body literally shut down. That's not going to happen again." "How can I be sure?" "Because Emma will kill me if it does," I said, only half-joking. "She made it very clear—if I go back to those pattern







