ANMELDENThe voice cracked through the dark like a whip. A guard stepped out from the side corridor, spear already lowered, blocking the way completely. The tip glinted in the torchlight.“Identify yourself or get diced in half right now!”I had the veil pulled low over my face. It made it hard to see clearly in the dim light, and apparently it made it hard for him to recognize me too. Good. I straightened up, letting the bag hang at my side like it was nothing."Kill the Lycan King's mate?" I asked, my voice dropping into an eerily calm, melodic tone. "Kill Riven's wife in the middle of his own fortress? Oh, man. You seem to have a rather creative death wish upon yourself. And upon your entire bloodline." The guard’s eyes went wide. His spear wavered. He took a half-step back, then another, the weapon drooping."My... my Queen," the guard stammered, his voice cracking with absolute panic. He bowed his head so low his chin practically touched his chest. He was physically shaking. "Please... p
I zipped up the last bit of the small bag as quietly as I could. My hands were steady even though my heart was hammering against my ribs. I didn’t have much anyway. The Northern Wastes had taught me that a long time ago. You learned to move light or you didn’t move at all. A couple of changes of clothes, a small knife, some dried meat I’d stolen from the kitchens earlier. That was it. Enough to get me and Mael out of here and into the trees.I slowly let go of the zipper.I eased the bag off the vanity, careful not to let the brass buckles clink against the stone.I tiptoed toward the door, every step careful, testing the floorboards with the ball of my foot before I put weight down. The fire had burned low, casting long shadows across the room. Riven was still on the bed behind me, breathing deep and even. I was done. Nothing was stopping me this time. Not the High Council, not Kaelen, and definitely not the arrogant warlord sleeping twenty feet away. Not the memory of his hands or h
Tears of sheer, human humiliation leaked from the corners of my eyes, rolling down my temples into my hair. I was trapped. I was listening to my own mouth spout the most filthy, submissive, degrading pleas, begging a man who had just sold me out to a council of warlords.Riven’s golden eyes flared with absolute, victorious triumph.He smiled. A dark, devastating grin that showed the sharp points of his fangs."Good girl," he growled.He didn't make me wait another second. Riven crashed his mouth down onto mine, kissing me with a passionate, bruising violence that stole the very oxygen from my lungs. His tongue invaded my mouth, tasting of salt and dominance, sweeping over my teeth and tangling with my own in a ruthless, consuming rhythm.At the exact same time, his hand moved between our bodies. He found my slick, swollen cunt and slipped a thick finger right past my entrance.I whimpered uncontrollably into his mouth, the sound vibrating between our connected lips. He began to circle
My chest heaved, my breath coming in jagged, shallow gasps that tore at my throat. I was sitting there, completely exposed on his massive mattress, drowning in my own wetness. My thighs were trembling, my core throbbing with a hollow, agonizing ache that demanded to be filled. I was so incredibly, shamefully horny it felt like a fever burning under my skin. I was ready to be fucked. I was practically vibrating with the need for it.But Riven had spoken.‘You're going to have to beg harder than that.’I gritted my teeth, my jaw locking so tight the muscle fluttered. No. I had sworn to myself. I had made a silent, blood-bound promise the day Kaelen threw me into that freezing mud. I thought I had learned my lesson. I thought I had built a fortress around my pride, vowing that no man would ever control me again. No man would ever dictate my worth, tell me what to do, or reduce me to a weeping, pleading mess on a mattress.Not Kaelen. And definitely not the Lycan King.
He started gently, his tongue swirling in slow, agonizingly precise circles over my most sensitive nerve endings. He lapped at my slick wetness, savoring the taste of me like I was a delicacy he had been starving for centuries to consume. He sucked the swollen bud between his lips, flicking it gently while his fangs grazed my sensitive folds just enough to send sparks shooting up my spine.“Oh… fuck…” The moan slipped out before I could stop it.I hated it. I hated how good it felt. I hated that after everything — after he sat on that throne and let them decide my fate like I was nothing — my body was still betraying me.He was devouring me. Deeply, passionately, and with an aggressive hunger that bordered on violence.Every time his tongue flicked, every time his lips pulled at my swollen flesh, a shockwave of pure, unadulterated ecstasy shot straight up my spine. My thighs began to jitter uncontrollably. The muscles in my calves cramped as I pointed my toes, my entire body winding
I was still trembling when Riven carried me to the bed.He laid me down like I was something fragile, even though his eyes said otherwise. The heavy furs dipped under my weight as he stepped back, towering over me. The firelight painted every inch of him in gold and shadow.Gods… he was beautiful in the worst way.His shirt was already gone, tossed somewhere on the floor. Eight ripped abs etched into his torso like they’d been carved by the Moon Goddess herself. Not six. Eight. Hard, defined lines that flexed with every breath. His skin was scarred in places — old battles, old wars — but it only made him look more dangerous. More real. He reached up, his thick fingers catching the leather strap holding his hair back. He snapped it, letting the long, dark, sweat-dampened strands fall around his broad shoulders like a heavy black waterfall. He looked wild. Ancient. Utterly untamed. I hated how my mouth went dry.“Spread,” he commanded, voice low and rough.I clenched my jaw, trying to
KaelenThe mud was freezing, thick and suffocating as it filled my mouth.I was on my knees. Heavy, iron-forged chains bound my wrists, the metal biting deep into my skin, burning like silver. I couldn't move. I couldn't shift. The massive, roaring crowd surrounding the execution block didn't smell
I stumbled back, shaking violently. Oh Goddess. What had I said? Had I spoken too slowly? Too wrongly? One wrong breath and he’d killed his own Beta without hesitation. For me.“No one warns my mate,” Riven said quietly to the corpse, his voice flat and final. Then he turned those golden eyes on me
My heart hammered so hard I could feel it in my teeth. The Beta—Garrick, I think his name was—loomed over me like a storm cloud, his foul breath hot against my face. His aura pressed down on me, thick and suffocating, making my newly awakened wolf curl up and whimper like a beaten dog. Pathetic, I
LioraFour days.That was exactly how long the Lycan King had given me the space I demanded. He hadn't stepped foot inside my room. He hadn't sent for me. He hadn't forced a single interaction.The irony was that his absolute obedience to my boundary was driving me out of my fucking mind.I paced t







