LOGINClaire~I’m whose mate?I nearly laughed out loud at the absolute joke of it.“You can’t be serious.”Anastasia just smiled. That smile didn’t look like someone messing around. My heart did an annoying little flip.“No. You can’t be serious,” I said louder, already on my feet. I walked straight over to where she sat looking way too comfortable after dropping that bomb like it was nothing. “How the hell can I be Hudson’s mate? Then why can’t I sense it or feel anything? This has to be a damn joke.”“Claire,” Anastasia said, voice calm. “There’s a lot of things you don’t know about your best friend Connor. You’ll be finding them out one by one. I just hope you’ll still be sane enough to take some of it in.”“Can you fucking tell me what you mean by Hudson is my mate and how do you even know that?” I demanded. “Can you sense mate bonds or something?”She nodded once. “Yeah. That’s one of my abilities. I can.”My eyes went wide. Was everyone in this place walking around with some crazy ab
Claire~Hudson’s words hit me like a slap.“I’ve never lied to my brother before. But I just started it with you. I just hope the goddess didn’t make the wrong choice of my mate this time around.”I blinked. Huh?Before I could even open my mouth to ask what the hell that meant, he turned, opened the door, and slammed it shut behind him and the sound echoed through the quiet room.What the hell did that mean? Wrong choice of mate? Who was his mate? What the hell was he talking about?God damn it, I didn’t understand this place or these people at all. Everyone kept speaking in half-sentences and strange attitudes that made my head spin. Lycan politics. Forced betrothals. Mind-reading. Gifts that let them see conversations. I felt like I had stepped into a different world and no one had bothered to give me the manual.My stomach growled loud enough to break the silence. Yeah. I definitely hadn’t eaten anything real since the plane. The sandwich on the flight barely counted.As if on cue
Claire~The moment those words left his mouth, I shut my eyes and prayed to whatever force was listening to save me. Not only was Connor about to find out the truth, I was about to lose the one friendship I actually trusted. If there was anything I feared more than anything else in this world, it was Connor looking at me like I had become a stranger. That scared me more than any pack threat ever could.I was about to open my mouth and salvage something when the door pushed open hard.Hudson walked in.“Don’t do it, Connor.”Connor paused mid-step and turned. I let out a long breath I hadn’t realized I was holding and silently thanked whatever goddess had decided to drop Hudson into the room at the exact second I needed him.Hudson walked straight toward his brother and stopped between us, shoulders squared, voice calm but firm.“I already know everything they discussed,” he said. “And I can guarantee you there’s no harm in any of it.”Connor’s eyes flicked to me, then back to Hudson.
Claire~I held his gaze and didn’t look away, the air in the room felt thicker than it had a minute ago. Connor stood only a few feet from me, waiting. That quiet, focused look of his always meant trouble when we were younger. It meant he already knew I was editing the story and was giving me one last chance to fix it myself.“That’s what she said and what I answered,” I repeated, keeping my voice even. “She recognized me. She threatened to call Marcus. I told her I was done with him and the pack. I offered my skills as a doctor because I need somewhere safe and the Archivists value that kind of work. She asked about the interruption in the hall. I told her I was looking out for a friend. End of story.”Connor’s eyes stayed on mine for several long seconds. Then he exhaled through his nose and rubbed a hand over the back of his neck.“You’re leaving something out.”“I’m not.”“You are.” He stepped closer. “I’ve known you since we were kids, Claire. You get this little tightness aroun
Claire~I fidgeted the second I saw him standing there. My throat went dry. I swallowed hard and forced my legs to move forward. Something cold rolled off him for a moment—sharp and then it dropped away like someone had flipped a switch. He smiled warmly and opened the door, ushering me inside.The second we were both in, he shut it hard. The sound echoed. When he turned, the warm smile was gone. His face was serious.“What did Morana say to you?”I stared at him. Why the hell was everyone so obsessed with what Morana had said? Hudson, now Connor. Was she really that dangerous, or was I just the last person to figure out how deep the damn pack politics ran here? I couldn’t lie to him. Not directly. He would know. And if he found out the wrong way, it would be worse.“I… it wasn’t much,” I started. “Just girly stuff. She thought we were a thing and then—you know how some women get when they think someone’s getting too close to their man—”“Her man?” His voice cut in sharp. “I’m not h
Claire~I’ll be meeting my what?! How?But Hudson didn’t look back as he walked off, and I followed instantly, Anastasia right behind me. My legs moved on autopilot while my brain scrambled to catch up. The hallway felt longer. Every step echoed as Hudson’s shoulders stayed rigid, his stride cutting clean through the space.We pushed through the last set of double doors and stepped outside. The night air hit my face, cooler than I expected. A few guards stood near the entrance. The second they saw Hudson they straightened and bowed sharply. No one said a word. They didn’t need to. Hudson’s expression alone was enough to keep every mouth shut. I glanced at one of the men as we passed. His eyes flicked to me for half a second, then dropped again. Whatever they thought of the girl in the torn maid’s dress walking behind the Lycan King’s brother, they kept it to themselves.Hudson opened the back door of a black SUV without looking at me. “Get in.”I slid across the seat. Anastasia climb
Claire~I didn’t wait. I turned around and ran down the hallway. Tyler yelled my name behind me, but I didn’t stop or look back.Tears ran down my face as I pushed open the front doors and stepped outside into the cool night air. I had never felt so humiliated. My chest hurt from everything that ju
I yelled, “YOU MONSTER!”The words came out raw and loud. My throat hurt. For a second, I thought my heart might stop from how much this hurt.I clenched my fists hard. My nails dug into my palms, but the pain kept me grounded while everything else fell apart.Tyler stood there looking shocked. Beh
Claire's POV There was only one person I knew that bear that name.I should have turned around right then. Instead, I stepped closer and looked through the narrow opening like I wanted to destroy myself.And the image I saw burned into me instantly.Tyler bent over the edge of our bed, sheets tang
Claire's POVI watched Connor stride out of my office, his broad shoulders rigid beneath that crisp white coat he wore. He didn’t glance back as he left and the door clicked shut.I stared at the closed door longer than I meant to.Connor had always unsettled me in ways I didn’t like thinking too m







