OLIVIA’S POV
The early evening light bled gold across my room, and for once, the stillness inside didn’t feel suffocating. It felt... sacred. Like something was about to shift.
I stood in front of the open wardrobe, lips pursed, fingers tracing the fabrics one by one. Silks, velvets, lace—all draped over hangers like forgotten memories. But none of them seemed right. Not yet.
Tonight was the banquet. The start of something new. A public step back into the life I once belonged to… or at least, a test to see if I could reclaim it.
I had told Derek yes. I would go with him. And I would smile, and laugh, and maybe even dance. But deep down, I knew… this wasn’t about Derek.
This was about me.
For once, I wanted to look beautiful—not for a man, not for a title, not even for the pack—but because I deserved to feel like I mattered. That I could still glow even after everything I’d been through.
OLIVIA’S POVThe early evening light bled gold across my room, and for once, the stillness inside didn’t feel suffocating. It felt... sacred. Like something was about to shift.I stood in front of the open wardrobe, lips pursed, fingers tracing the fabrics one by one. Silks, velvets, lace—all draped over hangers like forgotten memories. But none of them seemed right. Not yet.Tonight was the banquet. The start of something new. A public step back into the life I once belonged to… or at least, a test to see if I could reclaim it.I had told Derek yes. I would go with him. And I would smile, and laugh, and maybe even dance. But deep down, I knew… this wasn’t about Derek.This was about me.For once, I wanted to look beautiful—not for a man, not for a title, not even for the pack—but because I deserved to feel like I mattered. That I could still glow even after everything I’d been through.
OLIVIA’S POVAfter Mom went back to her room, I sat alone on the couch with the morning light slowly pouring in through the windows. The house was still quiet, but my thoughts were anything but.Her words played over and over in my mind: “If your guilt is clouding everything else, maybe it’s time to let go of what’s causing it.”There was only one thing—one person—I needed to face now. And it was time I stopped delaying it. It’s unfair to him and after everything he has done for me, I cannot string him along like this.When I knew what’s my first is going to be I picked up my phone from the coffee table with trembling fingers. The screen was still smudged with last night’s notifications, but my eyes went straight to the name at the top of my call log.Derek.I stared at it for a long moment, unsure if I was ready. But I couldn’t let myself spiral again. I had already betrayed
OLIVIA’S POVI walked in just as the sky began to turn a soft lavender, the first golden rays of morning brushing the tops of trees like a whisper. The front door creaked softly behind me, and for a brief, breathless moment, I stood still—half-hoping, half-dreading that someone would hear me.Thankfully, the house was quiet.James hadn’t noticed. I could hear the faint sound of his snores coming from the guest room. He must’ve fallen asleep after his call.But someone else had noticed.I froze in the hallway when I saw her—my mother—leaning against the kitchen doorway, arms crossed over her chest and a steaming cup of tea in her hand. She didn’t say a word. Her eyes just swept over me, from my tousled hair to the faint marks on my neck and the shirt I’d obviously thrown on in a rush.“Morning,” I whispered, guilt already clawing at my throat.She raised a brow and took a sip
THIRD PERSON’S POVThe forest was silent, the only sound being the crunch of gravel under Olivia's boots and the soft rustle of leaves as a breeze swept through. The air smelled like pine and danger—two things she should be running from, yet she kept walking forward, the shadows offering a strange kind of comfort.She could feel him behind her—Dominic. His presence was a living thing. It clung to her like a second skin, hot and unyielding. He hadn’t said a word since they left the bar, but she could sense every breath, every internal war he fought not to reach out and close the distance between them.Olivia’s mind was chaos. Her thoughts tangled and turned, torn between reason and the dangerous thrum of her mate bond, which had become unbearable. It screamed for her to turn around. It whispered promises of comfort, of belonging, of a love that still lingered beneath the ache.She hated it.And she needed it.The
OLIVIA’S POVI should have known better than to let him come so close.The moment Dominic’s lips crashed against mine, I felt my entire focus shatter like glass. It was supposed to be an act—a desperate ploy to avoid being discovered by Evelyn and Alpha Dorian. But the mate bond didn’t understand logic or timing. It simply awakened and devoured. I could feel him harden, his body heat too close to mine and the meeting of our tongues once again did something to me.Even now, with the danger passed and the two conspirators gone into the night, I couldn’t steady my breath. The phantom of that kiss still clung to me, like a brand I couldn't wipe clean.I tried to step away. "We need to leave before someone else sees us."But Dominic’s hand wrapped around my wrist, gently yet firmly. “Wait.”I turned, fully expecting an apology, or at least a half-hearted excuse. But what I got was him—standing far too close, eyes stormy, breathing shallow.“I need you,” he murmured. “I didn’t mean to pull
THIRD PERSON’S POVThe dimly lit bar in the neutral zone buzzed with drunken laughter and off-key music, but Evelyn sat unnaturally still in the booth, her spine rigid as a spike of unease crawled over her skin. Her sharp eyes darted around, scanning the shadows.She stiffened suddenly. A crash from somewhere near the back of the bar made her flinch."Did you hear that?" she asked, voice tight.Alpha Dorian barely looked up from his glass. "It's a bar, Evelyn. Noise happens."Evelyn leaned forward, her voice a low hiss. "I swear I saw Olivia—just for a second, near the corridor."Dorian snorted, clearly unimpressed. "You need to stop. You're so obsessed, you're starting to see her everywhere. Relax. She wouldn’t be dumb enough to follow you here."But Evelyn didn’t relax. If anything, her senses heightened. Something was wrong. She couldn’t explain it, but the prickle along her neck hadn’t faded. In fact, it grew stronger, more insistent. She felt watched."Something’s off," she murmu