ADAMSomething felt off.The moment Selena and I stepped out of the boutique, a prickling sensation crawled down the back of my neck an invisible weight pressing against my shoulders. I glanced casually over my shoulder. No suspicious cars. No shadowed figures. Just the regular buzz of town life. Still, the feeling wouldn’t leave.I gripped the steering wheel tighter as we got into the car. Selena settled into the passenger seat, her fingers brushing over her belly in slow, affectionate circles. My heart clenched. She smiled, unaware, lost in the moment, admiring the new baby clothes we'd picked out.But my mind was elsewhere.Stephen.Since the engagement party, ever since I caught the hunger in his eyes when he looked at her, I knew he’d come for her. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow but he would. And that terrified me more than anything.I wasn’t just protecting Selena I was holding onto her with every thread of my being. I’d built a world around her. But lately, she’d started p
STEPHENThe moment my boots touched Nightshade soil, my blood began to boil.I hadn’t slept well in days, haunted by the image of her my Selena wrapped in another man's arms, smiling like she hadn’t once vowed herself to me. The memory of her standing next to Adam at that damned engagement party replayed in my mind like a curse. Her hand in his. Her laugh. The way she leaned into him like he was her anchor.That should’ve been me.I kept my hood low as I stepped out of the truck, my guards flanking me in silence. We weren’t here to make noise. Not yet.The Nightshade Pack was… different. Too peaceful. Children ran through the streets with painted faces, laughter echoing through the air like a celebration. Vendors lined the road with trinkets and sweets, and music played from a corner shop like there wasn’t a war history between our packs.It felt like a fantasy. Or a distraction.In my pack, smiles were earned after blood and sweat. We trained harder than we breathed. No one had time
STEPHEN“Father!”I burst into his chamber without knocking, the door slamming against the wall with a sharp thud. The scent of old leather and burning firewood filled the air, grounding me in this place I once called home but right now, it suffocated me.He was seated by the hearth, a thick tome resting open on his lap, glasses perched on his nose. Calm. Always so damn calm.“I need to talk to you,” I said, voice tight, raw with everything I was holding in.He closed the book with deliberate care, looking up at me with those unreadable eyes. “What is it, son?”I didn’t sit. Couldn’t. My body was buzzing, clenched with anger I couldn’t contain.“I saw her.”His brow lifted slightly.“Selena,” I clarified, heart thudding hard against my ribs. “She’s alive.”I searched his face for shock. Denial. Anything. But he just stared at me stoic, almost too composed.“You knew,” I said slowly, my voice laced with growing fury. “Didn’t you?”His silence made the air feel colder.“When I came back
ADAMThe moment the door slammed shut behind us, I lost it.My fist connected with the wall hard enough to leave a dent. Pain flared up my knuckles, but it was nothing compared to the fire in my chest. “What the hell was he doing here?” I muttered, pacing the room like a caged wolf.My mind reeled, trying to piece together how Stephen Stephen could have shown up at my engagement party.Unless… My heart sank.Did my father invite him?I had told him everything about Selena, about the risk. And yet, tonight of all nights, my father chose to pull this? To have him here, hovering in the shadows like a bad omen?I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply, but all I could see was Stephen’s back as he turned and vanished into the crowd. I knew that posture. The way his shoulders squared like he was daring someone to stop him. I’d recognize that bastard anywhere.He saw Selena.He knows.And if he truly knows she’s carrying my child… he won’t stop. Stephen doesn’t take losses. He destroys them. And no
SELENAThe car slowed to a stop in front of a grand estate lit up like a palace. Soft golden lights spilled out from wide arched windows, casting a glow on the neatly trimmed hedges and polished marble steps. Music drifted through the air lively, elegant, expensive.This was no small family gathering.I pressed a hand over the swell of my belly, feeling the flutter of tiny movements beneath my skin, and reached for Adam’s hand with the other. My heart thudded not from excitement, but uncertainty. This wasn’t what he’d told me to expect.I turned to him. “You said it would be small.”Adam didn’t answer right away. His jaw tensed as he scanned the crowd from behind the tinted windows. Finally, he looked at me, his eyes softening. “It is... small. For my world.”I swallowed the lump forming in my throat and nodded, stepping out of the car with him. The moment our feet touched the ground, eyes turned. Men in tailored suits, women draped in satin, all paused to watch us. They didn’t smile
ADAMSeven months.That’s how long it’s been since I brought Selena here since I locked the world out and wrapped her in the only protection I had left to offer: silence and isolation.Her belly had grown round and full, the curve of life evident in every movement she made. And still, every day, she glowed brighter.But I never let her out. Not once.The mansion stood hidden in the heart of the forest, its stone walls cloaked in ancient magic and guarded by warriors who didn’t ask questions.Because out there, danger lingered in shadows I couldn’t predict. Spies. Enemies. Curious eyes. The entire werewolf realm whispered of the missing healer wolf the only one who could shift the fate of our kind.And she had no idea it was her.Sometimes I watched her sleep and wondered if keeping the truth from her was a sin I’d burn for. But I couldn’t let her go not again.Not when she finally looked at me like I was her home.She stood in front of the mirror now, her hands cradling the swell of h