Alaina’s POV“Adrian…” The name slipped from my lips, so soft I barely recognized my own voice. Disbelief clung to every syllable as I stared at him, trying to process the look in his eyes.His jaw tightened, the muscle flickering beneath his skin as he clenched it. “I want to be the first person who truly knows you, Alaina. I want to see what you’re hiding behind those eyes.”His words struck me like a quiet storm, leaving me rooted to the spot, unable to speak for a moment. When I found my voice, it came out weak and unsure. “You’re making it hard for me to know what to say,” I whispered, trying to keep my hands from shaking. “I can’t return the feelings you’re talking about. You think I’m different because you’re feeling something you’ve never felt before, but I… I don’t feel that way about you.”A part of me wondered if that was a lie, but I shoved the thought away.Adrian opened his mouth as if to argue, but I cut in quickly, tr
Cole’s POV“Don’t feed me lies!” I roared, grabbing whatever I could reach and flinging it across the chamber. The echo of glass shattering against the walls was the only answer, until Grace’s small whimpers broke through, her hands pressed desperately against her ears, tears slipping down her pale cheeks.“Take your hands off your ears, Grace,” I commanded, my voice rough with the fury burning through me. She hesitated, trembling, before slowly lowering her hands, her eyes wide and glistening with fear.“I’m sorry, Alpha,” she whispered, her voice shaking but her back still straight, her resolve refusing to break. “You will see the truth, just as I did. You don’t even realize who she truly is.”“That’s enough, Grace,” I snapped, cutting her off with a glare sharp enough to silence any further protest. She swallowed hard, her lips pressing into a thin line as she lowered her gaze.“You’ve ruined everything,” I hissed, pinching the br
Alaina’s POVI struggled to find the words as both Adrian and Isaac stared at me, confusion and expectation etched into every tense line of their faces. My heart pounded in my chest, so loud it drowned out the silence around us.“I... I received a letter from a friend,” I finally managed, my voice thin, cracking under the weight of the moment. I swallowed hard, forcing a cough to steady myself. “A friend I didn’t expect to hear from again.”The words tasted strange as they left my mouth, but the truth was a heavy stone I needed to let go of.Adrian’s gaze pinned me in place, sharp and unreadable, making it harder to continue. I felt like a child standing in front of judgment, afraid of rejection but needing to be heard.“Grace,” I whispered, so softly I wasn’t sure they heard me. “Her name is Grace. She... she apologized for being part of the reason I was kicked out of one of the packs.”Isaac’s brows furrowed. “What pack?”
Alaina’s POV“I wish I had some kind of special ability,” Gareth murmured, raking a hand through his hair, his gaze fixed on the floor as if searching for something he had lost. “But I don’t, and my brother... he hates me.”His voice cracked as he pressed a hand against his chest, as if trying to keep himself from falling apart.“But I can’t blame him,” he continued, letting out a shaky breath. “After everything that happened in our childhood, I can’t blame him for wanting to leave it all behind. Love, family, every memory tied to that past.” His voice trailed off, and a strange ache settled in my chest as I watched him.When his eyes lifted to meet mine, there was a soft, almost resigned smile on his lips. “He wouldn’t like the idea of our packs partnering, you know,” Gareth said, his tone lightening for a moment. “But he finally agreed because I told him I’d flirt with you.”My eyes widened, my heart stumbling in my chest as I quic
Adrian’s POV“You don’t need to answer that,” I told Alaina before turning away, letting my footsteps carry me out of the room before I could say something I would regret.I had already cleared my schedule with the Huntington Pack, canceling all other invitations that had been flooding in from neighboring territories. Maybe I would visit them in the future, but not now. Not if Alaina would not be there.It was insane, the way I measured every decision around her presence, but I could not deny it any longer.Now, I sat alone in my quarters, the scent of old paper and ink grounding me as I reviewed the reports stacked on my desk. My scouts had reported unusual activity near the edge of the woods. Tracks where there should be none, scents that did not belong to our pack or any known allies.A low growl rumbled in my throat as I tried to make sense of it, irritation gnawing at me. The last thing I needed was trouble brewing on our border
Alaina’s POV“Grace?” Adrian called out, his voice carrying a quiet authority that filled the hall.Grace entered, her steps hesitant, her eyes flickering nervously between Adrian and Gareth. She looked as if she had been caught in a moment she was not prepared for, and I felt a pang of sympathy as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, forcing a polite smile.“Would you mind showing my brother around the pack?” Adrian asked, though it was more of a command than a request.Grace nodded quickly, her composure like thin glass that might crack under the weight of the moment. Before she turned to leave with Gareth, her gaze found mine, and she offered a small, reassuring nod, as if to say she would be fine.Gareth glanced back, his smile genuine, warm in a way that disarmed me for a moment, revealing a softness beneath the surface of his confident air.Adrian’s voice cut into the moment like a blade. “Why are you star