LOGIN“… the reason he is willing to stay away from his pack duties right now, is because he went out there just for her. That is to tell you exactly how dedicated your uncle is.”Portia ruminated on that sentence over and over again as she drove down the cobbled stone road to the compound’s security hub. The buildings was more like a makeshift garrison where all the compound's security cameras and sensors were monitored, and pack warriors trained and rested during their rounds. A couple of men and women training in the courtyard, paused and stared as Portia stepped out of her car. “Lady Portia,” the female warrior stationed at the front desk greeted her as she walked into the building, her eyes wide with surprise. “What are you doing here?” One of Portia’s brows rose and she gave her a dry, unimpressed look. “So… sorry,” the woman stammered, her face going red. She cleared her throat. “I meant to say. How may I be of service?”“That’s better,” she said with a satisfied smirk. “I’m her
“That’s it!” Portia yelped, shooting up from the sofa so suddenly that the magazine slid off her lap and hit the floor with a sharp slap. Across the living room, Sterling jolted in his seat so violently that his fingers slipped on his video game controller. On the giant TV, his character died with a dramatic groan and a bright "GAME OVER" text flashed across the screen. "Shit, Portia!" he barked, twisting around to glare at her, his heart still racing. "What the hell is wrong with you? Did you have a bad dream or something?" "No," Portia murmured, one finger tapping slowly against her lips, her sharp eyes fixed on nothing at all. “So why did you jump like something bit your ass?” Sterling hissed. "Don't you think something is off?" She asked, her voice thoughtful and distant. Sterling turned back to the game. "About what?" He asked, his tone bored and irritated. Portia rolled her eyes at how incredibly clueless her brother was. He was always perfectly content to just sit
"All of this is your fault!" Caspian yelled, pointing an accusing finger. His face twisted. The fear had not left his eyes, but fury burned right through it. "You always do this.” He continued, stepping from behind his car door. “You come into her life, you wreck something, you walk away, and she's the one who bleeds. Are you not tired of this circle of rubbish? Break it. Just leave her alone!" Marcus and the other guards stiffened, ready to interfere in case their Alpha attacked the yelling man. But Alistair barely heard a single word Caspian was saying again. Every word slid past his ears like water down glass. A single question pounded through his skull, louder than his wolf and louder than his pride. Where is she? Where the fuck is she? Ten minutes ago, he had been standing on the sidewalk, rigid with the need to respect her space and her terms. He had told himself he would not invade her privacy
"Alpha, you need to let go of him," Marcus pleaded, gripping Alistair’s rigid forearm with both hands.Alistair did not hear him. The blood was pounding in his ears, and his wolf was snarling behind his eyes, wild and hungry and desperate for something to tear apart.Marcus did not have the hierarchical authority or the sheer supernatural strength to forcefully yank an Alpha away from a target. He had to rely entirely on desperate reasoning. Caspian’s face was already rapidly turning an alarming shade of blue from the lack of oxygen. His fingers clawed weakly at Alistair's wrist, and his lips were parting without any sound coming out."Sir, please!" Marcus urged, stepping carefully into Alistair's line of sight. "He is human, sir. He cannot handle this level of force. You are going to kill him."The word human finally penetrated the thick, feral fog clouding Alistair’s brain. Alistair blinked, his eyes dropping to the man he was pinning against th
Marcus stiffened as his alpha slowly turned his head to look at him."You guys know I can hear you, right?" Alistair asked, his voice hollow and exhausted. "I am not some rabid dog that you want to put down."Adrian sighed loudly over the phone. "Well, we are just being careful, Ali. We do not think that of you. You know that.""Yeah, I understand," Alistair muttered. He turned his back to Marcus and stared up at the dark window of Solana's apartment once again.Marcus ended the call and slipped the phone into his pocket. He looked at his Alpha, a rare shiver of worry trembling in his chest.Alistair Vance was easily one of the most steady, stable, and terrifyingly calm people Marcus had ever met in his entire life. Marcus vividly remembered the dark years of the pack. After the unfortunate, tragic death of Alistair's mother, the old Alpha had completely withdrawn into his grief. Alistair's father had practically gone feral, neglecting his son and his pack entirely.But Alistair had
"Marcus just reached out to me," Adrian said, his voice crackling over the phone line with deep, undeniable concern. "He is worried, Ali. What exactly is going on over there?"Alistair barely seemed to hear him. “Nothing.”“Nothing?” Adrian repeated. “Ali, Marcus said you’ve been out there for more than a day.”“Then Marcus talks too much.”“Are you listening to me?”Alistair dragged a hand through his hair and stared at the building across the street. “I need to speak to her.”Alistair paced the shadowed sidewalk beneath the glow of a flickering streetlamp. He ran a trembling hand through his messy hair. “I know you do,” Adrian replied, his voice softening with pity. “But you can’t keep doing this.”“Doing what?”“Whatever the hell you’re doing right now,” he hissed. “You’re sitting outside someone’s residence like a man waiting for a target to emerge from a bunker.”“I’m not waiting for a target.”“Then what are you waiting for?”Alistair said nothing.Adrian exhaled slowly. “Have
Solange felt a literal snap in the center of her chest as she stared at the heavy oak doors. It wasn’t the metaphoric ache of a breakup. It was a white-hot blade of agony carved through her ribs, twisting around her heart and pulling tight.She tried to scream, but the air in her lungs had turned t
Solange looked at him, her brows furrowing as confusion rose alongside irritation. If he wanted to insult her, he could have done it outright. “What are you talking about?” she bit back. “What smell? I literally just took a bath.” He shook his head; his eyes had a faraway look, like he wasn’t hear
The moment the penthouse door shut, Alistair’s restraint evaporated.He pinned her against the door, his large, calloused hand sliding up to grip the back of her neck with a terrifying but delicious pressure, and he slanted his lips over hers again.He was rough, but in a calculated way that made h
Solange woke slowly, her body aching in all the ways that made her heart flutter and a strange humming in her chest. Her head was foggy, but she felt a calm she had never known, like she was connected to something that had been missing all her life. She felt… claimed, as if the night had somehow gi







