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One hundred and forty six

Author: Luxie
last update publish date: 2026-04-09 17:20:57

Evangeline POV

The Veiled Meridian gathered at the regional building. A large hotel stood in front, serving as a shield for the underground structure that an ordinary eye would never catch.

The hall stayed quiet in a contained way. I walked in with my group. We followed the same greeting pattern we had always followed. I pressed my fingers to my wrist, gave a nod, and moved to my place.

The space was arranged in circles. Low stools marked each ring to indicate rank and function. The outer rings
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  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and eighty one

    Wesley POVMy intercom buzzed, interrupting us. I pressed the button."Yes?""Alpha Cameron has asked everyone to proceed to the council conference room. The meeting is about to begin."I pushed myself to my feet and reached for my suit jacket. Barbara stood as well. She stepped closer and straightened my collar before smoothing the front of the jacket. Together, we left my office and headed toward the council floor.Long before we reached the conference room, I could already hear the voices filtering into the corridor.The meeting hadn't started yet. It was waiting for me. Meetings like this usually ended one way: with a headache, and today's felt determined to prove me right.The moment Barbara and I stepped into the conference room, the conversations softened before picking up again in quieter tones.That was what happened whenever the future Alpha walked into a room full of people who were busy deciding whether he deserved the title.I swept my gaze across the long oval table out

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and eighty

    Wesley POVI walked to the cabinet and poured myself a glass of water to swallow a painkiller. The headache had started creeping in somewhere between Isabella bolting out of my office and Anita looking at her as though she'd just discovered the meaning of life.The scent of Isabella's cologne still lingered in the room.Grapes.It was cheap. The sort of thing you'd find in an ordinary supermarket. Yet the scent had settled into the office, refusing to leave, and it reminded me just how close I'd come to making a spectacularly stupid decision.If Anita had walked in thirty seconds later, she'd have caught us kissing.And then there was Barbara and I, who'd spent the last dinner with my family convincing them that we'd court and build toward marriage. Getting caught kissing another woman had nothing to do with guilt. Still, it wouldn't have looked good, considering Anita didn't know our relationship was fake.Anita was standing where Isabella had left her, her nose lifting slightly as s

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and seventy nine

    "Anita," Barbara said, her voice carrying a hint of warning as she nudged Anita with her elbow.Anita didn't move. Barbara's gaze moved from me to Wesley, then back to me again. Wesley looked mildly annoyed by the interruption, though his expression barely changed."Perfect timing," he drawled. "Should I start charging admission to my office?"Barbara nudged Anita with her elbow."I came to see her," she said, sounding almost apologetic. "And then we stopped by to say hello."Anita walked straight toward me.She wore black combat boots covered in tiny silver studs, ripped jeans, and a fitted leather jacket over a dark top. Blue eyeliner framed her eyes, matching the streak of blue mascara on her lashes. It suited her.Her gaze stayed on me with a growing fascination.I knew what that look meant. I'd seen men look at me that way before.If she asked me out, I already knew my answer.She was gorgeous. I just wasn't interested in women. I'd spent too much of my life worrying about keepin

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and seventy eight

    By lunchtime, I'd learned Emerald could find fault with almost anything. Everyone was genuinely busy working for Luna Lisa, but she always seemed to have one more job waiting for me. I had barely set the coffee she'd asked for on her desk before she sent me downstairs for biscuits because the ones on our floor had finished. By the time I returned, a fresh pack was already open on her desk. She was eating one while typing with her free hand. She'd sent me for biscuits, then found a way to have some before I made it back."You're too slow," she said, pushing a stack of charts toward me.I stopped myself from rolling my eyes. If being slow meant sixty minutes of nonstop errands without sitting down once, I could live with the label. I'd carried a sick child through a hospital that pretended not to see either of us. A woman who wanted an audience for eating a biscuit wasn't going to be the thing that ruined my morning.I did as she asked. Since I wasn't talking to anyone or getting distra

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and seventy seven

    I didn't stop walking until I reached my room. The moment the door clicked shut behind me, every ounce of strength I'd borrowed from my pride vanished. I slid down against the door and pressed both hands over my mouth to smother the sob clawing its way out of my chest.The mate bond still pulled at me with relentless force, but it no longer felt like hope. It felt like punishment. Wesley hadn't looked at me the way a mate should. He had looked at me the way men looked at women they wanted to have sex with and I'd been foolish to believe something as sacred as the bond could survive status or reputation.Maverick stirred in his sleep when I climbed onto the bed beside him. I gathered him into my arms and buried my face in his hair until my breathing settled.He was the only person who had never made me question my worth. Wesley's words kept circling in my head until they tangled with memories I'd spent years trying to bury. My mother had believed promises that were never meant to last

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and seventy six

    "Go to him!" my wolf cried the moment I spotted Wesley standing alone in the garden.I took a step back from the window, then looked again.He was still here, which meant Barbara's red SUV was still in the driveway. Her spending the night under the same roof as me should have been reason enough to lock my door and stay exactly where I was until morning. My eyes drifted back to the garden.Wesley stood beneath one of the hedges, his hands tucked into his pockets. Was he struggling to sleep too? Had the growing heat disturbed him enough to pull him from his room?The absence of any audience was telling.Maybe he didn't want to acknowledge the bond publicly. The first time it hit, Barbara had been there. The second time our eyes met, Luna Lisa had been standing beside him. Perhaps he hadn't wanted to name something so sacred in front of other people.Or perhaps I was making excuses for a man whose intentions I didn't know.I closed my eyes. He hadn't ignored me or looked irritated by my

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Sixty-Six

    CAMERON POVI kept my distance from Lisa and stopped going near her room or looking for reasons to see her. It was the only way to steady things with Evangeline and keep the house from turning into a war zone.Evangeline stayed close to me during meals and followed me through the house as if monitor

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Sixty-Five

    LISA POVI climbed the stairs to my room and kept my eyes on the floor as I walked past the staff. Their voices dropped when I passed, but not enough to hide what they were saying. One of them laughed under her breath, and another muttered something about stealing someone else’s mate.I did not stop

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Sixty-Four

    LISAMy mother was adjusting to the hospital, though she had not settled into it yet. The room was private and spacious, with a window that opened toward the gardens and equipment arranged around the bed. Nurses came in at intervals to check on her and handle medications, moving with quiet efficienc

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Sixty-Three

    FRANKLINNadia leaned against the sink with the bathroom door locked while music blasted from the speaker on the counter. That clash of trumpets and drums swallowed everything, including the sound of my fist hitting the door again and again. I kept knocking until my knuckles stung, but she did not a

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