CHA 1

“You want to come, don’t you, little wolf?”

Luthor’s voice was a growl that vibrated through her bones, low and dangerous, like a storm held in the shape of a man. Sharon couldn’t even pretend to deny it. Her fingers clenched the edge of the wooden bed frame, hips tilted high, her body bare, trembling under the weight of his hands.

She was breathless—slick, panting, flushed.

“Yes,” she whimpered. “Please—Alpha.”

He chuckled, dark and slow, and pressed his chest along her back, his mouth brushing her ear.

“Good girl.” His teeth grazed her earlobe. “Now say it louder. Say who this pussy belongs to.”

Sharon swallowed a moan as his fingers slid between her legs, parting her folds to stroke her already dripping center.

“You,” she gasped. “It’s yours—fuck, Luthor—it’s always been yours.”

His growl deepened. “Damn right.”

He didn’t give her a warning—didn’t need to. With a firm grip on her hips, he thrust into her, filling her in one long, devastating stroke that made her cry out into the pillow. Her walls clenched around him, desperate, needy. Her whole body surrendered.

He moved without mercy. Deep, grinding strokes that punished and praised all at once.

“Look at you,” he snarled, slapping her ass just enough to make it sting. “Bent over for me, soaking for me. You act like you're shy out there in the world, but in here? You’re just my filthy little mate, dripping all over my cock.”

Sharon sobbed his name, humiliated by how much she needed him, how her body came alive in his hands—even when her mind screamed at her to run.

“Please,” she begged, pressing her hips back into him, trying to meet his rhythm. “I’m so close—Luthor, please—don’t stop—”

He leaned forward, teeth brushing her neck. “You’ll come when I say you can. Not a second before.”

She bit down on a scream, clenching around him. The heat, the pressure—it was unbearable. She was nothing but sensation, his name a broken prayer on her lips.

“Alpha, I can’t—I’m—”

“Now,” he growled. “Let me feel how much you need me.”

And she shattered. Trembled. Broke beneath him.

He didn’t slow. If anything, he fucked her through it, hips slamming against her ass with primal hunger.

“You’re mine, Sharon,” he snarled against her skin, biting her shoulder as his own climax neared. “You’ll always be mine.”

She should have known.

The way he marked her. The way he whispered promises into her hair as they collapsed into the sheets.

She should have known he never meant forever.

------------- Present Day

It was warm for April. Balmy, even, but by the time Sharon Spark clocked out and headed home, most of the heat from the sun was starting to break up. She could have been outside with Alexander all day, scouring the beaches for sea glass or preparing the meager garden for summer, but instead, she'd spent the day cooped up inside the warehouse. It was hard not to begrudge, but she had to continue reminding herself that she did it all for her boy. It was a blessing to be working and earning money on her own, not a curse, although sometimes it felt otherwise.

No. Portsmouth, New Jersey, her tiny two-bedroom cottage, and her warehouse position at the shipping firm were all symbols of her independence. Her sole curse was the one she had left in Yellow Pack, Maine. The suffocating Tenzclaw pack, a million reminders of her shortcomings, and worst of all, her now former Alpha, Luthor Michaels. Compared to everything she had left, the little that she could call her own in Portsmouth was invaluable.

And most importantly, it allowed her to keep her most precious treasure safe—her little Alexander.

The drive home was not too long, for which she was grateful, but long enough to gaze at the scenery while she got lost in her thoughts. The trees were starting to gain some green on them, and where she could see a glimpse of the ocean, it was an endless dark blue. It was a sunny day, but there was a bank of clouds far off on the horizon. She didn't mind the threat of rain, but thunder kept Alexander awake. Maybe they'd be lucky, and it would be only a sprinkle.

Normal, ordinary worries like that were comforting. In Yellow Pack, she'd been an outcast. Weak, unwanted, and when she wasn't being harassed by more powerful pack members, she was being ignored. Even now, she wasn't certain which was worse—the smothering loneliness or the need to fight. She'd never meant to get pregnant on her first heat, let alone by her asshole Alpha, but though the news was devastating at first, pregnancy was the kick in the pants she needed to leave her old pack behind and start fresh.

Alexander was a sweetheart, a treasure, and best of all, he was still blissfully unaware of who his father was, the danger they were in, and the fact that she would do anything to keep him safe.

Anything.

The sight of her house, with its tiny front porch and carefully kept garden, usually comforted her. Today, though, she couldn't get rid of the feeling that something was off. She'd felt a strange energy a mile or two from home, but it was so subtle there wasn't much she could do except brush it off. Relief hit her when she could finally see the cottage—in daylight, from the outside, all was well. Maybe she was paranoid.

The instant her tires ground into the gravel, the front door was flung open, and a small, wiry shape came flying out. "Mama," Alexander screamed, his huge smile flaunting his missing front tooth.

"Careful," she cautioned, even as he flung himself into her arms, wrapping his arms and legs around her like a baby monkey. She felt he was getting too big for her to pick him up, and a pang went through her heart. Luckily, her shifter blood made her stronger than the norm, even if she was a terrible shifter otherwise. She still had a few more years of picking up her boy to look forward to.

She embraced him, her eyes shutting briefly. Alexander's babysitter and co-worker, Blie, followed behind Alexander with a smile on her face. Her own daughter was strapped in a sling on her chest, the much younger child kicking contentedly. They had a wonderful system, working opposite shifts and babysitting for one another when the other was at the warehouse. It also made homeschooling Alexander a lot simpler, although he didn't completely understand why he couldn't follow the other kids to normal school.

Alexander had given no indication of changing yet, but the last thing she desired was for that side of him to reveal itself while he was sitting in the middle of multiplication tables with fifteen other kids. The idea sent a shiver down her spine, and she held her boy even closer.

"He was perfect today as always," Blie told her, coming down the porch steps to greet her. "Same can't be said for my little miss here, but what else is new."

Blie's daughter gurgled in assent, and she smiled.

The sun was nearly set by the time Blie had finished cleaning up and left, and she was sufficiently exhausted to acquiesce to Alexander's proposal of a pancake dinner. He'd spent all afternoon making them with Blie, and the fridge was full of unsuccessful attempts, the stove covered in a light dusting of flour and batter. She wasn't about to complain, though. At least she didn't have to cook.

She tucked Alexander into bed following his bath and pulled out a book, trying to ignore the small twinge in her stomach. It was the same one she'd gotten on the drive home, and now it was worsening, a dull, slow cramp that was making her feel sick. It couldn't have been anything she ate; they'd had the same thing for dinner, and Alexander was fine.

Perhaps she was getting sick. It was flu season, and although shifters tended to have a natural immunity to the bugs that afflicted humans, she was a bit of an exception where shifters were involved. She attempted not to let concern alarm her and instead absorbed the vision of her son as he fell asleep.

"You okay, Mama?"

She swallowed the uncomfortable feelings and smiled softly, "Yes, my love, just tired from work, that's all."

"I wish you didn't work so much," Alexander told her with a yawn. "I miss you when you aren't here."

Ouch. Let it be her sweet little boy to break her heart into a million little pieces with a few innocent words. "I know, buddy, but I'm working a little overtime so that we can take a trip this summer, remember?"

"I know," Alexander sighed, his eyes filling, "You said I can ride a rollercoaster, Mama?"