LOGINKira’s POVA frantic whisper yanked me out of sleep like someone had grabbed my soul and shaken it.“Come find me… come find me…”The voice was right in my ear, low, urgent, endless. I jolted upright, gasping, heart slamming against my ribs. The cabin was dark except for the faint blue glow from the overhead lights. Adrian’s scent still clung to the sheets? smoke, cedar, him, but he wasn’t there.I pressed my palms to my ears like that would stop the echo.In the dream he’d been running through fog, tall, shadowed, always just out of reach. No face. Just that whisper. Come find me. Over and over. I chased him until my lungs burned, until the ground turned to black water and swallowed my ankles, and still he kept running, calling, pulling me deeper.I’d woken up once, briefly, long enough to feel Adrian’s arms around me, his lips brushing my temple, his voice murmuring “You’re safe.” I’d believed it and drifted back under.And then the second dream hit.The man from the forest.From
Adrian’s POVThe Oden…Emma, or whatever shell she was wearing now…leaned forward again, the silver cuffs biting into her wrists without her seeming to notice. That eerie smile stayed plastered on her face like it had been carved there. Her eyes weren’t blinking anymore. Not once. Just wide, unblinking pools of black that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.But I didn't let go. My hand stayed on her neck. I needed a way out of this that would not involve my mate bleeding for it.“Are you willing to take that path?” she repeated, voice dripping with mock sweetness. “Or are you going to keep pretending you have the luxury of morals?”I felt the growl rumble low in my chest before I could stop it. “Just say it. Stop beating around the bush like a coward.”She tilted her head, studying me like I was a particularly interesting insect pinned to a board. Then she laughed again…soft this time, almost intimate, the sound crawling under my skin.“This is even better,” she murmured,
Adrian’s POVThe cabin was dim, lit only by the soft blue glow of the overhead reading lights and the faint pulse of cabin lights through the window shades. Kira stirred in my arms with a sharp, sudden gasp…like she’d been yanked out of deep water. Her body jerked once, hard, and she mumbled something incoherent, words tumbling over each other in a half-dream slur.“…no… don’t… have to find… she’s waiting…”I tightened my hold instantly, one hand cradling the back of her head, the other splayed protectively across her bare back. “Hey. Hey, princess. You’re safe. I’ve got you.”Her eyes fluttered open…wide, unfocused, pupils still blown from sleep and whatever nightmare had clawed its way in.She blinked at me like she was trying to remember where the dream ended and reality began, then sagged against my chest with a shaky exhale.I kissed her temple, tasting salt and the faint sweetness of her skin. “Bad dream?”She didn’t answer. Just pressed her face into the crook of my neck and
Adrian’s POV The private cabin door was locked. Soundproofed. Sealed. The rest of the jet might as well have been on another continent. Our kiss had deepened into something reckless, something consuming…heat building, breaths tangling…when my phone shattered the moment. I groaned under my breath and pulled away, pressing a quick, lingering kiss to her lips before stepping out. It was about her company, something that couldn’t wait. But when I returned, the fire in her eyes had softened… dimmed by sleep. She lay there, lashes heavy, lips still slightly parted like she was caught between wanting more and surrendering to exhaustion. God, I wanted her. Badly. Every inch of me burned to pick up where we left off, to drag her back into that dizzying heat. But I’m not a man who rushes what’s worth savoring. So instead, I brushed my thumb lightly over her cheek, letting the tension settle into something quieter… something promising. She’d rest. And when I had her again…I’d take
Kira’s POVThe courthouse doors clicked shut behind us like the final note of a song I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear the end of. Less than fifteen minutes. In. Out. Legally bound.Adrian had shaken the judge’s hand…some silver-haired man who called him “Your Majesty” with the casual familiarity of an old poker buddy…and murmured something about finishing the rest of the paperwork and sending it straight to him. The judge had nodded once, eyes flicking to me with polite curiosity, then back to Adrian like he already knew the script.And just like that, my name was Kira Arabella Draven.I kept staring at the diamond on my left hand as we walked back to the car. Not the transfer documents anymore. The ring. Simple. Stunning. A single stone that caught every stray beam of light and threw it back like it was daring the world to look away. When the hell had he even bought this? Planned this? Was this the trap snapping shut, or had I just handed him the key myself?Leah groaned in my head,
Kira’s POVThe car hummed beneath us, smooth and quiet like it knew better than to interrupt the moment. I had stormed in there, ready to sweet-talk Adrian out of whatever plan that involved helping them out…until I got to realize that he wasn’t actually helping them.I couldn’t stop staring at the document balanced on my lap…the crisp white pages, the fresh ink, the official seals that screamed finality. Summers Group. Transferred. Sole ownership: Kira Draven.Kira Draven.Every time my eyes slid over those two words my chest did this stupid, painful squeeze…like someone had reached inside and hugged my heart too hard. I still couldn’t believe it. I’m now the owner of my company?!After everything. After everything they took from mom and I.After the way Frederick and his dear family had smiled like sharks while they carved pieces of her legacy away… it was back. In my name. Mom’s company. Her blood, sweat, tears, and that quiet stubborn pride she carried everywhere…she was still
Lady Margaret’s POVMy eyes snapped open to an empty bed, the sheets beside me already cold.Gone.That little worm Philip was gone.I bolted upright, the thin blanket slipping from my naked skin as fury ignited in my chest like wildfire. The room still smelled of sex and sweat, a cruel reminder of
Adrian’s POVThe courtyard was alive with restless energy when I stormed out…over twenty warriors already shifted or mid-shift, massive wolves pacing in tight circles, ears pricked, hackles half-raised. No armor, no swords, no horses. We didn’t need them. Claws, teeth, speed, and raw pack fury were
Lady Margaret’s POVI swept into my private chambers, the heavy door clicking shut behind me like the closing of a trap. The fire in the hearth crackled low, casting long shadows across the velvet drapes and gilded mirrors. I paused before the largest one, studying my reflection with cold satisfac
Adrain’s POVDerek snarled angrily when we saw it.Blood on the snow.Dark red, dried into rusty streaks against the white. Not much…just drops, smeared like she’d scratched herself on a branch or fallen. My heart slammed against my ribs.A wild animal? One of the cursed beasts? Had something sunk







