START OVER

ERYX

I hadn't planned on coming back to Ravenwood today. Father changed that.

Up until now, I used to believe that putting enough distance between myself and home would make the weight of everything easier to carry. But, it didn’t.

The constant pressure never left. It just followed me across state lines like my own second shadow. Every constant reminder that I am Theron Nightbane’s only son. Every expectation that I become another perfect version of him: colder, stronger, more ruthless. And then there’s the mate problem.

The real reason my father dragged me all the way back from Florida just to attend a ridiculous mating ceremony, and meet the bride he already chose for me: Aveline of the Hollowfang Pack. Loud. Attention-seeking. Obsessed with status. She smiles too widely, talks too much, and has spent the last few years treating my name like a prize she already owns. My father calls her “suitable.” I call her a headache. I'm expected to marry her after senior year.

The thought alone makes my fist tighten against my thigh until my knuckles ache. I had finally found a quiet corner of the library to wait for Vesper, some where no one would approach me. Of course, that peace lasted less than ten minutes before a group of juniors started yelling loud enough to destroy it.

At this rate, the entire school will know Eryx Nightbane is back before the day ends.

I sink deeper into the shadows of the aisle I'd been waiting earlier and call Vesper for the third time. This time he actually answers.

“Calling me ten times isn’t going to make the traffic disappear, Eryx,” he says immediately. “Do me one favor and stop acting like you expect me to sprout wings and fly over the hundreds of cars trapping me here.”

I exhale slowly through my nose. “I don’t understand what’s so difficult about bringing my things from the hotel.”

Vesper let out a scoff. “Seriously?” A loud horn blares through the phone, followed by what sounds like him yelling at some poor driver before he comes back.

“Look man, you were the one who refused the chauffeur your father sent over. And might I remind you, I literally packed everything myself while you...” He cuts himself off and sighs dramatically. “Man, I’m exhausted. Don’t test me right now.”

That’s Vesper. The only person alive who can speak to me like that and still keep his throat intact. He's also my future Beta. My oldest friend. The only one who has managed to put up with me since we were children.

“You know why I can’t use that chauffeur,” I say flatly. “My father didn’t send a driver. He sent a spy”

“That’s called being paranoid,” Vesper mutters. Another horn blares through the phone. “And even if you’re right, it still would’ve saved me from this hell I'm stuck in.” He goes quiet for a second, then his tone shifts. “Wait… don’t tell me you still haven’t gone to see Aveline.”

Right. I'm about to piss him off again because that's literally the only reason I'm supposed to be here today.

I just can't... She’s simply everything I have no interest in claiming, yet she walks around introducing herself as my future Luna every chance she gets, especially when she thinks I'm around.

I drag a hand over my face and let out a slow, controlled breath.

“Eryx. You still there?”

“Yeah… I'm here,” I close my eyes. “I haven’t seen her yet.”

The confession barely leaves my mouth when the library door creaks open.

A scent drifts in the air. It hits me like a quiet strike to the chest. Wild honey, warm, golden, almost too sweet, layered with the clean, sharp freshness of crushed aloe vera. Soft. Soft in a way nothing in my life has ever been. It curls through the aisle and settles under my skin before I can stop it.

My wolf stirs hard, rising so fast. Not the usual restless pacing. This one is different. He’s focused. Hungry. Possessive in a way that makes the hair on the back of my neck stand. Every muscle in my body locks. My pulse kicks once, sharp against my will.

I don’t move. I don’t even breathe for a full second. Then… the feeling snaps.

"Eryx!" A familiar voice cuts through the silence from near the library entrance—bright, eager... and completely wrong.

My wolf growls in irritation.

Sure. Aveline.

I open my eyes and release a slow, irritated breath through my

nose. “Speak of the devil,” I mutter into the phone. “She’s here.”

Vesper lets out an amused laugh. “Just see her and get it over with. Unless you want your old man breathing down your neck all day.”

“Fine.” I push myself to my feet, jaw tight. “Just get here fast so I can leave this place.”

I end the call before he can start another lecture. The other scent is still in the air, less stronger now, but still clinging to the quiet like it belongs here. Magnus refuses to settle. It keeps pacing under my skin in a way it has never been before, restless and locked on that soft, impossible combination of honey and aloe vera.

I don’t understand it. I only know one thing with absolute certainty: Whoever that scent belongs to… is not Aveline.

I follow the sound of her voice until I stop directly behind her.

The second she turns, a wide, almost theatrical grin spreads across her face. "Oh, Eryx?"

Her eyes light up with exaggerated excitement, as if I'm supposed to believe she stumbled across me by pure coincidence.

I don't bother returning the smile. I simply stare at her.

"You changed your hair?" Her gaze slowly sweeps over me, openly checking me out, lingering longer than necessary.

I ignore the question, sliding one hand into my pocket. "Are you free tonight?" I ask simply.

I catch the brief flicker of surprise on her face before she quickly replaces it with another bright smile. "Oh?" She tilts her head. "Tonight?" She tilts her head, already leaning into the idea.

She saunters toward me with deliberate confidence until she's standing right in front of me. Her hand lifts, reaching for my arm like she has the right.

I don't move. Not until her fingers are almost touching me and she finally looks up into my eyes.

Her smile falters. She swallows and takes a quiet step back, putting a small, careful distance between us again.

Good.

“You see, Aveline…” My voice is low and even. I let my tongue brush slowly over my lower lip before meeting her eyes again.

“Don’t get me wrong. You’re beautiful. I’ll give you that.” I take one slow step closer. Her body stiffens. “But I’d appreciate it if you remembered one thing.”

I hold her gaze without blinking. “Don’t ever cross the line the way you just did. Not again.”

I pause just long enough for the words to settle properly. “Do you understand?”

For a moment she says nothing. The bright, practiced confidence she wears like armor cracks just enough to show something closer to caution.

Behind her, the faint trace of that earlier scent, the wild honey and clean aloe, still lingers in the air like a quiet reminder of something far more interesting than the girl standing in front of me but I try to keep my expression cold and neutral.

Aveline finally nods, voice quieter than before. “I understand.”

“Good.” I nod too. “Now, let's start over.”