LOGINRhea POVI had another nightmare. It was the same as before, yet somehow it felt much worse.I was underwater and, like last time, I was drowning instead of swimming up. But this time, despite being surrounded by water, something inside me burned like I’d swallowed fire.There were whispers around me, voices muffled beneath the water but still loud enough to make my ears ache. And no matter how much I looked around, all I saw was darkness as I sank further and further down.I gasped as I sat upright, heavy tears streaming down my face while my gaze snapped around the room in panic. My vision was blurry.*Where was I?*The question screamed through my head so loudly it drowned everything else out.Then warm hands suddenly cupped my face.“Rhea?”My name echoed softly, and little by little, my vision began to clear.“It’s just a dream,” the voice continued, and warmth slowly spread through my body. Soon, I could finally see clearly enough to realize it was Dorian sitting in front of me.
Dorian POVAt this point, I was seriously considering deleting the app altogether.Then one comment caught my attention.“I think you guys really need to hear him out. He might genuinely be trying to be better. And for you, OP, the best advice I can give is to stay as far away as possible from the woman she accused you of having an affair with. Block all contact.”How the hell was I supposed to do that?Vivienne was still my wife, and as much as I hated her, I still had to keep up appearances. That meant public events. Public interactions. Public affection if necessary.Still, I kept reading.“You need to earn her trust back, which means you need to be ready to be her dog. You can’t lose your temper. Even when she’s wrong, pretend she’s right. Let her walk all over you. And if she still loves you, she’ll eventually start softening again.”I stared at the words for a long moment.Be her dog.Let her walk all over you.That was the advice?I almost laughed.How could I let an omega walk
Dorian POV2 HOURS EARLIER >>>I had just finished signing off with multiple Alphas who were present for the banquet. Not all of them had left immediately after the event, which made me uneasy. I had been trying different ways to push them out and had even made sure their rooms were placed far away from the east and west halls so there would be very little chance of her crossing paths with any of them.I still didn’t know how she had managed to enter the banquet.Thankfully, she hadn’t drawn unnecessary attention to herself, but I still had to keep a close eye on her. That was the only reason I had left my chambers so early and stayed occupied even as the sun began to set.The hours blurred together.Meeting after meeting. Endless conversations with Alphas who wanted favors, alliances, trade agreements. Men who smiled too wide and held handshakes too long, their eyes always drifting, always searching for weaknesses they could exploit.I hated them.Every single one of them.But I play
Rhea POVThe next morning, I really didn’t want to go to work.After spending such an amazing night with Kale, returning to the pack estate felt like willingly walking back into hell.I sighed while getting dressed, pulling on my uniform with slow, reluctant movements. The fabric felt heavier than usual. The collar tighter. I adjusted it once, then twice, then a third time, but nothing made it feel any better.Standing in front of the mirror, my gaze drifted to my neck, and another sigh left me when I saw the bruise was still painfully visible.No matter how I angled the mirror or tilted my head, I couldn’t stop seeing it.Why did I have to heal so slowly?The thought left a bitter taste in my mouth.Other wolves would’ve healed by now. Their bodies would’ve already erased the damage like it never happened in the first place.But not me.I’d be stuck hiding this for a few more days.I reached for the scarf I’d worn yesterday and carefully wrapped it around my throat. It looked strange
Rhea POV“Oh… am I interrupting something?”Mom’s voice caught me so off guard that I shoved Kale hard enough for him to stumble backward and nearly lose his balance. I had to grab his arm to steady him, and by the time he regained his footing, my face had gone completely pale while my heart pounded like a thousand drums inside my chest.“It’s not what it looks like,” I blurted out quickly, already trying to explain myself.But Mom’s gaze simply shifted from me to Kale’s guilty expression, and the corner of her lips curled upward.“Sure,” she said, clearly not believing a word of it.Then she stepped back and opened the door wider.“You can stay the night if you want,” she added casually, and my eyes widened in horror.“Mom!” I nearly shouted, embarrassment crashing over me so hard I thought I might actually die.“It’s late,” she cut in smoothly. “Do you want your… friend… driving all the way home at this hour?” She tilted her head toward Kale with a knowing smile. “Come on in, Kale.”
Rhea POVHours later, my cheeks already ached from smiling, and my stomach hurt from eating so much that there was literally no room left for anything else.The market had completely transformed once night fell, and the crowd from earlier had thinned out a little.We found a small wooden bridge arching over a narrow creek, tucked away from the noise and bright lights. The water moved slowly beneath us, reflecting broken fragments of stars across the dark ripples.Kale leaned against the railing beside me, a half-eaten pastry forgotten in his hand.“You’ve been quiet,” he observed.“I’m tired,” I admitted, even though that wasn’t the whole truth.The truth was, I didn’t want the night to end. Out here, away from everything, I had almost forgotten about the bruises hidden beneath my scarf.And more importantly, the man who had put them there.Almost.“Ahh… this place is so nice,” I sighed, clutching the shawl tighter around my shoulders.“I knew you would like it,” Kale replied softly.
Rhea POVA week after resuming work, I had gone back to fully cleaning the west halls, staying far away from the east wings just as Dorian had instructed. It kept me from running into Maris or even Vivienne. Honestly, it felt like a breath of fresh air.For that whole week, I hadn’t gotten a single
Rhea POV“Resume cleaning my rooms. Starting tomorrow.”The first thing I did when I saw that text message was take a deep breath. Since I left his chambers my mind hadn’t been at rest. I kept scolding myself over and over for allowing myself to be in that situation. I mean, how had I even fallen a
Dorian POV“You are late…” I mentioned calmly as soon as my little mate walked into my chambers, though my mind was anything but calm. I had been desperately fighting the urge to crawl back to my medication; my head was begging for sleep but at the same time I still needed to put this to a test. It
Rhea POVKale didn’t smile. He just kept staring at me, his jaw tightening. Somehow, his silence pressed harder against my chest than his closeness ever did.I shifted on my feet, pretending to busy myself with the broken glass scattered on the floor — anything to keep from meeting his eyes. “I sho







