Chapter Three

I woke up to find myself wrapped around Dante like a blanket.

My face was pressed against his chest, one leg thrown over his hips, my arm draped across his torso. Worse, his arms were around me, holding me close like I was something precious.

I froze, afraid to breathe.

How the hell did this happen?

"I can hear your heart racing," Dante's voice rumbled through his chest. "Relax."

"Let me go."

"No." His arms tightened. "You're the one who crawled over here in your sleep. I'm just being accommodating."

I tried to pull away, but he held firm.

"Dante—"

"Five more minutes." His nose buried in my hair, and I felt him inhale deeply. "You still smell like vanilla and jasmine."

The intimacy of the moment made my chest ache. This was what I'd dreamed about three years ago. Waking up in his arms. Being wanted. Being his.

But that dream had died the moment he rejected me.

"Let. Me. Go."

He released me immediately, and I scrambled to the other side of the bed, my cheeks burning.

Dante sat up, the sheets pooling around his waist, and I tried very hard not to notice the way the morning light highlighted every muscle.

"We need to discuss your terms," he said, his voice back to business. "You said you had conditions."

Right. The contract.

I pulled my knees to my chest. "I want full access to pack resources. Training facilities, library, everything."

His eyebrows rose. "Why?"

"That's my business."

"Fine. What else?"

"I want my own bank account. You'll deposit the payments there, and I'll manage my own money."

"Agreed."

"And..." I took a breath. "I want you to stop pretending this is anything more than a business arrangement. No touching unless absolutely necessary for appearances. No... intimacy beyond what the contract requires."

Something dangerous flashed in his eyes. "The contract requires us to produce an heir, Aria. That involves a certain level of intimacy."

My cheeks flamed. "We can cross that bridge when we come to it."

"Can we?" He leaned forward, his golden eyes locking onto mine. "Because from where I'm sitting, you're terrified of being close to me. How exactly do you plan to get pregnant if you can't even stand to share a bed?"

"I shared the bed."

"You clung to the edge like it was a life raft." He moved closer, and I pressed back against the headboard. "Tell me, Aria. What are you really afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid of anything."

"Liar." He was right in front of me now, his hand coming up to cup my jaw. "You're afraid that if I touch you, you'll remember what we had. What we could have been."

"We never had anything."

"Didn't we?" His thumb traced my cheekbone. "I remember a shy little omega who used to bring me coffee every morning. Who'd blush every time I looked at her. Who made me laugh when I thought I'd forgotten how."

"That omega is dead." I knocked his hand away. "You killed her when you rejected the bond."

Pain flashed across his face—real, genuine pain. "I know."

The admission stunned me into silence.

"I know what I did to you," he continued, his voice rough. "I know I broke you. And I know you'll never forgive me for it."

"Then why am I here?"

"Because I'm a selfish bastard who'd rather have you hate me than not have you at all."

The words hung between us, heavy with meaning I wasn't ready to unpack.

Before I could respond, someone pounded on the door.

"Alpha! Emergency!"

Dante was off the bed and across the room in seconds. He threw open the door to find Marcus, his expression grim.

"What is it?"

"The Nightshade Pack. They've crossed our border."

Dante's entire demeanor changed. The man who'd just been confessing his feelings disappeared, replaced by the ruthless Alpha King.

"How many?"

"Twenty wolves. Armed. They're demanding an audience."

"With me?"

"No." Marcus's eyes flicked to me. "With the Luna."

My blood ran cold.

Dante's eyes flashed black, his wolf surfacing. "Over my dead body."

"They said if she doesn't come, they'll consider it an act of war."

"Then we go to war." Dante started for the closet, grabbing clothes. "Mobilize the warriors. I want every border secured and—"

"I'll go."

Both men turned to stare at me.

I climbed out of bed, my heart racing but my voice steady. "I'll meet with them."

"Absolutely not," Dante growled.

"Why do they want to see me?"

Marcus hesitated. "I don't know. They wouldn't say."

"Then I need to find out." I walked to the closet, searching for something appropriate to wear. "If they're willing to risk war just to talk to me, it must be important."

"Aria—"

"This is what you brought me here for, isn't it?" I turned to face Dante. "To be your Luna. To help you deal with pack business. Well, this is pack business."

His jaw clenched. "You don't understand what you're offering. The Nightshade Alpha is brutal. Unpredictable. If he gets his hands on you—"

"He won't." I pulled out a pair of jeans and a simple top. "Because you'll be there. Won't you?"

Dante stared at me for a long moment, conflict clear in his eyes.

Finally, he nodded. "I'll be there. But you follow my lead. If I say run, you run. Understood?"

"Understood."

Thirty minutes later, we stood at the border, surrounded by fifty of Dante's warriors. Across the clearing, the Nightshade Pack waited, their Alpha front and center.

Kieran Nightshade was massive, even by wolf standards. Seven feet tall with silver hair and scars covering every inch of visible skin. His eyes were pure white—a sign of extreme power.

And they were locked on me.

"Luna Aria," he rumbled, his voice like grinding stone. "Finally, we meet."

"You know me?"

"I know of you." His smile revealed sharp canines. "The Silver Wolf. The Lost Princess of the Ancient Bloodline."

My heart stopped.

No. He couldn't know. No one was supposed to know.

Dante's hand shot out, gripping my wrist. "What the hell is he talking about?"

Kieran laughed. "She didn't tell you? Oh, this is rich." He stepped forward, and Dante's warriors raised their weapons.

"I'll ask one more time," Dante's voice dropped to a lethal whisper. "What do you want with my Luna?"

"Want?" Kieran's white eyes gleamed. "I don't want anything with her, Alpha King. I want her. And I'm willing to pay handsomely for her."

"She's not for sale."

"Everything's for sale." Kieran pulled out a scroll, tossing it at Dante's feet. "That's my offer. Ten million. Cash. And an alliance between our packs."

Dante didn't even look at it. "Leave. Now. Before I kill you where you stand."

"Temper, temper." Kieran's gaze returned to me. "Tell me, Princess. Does he know what you really are? Does he know about the power sleeping in your blood?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Liar." He inhaled deeply. "I can smell it on you. Ancient magic. Royal bloodline. You're not just some random omega, are you? You're the last descendant of the Moon Goddess's first children."

The warriors around us began to murmur.

Dante's grip on my wrist tightened to the point of pain. "Aria. Is this true?"

I couldn't meet his eyes. "I don't know."

"You don't know, or you won't tell me?"

"I don't know!" The words burst out of me. "I don't know what I am! My wolf only awakened six months ago, and ever since then, strange things have been happening. I can hear thoughts sometimes. I heal faster than normal. And last month, I accidentally set a building on fire just by thinking about it!"

Silence.

Then Kieran started laughing. "Oh, this just keeps getting better. The Alpha King's rejected mate is actually the most powerful wolf alive. What are the odds?"

Dante released my wrist, taking a step back. "You lied to me."

"I didn't lie. I just... didn't tell you everything."

"Same thing."

"Is it?" I turned to face him fully. "You kept me at arm's length for three years. You rejected me without explanation. You brought me back here for your own purposes. Did I owe you the truth?"

His eyes were black now, his wolf fully in control. "We're done here. Kieran, take your offer and shove it. If you or any of your pack set foot on my territory again, I'll declare war."

"Fair enough." Kieran and his wolves began to retreat. But he paused, calling over his shoulder. "Oh, and Princess? When you decide you want to learn about your heritage... you know where to find me."

Then they were gone, disappearing into the forest.

Dante turned to Marcus. "Get her back to the house. Now."

"Dante—"

"I said now!" The Alpha command in his voice made my knees buckle.

Marcus caught me before I fell, guiding me toward the cars.

As we drove away, I looked back to see Dante still standing at the border, his fists clenched, his entire body shaking with barely contained rage.

I'd just made everything so much more complicated.

And something told me Kieran Nightshade was only the beginning of my problems.

***

Back at the mansion, I was escorted directly to the Alpha's suite and told not to leave.

Essentially, I was a prisoner.

I paced the room for hours, waiting for Dante to return. Waiting for him to demand answers I didn't have.

When the door finally opened, it was past midnight.

Dante looked exhausted. Furious. And hurt.

"Talk," he said simply.

So I did.

I told him about the day my wolf appeared. About the powers I didn't understand. About the strange dreams I'd been having of silver wolves and ancient temples.

I told him everything.

When I finished, he was quiet for a long time.

"Why didn't you tell me before?" he asked finally.

"Would you have believed me?"

"Probably not." He ran a hand through his hair. "This changes things."

"What things?"

"Everything." He looked at me with an expression I couldn't read. "If Kieran knows what you are, others will too. You're not safe here."

"I'm not safe anywhere."

"True." He moved to the window, staring out at the dark forest. "But here, at least, I can protect you."

"Why would you want to?"

"Because..." He turned back to me. "Because you're still mine, Aria. Even if you hate me. Even if you're some ancient princess with powers neither of us understand. You're mine. And I protect what's mine."

"I'm not your property."

"No. You're something much more dangerous." He crossed the room, stopping inches from me. "You're my mate. My true mate. And every instinct I have is screaming at me to lock you in this room and never let you leave."

"But you won't."

"No. I won't." His hand came up, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "Because that's not what you need. Is it?"

I shook my head, not trusting my voice.

"What do you need, Aria?"

"Answers." The word came out as a whisper. "I need to know what I am. Why this is happening."

"Then we'll find out. Together."

"Together?"

"Did you think I'd let you figure this out alone?" His thumb traced my jaw. "You might hate me, little wolf. But I meant what I said. You're mine to protect. Always."

Before I could respond, he leaned down and pressed his forehead to mine.

"We'll get through this," he murmured. "All of it. The contract. Your powers. Kieran Nightshade. Whatever comes next."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

And for the first time since I'd returned to the Shadowmoon Pack, I believed him.

Maybe Dante Russo was still the ruthless Alpha King who'd rejected me.

But maybe, just maybe, he was also the man who'd fight heaven and hell to keep me safe.

Even if I wasn't ready to forgive him yet.