I Slept With Who?!

I woke up staring at my ceiling. For a few seconds, I had no idea where I was. My body felt heavy, my head felt strangely foggy, and there was a dull ache behind my eyes that made me want to close them again and pretend the morning had not arrived yet. I shifted beneath the covers, expecting to feel the cool grass against my back, and then frowned when my fingers brushed against my sheets instead.

My sheets.

I slowly pushed myself upright. I was in my room. That should have been comforting. Instead, I stared around the familiar space with growing confusion, trying to remember how I had gotten there. The last thing I clearly remembered was walking into the gardens because I couldn't sleep. I remembered the moon. I remembered letting my wolf rise to the surface. I remembered the cold breeze against my skin.

Then Tristan.

My stomach dropped. I covered my face with both hands.

“Oh, no.”

The memories came back in pieces, not neatly enough to make me comfortable with them. I remembered those red eyes. I remembered the strength of his Alpha presence rolling over me. I remembered his wolf recognizing something in me before I even understood what was happening.

And then there was my wolf.

She had taken over.

Completely.

I could still feel the echo of her emotions inside me, that strange pull she had felt toward Tristan's wolf, the instinctive certainty that had made absolutely no sense to my human mind. I lowered my hands slowly and looked toward the door as though somebody might be standing on the other side waiting to accuse me.

Nobody was.

That somehow made it worse. Because if my wolf had taken over, and Tristan's wolf had taken over too, then what exactly was I supposed to do about what happened?

Walk up to Alpha Tristan Silverclaw and say, Good morning, Alpha. So, about last night... apparently our wolves decided to lose their minds together?

I groaned and fell backward onto my pillows.

“No. Absolutely not.”

There was no way I could have that conversation. Not with him. Not with anyone. Especially not with Freya.

I stared at the ceiling again, and another realization slowly crept into my mind. I had never done that before.

My face heated.

I had never been with a man before last night.

I had spent twenty-four years somehow managing to avoid that particular disaster, and now, of all people, my first time had happened with Alpha Tristan Silverclaw.

The man who was supposed to marry Freya.

My supposed future Luna.

My stomach twisted.

“Ariella, you fool.”

I dragged a pillow over my face.

“How could you?”

My voice came out muffled against the fabric, but that didn't stop the humiliation from spreading through me.

“How in the world are you supposed to explain this to Freya?”

I lifted the pillow just enough to breathe before dropping it back over my face.

“You dumb, horny bitch.”

The insult should have made me laugh.

It didn't.

Instead, my eyes burned again. I wasn't even sure what I was supposed to feel. Shame, definitely. Guilt, more than anything. Confusion was sitting somewhere in the middle of it all, making everything worse because I couldn't even decide how much of last night had actually been me.

Had I wanted Tristan?

Had my wolf wanted him?

Had both of us simply been overwhelmed by the full moon?

And what the hell did it mean that his wolf had reacted to mine?

I sat up again and rubbed my temples. There were too many questions, and I had no answers. The worst part was that I couldn't even ask Tristan. How was I supposed to look him in the eye after this? How was I supposed to stand in front of him and discuss something that neither of us had planned, something that had happened while our wolves were practically running the show?

And what if he regretted it?

The thought hurt more than I expected.

I immediately frowned at myself.

“Why would you care if he regretted it?”

My wolf stirred quietly inside me. I glared down at my lap.

“Don't start. This is all your fault.”

Coward.

She offered no answer, but I could still feel that strange warmth she associated with him. That was another problem. I had no idea what had happened between our wolves, but whatever it was, mine clearly wasn't ashamed of it.

I, on the other hand, was considering moving to another continent.

I had spent the past few days trying to stay out of trouble, and somehow, I'd managed to sleep with the groom less than twenty-four hours before his wedding.

Freya was marrying Tristan tomorrow.

Well, technically, today.

Fuck...

I climbed out of bed and stood in front of the mirror. My hair was a mess, my face was puffy from crying, and I looked exactly like someone who had made a spectacularly bad decision and was now preparing to live with the consequences.

I sighed.

“This is fine.”

It was not fine.

I changed quickly, choosing something simple because the last thing I wanted was to spend another minute thinking about the tiny nightdress I'd been wearing when everything happened. As I dressed, I kept imagining Freya finding out.

Her face....Her voice....That awful little smile she wore whenever she thought she had the upper hand.

I shuddered.

No.... goddess no... hell no!

I couldn't let her hear this from someone else.

Except I didn't know what I was supposed to tell her.

Uhm...Sorry, Freya. Your future husband and I accidentally lost our minds beneath the full moon.

I covered my face again.

“I'm doomed.”

Eventually, I forced myself to stop pacing and reached for the door. Maybe I could avoid everyone until I figured out what to do. Maybe I could find Freya first and somehow discover whether she knew anything. Or perhaps Tristan would be somewhere nearby, and I could gauge his reaction without having to actually discuss what happened.

Neither option sounded particularly pleasant.

But standing in my room wasn't going to make the problem disappear.

I opened the door and stepped into the corridor, quietly hoping I wouldn't run into Freya.

Or Tristan.

Preferably either one.