เข้าสู่ระบบAIDEN.“It’s impossible, He can't be mine,” I said. My voice came out shaky; it was obvious I was scared and anxious My throat felt dry right after saying it. The words didn’t sound convincing even to me. I could feel my pulse hammering behind my ears. I wanted her to flinch, to back down, to take it back. But Amaya didn’t move. She just looked at me, quiet, steady, her arms crossed. “You know it isn’t impossible.”The air between us seemed to thicken. I blinked, jaw tightening, trying to keep my face still. My stomach twisted. She said it like she’d rehearsed it, like she’d been waiting to throw it at me.“No,” I said, shaking my head. “You’re out of your mind. You always do this—make something up when you’re cornered.”“I didn’t make this up,” she said, voice low but clear. “I didn’t want to tell you, but we both know what happened. Twice.”Her tone was calm, almost too calm, and that made it worse. My hands twitched at my sides. I felt the weight of her words dig in under my skin.
AMAYAIt was late, way past midnight, maybe closer to one fucking finally. The house had finally gone quiet, but my head hadn’t.The boy was asleep in the next room, small breaths steady and soft. I’d been sitting beside him for almost an hour after he’d gone under, watching the rise and fall of his chest. The lamp threw weak light across the floor, and I sat there hunched forward, elbows on my knees, hands pressed together like I was praying.I wasn’t praying. I was thinking. Or trying to. My thoughts kept looping back on themselves until they didn’t even sound like words anymore. Today was too much. Too loud. Too many faces, too many fake smiles.The Alpha had said it in front of everyone. *The boy carries Jace’s blood.*That was all it took. One sentence, and everything around me shifted. The pack turned their eyes on me like I’d just grown a crown. Some looked proud. Some looked ready to tear me apart.Either way, I had what I wanted — security. Recognition. No one could touch hi
NINA Killian stood there, right in front of me, and all I could think was—how the hell did he find out? It didn’t add up. Jace couldn’t have told him. That would make no sense. Jace barely talked to Killian unless it was about work, hockey, or family stuff. They were too close for Jace to talk about him being with me like that, but Killian’s face said otherwise. He wasn’t guessing. He probably knew too much.“Killian,” I managed to say, but my voice came out rough.He didn’t even blink. He lifted his hand and slammed it into the wall right next to my head. The noise cracked through the air so hard it made my whole body jump. I froze where I stood. My heartbeat went straight up into my ears, loud, uneven.“You think this is a joke?” he said. His tone wasn’t loud, but it was sharp. Tight. Controlling in that way was worse than yelling.I could barely look at him. “What are you even talking about?”He leaned closer, still keeping his hand against the wall, still blocking the space betwe
NINA.I was breathing hard even though I hadn’t done a damn thing. It wasn’t the kind of anger that came with shouting or breaking things. It was quieter. Right in the chest, pressing against your ribs until you felt like you couldn’t breathe properly. I kept thinking about how we always ended up here, me and Jace running in circles, saying the same things, fighting over the same stupid details, and pretending it was new every time. It was getting pathetic. It wasn’t even heartbreaking anymore. It was just exhausting.I’d stopped crying about it weeks ago. Now it just made me tired. Everything between us had turned into some ugly habit — one of us snapping, the other trying to fix it, both of us pretending that if we just apologized hard enough, it’d go back to how it used to be. It never did. It only got worse.I sat on the edge of my bed for a while, staring at the floor. My phone was next to me, screen down, but I could still feel it there. The way my fingers twitched made me want
JACE.In the clubhouse, I'm sitting in the corner booth, elbows on my knees, my phone glowing in my hand. Four messages sent. All unread. I scroll back through them anyway, reading the blue text bubbles like they might change if I stare long enough.Nothing. No dots. No reply. Just that blank screen staring me down.I exhale through my teeth and toss the phone on the table. “She’s doing it on purpose,” I mutter. My leg bounces under the table. My hand clenches into a fist before I catch myself.Killian leans back in his chair across from me, his beer half-finished, one eyebrow raised. “Are you talking about Nina again?”I don’t look at him right away. I rub a hand down my face, trying to get the irritation out of my skin. “She’s ignoring me. I called her four damn times, sent texts, and she’s just—nothing.”Killian gives a short laugh and tips his bottle toward me. “Maybe she’s asleep, man. It’s late.”“She’s not asleep,” I shot back, finally meeting his eyes. “She’s doing this to g
JACE. I pulled into the rink parking lot. I sat there with the engine running, breathing slowly, trying to make my heart beat fucking settle. The argument with Nina was still bouncing around in my head, each word replaying in my mind. I couldn't help but picture the image of her in Derek’s hoodie, his scent on her, Nina wouldn't lie to me now… or would she? Had they shagged? Fuck! The mere thought of it made me seethe with rage.I turned off the ignition and leaned back, staring through the windshield for a few seconds before shoving the door open. The air outside was cold and sharp. I needed that. I slammed the door behind me and started toward the rink with my hands shoved into my jacket pockets, shoulders tight.Inside, the place was quieter than usual. No clatter of skates, no banter from the guys. Just the hum of the lights and the echo of my footsteps against the concrete floor. I scanned the rink — empty. Just Killian standing by the boards, his arms crossed, that familiar sm







