ログインMy mother was short on her mortgage again," Cria whispered, her voice barely audible over the hum of the grocery store."Oh, Cria... why didn't you say something?""It’s fine, Rhea. She’s stable now. It’s just hard for her to survive on that tiny pack-widow pension. When the heater died, it was like the end of the world for her.""Do you need a loan? I've got some saved from my Academy days.""No, I’ve already landed another gig. But it’s out in the Welsh Highlands.""Wales!" I gasped, almost dropping a jar of sauce. "That's practically the edge of the world.""It’s three hours by high-speed rail, stop being so dramatic," she teased, though her smile didn't quite reach her eyes."Still. That's deep in the interior territories.""I'll be guarding a young pup for a high-ranking Beta. I checked the mother's reputation, and I'm just praying I’m not trading one territorial nightmare for another. I'm desperate enough to take the risk.""Let me just give you enough to cover your first month
"You look like you've been to hell and back," I whispered, the words slipping out before I could stop them. Dominic stood in the doorway, the harsh kitchen light catching the exhaustion etched into his rugged features. He looked less like an untouchable Alpha and more like a man drowning under the weight of his own crown.My resolve softened. "I’ll be there, Dominic. Give me five minutes."DominicI knew the statistics on Rhea Callahan—the foster homes, the training scores, the way she guarded her heart like a pack secret. But I didn't want the dossier anymore. I wanted the trivial stuff that doesn't make it into a report.I wanted to know if she liked the winter frost on the Blackport cliffs or the heat of the US expansion territories. Driving home, I’d passed a late-night bakery and caught myself wondering if she had a sweet tooth or if she preferred the bitter bite of black coffee like I did. I was an Alpha; I was supposed to be thinking about territory lines and rogue incursions,
"Where should Rhea Callahan wait while the Alpha’s heir is with the specialist?" Ethan asked, his gaze darting between me and the door.I didn't bother looking up from the scouting reports. "Bring her in here," I commanded, the words coming out sharper than intended.Nico Alvarez, leaning against the mahogany bookshelf, let out a low, mocking chuckle that set my teeth on edge. I squeezed my eyes shut, praying for a shred of patience I didn't possess."Care to tell me which of you is actually marking who?" Nico poked, a dangerous glint in his eye.The wolf in me snapped. I grabbed the first heavy object within reach—a solid obsidian paperweight—and hurled it with lethal intent. Nico, ever the agile Beta, ducked with a smirk, but the projectile sailed straight toward Ethan. It caught him square in the temple, the crack of bone against stone echoing through the office. The kid went down hard."Dammit!" I growled, surging to my feet. "Ethan, talk to me."Nico was already there, hauling th
"You're shifting for me, Rhea. I can feel the wolf under your skin," I growled, my voice vibrating against her throat.She didn't answer with words. She writhed and ground against me, her body slick and greedy, battering my senses with her scent. Her eyes were squeezed shut, her face a mask of pure ecstasy as she teased and promised me a mindless sort of bliss that only a true mate could provide.Until I reached my breaking point.I gripped her waist, rolling us over in one fluid motion and plunging into her. In the pale moonlight filtering through the window, the dark mark I’d left on her neck stood out like a brand. Like a man dying of thirst reaching for a mountain spring, I moved toward it. I buried my face in the curve of her shoulder, my tongue tracing the frantic pulse of the blood racing underneath her skin.She held me as if she were trying to fuse our souls together while I rocked into her. She urged me to go faster, desperate to hit the peak, but I slowed the tempo. I wante
Was that really you screaming my name, or was it the wolf?" I panted, my voice thick as the final, violent tremors of my climax finally began to recede. My skin was flushed, radiating a heat that felt like it could melt the very mattress beneath us. I lay there, chest heaving, fingers still tangled desperately in the bedding as the aftershocks of a soul-shattering orgasm rolled through every nerve. Dominic hadn't moved; his face was still pressed against my inner thigh, his breath hot against my sensitized skin, unbothered by the sheer intensity of the release he’d just dragged out of me."Why are we doing this?" I whispered to the shadows, the reality of our situation crashing back in. How could we be this intertwined, sharing the same air and the same skin, only to walk past each other tomorrow like our blood wasn't humming the same tune? It made no sense. I didn't want the silence. I didn't want the distance. In that hazy, thoughtless space where the human mind surrenders to the an
"Answer it," Victor Cruz said, nodding toward my pocket while he leaned against the kitchen island."It’s almost ten," Dominic’s voice rumbled through the speaker, vibrating with an Alpha’s authority. "Where are you, Rhea?"I was too stunned to find my voice for a second, my face heating up as the silence stretched. The sheer arrogance of him summoning me to his quarters like a paid conquest in front of the other staff made my blood boil. I was livid, but a deal with an Alpha was a blood-oath in this house. "I’ll be right there," I replied, my tone like a shard of flint."Are you headed somewhere this late?" Margaret Hale asked, her eyes narrowing with knowing concern as I tucked my phone away."Mr. Wolfe," I said, forcing a calm I didn't feel. "He requested a specific tea blend for his office.""But the Alpha only ever drinks black coffee," Sandra added innocently, tilting her head.I couldn't give them an answer they’d believe, so I just shrugged and ignored the eight pairs of eyes







