Chapter 3

Caleb’s POV

Weeks had passed.

Luca’s death didn’t sting like before. The sharp pain had dulled into something numb, something that just sat in my chest like cold stone. I wasn’t crying anymore. I didn’t wake up in the middle of the night screaming either.

But there was one thing I still couldn’t get over.

Padre Leonardo.

That one night still replayed in my head, over and over like a broken record. His hands on me. His mouth. His voice whispered things I shouldn’t have wanted to hear. And the way he left the next morning without looking back.

He is a werepriest. A missionary. He didn’t belong anywhere. Definitely not with me. I told myself to forget him. Move on. Focus on school. Get my head straight. But every time I closed my eyes, I saw him. And every time I tried to forget, something in me refused.

That thing—my wolf.

He still called for Leonardo in the dark, whining softly. My heart still beat faster when I smelled burning sage or wine. It was stupid, but I missed him. Oh my God, I missed him.

I was resuming for the second semester of my third year as an art student at the University of Nevada. The first day back, I tried to distract myself with the usual—music in my headphones, sketchbook in hand, avoiding eye contact with anyone who might ask questions.

I walked into the lecture hall for Advanced Art History, not expecting much. The room was already full, and I found a seat somewhere in the middle. I leaned back, pulled out my notepad, and let out a long breath.

Then the door opened.

Everyone turned.

And my world flipped.

Because there he was.

Padre Leonardo.

In a professor’s suit. Looking cleaner, sharper—more serious than I’d ever seen him.

His hair was slicked back. His beard was trimmed. He wore glasses now, thin ones that made him look like someone off the cover of a professor’s magazine.

I froze.

He did too as his eyes locked unexpectedly with me.

I sat across from him on the third row of the auditorium where it was easy for the professor to spot me. The lecturer who had always taught this course was my favorite, so I always made an effort to sit where I could pay more attention to his lessons. Sadly, I heard rumors before the close of last semester that he was resigning and relocating but I didn’t take it seriously. 

So Padre Leonardo, the handsome man I had a one-stand with is his new replacement?

I saw the shock on his face. His mouth fell open just a little. Then he gasped. Actually gasped. Like air had left his lungs for a second. It felt like everything around us went quiet. Then, after what felt like forever, he looked away and cleared his throat.

“Good morning,” he said, voice calm now. “I’m Professor Leo—uh, Leonard.” He didn’t add the last letter which would have made it Italian, probably because he was on American soil and wanted to blend in with us. “I’ll be taking this course for the semester. I hope we’ll have a good time together. I’m your previous lecturer’s replacement.”

I felt my chest tighten. My palms were sweaty. Was this real? He didn’t look at me again. Not once during the whole class. But I felt it.

The bond.

Stronger than before, the first time we met. It was way more stronger. Like it had been building up in secret, and now it finally exploded the moment our eyes met. I couldn’t even focus on the lessons he was teaching. My wolf growled inside, clawing at my chest. He wanted Leonardo. I needed him.

But I couldn’t move.

Because this wasn’t just any man.

This is a werepriest, bound to celibacy and holiness. His job was to lead us closer to God and the moon goddess, I wasn’t meant to snatch him away to myself. 

Then he’s my professor.

But nevertheless, it still rang in my head. 

He’s the guy I had drunken sex with after my mate’s funeral.

When class ended, I packed my books slowly back into my backpack. I had been too distracted to write anything but I didn’t want to leave. I didn’t want to stay either. My feet didn’t know what to do. I was in a dilemma. I watched him from the corner of my eye. He was still talking to some students, nodding and smiling like nothing had happened between us. To me, he was cold. Like a stranger, or perhaps his temptation which he wanted to avoid by all means.

He acted like we weren’t connected. Like he hadn’t said he wanted me.

I couldn’t take it.

I left the hall without saying a word. My body was shaking. Somehow I felt his scorching eyes bruising my back. He was now looking but I didn’t turn, not even for once.

I skipped the rest of my classes that day because I wasn’t going to pay attention. There’s no need.

Instead, I drove far out to the woods and shifted into my wolf. I ran like hell. Through trees, across rocks, jumping over fallen logs. I didn’t stop until my legs burned. Then I shifted back, running in my human form with headphones over my head, music soothing me. 

Then I lay under a tree, panting, and pulled my headphones over my ears. I played the saddest song I had in my playlist and stared at the sky. The clouds moved slowly. Everything felt so damn heavy.

What kind of life was this?

Why did the moon goddess have to pair me with a man I couldn’t have?

When evening came, I drove home, hoping for a quiet night. I just wanted to shower and sleep off the mess in my head. But the second I opened the front door, I saw him again. Padre Leonardo. Sitting in our living room. I stopped dead in my tracks. My legs almost gave out.

My boy grew stiff in an instance. 

Fear and nervousness swallowed me the very next second as I suspected he could have confessed what we did to my dad. Right next to my father—the Alpha.

If my dad noticed the panic on my face, he didn’t show it.

“Caleb,” he said. “You’re home.” Leonardo stood up slowly, eyes wide. He looked nervous too. He didn’t smile. My throat went dry.

“What’s he doing here?” I ignored him to ask my dad, trying not to sound scared but my voice came out high and shaky.

My dad raised a brow. “Is that how you greet a werepriest and guest now?”

I glanced at Leonardo. He looked like he wanted to disappear. I turned back to my dad. “But why is he here dad?” I insisted, ignoring his warning. My voice was a bit louder this time than earlier.

I kept staring at Leonardo, expecting him to speak. I’d suspected him to tell my father everything. To ruin me. To confess our sin. My heart raced.

A memory came flashing back.

Luca’s death. That night. That horrible afternoon.

I remembered how one of the assistants had screamed something while we carried Luca’s body out of the woods. His voice still echoed in my head.

“The Alpha won’t let his son be in that gayish relationship again!”

Back then, I thought it was just a cruel taunt. People said nasty things when they were angry. But now… it made sense. The way no one helped us that night. The way the rogues got past our borders so easily. How my father didn’t even speak of Luca’s death.

Had he known?

Had he found out about us?

Had he done something?

My stomach dropped.

I stared at my father, trying to hide the suspicion growing inside me. But the thought stayed in my head, loud and ugly. Did my own father arrange for Luca to be killed? Did he see Luca as a threat to my future? Was he trying to erase that part of me and make me a normal Alpha as he believed?

My chest burned.

The silence in the room dragged.

Then, Leonardo finally spoke. “I’ll be living here,” he said gently, eyes not meeting mine. “In the packhouse. Just for the duration of my missionary stay, I don’t know how long or short it is.”

Another suspense. 

These words hit me like a sharp sword.

Living here? Under the same roof? With me?

My mouth went dry. My wolf growled again, excited this time. Hopeful. But my human side wanted to scream. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know what to feel.

This man… this priest… this forbidden mate of mine… was going to be in the same house as me? I’ll be seeing him every day? Every night?

How was I supposed to breathe in the sight of him? I already saw what was going on in me now, which isn’t up to an hour, talk less of an entire day, many days. 

How was I supposed to act normal around the man I’d slept with in secret? Wouldn’t my dad know and eliminate him again? Wouldn’t I die this time around witnessing this? I came to terms of concluding that my dad is evil and could do anything just to make sure I wasn’t gay.

Leonardo is the man I’m ashamed of but yet deeply drawn to. I looked at him, and for the first time in weeks, he looked straight back at me.

No words.

Just his eyes. They said a lot, showed a lot and felt a lot. 

And I knew this was only the beginning of something deep and steamy. Something I seriously wanted but which is forbidden here in the pack and also because of his status. 

He’s a werepriest, I’m the future Alpha expected to have a Luna.