Elara’s POVI woke up on the same bed in the same damp room. I instantly remembered that I had been here before—the rough sheets, the cold air, the suffocating silence. Everything was exactly as it had been the first time. And then I heard it again, that same shrill scream from a woman.I didn’t even hesitate, I instantly leapt from the bed and bolted through the open doorway, running toward the direction of the woman's cry as it echoed down the hallway.My bare feet slapped against the cold, damp stone. The walls around me flickered with that same dying torchlight, and the metallic scent of blood choked the air.I followed the scream until it led me to a cell door that was slightly cracked open. My heart slammed against my chest as I stepped forward and looked inside.And there she was.Hunched in the corner of the cell, her body was a ruin. Skin and bones, bloodied and shaking. She was bleeding from her scalp and her mouth. Her dress was in tatters. Her back... Goddess, it was cover
Kieran’s POVShe was panting when I pulled away from between her thighs. Her wolf was right there beneath the surface, and mine too. I could feel Fenrir pacing under my skin, clawing to take over, to claim.I started to kiss my way up her body, before I could reach her mouth, she pushed me back, catching me off guard, flipping me onto my back, and in the next breath, she was on top of me, straddling my hips, her eyes blazing with heat and challenge.But I wasn’t giving up control that easily. I grabbed her wrists, sat up, and rolled us again, pinning her down beneath me in one smooth, instinct-driven motion.She gasped, eyes widening as her back hit the mattress, her hair fanned out like fire across the pillow. “Kieran—”“Nice try, Moya,” I growled, my voice low and frayed as I nudged her thighs apart with my knees, settling between them. “I’ve been patient, but I can’t wait anymore.”With one hand braced beside her head and the other gripping her hip, I lined myself up and pushed in
Kieran’s POV“Then undress me, Alpha.”Her words were my undoing. Fenrir let out a low, primal growl beneath my skin, and I swear my hands were already on her before I even realised I’d moved.I slipped my fingers under the strap of her gown again and slowly pushed it off her shoulder, then the other. The fabric didn’t fall right away—it clung to her like it didn’t want to leave her skin. Just like me."You drive me insane, Moya," I said, my voice insanely low. "All day, all I could think about was getting you out of this dress."“Then what are you waiting for, Alpha?”I chuckled at the dare, and I unzipped her.“Kieran…” Her breath hitched as the dress slid down her body, pooling at her feet like liquid moonlight. She stepped out of it, bare and glowing under the soft lamplight in the room. I had every reason to believe that the moon goddess took a special day to create her because her body was so damn perfect. The kind of perfect that didn’t feel real, like the moon goddess herself
Kieran’s POVFew things in life make a man feel complete. And tonight—watching Elara stand tall among the pack, with her eyes so bright and her head held high—was one of them. I felt like the luckiest bastard alive.Our people were finally accepting her and not just tolerating her as their Luna. They were embracing her and honouring her.But I just couldn’t stop staring at Elara. The ivory gown she wore hugged her in all the right places, and the little crystals sewn along the bodice caught the moonlight every time she moved. She looked like she’d walked right out of a damn dream.My dream.Fenrir growled in approval. “She's ours. Our Mate. Lucky us.”Lucky us indeed.She smiled so softly and gracefully as she responded to the people greeting her, and I swore my chest expanded another inch looking at that smile. That smile? It made me ache to kiss her senseless. Right there, in front of everyone.Mine.“Luna looks so beautiful tonight,” Mira murmured beside me.I blinked, glancing her
Lilith’s POV The next morning, Magnus summoned me to his study. He didn’t smile. He just gestured for me to sit, then he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk like a man about to make a deal with the devil.“There’s a pack,” he began, with his dangerously low voice. “Blackwood.”I nodded, recognising the name instantly. Blackwood was a respected and powerful pack. I had tried going there to see if they'd take me in, but other rogues told me they were unapproachable.“I want their Alpha gone,” Magnus said.My brows furrowed. “Why?”Before I could process the question fully, his hand shot out across the desk and wrapped around my throat. I froze, my heart skipping.“It’s not your business to know why,” he growled, squeezing just enough to make my breath catch. “You follow my orders. That’s the deal.”I nodded quickly. “Okay—okay. I’m sorry.”He let go and sat back like nothing had happened. “You’re going to seduce Kieran Blackwood, the Alpha heir. Make him trust you. Make him
Lilith’s POVTEN YEARS AGO—AND EVERYTHING SINCEIt was on a cold winter night. The kind of night that crept under your skin and made your bones ache. I was squatting behind a wrecked, rusting car, trying to hide from other rogues.My fingers trembled as I held the crust of stale bread I had fought with other rogues for earlier that night. It had been tossed out behind a diner, hard as stone and bitter from the exposure, but to me, it was gold. I shoved the piece into my mouth, trying to ignore how dry it was and how it scraped down my throat like sandpaper.My pack had been slaughtered when I was just a teen. I had been living as a rogue ever since, scavenging, stealing, fighting for crumbs every single day, and praying to the goddess or whoever not to freeze to death in the middle of the night.I curled up on the cold ground beside the car, hugging my knees tight. My stomach growled, unsatisfied by the tiny piece of bread, less than a fistful. I blinked up at the night sky, wondering