LOGINKarson's POVThe scratches on her arm weren't deep.But they were there. Red lines carved into her skin. Evidence of a fight that could have gone differently. Evidence of my failure.I watched her apply the ointment. Her movements efficient. Practiced. She didn't wince at the sting. Didn't hesitate or fumble.
Irene's POVThe battlefield was still settling when Karson appeared at my side.He moved fast despite his injured leg. Limping across the blood-soaked ground like the wound didn't exist. Like nothing mattered except reaching me."Irene." His voice was rough. Breathless. "Are you hurt? Did they—"
Irene's POVLexie was broken beneath me.Bleeding. Whimpering. Defeated.I shifted back to human form. Stood over her crumpled body. Ready to end this once and for all."It's over, Lexie." My voice came out cold. Flat. "You've lost."
Irene's POVMidnight came slowly.I waited in the shadows near the depot. My body tense. My senses stretched to their limits. Every rustle of leaves. Every whisper of wind. Every distant owl call amplified in the darkness.The children were hidden safely behind the main building. Far from the trap zone. Close enough to alert us if their sharp noses detected anything unusual.
Irene's POVThe trap needed bait.Good bait. The kind that would make Lexie abandon caution entirely. The kind that would draw her in like a moth to flame.I knew exactly what that bait needed to be.Me.
Irene's POVThe news reached me before dawn.Ken slipped into my tent while the camp still slept. His face grim. His eyes sharp with urgency."Princess. We have a problem."I sat up immediately. Sleep forgotten. "What is it?"
IRENE"No?" Why would he suddenly ask that? "No," I said firmly, this time staring at his doubtful face. "Karson," he straightened up and I lowered my head to my shoulders to smell myself. "Do I smell like that?"His nostrils flared and a flicker of lust passed his eyes. "You don't really want to ask
IRENE"What do you want and how'd you even get my number?" She was the last person I ever wanted to speak to and having her voice next to my ears was pricking my skin."No, let's talk about you instead," she snapped. "What do you want?""You called," I reminded her. "Plus, I wouldn't want to talk to yo
IRENEThe healers returned after a while and this time, I was put in a room and asked to shift. They gave me the privacy of changing out of my clothes since I didn't want to rip them. Once I transformed, shaking out my fur, I sat back on the floor and let them observe, going round my wolf to observe
IRENEI dragged myself up stairs for a bath after he left and I stayed longer in the bathtub than usual. What was supposed to be a serious talk, ended with his finger inside me-"Ugh!" I wanted to bury my face in the water.'Don't be so hard on yourself,' my wolf grinned, satisfied from her dose of his







