로그인QUESTIONS AND REACTIONSANNIE’S POVI couldn’t sleep after remembering that Karin had a mate. What was she like?I had been lying in bed for over an hour, staring at the ceiling, Tossing and trying to remember some things and suddenly I realized where I knew Lucien from.Then I heard the front door finally open, I sat up immediately.Karin was home.I hesitated for a few seconds, my heart beating faster than it should have. Part of me wanted to stay in the room and pretend I was already asleep. Another part of me, the part that had been growing louder these past few days wanted answers. And we were going to get married. It was right that I have some questions for him. And I want to be more comfortable around him too.Before I could talk myself out of it, I pushed the blanket aside, stood up from the bed and stepped out of the room.Karin was walking toward the hallway that led to the master bedroom, his suit jacket already removed, tie loosened around his neck. He looked tired, but t
THE NEXT MOVELINA’S POVThe phone hit the wall with a sharp crack.I stood there breathing hard, staring at the broken screen on the floor. Karin had hung up on me. He had actually hung up on me while I was telling him the truth about Annie. That cold, arrogant bastard had defended her. He had called her his fiancée and warned me not to speak about her that way.My hands were shaking.I let out a frustrated scream and kicked the nearest chair, sending it scraping across the floor. My wolf was furious, clawing under my skin, demanding blood. Preferably Annie’s.“That little bitch,” I muttered under my breath. “She thinks she’s won.”I paced the length of my room, my heels clicking angrily against the floor. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Karin standing in that dining room, publicly choosing Annie over me. I saw the way he looked at her. It should have been me.I stopped in front of the mirror and stared at my reflection. My makeup was still perfect. My blonde hair was still flawle
THE CALLKARIN’S POVI kept the phone pressed to my ear, my grip tightening with every word that came through the speaker.Lina’s voice was sharp, laced with barely controlled rage.“She was in a relationship just a day before you switched brides, Karin. Did you know that? Annie was with someone. She’s playing you.”I closed my eyes for a brief second, my jaw clenching. The noise of the remaining guests in the private dining hall faded into the background. All I could hear was Lina’s voice.“Lina,” I said coldly. “Not now.”She didn’t stop.“You need to listen to me. Annie doesn’t care about you. She doesn’t care about the alliance. She only wants to jeopardize everything because she’s jealous of me. That’s all this is. Revenge. She’s using you.”I turned slightly away from the main hall, lowering my voice. “You should stop talking.”“Why?” Lina’s laugh was bitter. “Because the truth is inconvenient? She’s a whore, Karin. She sleeps around to get what she wants. That’s how she got you
AFTER THE EVENTANNIE’S POVThe penthouse was way too quiet when I returned.I stepped out of the elevator, my heels clinking against the floor. The red dress still clung to my body, and the memory of Karin’s breath against my ear refused to leave me. “Go home.” Two simple words, but the way he had said them, in that low, and almost rough voice still sent a shiver down my spine.Mira appeared almost immediately, as if she had been waiting.“You’re back early,” she said with a warm smile. Her eyes moved over the dress, then to my face. “How was the dinner?”“It was… fine,” I answered, not knowing how else to describe it. “A lot of people were there. And they stared. A lot.”She chuckled softly and took my small clutch from my hands. “That’s expected. You’re the woman Alpha Voss chose. People will stare for a while.” She paused, then added gently, “You looked beautiful tonight.”“Thank you, Mira.” I said quietly.I walked further into the living area and stopped near the large windows
THE EDGE OF CONTROLKARIN’S POVThe moment Annie disappeared down the hallway, the last thread of my control snapped.I excused myself from the remaining guests with a short nod and walked straight toward the private restroom at the end of the corridor. My steps were steady, but inside, Kaelan was raging. The second the door closed behind me, I gripped the edge of the marble sink and exhaled hard through my nose.I had almost licked her neck.The realization hit me with full force.I had leaned in to tell her to go home, but her scent had wrapped around me so completely that I lost track of distance. I had been breathing her in without even realizing it. I was taking deep, slow breaths of that warm, addictive scent that had been haunting me since the day she walked into my office. If she hadn’t whispered my name in that small, shaky voice, I might have closed the remaining space and put my mouth on her skin.I lifted my head and stared at my reflection in the mirror.My eyes were dark
MEETING THE UNCLEANNIE’S POVThe older man’s words hung in the quiet hallway like a warning.“So… you’re the one.”I looked at him and instinctively took a step back. Something about the way he watched me made my skin crawl. I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly dry. Liera stirred uneasily inside me, her presence rising close to the surface.The man noticed my reaction and let out a low, amused chuckle.“Relax,” he said, raising both hands slightly. “I don’t bite.”His smile didn’t reach his eyes. There was something unsettling about it, something that made the hair on my arms stand up. He took another step closer, clearly intending to say more, when a deep, familiar voice cut through the air behind me.“Annie.”I turned quickly.Karin was walking toward us, his expression calm but cold. His geyes moved from me to the older man, and the temperature in the hallway seemed to drop. He stopped right beside me, close enough that his shoulder almost brushed mine.“I see you’ve met my uncle







