Mag-log inLara’s POVThe next morning arrived. I stood on the wide front steps of the pack house at 6:50 a.m., the cool air brushing against my skin as I watched the driveway. My arms were crossed tightly over my chest, more to hold myself together than to ward off the chill.The quadruplets stood behind me in their neat Frost Fang Academy uniforms, shifting with a mixture of excitement and nervousness.At exactly 7:00, his black SUV rolled slowly up the driveway and came to a stop.Matteo stepped out first. Then he opened the passenger door and helped a small girl out — Rose. She clung to his hand, looking nervous but curious, with dark curly hair and shy eyes. She was wearing the academy uniform too.Matteo looked… painfully trying. His hair was neatly combed, he wore a crisp button-down shirt and slacks, and he carried a paper bag in one hand and a bouquet of slightly crushed silver-petaled lunar blooms in the other. His broad shoulders were tense, and his golden eyes held a nervousness I ha
Matteo stepped out.Bare-chested.A white towel was wrapped low around his waist, hanging dangerously on his hips. Droplets of water still clung to his broad shoulders and the defined ridges of his abdomen, slowly trailing down his skin. His dark hair was damp and tousled, falling across his forehead in a way that made him look far too devastating for someone who had just stood in a freezing downpour for hours.My mouth went dry. I gulped.The mate bond — that treacherous, long-dormant thing — surged violently between us. Filthy, vivid images slammed into my mind without warning: his hands gripping my thighs, that same bare chest pressed against mine, his mouth on my neck while he growled my name, the way he used to take me apart so thoroughly I forgot everything except him…Where the fuck are the clothes I ordered?Heat flooded my face. I tore my gaze away from the perfect V-line disappearing beneath the towel and glared at him instead.“Where the fuck are the clothes I ordered?” I s
Lara’s POVThree days had passed since we returned to Frost Fang Pack.The children were healing remarkably well — their bodies restored, their powers stabilizing under my constant lunar care. The nightmares never came. They slept peacefully through the night, and during the day, they were back to their usual brilliant, energetic selves.I had thrown myself into work — pack meetings, training the younger wolves, reviewing border reports. Anything to keep my mind occupied. But Matteo wouldn’t let me forget.---The first time he appeared, it was just after sunrise. I felt him before the guards reported it — that familiar, stubborn tug on the mate bond. I stood on the watchtower with Ryker, arms crossed, watching his tall figure stand motionless in the falling snow. “Turn him away,” I ordered coldly.The guards did. He didn’t argue. Hour after hour, he stood motionless in the bitter cold while the snowfall grew heavier around him. By midday, snow coated his shoulders like a second cloak
Lara’s POVThe lullaby wrapped around us like a gentle cocoon, my voice soft and melodic as I sang the old Frost Fang melody about the Moon Goddess watching over her stars. The children lay nestled against me on the oversized bed, their small bodies warm and finally relaxing after the ordeal.As the last notes faded, I lingered, unwilling to move. The trauma of the kidnapping still haunted me—I kept expecting one of them to jolt awake, screaming, reliving the dark ritual or the witch’s draining touch. I brushed Maria’s hair back from her forehead, then stroked Caius’s cheek.“I’ll stay right here,” I whispered. “You don’t have to be strong tonight. Mama’s got you.”Maria cracked one eye open, then gave me the brightest, most reassuring smile I’d seen in days. “Mama, we’re okay. Really. We’re big girls and boys now. The old witch didn’t scare us that much—we knew you, grandpa, and the uncles would come.”Lyra stretched dramatically and yawned. “Yeah, Mama. Go rest or talk with Grandpa.
She had ordered the kidnapping of my children. She had drained Lara’s blood—nearly killed my mate and our unborn pups—then lied straight to Lara’s face that I had commanded it. All while smiling at me every day like the perfect, supportive Luna.Enough.The fury that had been simmering for years finally boiled over. My claws slid out, dark fur rippling across my arms as Storm pushed hard against my control.I turned and stalked out of the chamber, following the faint trail of my family’s scent. Not to chase them—I wasn’t stupid enough to test her brothers’ patience right now—but to get the hell out of this cursed place and back to my own territory.By the time I reached my pack borders hours later, the rage had hardened into something colder. Clearer.Selene was finished.I didn’t bother with announcements. I stormed straight into the Luna’s quarters where she was lounging with her usual entourage. The moment she saw my face, her practiced smile faltered.“Matteo, what—”I crossed the
LARAI felt the exact moment something deep inside him clicked into place.I knew.Moon Goddess, I knew exactly what he had finally understood.Matteo’s breath hitched, audible even across the chamber. His golden eyes—Storm’s eyes—widened, the storm inside them fracturing into something raw and devastating. The color drained from his face as the truth slammed into him. These were his children.The quadruplets. Conceived during the last days of our happiness, before everything shattered. The heirs he and his pack had demanded so cruelly. The ones he had unknowingly rejected along with me.A broken sound tore from his throat—half growl, half sob. He took one stumbling step forward, then another, as if pulled by an invisible chain. His massive frame trembled, claws fully retracted now, hands opening and closing at his sides like he didn’t know what to do with them.“M-Mine?” The word cracked out of him, barely more than a whisper. But in the heavy silence, it landed like thunder.Ryker
LARA"A ball?" I frowned slightly as I asked, and my dad nodded."That's right. A ball. More like a welcome party to celebrate you. All the pack members are invited and given a chance to see you properly." My dad's large hand patted my head with the kind of gentleness that didn't quite match his re
The next morning, sunlight spilled through the tall windows and stretched across the enormous bed. For a few seconds, I remained buried beneath the warm and comfortable blankets.Then I remembered where I was. A smile immediately tugged at my lips.Yesterday hadn't been a dream.It had actually hap
LARAI fell silent, turning my father's words over in my mind. If I were still in Red Moon Pack—if I had only been rejected instead of banished—perhaps I would have chosen to end the pregnancy. Not because I didn't want the child, but because I couldn't bear the thought of bringing them into a worl
When consciousness returned, it came slowly. Voices drifted in and out around me, blurred and muffled, like they were underwater.“She collapsed from emotional shock—”“No, there’s something else.”“Are you certain?” I slowly recognized Kael's voice.“Yes.”The last voice belonged to an elderly hea







