Chapter 3

Nadia

I meant to keep my distance. I really did.

But avoiding Kade turned out to be like avoiding rain in a storm no matter which way I turned, he was already there.

"You're late," Priya said Monday morning, sliding into the seat beside me before homeroom started. "I texted you three times."

"Sorry. My dad kept me longer than usual." That part was true, at least. My father had spent breakfast reminding me of every reason to stay away from Kade Ashford, as if I needed reminding.

"Well, you missed the big news." Priya leaned in, eyes bright. "The Ashford pack is hosting the fall gathering this year. Whole school's invited. It's, like, the biggest thing all semester."

My stomach dropped. "A gathering. At his house?"

"His territory, technically. Big bonfire, games, the works." She grinned. "You're coming, right? Everyone's going."

"I don't know."

"Nadia." She gave me a look. "You've been here a month and you've said yes to one lunch table. Come on. Live a little."

I didn't answer right away. Somewhere behind my ribs, my wolf perked up at the mention of his territory, like she already knew what I was going to decide before I did.

I brought it up with my father that evening, bracing for a no before I even finished the sentence.

"Absolutely not," he said, exactly as expected. "Walking onto Ashford land, surrounded by his entire pack? If your control slips for even a second"

"I know the risks."

"Do you?" He set down his tea, voice quiet in the way that always meant he was more worried than angry. "A gathering that size will have alphas from three territories. If anyone catches your scent shifting, if anyone sees your eyes change even once, it's over. Everyone will know exactly who you are."

"I've controlled it for a month straight. I can control it for one night."

"Nadia"

"Please." I hadn't meant to say it so plainly, but once it was out, I didn't take it back. "I just want one normal night. One bonfire. That's all."

My father studied me for a long moment, something tired and sad passing over his face. "One night," he finally said. "You leave the second anything feels wrong. Understood?"

"Understood."

I didn't tell him the real reason I wanted to go. I wasn't sure I could explain it even to myself.

The gathering was already loud by the time Priya and I arrived, firelight cutting through the dark, music drifting from somewhere near the trees. Kids from three different schools mixed together, laughing, tossing a ball around, crowding near tables of food.

"See?" Priya nudged me. "Normal. Fun. Not scary at all."

It might have been normal, if my wolf hadn't gone completely still the moment we crossed onto Ashford land, alert in a way that had nothing to do with nerves.

I spotted Kade near the fire before he spotted me. He was laughing at something one of his friends said, relaxed in a way I hadn't seen at school, like this land settled something in him the same way it unsettled something in me.

Then he looked up, and our eyes met across the clearing.

His smile shifted into something softer.

"Oh no," Priya whispered beside me. "He's coming over here."

"Don't"

"Hey, Voss." Kade stopped in front of us, hands in his pockets, firelight catching the edge of his grin. "Didn't think you'd actually show."

"Priya talked me into it."

"Remind me to thank her." He glanced at Priya, who suddenly found something very interesting to look at on the other side of the clearing before disappearing entirely.

I made a mental note to strangle her later.

"So," Kade said, turning back to me. "First real pack gathering?"

"Something like that."

"You looked a little lost for a second there."

"I'm fine."

He studied me the way he always did, like he could see straight through the careful blankness I tried to keep on my face. "You say that a lot."

"Maybe it's just true a lot."

That almost got a real laugh out of him. "Come on. I'll show you around before someone drags you into a game you don't want to play."

I should have said no. I should have found Priya and stayed glued to her side for the rest of the night. Instead, I found myself walking beside him along the edge of the firelight, farther from the noise, close enough that the pull in my chest turned steady and warm instead of sharp.

We ended up near the tree line, away from the crowd, the fire small and distant behind us. Kade leaned against a low fence, looking out at the field instead of at me, which somehow made it easier to talk.

"You're not like the other new students," he said. "Most people try too hard to fit in here. You barely try at all."

"Maybe I don't care what people think."

"Maybe." He glanced at me sideways. "Or maybe you're hiding something."

My heart lurched. "Why would you think that?"

"Call it instinct." He shrugged, but his eyes stayed sharp, watching my reaction closely. "I've got good instincts, Voss. Better than most people realize."

I kept my face still, even as my pulse picked up. "Sounds like a you problem."

That earned a real laugh this time, low and surprised, like I'd cracked something open in him he didn't expect. The sound did something strange to my chest, warm and dangerous at the same time.

For a moment, standing there in the dark with the fire crackling behind us, I let myself forget every warning my father had given me. I let myself just be a girl at a bonfire, talking to a boy who made her feel steady for once instead of hidden.

Then a branch snapped somewhere behind us, and my wolf's head snapped up inside me, sharp and alert.

Kade straightened too, his easy expression sliding into something more careful. "You felt that."

It wasn't a question.

I froze. "Felt what?"

"Don't," he said quietly, stepping closer, his eyes searching mine in the firelight. "Don't lie to me right now. I felt something the second you walked onto this land. I've felt it all night. And you're feeling it too — I can see it on your face."

My chest tightened, panic and something else tangled together so tightly I couldn't tell them apart.

"Kade"

"Just tell me the truth," he said, voice low, almost pleading. "What are you?"

I opened my mouth, and for one terrifying second, I didn't know which answer would come out.