AmberHis hand tugs at his belt with an urgency that borders on madness. The leather creaks under the strain, the buckle clinking as he fumbles to free himself.“I wanted you to give in willingly,” he pants, eyes glowing blood-red, wild with lust and frustration. “I really did. But I can’t wait anymore, Amber. If I don’t have you right now, I’m going to combust.”His words fall like a hammer against my chest, and for a split second, my body—no, Irma—quivers with temptation. She howls inside me, clawing, begging, already lifting our metaphorical tail.But I won’t let her win.Not this time.Not when I’ve finally clawed back a shred of control over my own damn life.He’s too distracted now; panting hard, eyes wild, belt halfway undone as he fumbles with the buckle like a beast trying to free himself from his own skin. Low growls rip from his throat, deep and primal, like some feral predator cornered in the dark. His pupils are blown wide, glowing red with rut-fueled desperation. The sce
AmberHard. Massive. Pressing against my ass. My entire body jerks at the contact, hips rocking back into him against my will. His bulge grinds against the soft curve of my backside, and my body betrays me completely—slick gushing, thighs trembling, heat tearing through me like wildfire.His lips are at my ear now, breath hot and ragged.“I’m yours,” he breathes, voice rough, edged with obsession. “You’ve always been mine and you always will be. Mine to touch. Mine to kiss. To fuck. To ruin. Every part of you. Every inch. Every breath.”I shudder.“Nothing—” He growls, one hand gripping my throat just enough to make me feel owned, claimed, held “—absolutely nothing will come between us again. You’re my pretty little Omega, and I’m going to put my mark right back where it belongs.”His hand slides up my side—slow, reverent, teasing—before cupping my breast through the fabric, thumb brushing over my nipple until I gasp.“And you’re going to mark me too, aren’t you, baby?” He whispers da
AmberI used to think that maybe—just maybe—I could blame Eden just as much as Rayne for everything. That I could point a finger at the wolf inside Rayne and say they were both responsible. But that lie doesn’t work anymore, not after everything I'd heard. And I’ve already made up my mind.I chose Ian.It’s always going to be Ian.I’m in love with him, in a way I never thought possible for someone like me. The kind of love that creeps in slowly and then suddenly crashes over you like a tidal wave. That fluttery, aching warmth that spreads across my chest every time he smiles at me. The way my stomach flips when he brushes my hand. The peace that floods me when he looks at me like I’m something precious.With Ian, it’s not just biology. It’s not instinct or fate. It’s choice. It’s safe. It’s love.And I don’t know if I’ll ever feel that way for Rayne again—not after everything we’ve been through. Some bonds don’t heal. Some burns go too deep.I take a deep breath and steel myself to te
ReedThe divorce papers were still there.Mocking me.Sitting on Voss’ desk like they owned the fucking room, like they were some sacred document carved by the gods themselves. Second copy. Freshly printed. Still crisp. Still bearing Rayne’s signature at the bottom, bold and cold and final.I stared at them, chest heaving. My neck throbbed with pain from my failed suicide attempt, dried blood caked like graffiti. Every inch of me itched to rip them apart, to tear that paper into shreds so fine no one would ever be able to piece it together again.But then Ash’s voice echoed inside my head, sharp and unrelenting.“Don’t even think about it, Reed. You’re already skating on the edge of hell. Don’t light the match.”For once, I listened.Maybe because I didn’t have the energy to argue. Maybe because some pathetic part of me still thought Rayne might come back. Might realize he made a mistake.He hadn’t looked back, though. Not once.And now those cursed papers were the final nail in the c
Amber“Reed may have orchestrated it all, but you?” I pointed a trembling finger at his chest. “You married him. Chose him. Protected him. Loved him. You put that monster on a pedestal and crowned him Luna like he was worth worshipping.”My breath hitched with the rage I could barely hold back.“You let him sleep beside you while I—while I bled in silence. While I lived in fear. While I raised your child alone. And now you want to talk to me about justice?”My voice dropped, deadly and cold.“Since we’re handing out punishments, Rayne, don’t you think you should get yours too?”He didn’t flinch.Didn’t retreat.But something in him cracked.“Yes,” he said, voice hoarse, nearly inaudible. “Yes, you’re right.”The words came slow. Measured. As if they were being dragged from the center of his chest.“I was ignorant, blind,” he admitted. “Worse—I was willingly blind. I told myself lies so I wouldn’t have to face the truth. I let myself believe Reed was something he wasn’t because it was e
AmberMy first instinct was to ignore it.I stared at the message on my phone, jaw clenched so tightly I thought my teeth might crack. Rayne’s name sat at the top of the screen, smug and steady like it had any right to still exist in my inbox.“Could you please meet up with me at the entrance of your street? I’m in a white Corvette. Please come as soon as you can, it’s urgent. I’ve neglected my duties to you long enough but not anymore. From now on, I’ll be running to you and I’m going to make up for every single thing. I swear it on the blood that runs through my veins.”The audacity.After three full days of silence. After everything. After a whole ass court case.Now he wanted to play knight in shining armor?I tossed the phone onto the cushion beside me and crossed my arms, trying to act like the message didn’t get under my skin. Like it didn’t spark a tiny flame of anxiety in the pit of my stomach. I sipped my tea and turned back to Evalie and Marina—still laughing, still shuffli