LOGINLetting Tahlia in first, I shut the door and turned, almost slamming my face into Dallas. He was looming in front of me with his hands on his hips. I raised my eyebrow at him.“What? I’m home before the sun went down, Dad.” I waved outside where the light was painting the sky in an orange glow.“You’re going to run yourself into the ground. Again, Ephraim. You’ve been sleeping what, three or four hours a night? You’re taking up multiple patrols and you’re trying to still do work while you’re at it!”“I am! I am trying to figure out what the hell is going on! Without having to take some random she-wolf as my Luna just to get a couple knights out here!” My voice rose, the air shifting around me.Dallas wasn’t backing down. “You need to allow me to go out more so you can come in! I’m fine taking full patrols! It’s my job as Beta…”“You’re a new father, Dallas!” I growled at him. “I am not going to take you away from your pup more than I need to! I can handle a few fucking patrols. What I
‘Alpha.’My lips pursed and I growled through the mind-link. ‘Where?’‘They were coming up from the south.’I was currently in the northeast, covering a hole in the patrols from the last break-through. These had been happening more and more. Rogues, one group after another. It was as thought they were being drawn to the center of our pack. At first it was one or two in a week. Now, it was one a day.We were running on fumes. My whole pack was on edge after three straight weeks of attacks. Everything, literally everything, was put on hold. It was all hands on deck and I did my best to fill as many holes to allow Dallas and Reese some time off. For the most part, Tahlia was by my side or covering another part of the territory.For the most part, the rogues who were just passing by didn’t mean any harm. Getting them out of the territory, they usually apologized and said they didn’t know what came over them. It was the rogues that didn’t have their humanity left that were a bigger issue. T
Doc was not kidding. I was stuck in bed for another two days before they let me walk around the pack house. Since I was still recovering, I had to stay in the guest bedroom in case something happened. Tahlia, after I finally left the bed, left my side. She refused to until I guess she deemed me strong enough. I think it also helped that when I was out of the room, I was being helicoptered by one or more of my pack members.After a half a day, she came back full and washed. I guessed she took a dip in the river and ran it off before stepping into the house. Letty had actually growled at her the last time she tried to walk in wet and Tahlia had taken it to heart ever since.I was sitting at the kitchen table, looking over some books that Dallas finally let me have from my office. Doc still hadn’t cleared me for work, but apparently, reading was okay. Sighing, I rubbed my foot against Tahlia who was lying next to my chair.‘Rogues!’The mind link was yelled at me and I looked up from my
*** Ephraim’s POV *** There was something heavy on my chest. It was hard to breathe and I reached up to push it off. My hand touched fur and a current ran through my fingers. Blinking, I narrowed my eyes at an unfamiliar ceiling. Looking down, Tahlia had most of her front on me, pinning me down. Her nose buried in the side of my neck.Smiling, I reached to rub her when I noticed the line in my arm. It was hooked up to a bag that was hanging next to my bed. My eyes narrowed as I tried to remember what happened. I had been on the phone with Alpha Fabian and then nothing. Trying to take a breath, I wanted to push Tahlia off me, but she wasn’t even budging.‘Dallas?’‘Ephraim! Fucking hell! Give me a second. I’ll be up.’I sighed at the pure relief in my Beta’s voice. Apparently, I had been laid up for a while. The door opened a few minutes later and Dallas stepped in. His face was tight and I gave him a smile. He didn’t smile back.“My Beta looks very mad.”“I am very mad, Alpha. You we
*** Tahlia’s POV *** My Alpha started to fall and I rushed under him. He collapsed on top of me and I was driven down to the floor with his weight. This morning I had felt it. I don’t know how, but I could. He was off. Something was wrong. I tried to tell him that he shouldn’t get up. Not with how little sleep he got.He hadn’t been dozing off like I was. It was hard to stay awake with nothing to do. My Alpha was always looking at something, focused, like when you were on the hunt during winter. His sleep and his body was suffering for it. Even mine was simply from trying to match him. I’d need to go out to hunt soon, but leaving him smelling like sickness wasn’t going to happen.It didn’t work. Someone important was here and so I tried to stay close as I could. The beast that showed up, they weren’t a beast. It felt completely different. They weren’t like anyone I had come across. There was something that made me want to bow my head in recognition. Not like my Alpha, but something fa
“Luna…”“I know it’s harsh to say.” He leaned forward, sighing. “Trust me. My entire life, I had Selene telling me that I wasn’t on my path. That everything that happened to me, and I mean everything, was all to bring me to my mate and his pack. Everything I went through was to make me who I am and be able to not just run a pack as Luna, but also to be able to raise the next Alpha King.”I leaned forward, my head resting on Tahlia. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think to compare my pain to yours.”Luna Riley chuckled. “Don’t. I had my pain. You had yours. It’s not something you can compare. It just always sucks to think about that it was what lead us here. Still, all part of the plan. That all of it had to happen to lead you to be where you are and who you are.”My lips pursed and sat up. He wasn’t wrong. If my parent’s hadn’t died, then I wouldn’t be here. Uncle might have asked for me, but from the stories he told, Dad would have said no. Dad loved the forest, but the pack life wasn’t somethi
Alpha King Nero did always warn me about Luna Riley and his penchant for cursing, but in all the times I had interacted with him, I’d never heard it. It was shocking, but while my leadership was struggling not to smile, I watched Luna Riley. I knew what Tahlia had gone through, the pain of the drea
‘Alpha…we have a situation…at the border.’I groaned, rolling over in bed. Putting the pillow over my head, I wanted nothing to do with whatever was happening. I’d been burning the candle at both ends. Morning training, late night patrols, going through all the information Norah sent me. I probably
“Henry! What the hell?” I stormed over to the car that Henry was leaning against.His right eye was closed from the swelling and it looked like it was reaching down his cheek to his jaw. Arms crossed over his chest, my brother was trying to look cool and failing miserably. After reaching up and ins
“Daddy!”I raced into my dad’s arms as he walked through the door. He pretended like he wasn’t expecting it, but he was. Nothing could surprise him. Stumbling back, he swung me around couple times before giving me a tight hug.“Why are you getting so big, Tahlia? I thought I told you to stop growin







