The town smelled like dry earth and citrus oil, with a whisper of old smoke that clung to the edges of its crooked buildings. I followed Kai through the quiet alleys, our footsteps muffled by dust. This wasn’t the market nearest the Academy—it was older, tucked between two forgotten districts that hadn’t seen renovation since the last reign.Kai walked a step ahead, hands tucked in his cloak, silent as always. We hadn’t spoken much since we slipped through the gates. He hadn’t said where we were going. Just that I “needed a break.”I wasn’t sure whether to thank him or run the other way.We passed a bent fruit vendor, an open spice stall, and what looked like a tavern with no name. Everything about this place felt… too calm. Like it was waiting to exhale.Kai stopped in front of a bread stall and handed the woman a silver coin. “Their crust is always burnt,” he said. “But the middle’s soft.”I smirked faintly. “Like someone I know.”He gave me a side glance but said nothing.As he wai
ASH POVIt was late. That in-between kind of late where the world had gone still, but it wasn’t quite deep into the night yet.The only light in Caleb’s apartment came from the lamp beside the couch. Warm. Dim. The kind of light that made shadows soft instead of sharp.We’d been sitting in silence for a while. Not the tense kind. The kind where no one feels the need to fill space just to prove something.He was flipping through a book, legs stretched out on the couch, one foot brushing against mine every now and then like he needed to remind himself I was still there. I didn’t move away.I sat with a cold bottle of soda in one hand, staring at the condensation gathering on the glass, not really thinking about anything important. Just breathing. Existing.And it felt good.“You’re quiet tonight,” Caleb said without looking up.“I’m always quiet,” I replied.“Yeah,” he said, finally closing the book. “But this is a different kind of quiet.”I looked at him. “What kind?”He shrugged. “Th
VIVIAN POVThe next morning, I didn’t check my phone first thing.I just laid there for a while, eyes open, listening to the world begin its usual rhythm outside my window—birds arguing on the balcony railing, a neighbor starting his car with that same stubborn cough, someone two floors up dragging furniture again.It was a regular morning.But I felt different in it.Like something inside me had settled, finally.Not in a dramatic, movie-ending kind of way—but in a quiet, this-is-what-I-want-now kind of way.I made my bed, brushed my teeth, and stood in front of the mirror for a full minute. Not to inspect my face or criticize anything, but just… to look. To see myself clearly. There I was. Not hiding. Not performing.Just me.Messy bun. Bare face. Calm eyes.I actually liked her.Work was peaceful, which was rare for a Wednesday.No major orders, no last-minute bridal emergencies, just a few regulars who came in for their weekly arrangements and stayed long enough to chat about weat
SAGE POV. All the boys marched forth toward the Great Hall. No matter how much I tried to slow down, hoping to delay the moment I would be caught and punished, the others kept bumping into me, pushing me along with the current.I looked around, desperate for a way out. The guards had begun to seal the heavy doors behind us. Just as I began to lose hope, I noticed one of the side doors hadn’t been shut yet. I needed to reach it as fast as possible. I slipped away from Kai and Henry, weaving through the bodies around me. I was so close to freedom when a strong arm grabbed my wrist and halted me at once.I looked up.Alpha Roman.He stared down at me with a strange look on his face. I swallowed hard, suddenly aware of how fast I was sweating. Of course, he had been watching. He felt the mating bond, so he must have known I wasn’t really a boy. And he would not permit my escape.“That’s the wrong way,” Alpha Roman said, a slight smirk on his lips. He was enjoying taunting me.I forced a
Jasmine’s life once resembled a perfect picture: a thriving career, a marriage built on trust, and the quiet contentment of a woman who believed she had finally found her place in the world. That illusion shattered in a single night. Returning home, she discovered her husband, Martin, in bed with his cousin, Kimberly—a betrayal so brazen it felt like a deliberate strike at her heart. The affair was not a fleeting mistake but the culmination of a calculated scheme. Martin and Kimberly, driven by greed and ambition, had conspired to strip Jasmine of everything she had built. Her business, her security, and her sense of belonging—stolen by the two people she trusted most.Jasmine’s world crumbled overnight, but her story is not one of quiet defeat. It is a journey of reclaiming power and rediscovering the pieces of herself she had long buried beneath loyalty and love. She is a woman marked by betrayal, yet defined by her resilience. At her core, Jasmine is introspective and compassionate
It’s just me,” he said like that explained everything. Even in the dark, I could see his smirk. His lips brushed mine, slow and teasing, but his hand moved higher until it cupped my breast, his fingers teasing with my nipple.“Get off me, you asshole,” I snapped, trying to shove him away.Big mistake.He only grinned wider, something primal flashing in his eyes. “Feisty tonight.”With one swift move, he grabbed the back of my hair and pulled me in for a violent kiss. His mouth was hot and demanding, his tongue pushing into mine with wine on his breath. My heart pounded, but it wasn’t fear that made me melt into him—it was my wolf.I hated how quickly she surrendered. How her hunger tangled with mine until I wrapped my legs around his waist and let him lift me off the couch like I weighed nothing. He kicked the door shut and tossed me onto the mattress; I gasped, flipping my hair away from my face.He stripped in front of me without a word. His body looked even more powerful than I rem