CLAIR I spent the whole day locked up in my room trying to decide whether I should stay or just go away from here and move on with my life. Before I came back here, I already had everything planned out. Come back - shift - leave. But I didn’t expect Jake to consume my mind since I got here. And that hug we shared yesterday had me hoping for something. I actually decided to stay longer to get to know him again. However, the news Aaron brought me last night bothered me so much that I was not able to sleep at all. I spent the whole night turning and tossing. I was confused, and for the first time since I got here, the feeling of being unwanted crept in again. After a constant battle with myself, I finally got the courage to gather all the clothes and things I came home with and tossed them in my duffel bag, not even bothering to fold them. Flashes of my conversation with Aaron last night kept playing in my head. Jake will have a Luna soon and I didn’t want to be here when it happen

AARON I paced back and forth at the entrance of the packhouse, waiting for the Alpha and my sister. I was beating myself for not coming home earlier to stop Clair from running away. I almost went mad when I saw all the things she came with gone from her dresser, together with her duffel bag, and her truck was nowhere in sight. I called my dad and he confirmed that they had a fight. He raised his voice at her, but he never thought she would go today because she mentioned she would be leaving tomorrow. I tried reaching her through mindlink, but I couldn’t get through her mind. I blamed myself again for why I didn’t bother to teach her about it. Left with no choice, I alerted the Alpha, and he directed me to send people to look out for her. And I did, reminding everyone that she would be shifting tonight. I was hell-bent on trying to scent her when I received a mindlink from Jake saying that he had found Clair and that she had shifted. I felt relieved for her safety but felt guilty kn

CLAIR It has been two days since I last saw Jake. I missed him, and I knew that I could just as easily go to the pack house and pretend I needed something there to catch a glimpse of him, but I restrained myself. I didn’t want to go that way. So I went with another strategy that I thought would not be too obvious. I went to the afternoon training sessions for two consecutive days, despite attending the sessions in the morning just so I could see him if he was there. But luck wasn’t on my side. I sighed and closed my eyes as I leaned against the walls of the pavilion where I was sitting. Jenny was beside me, lying down on her stomach while reading a book. We decided to chill in one of the pavillions surrounding the territory after the afternoon training session just to pass the time. "That was deep. Something bothering you?" She dropped the book in her hand and pulled herself up to sit beside me. I shook my head and forced a smile. "Nothing. Just bored." "You missed him?" She ask

CLAIR Unfortunately, sleep didn’t come. It was almost three o’clock in the morning, and I was still wide awake. The face of the wolf that almost took my life lingered in every corner of my room. When I couldn’t take it anymore, I stood up from my bed and went to my dresser, and took Jake’s shirt that I had placed in there without even washing it. It was the one I put on after I shifted, hoping his scent would calm me down enough for sleep to take over. And then, for the first time since I came back, I drew the curtains closed, putting the room into total darkness. I wasted no time and lay in my bed, closing my eyes and pulling my blanket over my head, ready to put my mind in the blanks when a mindlink startled me. 'Are you awake?' A voice came into my head. 'Jake? Why are you still awake? It’s three in the morning.' I pulled my blanket down from my head and openly stared at the dark ceiling. I heard him chuckle before answering. 'Do you really expect an Alpha to sleep peacefull

CLAIR. I turned around and lay flat on my stomach while I covered my head with my pillow to tune out the sound that woke me up, but the knocking didn’t stop. I grunted before flipping my body again, my lashes fluttering as I forced my eyes open and stared at the ceiling. "Give me a moment," I called out to the person outside my door, and the knocking eventually stopped. I took a moment to wake myself up and ended up remembering the events of last night. I was almost killed by a rogue, but it was not the thought that forced me out of bed. Jake was here last night. In my room. In my bed. Or was he? Did I just dream that? I looked around for any evidence of his presence the night before, and it was then that I noticed a folded shirt on the other side of the bed, where I remembered him lying the night before. I reached for the shirt and saw a piece of paper neatly folded above it. A note. My heart was thudding loudly as I opened it excitedly. A smile curled on my lips as I read th