August tasted even better than Mercy had imagined he would. All of these weeks of being so close to him and longing for his touch, to feel his hands on her skin, to taste his lips, and finally, here he was, kissing her, his strong hands on her body as she leaned into the kiss.In the back of her mind, a voice insisted that this was wrong, that she shouldn’t be doing this with a man she just met, especially when she truly didn’t know if there was someone else. What if she had a husband back in her old pack? What if she was in love with someone else?But with August’s tongue tapping against hers and his hand on her waist, the other on the side of her face, Mercy knew she wasn’t going to be able to stop herself.Her response to him was completely instinctual, like he was a raging fire and she was a moth, mesmerized by the dancing flicker before her. How could she tell her body not to lean into his? She may as well tell her heart to stop beating or her ears to stop hearing. She had no con

Mercy had stood in the shower for a really long time, not sure why she wanted to keep the water running over her body. It wasn’t as if she felt dirty, but she did feel guilty. She wasn’t sure why she felt that way either. They were two adults. They had been with one another consensually. So why in the world did she feel bad?Mercy got out, dried off, and got dressed. She still had the towel wrapped around her body when her reflection in the mirror caught her attention. Her hair was starting to grow out more and more each day, and she could see her roots. The odd black color was also starting to fade away. She tipped her head forward and pulled on her hair a bit, trying to look more at her real hair. Why had someone tried to hide it? Had that someone been her?She also looked at her body. She was so scrawny. Granted, since she’d gotten here, she’d started to put on a little weight. She wasn’t quite so bony, but she could still see her ribs, and her arms looked a bit too much like chick

Something was different.The moment that August walked into the house, Mercy could tell that something had changed. The weight in his eyes was unsettling, and when he looked at her, she felt like she needed to sit down.She felt like she needed to melt into the floorboards.“What is it?” she asked. “Did something happen? Is something wrong?”“Nothing is wrong,” his mouth told her, but his eyes still said differently. “But we need to talk.”“Did… something happen?” she asked.August shook his head and came to her where she stood at the kitchen counter. She’d been cooking. Not that it was something she was good at, but she’d been trying. She had to wonder if she’d ever even done it before, but she knew how to read, so she could follow a recipe, or at least she thought she could.“Can you go to the living room, or is there something in the oven?” he asked her.Mercy’s eyes went to the counter. Half of the ingredients for a cake were in a bowl. The oven was preheating. She turned it off “

Lying in bed next to August was comforting in a way Mercy couldn’t quite put into words, despite the fact that she was unsettled deep within her soul. She knew that she would be until something happened between herself and Alpha Rider. August felt responsible for her like it was his battle to fight for her. But Mercy didn’t feel that way. She knew she’d have to face him herself, and when she did, she’d have to put the matter to rest once and for all.August’s arm was around her waist, and he had her pulled tight against his chest. Even facing away from him, his manly scent was strong, and she was reminded of the ocean, despite the fact that she had no idea if she’d ever actually been there or not. Coming to grips with the fact that she didn’t have to remember what had happened to her before or where she’d come from had given her a sort of freedom she hadn’t expected before, but at moments like this, she wished she knew if the images of the ocean and the beach that filled her mind were

Waiting for an attack wasn’t fun. August would’ve much rather have launched one himself. But he had no reason to do so. Not yet anyway. Not according to pack rules. While August could argue that Rider had committed atrocities against pack members, all August had as proof was the word of a couple of ex-pack members. And one of them had amnesia.On the other hand, not only did Alpha Rider have cause to attack his pack, he was likely to do it at any time. August had already started taking precautions and preparing. He had his Omegas preparing, practicing over time. He also had increased patrols and set up some other lines of defense around the perimeter of the village.August walked around outside and saw that the trainers were taking a group of Omegas through their paces, getting them ready to fight, not just in case Rider attacked but just because it was something all Omegas needed to be able to do. In fact, in August’s pack, even Gammas had to learn how to fight just in case. From the