Rose’s POVI stayed in Moonrise City after Jane left. I’d lived here for more than a year before Jane and her boys had moved to the city, and it had become my home – even after I’d ditched the boyfriend I’d moved here for. I had a house here, friends, family – all of them werewolves, but not me.That was how Jane and I had first become friends. She’d been a tiny slip of a thing, all wide, wild eyes, clutching her two babies close like she was terrified they were going to be taken away from her.It hadn’t taken long for us to strike up a friendship. We shared a kinship that neither of us could explain – at least, not until we became close enough to open up and explain it to each other.We were both from werewolf families, but neither of us had a wolf. That was why my family had moved to the human lands not long after my eighteenth birthday. When it had become obvious that my wolf wasn’t going to show up, they’d decided it would be best for me to be around humans. They hadn’t meant it

Jane’s POVMy whole body hurt. I felt like I’d had a hand inside my chest, rummaging around inside my organs and displacing them. Groaning softly, I opened my eyes, put a hand to my throbbing chest, and tried to sit up.The first thing I felt were the stitches. I rubbed my palm against them, a frown tugging my eyebrows down.“Mommy!” cried Owen. Beside him, Ares jumped up and beamed at me.“Mom, you’re awake!”I blinked at them, feeling like I was in a dream. They still didn’t look like themselves, but over time I’d got used to their new faces. I could see past their outward appearances and into their eyes, and there I saw my sons.“I’m awake?” I said. It sounded like a question. I shook my head slightly, trying to dispel the haze clouding my mind. “What happened?”Hunter stepped forward then; I froze. Had he been here this entire time?His throat bobbed, and he started to reach for me before stopping himself. “You collapsed into the middle of the gardens. I brought you here.”It took

Jane’s POVStill stunned by the realisation that Ina, the wolf I’d come to know as my own over the last few months, really belonged with Rose, my best friend, I remained frozen when S burst into the room, with more emotion on his cold face than I’d ever seen before, and knelt down at her bedside.Ina was Rose’s wolf. I was back to being an Omega without a wolf. I was back to being unprotected and unable to protect my boys.I still didn’t move as he took her hand, or as he said, “Mate.”Rose and S were… mates?“Mate,” Rose confirmed, beaming at S like he was the most incredible thing she’d ever seen. I’d seen Rose do a victory dance after fixing some difficult computer problem, grin widely as she took the first big bite of a pizza, but I had never, never, seen her look at a guy like that before.All of a sudden S’s strange behaviour started to make sense. The way he’d thought I was his mate, the looks he’d given me, like he was drawn to me but couldn’t work out why, the way Ina had bee

Hunter’s POV“The Alpha wolf isn’t yours?” I asked, careful to keep my tone in check. Despite my efforts my voice still came out strained.“No,” said Jane, and I stopped listening. There was a dull buzzing in my ears that distorted every other sound. I was so confused.And, to make matters worse, Reg started to howl. ‘My heart is lost!’ he wailed. ‘I didn’t like the way Jane smelled, but it was because she had a fake wolf this whole time! I’ve betrayed her! I let my nose trick me, Hunter! She’s been beautiful this whole time, but because she had the wrong wolf I stopped loving her!’ He sniffled hard and wiped his eyes and nose with his big paws.I didn’t cut him off. I couldn’t. Believe me, I wanted to – but all I could do was listen to the thud, thud, thud of my blood pounding against my ears and stare blankly at Jane as she stumbled back and sat down heavily.She buried her head in her hands. I wanted to go to her. I could still see her injured on the ground, bleeding, unconscious…

Jane’s POVI froze.Because if I took another step, I didn’t know what I would do. Since Ina had gone, my feelings for Hunter had been more muddled than ever. The mate bond was stronger – but my hatred for him hadn’t dissipated. I loved and loathed him in equal measure and, as he came towards me, my belly swooped and my heart leapt and my hands curled into fists, ready to punch.“Hunter,” I said, my voice too low, too sultry, for him to think it anything other than what it was: a plea.He smirked at me. “Luna Eremita.”I pressed my lips together into a flat line. “Don’t call me that.”“I’m doing it to keep you safe.” He paused. “I’m keeping you safe.” His blue eyes hardened. It struck me anew how stupid I’d been, not to realise Alpha Colin had been him back in the desert. I knew him so well.But he’d been emotional then, and his brown eyes had been warm and soft. It was like the wall had gone up again the second he’d stepped back into his own skin.See? I should hate him. He’d tricke