All Chapters of TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS : Chapter 301 - Chapter 310

Isabella POVI left the door unlocked because Maverick was still outside.His laughter drifted through the window as he played. Grandma Cassidy always insisted I shouldn't keep him cooped up in the bedroom. Most people living here were adults anyway, and she believed he needed every chance to socialize.I leaned against the door, breathing hard after retreating to the only place that felt safe.My face burned as the scene replayed in my head.Grandma Cassidy had walked in at the worst possible moment, just as everything between Wesley and me reached that unbearable point. His kiss swept away every rational thought. I forgot we were in a public space. I groaned and buried my face in my hands, pure secondhand embarrassment burning through me. She probably saw me as nothing more than a desperate, shameless gold-digging whore, throwing myself at the future Alpha, ready to spread my legs and claw my way into his pack just to secure an easy, free ride for the rest of my worthless life.Thi

Wesley POVSweat pooled down my neck as my body burned with fever, my wolf pacing beneath my skin. Mom's absence made everything worse. This time, I was tied to a rough mat that smelled faintly of piss, the smell turning my already unsettled stomach. Dad rested a hand on my shoulder, but unlike before, he didn't tell me to be strong. Maybe he knew hearing those words now would only irritate me."He's worked up," Charlie said, rolling his sleeves up. "Can we just get it over with?"Charlie never looked at me with pity. He always looked at me the same way, as if to say, We've done this before. You survived it.One of the healer's daughters, a bald woman whose hard features looked almost masculine, stepped forward carrying the cowhide cane. It was thick, dark, and scarred from years of use.The moment I saw it, every muscle in my body locked.My wolf always knew what was coming.They held me down because whenever my wolf became this restless, it stopped fighting the world and started tea

Isabella's POVHeavy clouds had swallowed the evening sky, turning the estate soft and gray. I sat on the veranda steps overlooking the backyard, watching Maverick run in uneven circles across the grass, kicking his ball and making his own dramatic sound effects. Rain was coming. The cool breeze lifted the edge of my T-shirt, and my wolf stirred beneath my skin, nudging insistently at the back of my mind. Rain always made shifting feel freer. I almost gave in before reminding myself that Maverick was still awake. Later tonight, after he was asleep, I'd slip into the woods behind the estate for a quick run. It had been weeks since I'd shifted, and my wolf was beginning to resent me for it.Grandma Cassidy's voice drifted through the open kitchen window. The sound alone made my stomach tighten. Ever since she'd walked in on Wesley and me in that kitchen, I hadn't known how to face her. Every time I replayed it, all I could remember was jerking away from him like a thief caught stealing

Isabella POV The crowd erupted.Wesley walked in wearing a charcoal jacket over a white shirt and dark jeans, his black hair slicked neatly away from his face. After everything I'd overheard about fevers, herbs, and treatments, I'd expected him to look exhausted. Instead he looked even better than I remembered.Barbara walked beside him as though she'd been born for nights like this. Her dress hugged her figure without trying too hard, showing off long legs made even longer by impossible heels. Her makeup was flawless. Wesley rested a hand against the small of her back as he guided her through the crowd, steering her around cables and crowded tables without either of them needing to think about it.My chest hurt, but not because of Barbara. She was the least frightening part of this. It hurt because Wesley never looked around.My entire body was screaming mate, yet he walked past my booth as though I didn't exist. I doubted he even knew I was sitting a few feet away.Either Grandma C

Wesley POV Purple lights washed over the hallway walls as a handful of people moved between the restrooms and the dance floor. Staff hurried past carrying buckets of ice. Women laughed on their way to touch up their makeup.I couldn't exactly stand outside the women's restroom waiting. Too many people knew my face. It would only take one person recognizing me for rumors to spread through the pack by morning. The last thing I needed was for someone to start asking why the future Alpha had been lurking outside the ladies' room when his girlfriend was upstairs.I slipped into an alcove near an exit sign where the corridor bent around a cleaning cart and pulled out my phone, pretending to scroll through it.I didn't wait long. Her amber curls caught the overhead light. It was ridiculous how easily I recognized her now.The hallway had mostly cleared, but I stayed where I was, watching her. Halfway down the corridor, she stopped. Her gaze swept the hallway as though she'd sensed something.