All Chapters of Feral Hearts Book 1: Awakening the Feral: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

When Aaron says my name, it doesn't echo.It settles.Like a stone dropped into still water, ripples move outward through the hall — subtle shifts of posture, quieting laughter, heads angling just slightly in our direction. I rise slowly, refusing to rush. If I'm too nervous, they'll smell it. If I look too submissive, they'll decide what that means.The wooden floor feels too loud beneath my boots as I approach the head table. My pulse beats in my ears, my wolf stirring — restless, prowling along the edges of my skin. Aaron doesn't move until I'm close enough to touch. Then he stands, and the room straightens with him. At his right now sits Isabella — luminous, composed, her emerald green dress catching the warm lanternlight like morning dew sparkling on a grass blade. She watches me with soft eyes and a measured smile. Aaron steps around the table and stops at my side. Not behind me. Not in front. Beside.The statement is intentional."This is Xavier," he says evenly. "He will be st

Ronan moves first.Fast.Cleaner than I expected.He doesn't circle — he lunges.I barely pivot in time, his shoulder slamming into mine instead of my chest—the impact jars through my bones. The pack noise rises instantly — not cheering, not yet — but alert.Testing.Ronan recovers smoothly."Too slow," he mutters.My wolf snaps against my ribs, fighting some unknown wall, wanting to shift and take control but unable to.I reset my stance.He comes again.This time I meet him. Our forearms clash. Dirt sprays beneath our shoes as we strain, muscle against muscle, some splashing across my check and snowy white albino hair. He's strong. Older. Experienced. But I'm not weak. Injured and healing, yes but weak? Fuck no. I twist, break contact, sweep low. He stumbles — not down, but close. A few wolves murmur and I can feel the excitement growing in the surrounding air.Ronan's eyes sharpen. "Better."Then, lower—"But it seems you still need to be carried."The words hit harder than the sho

I don't go back to the main paths. I don't want eyes on me. I don't want whispers. I don't want Elias trying to joke it away or Ronan watching like I'm a ticking bomb.By the time I reach my cabin, the anger has burned down into something worse.nShame. Aaron's words replay in my head like a curse.You embarrassed me.You lost control.You are something I have to control.My hand shakes when I unlock the door. The cabin is small. Quiet. Still holding the faint scent of pine and smoke and the pack. I shut the door harder than I mean to. The wood rattles in its frame. I stand there for a long moment. Breathing.Too fast.Too shallow.The silence presses in on me. And underneath it—nThe hum Louder tonight.Not a murmur.Not distant.Right beneath my skin."You want control?" I mutter to the empty room. "Fine."I strip off my shirt, drop it to the floor. My chest rises and falls sharply."If you're going to wake up, then wake up."The words feel reckless the second I say them. My wolf sti

Aaron sighed again, but this time it came out sounding like I was personally responsible for every bad decision he had ever made."Again."I wiped the back of my hand across my mouth, tasting sweat and a little blood where I had bitten my lip earlier. The training yard smelled like dirt, pine, and the faint metallic tang of old fights. Wolves circled the edges of the field, pretending not to watch.They were definitely watching.Aaron stood a few feet in front of me, arms crossed over his chest, looking infuriatingly composed while I felt like my ribs were trying to file for divorce from the rest of my body."You're dropping your left shoulder," he said."I'm not.""You are.""I'm literally not."His dark eyebrow lifted slowly, the expression sharp and unimpressed in a way that made something in my stomach twist.God, I hated when he did that."Xavier," he said calmly, "if you argue with me every time I correct you, this training will take twice as long.""Maybe your corrections are j

Aaron didn't speak as he led me away from the training yard. His grip on my arm was firm but careful, pulling me toward the cabin Fio had given me like I was both a problem and a responsibility he refused to drop. My ribs throbbed with every step—a constant reminder that I'd pushed too hard.We reached the cabin, the door clicking softly behind us. The sound made the space feel impossibly small. My pulse hammered."Sit," he commanded, low and steady.I slid onto the edge of the bench, grateful for the brief reprieve.Aaron crouched beside me, hands already moving to my shirt. It made me wonder when we'd gotten so comfortable with him stripping my clothes off. "Stay still," he murmured.Soft—but sharp enough that my stomach twisted.I bit my lip as he worked. Pain radiated from my ribs, but it didn't drown out the awareness of him being so close. Every inch of him pressed into my senses—the strength in his shoulders, the scent of sweat and coffee and woods that was uniquely his, the f