All Chapters of Forbidden Mate, Fated Sin: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Wren's povMaribel found me still standing in the driveway ten minutes after Kade left. "You are going to catch a cold standing out here," she said, though the sun was warm and there was no wind at all. I followed her in without a word.The kitchen smelled like rosemary and roasted meat. Every surface had been polished twice. Every flower rearranged until Vivian finally approved. Maribel poured me a glass of water I did not ask for and studied my face while I drank it."You look pale," she said."I am fine.""You keep saying that word like it means something."I took the glass anyway. My hands were not quite steady. "Kade wants to talk tonight. After the ceremony."Maribel went still. "Talk about what.""I do not know. He would not say.""Wren. You know what tonight is.""I know.""Then why would he need to talk to you after, unless”"Do not," I said. "Do not say it out loud.""I am not trying to hurt you. You have spent years watching that man look at you like you are the only person

Wren's POVMidnight came slower than any hour had ever come in my life.The hall still buzzed with leftover energy long after the formal part of the night ended, pack members lingering over drinks, retelling the ceremony to each other like they had not all just watched it happen together. I spent the hours after clearing tables, my body moving on its own while my head stayed somewhere else entirely. Vivian barked orders about folding linens the right way. Celeste floated through the crowd taking congratulations like a queen taking tribute, her laugh cutting across the hall every few minutes. Edwin shook hands with council members who lingered long after the food ran out.Priya passed by twice while I worked, each time slower than the last, watching me the way a cat watches something it has not decided whether to bother with yet. The second time she stopped."Enjoying the cleanup," she said. "Fitting, really. You always did belong with the dirty dishes.""I am fine, Priya.""I did not

Wren's povThree weeks passed before the real ceremony date arrived, and every one of them changed me a little more than the last. Odette trained me in secret, evenings mostly, tucked away near her cabin where nobody thought to look. She taught me to sit still with the feeling instead of running from it, the cold pull in my chest that came before something went wrong. Small things first. A cracked cup before it slipped from Maribel's hands. A storm two days before the clouds ever gathered."You are getting stronger," Odette told me one night, watching me flinch at a warning I could not yet name. "Faster than I expected, given how long it was buried.""It does not feel like strength. It feels like something is wrong with me.""That is fear talking, not truth." She patted my hand. "Your family taught you shame instead of pride. We are unteaching that now.""What happens when the ceremony finally comes? When Kade actually claims her?"Odette went quiet for a moment, her eyes far away. "I

Wren's POVElder Thane brought his cane down on the floor a second time. Silence filled the hall so complete that my own pulse was the only sound I heard."Step forward," he ordered. "I will not say it again."At last my legs worked. All the eyes in the room tracked me as I left my spot in the corner and crossed to the stage. That short distance stretched out longer than any walk of my life. Celeste stayed frozen in the place Kade had left her. Her hand still hung in the air from when she had seized his arm. The white and gold dress she wore suddenly looked like clothing for a part she could no longer play."Give me an answer," Thane said. He stared at me the way a man stares at something that just crawled up from the earth."There is no answer needed," Kade spoke before I found words. He came down from the stage and placed himself partly in front of me. "Wren did none of this.""The bond never lies, Alpha. This thing started somewhere." Thanes gaze shifted from him to me. "Did you sh

I reached for the light next to my bed without thinking. I was ready to hit whatever stood outside the high window."Wren. It is me."Kade spoke through the glass. I put the light down fast and pushed the window open. My heart still raced."Are you crazy," I said soft. "You could fall.""I did not fall." He pulled himself inside quiet for how big he is and landed on my floor. "I had to see you before the leaders call you in the morning.""You could use the door like anyone else.""Your parents are up. Vivian would kill me before I got past the kitchen." A tired half smile came and left quick. "This way was easier.""Nothing tonight was easier." I sat on the edge of my bed. He stood so close. "What do you want Kade.""I want to know you are okay." He crouched in front of me. His gray eyes checked my face. "After all that.""I am""Do not say fine." Almost a laugh in his voice. "You always say fine. I know you long enough. It almost never means that."I looked away first. "I do not know