Finn Carter

The night I found out, I almost fixed it. Almost. My assignment had been changed to Everglades Academy. Two thousand miles south. Swamp territory. Three omegas died there last year. I'd asked Kael to file my school preference. Silver Peak Academy. Together. The way we'd planned since we were twelve, lying in the snow making promises to the stars. Now the screen said Everglades. I called him immediately. He picked up on the second ring, relaxed as always. "Hey." "My assignment," I said. "It says Everglades." "Oh." Not guilt. Recalibration. "Lil came by while I was filing yours. She wanted to play a prank—switched it to Everglades for a laugh." He laughed. Light. Careless. "Deadline's tomorrow night. Just override it yourself. It takes thirty seconds." "If I hadn't checked—" "But you did check." That patience. "Fen. You always check everything. That's why she knew you'd catch it. It was just a joke." Just a joke. So my future was a punchline. My life, someone else's entertainment. I said nothing. I packed my gear. I left for the transport hub on departure day. Kael found me at the platform. His smile was gone. "I told you to override it. You didn't change it back?" "No."

My brother vanished searching for the truth about our bloodline. Now I'm in the town that swallowed him whole — and the Alpha who runs it knows exactly what I am. He just won't tell me. Kael Blackwood has driven out everyone who asked too many questions. His pack obeys without hesitation. His enemies disappear without trace. And since the moment I arrived, something between us has been pulling tighter — a bond he's fighting, a secret he's keeping, and a full moon two days away that changes everything. My brother left one warning: Don't let them mark you before you know what it means. I'm starting to think the most dangerous thing in Ashveil isn't what they're hiding. It's what I am.

Through the bond that tied my wolf to his, I sent ninety-nine screams for help. The hundredth time, he answered—distant, distracted. "Seraphine, I'm occupied. Stop whining like a needy pup." I lay in an ice crevice, our pup suffocating in my womb, while he hunted beneath the full moon with another. Five days later, I woke in a healing den. Through the wall, I heard my mate—my Alpha—speaking of me like livestock. "Keep her under until Lysandra whelps," Leon growled to the shaman. "If she learns I drained our pup for that she-wolf's marrow, I'll have your tongue. And if you fail me—I'll burn your den to ash." I touched the mating mark burning on my throat and reached for the crystal. My voice didn't tremble. "Harris. Prepare the severance scroll. I want his signature before the moon wanes." The she-wolf who loved her Alpha died in that ravine. The one who clawed out will make him howl.

On the night of our eighth anniversary, I cooked everything Ethan loved. He didn't come home. I sat alone at the table until the food went cold. Then I did what I always did. I opened Selene's profile on the pack network. New post. One hour ago. A photo of Ethan, shirtless, building a fire in her den. Her hand on his shoulder. Her face turned toward the camera with a smile that showed too many teeth. The caption read: Grateful for old friends who drop everything when you need them. Even their marking anniversaries. I stared at it until my eyes burned. Then I liked it. Filed the bond-dissolution request. And started packing the trunk I'd kept ready for months. Ethan didn't believe it when he found out. "She's throwing a fit," I heard he told his packmates. "Give her three days." "I'll crook my finger and she'll come running back." "She always does." What he didn't understand was why I always came back. It was because I loved him. That was gone now.

Five months pregnant, I watched my fated mate’s foster sister pour oil on our sacred threshold and strike the spark. I didn’t reach for the pack-link. Last life, I screamed through our bond. Cassian—my Alpha, the wolf I’d followed since I was six—came for me. Pulled me from the flames while his foster sister burned to charcoal behind us. He said nothing against me, even arranged the best care for my pregnancy. But on the fourth night after our daughter was born, he dragged us to the Blood Moon altar. He stood upon the High Rock, silver fur gleaming in the dark, and gave the order. His enforcers pinned me to the stone. He watched, silent and still, as they lit the pyre beneath our daughter’s body first—then mine. "You let Eira burn," he said, while the flames devoured us. "So you burn with what you loved." When I opened my eyes, I was back on the floor of our burning den.

"Because I should be the only one who looks at you like that," he murmured, his voice dropping low as he steps closer. Miles Carter is notorious around town for being a player. Miles and his best friend, Finn, have always been well-known for their wit, good looks and charming personality. Neither of them ever let a girl get under their skin, until Miles and Finn's twin sister, start seeing each other. After one fateful night of lies, leading to someone's death... Things have never been the same. Finn and Isobel are still recovering from what happened, a year and a half ago. Everything changes, when Miles arrives back in town, with one thing on his mind.

Groupie: a person, especially a young woman, who regularly follows a celebrity in the hope of meeting or getting to know them.See example Tiffany Wendel: Whore. Slut. Cleat Chaser. I’m used to the names so they don’t bother me. So what if I like to have dirty sex? My body is no one’s business but mine.Why is Rowen Flanigan making me re-think how I live my life? He’s only a rookie.rookie: a member of an athletic team in his first full season in that sport.See example Rowen Flanigan:Player. Son of a legend. Rookie.Sure, I’d heard the stories of the groupies. I’ve just been more sheltered than my teammates. I didn’t expect her to be smart. Witty. Kind. She brings me to my knees in every way.So how did I end up falling for a groupie? And how is this going to work when everyone at my job has had a piece of the one thing I haven’t?Contains explicit content and is recommended for readers ages 18+.Groupie is created by M.E. Carter, an eGlobal CreativePublishing Signed Author.

Juked: A slang soccer term meaning: faked out, deceived, confused your opponentSee examples Daniel Zavaro and Quincy Watson:As the rising star in Houston, Daniel has found fame as Captain of his Pro soccer team and the city’s most eligible bachelor. Daniel has everything – except someone special – and that suits him just fine. He doesn’t want, or need, complications.Quincy has baggage, and lots of it. After a tragic accident spins her world on its axis, she finds herself as a single mother, raising a newborn nephew she never knew she had. Between parenthood, her full-time job, and dealing with the suffocating grief of losing her sister, every day is a struggle. When they begin to cross paths often, an unlikely friendship starts to evolve. Feelings change. Lines get crossed. Before they know it-- they’ve been Juked.Contains explicit content and is recommended for readers ages 18+.Juked is created by M.E. Carter, an eGlobal CreativePublishing Signed Author.

de·flected: When an object changes direction after hitting something, or the cause to deviate from an intended purpose. See examples Tiffany and Rowen Flanigan: After surviving the biggest sex scandal to rock major league soccer, the Flanigan’s are finally living the dream. They’re newlyweds, have great friends, and are both making names for themselves in their respective careers. They have goals for their future and big plans on how to make it all happen. But when a new and unexpected development suddenly arises, Tiffany and Rowen realize all those carefully made plans are about to become irrelevant. Things will never be the same when their lives are deflected. Contains explicit content and is recommended for ages 18+. Deflected is created by M.E. Carter, an eGlobal Creative Publishing Signed Author.

Goalie: a player in the goal whose duty is to prevent the ball from entering or crossing itSee Santos and Mariana DeGuajaradoAs goalie of the Texas Mutiny, Santos is damn good at protecting that net. But he never bothered to protect his marriage. Letting the fame and notoriety go to his head, he lost the things he loved the most… his wife and kids. Now he has one shot to make it right before losing at this relationship game and he’s determined not to miss this time.Mariana has been scarred so deeply by Santos’s betrayals, she will carry the wounds forever. After almost ten years of marriage though, she knows him well, and she knows he won’t let go without a fight. Still, she refuses to be a push over. Because love is never enough…Contains explicits scenes and is recommended for ages 18+.Goalie is created by M.E. Carter, an eGlobal CreativePublishing Signed Author.