AUTHOR'S POVThe witch's heart raced as she sprinted and burst into the clearing where Alpha Xavier stood, a primal fear gripped her soul, her words stumbling over the weight of their significance.Behind her, the haunting echoes of the coven's chants faded, drowned out by the urgency of her mission."Alpha Xavier! Athena. She..." The witch faltered, her voice trembling with the weight of unspoken dread.Xavier's eyes narrowed, his posture tense with a primal instinct to protect his mate at all costs. "What? What happened to Athena?" His voice crackled with raw emotion, the air thick with the palpable fear of impending loss.Her voice of reason, interjected, words laced with desperation. "Your pup is giving Athena a hard time. We need to operate... like right now."Xavier's mind raced with the cruel reality of the situation, his thoughts a whirlwind of despair and determination. "But that's not possible. We don't have any doctors with us, and she is in no condition to be moved. It wil
ATHENA'S POV The rain drummed relentlessly against the window pane, each droplet echoing the emptiness within me. I sat perched on the edge of my bed, my gaze fixed on the somber scene outside, where the world seemed to blur into shades of gray under the heavy downpour. It was as if the heavens themselves were mourning alongside me, shedding tears that mirrored the desolation in my heart."Athena?"Oneka's voice pierced through the silence, pulling me back from the abyss of my thoughts. I turned my head slightly, acknowledging her presence without uttering a word. She entered my room with a tenderness that only she possessed, wrapping her arms around me in a sideways embrace."It's time," she whispered, her voice barely audible above the sound of the rain. I felt the weight of her words, the gravity of the moment pressing down on me like an anchor dragging me beneath the surface of an unfathomable sea.Tears traced silent paths down my cheeks, betraying the numbness that had engulfed
ATHENA'S POV“Are you sure you want to do this?” I held Oneka's hand into mine, giving it a gentle squeeze. She had gone through a lot. Suffered a lot. Cameron betrayed each and everyone of us in the worst way. But the impact it left on Oneka, was compared to no one else. The heartbreak, the pain she felt was unlike any other person who was connected to him from the pack. She sighed, her hands shaking ever so slightly that if I wasn't holding them, I would have missed the action. “I'll…” her voice cracked before taking a deep breath. “I'll be fine, Athena. I've known Pi for way longer than I've known Cameron. I think with Cameron, it was just never meant to be. Being with Pi, I think, just comes naturally. It's like I'd never had to try to be myself with him. Looks like I was just in denial or a fool to realize it, when everyone around us literally teased us about being a couple.” She smiled sadly, her eyes holding gratitude for the guy who supported her throughout her life, nonethe
ATHENA'S POV“Is everything ready?” I asked Oneka as I fixed my hair. Honestly, I curse the day I decided to take the matters of planning this whole event myself. Xavier was right, I should have just hired an event planner. “Relax, Athena. You seriously worry too much. Everything is under control.” “I hope so,” I sighed, giving a little twist to the lock of my hair that was framing my forehead before finally giving myself an overview in the mirror. “Here, fix your lipstick a bit.” Oneka handed me the shade I was wearing and I blushed remembering why it needed to be fixed. Of course, Xavier barged in a few minutes ago, as soon as I got my makeup done and kissed the living shit out of me because he said, and I quote ‘You don't expect me to behave when you deprive me of yourself for too long.’ I didn't even take that long to get ready, to be honest. But who can get anything into the thick head of the big bad Alpha. “Are the kids ready?” I sat on the bed to put on my heels. “Yeah. I
ATHENA'S POV“Are you sure about this, Lia?” I asked for the umpteenth time as I stared at my reflection in the mirror. The red thong and matching bra my bestie bought for me to wear on my upcoming Moonday, was not my style at all. I turned to get a better look at my rear. I shifted the phone from one ear to the other, frowning at my appearance. “I look like I belong in a Playboy centerfold,” I declared with a snort as I shook my butt cheeks and watched them eat up the bow that settled at my crack. “I am not wearing this,” I finally stated.Lia heaved an annoyed sigh. “I’m just trying to be your friend, Athena,” she let out, and I already knew what was coming next. Throughout the two years I’d been dating Nate, Lia had been urging me to sleep with him. So we’d been through this conversation more times than I could count. “Nathan is every she-wolf’s dream guy. He’s handsome and wealthy. Plus, he’s from a prominent family, being a beta’s son and all.”Though I’d heard her tired argument
ATHENA'S POVThe night grew colder as I left Nathan's house. The sky opened up and doused the earth with rain as if the heavens felt my misery and were crying with me. Icy drops assaulted my face, but my hot tears still burned my cheeks.A few guards patrolled the area and, out of embarrassment, I stuck to the woods to stay out of sight as I made my way back home. I couldn't wait to get there to burn the stupid skimpy outfit my now ex-best friend gave me. I couldn't believe she’d stab me in the back like this — All while making me feel guilty for not sleeping with Nate, too. Then to turn around and do him behind my back? I felt sick.Thunder sounded, rumbling loudly as the rain worsened. Flashes of lightning lit the path ahead, and the pack house came into view. But as soon as I saw it, an incredible uneasiness washed over me. I paused and hid behind a tree. Then I focused and saw my mother crouched in a defensive position. A burly man with a brown beard stood before her, and she gnas
XAVIER'S POVI lay in a cave surrounded by a dozen beautiful, naked she-wolves. Each had pledged herself to me when I saved them from vampires who had used them as blood whores. The cave used to belong to the vampires, too, but I took it over after exterminating the bloodsuckers. I called it the Wolf’s Den, and it had become the place I went to blow off steam with the she-wolves—something that had been their idea.Initially, I’d refused their offer, happy just to provide them with comfort and protection. But after spending time with them, attachments developed and our sexual relationship began. I cared for each of them, too, but made it clear early on that I didn't want a luna because of circumstances of the heart. They understood and provided me with sex regardless.Though I never slept with just one or two. No, no. It was always a group endeavor. That was their rule—so I couldn't pick favorites. And who was I to complain when so many she-wolves made themselves so readily available?
XAVIER'S POVDawn approached and the faint sunlight cast soft shadows. It looked as though leaves danced serenely across the forest floor as I carried the girl to the cottage. She appeared to be floating on the edge of consciousness as her fingers brushed lightly over my dewy, naked skin. The movement was so gentle that I almost attributed it to the light breeze blowing through the trees.Her eyes opened wide and focused on me intently as I rushed to carry her through the cottage’s door. Her hair fell like waves pulling out to sea as I placed her to rest on Scarlet’s decrepit couch.The mud covering her face had dried and begun crumbling, revealing what appeared to be a beautiful face underneath. Exodus and I watched her closely and noted the sadness in her eyes. She appeared to be young, not quite a child, yet still too young to be an adult. I wondered when I had started seeing people like her as young. I was only twenty-eight for Moon Goddess' sake.Her beautiful silver-gray eyes, l