*** AlphaWatcher's POV AlphaWatcher watched her slip into the side entrance of the hotel. He knew this place well; that entrance bypassed the lobby, leading straight to the elevators. Smart choice. She was cautious, deliberate. He liked that. Ten minutes passed, and then his phone buzzed. He didn’t need to look to know it was the QR code. This was part of the process, moving from the forum to real numbers, a step further into trust. He pocketed the phone, resisting the urge to move too quickly. His wolf was restless, barely contained. Followers were for Eamon, but a mate was for both of them. Even if he hadn’t seen her enter the building, he could have followed her scent. Honeysuckle and fresh-cut lemongrass, it led him straight to her. The elevator ride to the 21st floor was smooth, uninterrupted. No one around. He stepped out, the air in the hallway thick with her scent, filling his lungs. It calmed him and drove him wild at the same time. All his careful planning for the evening
*** Liliana's POVLiliana’s heart raced as she made her way to the door, bumping into a chair on her way. The dull thud momentarily broke her stride, but she barely noticed. Her eyes burned slightly—she couldn’t tell if it was from nerves, anticipation, or the dry air in the room. She paid it no mind. She was on autopilot now, her body moving of its own accord. Each step felt purposeful yet detached, as though someone else were guiding her actions. Eamon had groomed her well, and it was as if a switch had flipped in her mind. No reservations, no second thoughts. She trusted her instincts, and they told her to trust him.Reaching the door, she ignored the peephole, leaving the safety latch in place as she turned the handle. The door creaked open, and there he was—the charmer from the parking lot, with that above-average smile that now seemed so much more. He didn’t just stand there; he filled the space with his presence, his broad shoulders and calm confidence commanding attention witho
*** Third Person POV After seeing the majesty in her eyes, he wanted to confirm what she was, but there would be time for that later. It didn’t matter now, not tonight.Instead, Eaton presses Liliana against the wall, jacking her up high to straddle him in mid-air, slamming his mouth over hers.He let go of her mouth, moving his lips across her cheek and biting down on her ear, making his teeth slide against it as he pulled away. “Eamon,” She yelped his name but there was a husk to the cry that sounded like a plea for more. He pressed his cock hard against her pussy, wishing he could bury himself in her right then, but the denim held him back.He’d planned for tonight and laid the groundwork in his mind. He was ready to build trust over weeks, maybe months. But now, he knew they’d have forever.He didn’t want to wait to claim her. He wrestled with the urge to ask permission, but why bother? She was his mate. The Moon Goddess had decreed it. Rogue or not, the Moon Goddess had the final
*** Liliana's POV I melted back against Eamon, my fingers still laced behind his head. That tension was the only thing keeping me upright. His hand finally let go of my clit, which echoed with tremors as my walls spasmed around his cock. His fingertips glided up my sides, barely touching the skin, sending goosebumps across my flesh and hardening my nipples again. His breath was hot and ragged against the back of my head as his thrusting ceased. For a moment, I forgot where we were. The city skyline stretched out before us, fading into the darkness of the desert beyond. The last bit of sunlight slowly drowned behind the distant mountains. It looked like this moment felt—surreal. His large hands came up around me, caging my shoulders like a living harness. I started to unlink my fingers, thinking of separating us, when I felt his hot breath on my neck. I froze, unable—unwilling—to pull away. He used the vulnerable angle to pull me down harder into his lap, grinding into me again; Eam
*** Liliana's POV “With you, anywhere,” I manage, the words slipping out before I can think, honesty being my only option. I can feel a deep hum in the back of my mind telling me, It will always be our truth. My mind is nearly blank, stripped of everything but the truth at this moment. Somewhere, I’m vaguely aware that my body is trying to turn toward Eamon, but it’s not a conscious effort. Just the thought of moving makes me feel dizzy, like the ground is shifting beneath me. My eyes start to focus, and I realize the ground really has fallen away. Eamon has scooped me up, his strong arms cradling me as he carries me away from the patio. I feel weightless, as if I’m floating through clouds. The sensation is surreal, my body nestled against his as though I belong there. I try to take in my surroundings, but my focus is drawn entirely to him. His face, so close to mine, is the only thing I see. The intensity in his eyes as he looks down at me, like he’s looking for something more fr
*** Third-Person POV Eamon nuzzles Liliana’s neck while she’s still in his arms, and the gesture seems to bring her back to full awareness. He sets her down just outside the reach of the shower heads, holding her hands and guiding her gingerly over to the shower bench.He lifts her hands to the safety bar above her head. “Hold on,” he murmurs, his voice a gentle command. He turns to retrieve some fancy soap and a washcloth. Quickly, he lathers the soap onto his body, washing roughly. Liliana admires his form—strong, lean, the kind of physique built from hard labor, not the gym. Until now, she’s been running on anticipation and adrenaline, but as she takes in his appearance, she realizes she’s truly seeing him for the first time.They haven’t exchanged pictures or discussed aesthetics, only their eyes—eyes being the gateway to the soul, after all. She notices a large scarification pattern winding up his left side and over his shoulder, a maze of swirling designs that remind her of the
*** Eamon POV "Liliana," I whisper forcefully, smacking her cheeks not so lightly to rouse her—no response. I press two fingers against her carotid artery, needing to confirm the pulse I can hear, to feel it for myself.Fuck. Faster than I can think, my teeth tear into my palm, ripping the flesh and causing a gush of blood. I pry her lips open with my thumb and press my open wound into her mouth. "Drink, damn it," I mutter.Unconsciously, I shove my knee between her thighs, applying pressure—probably too much—trying to stem the bleeding. She doesn’t heal on her own. As a wolf, she should, but her body seems unable to tap into that ability."She doesn’t know," Fenri emphasizes in my mind, frustration clear.The erotic cross-breed frenzy we engaged in has turned dangerous, and not in a good way. It shouldn’t have come to this. Maybe she doesn’t know about her wolf, but it’s still there. She should be able to heal.I see her body start to take in the blood, but she still looks out of it—
*** Third Person POV Eamon closes the door gently after the hotel attendant leaves the suite, the quiet click of the latch punctuating the return to their private world. He saunters back into the main living space, his gaze already drawn to Liliana, who has moved the room service over to the coffee table that sits between a sleigh-style sofa and an oversized loveseat. The soft light from the suite’s ambient lamps casts a warm glow over the scene, adding an intimate touch to the moment. Liliana has never been one to enjoy eating out, not because of the food, but because of the company that typically came with the experience. But tonight, the company was excellent. As she considers which seat to take, Eamon makes the decision for her. With a smooth motion, he slips an arm around her waist and pulls her down between his legs on the sofa. Her face flushes red as memories flood back—memories of the last time he was behind her, the way he’d taken control, the way he’d made her feel things
*** Lisa’s POVI waited, watching Drax lean back in his makeshift throne—a beat-up recliner that had seen better days. The room itself reeked of something desperate, something hollow. The kind of place that pretends to be more than it is, much like Drax himself.He was reveling in the aftermath of his climax, a disgusting display as the girl struggled between his legs, her body twitching as she made her final, desperate attempts to free herself. She clawed at his legs, weak punches landing uselessly against his torso. It wasn’t long before her fight drained out, her last breath spent in a stifled scream, her mouth still impaled on his cock. With a final shiver of satisfaction, he shoved her off, her limp body collapsing in a heap next to the other two women he’d discarded like broken toys.I didn’t flinch. I’d seen worse. Done worse.“Drax,” I said coolly, my voice cutting through the murky air. “This will be your last chance to leave before you’re just another body at my feet.”His e
*** Third Person POV“We were asleep for a reason, a good one." Her voice was calm but edged with a severity that made Eamon pause. Skadi stood across the room, her stance rigid, her eyes locked onto his with an intensity that demanded his attention."It would have to be, considering the risk Lil faces shifting at her age." Eamon’s tone was controlled, but beneath it was a thread of concern. He took a seat back on the edge of the bed, watching her closely, his body tense as if preparing for something he couldn’t yet see."The shift is the least of our worries." She tilted her head slightly, her eyes narrowing as if daring him to challenge her.The room felt charged, the air thick with unspoken tension. Skadi's voice was low, her words deliberate, each syllable weighted with meaning."Death isn’t a worry?" His voice held a sharper edge now, frustration creeping in. "Being taken alive is the worry." Her reply was cold, almost dismissive, as she crossed her arms, her eyes darkening.
*** Riona's POV"Will you do it again?" I had asked Dawn, my voice steady but my heart racing."Every time," she had answered without hesitation, her tone as cold as ever."When?""That's not the question you want to ask me," she had replied, her sharp eyes narrowing in that way that always told me she was two steps ahead."Aren’t you tired of burying them?" My voice cracked just slightly."You bury them," she had said, emotionless."Fuck you," I’d spat back, knowing it wouldn't cut as deep as I wanted."Is that all?""Give me the charge," I had demanded, my desperation barely contained."It’s simpler to bury them," she had said with that infuriating calmness."Give. Me. The. Charge."And then, a voice I didn’t recognize had cut through the air. "It’s already done. I hope you survive. I really do."Another night, reliving the same moment. More than four decades later, I’d make the same choice. Every single time. The only thing I’d change? Maybe adding a rune to automatically summon a
*** Eamon's POVLil had left the party hours ago, but still wasn’t home.I regretted not following her, but I couldn’t reconcile that with abandoning the surveillance. It had seemed like the obvious choice at the time—keep my eye on the case, let her do what she needed. But as the night dragged on, regret settled in, gnawing at me like a wound that wouldn't heal.There had been no sense of urgency or danger through the mate bond, so I wasn’t exactly worried. Annoyed? Yes. Worried? Not yet. After all, I had explicitly told her not to leave the house but she’d done the opposite. My frustration grew tenfold knowing she wasn’t answering her phone because she’d left it behind in her apartment. I’d heard the damn thing buzzing when I tried to call.I busied myself with checking in on my team. Kirk had tracked Red to a Sanctum club, the kind of place with a dubious reputation and an even more exclusive clientele. She apparently had VIP access, which only fueled our optimism that tailing her w
*** Kirk's POVThe wave of her climax rippled through me, a surge of heat that coursed from her body to mine, snapping the mate bond into place. I could feel her walls clenching around me, involuntarily stroking me, pulling me deeper into her, beckoning my own release. My body responded instantly, the tension coiling in my core until I growled low in my chest, releasing myself inside her. The pleasure hit me like a storm, my hips jerking into her as my mouth released her neck. I lapped up the blood at the place where I’d marked her, sealing the bond.The taste of her on my tongue sent another shiver through me, but even as I finished, I couldn’t stop. My body still craved her. I was still hard, still thrusting, the need for her not yet sated. I wanted her to ride me forever, to keep this moment suspended in time, right here against the wall, with her body wrapped around mine. The euphoria of my release began to settle into contentment, but something was wrong.She wasn’t moving.Riona
*** Riona’s POV"Mate," he breathed the word into my ear, his voice like a prayer. His mouth descended to my exposed neck, lips brushing softly against my skin. The warmth of his breath sent a shiver down my spine, and then his tongue—slow, deliberate—lapping at the skin where I knew he could mark me. Electricity crackled at the point of contact, a gentle tingle that spread outward like wildfire. Everywhere his lips touched, everywhere our bodies connected, it was like I was waking up—coming alive under him.I could feel my body screaming for him, every nerve ending on fire, the heat between us building to a point I could hardly stand. He smelled it too. I knew he could sense my arousal, smell it in the air. His growl rumbled low in his chest, vibrating against me as he pressed harder into my body. My breathing grew more ragged, more desperate, as my wolf, Skoll, roared in my mind, lust and need crashing over me in waves.I was almost breathless when I mumbled, "If you want me… then
*** Riona’s POVThe club was exactly what I’d needed tonight—an escape, a promise. The kind of place where desires were laid bare, and the shadows offered protection. This wasn’t a dive bar filled with humans and their cheap thrills. No, this was for our kind, for those who could afford the exclusivity. The lights were low, casting a seductive glow over the polished wood and velvet, and the faint scent of the finest perfumes and expensive cigars lingered in the air. Dancers moved on the stage like art, their bodies shimmering beneath the chandeliers that dripped with crystal.I didn’t come here for business, and I definitely didn’t come here to be bothered by him—who I had been sure I’d lost hours ago.Skoll had been restless for weeks, and I’d promised her some action tonight. A little reward for her patience. After all, it wasn’t every night I found time to indulge in what this place offered—namely, anonymous satisfaction. I deserved it. She deserved it. But this? This wasn’t what I
*** Kirk’s POV"We’ve noticed that Miss Ravenshade has had some bad luck recently." Kirk’s voice was low, his words measured as his eyes tracked every subtle movement in Red's body.Red turned to him, a coy smile playing at the edges of her lips. "Has she? I hadn’t noticed." Her expression glinted with a hint of surprise, as if Kirk's line of questioning caught her off guard. This wasn’t where she thought the conversation was headed—it wasn’t why she thought they were following her. Maybe they weren’t dirty cops after all."We don’t like disturbances Others cause," Kirk continued, his tone carrying a quiet authority. "Especially when they turn up on the Humans' radar."Her gaze softened slightly, thoughtful. "Well, Miss Ravenshade doesn’t want to be on any radar, thus the increase in ‘disturbances.'"A less perceptive wolf would have missed the subtly in her response , but I understood. The attacks on Ravenshade had been relatiory. She was refusing to play ball with someone. There was
*** Lisa’s POVI waited, watching Drax lean back in his makeshift throne—a beat-up recliner that had seen better days. The room itself reeked of something desperate, something hollow. The kind of place that pretends to be more than it is, much like Drax himself.He was reveling in the aftermath of his climax, a disgusting display as the girl struggled between his legs, her body twitching as she made her final, desperate attempts to free herself. She clawed at his legs, weak punches landing uselessly against his torso. It wasn’t long before her fight drained out, her last breath spent in a stifled scream, her mouth still impaled on his cock. With a final shiver of satisfaction, he shoved her off, her limp body collapsing in a heap next to the other two women he’d discarded like broken toys.I didn’t flinch. I’d seen worse. Done worse.“Drax,” I said coolly, my voice cutting through the murky air. “This will be your last chance to leave before you’re just another body at my feet.”His ey