Lily POVI was bursting with warmth, love and food after breakfast, so I retreated to my room to rest.I sat by the window, gazing at the beautiful scenery created by the sun. Everything was going so smoothly that I was beginning to feel that I was in an alternate universe. I was grateful for the kindness I’d been shown but a part of me couldn’t help but wonder when the other shoe would drop.I was worried that one day, this love would be taken away from me just like every other good thing that has ever happened to me. But still, I loved it here. A soft knock on the door pulled me from my thoughts. Thinking it was Celeste I rushed to the door and threw it open only to be met with a sight that left me momentarily speechless.Standing in the hallways was a small army of people, each carrying bags and boxes from what appeared to be high-end clothing stores and accessories combined. They smiled at me expectantly as they pushed past me with their load, as if this was the most normal thing
Lily POVLocating the Bureau of Pack affair wasn’t hard.Celeste had followed me through the winding corridors of the pack Public Affairs Headquarters. My heart was fluttering with a mixture of excitement and nervousness. She had led me to the door labelled ‘Registration Office,’.“This is where you’ll become an official member of our pack,” she explained with a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, it’s a simple process,”.But just as she was about to escort me inside, she paused as her eyes turned black – an indication that someone was mind-linking her. When she came about, she gave me an apologetic smile.“I’m sorry, I have to leave now. Something urgent that requires my attention just came up, and so I was asked to come to check it out. But I promise I’ll come back for you,”.As she was talking, she was already at the elevator giving me no type to comment or ask questions. After she left, I took a deep breath and pushed open the ‘Registration Office’ door and stepped inside. The office
Kai POVI pushed open the door to my office, my mind still reeling from the mind-link I got a few minutes ago that my mom was waiting for me in my office. Her visits weren’t exactly pleasant.We always ended it in a quarrel or fight… I wonder what she wanted today.I saw her perched on my leather couch, flipping through a fashion magazine with a cup of tea on the table. She looked up and closed the magazine when she saw me looming at the doorway.“Mother,” I said, feigning surprise. “I didn’t expect to see you here. You didn’t tell me you were coming. If you needed me to do something for you, you could have informed me and I would have come to you,”.“Enough of your rhetoric son,” she scoffed, raising an elegant eyebrow at me. “You’ve been avoiding me for the past three days, haven’t you? Your sister moved out of the house, all in the pretence of practising that useless skill of hers and here you are bunking in your office because of what? I didn’t carry you and your sister in my stom
Lily POVI decided to take a stroll after staying at home all day doing nothing.I found myself wandering through the pack, my mind a tangle of conflicting emotions. The events of the past few days had left me feeling empty, drifting in a sea of uncertainty and I found myself missing home.Missing waking up every morning and being on my father’s and sister's beck and call, missing the few friends I had in the pack and also Lucius. Despite the kindness I’d been shown by Kai’s pack, I couldn’t shake the lingering feelings of loss and loneliness that clung to me like a second skin.My thoughts drifted again to Lucius, who was the only person who had shown me genuine care and affection in the past years. Despite it turning sour in the end, I still believed that during those years we were together, there was a part of Lucas that sincerely loved me and maybe he still loved me.The memory of the warning from him before I left still gnawed at me. Had he known something about my father’s and s
Lily POVThe eagle circled overhead; its piercing gaze fixed on the retreating soldiers.I stood frozen, my heart pounding in my chest as I watched them disappear back into the forest. Then the eagle landed gracefully beside me, its feathers ruffling in the wind.“Thank you,” I whispered, knowing who it was.Suddenly, a sleek car pulled up beside me, its engine purring softly. As soon as the car stopped, the eagle made a funny noise and flew into the sky. Celeste leaned out of the window and shouted ‘thank you’ before she leaned across the passenger seat, pushing the door open.“Get in!” she called out with a smile “There’s somewhere we need to go to urgently,”.I didn’t need to be told twice, I slid into the passenger seat, the leather cool against my skin. I let out a long, shaky breath as Celeste pulled away from the curb.“Thank you,” I whispered softly, my heart still racing from the encounter with the soldiers. “I don’t know what I would have done, what would have happened, if y
Lily POVThe evening air was thick with the scent of motor oil and fresh paint when we pulled up in front of the automotive repair shop.I turned to Celeste, surprised. “What are we doing here? Does your car have any problem? I didn’t notice anything,”.“Yeah, I know that!” Celeste giggled reaching for my hand “Come on, the longer we wait, the more you die of curiosity. Let me put you out of your misery,”.Together we went inside. Once inside, the first thing that caught my eye was my car. I blinked in surprise as my eyes widened with delight when I spotted it, gleaming under the fluorescent light of the garage. The once-dull paint job had been transformed into something else.All the dents and squeezing and crashes that had happened with it a couple of days ago were nowhere to be found. The car looked brand new. I started walking briskly towards the car when suddenly the repair shop door swung open and a man who could have easily graced the cover of a fitness magazine stepped out.Ta
Lily POVThe woman was tall and willowy easily fitting with Kai like they were two peas in a pod.Her cascading dark hair and legs that seemed to go on forever moved with the grace of a runway model. Her dress, a slinky red mini-gown with a fur coat covering her delicate shoulders left little to the imagination – it clung to every one of her curves.I felt as if all the air had been sucked out of my lungs. It was a strange feeling that I couldn’t understand, couldn’t even name. I knew Kia was out of my league – had always known it from the first day, really – but seeing him with this goddess of a woman drove the point home with the most brutal clarity I’ve ever had.Celeste, noticing my sudden silence, followed my gaze. “Oh, shit,” she muttered, quickly pulling the car over to the side of the road.“Lily? Hey, are you okay?” Celeste's voice seemed to come from far away as I struggled to tear my eyes away from the scene unfolding before me.I watched as Kai opened the door of the car f
Kai POV“Had a great time?”That was the first thing Liam said to me once we mind-linked after I came back home.I was holding a glass of whiskey in my hand and in my annoyance, I might have held it a bit too tightly. I stared at the shattered glass in my hand, the sharp edges biting into my skin, but the pain barely registered. The sting of betrayal, the irritation at Liam’s flippant question – I clenched my fist tighter around the shards, letting them cut deeper as if the physical pain could somehow drown out the storm inside me.“Fuck off, Liam,” I snapped “If you have nothing useful to say to me tonight, please end the mind-link, I don’t want to talk to you,”.There was a pause on the other end of the mind-link, I could feel Liam’s hesitation before he finally spoke, breaking the silence.“I didn’t mean to piss you off, Kai,” Liam said carefully, his tone placating. “I’m so sorry about your mother finding out about your schedule too. She broke into my office and saw it herself. I’
Kai POVI paced my study room, a caged animal trapped in my own anxiety. Five days. Lily had been missing for five days, and every moment without her felt like an eternity. The weight of guilt pressed down on me, making it hard to breathe.The door opened and Celeste entered, her expression telling me everything before she spoke a word."The birds couldn't locate her again," she said, shaking her head. "They've searched every clearing, every road within fifty miles."I slammed my fist against the wall, leaving a dent in the plaster. "They must have missed something.""Kai..." Celeste began, but was interrupted as Liam walked in.My beta's face was grim, exhaustion evident in the dark circles under his eyes. "We've combed all the packs within our region. There's no sign of Lily.""That's impossible," I growled, "She couldn't have just vanished."Five days ago, Lily and I were supposed to meet at the border of our pack territory. We'd planned to find Meredith, the old pack healer who ha
Lily POV"I want to feel something," I corrected him. "I want to know if there's any... chemistry between us before we commit to something so permanent.""You never had a problem wanting me before," he murmured."That was before," I replied softly. "Before everything fell apart."Lucas seemed to consider this, his eyes never leaving mine. "And if I can't arouse you?""Then you give me more time," I said simply. "Time to develop those feelings naturally."He was silent for a long moment, and I feared I'd overplayed my hand. But then he smiled, and there was something almost boyish in his expression—as if I'd presented him with a challenge he couldn't resist."I accept," he said finally. "But no games, Lily. You have to be honest about what you feel.""No games," I agreed, ignoring the bitter irony of the promise. This entire situation was a game, one with my freedom—possibly my life—as the prize.Lucas stood and extended his hand to me. "Shall we begin now?"My heart hammered against m
Lily POVFor a second, I couldn’t breathe. The room felt like it spun beneath me.He said it so casually, like it was the simplest thing in the world. Like he wasn’t talking about changing my life forever, about chaining me to him in a way I couldn’t undo.A mating mark was permanent, sacred—it would bind me to Lucas forever. Not even Kai and I have gotten around to marking each other and now Lucas wanted to mark me... No other wolf would touch me once I carried his mark. I would be his ultimate claim.I struggled to keep the horror from showing on my face. "You… you want to mark me?" I echoed, hoping the tremor in my voice would be interpreted as excitement rather than revulsion."Yes," he said, his fingers trailing down my neck to the spot where shoulder meets collarbone—the traditional place for a mating bite. "You'd be mine, Lily. Completely and totally mine."“I wanted to do it back then but you haven’t gotten your wolf then and the whole thing that followed afterwards. But now
Lily POVAfter I heard the definitive click of the door’s lock, I immediately got to work. I tore at the tape covering my mouth, wincing as it pulled at my skin. Finally, I managed to peel it off, gasping for air.My mind raced as I tried to make sense of everything. Lucas hadn't taken me to Golden Moon as he'd said. We were somewhere isolated, somewhere no one would think to look. The packs were territorial—they rarely ventured far from their lands. If we were truly in neutral territory, as Lucas suggested, my chances of being found decreased dramatically.I got up from the bed and rushed to the window, pulling back the thin curtain. Nothing but darkness greeted me, along with the occasional headlights of a passing car. The house appeared to be on some highway, surrounded by nothing but trees. No landmarks I recognized, no signs indicating where we might be.Letting the curtain fall back into place, I sank down onto the edge of the bed. I needed to be smart about this. Lucas had mad
Lily POVA few hours later, he returned. I had showered and rested at least. As soon as I heard the key rattle in its lock, I sprang into a sitting position, I couldn’t give him the notion that I was enjoying my stay. When he finally entered the bedroom, he paused at the doorway as his eyes roamed the room before finally landing on my face. “You’re dressed?” he asked stepping inside but still leaving the door open. “As you can see,” I muttered, rising to my feet and smoothening the yellow dress I had seen in the wardrobe. “What now?”“C’mon, Lily,” he tried to reach for me but I took a step backwards. “You don’t have to be mean to me. I’ve tried to give you everything you want and need. The least you could do is appreciate me. Is it too much to ask for?”“You’ve done nothing that needs my appreciation, Lucas,” I said squarely. “What next? Please tell me.”He wanted to say something but decided against it. “Dinner. I guess you’re hungry. You didn’t touch the meal I placed in the bas
Lily POVI don’t know how long it took. I’d lost track of time completely. I didn’t know how long I had stayed and there was practically nothing I could do. At least he was kind enough not to seal my mouth before leaving, but there was no light. I had to rely on my senses. I was thirsty and hungry but I couldn’t trust the food he had placed in the room. I didn’t want to die yet. Just when I thought he would not show up, the door cracked open and he peered in. “Hello…hello…” he sounded happy."You're insane! A complete psychopath! When I get out of here—and I will get out—you're going to regret ever laying a finger on me!" I hurled every insult I could think of at him, my voice growing hoarse from the effort. "My pack will hunt you down like the rabid dog you are!"Lucas just stood there – he didn’t even flinch - watching me, that infuriating grin never leaving his face. His arms were crossed over his chest, his eyes with amusement as if my outrage was nothing more than a child's t
Lily POV"There would have been!" he snapped, his composure cracking for a moment. "We were perfect together. The strongest she-wolf in Golden Moon and its Alpha. It was meant to be."I stared at him, truly seeing the madness that lurked behind those blue eyes. "Lucas, listen to yourself. This isn't you. The Lucas I knew would never do something like this.”His expression softened slightly, and for a moment, I thought I might be getting through to him. Then he smiled, and that glimmer of hope vanished."The Lucas you knew was weak," he said. "He thought he could win you back through, respect and patience." He shook his head. "But you've shown me that doesn't work with you. You need a stronger hand.""This is insane," I said, trying a different approach. "People know where I am. Kai is expecting me at the eastern border. When I don't show up—"Lucas laughed again, the sound making my skin crawl. "Oh, I don't think he'll be looking for you anytime soon."The way he said it sent a fresh
Lily POVPain. That was the first sensation that greeted me as consciousness slowly crept back. A dull, throbbing ache that seemed to wrap around my entire body like a vice. My limbs were stiff, heavy, like they weren’t mine. I tried to move, but a sharp ache lanced through my wrists and ankles.I groaned softly, my head pounding. Darkness surrounded me, thick and suffocating, making it impossible to tell where I was.Where was I? What happened? My eyelids fluttered, struggling against their own weight as I fought to open them. Darkness enveloped me, so complete that for a terrifying moment, I wondered if I'd gone blind. The air was musty and stale, with an underlying scent of damp earth and decay.Had I met Kai yet? Was I at the eastern outskirts of the pack territory? My mind felt foggy, thoughts slipping through my grasp like water through fingers.I tried to sit up, but my body wouldn't cooperate. That's when I realized—my hands wouldn't move independently. They were bound togeth
Lily POVI paused for a minute, trying to school my expression. I didn’t want to worsen the situation than it was already. I hesitated before I showed her the message. "He can't make it here. Wants me to take a cab instead."Celeste threw her hands up. “Unbelievable! He just expects you to—” She groaned. “You are too nice to him.”I laughed. “Or maybe I just understand him.”Celeste rolled her eyes so hard I thought they might get stuck in the back of her head. "Typical Kai. Always expecting everyone to accommodate his plans.""He's going through a lot right now," I said, defending him automatically."And you're not?" She gave me one last exasperated look but she didn’t argue further. Instead, she stood up from the bed and helped me zip up my backpack. "Just... be careful, okay? Not just with whatever you might discover, but with your heart."I pulled her into a hug, touched by her concern despite her prickly exterior. "I will. I promise."Together, we headed downstairs. The afternoo