he walked into our bedroom, looking exhausted. Sitting on the edge of the bed, I pulled her into my arms. "How did you know?"She looked up at me. "Know what?""That Phin would find his mate there? You knew. I could tell."She smiled. "Leila."Of course. Having such a direct line to our Moon Goddess must be so nice. I wondered what she had talked with her about me. I pulled her down onto the bed with me. "He's never been this way with anything before. It's like he flipped a switch.""Yeah, well, it's an alpha thing, I guess. When we find what's ours, it's ours, you know? I was the same way with you. Still am."I nodded. "I may not be an alpha, but I get it, trust me."She sat up beside me as I leaned against the headboard. "We need to start training. Dealing with the Hervoux deltas alone like that made me realize how ill-prepared the Bayou pack is to defend themselves.""You're right. Let's set something up."I arranged a training session at the old Seagull Turnaround. She realized th
PHIN Over the next few days, I did everything I could for Marilee. She had nothing except the clothes she came in, and I wanted to burn those. Cassy helped me find her new clothes, toys, educational materials, and a new bed of her own.I even set up a room for her, even though she slept in my bed every night. I didn't see a moment in the near future where she wouldn't, but I understood she needed her own space.She started calling me Daddy pretty much immediately. I didn't ask her to or suggest it. She just started doing it, and I took it as meaning she felt what I was feeling. That I was her Dad. Because damnit, I was.I left her with Uncle Teddy for the first time and returned to brave the mall again. Cassy walked me through the stores, pointing out things Marilee might need. "She'll need some sturdy clothes for playing," she said, picking a few outfits. "And definitely some books. She will need to catch up on her education fairly quickly."I nodded, feeling overwhelmed. "What a
PHINI could barely breathe. I yelled into the phone, "Viviana! Viviana, are you okay?"There was no response, just the sound of Prissy's heavy breathing and Viviana's muffled sobs. The screen showed nothing but chaos and blurred images. The phone went dead, and silence filled the room.Silence is the loudest fucking thing sometimes.I was paralyzed by the shock and anger as I stared at the blank phone screen. The image and sounds of Viviana being attacked played over and over in my mind. I needed to get her out of there, and I needed to do it now.I rushed around the house to find Cassy. She was in the office, with Teddy sitting at her feet as she worked. He was rubbing them, but seeing him in such a submissive posture was always a little jarring. He always had trouble submitting to my dad, yet it was so natural with her.I was starting to understand. If I had to, I would do anything for Viviana, even submit to her. I'd give her that level of control because I felt safe with her.I'd
CASSY As I sat on the porch, my phone buzzed in my hand. Ky's message appeared on the screen."Greg is a weakling. He'll bow to whatever Prissy wants. The omegas at Hervoux are saying Prissy's is in overdrive torturing Viviana. She knows she will lose her soon and is taking it out on her hard. Real bad."The anger swelled within me. It felt like a fire inside my body that I couldn't contain. The idea of Viviana, already broken and now being tormented further, ignited something primal in my body. Alpha anger was intense. I only thought I'd dealt with it as a kid. The adult 'working Alpha' version could not have been more unpleasant. It almost felt like my blood was starting to boil inside my body. It made sense, though. I needed this level of anger to confront these sorts of issues. Alphas are given this level of power so they can stand firm and maintain control when required. I just wished Greg had the same reaction and at least a little backbone. Instead, a 5-foot-tall French
TEDDY Kael and I had worked together all day, setting up the new patrols and ensuring the guards were stationed to watch over our assets. Especially the boats. He was meticulous, reviewing every detail with a sharp eye that I'd come to appreciate. We both knew we couldn't afford any slip-ups, not with everything that was happening. As we finished up, Kael leaned against one of the trucks, wiping the sweat from his face. "You think Phin's really straightened up?" he asked, the skepticism clear despite everything we'd seen lately.I paused, considering his question. The truth was, I'd been asking myself the same thing. Phin had changed. There was no denying that, but how much and how deep those changes went were still up for debate. "Yeah," I finally said. "If he hadn't, I'd have killed him already."I could tell the answer didn't entirely satisfy him. "I trust Cassy's judgment," he said after a moment. "But it doesn't mean I'm not still pissed at him. After everything he put her th
TEDDY I kept one hand tangled in her hair, pulling her head back as I pressed my chest against hers. She moved against me, her body reacting instinctively. Every movement drove me to push harder and deeper. I needed to feel every inch of her. My actions weren't driven by thought but by something raw and primal.She urged me on with every thrust, leaning into me, her body silently demanding more. I forced her legs further apart, opening her up as I leaned back. I positioned myself to take her with everything I had.I watched closely as her eyes fluttered shut, her lips parting. The intensity of what we were doing consumed her. I tightened my hand in her hair, pulling her head back even further, exposing her neck to me. I leaned down, biting at the soft skin, hard enough to leave marks. I needed to claim every part of her, to make sure she knew she was mine. To make sure everyone else around us knew it as well. Her body tensed beneath me, her nails digging into my back. Each thrust
CASSY The Omega kids huddled around Morna as she guided them through the new phonics system I'd purchased. Their little faces were intent, their eyes moving in rhythm with the sounds she mouthed, their lips barely keeping up. I stood at the door, taking in the scene, its innocence, the small triumphs and struggles etched in their faces as they navigated the world of words. But something was off. Marilee wasn't among them. I couldn't help the eye roll. Marilee had been so eager to learn, so full of energy and curiosity. Where was she?I had a pretty good guess where she'd be. With Phin likely standing over her somewhere. That man was a force of nature, barreling through fatherhood like a runaway train, desperate to protect his little girl from every imaginable and unimaginable threat. I loved him, but damn it, sometimes he overdid it. Marilee needed to be nine. She needed to be with kids her age, learning and growing. Not locked up in a room, sheltered from the world because Ph
TEDDY The door rattled in its frame as Cassy stormed out, leaving me standing there, feeling like the floor had dropped out from under me. I couldn't calm down. How could I? This was Cassy. My Alpha, my mate, and she was the one standing in the way of something that felt as essential as breathing. I paced the room, my mind spinning with the same thought repeatedly. How could she not want this? She was supposed to be the one leading us forward, pushing for the future. Instead, all she seemed interested in was the physical part of being together, not the life that was supposed to come from it. I felt like my chest was being squeezed, tighter and tighter, until I could barely draw a breath. The need for a child, for our child, clawed at me so strongly that I could barely think straight. Why wasn't she feeling it? What was wrong with us? The walls of the house felt like they were closing in on me. I had to get out. I had to move. I opened the door and stepped outside, letting