MasukMikhail
The door to the office opens after a soft knock on the door, and I immediately recognize the scent of my Beta, Alexei. Lifting my head, I look at the blurred figure of his frame.
"Alpha," he says, his tone serious. "We've received an invitation."
"Invitation?" I raise an eyebrow.
It is strange because nobody wants to invite me into their territory because of my reputation.
"Yes, for the Full Moon Ball at Redwood Pack." He places an envelope on my desk and pushes in my direction until it touches my fingertips. "It's from Alpha Gregor."
"What does he want from us this time?" I reach out and run my fingers over the envelope, feeling the embossed seal of the Redwood Pack. Gregor.
Alexei takes a seat in front of my desk before he speaks.
"From what I have gathered, he's inviting all the prominent packs. Probably to form alliances as there has been a rise in rogue attacks."
"Do you plan to attend, Alpha?" Alexei asks.
The idea of mingling with other Alphas doesn't appeal to me, but there is something about the Redwood pack that is intriguing, and even my wolf seems to agree with me.
"Yes," I finally say. "We will attend."
"Very well, I'll make the necessary arrangements." Alexei says, and after a moment, he adds, "Maybe this year you will find your mate."
"I already have Layla, and I don't need anyone else." Shaking my head, I interlock my fingers and place my hands on the table, "She is what I want."
"Mikhail, the true mate bond is irreplaceable." Running his fingers through his hair, he sighs, "No one takes her place in your life. You may feel Layla is good for you, but it is your true mate who has been created for you... she will be the someone who you need."
Alexei is not only my beta but also my friend. We have been together for as long as we can remember. He has been my only friend and someone whom I trust. We have seen so much together in our lives that there are hardly any secrets between us.
"I don't need anyone. I already have everything that I want: my pack, my people, and a she-wolf who will become the Luna of this pack and bear my pups. Soon after the Full Moon Ball, I will make an announcement about accepting Layla as the Luna."
"End of discussion." My voice comes out stern, with no room for further discussion when I feel he is about to say something.
"Very well, Alpha." I sense him bowing before he leaves the room.
I mindlink Layla to come inside my study.
Not even five minutes have passed when she walks inside the room.
"Alpha, what can I do for you?" I hear a smile in her voice. "Isn't it a bit too early to be frisky?" She teases as she settles down in the seat where Alexei has been sitting earlier.
After Alexei, Layla has been the one who has been with me for years. Alexei and Layla are two people who have been with me before I took over the Alpha position. In a way we have formed our own bond, but for some reason Alexei never liked Layla and has just been cordial with her because of me.
Layla is a strong and fertile shewolf in her prime with an Alpha and Beta blood. She is loyal to me and understands my need, and for me she is perfect to be my mate and to bear my offsprings.
My wolf lowly growls even though he agrees with me, but I know a part of him will never accept her because he is tuned to accept his true mate.
That's why I need to complete my mating bond with Layla before my so-called true mate appears before me if she exists. Because once it happens then my wolf will not accept any other shewolf as his mate other than her, and if I reject her before completing the mating bond then he will go insane.
"I am going to Redwood pack for the Full Moon Ball, I will be gone for four days, and in my absence I will leave you in-charge of the pack." Leaning back in my chair, I stare in her direction, even though I can't see properly but if I focus too hard I make out the outlines, "Alexei will be accompanying me so the pack will be your responsiblity."
"Isn't that your Luna's responsibility?" She laughs lightly.
"It is; that's why I am giving it to you." A smirk form on my lips, "After I return from the ball, I will announce you as my Luna and seal the mating bond with you."
"Mikhail." She walks around and sits on knees infront of me and keeps her hands on my knees, "I promise, I will never let you or this pack down. I will be the Luna that this pack deserves and I will be the mate that you want."
"I know that's why I have chose you." I run my hand through her hair, my actions similar to petting an animal, "You are aware of the consequences if you fail me, right?" Harshly grabbing her hair, I yank her head back.
I can feel her nodding her slightly while I smell her fear.
She knows I don't forgive mistakes and even she will not be spare of the consequences if she fails to fulfill her responsiblity.
"Good girl." Releasing my grip, I smooth her hair.
"Prepare the pack for my absence. Ensure everything runs smoothly, and if there are any issues, you know how to reach me."
"Of course, Alpha." Her voice trembles slightly, but she is quick to find her composure.
As she leaves, I feel a sense of satisfaction. My plans are falling into place, and soon, everything will be as it should be.
LucasThe presence hits me sharp enough that my wolf pushes forward without permission. I blink once, slow, trying to steady myself, but the moment I reach deeper into Aurora’s mind, the pull gets stronger. It is not dangerous. It is not a threat. It is something else. Something I did not expect to feel in her.And it explains everything.Her emotions are not just tangled. They are layered. Overlapping. Like two different people are trying to feel through the same heart.No wonder she is overwhelmed. No wonder she keeps spiraling without understanding why. None of her emotions sit still. They tilt one way, then the other, like they belong to two different people who both want control. The confusion in her is not because she is lost. It is because she is feeling too much. Two currents running at once inside the same river, trying to merge but also trying to move in their own directions.One is familiar. It is the Aurora I know.And then there is the other presence.The one that is sti
LucasThere is something I finally understand about Aurora. Something I used to think was adorable, almost playful. The way she can brighten in seconds. The way her mood lifts as if someone flipped a switch inside her. I used to think it was magic. Her magic. But now I see it is a shield. A trick she learned to keep the world from seeing her hurt. She thinks she is hiding her pain, but all she does is show me how much she has carried alone.It breaks something in me. Seeing how easy it is for her to pretend she is fine.“So, what do I have to do?” she asks, voice soft but curious. She shifts into a crisscross position on the grass right in front of me. The breeze moves little strands of her hair, and she tucks them behind her ear like she wants to look presentable for whatever she imagines this process is.“Hold your hands or look into your eyes, you know, to transfer my mind or whatever.”She looks so genuinely excited that I cannot help smiling. It is not fake. I know her face by
LucasThe moment she lashed out, I felt it. Not just the anger in her voice, but something under it. A shift. A pulse in the air around her. A part of her she has kept tucked away, rising to the surface for the first time. When she returned to the pack days ago, her aura had changed a little, like a song missing one familiar chord. I noticed it, but I chose to believe it was because of the attack. Trauma leaves fingerprints on people. I thought it was only that.But today, when she burst, I knew it was something else.Arthur looked stunned. He expected anger. Anyone would. But this level of hurt, this eruption, it caught him off guard. His eyes flicked between us as if he was looking for a reason that made sense. It did not surprise me though. I knew this anger had roots. Deep ones.She has been holding this in for years, and today the weight finally broke.Her doubting my love cut through me in a way I did not expect. The look she gave me, the fear behind it, the quiet plea for reass
AuroraClosing the door behind me feels louder than it should. It is just a door, wood and metal and a handle that sticks on cold mornings, but right now it echoes through my chest like I slammed it on a whole lifetime. I take one step onto the porch, then another. The air outside tastes different, cooler, sharper. I look around like I am expecting the world to shift in some dramatic way, but it looks exactly the same. The same trees. The same quiet. The same sky that refuses to care about whatever is happening inside me.I stand there for a moment, not sure what to do with myself. I do not know where to go. I have no plan. I am angry, yes, furious in a way that feels new and old at the same time, but underneath the anger there is this tiny spark of something I am embarrassed to admit.Excitement.A small, hidden thrill twists through me. Because I did it. I actually had the last word and walked out. The thing I used to imagine doing in my head during every fight I never had the coura
AuroraThe way I have felt drawn to Lucas all this time runs through my mind like a quiet rewind. Not physical, not the easy kind anyone can explain with a look or a touch. It is something deeper, something that has been working in the background of every moment we have shared. I think about the way my chest loosens when he enters a room. The way the tension leaves my shoulders without me even noticing. The way my mind goes strangely quiet around him, like all the constant noise of my thoughts steps back for a second to make room just for him. Trust has always come easier with him, too. Too easy. Like my heart recognized his before my brain ever caught on.Now it makes a strange, perfect sense.Was all of that because I am his mate?Is this the reason why he is with me? Not because he chose me freely, but because something unseen tied us together long before I had a choice in it, long before he probably did either?“You already knew it, didn’t you?” I ask, my eyes locked onto his face
Aurora“Dad, I never knew mom was British.”The words come out of my mouth in an almost curious tone, like I am pointing out a fun fact I just learned, but my forehead wrinkles right after. That is not even what I had ever truly thought. I never thought of her as British or American or anything. I never thought of her much at all because I never had the chance to. She has always been a blur, an idea, a soft outline that never quite fills in.“What?” Dad looks at me, eyebrows lifting as amusement curls at the corners of his mouth. “She wasn’t British.”The way he says it is light, like it is obvious. Like I should have known.“But you said you were her mate,” I reply. The word feels small and simple to me, something that belongs in the same category as friend, partner, best person. “It means you guys were friends.” I can’t help the smile that forms. There is something oddly sweet in thinking about the way he still talks about her. He still calls her his friend. It makes me feel like I







