MikhailI have scraf down the food like I have been hungry for ages. But the truth is that I do feel like I have been starving. Once I am done with the breakfast, I carefully stand and put the tray on the table near the door. I am already feeling much better than I have woken up, so instead of going back to bed, I decided to check outside and try to find out more about these people.Opening the door, I step outside, and from the large open space in the center of the house, I can see outside where a group of people are busy in training. There are two men looking over the training, and one of them seems more observant than the other. The observant one seems like he is the Alpha of them because of the energy he is giving off.His eyes land on me even before I walk outside. He is measuring each step with a calculative gaze but doesn't make any moves. Once I am near, breaking away from the group, he walks to me after barking some orders to start practicing hand-to-hand combat."I am Jake.
Mikhail Even if I want, I can't tear my gaze away from her... something about her draws me to her. Even my wolf peeks up at her sight, feeling curious. There is something about this girl that's captivating my attention. My heart jumps into my throat as the little girl darts between the two fighting wolves. Instinctively, I reach out, but I freeze as I witness the scene unfolding before my eyes. "Stop!" Her tiny voice rings with authority, and to my amazement, the growling immediately ceases. The wolves lower their heads near her, their fierce eyes softening. She pats them with a squeal of delight. "Look!" she exclaims, her hands gently stroking their fur. Lucas quickly intervenes, scooping her up in his arms. "Let's get away from these stinky wolves and watch the fight," he says, tickling her sides, causing her to giggle and squirm in his arms. As Lucas brings her over to where Jake and I are standing, Jake's stern expression returns. "What did I tell you about running into
MikhailI can notice her eyes are slightly widen in shock; her gaze swirling with different emotions, happiness, fear, and pain. The last emotions makes me frown, but then she again quickly masks her emotions behind a blank look.Her gaze never wavers from my face as she bends down and picks up her daughter. Seeing their faces, I can clearly see a hint of resemblences in them. However, the pull which I am feeling towards this woman is undeniable, and that is concerning because obviously she belongs to someone else.However, when I try to get a whiff of her smell, I catch a very faint smell of something familiar that stirs restlessness inside me."Do we know each other?" I can't stop myself from asking because I am getting agitated with these overwhelming feelings that I am experiencing at this moment.My wolf claws inside me, but I block him because I can't take the risk of letting my wolf out anywhere near them because he has been unstable since Sophia left.Her hold on her daughter
SophiaAll my fears, hurt, pain, and betrayal come rushing back to me the moment I see him standing in front of me. It's like a tidal wave crashing down, threatening to pull me under.I can barely keep my emotions in check, but I have to. For Rose and for myself, I am not going to fall weak. I have built myself from the ashes of my past, and I refuse to surrender to those memories and feelings that are somewhere still deep buried inside my heart.However, even after everything, I can't control the happiness that momentarily surges through me when I realize his gaze no longer has that blank look. I can't believe that his vision has been restored.He always have that purposeful and confident stride, yet when he walks in my direction the confidence he is radiating is something so different.His eyes are holding mine in an invisible lock, and even if I want to, I can't look away.His eyes search mine, confusion etched into his features. I can tell he's struggling to place me, but he can't
SophiaTears of frustration begin to gather in my eyes when Rose refuses to get down for a nap. Although she is not normally a difficult child, there are times when she becomes cranky and stubborn.However, today, when my emotions are already haywire, it is getting difficult not to feel overwhelmed. Grabbing her arm, I stop her from running away when she tries to sprint outside, most probably to her uncles. Because she knows they always give in to her demands. Even though Jake disciplines her, she still has him wrapped around her fingers, and he will eventually fall weak in front of her cries.Holding her shoulders, I force her to look at me so that I can mindlink her.Very early after her birth, I figured that I could mindlink her. However, as she is growing, she has somehow learned to ignore my voice; that's why I have to make sure she is listening to me."Rose!" I scold her through mindlink, "It's nap time.""No." She shakes her head adamantly and begins to cry, "No, nap, mama."C
SophiaI am not surprised to find Jake and Lucas waiting for me in the living room when I step outside after putting Rose down for her nap."Why didn't you tell us that Alpha Mikhail was your mate?" Lucas asks as soon as he sees me.They have never asked me anything about my past, but now I have to tell them, even if it means reliving the humiliation that I am trying so hard to forget."When you left his pack, had he known that you were with his pup?" Jake asks after giving Lucas a warning glare.I know they must have been discussing how to talk to me so that they don't hurt me or my feelings. I take a deep breath, steadying myself for the difficult conversation ahead. Jake, Caleb, and Lucas have always been my support, my chosen family, and they deserve to know the truth.Gesturing to the couch, I silent ask them to sit down while I am trying to buy time to figure from where I should I start.They follow my lead, their eyes fixed on me, waiting for answers but at the same time they
Mikhail I had to leave from there before my wolf did something crazy. The truth is that since Sophia left us, my wolf has turned unstable. Once he takes over, I have no control over it. It is his way of punishing me for letting her go. I can't blame him; what I am feeling is nothing compared to his loss. His pain is ten times more than mine because he has accepted her as his mate the moment we found her. He knew what I failed to realize at that moment. He was not an idiot like me, not to realize that she was all I needed and wanted. The bond I so carelessly discarded still pulls at me, a constant reminder of my foolishness. Returning to my room at the BlueLagoon pack, I try to calm the raging storm within me. My wolf paces, restless and angry. His growls echo in my mind, relentless and restless for some reason that I fail to understand. He doesn't communicate with me; all he does is growl. I try to find the reason, but whenever I do, it feels like he might take over... som
MikhailI can still clearly remember the intoxicating smell of my mate, the soft, tender touch of her hands, and her voice, which was more peaceful than the sound of calming waves at night.At the same time, the intensity of her hate and the pain of betrayal in her voice when she found the truth still haunts me every time I close my eyes.How could I ruin someone so pure and so precious?Maybe my physical blindness wasn't my real curse, but my inability to see what was right in front of me. My arrogance and stubbornness blinded me to the truth that Sophia was my perfect match, the one who could complete me."I have hurt her in the worst way possible. I betrayed her trust and crushed her heart with my own hands because of my arrogance and selfishness. It was not the hunters that took her away from me, but it was me who made her leave me... But look, even while hating me, she gave me everything." A bitter, rueful smile curves my lips as I turn to face Russo, "She freed me from the curse
AnastasiaThe second Jake’s lips touch mine, something shifts inside me. It is not just a kiss—it is a pull, a force wrapping around my heart and tugging me toward him like I have no choice but to give in. It is overwhelming, like gravity itself has changed, and he is the center of it. The longer he kisses me, the stronger it gets, until I don’t know if I should fight it or let it take me wherever it wants.I have heard and read about kisses before. How they can be full of passion, need, grief, hunger, love. How they can demand or offer, hurt or heal. But nothing could have prepared me for this. This feeling has no name. It is raw, deep, and consuming, wrapping around me like fire and drowning me all at once.I don’t know what to do with it.His lips move against mine, and every part of me feels awake, alive in a way I have never known. It is too much and not enough at the same time. My fingers curl into his shirt, holding onto him without thinking, like I am afraid letting go will br
AnastasiaSophia has let me borrow some of her clothes since we wear the same size. I’m relieved when I go through them and realize her style is pretty close to mine. She picks comfort over everything else, just like I do. No flashy stuff, no weirdly tight outfits that make it hard to breathe... just simple, easy clothes that feel like me.Hurriedly, I tug on the jeans and my hands move fast, my pulse a little too quick, but I ignore it. This isn’t a big deal. I’m just... curious. That’s all.Jake shifting into his wolf shouldn’t be interesting. I’ve seen it before. Plenty of times. And every single time, it meant a fight, blood, and making sure I walked away instead of them. But now? The thought of seeing him shift makes something stir inside me.I tell myself it’s just because I want to see if he’s different. That’s it. Nothing else.Taking a steady breath, I pull open the door and step out, only to freeze when I find him already there, leaning against the opposite wall like he’s be
AnastasiaSteam curls around me, thick and hazy, clinging to my skin like a second layer. The water rushes over my shoulders, hot enough to sting, but I barely notice. My mind is somewhere else.I drag my fingers over my ribs, tracing the faint lines where deep wounds should be. Almost like a day before, they were raw, torn open, pulsing with pain. Now? Nothing but thin, almost invisible marks. If I hadn’t seen the blood, felt the sharp bite of the injury, I’d think I imagined the whole thing.This isn’t normal. No one heals this fast.I press my palm flat against my side, half-expecting some kind of pain to remind me it’s real, that I didn’t just dream it. But there’s nothing. Just smooth skin and a lingering unease curling in my stomach.It is not just physical healing... something inside me also feels different. There’s a strange lightness inside me, like some invisible weight has been lifted off my shoulders. It’s not something I can explain, just this… feeling. Like I had been ca
AnastasiaJake rests his head against mine, his breath warm and steady. For a moment, neither of us move. I tell myself I should push him away, that I should put space between us, but my body betrays me. Instead, I find myself leaning into him, just slightly, just enough to feel the weight of him against me.I don’t know what’s happening, but something about the way he exhales, like he’s carrying something too heavy, tugs at something deep inside me. The distress in him does something to me, something I don’t want to name.Yeah, real good, Anastasia. A few minutes ago, I was ready to kill him, and now I want to comfort him? What the hell is wrong with me?Damn him for making me this confused, emotional mess. I don’t even know if confused-emotioned-person is a real word, but it sure as hell describes exactly what I feel right now.Is he sniffing me?I freeze, my whole body going still as I feel his breath near my neck. My heart stumbles in my chest, unsure whether to speed up or stop co
AnastasiaThe silence stretches, thick and heavy. I stand perfectly still, barely breathing, listening. The feeling of being watched presses against my skin, raising every hair on my arms. My pulse thuds in my ears, but I don’t let it distract me.Whoever... or whatever is out there, they’re good. No obvious movement, no careless sounds. But I know better than to trust the quiet.I let my body relax just enough to lull them into thinking I don’t sense them. My hand stays loose around the knife in my pocket, my feet shifting slightly like I might just turn around and head back inside.A trick. A test.And then—there.A flicker of something just beyond the trees, barely more than a shadow against the darker night. My eyes snap to it, and my instincts scream.I don’t hesitate.I move fast, charging toward the presence with steady, even steps. The crunch of leaves under my feet is the only sound as I close the distance, heart pounding, mind sharp.The air changes. A shift, like the forest
AnastasiaEver since I woke up here, one thought won’t leave me alone.Why hasn’t anyone come looking for me?Thankfully, I lied to Mom and Dad before I left. Told them I was heading to a music festival in the next town and wouldn’t be home for a week or so. They won’t be looking for me. Won’t be worried. Because I couldn’t tell them the truth.I couldn’t tell them I was going on a mission with the other hunters.If I had, Dad might have actually forgiven me for once, but Mom? She would have put two bullets in me before I even got out the door.Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating. But still. Mom would have almost killed me.I know if they knew, they would have found me by now. Hell, they wouldn’t have even let me go missing in the first place.But they don’t know.The people who do know, the ones who should have been looking, the ones who swore to have my back... where the hell are they?This place is the closest set of houses near the woods where we were. If my team realized I was missing,
JakeThe steady rhythm of the axe hitting the log fills the shed, the sound sharp and familiar. I lift the axe again, bringing it down with force, splitting the wood clean in half. The motion is automatic, something I have done a thousand times before, but my mind is nowhere near the task at hand.It is on her.Anastasia.I don’t know when it started, this thing where she takes up space in my head even when I am not trying to think about her. It is frustrating. Distracting. But no matter how many times I tell myself to stop, she is still there. In every damn thought.And my wolf constant nagging to go 'mate' isn't helping me either.I grab another log and place it on the block. My grip tightens around the axe, and I swing again, letting out a slow breath as the wood splits apart. It should be enough to clear my mind, but it isn't.My head is a mess.So many questions, so many pieces that don’t fit. I go over everything again and again, trying to make sense of it, but nothing adds up.
AnastasiaSurreal. That’s the only word that comes close to describing how I feel right now.Maria holds her newborn daughter, her eyes still teary but shining with something soft and overwhelming. Her fingers brush gently over the baby’s tiny cheek, and she looks up at me with so much gratitude that it steals my breath for a second."Thank you," she whispers. "I don’t know what I would’ve done without you."I blink, caught off guard. People around us nod in agreement, offering smiles and murmurs of appreciation. Someone claps me on the shoulder, another woman touches my arm, her grip warm and full of thanks.It’s strange. Not bad—just different.Back home, I’m not unappreciated, not exactly. But when I step up to help, it’s because I’m expected to. There’s no moment like this, no heartfelt thanks, because it’s just what I’m supposed to do. My responsibility. Nothing special. Nothing to be grateful for.But here? Here, they look at me like I did something that matters. Like I made a di
AnastasiaAfter finishing lunch, I decide to step outside the room. Sitting around isn’t going to give me answers. If I’m going to be stuck here, I need to know more about these people.Sophia mentioned the kitchen earlier, saying I could grab something if I needed it. That seems like a good place to start. As I make my way there, I stop in my tracks, my instincts flaring up.A huge man is sneaking up behind Sophia.She doesn’t notice him at all, completely oblivious to the fact that someone is moving toward her with silent, measured steps.Oh, hell no. Not on my watch.Before I even think about it, my body moves. I grab a knife from the sink, keeping my steps light as I approach. But before I can get close enough, he suddenly turns around. His reflexes are fast, but not fast enough to stop me.I drive my foot into his gut, making him stumble back. The moment his balance shifts, I push forward, forcing him to his knees and pressing the knife against his throat."Who are you?" My voice