"Spill it, Vendetta," Valen said, his voice low and sharp, eyes narrowing as he leaned against the cold stone wall. His patience had worn thin with her games, and he had no time to humor her theatrics. And Vendetta had always been so capable of taking her time when delivering news, savoring the control she held over the conversation.Vendetta turned slowly, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Always so demanding, aren’t you, Valen?" she purred, pacing in a slow circle around him. She liked to draw things out, relishing the tension. "But you see, good information is like a fine wine. You can’t rush it."Valen’s jaw clenched. "I'm not in the mood for games today, Vendetta," he growled, his tone full of warning. "Get to the point, or get out."She stopped in front of him, that sly smile widening across her face. "Very well," she said, her voice dripping with satisfaction. "I got word from a very reliable source." Her eyes sparkled with malicious delight as she continued. "It seems that lit
Vendetta's eyes narrowed as she watched Valen, her patience wearing thin. His mind had clearly drifted, and though his face was stoic, she could sense he wasn’t fully engaged in their conversation. She leaned in closer, her voice low but urgent."How should we attack?" she asked, her sharp gaze cutting into him like a knife. She knew Valen was a strategist. He always had a plan, a perfect one. She needed to know it now, to hear him lay out the steps that would dismantle Dorian once and for all.Valen blinked, snapping back to the present as her words registered. For a moment, he had been lost in thoughts of Lovethe, but Vendetta’s insistent tone forced him to focus. His sharp mind quickly realigned with the conversation, calculating every move like a master chess player eyeing the board. He couldn't let Vendetta catch wind of his distraction; she would pounce on any perceived weakness.Without missing a beat, he leaned back in his chair, his face betraying nothing. "Patience, Vendetta
Dorian couldn’t stay in his chamber forever. The weight of the evening's events pressed down on him like an iron cloak. His room, once a refuge, had begun to suffocate him, the walls creeping closer with every second. He needed air—space—something to calm the storm raging in his head.The flickering memories of the main hall replayed in his mind over and over, but it wasn’t the chaos of the scene that unsettled him. It was her—Irwin. His mate, the one he had always seen as weak, the one he believed would be his downfall, had done something he still couldn’t comprehend. The surge of energy, the way the atmosphere around her shifted, the power she unknowingly wielded—it was as if she was something more, something... beyond his understanding. Something beyond being a hybrid.Who exactly is Irwin? He asked himself as he turned the latch on the door, stepping out into the cool night air. The chill bit at his skin, but it was exactly what he needed. Something sharp to clear his head.He had
Dorian froze. He hadn’t expected to see her, not here, not yet. The garden was dim, the tall hedges casting long shadows under the pale moonlight. “Irwin,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper, the name feeling foreign on his tongue, heavy with the weight of everything he couldn’t say.Irwin stepped closer, her soft footsteps muffled by the thick grass. Her eyes searched his face with an intensity that made his chest tighten. “Why are you shutting me out?” she asked, the hurt in her voice unmistakable. It cut through the stillness of the night, making his heart pound harder in his chest.Dorian tensed. Every instinct told him to retreat, to put as much distance as possible between them. He couldn’t let her get too close, not after tonight, not after how he had felt something different in her. He forced himself to stay still, to resist the pull of the bond that thrummed faintly between them, and instead, he hardened his expression. “Stop asking me so many questions.”But Irwin was
Irwin’s frustration boiled over like a rising tide that she could no longer hold back. Her chest tightened with the weight of unspoken words, emotions she had swallowed for far too long. “ Okay, If you don’t want this bond,” she said, her voice trembling with barely restrained anger, “then maybe you should reject it. Reject me.”Dorian’s eyes widened in shock. The suddenness of her words hit him like a physical blow, and for a moment, he was speechless. Reject her? He had thought about it—entertained the idea when the bond felt like chains wrapping tighter around his chest. But to hear it come from Irwin’s lips, it felt too real, too permanent.“Do you even know what you’re saying?” he asked, his voice low, the words laced with a tension that mirrored the storm brewing inside him. “The repercussions?”Irwin didn’t flinch, her gaze steady even though her hands shook. “Well, I don’t care about the council,” she shot back, her voice gaining strength with each word. “This bond is suffoca
Dorian’s heart ached at her words, an ache that felt deeper than he expected. Stepping back, he tried to keep his emotions in check, his jaw tightening as he tried to process what Irwin had said before. “Oh, you think I wanted this bond?” he asked bitterly, the strain in his voice revealing more than he intended. “You think I’m not suffering too?”Irwin’s eyes flashed with hurt, her lips trembling slightly before she spoke again. “Maybe it’s because I’m a hybrid. Maybe that’s why you didn’t want the bond.” Her voice cracked at the last word, her vulnerability laid bare.Those words struck Dorian harder than anything he had ever faced in battle. A weak mate? His mind swirled with confusion and guilt. How could she think that of herself? He had always feared the bond would make him vulnerable, but hearing Irwin voice her own insecurities forced him to confront the reality he had been avoiding. The truth was more complex than he could ever explain to her.His internal struggle deepened.
Dorian stood frozen for a moment, his eyes locked on Irwin’s. His hand, for the first time, stretched out toward her, hesitant yet firm. Irwin stared at it, disbelief and confusion washing over her. This was new. Dorian had never reached out to her like this. She had always been the one trying to bridge the gap between them, always waiting for a sign, some signal that he was willing to meet her halfway. But this—this was unexpected.“Dorian... what are you doing?” Irwin asked softly, her voice barely a whisper as if speaking louder would shatter the moment. She didn’t dare to move at first, her heart pounding in her chest. The flowers around them seemed to fade, and all that remained was Dorian’s outstretched hand, the gap between them feeling more like a bridge than a chasm.But Dorian didn’t answer. His jaw tightened as though he was battling something deep inside. His eyes, usually cold and distant, held a flicker of something else—something Irwin couldn’t quite place. His hand rem
The silence between them grew heavier, wrapping around them like a thick, and suffocating blanket. Dorian’s grip on Irwin’s hand tightened, his knuckles whitening from the pressure. His breathing grew ragged, each inhale sharp and controlled as though he was trying to restrain something that threatened to break free. Irwin could feel the tension radiating from him, the way his body tensed, his muscles coiled like a spring ready to snap.Irwin stared at him, her heart pounding in her chest. She didn’t fully understand what was happening, but she could feel the weight of it pressing down on them both. It was as if the air between them had changed, thickened with unspoken words and emotions too raw to express.“Dorian... what’s wrong?” she asked again, her voice soft, almost tentative.But Dorian didn’t answer. His jaw clenched, and his grip on her hand tightened even further, pulling her closer to him. The space between them, which had always felt like an insurmountable distance, was no
"I thought if I pushed you hard enough, you’d leave," Dorian admitted quietly, the truth slipping out as if he hadn’t intended to reveal it. His gaze was distant, fixed on a point somewhere past her, as though looking at her would make it harder to continue. "Maybe you’d reject the bond yourself."His words hung heavily in the room, their meaning sinking into the space between them. Irwin felt a familiar ache stir in her chest, the old hurt of his rejection rising to the surface again. She had known, deep down, that Dorian had been trying to push her away, but hearing him admit it out loud was something else entirely.Irwin raised an eyebrow, masking the swirl of emotions inside her with a calm expression. "Oh....Well, you nearly got your wish."Dorian’s eyes flicked to hers at that, something unreadable passing over his face. He opened his mouth as if to respond, but then seemed to think better of it, his lips pressing into a thin line. The silence stretched on, heavy and uncomfortab
Dorian’s room felt colder as his words hung in the air. His gaze was distant, locked in memories that Irwin had never been part of, a time before they were bound together by fate. The weight of his confession pressed on her chest like a stone, making it hard to breathe."I was scared when I became the leader of the Shadowclaw pack." Dorian’s voice was low, almost as if he were speaking to himself. "I grew up believing I had to be stronger than my father, tougher than any of my ancestors. Failure wasn’t an option."He paused, his eyes flickering toward her for the briefest moment before he looked away again. "None of the she-wolves who pursued me ever caught my interest. Not because they weren’t strong. They were. Many of them were fierce, capable, everything you’d expect from a mate of the Alpha. But I couldn’t choose any of them." Irwin’s hands tightened on the armrests of her chair, her heart thudding in her chest as she listened. She had heard stories about Dorian’s many suitors,
The room was filled with a strange silence as Irwin stepped inside, her footsteps barely making a sound against the thick rug beneath her. The warmth of Dorian's room enveloped her, and she hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do. It was a space so personal, so distinctly his, yet here she was, invited but still feeling like an outsider. Irwin quietly made her way to a chair set against the far side of the room. She sat down, her hands resting in her lap as she watched Dorian, waiting for some indication of what he wanted. There was an air of uncertainty between them, a tension that had yet to unravel, and Irwin couldn’t help but wonder what this night would bring.Dorian, however, didn’t look at her. He moved to the window, gazing out into the darkness beyond, the light from the moon casting soft shadows across his face. For a long moment, he stood there, his back to her, and the silence stretched on.Irwin shifted in her seat, her curiosity piqued. This wasn’t like him, to be
The night was very calm with no sound of the guards or the servants, but the tension in the air was palpable, a delicate balance between what was happening and what neither of them could admit. Irwin’s footsteps slowed as they neared her room. Her body, though physically tired, felt a strange kind of alertness. The mouth of Dorian was still fresh on her mouth, and the weight of Dorian’s touch and traces of kisses on her lips lingering longer than she anticipated.She instinctively veered toward her door, the familiar path pulling her closer to the solitude she was accustomed to. But just as she took a step toward the door, she felt a gentle, almost absent-minded tug on her wrist. It wasn’t forceful, but it was enough to stop her in her tracks.She turned, her eyes landing on Dorian, who hadn’t even realized what he had done. His fingers lingered on her wrist for a heartbeat longer before falling away, but the gesture didn’t go unnoticed. His face was unreadable, his eyes distant yet
The hallway was bathed in the soft glow of the moonlight filtering through the narrow windows, as Irwin's face beamed in smile. The air between them felt thick, charged with something unspoken. Their footsteps, once in perfect rhythm, seemed to slow as the space between them diminished. Each step felt heavier, as if the distance that had once stretched far and wide between them was shrinking with every passing second.Dorian’s presence beside her was more noticeable than ever before. The tension in the air was not the kind that signaled a fight, but rather something more intimate, something that both of them had been avoiding for too long. His movements, usually so precise and controlled, felt almost hesitant, as if he wasn’t sure of what to do next. Without thinking, Dorian’s hand lightly brushed against Irwin’s shoulder, the contact so subtle that it could have been mistaken for an accident. But to Irwin, it wasn’t. The warmth of his touch spread through her like wildfire, stopping
The hallway stretched long before them, illuminated by the soft flicker of torchlight that danced along the stone walls. Their footsteps echoed in unison, the rhythmic sounds filling the otherwise quiet space as they moved side by side. Irwin glanced at Dorian from the corner of her eye, the tension between them for once muted. The silence that hung in the air was not strained, but peaceful—something that felt rare, almost fragile.As they walked, Irwin found herself lost in thought. She couldn’t remember the last time they had shared a moment like this, one without sharp words or cold glares. The memory of their recent fights seemed to linger at the edges of her mind, uninvited but ever-present. Each argument had left invisible scars, and each harsh exchange had added to the growing wall between them. It had become a pattern, one she had learned to expect from their strained bond. And yet tonight, there was something different.The softness in Dorian’s expression, the subtle way he w
When Dorian pulled away from the kiss, his eyes lingered on Irwin's, as though he were searching for something—reassurance, understanding, perhaps even a reflection of his own tumultuous emotions. His fingers, rough from battles and hardened by years of holding back, softened as they traced the curve of her lips. It was as though he couldn’t fully believe what had just happened, and neither could Irwin. Her heart raced, pounding against her ribs with a wild intensity that she had never felt before. Dorian had always been so distant, locked away behind walls of ice, but now, something inside him had melted. Something had shifted between them, and it was undeniable. Irwin stared up at him, still trying to process the moment. The tenderness of the kiss lingered, but it wasn’t just the kiss that had shaken her—it was the way Dorian had allowed himself to be vulnerable. It was the way he had let down his guard, even for just a brief moment. Without a word, Dorian moved. He took her by t
Dorian’s hand slid gently from her hair, tracing the side of her face with a tenderness that Irwin had never experienced from him before. His fingers moved delicately, brushing her cheek as though he were afraid she might disappear at any moment. The touch sent a shiver down her spine, but she chuckled softly, trying to ease the tension that hung between them, thick and heavy.“You’re beautiful,” Dorian said suddenly, his voice low but filled with conviction.The words hit her like a wave, knocking the air from her lungs. She had never expected to hear that from him—not from Dorian, who had always kept her at arm’s length. Her heart began to race, her breath catching in her throat as she stared up at him, stunned into silence. The sincerity in his eyes was undeniable, but it was so out of character, so unlike the guarded man she had come to know.Irwin blinked, trying to process the weight of what he had just said. All this time, she had believed Dorian saw her as a burden, someone he
Irwin’s gaze never wavered from Dorian’s face, her mind racing with questions she dared not voice. The weight of his silence pressed down on her, making the air between them feel thick and heavy. His hand, still nestled in her hair, moved with a gentleness that seemed almost foreign to the man she knew. It wasn’t the touch of a warrior or an Alpha; it was the touch of someone vulnerable, someone struggling with emotions he had long tried to bury.“Dorian,” Irwin whispered, her voice barely above a breath, “what’s bothering you?”Her question lingered in the air, unanswered, as Dorian’s eyes met hers. For a split second, she thought she saw something—a flicker of pain, regret, something deep and raw. But just as quickly as it appeared, it vanished, replaced by the guarded expression he always wore. His lips parted, as though he was going to respond, but instead, he simply murmured her name.“Irwin...”The way he said her name, the strain in his voice, made her heart tighten in her ches