We walked down many stairs. And although I was tired, adrenaline was pushing me forward.When we got to the bottom, we were right next to the waterfall. The sounds of the Forrest and the water falling were freeing.Andrew undressed and shifted first, revealing a beautiful black wolf that easily stood at 6 feet tall. And although the shifting was a painful process, he did it gracefully.“yummy” Althea said, looking through my eyes.I couldn’t help but giggle at her.“let me out,” she begged whilst I was still undressing.I could still see Andrew’s eyes locked on me, so I gestured for him to turn around.He rolled his eyes, but did as I asked. After I was undressed, I too shifted.When I was completely in my wolf's form, I howled for the first time in my life, not fearing to be spotted or hunted, and it felt sooo good. I could see that Andrew was in shock. Like he couldn’t get his eyes off me.Like I was one of the wonders of the world. I guess my wolf's form was something very few saw
Andrew’s pov:How could I lose control like that?How could I let my urges take over like that?How could I defile her like that?How could I go through with something like that, knowing our time is counted?I wanted her so badly. I wanted to be with her, exploring her. But my mind keeps reminding me of my dishonesty.Of my secret I’m keeping from her.Of how wrong I am.Of how I will have to break her heart.My heart.I looked down at my bulge, getting heavily irritated with my urges and instincts. I ran to the shower, putting the setting on its coldest, hoping it would somehow reverse the effects of my actions.Or maybe even the actions themselves, if I was lucky enough.As I closed my eyes, images of her beautiful body flashed before my eyes, taunting me, punishing me.And although a punishment well deserved, it was torturous.Worse than anything my father ever did to me.“Leave eve, let her die. She’s a lost cause, anyway.” My wolf Shadow said coldly, clearly upset that I didn’t c
Alina’s Pov:I walked around the massive castle, attempting to meet Andrew somewhere in the castle by luck. Hoping that we could maybe talk about what had happened last night.I found my way to a beautiful garden and decided to take a little break. I sat on a chair that was part of a garden set that stood inside the pergola that was situated in the middle of the garden.It was grown over by a granadilla plant. It had some ripe fruit that was calling my name. As soon as I got up onto the chair to pick a beautiful big one that was ripe, a voice distracted me.“We wouldn’t want our dear luna to fall now would we?” a man with medium brown hair and hazel eyes said with a smile.I picked the fruit, proving a point to this stranger, and got off the chair.“That’s something we wouldn’t have to worry about,” I said, smiling softly. I could see the man was quite taller than me with a very muscular built.He had the aura of a high-ranking wolf. Which let me know he was at least a gamma.“I’m Ali
Days have passed since I last saw my mate. Our marking ceremony was just a few days away. And part of me just wanted to run away.“hows does this feel Luna?” the seamstress asked as she tugged and pinned the parts of the dress that needed altering.My wedding dress. It was made of silk and draped around my body, enhancing my curves. Whist the neckline was off the shoulder and a court train of 3 feet. It was beautiful.The seamstress left the room. Leaving me alone with my thoughts. Suddenly, a figure appeared from behind the fitting room curtain.A tear formed in my eye at the happiness and relief I felt. It was Andrew. His eyes lingered on my body. In complete awe. I turned to face him and his name fell from my lips in disbelief.Making his eyes meet mine. They were filled with guilt and pity. I lifted the dress up and walked over to him. I dropped it to the floor again when I was standing right in front of him.“Y-you look beautiful.” he stumbled over his words for the first time. M
I was putting on my wedding shoes, eager to walk down the aisle.“are you sure you want to do this Alina? If you so much as have a second guess about this whole thing, we could run away now.” My mother said dressed in a lilac loose fitting dress sitting opposite me.She was just worried.Worried about my past coming back for me.Worried about my mate being trustworthy.Worried about my safety.I couldn’t blame her. I smiled at her running comment and kneeled in front of her. Holding her hands in an attempt to calm her.“Mom, I’m not having any second guesses this is my mate. I believe the moon goddess knows what she is doing. If we cannot trust in her, then who can we trust in?” I asked.“me you can trust in me,” my mother retorted. “but if this mate of yours makes you happy and you trust him. Then I trust you,” she said, sighing.A tear fell down her cheek, and a whipped it away with my hand.“you’ve grown so much,” she said, making me tear up as well. I whipped them away before they
“I thought you said she was dead,” I said, disappointment evident in my voice. The pieces of the puzzle fell into place now.“I’m sorry.” Andrew said, only making me angry.“sorry for deceiving me with this mark? Sorry for lying to me from the beginning?” I whispered, my voice about to break.“Sorry for obviously only wanting to use me so you could mark this arranged bride of yours! Tell me, do you love her … and don’t you lie to me!” I said louder, turning to him as tears fell from my eyes. Tears of anger and hurt.He tried to wipe it away, but I slapped his hand away before he could.“Its not like that Alina.” he said, shame evident in his tone. Shame that belonged there.“Do you love her?!” I shouted. His eyes glowed as his wolf threatened to take over.“No!” he growled, and the heaviness in my heart became slightly more bearable. Slightly lighter. Part of me was relieved. But part of me knew that only time would tell.“But I need you to heal her,” he said, not even looking me in t
Andrew pov:I watched as my mate broke down in front of me. Begging to be alone. And all I could do was stand still and watch her leave. I could feel her pain. Her heart was already cracking.I hated it.I hated that I did this to her.I hated that I had no other choice.I hated it all.“it’s not too late to let Eve die,” my wolf tried to convince me. I looked back at Eve, her unconscious body laying there almost lifeless.“I can’t shadow. I owe her my life,” I said, sighing. I ruffled my hand through my hair whilst I closed the room door.“so you're ready for it to cost us our mate. You want to just make that call on my behalf? I refuse to lose our mate,” shadow growled in rage.“I’m afraid that inst a decision we can make.” I sighed. Just then, Josh's mind linked to me.“Andrew, we have a problem. Crimson pack has identified a level seven traitor.” He said in a scared tone. Josh was never one to get scarred easily. He was always steady. So his fear had awakened my own.“who?” I aske
Three years later.Andrew’s pov:“so how long is this still going to take?” alpha henry slammed his fist on the table cracking my desk in the middle.“Alpha henry I suggest you calm down. My mate has almost drained every bit of her power to heal your daughter. It has taken its toll on her. I suggest you become more patient as we cannot afford to lose my mate because that would cost you your daughter as well.” I said sternly. Holding his glare with my own.He stormed out of the office past my mate, who was waiting just outside the door.her complection bleak and her under eyes are black. Her hair no longer had the bounce it used to and had become very brittle breaking off the long locks I used to love.She now had thinned out hair that barely reached shoulder length. Her cheeks had become hollow. Whilst her body looked fragile.The sparkle in her eyes when she saw me disappeared after the day we marked each other. The only time she ever came to see me was after a healing session that d
The shadows danced around on the walls and floors as the morning sun came peeping through my window. But my mind was a mess.Sleep had only become a distant memory, each night an endless cycle of torture as I tried to erase the idea and the images of alina being with someone else.Every report I’d received about her was playing on repeat in my head, each word twisting the knife in my chest a little deeper.She had a child.A child that wasn’t mine.Or was it?The not knowing was killing me.I sit at my desk and staring at the rows of aconite vials.My fingers itched to reach for one but instead I clenched my fists,my jaw tightening.Shadow had been quiet these last few days, almost too quiet.I could feel him simmering beneath the surface, his anger a constant buzz in the back of my mind. He hated this… hated me.“So what now you gonna try and kill us again shadow?” I askedNo answer.I grabbed the vial nearest to me, my hand hovering over the syringe.I had been holding him back for
It had been six weeks since Alina left. Six weeks of silence. The halls that were once alive even though quiet now felt dead. Every corner of the pack house felt colder, emptier. She wasn’t even loud or really noticeable when she was here, but her absence was crushing me alive.I missed her. Not how I thought I would or even could. I missed the quiet comfort of her presence, the knowledge that she was near. That no matter how far apart we were emotionally, she was still within reach. Now my nights were long and empty and filled with questions I couldn’t shut up.Where was she now? Was she safe? Was she thinking of me at all?If I could go back would I do things differently? Could I have kept her here happy if I just stopped trying to fix Eve?I was supposed to be an Alpha, a king, the strongest of all. But all I felt was powerless.The meeting room was full of voices, other Alphas talking plans and decisions, but their words were just background noise. My focus was elsewhere,
Two years earlier (Andrews pov):I woke up in a room that looked like a war zone.The wallpaper was hanging in strips, claw marks tearing through the faded design. Furniture , or what was left of it .Was splintered across the floor. It wasn’t broken, it was annihilated. As if someone had tried to erase it from existence.The windows were shattered, the frames bent and useless, holes in the walls like scars from some unspoken battle.The carpet was torn to shreds, great chunks ripped away, and blood was splattered everywhere painting the chaos in bold strokes.The sight hit something deep inside me. Memories I’d buried for years came flooding back, dragging me under like a riptide.I saw my father’s face again.The way it contorted in pain as those feral creatures tore him apart.His hand reached out to me, desperate, pleading for help. And I just stood there. Useless.I was weak then. I hadn’t even shifted.And when I finally did, it was too late I was nothing but a fumbling, fragile
Each breath felt like a struggle, as if grief itself were wrapped around my chest, squeezing tighter and tighter.Pushing me closer to the point where I couldn’t breathe. The sky mirrored my mood. Filled with grey clouds threatening to pour down like the tears in my eyes.Like the moon goddess, herself was mourning right beside me. With me.I stood at the edge of the gravesite, clutching the folded program in trembling hands. The words printed ,Eliana johnson: A beloved mother, friend, and guide, on it blurred through the sheen of unshed tears.Seeing her name there, surrounded by dates that felt far too short, made it all feel disturbingly final.Condolences came in hushed tones, voices muffled like I was underwater.I nodded here and there, managing a faint, mechanical smiles, but it was all I could do to stay standing.My feet felt rooted to the ground, my body unwilling to move, my mind unwilling to accept.And then, I noticed him.Andrew stood quietly beside me, his presence soli
"Your mom passed away, you nearly slept with a guy but stopped yourself multiple times, found out your life’s in danger, and then ran off with a man?And he just so happens to also be your baby daddy? Girl, your life is a whole soap opera,” Alex said, pacing back and forth across the room like she was trying to burn off the secondhand stress.She was my best friend, my ride-or-die, and honestly, the only person I trusted to hear all this madness.“And,” I added quietly, my voice barely above a whisper, “he doesn’t know about the baby daddy thing.”Alex froze mid-step, one foot still in the air, before slowly turning to look at me, her eyes wide as saucers. “Wait—what?” she practically screeched.“And then you stayed up all night with him? And now you’re, what, working on getting into a relationship with him? when are you going to tell him?”She threw her hands up in the air dramatically, like the absurdity of my life was physically too much for her to handle.I wasnt sure on when i wa
Andrew leaned in for another kiss, but I pulled away. I wasn’t sure I’d have the strength to stop myself if we let things spiral again.He let out a deep, possessive growl, his glowing eyes locking on mine, his canines bared in frustration. Shaking his head, he dragged a hand over his face, clearly fighting to rein in his wolf.“Sorry... it’s my wolf,” he said his voice rough and strained.I nodded “It’s fine. I understand.” I paused, meeting his gaze. “As long as you understand this: the road to an ‘us’ isn’t a short one.”His eyes softened, and I could see the weight of my words settling on him. He nodded, a slow and deliberate motion that carried the promise of understanding.I added, “and you need to know, this is the last chance I’ll ever give you, Andrew.” There won’t be another.”“I know, An di wont let it go to waste.” He said slow and steady.“Good. I stood up and walked toward the bed, “This time, keep to your word.”I turned back to take a quick look and saw how my words
I was still trying to process the fact that my mother was gone.Dead.That alone felt impossible to accept. But now I had to wrap my head around something even worse—she hadn’t just died. She’d been murdered.Someone had taken her from me on purpose. The thought was like ice in my veins, too cold, too sharp. Why? Why would anyone do this?“Why would someone kill her?” I whispered. It was the only question I could manage, though it felt pointless because I knew no answer would ever make sense.My head was spinning. Every thought tangled into the next, leaving me drowning in this unbearable mess. On top of everything else, the cruel irony hit me like a slapin the face.The one person I’d despised most in my life was now the only one I could turn to.“Whoever it was has ties to the witches,” he said, his tone low and steady, though his jaw was clenched tight. His expression was distant, like he was putting together a puzzle only he could see.“The rune carved into your mother’s hand—it’s
“What do you mean?” I asked. Feeling consumed by confusion and grief, Like I was stumbling through a drunken haze.“It’s not safe for you here. We need to leave,” Andrew repeated, his frustration evident in his tone“Leave? To where?” I asked. It wasn’t as if we all had the luxury of endless funds to travel wherever we wanted. Not everyone was an Alpha King.“You’re coming home with me,” he said firmly, his tone leaving no room for negotiation.“That isn’t my home—that’s hell. I would rather die than go back there with you. Not again. I was stupid enough once, Andrew. I won’t make the same mistake twice,” I said coldly. I crossed my arms over my chest.Andrew looked at me like I was already gone, as though he was grieving me before I was even dead. Running a hand over his face in exasperation, he began pacing back and forth.I had seen Andrew in many moods and forms, but I had never seen him this panicked. Suddenly, he stopped pacing, turning toward me and gripping my shoulders tight
The drive in Andrews’ limo was quiet and awkward. The tension between us was palpable. It was thicker than the snow on mount Everest.So thick an avalanche was bound to happen.“So you have a son?” He said. I could hear the pain in his voice. Making me remember how I over shared earlier.“yes” I said, not making eye contact looking out the widow as the raindrops start to run down the window. Reminding me of the day we parted.“Is the child mine?” He asked. I could feel his eyes on me waiting in anticipation. The question took me off guard.“No” I said.“Dont flatter yourself. It’s not like you're the only man I’ve ever been with,” I lied. Hoping it sounds like the truth. I looked over my shoulder at him, seeing his fist balled up tightly. I could see a few veins in his neck straining as he tries to keep himself calm.“Can we just stop at 134 acre street I need to pick up my child?” I asked, and he nodded at the driver. The drive there was painfully silent. When the car stopped at the