AQUAMy heart skipped in my chest when I saw River standing on the opposite side of the glass door. He looked very worn out and tired His blonde hair had been shortened to a buzz cut, and a dark stubble had grown on his face. He looked like a mess.I quickly rose from the couch and went towards the window, but a low warning growl stopped me in my tracks. After staring at the black wolf for several minutes, it finally dawned on me the reason why Gunnar had left it with me.He knew that my mate would come for me. “Are you alright, Aqua?” River asked, his voice muffled by the glass door. “I went to your house, but you weren't around. Did you come here on your own free will, or is he holding you hostage?”My heart lurched in my chest when I heard his question. Although I did come here on my own free will, I couldn't leave here either. If I told River the truth, there would be a fight without doubt, and Gunnar would kill him. I had to save him. “He isn't keeping me hostage, River,” I r
AQUAWhen it was finally evening, Gunnar returned to the house. I opened my eyes to feel his arms surround me as his weight dipped into the bed. Instinctively, I pressed my body against his and murmured. “So you're finally here?”Gunnar hummed, tightening his arms around me. In the quiet room, everything felt right being surrounded by his warmth and gentleness. We hadn't had a moment like this since forever, so I couldn't help but bask in the moment. “Why was River here?” he suddenly asked, his voice barely audible. My body tensed as I struggled for the right answer. Although I tried my best to hide my inner turmoil from him, Gunnar still sensed it. He released me and sat upright after a few minutes. “Aqua, is there something you want to tell me?”I mimicked his actions and faced him. “He only came here because he was worried about how I was dealing with the mating heat. He said he came to deliver the drugs to suppress it, but Kianna told him I was here.”Gunnar's expression darkene
AQUAThe following day, I opened my eyes and found myself alone on the bed. Confusion struck my mind for two seconds before the memories of last night's fight came rushing back to my head. Gunnar's harsh declaration about our childless future echoed relentlessly in my mind, his words igniting a burning anger that kept me restless throughout the night.How could he say such hurtful words to me? How could he be so ruthless as to rip my heart without any conscience?A tear slipped down my cheeks as I stared at the ceiling above me. The morning light seeped through the gray curtains and landed on the bed, illuminating the room. I could hear the birds chirping happily on a tree branch close to the window, but it felt like they were trying to remind me of something important.Feeling lonely and depressed, I turned to my side and reached for the second pillow next to me. After a few seconds of indecision, I finally buried my face into the soft pillow and inhaled Gunnar's scent. Although he h
AQUAAfter taking a deep breath, I finally mustered the courage and tried to cross the threshold. When my body felt no resistance after a couple of seconds, I instantly knew I was free. Without wasting any more time, I grabbed my bag and left through the exit, stepping out into the fresh morning air.It felt like an invisible burden had been lifted from my chest, and then I could finally breathe. The forest was still as quiet as usual, but at least I could feel the warmth of the morning sun on my skin. As I thought of it, I suddenly remembered that there was indeed a little guardian that was supposed to stop me from leaving. But there was no one here. After standing for what seemed to be a while, I finally understood the reason I kept having this bittersweet feeling. It wasn't that I had managed to escape from this place, but rather it was Gunnar who finally decided to let me go. What exactly did that mean? Was he trying to tell me that he was tired of me? Or was this his way of ge
AQUAAs I descended down the stairs with slow, graceful steps, I could feel my flowing dress moving behind me. The more I stared at the blue dress, the more grateful I felt toward Kianna for lending me the dress for the night. She said it complemented my blue eyes, and she was right.The soft, flowing navy-blue dress that hugged my waist and cascaded gently down past my knees. The delicate lace on the sleeves added a touch of elegance, while the subtle shimmer of the fabric caught the light with every step I took.When I finally reached the door, I couldn't help but sneak one more look at my appearance at the mirror hanging on the wall. I reached up to tuck a loose strand of hair behind my ear, feeling the gentle sway of the silver earrings that dangle just above my shoulders. Kianna styled my hair into a sleek bun that swept over my forehead before being pinned at the hair jewel placed on my top of my hair. I felt like a princess. My self-admiration was interrupted by the sound of
GUNNARI was on my last document when a sentry came to me and reported that my mate had left my house. He was sent by Bodhi, who had been stationed to keep an eye on her and my daughter, so he could let me know when she left the house.I guess she was now free to do whatever she wanted since the mating heat had finally subsided.But when I remembered our argument, a fresh wave of anger swelled within me. Aqua had no idea just how much thought I had put into the matter, yet she rejected it like it was nothing but a nuisance. Fine. If she didn't want to have a baby with me, then I wasn't going to beg her to have one with me. Suddenly, the door swung open without warning, jolting me from my spiraling thoughts. Realizing I had been gripping my pen so tightly that my knuckles turned white, I let it slip from my grasp and thud softly onto the desk as I turned to face the newcomer.“Hello, Gunnar,” a female voice greeted. It was Hannah standing in front of me with her hands placed in a sub
AQUAThings got pretty awkward when I got into River's car. My true mate hadn't spoken a word since we left my house, and I had no idea exactly what he could have heard from my discussion with Kianna. However, I stole a glance at him, observing the way his hands gripped the steering wheel a little too tightly, his jaw tense.Oh dear moon goddess.I knew I should have thought of a way to break the silence, but I feared that any word I spoke right now would only make things worse. So in the end, I settled for looking outside the windows and admiring the city night lights. Headlights from passing cars flickered against the rearview mirror, and distant sirens echoed through the streets.Just as I was gathering the courage to speak, River broke the silence first, his voice cutting through the tension like a blade. “So why did Kianna look so surprised when I told her that I was your true mate?” he asked, his gaze meeting mine briefly before shifting back to the road. “Do you have a boyfrie
AQUADespite all my pleas to get River to leave his family mansion, he refused to budge one bit. I had never seen him being this stubborn, a common trait among dominant men. River sat in the driver's seat with a grim expression, his arms crossed as he stared at me. “Stop being stubborn, Aqua,” he chided, using the tone of a parent scolding his little cub for being naughty. “There's no chance in hell that I'm going to deny our bond, so just forget it.”My head hurt badly as I struggled to come up with a counterargument—anything to make him see that what he was doing was crazy. But I knew at this point that nothing was going to change his mind, so I didn't bother anymore. Because there was nothing that was going to change my mind either. River's lips pressed into a thin line when he noticed my stubborn stance. “Are you embarrassed to be addressed as my mate? Is that what this is?” he asked. Disbelief and frustration coursed through my chest when I heard his words. “That's not the pr
GUNNARAfter several days spent among the Storm Fire Pack, my men and I finally tracked down the remaining soldiers under Bodhi's command. Whispers about him lingered in the pack, yet no one seemed to know the true story behind his demise. It appeared that River, in an unexpected act of mercy, had allowed the survivors to return to their families, but that hardly mattered to me.He was going to pay for killing my friend.“Is it true that the pack priestess is also gone?” I asked my deputy commander, my voice breaking the uneasy silence. I had overheard a group of women murmuring about it during my visit to the grocery store.At my question, my deputy commander stiffened, a flicker of shock crossing his face before he nodded with a grave expression. I felt my fists clench at my sides, anger and confusion swirling within me. I had left the pack for only two weeks, and already, it felt as if everything had caught fire and turned to ash.“How did she die?” I pressed, the heavy question we
AQUA I woke up to the sound of water running somewhere. My vision blurred for a second, and then I was able to recognize my surroundings. This seemed to be River’s bedroom, a place that I had visited so many times. The room was well-lit but extremely messy, like he hadn't visited the place for a long time. There were clothes spilling out of his closet and some books scattered across the floor, the kind of mess that River would have never tolerated in the past. I tried to flex my aching limbs to adjust my position only to discover they were bound. The biting grip of the rough ropes digging into my flesh hurt enough to bring tears into my eyes. Panic instantly gripped my heart before my mind could even catch up to the situation. How the hell did I even get here? Where was River? Instinct immediately took over as I tried to retract my claws, hoping to free myself from the tight ropes. But these things were sturdier than I had anticipated, almost as if they were made from another
GUNNAR The sun was high in the sky when we finally reached the boundary of the Storm Fire pack. My men were exhausted from the heat, their bodies glistening with sweat after fighting off a pack of hyenas lingering near the territory. I could sense their fatigue through the pack link but chose not to acknowledge it. I wasn't trying to be ruthless; I knew their job wasn't unfinished. As soon as I stepped into the forest that marked our pack territory, I sensed something was wrong. The weapons the patrols were carrying were not the standard gear I had approved for pack security, which likely meant my family was in danger.I held up my hand to warn my men, who were trudging right behind me. The noise instantly faded into silence as tension seeped into the air. We watched the patrols head towards our location as we concealed ourselves behind the trees.Even their uniforms were different, I noticed when my eyes landed on a badge on one of the men's shirts. At this point, I was starting to
AQUAWhen we returned to the pack, Wilder took us straight to the Kincaid mansion, where the elders were already waiting. My stomach twisted as I climbed the stairs, flanked by guards, every step heavier than the last.Their eyes followed me like a shadow, and the fact that I sensed it made me even more nauseous. These were the same familiar faces that had stood in my living room just two weeks ago, offering smiles, congratulations on my engagement, and pledging undying loyalty to the Alpha King. Now, they sat cold and silent, the weight of their betrayal hanging in the air like a storm about to break.They’d all chosen Nathaniel.And that meant Gunnar’s throne…was no longer safe."What, are you surprised that we got the elders on our side?" Wilder released a low chuckle after he noticed my glare. "Don't be, darling. You'd be surprised at how dissatisfied they have been with your mate's way of doing things."At that moment, I was barely restraining myself from punching him in the fac
AQUA After Saint's death, Odin led Fawn and me to the pack boundary, the weight of our grief hanging heavily in the air. We journeyed for an entire day under a dense canopy of trees without taking a single break. Sunlight filtered through the tree, casting a path over me and my stepdaughter.I nearly stumbled over a root but managed to catch myself before I hit the ground. However, the sudden impact jolted Fawn awake, so I mumbled a soft apology before adjusting her to my body. Despite everything, the wolf didn't stop and continued to walk ahead of us. With each step, I could sense the exhaustion radiating from the wolf beside us, his powerful frame still trembling from the ferocity of that intense fight. He must have been devastated about the loss of his brother, yet he continued to push himself to complete the mission given to him. As we moved deeper into the woods, the air grew thick and rich with the scent of damp earth and pine, grounding yet unsettling. The guards had stopped
GUNNARI was several miles away from the Storm Fire pack when I felt it.The pain. The sorrow. The fury.All these feelings struck my heart like a tempest, consuming my senses until I couldn't think anymore. My heart felt so constricted that I couldn't stand anymore, causing me to fall on one knee. When my men saw this, they immediately rushed towards me in concern, but I stopped them with my raised hand. They must have been so shocked they couldn't control their emotions because I felt all their fears crash into my heart.Was it possible they were almost scared to death because of my sudden fall?No, that wasn't it. The general sense of unease spread among the soldiers, making them jittery. I pushed myself to stand, my legs trembling as they bore my weight against the unseen burden pressing down on my heart. Then, a piercing howl sliced through the heavy air, sharp and haunting, reverberating off the trees and sending a chill down my spine. Others might not know where it came from, b
AQUAThe first time I heard about hunter wolves was when I was in the Wind Ridge Pack. They were used to hunt a notorious thief who had broken into Julie's house one summer. The news spread across the pack in less than four hours, mostly because they didn't give us a choice to accept it or not. But if there was one thing I learned back then, it was that those people were ruthless. The kind of people capable of doing anything as long as they captured their prey. Some said they did it because they didn't have any other choice, considering the tight competition in the business. But others said they were psychos, people who enjoyed seeing the pain they inflicted on others. That's why I knew we were in deep shit now. The hunter wolf inhaled, breathing in the cool night air that was faint with our scents. It's the very reason why I had chosen to stay up in the trees, holding that the harsh wind current would mask our scents. But he still catches it nonetheless. “Their scents are still
AQUAOnce I heard the noise from the living room, I pushed Fawn into the kitchen and locked the door. The air was thick with tension, and our ragged breaths broke the eerie silence that enveloped the room. My heart raced as we waited, straining to hear the sounds from the other side of the door. But then, a sharp scream pierced through the air, followed by a series of female cries that sent a fresh wave of panic through me."Shut the fuck up!" Nathaniel barked. When the women's cries were finally reduced to frightened sobs, he muttered some words to the guards before turning to them. "I have no intention to hurt you, but if you don't tell me where Aqua and that little devil spawn are right now, then all of you are going to pay dearly for your silence."Ella remained unfazed by his threat. "But we are telling the truth! No one saw where Her Highness went after she gave us orders to search for her daughter."Nathaniel ignored her and continued to speak to the other ladies, but none of t
AQUAHogan froze midstep when he heard my words. The six-foot, muscular blonde man who had been cooking for Gunnar for over ten years gave me the most sinister look I have ever received. I couldn't help but retreat when I saw him take a menacing step towards me."You're not supposed to be here, Your Highness," he said, cracking his knuckles. "Does anyone know you're here?""I don't need to report to anyone about whereabouts because this is my house," I asserted, my voice sharp and clear. I noticed he had already retracted his claws so I did the same. "What were you doing in the kitchen storage room?"It was the only place we hadn't checked in the house, mostly because Hogan had always been sensitive about letting people in. He would spend the entire day talking about food contamination so I guess all of us were just subconsciously afraid of getting on his bad side.But now, it turned out that he was the traitor we had been looking for."Move aside, Hogan," I ordered. The air in the ro