Zoe's POVAll I wanted was peace. All I wanted was to be away to clear my mind. Was that too much to ask? Apparently, yes, it was. Because, as I walked away from the crowd, I noticed riders getting ready for the races with their horses. Lo and behold, Xavier Shaw was there, supporting a mouthwatering rider’s outfit, in his Pack colors. His pack’s Blood Crescent sigil was sewn on his shoulder pads and the front of the jacket, with the number 004 sewn on the back in a large black number. I stopped in my tracks and almost stumbled at the sight. He had not noticed me, I think. He had a huge Black stallion by his side, whose saddle was getting checked by another professional. Xavier’s hair was a mess, even before riding, giving him a bad-boy persona as he wore and tightened his gloves. My dirty creative mind immediately drew a scene with him wearing those gloves for me and tightening something around my wrists instead of his. I shook my head as he was about to turn and I turned m
Xavier's POVI won, but at what cost? The moment I had picked her scent Spike had been going insane in my head. For once, I had expected to be free on my horse but no, she had to follow me here too. Was she really following me? Or was I wanting her to? I wanted to focus on the race. I had never lost one. But I felt surprisingly jumpy this time. My second chance mate was in the audience. Spike howled. He wanted us to win, not for the pride of it, but for her. He wanted to put on a show. I had to take special care to keep him in check. And still, I lost control. The moment I saw her watching me from the stands, Spike took over. He did the unthinkable. Blowing her a kiss in front of so many packs. It was a momentary lapse of control that I did not know how to fix. I was unsure if I wanted to. My heart was stuck on Claire. But, my head and Spike, knew Zoe was the one for us. How was supposed to make a decision? I walked back to my magnificent horse after taking a work call from my
Zoe's POVI was rethinking my life choices. What had gotten me into this position? One moment, I was alone with my worries, and now, I was sitting on a horse in front of the one man who had started to haunt my not-so-innocent dreams. He brought his hands around me and held the horse’s reigns, even though it was tied. His face leaned closer to my back as I felt his hot breath send tingles down my spine, “First step, get on it.” He said in a slow voice. “Already here.” I replied, reciprocating the tone. “Good girl.” His words did something. It was an exciting something. I liked it. “Next, you get the feel of the saddle.” He placed a hand on my naked thigh as the short dress had moved scandalously up when I had spread my legs wide to sit on the horse. And that is why you don’t ride horses in dresses. He moved his hips behind me, allowing me to follow the pattern and begin moving my hips too. I heard him swallow behind me. Was riding a horse as easy as this? I was confused, why
Zoe's POVI did not speak the whole way back. My face was too hot, my heart was about to explode from what it had just experienced, and my head was too busy knitting scenarios that I wasn’t sure would ever come true. Maisie had seen me walk away and might’ve thought my mood was John’s fault or all my other troubles. Thankfully she had just hugged me and drove me home with a, “I’m sorry today didn’t turn out the way we had hoped. We’ll talk more whenever you are ready.” She had dropped me home and went back to hers. I had told Aunt Julie to take the day off, there was not much to do in the house with everything else going on. She had taken quite a lot of persuasion to go for a walk and get some fresh air. I had spent the rest of the day researching about all of the rest of the council members to keep my mind off of the horse-riding lesson and to refocus on helping my Dad. I had made tons of notes on which council member was not suited for my Dad’s case and why. Even though they all
Xavier had not been able to get his mate out of his head. The events of the day kept replaying in his head. He wanted her and there was no denying that. It didn’t matter that he was waiting for his first love to return and fall back into his arms. Zoe was his mate and that bond, even without true mating was irresistible. He knew she felt it too. If she didn’t she wouldn’t have joined him on the horseback. Which why, after hours of howling by Spike in his head, Xavier picked up the phone and texted her. Since they were mates, there was no way she could move on or ignore him. The text conversation proved his point. As she confirmed about coming to his place, he got up and showered before stepping into the kitchen. He was going to fuck her. That much was clear for both of them. But that did not mean, he was not going to give her the Alpha treatment. None of his girls had ever been able to go to anyone else, and as proud as he was of himself in bed, he knew a lot of a
Zoe's POV“Didn’t know Alpha Coucilor Shaw is a brand ambassador of all types of candles.” I smirked. I was grateful but didn’t know how to say thank you for the light, without sounding cheezy. “I can’t help myself when there is a damsel in distress.” He shrugged, returning my smirk. “Really? Or maybe you just like to show off your candle-collecting hobby to your house guests.” I commented, trying not to smile at the silliness of it all. “Hmm, that would require a lot of house guests, and I, just got my first in a long time.” He spoke slowly. His voice deepened with each step he took towards me. My body tingled with anticipation. “First in a long time?” I asked in the same low tone. It was like speaking louder would break the bubble that had just formed. Suddenly there was a bright flash of lightning in the sky that lit up the whole room for a few seconds. I knew what was next. It made me immediately close my eyes as tightly as I could and plug my fingers in my ears. Xavier
For a second, his stormy grey eyes turned to his wolf’s yellow, before he took control and launched at me with a renewed passion. One by one all our clothes flew randomly around the room until his naked body finally found mine. He ran his hands hungrily on my skin as my hands found his luscious hair and pulled slightly, making him growl at me. I could feel myself getting wet by his actions and reactions to me. I was getting more and more excited by each minute. The snowstorm long forgotten as the lightning lit up the sky unheeded. His hands lowered down to my folds and teased. My pelvis raised itself, eager for his touch, subconsciously. “So wet. And so eager.” He rubbed his thumb over my clit before slowly entering one finger inside me as his thumb continued stroking my clit. I moaned in his mouth as he kept kissing me while another finger entered me. Suddenly, he broke the kiss and looked up, “You didn’t sleep with John.” It was not a question, but a statement. “I tried t
Zoe's POVI rolled over in my sleep and found the bed empty beside me. It had been a long while since I had slept this well, but thankfully it couldn’t erase how most of the night had gone. The storm was over. I sat up, covering my naked body with the blanket and looking around groggily. Xavier was not in the room, but his shirt was. I decided to shower first. His bathroom was just as glorious as the rest of his house. I picked up the shirt from the back of a chair where he had probably placed it after tossing it around carelessly last night. It was too big for me so I only did one button under my breasts and left the rest of it to hang off of one of my shoulders. It reached my thigh, enough that I didn’t even wear my underwear, excited for his reaction. I folded the sleeves up so I could use my arms. I brushed my wet hair but left it untied, placing it on one side, accentuating my shaved side. ‘I should really get it tattooed,’ I thought to myself. Kicking myself for not bri
It took an hour and a lot of emotional blackmail from Aunt Julie to convince me to let Xavier come to Kansas City. The only reason I agreed was to test if he could keep his word. Nothing more, nothing less.After endless talk about mates, second chances, and the Moon Goddess, Aunt Julie smiled and patted my back. "I'll go tell him you need to talk. Be nice, okay?"I didn’t roll my eyes, though I wanted to. I respected her too much for that. Instead, I shook my head, knowing she had played me perfectly. She always did.If anyone had a right to push me, it was Aunt Julie. She had done more for my family than anyone. More than just a distant cousin of my dad or a housekeeper—she was family. The closest thing I had to a mother."Be nice, Princess." She gave me one last sweet smile before heading inside.I sighed, leaning against the hood of my car and fidgeting with my keychain. My fingers itched for something that wasn’t there—my father’s necklace. The one I had given him in the prison.
Zoe's POVI climbed the stairs, leaving Xavier in the garage. He needed time to calm down. My forgiveness—if it ever came—wouldn’t be immediate. That was his problem, not mine.He wanted to tell me something about Claire, probably to convince me I had nothing to worry about. But I didn’t care about her. I was done caring about him. His past didn’t matter to me anymore.The only thing that mattered was getting to those coordinates. I had no idea what I would find there, but it was my only lead. My mother left me that clue for a reason. I wouldn’t ignore it. A decade had passed. Anything could have changed. But I needed answers.I rushed through the house, grabbing only the essentials. Clothes, water, a flashlight, a knife. I packed quickly, like I had done this before. Because I had. Running was second nature now."She’s really doing this," Aunt Julie muttered from the kitchen doorway.I ignored her. Nothing to say.Xavier, however, had other plans. By the time I reached the garage, my
Zoe's POVI barely heard Xavier start talking. I knew he had been planning this speech since we got in the car two days ago."Zoe, I won’t pretend to understand your pain. I won’t insult you by saying I do. But I know how many times I’ve let you down." His voice was careful, like he was walking on thin ice."Don’t. Please." I turned away. I had dreamed of this moment so many times—Xavier realizing what a huge mistake he had made. But not like this. Not when I was barely holding myself together."Let me say this. You need to hear it, and I need to say it." He stepped closer, his hands resting lightly on my arms. Not trapping me. Just asking me to stay."Why?" My voice was bitter. My body tensed under his touch. I hated how my senses reacted to him now—too sharp, too raw. "You didn’t care about talking months ago.""Believe me or don’t, but I thought letting you go was the right choice. I wanted you to have a fresh start." Regret thickened his voice, but I didn’t care.I let out a short
Zoe's POV"What are you so happy about?" I asked Aunt Julie whose excitement was confusing me.Instead of answering right away, she gave me a nostalgic look, sat me down on the couch, and took my hands gently, like a mother would."Did your dad ever tell you that you have your mother's eyes?" she asked, her smile soft but sad.She didn’t wait for me to respond—probably because she already knew the answer, "Of course not. He did his best to remove any mention of her from his life. That was his way of dealing with his grief."What about my grief? I wanted to ask but I chose to listen.She was right, no one was allowed to talk about Mom in our house. I was never allowed to ask any questions. Aunt Julie tried her best to fill that hole in my life but for a ten-year-old girl, no one could replace her mother. I barely had any memories of her either. The psychiatrist had told Dad that it was a form of PTSD. I don't remember what the trauma exactly was, but apparently, it was deep enough for
Zoe's POVI ran to my room, grabbing everything from the box. My old laptop barely held together, but I powered it up and searched the coordinates. Then, I rushed outside to my broken car.Xavier and Aunt Julie followed as I yanked open the backseat door."You can't take that. It won’t even start," Xavier commented."It better. The coordinates are a two-day drive away," I muttered, then turned to him. "Key?" I held out my hand."Zoe—""Key. Now."He sighed, pulled the key from his pocket, and placed it in my palm. I grabbed it and turned without a thank you."You can't let her go alone," Aunt Julie protested."I'm not," Xavier assured, arms crossed as I tried to start the car. It didn’t even sputter.I kept turning the key, refusing to admit he was right. The car had been through too much. It wasn’t taking me anywhere.Aunt Julie whispered to Xavier, "How long do we wait?""You can wait inside. She won’t last long," he replied, knowing full well I could hear him."I heard that!" I sna
Zoe's POVI placed the envelope on the coffee table between us, staring at Xavier. "What are these?"His brows furrowed as he leaned forward, confusion flickering across his face. "A letter to you?""The numbers. What do they mean?" I resisted the urge to roll my eyes—or worse, to kiss the perplexed look off his face. He was trying not to upset me. I didn't know why he suddenly cared, but a small part of me was relieved he hadn’t mentioned his so-called chosen mate. Right now, it seemed like he only cared about me. I didn't want to let him in again, but deep down, I wasn’t sure if I had ever truly let him go."Looks like coordinates," he murmured, thinking out loud.I knew it. Snatching the envelope back, my fingers brushed against his, and for a brief moment, we both pretended not to feel anything."I can have the location checked. If you want," Xavier offered softly.I didn’t answer. Dahlia, my beast, was already debating with me.'Say yes,' she urged, practically purring."I won’t.
Xavier's POV"Weren't you informed not to call? The lines can be intercepted!" I whisper-yelled into the phone as soon as I was sure neither Aunt Julie nor Zoe could overhear."This one's fine, Sir. I made sure. And this is urgent." Jacob spoke in a hushed tone like he was afraid."Well?" I said expectantly, urging Jacob to resume."We were found. Some of our men work for your father and call him Alpha. I don't know how they found out." Jacob informed."Did they take Claire?" I asked expecting the worst."No. They tripped off an alarm I had planted around the area and I got a fifteen-minute headstart. I drugged Claire and took her before they could get us. They knew about the underground room." He told."Where are you now?""At the Shaw Safehouse. I cleaned up any evidence of the underground room being in use before we left. They won't know Claire was there." Jacob reassured me and then said, "But the bad news is, the cleanup team at Golden Eclipse didn't do as great of a job.""What d
The next morning, I was up and out of the house just as the dawn broke through the sky.I barely slept. Every time I closed my eyes, the same nightmare burned through my mind. I had waited for my wolf for so long, only to realize I would never transform like the others because I was wolfless.But now, I had a beast. Not a regular wolf, but an animal nonetheless. And I wanted to transform. I needed to know it had actually happened, that I wasn’t imagining it. Focusing on that need kept me distracted from my grief, kept me from falling apart over the loss of my father."Dahlia," I called out, dropping to my knees. I willed my bones to shift, for my skin to be covered in thin gray fur, for my canines to elongate and sharpen. But nothing happened.Dahlia tried to help me, pushing her strength into me, but it was useless. No matter how hard we tried, my body refused to transform.“UGH!” I screamed in frustration.I could talk to her. That was proof enough that I wasn’t wolfless anymore. Bu
[WARNING: This chapter contains details of gore and death. Proceed with caution.]Zoe's POVThat night, I slept in my old bed. Apparently, no one had known about our departure from Golden Eclipse or our arrival at Silver Moon. Xavier chose to stay, and Aunt Julie offered him my father’s room, but he refused. He knew I’d be furious if he stayed there. I blamed him for my father’s death, and honestly, so did he.Aunt Julie wanted to ask Xavier about his pack, but he’d been so quiet that she decided against it.I sat on my bed, staring at the contents of the wooden box. I looked at the pictures again, this time paying more attention to the details. I read the notes on the back of each one. Some were simple comments about the photo, while others were written in the same unfamiliar language as the bundle of papers and needed to be deciphered.It was all too much to process at once. The only good thing about opening the box so far was that it had distracted me from my grief, even if just for