“I’d rather take a thousand tomato stains to my shirt than see a single speck on that beautiful gown of yours,” I said, my lips curving.She blinked. “You’re ridiculous,” she whispered, although I could see the faint smile tugging at her mouth.“Maybe,” I said as I dipped my head to press a kiss to
Aria“Aria, would you do me the honor of a dance?”Darren stiffened beside me when William said those words. It wasn’t just his body that stiffened, though—our mate bond suddenly flared to life for the second or perhaps third time that night, a surge of heat and protectiveness that I could feel bene
I felt tears prick at the corners of my eyes, but I blinked them away, leaning into his touch. “Thank you,” I whispered.The rest of the evening passed without a hitch. Darren and I moved through the crowd together, his hand never leaving mine as we mingled with guests and answered questions about t
DarrenMy world shattered when Aria’s hand was ripped from mine.“Aria!” I shouted, my voice cutting through the din. But there was no response, no sign of her in the sea of panicked faces.I cursed under my breath, shouting her name through the mate bond as I whirled to catch a glimpse of her. Peop
“No one,” he hissed through clenched teeth, and spat on the floor. “I organized this on my own. All you monsters deserve to die.”“He’s lying,” Liam growled, his eyes glowing fiercely as he glanced at me. “There’s no way this fucker organized this by himself.”I was inclined to believe my Beta, and
AriaDarren collided with me, knocking me to the floor before I could even comprehend the sound of the gunshot or the screams.The impact knocked the breath from my lungs, but I barely registered it. All I could focus on now was the sting on my cheek, the warmth of the fresh blood that was now trick
The police arrived a moment later and took the man into custody. After that, we were questioned about the incident.Then, we were told to go home for now.As if we could possibly sleep after what had happened.Later that night, as Darren and I lay in the warm comfort of his bed together, it was just
AriaIt felt strange, standing here in the middle of my living room, surrounded by half-filled boxes and the remnants of a life I was about to leave behind. Strange, but necessary.Packing up my tiny, run-down apartment was a lot harder than I had expected. Every item I picked up seemed to carry a m
I took another step forward, still holding Darren’s hand. “You wouldn’t dare shoot your own people,” Darren said, his eyes fixed on the chief. “Would you?”For a flickering instant, I thought I saw uncertainty cross the faces of some of the officers holding guns. Their weapons seemed to lower slight
Aria“Stop!”Darren held his hand up to halt the procession as those guns pointed at us. I felt suddenly sick, and couldn’t help but glance over my shoulder at the crowd of people behind us—humans and werewolves alike.They wouldn’t shoot, would they?Beside me, Darren tightened his grip on my finge
As I spoke, I became aware of a strange silence falling over the scene. Not just Darren, but everyone seemed affected by my words. The officers had lowered their weapons slightly. The crowd had gone still, quiet… calm.My voice seemed to carry farther than it should, resonating with a power that fel
AriaI couldn’t breathe. The white fog permeated everything—my clothes, my skin, my lungs. It burned with each inhale, making my wolf howl inside of me. The tincture couldn’t have prepared us for this. Not entirely.But most terrifying of all was the absence of Darren by my side.“Darren!” I shouted
But as we turned onto the main avenue, the counter-protesters grew bolder. They followed alongside us, shouting slurs and insults.“Go back to the forest where you belong!” one man yelled.I kept my eyes forward, trying to project a calm I didn’t feel. Beside me, Darren was doing the same, although
AriaThe trek back to the portal was long and tiring, and by the time we arrived at the mysterious little elevator in the woods, the sun was beating on our backs and a fine coat of sweat had formed between my skin and my jacket. Darren, Liam, and the Lunar Labs gang and I stepped into the elevator f
Nodding, I hugged her again, tighter this time. “I promise.”Wendy approached next, her arms filled with flowers—wildflowers gathered from the meadows surrounding the village.“An old pack tradition,” she explained, placing a stem in my hand. “Carrying a piece of home with you for protection.”The f
AriaOur wedding was never meant to spark even more of a revolution, but somehow, it had. Over the following days, the videos Alfira had captured and shared with the world had gone viral.“Ten million views and counting,” Alfira said one morning as we were going over our plans for the upcoming march
He guided me onto the bed, the sheets cool against my back as I lay down. Darren settled above me, his body a warm, solid weight against mine as he braced himself on his forearms.Our eyes locked, and for a moment, we just breathed together, the air between us like static electricity. Then he kissed