I chuckled and touched his cheek. “I know, don’t worry. Time will pass by so quickly, you won’t even notice I’m gone.”“Ha. Not a chance of that.” He kissed me once, briefly, and then again more deeply. When he pulled away, my eyes felt heavy, and desire began to kindle deep inside me. He licked his lips, his eyes glowing. “Are you sure you want this?”Oh, but it was so tempting to say no so he could carry me back to bed. I forced myself to nod and gave him a smile. “I’ll see you soon, Night.” I hopped up to kiss his cheek, and then I quickly went inside, avoiding those large, warm hands before he could kiss me again or otherwise tempt me away from my goal.Tavi and Violet were waiting for me at the dining table. I had seen Violet a few times since Night and I had mated, but I hadn’t seen Tavi since the day Night rescued me from those ferals. So when Tavi hopped onto her feet, almost knocking over her chair, I rushed to meet her. We embraced tightly, and Tavi was already emotional.“I
But Violet was shaking her head. “Neither of us can answer that for you. It wouldn’t be our place.”Tavi stood up to grab a few tissues and brought them back for me. “Anyone can see that Night would break his own legs if it meant he could do something for you, Bryn,” Tavi added. “But, I mean, I think you have to ask him yourself. That’s how relationships work.”Oh. It sounded so simple when they put it so plainly. I had been in my head, so worried that I had done something wrong that I hadn’t even considered that I might be able to talk to Night about this. Another tear slipped down my face, but I caught it with my tissue. I wiped my face while Violet stood to get some more tea.Tavi leaned in while Violet rummaged around in the kitchen. “So, Bryn,” she whispered, “how was it? I mean, like, was it as amazing as those books you’ve been reading?”My eyes widened.She giggled. “I borrowed one or two from your room while you were with him. No wonder you were so focused on reading.”My fac
“If the mates go too long without claiming, it will be as if they were rejected. Their hearts will break, they’ll never recover, and terrible, mystical shit will happen to them. I don’t remember all of the specifics, but I know that what you’re doing is fucked up.”I rubbed my chest where Dom had shoved me, my thoughts spiraling down and down into the depths of my fears. “Bryn hadn’t shifted yet,” I found myself saying. “Not on that first night. I wanted to explain to her that she was my mate and what that meant for us, but I didn’t get the chance before we ended up in bed together.”“And then?” Dom asked. “We both know the two of you have had sex after, so why not bite her during one of those times?”I hesitated. “I just…it didn’t feel like the right time. I was intent on getting her to shift and teaching her about her wolf. Bryn only recently learned that she’s descended from the pack mothers. I thought claiming her would be putting too much on her plate.”Dom growled again. “That’s
Ten years ago…I furtively began my walk home from the schoolhouse. Nine years old and with a chest full of worries, I wished I could enjoy the expanse of forest on either side of me, the smell of pine, and the sound of dead leaves crunching underfoot. Instead, I had my fingers crossed that I wouldn’t encounter any of my classmates on the way home.Maybe if I stick to the trees, they won’t notice me. If I’m quick, I might get home before they see—A pair of quick footsteps sliced across my thoughts. I should have run, but my small legs—my cursedly human legs—refused to move. Instead, I turned my head, though I knew in my bones what was about to happen.The first thing I saw was his auburn hair, swishing around his head like flames. My fingers clenched around the straps of my old, beat-up bag just as his hands touched my shoulder. He shoved me down as hard as he could, and I went sprawling across the path. Dust kicked up around me and was caked into the arm of my oversized shirt.I ski
As the story came to a close, I pulled away from her chest, frowning. “But—Mom, the woman in your story got to have a mate and a pack because she was a wolf. I won’t ever get to have a mate because I’m not a wolf.”Mom smiled and pushed a strand of my hair behind my ear. “Sweet girl, good things come to those who fight for them.” She kissed the side of my head. “Never give up on fate, love.”1BRYNI arched my back off the mattress as pleasure bloomed from my core. All around me was darkness, but I had no fear. The bed beneath me cushioned my body as I pressed into it. Further south, a man was buried between my legs, his silky locks brushing across my inner thighs. His tongue lapped into me, each stroke eliciting a moan and a shiver. My heart pounded hard and fast against my ribcage, and my breaths were shallow and quick.He held my legs in place—his calloused hands deliciously rough across my smooth skin. I couldn’t move away from that wicked mouth even if I wanted to. I cursed under
I stopped in my tracks, my face warming. Oh no. She didn’t hear me, did she?“What’s with that face?” She chuckled. “I ask because you look like you woke up in the middle of something intense.”“O-oh. Yeah. I had one of those dreams again.”“Ah, the man with the haunting eyes?”I nodded. I elected to leave the sexual part out of my description, though I couldn’t help the slight warmth that returned to my cheeks. Thankfully, Mom didn’t seem to notice.She moved with the grace of a dancer as she grabbed the honey jar from the counter. As we lived on the outskirts of the pack in our small house, honey was one of the few indulgences we could afford. The tea, however, was something we had in abundance thanks to our little herb garden in the kitchen window. The small garden included lemon verbena, thyme, rosemary, and basil.As Mom let the honey drip into her mug, she said, “Have you ever tried speaking to the man in your dreams?”I shook my head. “I don’t have much of a voice in them.” If
Occasionally, a pup I knew would skip up to me and smile as I gave them food. It didn’t matter how poorly the other wolves treated me or how exhausted I was, there was always a smile where pups were concerned.But when there weren’t children around to brighten my day a little, I allowed myself to zone out. As the dining hall faded to the background, I started thinking about the pack.The Kings were a large, wealthy pack whose territory ran from the borders of the Kaniksu and Kootenai National Forests in Montana as low as Sandpoint and moved west across the Idaho panhandle and Kootenai River. The territory ended right along the border with Washington. The Kings had over five hundred homes and families and powered their compound with solar-powered electricity. They were one of the lucky packs with plumbing and clean running water at their disposal.Every family rotated through shared tasks for the pack—cleaning, cooking, preparing for ceremonies, and maintenance. Some members had a spec
My cheeks warmed when I thought about how his hands had felt on my skin. If he were real, would he treat me the same even though I was human? Would he open his arms to me? The fantasy of being somewhere safe, of being accepted, put a small smile on my face as I worked.Suddenly, a woman burst in from outside, the same one who had been carrying the fabric napkins. She still smelled of cigarette smoke. Her face had gone pale, and her mouth was a trembling line. I didn’t need the elevated senses of a wolf to see how hard she was shaking or to clock the way her eyes darted from face to face until they finally settled on my mom.“What’s wrong?” Mom asked as the woman approached.“It’s the Alpha,” she whispered.I froze, staring openly at the woman.Mom’s face grew still. She placed her hands on the woman’s shoulders and squeezed until the woman’s wavering gaze focused. “What about him?”“He…he passed away in his sleep last night,” she said. “He’s dead.”He’s dead…he’s dead… The words echoe