Back on her desk, Izzy tries to focus on her work but she finds it impossible. Every time she shuts her eyes, she can feel Miles’ lips on hers, warm and tender. She shakes her head vigorously as if trying to shake off the memory.But it’s there, etched in the corners of her mind, resurfacing every so often with a potency that makes her catch her breath. She rubs her temples, willing herself to concentrate and move on from the distracting memory.“Concentrate, Izzy,” she mutters to herself, forcing her eyes back on the pile of work on her desk. But it’s no use. Her thoughts keep on drifting back to Miles — his warm voice, his soft gaze, the way his kiss made her feel... and her wanting more of those gentle kisses.She pushes the papers away in frustration, knocking over a cup of pens. She stares at the scattered pens for a while before bending down to pick them up. As she does, a picture falls out from one of the books stacked on her desk. It is a picture of her and Miles from last summ
Miles takes her hand gently in his, lacing their fingers together. “I want to embrace you the entire night.”She frowns.“The elders and your other mates allowed it,” he adds, his eyes pleading.‘Hugging, huh,’ she thinks as she gazes into his eyes. They’ve hugged before, so it doesn’t sound so bad.Annoyed by all the second-guessing, she groans. If Miles is already taking up this much head space, how could she handle more mates? Still, she cannot be selfish. This is Miles. He has been a dear friend to her since five years ago.“Okay, we can hug,” she agrees. “But we can’t do anything... intimate.”Miles smiles before pulling her close to him, their bodies pressing together. “Of course not, Izzy. Just... be with me.”She can feel his warm breath tickling the skin of her throat as he sighs softly against her neck before replying in a quiet, shaky voice, “Thank you.”Izzy has to admit, it feels strange at first — the way Miles is holding her, their chests pressing against each other as t
Izzy walks into the kitchen and finds Miles already there, preparing the ingredients for their breakfast. His back is on her, but she can sense his happiness from the way he moves.He turns to her and finds her looking at him. “Hey, good morning!”She makes another of her lopsided smile. “I’ll help you,” she says, walking towards the counter where Miles is standing.“As promised?” he asks, looking pleased, and then he laughs.“What?!” she asks, confused at his reactions.“I’m sorry for teasing you earlier.”“You already apologized earlier.”“That’s not a complete apology, though.”Her frown deepens. “Then what does a ‘complete’ apology look like, Mr. Miles?” she asks, looking at him skeptically.“Well, for starters,” he says, turning toward her with a playful glint in his eyes. “It involves food.”She rolls her eyes. “And here I thought it would involve something more dramatic.”He laughs, a warm sound that fills the kitchen and makes her heart flutter. He gestures to the array of ingr
After a long day of work, Izzy and Miles finally meet up at the park. They found a secluded spot under a large oak tree, where they spread out a picnic blanket and opened a box of steaming hot pizza.“Here’s the pizza as you requested,” Miles says while Izzy prepares drinks for both of them.“This pizza is amazing,” Izzy exclaims as she samples one slice.“I know, right? Perfect for a lazy day like this,” he replies with a grin. “This reminds me of that movie we watched before, about pizza and cheese as ultimate weapons.”“Ah! I remember!” She clears her throat before continuing, “Watch out, I have the ultimate weapon,” she says, making her voice a little deeper while pretending as if her pizza is a weapon.Miles laughs and holds up a gooey slice. “Oh no, I will need to defend myself by using the dripping cheese attack!”“Pffft!”And then they both burst into laughter. For Izzy, spending hours with Miles has always been effortless.“Remember that time we got lost in the woods?” he asks
Izzy stands through the entryway of her room. Her mind is still fixed on that scene with Alpha Landon. Miles accompanied her to her room and is looking down at her, observing her reactions. “Thank you, Miles,” she murmurs.She is grateful for his intervention with Alpha Landon earlier. She can’t even imagine how things would have turned out if he hadn’t stepped in — or what she could have allowed him to do — and that makes things even scarier. “And sorry about earlier.”“Why are you apologizing?”“Well, about that thing with the alpha. Thank you for stopping him.”Miles frowns. “You mean when he was about to touch you? You could have stopped him yourself, though.”Her shoulders slump at his words. “I don’t think I can,” she admits, glancing down at her hands. “This mate bond is trying to cloud my senses, making it hard for me to resist him.”“Only resist him?” Miles frowns. “You mean that you will also… with—“She looks up, apprehensive. And seeing the look on her face, he takes a dee
She tucks her head against his chest, taking comfort in his presence. Tranquility starts to settle over them as they just lay there, tangled together on the bed."Hey Miles," she starts after a while, her words muffled by his shirt.He hums in response, his fingers lightly tracing her spine. "Yeah?"She swallows nervously before continuing. "Can you... can you loosen your hold on me?" she asks hesitantly. "I mean, it's getting really tight..."Miles chuckles softly, causing his chest to rumble. "Are you saying I'm suffocating you?" He teases, his grip slowly loosening around her waist."No, it's just..." she fumbles with the words again, feeling oddly vulnerable under his gaze. "I can't think clearly...""About what?" His voice is a soft inquiry and Izzy can feel his warm breath against the top of her head.She looks up at him to scold him, but he might have seen the need in her eyes, because the next thing she knows is that he is leaning over her and placing a kiss on her lips. Izzy'
Izzy groans audibly and then she takes another deep breath to calm herself before speaking again. “Look, I’m sorry. But can you please quiet down for a bit? I really need to focus on my work.”Carter nods. “Of course, my love,” he says, understanding her need for space and quiet.Yet, that little endearment tugs at her heart all the more. Carter quiets down and stays on her couch and starts to work on some documents, same as her. She sighs and rubs her temples.She is turning into someone she doesn’t like. But then, why of all people should she have three mates?! She was content living on her own, working hard to achieve success in her career! But now, everything seems so complicated and overwhelming!With a shake of her head, Izzy tries to push her thoughts aside and focus on finishing her report. However, it’s proving to be difficult with Carter constantly popping up in her mind. She can’t deny the sexual desire she feels for him. But she also can’t ignore the fact that their persona
Izzy’s stomach grumbles as she scours her eyes around the place. It is grand and elegant, with sparkling chandeliers and plush velvet chairs. She can’t believe that Carter took her to a five-star restaurant for their first date. And it’s even in a different town!“Next time, can we have dinner somewhere nearby?”“You didn’t enjoy the ride here?” he asks. “Maybe I should pilot the chopper next time?”That’s not the point! She’d like to tell him, but then a waitress approaches, and she can’t help but notice how Carter seems completely at home in the fancy setting. He even flashes the waitress an easy smile.“So, what’s the cuisine of the day?” he asks, his tone smooth and charming, as if he just didn’t show Izzy that pained look earlier. It is the reason why she agreed to a dinner date with him. It is a token of apology for being mean to him.As the waitress starts to recommend dishes that she is not familiar with, Izzy’s attention goes to how Carter carries himself outside. He’s already
Izzy’s hands are shaking as she watches the young rogue werewolf fall to the ground, his body writhing in pain, the fire consuming him. She could smell the burning flesh and the rotten scent that comes with rogue werewolves.“Come on, Izzy,” her ex-mate grins at her as he watches the helpless werewolf. “This is what we’re meant to do. We’re hunters.”But Izzy can’t bring herself to feel excited or proud as he does. She can only feel guilt and fear coursing through her veins. She knows that this werewolf was just a kid, barely older than she is. And now he’s dying because of them, because of her.“You don’t have to feel guilty about killing him,” he continues, sensing her hesitation. “He’s a rogue, Izzy. He would’ve killed innocent people if we hadn’t stopped him.”“But I didn’t kill him,” Izzy whispers, feeling sick to her stomach.“Yes, you did,” he insists, moving closer to her. “Do you want me to describe the events to you? On how you managed to kill the child?”“No, but...” Izzy t
Without a warning, Izzy kneels before Alpha Landon and pulls down his pants, revealing his hard cock. She takes it into her mouth, sucking on it eagerly. Landon moans in pleasure, but there is a hint of concern in his voice.“Izzy, seriously, breakfast first.”Izzy ignores his request and continues to please him with her mouth. She wants to make him come, to satisfy him and herself at the same time. But Landon stops her, pulling her away from him gently.Yet, she resists him, and he cannot evade her. Soon, he’s releasing it into her mouth and she revels in it. She can make her alpha lose his mind!Then she fists his member and is about to put him into her mouth again when Landon lifts her up and makes her sit on the kitchen counter instead.She pushes at his body and is about to get down when he yells at her. “I said stop!”She freezes. Her hands are still on his shoulders while trying to push him away. Alpha Landon, on the other hand, has his hands on her waist and hips.Izzy’s heart
Izzy’s body is still trembling. She can still feel the pain coursing through her body, but it’s being drowned by the intense pleasure that still lingers.The man beside her is breathing just as heavily, his chest rising and falling rapidly. He reaches out to brush a strand of hair away from her face.They gaze into each other’s eyes and they both know that after all this is over, they will still seek each other out. Then it will repeat to moments of desperation and passion, and they would be unable to resist the pull between them. It’s a toxic cycle that they can’t seem to break free from—one that both hurts and satisfies them in equal measure.“I should punish you,” he whispers, breaking the silence that has settled between them. “As the next alpha, I should know how to keep my mate in line.”She takes a hold of his hand and presses a kiss on it. “I love you,” she says, hoping that her love will be enough to soften his anger. “I will always love you.”He looks down at her with a mixt
Chloe might be right. She should probably apologize to Carter. And so, she takes out her phone and dials Carter’s number. The phone rings a few times before he finally answers.“Hello?” His voice sounds tense, like he’s been waiting for this call but also dreading it at the same time.“Hi,” Izzy says softly.“I’m not going to reject and break the mate bond no matter how many times you ask,” he says.Does he really think that it’s the only reason she will call him? That sounds bad, right?“I just… I wanted to apologize,” Izzy finally says, struggling to find the right words.“Apologize? Is this Izzy?” Carter’s voice is guarded now, as if he’s preparing himself for another hurtful comment from her. “Isabela Garcia?”She feels a pang of guilt in her chest at his skeptical tone. “I’m sorry, Carter. For being so co
Izzy wakes up hot and bothered, her body aching for release. All she can remember is that she returned from the Elders house with Carter—because it is still his day. She was tired and so, she had taken a quick nap. She also vaguely remembered that before she had fallen asleep, she was erasing a part of her memories.She turns and sees that Carter is sleeping on the same bed, his arm wrapped protectively around her waist. She can feel his warmth seeping into her skin, making her to want him and use him to satisfy her sexual needs.But she knows she shouldn’t, even if her inner wolf doesn’t care about logic. She just wants to claim Carter as her mate and satisfy their mutual desires.Izzy tries to push the thoughts away, but it’s too late. Her arousal is evident in the way her body trembles and the scent of her desire fills the room.Carter stirs awake at the smell, his eyes snapping open as he takes in Izzy’s condition. He smi
Izzy’s heart is racing as she paces back and forth in her bedroom. She knows what Elder Finn wants, what he expects of her— and the thought of having an entire harem of alphas sends shivers down her spine.Upon hearing the news from her, Chloe is sitting on the bed with a horrified look on her face. Aria, on the other hand, is trying to stifle her laughter.“Because of this news, I am forgiving you now, Izzy,” she says. “I will even forgive you for your future insensitivity and other infractions.”Izzy looks at her. At the very least, she’s grateful Aria’s no longer angry at her. “I thought it was your fantasy to have a harem of proud, aggressive—and in your own words—hot and attractive alphas?”“It is good as fantasy!” she says, looking incredulously at her. “But that is something I want to remain as a fantasy! It will be pure chaos, and being in the middle of it is
Izzy doesn’t respond, knowing that it’s pointless to argue about it again. Instead, she continues sipping on her tea, hoping that this conversation will end soon so she can go back to sleep or find some other distraction from reality.“Today is still Carter’s day to spend with you,” Finn murmurs. “But he isn’t here.”She nods, not wanting to start a discussion about Carter or her other mates. She knows that the elder has been keeping an eye on the progress with her three mates and she doesn’t want to give him any more ammunition to use against her.“Is he not here because you have already chosen Miles?” Finn asks, breaking the silence.Izzy’s glare in response is enough of an answer for the elder.“Ah, so you still don’t want a mate,” he guesses, his tone filled with disappointment.“I will never want a mate,” she answers.“I ca
Without hesitation, she rolls onto her stomach and feels the soft sheets beneath her skin. She spreads out across the bed like a willing sacrifice for him.He positions himself behind her and enters her from behind. The feeling of being so exposed yet so connected to him is overwhelming. And the instant they are completely joined together, she comes undone. She moans loudly as he begins to move inside of her. The pleasure is so intense that it almost takes her breath away. But she knows better than to make too much noise or show any signs of weakness in front of him.“Ohhhh,” she gasps, her nails digging into the sheets beneath her.He grins down at her, enjoying the way he can make her lose control with just a few thrusts of his hips.“You like that, baby?” he asks, his voice low and rough.She nods frantically, unable to form any coherent words as he continues to drive her crazy with desire.“Good,” he g
Izzy is engulfed in a nightmare, reliving the painful memories of her past relationship. She hears his voice, deep and menacing, as he taunts her.“You’re weak, not even up to par to the physical strength of a Beta,” he says, his eyes cold and calculating. “Your mental fortitude is the only thing you’re good at.”In her dream, she looks up. It is her ex-boyfriend. He is towering over her, his muscular frame casting a dark shadow over her smaller frame. She doesn’t know what to do. Her rational mind tells her to back away from him, but her inner wolf lusts for him — it is telling her to grab and hug him, to remind him of the love and passion that they shared. That he is the person she shares a mate bond, someone to love and to treasure.“And yet, no matter how low you are… Just the sight of you makes me crazy with lust.”He grabs her arms and pulls her up. His deep desire for her mirrored on his eyes. It’s the same for her too, just a single touch and she knows that she will run after