CAST - I stared at my phone, the light from the screen blurring my vision. Hours of texting Selena had led me to this.A mess I couldn't seem to pull myself out of. Each message from her seemed to heighten my desperation, like I was reaching for a lifeline I knew I shouldn't take, but couldn't stop myself. She had promised everything. She'd bring all her devices, the cloud files, whatever incriminating texts or photos she had, and let me burn them. Right in front of her. She even offered to let me comb through her phone myself, to prove she had no other copies. I could check every single thing."Plus, if you mark me, you'll know if I'm lying," she reminded me. I didn't want to mark her. That much I knew. I didn't want her in my life at all, not now, not after everything that had happened with Lila. The thought of marking someone else was like trying to swallow broken glass. But the way Selena played on my fears, on my insecurities, was masterful. She always knew how to make me q
CAST - Linc texted me a pin to their new house. Theirs. That didn't take long. The message was simple. An address, no words, just the location of their new home. I floored the gas, racing toward the spot on my phone. I knew what I was walking into, but my mind was stuck in a loop. Lila was his now. I'd told myself I accepted that, but deep down, it tore me apart. As I got closer, I realized... The house wasn't just near his pack's land. It was practically on it. I couldn't believe how close it was. The trees that lined the road grew denser as his pack's scent filled the air. Linc had moved her right into his world, where I no longer had a say. I barely parked the truck before I was out and storming toward the front door. I was about to knock when the door swung open. Linc stood there, his eyes locked on me like he'd been waiting for this. Before I could speak, he grabbed my shirt and yanked me toward the shed at the back of the house. "Not here," he muttered, pulling me wit
I woke up on the couch, and it took me a second to figure out where I was. Linc's house. Our house. Linc wasn't there. The spot next to me was cold, and the house was silent. I sat up, rubbing my eyes, trying to shake off the grogginess. It was still night. I must have fallen asleep waiting for Cast to show up. I'd set up the spare bedroom for him earlier, knowing he'd need somewhere to crash if he actually came out here. Linc hadn't been thrilled about it. He didn't say much, but I could feel it. I couldn't leave Cast to self-destruct. Not again. Not when I knew where that road led. Right back with Selena. Even though I was head over heels in love with Linc now, something in me still needed to take care of Cast. It wasn't love, not anymore, but it was something. A deep connection that I couldn't just shake. That feeling messed me up. I stood up, wrapped the blanket around me, and wandered over to the window. Cast's truck was sitting in the driveway. He'd come. He hadn't go
LINC - I watched them both sound asleep, wrapped up on the couch together. Tangled up in a way that should have made me lose it. But now? It was different. There was nothing I could do but face the reality in front of me. I'd marked her, yes, and I felt our bond grow stronger every second. But she hadn't been given time to disconnect from him entirely. I knew that when I did it. I'd been impatient, pushing forward because I was sure of how I felt, even if she hadn't fully realized it yet. Now, I was left to deal with the consequences. Cast had hurt her in ways I couldn't fully understand, and yet she still cared for him. She loved him. That much was clear. No amount of marking or bonding with me would erase that. And the more I thought about it, the more I understood it wasn't a weakness on her part. It wasn't some flaw that she still held onto her love for Cast despite everything. No, it was a strength. A real strength that few people had. To care for someone after they had t
CAST - Waking up on Linc's couch felt strange. I didn't know where I was for a moment. I hadn't slept like that in... I couldn't even remember the last time. Maybe since the divorce had gone through. I hadn't slept more than an hour or two at a time, and it must've finally caught up with me. My body had clearly crashed, forcing itself to shut down. I blinked and looked around the room, piecing together where I was. Lila's scent was all over me. It was comforting and painful at the same time. I could tell she had been touching me while I slept. That's probably why I'd slept so hard. It wasn't something I wanted to think about for too long. Her scent was still too familiar, and I wasn't ready to process what it meant now that everything between us had changed. She still smelled like... Mine. I heard quiet sounds coming from the kitchen. I pushed myself up and made my way toward the noise. My legs were heavy, still stiff from sleep. I wasn't in a hurry. Part of me didn't want
I stood by the window, watching Cast pace on the driveway with his phone pressed against his ear. He'd mentioned something about handling business, things he'd neglected for too long. Now that he was rested, he needed to start paying attention to things again before everything started falling apart. But I knew better. The thought of him talking to Selena was worming its way into my head. It shouldn't bother me, but it did. And I hated that. Linc slid his arms around my waist, pulling me into him. I leaned back against his chest. "He's not leaving," he murmured against my ear. "Yeah... That's not what I'm scared of," I confessed. "I know," Linc answered. "As soon as I'm Alpha, I'll command her to stay away from him. Then, she won't have a choice." I turned to face him, surprised by the certainty in his voice. "Is it really that simple?" He sighed. "With the women in my family… yes." I studied him as unease started creeping in. "You talk about your family like that a lot," I
Linc paced by the door. "I'll be back before the meeting," he said, keys in hand. "Just need to grab some things from the apartment. Clothes, paperwork. You going to be okay here?" "I'll be fine," I answered, knowing he was concerned about leaving me here with Cast. I traced the stubble along his jaw, feeling him relax under my touch. "Stop worrying about that. You know where I stand. I chose you."His smiled. "I know," he said softly, his hand resting on mine for a moment before he pulled away. "I'll be back soon.""Do you have a suit I can borow?" Cast asked from the living room. Linc chuckled under his breath. "Yeah, man, I'll bring something for you. I can't have you show up in a T-shirt and jeans." Then he was gone, and I was left standing in the silence, aware of the charged atmosphere settling in the house. Cast was in the other room. I felt his presence, the familiar feeling of it tugging at me. Like a thread I couldn't sever no matter how hard I tried.I walked into the li
LINC - I stood frozen in the doorway. Exhaustion and a strange feeling as I was driving away clouded my thoughts. Seeing them like that, resting against each other, was all it took. It didn't matter how innocent it was. The anger overtook all my senses instantly. Fucking instantly.Lila's head snapped up when she noticed me. "Linc," she said, pushing away from Cast. "It's not what you think."I couldn't respond. My body was too weak to trust with words. But the jealousy, the burn of everything I'd been trying to hold back, broke through. Cast moved back slowly, his hands lifted in a passive way that only made me angrier. He could feel the shift in the room. He knew I wasn't in a good place.I barely looked at her. "Forgot my keys. Seems like I missed something else, too."Cast didn't react or rise to meet the challenge. He didn't want this fight. I knew that. But I was too far gone. The control I thought I'd mastered slipped. I stepped toward him, ignoring Lila."What's going on?"
Gaia lunged at him. Ian didn't move. He braced himself, standing firm as her massive form slammed into him. The force of it sent a shockwave through the ground. He held his position, absorbing the impact, pushing her back with raw strength alone. His white fur bristled. Gaia struck again, snapping at his throat, but he dodged, twisting at the last second to drive her off balance. She hit the dirt hard, paws digging into the earth as she pushed herself back up in an instant. Her entire body shook, not from exhaustion but from pure, unchecked aggression. Ian snarled, lowering his stance, but he didn't strike back. He didn't need to. He was blocking her, stopping her, keeping her from finishing what she had started. Something shifted in Gaia. Her breaths came hard, her body still wound too tight, but the moment stretched longer, stretched too long. Then, finally, she stopped. Ian didn't move, waiting, making sure she was really done. I didn't wait. The second she hesitated, I forced
DECLAN -The trees blurred past as Gaia ran, powerful and sure beneath me. I gripped her fur tighter, not because I was afraid but because I had never felt anything like this. The wind cut sharp against my skin, my pulse pounded in my ears, and my body moved in sync with hers like we were built for this. Everything in me buzzed with adrenaline, with the rush of speed, the sheer force of her muscles coiling and flexing beneath me. Then I saw it. A shadow slipped between the trees, fast and silent, keeping pace with us. Suki. Not now. Not like this. I silently begged her to stay back, to leave this moment alone, to not push this any further than it had already gone. But she didn't. Her wolf stayed just on the edges of my vision, always there, always lingering, never letting me forget what was still tangled inside me. The pull. The connection that refused to break, no matter how much I willed it to disappear. Then Gaia saw her. Her muscles coiled. A ripple of tension passed through
DECLAN -I made it back to the house just as Gaia came tearing out the front door, furious. She was barely holding herself together. The second she saw me, she yanked her shirt over her head. My brain barely caught up. I froze as every muscle in my body seemed to ripple at once. I was still reeling from being near Suki. From the way she looked at me. From the way my body reacted even when my mind told me I belonged to Gaia. The confusion pulled me in opposite directions, turning every second into a battle. And now Gaia was storming toward me, tearing off her clothes, taking up every bit of space in my mind. "Damn, Gaia." I snapped my head to the side, forcing myself to look anywhere but at her. She stalked closer, bare feet kicking up dust. I frowned. Why the hell were her shoes off? She had stormed out of the house so fast that she hadn't even thought to put them on. That wasn't like her. She grabbed my chin and jerked my head forward. "We... werr 'dults. We... need to stop act
DECLAN - Suki stretched out on the rock beside me, legs extended, fingers tapping idly against the stone. She wasn't in a rush, and that only made everything worse for me."Why are you upset?"I stared at the dirt, exhaling hard. "You don't want to know.""Please. You rejected me. Nothing else you say can be worse than that."That shouldn't have hit as hard as it did. My hands tightened against my knees, but I kept my voice even. "Yeah... Sorry for that too."She shrugged like it didn't matter. "You did what you had to do. That doesn't mean I can't tease you about it."She smiled, not mean, not teasing, but something about it still made it impossible to ignore. I didn't push. Couldn't. Not right now.Some of the pressure in my shoulders eased. "You're handling it better than I thought.""What, did you expect me to run off crying?" She kicked a loose rock down the slope. "I don't do the whole helpless thing."I huffed. "I know. Takes a lot of strength to live out here on purpose all t
DECLAN - Mom knocked once before stepping inside, moving like she expected this to be a fight. Maybe she did. Maybe it was."Your dads worked out a deal with Jaed."I stayed where I was, back against the headboard, arms locked around Gaia. Keeping her here. Keeping her mine. "Doesn't matter. Nothing is changing."She did her best to ignore my attitude. "Gaia can still stay until her birthday."I scoffed. "You heard what I said. She was staying regardless of all the bullshit."Gaia sat up fast, then shoved off the bed completely. "Don't talk to your mother like that."Heat crawled up my spine fast. A burn that made my stomach wrench. Being called out pissed me off. Being called out by someone below me? Made my teeth ache.And I hated that I felt like that.Mom just watched, waiting. No reaction, no expression, no wasted effort. My breath felt thicker, slower, body bracing for something I wasn't even sure of. I forced my attention back to her instead of the fire sparking hot under my s
DECLAN - Jaed turned on his heel and stormed out, steps heavy enough to shake the floor. The door slammed hard enough to rattle the frame. Gaia moved fast, pushing out of the room after him without looking back. My body still burned, everything wound so tight I thought I might snap in half. There was no way in hell I was walking out there right now, not like this. I sat on the edge of the bed, planted my feet, and dragged both hands through my hair before forcing them down. If I kept doing that, it would only make everything worse. I needed to get it together. I needed to think about something else. Anything else. My breathing was too hard, too uneven. My pulse pounded in my ears. My entire body ached, my skin too hot, my blood thick and heavy. Every inch of me still screamed for her, for more, for everything I had been seconds away from having. I stared at the ceiling and tried to focus. No good. Every thought ran straight back to her. To the way she had felt pressed against m
DECLAN - By the end of the lesson, most of them had the alphabet down. It wasn't perfect, but it was a start. More than that, it was proof that this was happening. That Gaia was becoming part of us, not just some outsider with no way to connect.As the room emptied out, I felt her before she even touched me. Gaia slid her arms around my waist from behind, pressing herself against my back."You're incredible," she signed against my chest, looking up at me.I swallowed. Hard. "Come on," I muttered, taking her hand and pulling her toward my room.The second the door shut behind us, she was on me. She dragged me down to meet her lips. I didn't hesitate. I kissed her hard, ignoring the dull ache still lingering in my ribs. My shoulder moved without protest, and most of the cuts had already faded into thin scars. I knew I should still be careful, but touching her made everything else disappear. The soreness, the exhaustion, the remnants of pain all vanished the second she was in my arms.S
I found Cast and Linc in the office, going over some pack reports. Linc leaned back in his chair while Cast was half-standing, flipping through pages with a scowl. They barely looked up when I walked in, but I didn't care. I had something to say, and they were going to listen."We're starting ASL classes," I said, crossing my arms. "Everyone is required to attend. That includes both of you."Linc's brow lifted slightly, and Cast set the papers down with an exasperated sigh. "You're giving us orders now?" Cast asked, folding his arms over his chest."Yes."They exchanged a look. Linc sighed first. "Declan, you don't get to just..."I cut him off. "I do. And I am. This should've happened the second we knew Gaia was deaf. Jaed made sure every single person in his pack knew how to communicate with her before they moved there. But here? We're still scribbling on notepads like it's the Dark Ages."Linc's jaw tightened. Cast clenched his teeth, looking more annoyed than guilty. But I wasn't
Life felt strange now. Not bad. Just different.The routine of school was gone, replaced by the quiet predictability of home. I woke up early, trained with Dad Cast and some of the others, then spent the rest of the day doing whatever needed to be done around the packhouse. The only difference now? I was healing far faster than I should have been.The gashes along my ribs had already started closing. My shoulder still ached, but nowhere near what it should have been given the damage Suki had done. Even the deep bruising felt more like old aches instead of fresh wounds. It was fast. Too fast.Gaia noticed it first. She was there when I peeled off my shirt after training, her eyes narrowing as she reached out, fingers barely brushing over the nearly-healed claw marks."That’s not normal," she signed, eyes flicking up to mine.I already knew that. "I heal fast now that I'm an adult alpha?""Not this fast," she countered . "Do you think,"I exhaled. "It’s you."She nodded slowly. "We heal