I wasn't sure what to make of it. I laughed, trying to figure out if he was serious. "You really think I could?" "Yeah." He chuckled softly. "You've got me wrapped around your finger. You just don't know it yet." I rolled my eyes. "That's not the same thing." He stood from the bed and stopped right in front of me. "Why don't we find out?" I scoffed hard. "You want me to try… dominating you?" He shrugged like it was nothing. "Only if you want to. But I'm telling you, you've already got a head start." I stood slowly, unsure what to do. The idea felt wrong, foreign. Linc was taller and stronger. He was the man here. The Alpha. I was over a foot shorter than him. It made the concept of control feel almost impossible. But a small part of me was curious. Could I do this? Could I take the lead with him? I caught the waistband of his pants, pulling him closer. The fabric tensed under my grip, and he moved toward me without hesitation. I led him toward the bed, but each step
I flipped the last pancake onto the plate. I was on autopilot. Linc's voice echoed from the shower down the hall, the sound of running water barely drowning it out. He was humming all carefree while I stood here unraveling.I'm glad someone was happy.The soft creak of a floorboard snapped me out of my trance, and I turned just in time to see Cast stroll into the kitchen. His eyes locked on me the second he walked through the doorway. He sat at the bar, silently watching my every move. I could almost feel his exhaustion. I hated that he could still do that.Ignoring him, I plated up a stack of pancakes and added a handful of strawberries I'd cut up earlier and berries before setting it down in front of him. He picked up a fork and slowly, methodically, began to eat.I didn't dare look at him, busying myself with wiping down the counter, rearranging things that didn't need rearranging. Every second felt like an hour, but I couldn't leave. Not yet. Not until Linc got out of the damn sho
I stared at myself in the mirror, smoothing the fabric of the simple black sundress that I’d managed to find. Something that stretched comfortably over my growing belly but still looked good enough to wear out. I felt a bit more like myself, like a version of myself I hadn’t seen in years. The last time I’d dressed up like this was a lifetime ago, before everything with Cast. Before the complications of our bond had turned into something I couldn’t unravel. The makeup, the heels, the sleek way my hair fell over my shoulders... It was a lot of effort, but Linc had asked me to come to the office with him today. I wanted to make a good impression. He hadn’t said it outright, but I knew it was because he didn’t want to leave me alone with Cast and Selena. It was getting harder to ignore the strain, the way Linc’s unspoken jealousy flashed through the bond we shared, even if he never brought it up. He felt it, the connection that still lingered between Cast and me, and I couldn’t pr
I stood at the door, hand resting on the knob. Cast had asked to come in, and even though every part of me screamed not to, I stepped aside and let him pass. He walked straight to the bed, sitting down heavily before leaning back and staring at the ceiling.I didn't close the door.It felt strange having him here. The familiarity between us was undeniable, but so was the distance. I stayed by the door for a moment, watching him. Waiting for him to do something, say something. He didn't. His eyes remained fixed on the ceiling.I pushed away from the doorway and started peeling off the ruined dress. The smell of vomit lingered on the fabric, sour and sharp, and I tossed it aside, stepping into the bathroom.I didn't close the bathroom door then, either.I half expected him to sneak a glance, but he didn't. He just stayed there, lost in his own world, oblivious to me stripping down and scrubbing my skin clean.Part of me hated that he wasn't looking, but another part was relieved. I pull
CAST - I stood in the doorway, staring at Selena. She was covered in blood, and her eyes were empty. The knife was dripping blood, clutched in her hand."Selena," I said as I stepped forward slowly, keeping my eyes on her hand. "What the fuck? Why are you covered in blood?"She didn't respond. She didn't even blink. I reached for the knife, but she quickly stepped back.She wasn't herself. Something had broken inside her, and I had no idea how to fix it.Behind me, I heard Lila coming down the hall. I glanced over my shoulder just as she stopped in the doorway, her eyes going wide at the sight of Selena."What the hell..." Lila whispered.I turned back to Selena. "Let me help you. We need to get you cleaned up."She didn't react, just stared through me, still gripping the knife like it was her lifeline. I led her to the bathroom. The blood was starting to drip onto the floor from her clothing. I could smell it. I reached for the sink with her."Let go of the knife," I said, but s
LINC - I sat in my office, tapping my pen on the desk. My mind was miles away from the stacks of files before me. The plan was to make this quick. I hated being here, hated leaving Lila back at the house with Cast. I should have brought her with me. She would have been safer, or at least, I'd feel better knowing she wasn't around him. I'd promised myself I wouldn't let it bother me, that we could make this work. But the longer I stayed in this office, the more the idea made me restless.Luca knocked on the door, sliding in before I even answered. He'd been holding down the firm for weeks, managing most of the day-to-day cases while I handled my mess."Hey, I need your signature on this," he said, tossing a folder on my desk. "Simple land dispute. Nothing major.""Just forge it," I muttered, barely glancing at the papers. "I trust you."Luca chuckled but shrugged. "You sure?"I nodded. The quicker I finished here, the quicker I could get back to Lila. I leaned back in my chair, tryi
I sat at the kitchen bar, staring at nothing, trying to steady my breathing. My hands were shaking, and no matter how hard I tried to control it, I couldn't. Linc's call kept playing in my head. His instructions were clear, but the fear made it hard to think straight. He was in jail. Selena had killed Astin.Cast and I had to keep her here, hold everything together while everything else seemed to fall apart.I gripped the edge of the bar as the nausea overtook my body. I glanced at the stairs, waiting, hoping Cast would come down soon. I needed him to say something that would make this okay and fix it.To tell me Linc was coming home and that none of this was real.The house was too quiet. Too still. When I finally heard Cast coming down, it didn't bring any relief. He looked exhausted and drained. He moved slowly, sinking onto the stool beside me."Selena's asleep," he finally said, barely looking at me. "I don't know how long she'll stay that way. But for now...""For now?" I repea
LINC - I sat in the interrogation room, staring at the one-way mirror, my mind running in circles. It had been hours since they dragged me in here, and I knew they had nothing on me. They couldn't. I hadn't been at the house long enough to kill Astin. I hadn't touched him. But that didn't stop them from grilling me like I was guilty."Tell us again why you were heading to the house." The officer across from me leaned forward. He was waiting for me to slip up."I told you," I replied. "I was dropping off paperwork. That's it."It was a lie, but there wasn't a choice. I couldn't drag Selena into this. Everything would spiral out of control when I mentioned what happened. They'd lock her up, and the pack would crumble."You expect us to believe you just happened to show up minutes after the murder?" Another officer joined in, pacing back and forth behind me."I didn't know anything was wrong until I saw the body," I said, keeping my gaze on the table in front of me. "I had nothing to do
LINC - I didn't remember him doing it. Cast didn't remember either. Even Lila, shaking and pale, said she had no recollection of the bite. Yet, as we sat there on the bed in the pool house, trying to piece it all together, his mark stood out darker than mine. It wasn't subtle. It wasn't something we could brush off. We all sat there, unable to articulate the emotions bouncing heavily between us. Between the three of us. She was caught in the middle, her entire body shaking. One hand was pressed to the mark on her neck, the other resting over her stomach. I sat on one side of her, Cast on the other, and we both touched her in the same way. A hand on her knee, the other on her back, trying to steady her, or maybe ourselves. She shifted between us restlessly, leaning against me for a moment, then to him. Her breathing was uneven, and I couldn't stop running my fingers lightly over her skin, trying to calm her. Cast and I didn't look at each other. We couldn't. We didn't need to.
CAST -I wasn't sure why it happened. Why Linc let it happen. Why any of us did. It was like the moment had taken on a life of its own, and we were just caught in its current. She had crumbled onto the floor, overwhelmed by how we were acting. I couldn't leave her there. I bent down and scooped her up, her body slack against me, and something in the way she folded into my arms shattered the last of my restraint.Her lips were right there, and I didn't think before kissing her. It wasn't soft or cautious. It was the kind of kiss that demanded more. Her lips pressed back against mine, but then she broke away, looking toward Linc. He was already behind her, his hands resting on her sides, his fingers dragging in slow, deliberate patterns on her growing belly. She looked caught between us, her breaths uneven as her eyes darted back to me. She was about to panic."You need us both, don't you? Just… just let it happen." My lips brushed hers again, desperate to pull her back to me.Her att
Declan’s breathing finally evened out, his tiny body curling against me in complete trust. I placed him back in his crib, smoothing the blanket over him as gently as I could. The nursery quieted again, leaving just the soft hum of the baby monitor in the corner.I turned to CeCe, still sitting on the floor near the crib. Her hands rested in her lap, and her focus stayed on Declan. “He’s fine now. You should go back to your room and get some sleep.”She hesitated, biting her lip. “Helena’s in there… busy.”I raised a brow. “Busy?”She shifted awkwardly. “With her boyfriend. I don’t really want to walk in on that.”I crossed my arms, leaning back against the edge of the crib. “Are they being safe?”“As best they can,” she admitted, looking at her hands. “The healers won’t exactly help with that kind of thing. It’s… hard to get what we need.”“That’s just the old traditions still lingering,” I explained. “The healers were scared of the old alpha and stuck to whatever rules kept them out
LINC - Her skin was soft and smooth beneath my hands as I traced the curves of her body. I felt the goosebumps rise on her skin as I kissed her neck. The way she responded to my touch left no doubt. She wanted me as much as I wanted her. We fit together perfectly. My fingers slid over her back, savoring the warmth radiating from her. She leaned into me, her breath feathering against my neck as I pulled her closer. Her hands roamed, exploring me in ways that made everything else dissolve into nothingness. The sound of her heartbeat thrummed against my chest, grounding me in the moment, in her. My mouth moved over her skin, tasting every inch. She arched under me, her body soft and eager. I pulled back just enough to look at her, but the shadows covered her face. "I need you," I murmured, letting my lips find hers again. The kiss built into something that made us feel endless. Like our bodies could melt together and become one. My body moved against hers as I growled against her
LILA - The knock startled me. My body stiffened as I clung to the remnants of composure, the ache in my chest almost unbearable. Cast turned off the shower and stepped out, grabbing a towel. I watched him wrap it around himself and head for the door. He seemed far too calm for this. "I've got it," he said, glancing back briefly.I didn't respond. The nausea still twisted in my stomach, and the bond with Linc burned at the edges of my mind, an unwelcome intrusion that wouldn't stop.Cast opened the door, sticking his head out just enough to block whoever it was from seeing inside. "I just finished showering, and Lila's getting cleaned up now. She threw up all over both of us," he explained, his voice casual like it wasn't a blatant lie. "I'll be out in a minute."I froze, heat flushing through me. Not from embarrassment but from pure fury.Before I could think twice, I grabbed a towel and stepped out of the shower, forcing down the bile rising in my throat. The lie was too much, and
CAST -The night stretched endlessly, each tick of the clock reminding me I wasn't going to sleep anytime soon. Tessa had adjusted my meds earlier in the week, upping the dosage just enough to screw with me. It wasn't the first night I'd spent like this, wide awake while the rest of the pack slept. It was starting to wear me thin.Kat, on the other hand, was out cold. Her body rested against mine, curled into my chest like she couldn't get close enough. The warmth of her breath skimmed my skin, steady and soft, the kind of rhythm that should've been calming. I trailed my hand over her back, tracing idle patterns out of habit more than intent.The room we were in wasn't really ours. It belonged to Lila, and she had Declan here, then briefly to me when I didn't have anywhere else to go. Now it was just "the extra," a placeholder no one had claimed outright. Yet, it was starting to feel like ours. Our stuff was scattered across the dresser and floor, the bed smelled like her shampoo, an
LINC - The road stretched ahead, cutting through familiar territory and leading us toward the human city. My eyes darted to the rearview mirror more often than I wanted to admit. Cast and Kat sat in the backseat, wrapped up in their own little bubble.Cast had her pulled against him, whispering something that made her shoulders shake with quiet laughter. Their heads tilted together, foreheads brushing occasionally, like they couldn't bear the thought of any distance.I told myself to be happy for them. They deserved it, after everything. But no matter how hard I tried, the sight made something twist inside me.Lila sat beside me, her hand resting lightly in mine, but it might as well have been someone else's hand for all the connection I felt. Her grip barely registered, her fingers slack against mine. She wasn't even pretending to care about the passing scenery. Her eyes stayed fixed on the window, distant and unfocused.I could feel the anxiety radiating from her, though she tried
LILA - Linc returned hours later without anything other than more exhaustion and cuts and bruises all over his body. He'd tracked over the entire property inch by inch and could not find Pheobe's scent anywhere else but in the nursery. It was unnerving, to say the least. The house felt different tonight. I moved down the hallway, trying to settle my breathing, trying to put the pieces together. Phoebe's scent, that unmistakable presence, was still here, still staining everything with questions. And I had to get to the bottom of it before it shattered the fragile ground Linc and I were walking on.The girl who smelled like Phoebe had been with Declan earlier, changing his diaper. Feeding him, burping him, and her hands all over him all day. She'd been in that nursery all afternoon. She'd never left, according to multiple people. I walked into the room where we'd confined her. I wouldn't allow them to keep her in the cold basement. She looked up, startled, and I could see her anxiet
LINC - Phoebe's scent hit me hard, sharper, and more potent than ever before. It nearly dropped me where I stood, my wolf surging to the surface in chaotic waves. It rooted itself in my instincts and refused to let go. My entire body reacted violently, muscles tensing as my wolf clawed for control. I wanted to fight it, to reject every maddening urge it awakened, but the instincts were overwhelming. All I could think about was the need to hunt, to claim, to dominate. I hated all of it.The basement air carried the acrid tang of lingering shifts. The full moon always left its mark, draining energy from our bodies and our minds. I didn't want Lila away from me during the shift, but the plan had been the safest for everyone. She'd stayed upstairs with Declan while Cast and I had been confined below, locked in the reinforced cells to ensure no one else bore the brunt of our transformations.As my limbs ached from the shift, the exhaustion was intense. Knowing Declan was safe upstairs h