Dorian POVShe looked at me with those wide, haunted eyes - and for a second, I forgot how to breathe.Not because she was beautiful. She was, in a quiet, understated way. But because of what I felt.The moment her wolf stirred, even briefly, the bond between her and that buried part of herself sent a ripple through the very air around her.And my wolf - Kael - responded like someone had struck a match."There she is", Kael growled deep inside my mind. "Faint... but there."I held still, watching Tessa as she blinked and tried to make sense of what she'd felt. Her lips parted, her breath quick and shaky, her fingers curling slightly like she was afraid the feeling might vanish.She had no idea how strong she truly was. Or how broken."She's not whole.""I know.""But she could be. With time."I didn’t answer right away. I wasn’t ready to admit what was clawing through me.It wasn’t just protectiveness. I’d felt that before - for packmates, for warriors, for Elara. This was different.
The moonlight sliced through the tall arched windows like silver knives.I blinked up at the ceiling, my heart thrumming in my chest for reasons I couldn’t name.I hadn’t had a nightmare.But something had stirred me from sleep - something inside.It was like a faint echo in the back of my mind. A soft scratching sound, as if my wolf was trying to rise from a deep sleep and didn’t quite remember how.I sat up slowly, pressing a palm to my abdomen. My ribs still ached, but not like before. They were healing.I was healing.Silence wrapped around me like a second skin. My throat was dry.Swinging my legs out of bed, I padded across the room barefoot, pulling the soft blanket from the foot of the bed around my shoulders. I moved on instinct - down the stone steps, past the dim sconces lining the hall.The kitchen was quiet. Large. More elegant than I’d expected for a pack house. I found a glass, filled it with water, and took small sips as I leaned against the counter.That’s when I hear
Dorian POVThe cold air bit through the training grounds before sunrise, the sky still ink-dark and silent. Perfect. No distractions. No softness.Only the hard edge of discipline.I stood at the top of the ridge overlooking the sparring rings, arms crossed as my warriors assembled below. My Beta, Rylan, barked orders like gunshots. My Gamma, Victor, walked the lines with a blade in hand - not to use, just to remind them what was at stake.They respected me.Feared me, some of them. Good. Fear kept a blade sharp. Respect kept it from turning on its wielder.Rylan met my gaze, nodding once. He didn’t need words. None of them did. That’s how I trained them - silent understanding, unity built in blood and repetition. We weren’t a pack of pampered nobles sipping wine and waxing on about diplomacy. We were wolves. Soldiers. Survivors.“Start with full-shift combat,” I called, voice cutting through the morning like steel through silk. “I want three rotations before first light. No healing un
Dorian POVThe phone was still in my hand. I stared at the screen - blocked number, encrypted signal. Cowards.Alpha Caden of Silver Creek thought he could end the conversation on his terms.He was wrong.I moved to my desk, pulled the encrypted satellite cell from the drawer. Only a few had the code to use it - Silver Creek was one of them. My thumb hovered over the dial, and I let my wolf rise just beneath the surface, coiled and ready.“Don’t,” Victor said quietly from behind me. “Let it go for now.”I ignored him.Rylan didn’t say anything. He just crossed his arms, watching with that hard look that said he’d back whatever decision I made, even if it was stupid. Even if it was war.I hit the number. It rang once. Twice. Then silence.Finally, a click.“Alpha Dorian.” Caden’s voice came through, smug, oily, confident. “I wasn’t expecting a call back so soon.”“Then you’re even dumber than I thought.”Silence. I let it stretch. Let it build.He broke it. “I gave you a warning. The g
Tessa POV There was someone outside my door.I felt it before I heard it - an energy, heavy and sharp, pressing against the other side like a storm trying not to break. My breath caught. I set the book down slowly, listening.No knock. No voice. Just... presence.My heart picked up its pace.Dorian.It couldn’t be anyone else. No one else moved like that. Carried that much weight in their silence.I stood from the armchair, the blanket slipping from my lap to the floor. My bare feet made no sound on the stone, but I felt the cool bite of it, grounding me. I reached for the door - then stopped with my hand hovering just above the handle.Why wasn’t he knocking?Why did it feel like the air was trembling?I leaned in slightly, and my wolf stirred, uneasy. She didn’t feel threatened. But she was... alert. Listening. Cautious.And still, I opened the door. Slowly. Carefully. He didn’t move.Dorian stood there, one hand braced against the doorframe, head lowered, eyes closed. But even lik
Dorian POVThe moment she opened the door, I knew I was on the edge.One look at me, and her breath hitched - eyes locked on mine, pupils wide, lips parted. I saw the flicker of fear. Not of me… not really. But of the weight I was dragging behind me. Fury. Bloodlust. Control held on a fraying leash.My wolf surged forward when he saw her. Not just with desire. With need. With obsession. With rage that the bastards from Silver Creek still dared to speak her name like she was a possession they’d lost instead of a soul they broke.“I needed to see you,” I said, the words scraping up my throat.“I know.”That whisper… gods. It almost snapped me in half.I turned and walked away before I did something stupid. Like fall to my knees in front of her. Like kiss her like she already belonged to me.Because she didn’t. Not yet.But she would. There is no other way. I ran until the forest swallowed me whole.Until the trees blurred into streaks of shadow and bark. Until the cold air bit into my
Tessa POVThe wind carried a hint of warmth through the trees, teasing the edge of spring, though the forest still held onto winter's chill. Sunlight filtered down through the bare branches, casting broken shadows on the path as I walked alongside Isla.“I still can’t believe you’ve never tried pine tea,” Elara said, tugging a scarf tighter around her neck as we moved toward a small clearing. “It’s like drinking the forest.”I smiled, amused by her excitement. “Does it taste like bark?”She wrinkled her nose. “A little. But in a cozy, earthy way. You’ll see.”This was the first time I’d spent real time with Dorian’s sister. She was… disarming. Gentle but whip-smart. Talkative, but never overbearing. The opposite of what I expected from the sister of a man like him. And yet, somehow, I could see the resemblance - in the eyes. The way she looked at you like she saw more than you wanted her to.We reached the clearing where a fire pit waited, half-buried in frost. Elara crouched and bega
Dorian POV The first pulse of warning struck like a blade to my ribs. Intruders.Silver Creek wolves. Too many.I was already moving before the second mindlink hit - sharper, frantic."Dorian-" Elara’s voice, taut with urgency. "Tessa and I- north clearing -"A snarl ripped from my throat. My vision narrowed to the cold, moonlit forest stretching ahead. My muscles burned as I ran, my body teetering on the razor’s edge between control and primal instinct.Then I shifted. Bones snapped, realigned, muscle stretching in a violent surge of power. The pain barely registered. My wolf surged forward, his fury blending seamlessly with my own.Protect. Kill. Destroy."All warriors, to the north quadrant - now." My command slammed into my fighters through the pack bond, absolute and unyielding.The world blurred into streaks of dark and silver as I ran, weaving between thick pines, my claws digging into the frozen earth. The wind carried the metallic tang of blood - fresh, sharp. My own blood
When I woke again, the pain had dulled to a steady throb.The room around me was dimly lit, unfamiliar but not unwelcoming. The air smelled of earth and pine, with a faint trace of something burning - a fireplace, maybe. Soft blankets cocooned me, warm and comforting against the soreness in my limbs.But what struck me most was the quiet.For the first time since my shift, the chaos in my mind had settled. A presence lingered at the edges of my consciousness, not intrusive, but there.Waiting.Tentatively, I reached out, hesitantly brushing against the foreign yet familiar energy within me. A soft, amused voice echoed through my thoughts."You finally hear me."I sucked in a breath, my body stiffening.“Who… are you?” I whispered aloud, half-afraid of the answer.The presence stirred, warm and knowing. "I am you. And you are me. You may call me Sable." A shiver ran through me. My wolf.Sable.The name settled deep in my chest, a tether between us forming. A sense of quiet understandi
Tessa POVPain tore through me, sharp and relentless, pulling me under like a riptide. My limbs convulsed, muscles spasming as the shift forced itself upon me, dragging me from wolf to human with violent, unforgiving force.I couldn’t stop it.Couldn’t control it.Heat pulsed beneath my skin as fur retracted, vanishing as if it had never been there. My bones cracked, snapping into place, reshaping. My limbs thinned, my fingers stretching, clawing at the dirt beneath me as the weight of my body felt wrong - too light, too fragile.I gasped, lungs seizing, my chest tightening as exhaustion slammed into me. My vision blurred, the world tilting as I fought to stay upright.I was shaking. Trembling. My bare skin slick with sweat, feverish.A voice cut through the haze. Deep. Familiar.“Tessa.”I barely registered it.The ground beneath me felt unsteady, spinning, and my knees buckled before I could stop them.Then - warmth. Strength. Arms catching me before I hit the earth.Dorian.His sce
Dorian POV The first pulse of warning struck like a blade to my ribs. Intruders.Silver Creek wolves. Too many.I was already moving before the second mindlink hit - sharper, frantic."Dorian-" Elara’s voice, taut with urgency. "Tessa and I- north clearing -"A snarl ripped from my throat. My vision narrowed to the cold, moonlit forest stretching ahead. My muscles burned as I ran, my body teetering on the razor’s edge between control and primal instinct.Then I shifted. Bones snapped, realigned, muscle stretching in a violent surge of power. The pain barely registered. My wolf surged forward, his fury blending seamlessly with my own.Protect. Kill. Destroy."All warriors, to the north quadrant - now." My command slammed into my fighters through the pack bond, absolute and unyielding.The world blurred into streaks of dark and silver as I ran, weaving between thick pines, my claws digging into the frozen earth. The wind carried the metallic tang of blood - fresh, sharp. My own blood
Tessa POVThe wind carried a hint of warmth through the trees, teasing the edge of spring, though the forest still held onto winter's chill. Sunlight filtered down through the bare branches, casting broken shadows on the path as I walked alongside Isla.“I still can’t believe you’ve never tried pine tea,” Elara said, tugging a scarf tighter around her neck as we moved toward a small clearing. “It’s like drinking the forest.”I smiled, amused by her excitement. “Does it taste like bark?”She wrinkled her nose. “A little. But in a cozy, earthy way. You’ll see.”This was the first time I’d spent real time with Dorian’s sister. She was… disarming. Gentle but whip-smart. Talkative, but never overbearing. The opposite of what I expected from the sister of a man like him. And yet, somehow, I could see the resemblance - in the eyes. The way she looked at you like she saw more than you wanted her to.We reached the clearing where a fire pit waited, half-buried in frost. Elara crouched and bega
Dorian POVThe moment she opened the door, I knew I was on the edge.One look at me, and her breath hitched - eyes locked on mine, pupils wide, lips parted. I saw the flicker of fear. Not of me… not really. But of the weight I was dragging behind me. Fury. Bloodlust. Control held on a fraying leash.My wolf surged forward when he saw her. Not just with desire. With need. With obsession. With rage that the bastards from Silver Creek still dared to speak her name like she was a possession they’d lost instead of a soul they broke.“I needed to see you,” I said, the words scraping up my throat.“I know.”That whisper… gods. It almost snapped me in half.I turned and walked away before I did something stupid. Like fall to my knees in front of her. Like kiss her like she already belonged to me.Because she didn’t. Not yet.But she would. There is no other way. I ran until the forest swallowed me whole.Until the trees blurred into streaks of shadow and bark. Until the cold air bit into my
Tessa POV There was someone outside my door.I felt it before I heard it - an energy, heavy and sharp, pressing against the other side like a storm trying not to break. My breath caught. I set the book down slowly, listening.No knock. No voice. Just... presence.My heart picked up its pace.Dorian.It couldn’t be anyone else. No one else moved like that. Carried that much weight in their silence.I stood from the armchair, the blanket slipping from my lap to the floor. My bare feet made no sound on the stone, but I felt the cool bite of it, grounding me. I reached for the door - then stopped with my hand hovering just above the handle.Why wasn’t he knocking?Why did it feel like the air was trembling?I leaned in slightly, and my wolf stirred, uneasy. She didn’t feel threatened. But she was... alert. Listening. Cautious.And still, I opened the door. Slowly. Carefully. He didn’t move.Dorian stood there, one hand braced against the doorframe, head lowered, eyes closed. But even lik
Dorian POVThe phone was still in my hand. I stared at the screen - blocked number, encrypted signal. Cowards.Alpha Caden of Silver Creek thought he could end the conversation on his terms.He was wrong.I moved to my desk, pulled the encrypted satellite cell from the drawer. Only a few had the code to use it - Silver Creek was one of them. My thumb hovered over the dial, and I let my wolf rise just beneath the surface, coiled and ready.“Don’t,” Victor said quietly from behind me. “Let it go for now.”I ignored him.Rylan didn’t say anything. He just crossed his arms, watching with that hard look that said he’d back whatever decision I made, even if it was stupid. Even if it was war.I hit the number. It rang once. Twice. Then silence.Finally, a click.“Alpha Dorian.” Caden’s voice came through, smug, oily, confident. “I wasn’t expecting a call back so soon.”“Then you’re even dumber than I thought.”Silence. I let it stretch. Let it build.He broke it. “I gave you a warning. The g
Dorian POVThe cold air bit through the training grounds before sunrise, the sky still ink-dark and silent. Perfect. No distractions. No softness.Only the hard edge of discipline.I stood at the top of the ridge overlooking the sparring rings, arms crossed as my warriors assembled below. My Beta, Rylan, barked orders like gunshots. My Gamma, Victor, walked the lines with a blade in hand - not to use, just to remind them what was at stake.They respected me.Feared me, some of them. Good. Fear kept a blade sharp. Respect kept it from turning on its wielder.Rylan met my gaze, nodding once. He didn’t need words. None of them did. That’s how I trained them - silent understanding, unity built in blood and repetition. We weren’t a pack of pampered nobles sipping wine and waxing on about diplomacy. We were wolves. Soldiers. Survivors.“Start with full-shift combat,” I called, voice cutting through the morning like steel through silk. “I want three rotations before first light. No healing un
The moonlight sliced through the tall arched windows like silver knives.I blinked up at the ceiling, my heart thrumming in my chest for reasons I couldn’t name.I hadn’t had a nightmare.But something had stirred me from sleep - something inside.It was like a faint echo in the back of my mind. A soft scratching sound, as if my wolf was trying to rise from a deep sleep and didn’t quite remember how.I sat up slowly, pressing a palm to my abdomen. My ribs still ached, but not like before. They were healing.I was healing.Silence wrapped around me like a second skin. My throat was dry.Swinging my legs out of bed, I padded across the room barefoot, pulling the soft blanket from the foot of the bed around my shoulders. I moved on instinct - down the stone steps, past the dim sconces lining the hall.The kitchen was quiet. Large. More elegant than I’d expected for a pack house. I found a glass, filled it with water, and took small sips as I leaned against the counter.That’s when I hear