Cassie.The faint sound of furniture being moved greeted me as Axel raised a brow, curiosity etched across his face. His features were calm, yet there was a sharpness in his eyes that unsettled me. He gestured toward the apartment, his broad shoulders brushing past me as he stepped ahead. I followed silently, feeling my chest tighten with every step.When we reached the apartment, the door was already ajar, and inside, men were working diligently, shifting furniture and unpacking boxes. I paused in the doorway, taken aback by the sheer size of the space. The white walls glistened, reflecting the soft rays of sunlight that poured through the open windows, making the whole apartment feel warm and inviting.It was far more spacious than I had anticipated, with high ceilings and polished wooden floors. For a moment, I allowed myself to admire it. But then, as if on cue, Axel’s presence loomed behind me like an unspoken reminder of everything I was trying to forget.“We can talk in the
Cassie."Hey, isn’t that the Alpha’s slut?" a sharp, mocking voice shattered my thoughts.I pulled my shawl a little tighter around my body, willing myself not to look over my shoulder as I walked back toward the pack house. My breaths came in sharp, shallow pulls, and I picked up my pace."Has she finally gone deaf?" a second voice sneered, and my steps faltered. But I quickly brushed it off, forcing myself to keep moving forward. After all, I was used to people talking about me behind my back. I shook my head, telling myself to ignore them—until someone rammed into me from behind, sending me stumbling forward. I gasped as I hit the ground.Looking up, I found two she-wolves standing over me, their eyes glinting with malice. They exchanged a glance, struggling to stifle their laughter. One of them, a red-haired, snorted, unable to hold it in any longer, and within seconds they both burst out laughing, their mocking voices filling the air."Oops, didn’t see you there, Cassie," the oth
Cassie.For a moment, I stood frozen, my mind spinning, unable to make sense of what I was seeing.I wished desperately that it was all a dream—that I’d wake up, with Cam nestled in his crib beside my bed, and realize it was just another one of those nightmares that had haunted me since our marriage began. But no matter how many times I blinked, the scene before me remained painfully, horribly real.My breath caught as Cam whimpered in my arms, the small cry pulling me back to reality, cementing the terrible truth: this was no dream. This was my life. And standing before me, entwined with my husband, was his true mate. The one person I’d feared he’d find since the moment I became his wife.Selena took a step forward, her eyes softening as she looked at Cam. She stretched out a hand, reaching as though to coo at him, but I instinctively shifted back, holding my son closer. Selena paused, her head tilting to one side in confusion.A faint frown appeared between her brows, but she quickl
Cassie. By the next morning, the whispers had spread throughout the pack estate like wildfire. News that Axel had found his mate traveled fast, and the estate buzzed with excitement. The murmurings of pack members as they gathered in the pack house, exchanging glances and barely whispered conversations made my stomach churn. “We finally have a Luna!” a wolf exclaimed, eyes wide with intrigue. “I hear she’s beautiful. No wonder Alpha was drawn to her at first glance,” another replied with a snicker. Forced to welcome the pack members, I clenched my fists, trying my best to remain positive and composed, but as I made my way through the house, I couldn’t help but feel the weight of everyone’s stares and the sting of their words in my chest. In the main living area, Axel was practically glowing, his eyes filled with adoration as he held Selena close. She was everything I wasn’t—confident, radiant, and utterly captivating. Selena laughed at something Axel said, the sound light
Cassie. Days turned into weeks, and the bullying I endured escalated to new heights, far worse than I could’ve ever imagined. Every corner of the pack estate felt foreign, and each encounter with a pack member was a fresh reminder of my failure to keep Axel’s attention. Whispers trailed behind me like shadows, relentless and cold. The pack members looked at me with contempt, as if I were nothing more than a stain on their proud alpha’s life. “Look at her,” one she-wolf sneered as I passed by one day, “The discarded wife, all alone.” “She should be grateful Alpha hasn’t thrown her out yet,” another chimed in, laughing, “But we all know it’s just a matter of time until that happens.” In the midst of it all, Axel’s demand the night before made it difficult for me to sleep. “Make sure to let Selena get close to Cam; he needs to get used to her,” he’d said without so much as looking up from the document on the table before him. I had agreed, believing that perhaps Selena was genu
Cassie. I came to find out Selena really meant every word of her threat two days later. New rumors circulated the pack, where the pack members claimed I was so desperate, so jealous of Selena, that I stooped low enough to use my own son as bait to seduce Axel. They said I was nothing but shameless and if I really thought that if not for my seduction, Axel would ever look my way or pay me any of his precious attention. I forced myself to stay calm, to keep my head high as I heard the new rumors because I knew where they came from, and I was also used to lies being told about me to worry myself about them. If anything, I was only happy that Cam was not grown enough to understand what was being said about me. But no matter how much I ignored it, the rumors kept coming. The next day, as I took Cam out for a morning stroll, I noticed the whispers had only grown louder. This time, they hit harder, cutting deeper. “You know, seeing as Alpha doesn’t like her, I doubt that child is Hi
Cassie. "How dare you speak to me in that manner?" Axel rose from his desk, eyes full of hate as he approached me. His expression was so cold, so filled with disdain, that it almost made me falter. Almost. But I couldn't allow myself to back down now. "If you and your mate want me out of the pack so badly, then fine. I'll take my son and leave," I said, my voice shaking but firm, "perhaps you believe the rumors too, that Cam isn't your son." In an instant, Axel closed the distance between us with a speed that made my pulse race, his hand gripping my arm hard. “What the fuck do you mean by that?" he asked, his tone sharp. His face was so close to mine. It was the first time since that one night we'd shared that he'd allowed himself to be this close. For a little moment, I almost let myself remember it –the way he'd looked at me back then, the gentleness in his touch. But I forced myself to focus, shaking away the thought. "I mean exactly what I said," I replied, ba
Cassie.The morning sun was soft but unforgiving. I sat on the edge of my bed, holding Cam close as he drifted back to sleep after his early morning feed. Watching his peaceful little face felt like torture because all I could think of was how I’d failed him—how I’d stayed here too long, long enough for his life to be threatened in such a manner. I traced a finger along his tiny cheek, his skin so soft, so pure.Gently, I put him down in his cot and moved to the small vanity mirror, staring at my tattered reflection. I looked a mess, and I sure felt like it.My hand drifted to the bruises Selena left on me that night, her words still echoing in my mind like poison."Forty-eight hours. That’s all you get. If I so much as see you in this pack after forty-eight hours, I don’t know what’ll happen to that bastard son of yours.”There’d been no mistaking the hate in her eyes. I couldn’t unsee it, and I couldn’t unhear those words. She meant every bit of her threat. She was relentless. And
Cassie.The faint sound of furniture being moved greeted me as Axel raised a brow, curiosity etched across his face. His features were calm, yet there was a sharpness in his eyes that unsettled me. He gestured toward the apartment, his broad shoulders brushing past me as he stepped ahead. I followed silently, feeling my chest tighten with every step.When we reached the apartment, the door was already ajar, and inside, men were working diligently, shifting furniture and unpacking boxes. I paused in the doorway, taken aback by the sheer size of the space. The white walls glistened, reflecting the soft rays of sunlight that poured through the open windows, making the whole apartment feel warm and inviting.It was far more spacious than I had anticipated, with high ceilings and polished wooden floors. For a moment, I allowed myself to admire it. But then, as if on cue, Axel’s presence loomed behind me like an unspoken reminder of everything I was trying to forget.“We can talk in the
Axel.The moment the elevator doors slid open, I felt a spark of irritation that shot straight through my chest. Cassie was standing next to Jake, her petite frame dwarfed by his tall, broad stature. Her face tilted up toward me, confusion clouding those brown doe-like eyes of hers.And indifference. There was a damn trace of indifference in her expression, like she couldn’t care less about my presence.That look was enough to make my jaw clench, and my wolf, Ice, stirred in my mind.“Pull her away. Mark her,” he snarled, his voice raw and demanding, “Let them all know she’s ours.”I shook my head, keeping my expression neutral even as Ice’s growls rattled my brain. “Not now,” I told him firmly.“Then when, Axel?” Ice snapped, “She’s right there, and I can smell Jake all over her!”Ice’s possessiveness clawed at me, but I shut him out before his anger spilled into mine. I couldn’t deal with his relentless growling and Cassie’s infuriating presence at the same time.Still, my eyes c
Cassie.I woke up for the second time to a gentle tapping on my shoulder, a sound soft but persistent enough to drag me out of the sleep I hadn’t realized had claimed me. My head jerked up, and I blinked, trying to organize myself, and my thoughts. The living room came into focus—the same one I’d reluctantly stepped into last night. My suitcase was still where Axel had left it.A sigh escaped my lips and I closed my eyes again, too tired to deal with anything.The tapping came again, and I turned my head to find a young girl standing beside the couch. She looked to be in her late teens, with dark hair tied into a loose braid and eyes that mirrored curiosity.“Who are you?” she asked her voice light but laced with caution.I froze, startled by the unfamiliar face. My mind jumped to conclusions—ones that made my stomach churn. Was she… Axel’s?I gasped, sitting upright. “Are you—are you married to Axel?” The question tumbled out before I could stop myself, and the girl’s brows shot up
Cassie.Axel’s study felt suffocating, the heavy scent of mahogany and scotch pressing against me like a hand pressed against my neck. My fists clenched at my sides as I stood in the doorway, trying to calm the storm inside me. What had I been thinking, coming back to this place? Coming back with him?I knew it was a mistake, and I should’ve resisted even if it cost me my life.Maybe a part of me—no, a foolish, desperate part of me—had hoped things would be different now. That being Axel’s mate might mean something. That it might mean I meant something to him. But that hope had been crushed the moment I overheard him say that no one could know I was his mate. I was nothing to him. Just like always, and not even being his mate could change thatThe realization burned, but it also solidified my resolve. I couldn’t stay here, not with him. Not like this.I stepped fully into the room, clearing my throat to announce my presence. Three pairs of eyes turned to me: Axel’s, sharp and unread
Cassie.The pack house stood before me like a dark reminder of everything I’d fought to leave behind. My feet stayed glued to the ground as my heart hammered wildly in my chest. Through the large windows, I could see my suitcase sitting in the far corner of the living room where Axel had left it. It looked so small and out of place—just like I felt standing outside, unable to go in.Axel had vanished with Warren and Jake into the pack house after my rather rude inquiry. And now it was just me, alone in the biting cold of the night, staring at the place that had been my hell for so many years.The living room looked just as I remembered it—almost too much the same. Sure, the couches were newer, and the center table wasn’t the old scratched one from before. But the walls, the scent, the energy—it was all the same. Too familiar. Too suffocating.I swallowed the lump forming in my throat and took a shaky step toward the door. My fingers grazed the frame, but I froze, unable to go further
Cassie.A light tap on my shoulder pulled me from the haze of sleep. I blinked, adjusting to the darkened surroundings, and met Axel’s piercing gaze. His voice, low and steady, broke through the silence of the night. “We’re here.”The weight of those two words sank in like an anchor. My chest tightened as I processed them. I was in Red Hollow pack.It had been dark for hours now, but the night only seemed heavier as we arrived. I sat upright, peering out of the window at the all-too-familiar pack grounds. Even under the moonlight, every detail stood out like a haunting memory—the tree line at the edge of the estate walls, the distinct shadows of the pack buildings. My stomach twisted.I had spent three years running, clawing my way out of the pain and darkness this place had buried me in. Three years trying to build a life for myself, free from the ridicule and hate of this pack. And now, I was right back where I started.Cy stirred in my mind, her voice soft but maddeningly smug.
Cassie.The suitcase felt heavier in my hand than it should have, but I knew the real weight wasn’t in my suitcase. It was in the decision I’d just made—or, rather, the decision that had been made for me.I hated it.I hated that I had no choice but to follow him. I hated that even as I considered running, my own mind betrayed me with the reality that Axel would find me. Running would only make it worse.When I reached the car, the sight of Axel froze me in place. He was leaning against the sleek black SUV, arms folded across his broad chest, one boot crossed over the other. His head was tilted down, a strand of dark hair falling into his face as if he didn’t have a single care in the world.Even from here, I could see how the black tee clung to his shoulders, outlining every sharp, defined muscle. My throat went dry, and I cursed myself for noticing.“This is the same man who destroyed you, Cassie,” I had to remind myself under a muffled breath.Axel looked up then, and the intensity
Axel.Cassie stared up at me, the expression in her doe, brown eyes, unreadable, though I could sense the war raging inside her. Her hand hovered over the car door handle, trembling ever so slightly before falling back into her lap, the long extension of her braids moving with her.She parted her lips, ready to argue, but I didn’t give her the chance. “There’s no debate here, Cassie,” I said firmly. “You’re coming with me.”Her lips pressed together, her gaze narrowing slightly as if she were weighing her options. After what felt like an eternity, she shook her head, her voice soft but firm. “I appreciate you saving me back there, Axel, but I can’t return to Red Hollow. I won’t.”Her words ignited a flicker of anger inside me. Did she even understand how close she’d come to death?“Do you have any idea what just happened to you?” My voice was sharp, cutting through the tense silence between us. “If I’d been a second late, Damon would’ve dragged you off and killed you. Right now, y
Cassie.Shock filled me, rooting me to the ground. My heart raced so fast I thought it might explode. Damon and Axel stood locked in a battle of stares, each exuding dominance, the tension between them sharp enough to cut through steel.Damon’s fury was evident in his clenched jaw, but Axel’s face was calm—a dangerous kind of calm. It wasn’t the absence of emotion but a silent warning that made the air between them feel heavy and suffocating.“Mate!” Cy’s voice roared in my mind, snapping me out of my shock.“Come here, Cassie.” Axel’s deep, commanding voice sent shivers down my spine.My feet moved instinctively toward him, even as my mind screamed in protest. Every cell in my body knew it was safer to be with Axel than to remain in Damon’s grasp. But before I could close the distance, Damon shifted in front of me, blocking my path.“I saw her first, Axel,” Damon growled, his voice sharp with defiance. “I’m not letting you take my kill even if you’re the one who proposed the bill.”