SHADOW “Stay with Zarah. I’ll be right back.” Califf kissed my lips. “I’m going to avail a castle restroom.” I rolled my eyes. “Careful with those faes.” “They should be careful with you.” He kissed me again before he let me go. I went to Zarah and Aira when the announcement echoed. She was right. There was definitely a gladiator-type brawl after the dinner. Sebastien had to prove to me he was a total asshole. “Where’s Alpha?” “He went to the restroom.” Zarah’s brows furrowed. “Are you sure?” “Yeah. He said it. Why?” Should I doubt his words? I didn’t think he would lie to me. “I hope I’m wrong. Let’s go. We have a box seat next to the Alpha King.” The lights went on at the battleground. My father was in the front row, but Alexander wasn’t around. Zarah, Aria, and I were on the second and an empty seat for Califf. I would have loved to watch these creatures as they fought for their lives, but I didn’t enjoy watching someone get brutally murdered before my eyes because this
CALIFF “Baby, can we talk?” She shut me out completely. After that fight, she wouldn’t even look at me. She showed up one minute for the after-party to show her support to her mate, then went to see her grandfather. That was twenty-four hours ago. She slid up the window shield of the private jet to ignore me. She had been successful so far. Zarah and Aira gave us time to talk while Zack and Lyon grabbed a drink at the back. “Baby, please. It’s been a day. Just talk to me, yell at me, curse me, hurt me. Just let it out, but I need you.” Her head turned to me in slow motion with eyes filled with rage, glowing. “Yell at you, hurt you? That’s not enough, asshole! Do you know what you did to me when you went to fight? You killed me over and over again! I thought my mate would die there, so hurting you wouldn’t be enough of what you put me through. What the fuck were you thinking?” At least she was talking to me. I took all her anger. I would be fine, but shutting me out? It fucking h
SHADOW “You need time to yourself. Even a CEO of a big company needs a break.” “What do you think I am doing?” I recoated my eyelashes and picked up my clutch. “So where are we going? Which club?” “A newly opened. Howl Avenue.” Aira was a petite witch with Asian roots, and no one would ever think she was. She was also kind, and her shiny, straight-back hair made me envious. “Let me guess. It’s filled with fangs and claws.” “And among others.” “Let’s go then.” “I thought you two were not done. Kindra is already here.” Zarah inspected me from head to toe. “You’re going to be in so much trouble, Luna. Alpha is going to be so pissed, but I’ll make sure to send him a selfie.” “That’s the whole point.” I chuckled. “You, witch. Too much skin?” “Perfect, dear.” The dress had a draped neckline. The back cut was low, almost down my butt, with criss-cross straps and asymmetric hem. “We’re going to a nightclub, not a funeral. It’s perfect.” I looked over her shoulder. “Kin, glad Duke
CALIFF “What?” I ignored the pang in my chest at how she answered my call. I understood she hadn’t forgiven me, but it was hard to bear being away from her. “Baby, I need you here.” “I was there until this afternoon, Califf.” I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. “I know, baby, but it’s been a week. Your responsibility is not only for the pack but also for me as my mate. I need you, please. My wolf needs you.” “Do you think it’s been easy for me? I hope this teaches you a lesson, Califf. I’d rather watch you from afar than watch you die because you think you need to save me. I don’t want you to do something reckless on my account. Your pack needs you more than they need me.” “Everyone needs us, Shadow, especially me. Please, come back. I barely slept at night for the past week. When you came here, you barely talked to me. You barely looked at me. What do you want me to do for you to come back?” “Time. I need time.” “Then that might be a problem?” “Why is that?” I could hear t
SHADOW “I’m so sorry for your loss. Your loss is mine, as well.” I squeezed the hands of John’s parents. “Thank you, Alpha. Make sure my son gets the justice he deserves.” The mother had been sobbing since the funeral service. “He will. We will not stop until we find who did this.” We all gathered at the cliff with our candles lit up under the moon. Califf shifted to wolf form and howled to express our losses. I felt his pain. I knew he felt responsible. He always did. This pack meant everything to him. This was family. Anything happened to everyone, and it was all his responsibility. I assisted him in putting his robe on as he shifted back, and he said, “May you rest in peace, John.” He looked at everyone. “I know we still are going through trying times. We just lost a good kid. Let this be a lesson for all of us that the enemy could attack us anytime. Be vigilant. And I swear to Moon Goddess, whoever did this, I will make him or them pay. That was their biggest mistake, and I
SHADOW Before Califf and I went down for dinner with some members, he fucked me first. I let him. He had been under a lot of stress lately. Maybe a little fun would help ease the tension in his muscles. As he pinned my hands behind my back, he took me hard and slow. My body was on fire. For more than a week, we hadn’t slept together. At that moment, all I could think was to get lost in our little world before facing the threats around us. Every time I was almost over the edge, he pulled back. He certainly knew how to drive me crazy, making my wolf restless. “Damn it, Califf! If you don’t want to make me come. Get off of me. Or I swear I will kick you in your crotch and finger myself.” He chuckled as he rubbed my spine. It felt good, but I wanted more than good. “A little impatient, aren’t we?” “A little dick right now, aren’t you?” I looked over my shoulder. My eyes glowed. “We both know my dick is a lot of things, but little is not one of them.” He thrust into me, slow and ste
CALIFF “What’s this?” She was surprised to see a blanket spread on the grass under the tree with pillows, a basket of food, and a bottle of wine. “I wasn’t sure if you like the setup. I wanted to take you out on a dinner date, but with the situation in our pack—” “Stop.” She cupped my face and looked me in the eye. “This is beautiful, Califf. The restaurant is overrated, anyway. I love this. Thank you.” I sighed as I pressed my lips against her. “I’ll make it up to you.” “This is you making up to me. Can we sit down now?” “Yeah.” I chuckled, taking her hand as she took off her sneakers. “If I knew we were going on a date, I could have worn a pretty sundress, at least.” “You’re beautiful in your shirt and shorts, Shadow. You might not need those clothes later, anyway?” Her smile turned sultry. Her eyes glittered in anticipation. “Is that a promise?” “You sound like I don’t give you what you want.” I sat next to her, my arm on her thigh as I leaned to kiss her on the neck. “I
SHADOWJust after those explosions, I instantly felt everyone’s fear thickened in the air, probably mine too. I wasn’t used to fighting with other wolves to death, but those explosions and the packs of werewolves walking into the compound left me no choice but to defend ourselves.“They’re here.” Just as I announced, the enforcers shifted to their wolves, leaving me and Califf, Duke, and Lyon still standing in human form.As we marched, the two guards opened the gate for us, taking the fight outside. Our remaining six enforcers followed behind us while Lyon and Duke were on our sides.Close to the trees, I caught sight of at least four vehicles parked with large numbers of members standing tall beside Keane, crossing his arms over his chest and showing us what he got.“He’s trying to intimidate us.” I couldn’t help but snort at the ridiculousness of the number of shifters he brought with him against us.“Ten against thirty or forty? I like the odds,” Califf said. His body vibrated wit