Kira
Staring directly into his eyes, I straddled his lap. I could feel the soft cushion of the white towel on his lap beneath me, and a few seconds later a pressure pushing back towards me from underneath.
I couldn’t explain why, but I knew that I was drawn to this man beyond even my own understanding. To be near him made breathing easier despite the butterflies, despite the deep pulsing at my core that I knew was an insatiable, carnal attraction to him.
I slid my arms around his neck, settling myself firmly on his legs, wrapping my own around his waist. I tried not to touch him at first, other than that. The proximity of our bodies and the smell of him made me slightly dizzy, but in an intoxicating way. I needed to steady myself. The orientation of what my body needed was clear, but I needed to take my time.
PerrinThe rest of the evening with Jaz was wonderful. Our waiter had let us know that members of the local press team were dealing with something at the front of the restaurant, so we slipped out through the kitchen into the twilight.I had phoned Charlie saying we’d be fine.Hand in hand, we had walked through the streets of the local town, hands clasped and whispering softly to each other.It truly was a beautiful evening, and surprisingly warm for March.We stopped to get gelato at a small ice cream parlor a block from Jaz’s apartment.I walked her to her door, where she promptly turned on her heel, gazing up into my eyes from beneath deep long lashes.
LeilaI walk around my father’s suite, clicking off the lights and dimming the room. My head was still reeling from that dinner with the Luna. It certainly wasn’t what I expected. She seemed… like a lush?I was scandalized even thinking it. The Luna always required the upmost respect, being mated to the Alpha. But Deidre was… well, on the outside, classy, formal, well-kept… certainly polished when you looked at how dark and brooding Alpha Jason could be. Her smile was form, her words oddly formal.But between the glasses of wine, her eyes had swiveled throughout the restaurant all night long. As though she was paying half attention to me, half to the world around us. Why had she really brought me along? And why was she probing so much about my mother? She seemed fixed on the fact that she wasn’t wit
Alpha JasonShredding the ground beneath our paws, Mark and I make quick progress to the location Janas had communicated over the phone.I mind-link with Mark.“Two minutes tops.”“Do you want me to join you or circle in from the east?”“Join me. Janas couldn’t tell from which director the scent came before he lost it. It won’t matter.”All eight legs pounding the forest floor, we reach Janas and the rest of the patrol quickly. Shifting back into our human forms, I dropped the small bag of clothing I had been holding in my mouth as we ran. Unpacking shorts, I quickly donned them as I gauged the scene before me.
JasmineIt was an incredible evening with Perrin. I felt like we finally had a chance to connect and relax and just… talk.Well, after we actually made it to the restaurant… I blush even at the thought.I had removed my makeup and was just getting ready for bed when my phone pings on my bed.Hoping it’s a good night text from Perrin, I’m sorely disappointed but altogether alarmed when I see that it’s an alert text from the Infirmary.APERTURE INFIRM: All yellow-level healers and above, please report immediately to the Infirmary. This is not a drill.What the hell?Yellow-level healers? That was me, but
LolaI’m not sure Jasmine’s and my training regimen includes Saturdays, but I figured it’s worth a shot.Waving a quick hello to Dina, I head to the back door of the kitchen, ready for the light jog on the lodge.Surprisingly, I’ve barely made it out of the door when my father appears in the doorway.He looks exhausted. There are deep circles under his eyes, and for a man with a pretty regular 5 o’clock shadow, the reality that he hasn’t shaved since the feast makes him look disheveled and slightly dangerous.I pull the earbud out of my ear.“Dad?”“Where are you going?” His voice was gravel.
PerrinDespite my quick pace, Lo matches me stride for stride. I have to admit that I’m impressed.We set off towards the lodge, regardless of the orders I had given to Seth over the phone. A few minutes in silence pass between us as we find our cadence and settle into our breathing. She’s faster than I imagined. It will be nice to get a real cardio workout in despite no official training hours. She breaks the quiet.“I’m sorry about my dad.”“Don’t be. I get it.”“You do?”“If someone I cared about was out alone given everything going on--”“Like Kira?”
Perrin“What do you mean, dangerous?”She decides to walk. I didn’t expect her to, but it’s clear the ease of our conversation has shifted.She’s avoiding my gaze and seemed preoccupied with her scrapes from the tumble. Half of them are healed already. I can tell that she’s stalling."Let's just get back to the packhouse, ok?"We turn and walk in silence for a few minutes."So, tell me what you and Ethan have been up to the last ten years.""That could take awhile.""We have a ways to walk."Jason
Perrin“Thanks for the company.”“No problem. I’m glad we got your dad off your back.”“I’m headed up for a shower.”We climb the steps into the packhouse. The lobby was full of people. With no trainings on a Saturday, people were socializing and making plans for the weekend. She gives me a grin and raises the pitch of her voice. “Catch you later for our date?”“Yes!” I confirm extra loudly in the lobby of the pack house. “See you at 6:00 p.m.”We had cleaned up Lo’s dried blood at the lodge before enjoying a leisurely walk back to the packhouse. We had gotten some decent mileage in so I was pretty much chec
EPILOGUEMarge shuffled through the archive, her shoes making the only sound in the quiet stone building, echoing all the same through the high vaulted ceiling of the church building above. She raised a gnarled hand to the shelf and deposited the book after two tries, her hands shaking slightly with the cold. There were only a few books to return tonight. Far fewer than there had been when Leila had been here.So why had she waited until this late in the evening to do it? She just shrugged and pushed on, the slow creaking of the cart’s wheels punctuating the silence, her old watch on her pale wrist noting the time; 1:45 a.m.She really had no business being there so late. But she had gotten caught up in one of her research projects, spread out across her circulation desk and totally lost in thought until the rumble of her empty sto
Perrin“How long is it going to take?”I sat on Lo’s bed as she shoved clothes into her suitcase. “Maybe a week? I’m not sure.”“Why don’t you just leave all of that stuff here?” I pointed at the suitcase. “It’s not like you’re not going to bring it back.”She heaved a heavy sigh, full of fake exasperation. “I still have to pack it to move it down the hall. It’s just easier if I do it all at once.”“Nah. Let’s just throw it all in some garbage bags and unpack later.”She laughed. “Hand me those shoes?”I strode over and picked a pair
Perrin “Because I never want to create a monster like my father.” Silence hung in the room. I digested each word, the implications of it. “But you’re not…” I said, more for myself than for her. “No, I’m not. He never got his hands on me. My little brother made sure of that.” And even though she spoke in a viscous, quipping way; there was a hint of something grateful in her tone. “So he won’t be anything like him!” I said, assuring myself more than anything. “Does it matter?” She snapped, regaining her typical composure. “If my father’s insane lust for power is hereditary, then it’s best that the blood line ends with me. At least my brother won’t be breeding any offspring considering he’s gay–” sh
Perrin I glanced at my phone, then at Lo. We had made love for several hours, refusing to stop until we had our fill of each other. But each time hadn’t felt like enough, leaving us drained and happy but wanting more. After one particularly hot session in the middle of my bed involving whipped cream, I pulled her close to me, blissfully peaceful with her cradled in my arms. I felt her stomach growl against my hands. And apparently hungry. I swept my mouth to her ear and felt her shiver against me, goosebumps appearing up and down her body. I fought the impulse to warm her with every inch of mine. “Do you want me to get you a snack?” I said, and waved the small can of whipped cream in front of her face so she could see. She hummed lazily in my
PerrinAnd it had happened like that.I recalled the broad strokes for my friends.“You what?” Ethan said, shocked and nearly angry. “You can’t make that kind of promise!”Justin shook his head sagely. “That’s free reign, Perrin. And a dangerous move, backing out of every challenge. It puts you at a huge disadvantage if anyone trespasses on your territory.”“Or attacks on your land,” Ethan said.“Or poses a border dispute,” said Kira.“How will you expand?” Ethan asked, c
PerrinI tried to cover the nail marks she had left on my shoulder with a spare set of scrubs from Deidre’s office. It was no use. The scrubs were too small, tugging comically at my shoulders and Lo’s pink cheeks and ruffled hair couldn’t be fixed.We had retreated long enough to ourselves, and I pulled us back into the world of the living and down the hall, walking hand in hand as we rejoined our friends.Ethan smirked when he saw us. “Nice.”Kira rolled her eyes, glancing at her imaginary watch. “Couldn’t you two wait?”“At least get a shirt,” Ethan added, eyeing my bare chest. I had ditched the scrubs, unable to get them over my chest.
PerrinWe didn’t talk as much, even though that had been the plan.I had taken one of the chairs opposite Deidre’s desk, hoping to keep my brain thinking platonically for as long as possible. But part of me was still in shock. I could smell the smell of her coconut shampoo. See the glimmer of her earrings in the desk lap. And I had felt the tips of her fingernails as I held her hand; the short ones that she chewed on when she was reading and lost in thought.But I knew it was definitely her the moment I felt my head slightly dizzy with the draft of warm honeysuckle, intoxicatingly perfect.I wasn’t shy, needing to have her by my side. I pulled her easily into my lap, and she didn’t protest, as if still quite unsure that all of this was really happening either. She swun
PerrinAs soon as Mark dismissed the crowd, the crowd had begun to descend from the stands in droves. It hadn’t taken long for Lo to find me, fighting the current and pushing her way against the flow of teaming bodies and up to the platform.I sensed her, long before she ran up the platform stairs, Justin hot on her heels. I dove past my father, darted behind Mark and ran to meet her, not caring for any protocol or public indecency. I needed her.Her scent hit me first. It made my blood sing and my heart beat so fast I thought it would stop.And then there she was. The sight of my home and my heart, running and slipping across the wet platform towards me.My weight almost buckled beneath me, the unexpected reality of seeing her here st
Justin The arena was packed. I could hear an excited roar from the crowd from behind the Lodge, drifting over the top of the massive building and floating through the chill evening air. Lo parked illegally in front of the entrance to the building. Now was not the time to point it out. A series of battered and limp-hanging banners and signs showed the way around to the back. It had rained today, apparently, and we made progress towards the arena as quickly as we could, sludging through mud and the trampled pathway. A stadium had been erected, filled to the brim with stands of onlookers, cheering and applauding in a range of darkened colors, soaked from the rain. Despite the bad weather, it hadn’t dampened their spirits. The crowd had been here all night, awaiting the results. Colored tents for each challenging pack were spaced ou