GINGERMy legs wobbled like Jell-o, barely holding me up. My arms were heavy like lead. Each labored breath stabbed my lungs. I wasn’t sure how much more I could take. I was sweating like a fat hog at a barbecue. Which was quite a lot considering I was outdoors in the middle of the coldest winter I’d ever experienced in my life. Long story short, Sara was kicking my fat ass.For our first day of training, she took me out to an open area where the snow was so deep I could barely walk. Every time I tried to move more than a foot, I was out of breath. I had, of course, worn a full snow suit, knowing we’d be training outdoors today. And very much regretting my choice.And you’d think that she would go easy on me for my first lesson, but no. Not at all. Not even a bit. Didn’t pull back any of her punches. Well, okay, she hadn’t actually punched me, but she had knocked me into the snow so many times that my whole core was burning from how many times I’d had to get myself back up from a hor
GINGER“If I wanted to, I could have killed you,” Sara taunted. “Remember that for next time.” She swiftly closed her switchblade and hid it within the confines of her clothes. She then walked away without looking back, disappearing into the distance. I didn’t fail to notice Tyce glaring daggers at her, but I was proud of him for not intervening. We had a long talk the night before about how he wouldn’t unless Sara actually hurt me to the point where I ended up in the hospital. And anything less than that, he would stand back. But I could certainly feel his anger and frustration through our bond.“Are you okay?” Tyce rushed over to me, taking my hands to help me up. I was in too much shock to even try to get up, but he lifted me as if I weighed nothing. I instantly went from horizontal to vertical, with Tyce’s arms wrapped around me.“Yeah.” I sighed.“You were out here for hours.”“I know.”“You don’t seem happy about it. You don’t have to keep training with her if you don’t want to.
THERESAThe next time I woke, he was still wrapped around me, holding me as if his life depended on it. His even breathing informed me that he was still sleeping. I didn’t want to accidentally wake him, so I laid as still as I could. Not that it was exactly a burden.Something about his touch sent a slow, delicious warmth coursing through me. At first, I barely noticed it as something other than the natural comfort of shared body heat. But then… then it became something else. The faintest friction. A shift in his breathing. The tension between us changed, thickening in the cold air.A soft vibration traveled from the surface of my skin to my bones, energizing me from the inside out. My nipples were stiff and peaked against him, and not because of the cold. I couldn’t help but try to bring myself closer, greedily gliding up against him while it was socially acceptable. A soft, deep moan escaped his mouth and echoed along the walls of the small cabin we were in. The warmth of his body
THERESANikolai’s hands strengthened their grip, and his fingers dug into the flesh of my bottom. Mid-stroke, I was halted, unable to finish what I’d started.His breathing was ragged. His hands were trembling against my skin, torn between pushing me away and pulling me closer. His lips parted, as if about to say something, but nothing came out.I didn’t know how to react. I had been so close, just at the cusp of being swept into a hurricane. I tried one last time to move, but he had me in a death grip, walling me off from proceeding. Without meaning to, I let out the saddest whimper that had ever come out of me.I immediately burned with shame—shame that I had gotten so carried away, just assuming he’d wanted the same thing, not checking in and making sure—not even pleasing him before I went ahead and did myself! And shame that I had reacted like a toddler when I didn’t get what I wanted. He stiffened beneath me, jaw clenching. “We can’t,” he choked out, voice thick with regret. “Th
NIKOLAII couldn’t get her out of my mind. She was consuming my waking and dreaming thoughts. What she did. How she had climbed on top of me like that, took control, and rubbed herself all over my cock. She looked like a damn goddess with her flawless warrior body, her long dark, voluminous hair, her pert breasts with prominent, perfect nipples. I was helpless under her, in awe of her power. I’d never felt so out of control in my life.Even now, standing here, thinking of her, my body reacted like a desperate fool. I gritted my teeth. Pathetic. I was pathetic.I was so used to demure, submissive women. And there was nothing wrong with them. But, boginya moya! That. That was so unexpected and… I didn’t even have words for it. It was something beyond our mortal understanding. That was otherworldly. For those few moments that she was riding my shaft, I had forgotten everything—the war, the pack, my family that was now gone, this barren nothing that would be our future pack land—everythin
NIKOLAIA few days after we returned, I found myself in the office with Tyce. He pointed toward some packages sitting next to his desk. “Hey, bro, so we got all these sports bras for your pack.”“What?” I blinked a few times, not understanding why, out of every supply our pack could possibly need, he’d gotten bras for us.“Oh, Terri didn’t tell you?” He looked up at me from the paper he had in his hand. “She asked me to get your pack some sports bra. Said your female warriors needed more support. So Gigi measured all of them, and put in the order, since I obviously had no idea what I’m doing.” He smiled and shook his head.“Terri asked for these to be ordered?” I asked, making sure I heard right.“Yeah, she’s a good kid,” Tyce replied. “Always thinking of other people. I constantly tell her she needs to take care of herself too. Not sure where she got it from. Couldn’t be from our parents.” He chuckled.We unboxed the packages together, and double checked the order. Then we chitchatte
NIKOLAI“Morning,” Tyce greeted Sasha and me as we entered the warrior gym to get our workout in before our pack arrived for training. I glanced around, taking in all the empty equipment. The gym that was usually fully packed by now only had a handful of Tyce’s warriors in it.“Where is everyone?” I asked. “Outdoor training today?”“Nah,” Tyce replied. “They have the next week off. The first sunrise of the year is in 6 days, so we kicked off our sunrise festival today and gave everyone the time off. Feel free to use the gym as much as you want.” I nodded and he continued speaking with a glint in his eyes. “Be careful out there. You’ll be seeing a lot of plastered wolves on the prowl. Lotsa drunk, horny she-wolves too.” He gave me a friendly punch in the arm. “Used to be my favorite time of year. But I’m a changed man. They’re all yours now.” He lit up with a bright smile and then turned to load up a barbell on the ground.Sasha smirked and shook his head as we headed toward the dumbbe
NIKOLAITyce and Gigi made conversation with me, so I politely turned to give them my attention. Sasha and Liam both made sure I was never without a drink. I had to admit the apple drink was pretty damn good, and, before long, I was feeling a buzz.It must have made me more social than usual because Sasha exclaimed, “We should hang out and drink together more often. It’s good for you. You’re too wound up. It’s not healthy.”“What’s not healthy is what happened to our pack,” I bit back.“Goddess, you’ve changed,” Sasha snapped at me. “You used to be cool. But now, you’re just this miserable little fuck. I know what happened sucks and we’ve all been mourning everyone we lost. But we’re alive! What point was there in battling so hard for our pack’s survival when you have no plan to actually live?” I was thankful that our dispute was in Russian, so the others sitting near us didn’t know what we were saying. Except maybe Julia, but she seemed to be off somewhere else at that moment.“Sasha
NIKOLAIThe wind whipped around us, lifting fine dust from the snow and swirling it in the air, obscuring the path ahead. But I pushed forward, relying on my nose instead of my eyes. From when I’d first gotten my wolf, I’d always had a strong sense of direction. Once I traveled a path, the scent stayed with me, etched in my memory like a map. My mother had been the same.Something hitched in my throat at the thought of her. Although I had remained calm that morning, Terri had ascertained correctly that it was difficult to hear of others' mothers and to be reminded of her. What I wouldn’t give to hear her strong opinions today, as much as they had always annoyed me.Terri came closer and whimpered. My attention instantly went to her. What had happened? Was she okay?Nothing seemed amiss. I tilted my head at her in question. But she just looked at me with puppy eyes, as if she could sense what I had been feeling and her own mood sobered correspondingly. It was eerie. But I pushed it fro
NIKOLAIEarly on Tuesday morning, I jumped into the hot shower before it was time to leave. They say a full moon can make one do crazy things. And in our culture, we were especially affected by the first full moon of the year—the wolf moon. It was days away. And there was no reason to believe that a sunrise couldn’t affect us much the same. Especially after having lived in persistent darkness for so long. I’d practically forgotten that there was a time in my life that I’d walked under the sun’s rays.As planned, I met Terri at the dining table that morning, munching on some buttered toast. “Shh, don’t tell my mom.” Terri winked at me and giggled. I stared at her, not sure what she expected me to tell her mom. That I was taking her on a private adventure? Her mother would be elated at the news.I continued into the kitchen, where I heated up a pre-prepped breakfast sandwich that Tasha always had on hand for the alphas when we’d be up early for training. I fumbled with the fancy Nespres
GINGER“Now your turn,” Sara said.Could I refuse?Her dark eyes burned into me as she waited for me to take the knife.What had I gotten myself into?“Take it, Gigi. Do it for Tyce.”My hand shook as I extended it. I forced myself palm to wrap around the handle. I was trembling so much, I almost dropped it, barely able to get a grip on it. I wrapped my other hand around the first just to make sure I wouldn’t.“Now, ask him something. If he answers, we can give him a break. But if not…” She smiled widely at him, leaving his fate unspoken.“Are you trying to take over my pack?” I asked. Please answer, please answer, please answer.But he didn’t. He continued to hold his silence.“We’ve got a stubborn one,” Sara said. “My absolute favorite.”To be fair, it did seem he was starting to relent. When I’d first entered the chamber, he’d seemed tougher. He was a tall, robust man. But something in his face showed the uncertainty he saw about the future of this exercise. I could see why someone
GINGERI took a deep breath. My mind was blanking. What was I supposed to ask him? He looked so pathetic at that moment. I almost felt bad for him.“He. Wants. To. Murder. Your. Mate,” Sara emphasized.“Why do you want to murder my mate?” I blurted out, feeling put on the spot.He stared at us and didn’t say anything. Sara chortled.“Thinks being silent will save him and his pack.” Sara stepped forward. “Dumbass.” Before I could process what she was saying, she had her knife shoved so deep into his stomach her hand was practically inside it. High pitched shrieks echoed off the walls, floor, and ceiling. I clutched at my stomach as blood spluttered out of his. “First time you’ve been penetrated, eh?” Sara said as she pulled the knife out. “It’s okay, after the first time it only gets better and better.” She chuckled. “At least for me.”At first, I just felt cold. An unnatural cold, one that seeped into my bones despite the warm basement air. Then, my head started to ache, a dull throb
GINGERWhen Tyce dropped me off on Sunday morning for another day of training with Sara, I was greeted by a rare smile.“Do I have a surprise for you!” She practically squealed.“More sparring?” I deadpanned.“Better!” she replied in earnest. “Come come. I’ve been saving him all night for you!”“Him?” I questioned. Was she going to make me fight one of her warriors? Maybe I’d have half a chance for once.“Oh yes. Found him about fifty kilometers outside your pack. Clearly waiting for someone to go out for a little run. But I caught him!” She smiled wide, displaying all her perfectly maintained teeth. She looked almost maniacal, with an evil glint in her eyes. And oddly peppy.“What do you mean you caught him?” I swallowed.She winked at me and pulled open a heavy metal door that I’d never noticed before. Probably because it was at the end of a dark hallway I’d never gone down previously. Suddenly I was very aware of my breathing. I tried to keep it even, not to give away the bad feel
NIKOLAI“Are you okay?” Terri’s touch on my arm jolted me back to reality. I hadn’t even realized how far my thoughts had drifted. “You seem…” She studied me, her brows drawing together. “Angry? Sad? I’m trying to figure it out. Maybe… jealous?”My head snapped up. “What?” I barked, taking a step back.Her eyes widened slightly, and she winced. “Sorry. Sometimes I speak without thinking.”I exhaled through my nose, forcing myself to steady my expression. “Why do you think I feel that?”She hesitated, glancing down at her hands. “I don’t know. I just… sense it.”Sense it? A muscle in my jaw ticked. “What does that mean?”“Never mind.” She let out a nervous laugh. “Forget I said anything. I’m obviously just being crazy.”Crazy? No.Because if I was honest with myself, she was right. The thought sat heavy in my chest, a truth I wasn’t ready to confront. I considered pressing her further, demanding how she knew, how she saw through me so easily. But that would mean admitting what had been
NIKOLAIWhen I stepped into the gym Saturday morning, ready to take over training from Sasha, I immediately noticed something was off. Half the group was missing.I scanned the room, my brows knitting together. “Where are the women?”Sasha barely looked up from adjusting the wraps on his wrists. “Your girl took them.”I stilled. “My girl?” I repeated, leveling a pointed look at him.His lips twitched into a smirk. “Theresa.”I exhaled sharply, rolling my shoulders to keep from reacting. I wanted to smack that look right off his face, but I held back, reminding myself that I’d promised myself to be a better friend.“Ha. Funny.” My voice was flat. It wasn’t funny. Not even a little. “Where are they?”“Outside.”Without another word, I turned on my heel to figure out what was going on. I pushed open the heavy entryway door and was greeted by a chilling wind biting the exposed parts of my skin. It was certainly not warm today. I followed the tracks in the snow to what was likely a field d
GINGERI stripped down as quickly as I could, while the unrelenting cold bit at my exposed skin. That was the second reason I hated going into my wolf form.“So sexy.” Tyce whistled once I was completely bare. But I gave him the show for barely a second before I morphed into my wolf. My nails stretched into claws, fur sprouted from newly formed hair follicles, and my bones rearranged themselves into my canine form. My paws landed on the fluffy snow.“So fucking cool.” Tyce grinned with pride. “If we ever go into battle, it’s game over once they get a look at you.”I tilted my head in insecurity. Sure, I looked scary, but once they got over the initial shock, I’d be taken down in seconds. Even though I was training with Sara regularly, I was also getting my ass beat regularly. It was only thanks to my new werewolf superspeed healing that my skin color wasn’t black and blue. But I was determined. I would keep training, even if it killed me.“What’s wrong?” Tyce asked, furrowing his brow
GINGERI woke to a gentle shake of my upper arm. “Baby,” the most beautiful voice whispered. “Wake up.”I turned to find Tyce standing beside the bed, my snowsuit slung over his shoulder. His soft smile made dissipated my grogginess. “What’s going on?” I asked. It wasn’t like him to randomly wake me in the middle of the night.“Nothing’s wrong. I just have something to show you,” he replied, holding the snow suit out to me. “Put this on.”Curiosity replaced sleep as I slid out of bed. Tyce helped me into the snowsuit, steadying me when I stumbled. We crept downstairs, pulled on our boots, and stepped outside.Crisp, frosty air pricked my cheeks. But I was instantly distracted from the cold as soon as I glanced up and gasped at the sight. “Oh my Goddess, this is amazing!” I exclaimed, taking in the night sky. I had seen the northern lights a handful of times, especially now that I was living in Alaska, but it had never been quite as vibrant and intense as it was that night. Neon ribbon