My fingers tug at his shirt, the fabric tearing under my grip, and I feel Eric’s hands on my shoulders, his lips moving lower, trailing fire across my skin. It’s raw, consuming, the kind of heat that could burn this whole pack house down. 

I want more—more of Rick, more of Eric, more of this bond that makes us whole, even without her.

“What the hell are you guys doing?” a voice snaps, sharp and raw, cutting through the haze.

I freeze, my lips still on Rick’s, my hands gripping his hair. I turn my head, slow and deliberate, and there she is—Lia, standing in the doorway, her eyes wide with shock, her face a storm of fury and something else, something that makes my wolf howl. 

My smirk widens, slow and deliberate, as I meet her gaze, letting her see every bit of the monster she hates.

I blink awake, my wrists burning, ropes biting deep into my skin. My heart pounds like a war drum as my eyes adjust to the dim, suffocating room.


 Shadows crawl across the walls like ghosts. The bed I'm tied to felt hard, cold against my back, nothing like the warm sheets of the pack house.


Panic slams into me like a wave, my breath coming fast, sharp, uneven. My mind races, snapping back to last night—Vera's soft smile, her gentle voice, the promise of a secret spot under the stars. Then the flash of betrayal—the stick slamming into my face, pain exploding, her cold words: Alpha Lucas needs you.


She didn't just betray me; she set me up, led me straight into a trap. Rage coils in my chest, thick and hot, nearly choking me. 


Chapter 42 - chapter 41