LOGINJacob*Then, more to herself than to me, she muttered, “So this means Krista is still your Luna, isn’t she?”The question settled heavily between us. I nodded once and Laurel laughed again. This time, there was something brittle in it that immediately put me on edge. She began pacing again, rubbing both hands over her face before letting them fall to her sides. Annoyance blazed openly in her eyes now, hot and restless.“Surely,” she said tightly, “Elder Lenore gave some sort of solution to this. There has to be a way to fix it.”“There is,” I replied carefully. “Or at least, we hope there is. We’re going to try to draw Krista’s wolf out.”Even as I said the words aloud, they sounded absurdly complicated and ridiculous. If someone else had been telling me this story weeks ago, I might have thought the Goddess herself was playing some cruel joke.Laurel folded her arms across her chest tightly.“It won’t be easy,” I continued. “But we have to try.”“With all due respect,” Laurel said s
Jacob*I shaved in silence, dragging the short blade carefully along the sharp plane of my jaw while steam curled lazily through the bathroom. The room smelled faintly of soap, steel and cedarwood oil, scents so familiar to me that I barely noticed them. My focus remained on the mirror in front of me, on the precise movement of my hand, even when I heard the door to my chambers open without ceremony.There was no knock and no greeting of ‘Alpha’ – there was only one person who would dare to enter my rooms this way: Laurel. I did not turn toward the sound. A second later, I caught sight of her from the corner of my eye. She stood leaning against the bathroom doorway with her arms folded tightly across her chest, watching me with an expression that was difficult to read from this angle.“Was the meeting with Elder Lenore successful?” she asked.I grunted in assent, drawing the blade down the curve of my cheek.The answer clearly was not enough for her, but Laurel did not immediately pr
Jacob*Despite myself, I smiled again. The memory of our kiss still lingered between us like heat under skin, and Elder Lenore’s instructions loomed heavily over everything. But as Krista walked beside me with amusement softening her expression and sunlight catching against the strands of her hair, it became painfully easy to understand why my wolf refused to let her go. A smile tugged at my mouth despite myself as I glanced sideways at her.“What makes you think I was ever caught,” I asked lazily, “just because I happened to be part of the prey?” The late afternoon sun filtered through the trees around us, painting shifting gold across the path as we walked back toward the manor grounds. The breeze carried the scent of pine and earth. “It’s truly a pity we weren’t childhood playmates,” I continued. “You would’ve known then that I always led the prey to victory.”Krista rolled her eyes with immediate disbelief, though there was laughter in it. “Always?” she repeated dryly. “If you’re
Jacob*The sunlight filtering through the trees caught against the strands of hair escaping her ponytail, and for one dangerous moment, all I could think about was pinning her under me again and kissing her until that same breathless warmth filled her eyes. I dragged my thoughts away with effort. Krista caught me looking at her, and her smile faded almost immediately as awareness flashed between us. Color rose faintly into her cheeks again before she glanced away.Luke, thankfully oblivious to the strange tension between us, tugged lightly at my sleeve. “Alpha?”I looked back down at him.“If taking the stream is bad,” he asked seriously, “what would you do?”An idea came to me then. I crouched until I was eye level with Luke, then crooked two fingers at the other children. “Come here.”That alone was enough to silence them almost instantly. Pups always loved feeling as though they were being entrusted with something important, and judging by the way they crowded around me with wide
Jacob *The walk back to the manor was quiet in a way that felt heavy rather than peaceful. The path through the grove curved between tall trees whose leaves whispered softly overhead, but neither Krista nor I spoke for several minutes after leaving Elder Lenore behind. The seer’s words lingered between us like smoke that refused to clear.Krista had folded her arms around herself tightly, her fingers curled into the fabric at her elbows as if she was trying to hold herself together. She kept her gaze fixed ahead, her expression unreadable, but I could see tension in the set of her shoulders and the rigid line of her mouth. I understood it well enough.Lenore had practically suggested we resume behaving like mates after years apart and after all the damage I had caused. Even for me, the idea had been jarring. For Krista, it had to feel unbearable.After another stretch of silence, I finally said, “We do not need to do anything yet.”She did not look at me, but I saw her brows pull to
Jacob*Neither Krista nor I interrupted.“But for now,” Lenore continued, looking directly at Krista, “our priority must be drawing your wolf out.”Krista frowned faintly.Lenore’s expression softened. “She has retreated deeply within you because she remains wounded. Angry and embittered.” Her gaze slid briefly toward me. “And she does not trust the Alpha.”A pulse of guilt hit me again, sharp and familiar.“If she can be coaxed out,” Lenore continued gently, “then there is hope.”Krista looked wary. “Hope for what exactly?”“For reconciliation,” Lenore answered simply. “Not necessarily between you and the Alpha as people.” Her smile turned faintly knowing. “But between you and your wolf.”I watched Krista process those words carefully.Lenore folded her hands together again. “Your wolf must be made to feel safe enough to emerge fully. Only then can you speak with her properly. Only then can she decide whether she is willing to release the bond.”The enormity of the task settled heav
Jacob*The walk back from the old training grounds was slower than it should have been. Laurel’s words echoed in my head, each one cutting deeper the more I thought about it. Did she really see me as some cold, calculating monster? Someone who saw Krista—and her—as nothing more than pawns in some
Jacob*I took a step closer, lowering my voice. “I’m not asking you to do that, Laurel. I’m asking you to tell me the truth. Why are you out here, training like this? What are you preparing for?”The training grounds were quiet save for the distant rustle of leaves in the breeze, but the tension b
Jacob*
Jacob*







