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Fifty-Three

作者: Luxie
last update publish date: 2026-01-31 16:07:15
Cameron POV

I watched Evangeline handle my cousin and his ridiculous questions with composure.

She didn’t shrink from the veiled insults about our “unconventional arrangement” or Matthias’s wife’s smug remarks about how easily they had conceived. She stood tall, defended Lisa as her sister, and shut down the council’s probing with careful politeness that left no opening for further interrogation.

She was magnificent.

And every word she spoke made the lie between us heavier.

While Evangeline def
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  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and fifty three

    Cameron POVThe house had gone quiet after Evangeline stopped filling the empty spaces. She hardly came downstairs anymore, and at mealtimes she barely touched her food before pushing the plate away. Before finding out who she really was, I would've thought she was sick again. Now I didn't know what I was looking at.Sometimes I'd find her staring through the sitting room window. A maid would call her name, and she'd flinch before turning, like she'd forgotten where she was. Dark circles settled beneath her eyes. She drifted through the upstairs hallway without speaking, then wandered into the garden with nowhere to go. I watched it happen and couldn't make sense of any of it."Is she losing her mind?" Nadia asked as we stood behind a pillar, watching Evangeline disappear into her room."I almost feel sorry for her," she muttered, then snorted. "She should at least tell us what she did before she completely loses her mind.""That's unlikely," I said."Why?""She could be trying to

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and fifty two

    Lisa POV Harry looked up as I came down the stairs. He squinted and leaned forward hard enough that I stopped."What?""So when do you start floating?"I stared at him, trying to work out what he meant.He burst out laughing."Come on, Lisa, don't be a killjoy. You've joined an ancient secret order." He glanced at the ceiling and flapped his arms. "I expected glowing eyes by breakfast and levitation after lunch."I laughed."You'll be disappointed.""What a scam."Kieran laughed from across the room."I'm just saying, if someone tells me they survived a terrifying initiation beneath an underground labyrinth, I'm expecting at least one supernatural side effect.""If sore feet count, then chalk that in."I smiled, but it didn't last. Every step made me aware of the weight I carried, and exhaustion sat deep in my bones.My phone buzzed.Pack your bags and get to the chapter house immediately. Your protection begins today."What does that even mean?" I groaned, looking at Mom.Kieran gav

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and fifty one

    Evangeline POV "Are you at least going to give me an inkling of what is going on?" Kade said after settling into the passenger seat. He waited for me to speak. "What has she dragged you into?"My stomach tightened. I kept my eyes on the windshield."Do you need my help?" he asked. "Do you need saving?"A laugh almost slipped out.If only it were that simple.I looked at him and shook my head."Well, I don't believe you."I shrugged."Whether you like it or not, I'm helping you. This isn't you."I looked away.The last thing I wanted was for my brother to get involved. We weren't particularly close, but I'd rather die than watch him cross paths with the people who had used me and thrown me away."I'll be fine," I said. "Don't worry about me.""That's not how siblings work."Silence filled the car. My fingers traced the steering wheel."Is this about Cameron? Or politics?"I said nothing."Fine. Give me something. Is there anyone hurting you? Is there something I should be looking for?

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and fifty

    Evangeline POV The pounding headache I woke up to the next morning eclipsed anything I had ever experienced. It felt as though someone had packed my skull with bricks. Even lifting my head took effort. Memories from the night before crashed into me. I sniffed my hands, then my clothes. The smell was gone. I dragged myself out of bed and stood in front of the mirror. My face had returned to normal, but the scratches across my face and arms remained. I traced one with my fingertips. It had happened. I had clawed at my own skin. Heat climbed into my chest as everything came back. I needed to see my mother.I grabbed the first dress I found. It looked decent enough. I brushed my hair, got into my car, and drove straight to my parents' house.My mother was in the middle of her usual morning meeting with the trade union. I walked in without knocking."We need to talk. Now."Every head turned toward me. A few faces showed surprise."Honey, we're having a meeting. Go upstairs and wait.""No.

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and forty nine

    Evangeline POV The silence from everyone, including my handler, unsettled me. The Meridian had lost faith in my ability to bring Cameron to Dominion, but that had never stopped them from dragging me into meetings held in different locations at odd hours of the night. Now days had passed without a single message.I reached out to my handler myself. We sat across from each other in the coffee shop where we usually met. I slid a folder across the table, every report from the last seven days arranged inside."We're making progress," I said with a smile. "His episodes are getting worse. He depends on me again."She didn't touch the folder.I glanced at it, then back at her."His sister and friends think he's getting better, but he isn't."She kept staring at me."I've also noticed...""Stop."Her voice stayed flat."The Meridian doesn't measure effort. It measures results.""I know.""Do you?" She raised a brow. "Months have passed. Your target is still resisting, and you're sitting here

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Two hundred and forty eight

    Lisa POV The corridor opened into a chamber surrounded by rows of steps. Hundreds of women filled the room. Even with that many people, nobody raised their voice. I noticed the ribbons stitched into their crimson sashes.Most of the older women wore black, the younger wore silver.Victoria spotted me and waved. I waved back."Go sit with her," Cassidy said. "I'll come back for you."I watched her leave before making my way over."Lucky you," Victoria whispered. "They're breaking protocol because of you."I frowned. "What do you mean?""You should still be under observation," she said with a chuckle. "I've been here a month, and my initiation isn't even happening anytime soon.""Oh."She smiled."No hard feelings. You've made quite an impression.""I'm not sure that's a good thing.""Depends how you look at it. At least your man hasn't deteriorated into Dominion, spat in your face, and almost killed you."I looked down at my hands."I'm just a surrogate," I said.The words sounded wea

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Thirty Seven

    CAMERONWe stayed knotted together longer than we should have.My body was still locked inside hers, her warmth wrapped tight around me while our breathing scraped against the quiet of the forest. Leaves rustled overhead and somewhere deeper in the trees a bird called out, the sound sharp against th

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Thirty-Six

    LISA POVCameron moved before I could process what was happening.He grabbed the man who had pinned me and hauled him up by the throat. The bastard clawed at Cameron’s grip, trying to pry his fingers loose.“Alpha—” he choked. “Please—”Cameron’s fist smashed into his face. Bone cracked. Blood spray

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Thirty-Four

    CAMERON POVI was nine years old when I realized my stepmother hated me.Not disliked. Not resented.Hated.She showed it in a thousand small ways. The way she “forgot” to have the kitchen prepare my meals. The way she assigned me the worst chores and gave me the smallest room in the massive estate.

  • TEMPORARY MATES, PERMANENT CRAVINGS    Thirty-Three

    CAMERON POVThe Council chamber was one of the worst parts of being Alpha. It was filled with men who believed their bloodlines made them superior to everyone else.Elder Council members flanked me on both sides, a row of gray-haired men who carried the stale scent of entitlement.And then there was

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