Autumn stood in front of the mirror, the red dress clutched tight in her hand.
It was the kind of dress ant to be seen, to be admired, to be touched with the eye.
The kind of dress that scread ’ look at ’ when all she wanted was to disappear.
Her fingers trembled as she lifted the hem of the dress she was wearing...a simple but comfortable donation from the Bloodfang pack.
Beneath it, her stomach was still flat, unmarked??Not really! Her scars were still there but there was no visible sign of the lives growing inside her.
Her pups.
Kieran’s pups.
The re thought of it broke a dam sowhere. The flood ca rushing. Pain, regret, rage, and sothing terrifyingly close to happiness tangled together in her chest,then burst forth, until she could not breathe.
A choked sound escaped her throat involuntarily. She pressed the right hand to her abdon, as if she could feel them already...the babies growing in there...tiny heartbeats, tiny souls bound to a man who had shattered hers?
She wanted to run away from him... be free... never see him away... and she did... almost.. But now?
Fate again tied her up so bad with him... so bad... that she couldn’t even reject their bond... at least not in her present condition... and even if she did... then what? Those babies... would forever be his flesh and blood...
How? Why?
How could the Moon Goddess be this cruel to her? Would there be no respite??? Ever? What had she ever done to earn her wrath?
Her reflection stared back...hollow eyed, lips pressed into a thin line, her unevenly cut hair framing her petite face... she looked so vulnerable... so fragile... And she hated that.
"Do I even deserve to look presentable?" Self guilt! The traitorous kind. The kind that dug its nails into her already wounded chest.
Her claws pricked at her palms, her grip on the red dress tightening, the silk fibres straining under her nails.Her jaw clenched.Absent minded!
"Fuck," she whispered, voice trembling.
She didn’t even feel it...until the fabric tore slightly under her hand,
Rip...
A hand snatched the dress away before she could shred it. "You are going to murder that poor dress, darling," a soft, amused voice chid behind her."Excuse the dress, sister!" Mara chided, shaking out the fabric with a dramatic sigh. "It’s done you no harm!"
Autumn blinked, the haze of emotion receding just enough for her to register Niva’s warm grip on her shoulder, steering her firmly towards the plush couch.
"Sit," Niva ordered, her voice softer than usual. "Before your knees give out again."
Autumn did not resist. She sank onto the cushions, her hands trembling in her lap.
Serra perched beside her, studying her face in the mirror. "You look like you are about to either scream or stab soone."
"Both," Autumn muttered.
Niva exhaled through her nose, then crouched in front of her, forcing Autumn to et her gaze. "Listen to , girl. Woman to woman." Her dark eyes burned with an intensity that brooked no argunt. "No man is worth breaking your self worth. You co first. Always. No matter what."
Autumn’s throat tightened.
She had never heard anything like that!
Serra reached over, tucking a stray lock of hair behind Autumn’s ear. "And for the record? Any man who could not see your worth was blind."
A bitter laugh escaped Autumn’s lips. "Then why does it feel like I was the one who was not enough?"
The words hung in the air for just a mont.
Mara, still holding the red dress, made a sound of disgust. "Ugh.n." She flung the dress over a chair and marched to the vanity, snatching up a vial of perfu. "They are like dogs chasing after shiny things. Half the ti, they don’t even know what they want until it’s gone."
Niva nodded. "And by then? It’s usually too late."
Autumn stared at her reflection again...at the three won surrounding her, their faces fierce with conviction.
Serra leaned in, her voice dropping to a whisper. "You want to know the truth, sweetheart? The right man doesn’t make you beg for scraps of his attention. He burns the world down just to stand in your light."
Autumn’s breath caught.
For the first ti in weeks, sothing inside her...sothing bruised and broken...stirred.
Mara twirled the perfu bottle between her fingers, grinning. "So. Are we doing this? Or are we going to let so bastard ruin a perfectly good party?"
Niva arched a brow. "Your choice, wolf."
Autumn exhaled slowly. Then, with deliberate calm, she reached for the red dress.
"Never thought I would say this... Ok! Fine." Her voice was steadier now. "But if anyone tries to touch , I am breaking their fingers."
Serra cackled. "At Bloodfang, we take sex very seriously. We follow no rules... we go wild but there is this one thing we swear by... Consent. You can rest assured nobody will dare to lay a finger even on a single strand of your hair, if you don’t want it! But... " She grinned ear to ear. " My suggestion will be to taste the wine. There will be so many flavours available... open for tasting. When the old one tasted sour, why hang on to it? You got this opportunity... use it!"
Autumn sighed.
Then exhaled...the tension in her shoulders easing just slightly. "Fine...Alright? " she relented, her fingers loosening their death grip on the couch cushions. Autumn scowled. "But I want to look like ...not like those sugar syrups flashing their tits on the road."
Niva smirked. "Good. Because you are terrifying."
"And you are glowing," Mara whispered dramatically as she held up a jeweled hairpin. "Mother of Wolves! It is the pregnancy hormones, isn’t it? Makes your skin all radiant and mysterious."
Autumn snorted. "Makes nauseous and craving cold at at three in the morning. Real glamorous."
"Sa thing," Mara winked. "Nausea is beauty when you are carrying Alpha heirs! If only we could rub off so from your..."
Niva glared at Marra and she imdiately shut up, "Oh! I forgot sothing!! " Marra turned around and walked straight out of the door.
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