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Chapter 26
~Rhiannon’s POV~
"What?"
Lucien grinned, teeth flashing, eyes dancing with mischief. "You heard ."
I blinked. "You ca here... to sniff ?"
He took a step forward, and the playful glint in his eyes dimd into sothing heavier. "It’s a wolf thing. Don’t make it weird."
"Oh, I think you already did that," I muttered, but my voice lacked any real bite. My heart had picked up a tempo of its own—and not the slow, sleepy kind.
Lucien’s gaze swept down my body, not in a lewd or crude way but intensely aware. His lips parted slightly, and I could almost feel him cataloguing everything he saw.
"Gods, if I had my way, I’d be the first to have her on the mating night. Just once. Just to know what it’s like before the others do."
His thought slamd into like a spark. My spine stiffened, and I looked away quickly, ignoring my erratic heartbeat.
"Stop doing that," I said aloud before I could stop myself.
Lucien blinked. "Doing what?"
"Circling like I’m prey," I snapped, but my voice was soft, breathy.
Lucien’s lips curved into sothing darker this ti, and he took another slow step forward. "You’re not prey, Rhiannon. You’re temptation."
I backed up slightly, but the wall t my shoulder blades. Lucien stepped closer, only inches from now.
He leaned in slowly, and I felt his breath against my throat before he inhaled deeply.
"Just as I thought," he murmured. "You sll like trouble... and wildflowers."
I didn’t know whether to laugh, roll my eyes, or slap him. My body didn’t know either—it was too busy short-circuiting.
Lucien lifted a strand of my hair between his fingers, twirling it lazily. "Soft," he whispered. "Surprised Kael doesn’t keep you under lock and key."
"He tries," I said dryly, willing my voice to steady. "But I don’t make it easy."
He chuckled. "I like that about you."
I opened my mouth, maybe to shove him off track, maybe to throw out my demand—access to the pack house, the library, my own freedom—but Lucien was faster.
He leaned in and kissed .
At once, my eyes went wild as he wrapped his hand around my waist, blocking any form of escape from him while the other hand reached up to caress, more like hold, my cheek in place.
To my surprise, Kael’s kiss wasn’t rough or rushed. It was bold, warm. The kind of kiss that curled heat low in my stomach and left a trail of fire against my skin.
I gasped before I could help it, and he deepened it, just slightly, just enough to make forget I was supposed to be angry.
My hands moved to push him back—they should have pushed—but they only grazed his chest, trembling.
When he pulled away, his voice was teasing, but his eyes were serious. "Tell Kael you want access to the library. If he doesn’t budge... I will."
I blinked, still stunned. "That’s why you kissed ?"
Lucien gave a lazy shrug. "No. That was for . The rest—" his thumb brushed my cheek, "—that’s for you."
And then, with a wink, he turned and walked out, leaving with lips tingling, heart racing, and every thought in my head scattered like ash on the wind.
As soon as we were alone, Ravyn whistled in my mind. "Kael’s not going to like this."
I pressed a hand to my chest, still catching my breath. "Yeah... I’m not sure I do either."
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~Solaris’s POV~
Northern Region
The steel gates of Winterveil Keep opened before with a hiss of hydraulics and frost.
Towering peaks lood in the distance, draped in snow and silence—my ho—cold, commanding, and untouched by weakness.
The sleek convoy of armoured cars rolled into the courtyard, tires crunching over ice. As I stepped out, the chill welcod like an old friend. I didn’t flinch.
"Welco ho, Alpha," my Beta, Blaze, greeted with a respectful nod, his breath fogging in the air. Dressed in a matte-black coat, he looked as polished and deadly as ever.
"Report," I said in a clipped tone.
"Eastern border patrols have been doubled per your orders. The envoy from the Whitefang territory arrived an hour ago and was shown to the guest quarters. The Elders are assembling for council—"
But I’d stopped listening even though I was the one who requested this.
My mind wasn’t here fully. It was still back in that room, in that hall... and on her. Aiden and I had seen a lady worthy of being our Luna, but none of us could lay claim to her with those five broodish Alphas staking their claims on her.
It was sensible that the Moon Goddess gave her to them, giving that she was the last of her kind, but still...
Aiden and I had tried not to discuss the issue on her return journey before we parted ways but now... now that’s all I coud think about.
"Solaris," Blaze’s voice called again, but it barely touched .
Then it ca louder—in my head.
"Alpha. Are you even listening?"
I blinked, startled. My jaw flexed. "Rhiannon..."
Blaze tilted his head, a smirk forming on his red lips. "That’s what I thought."
I turned away without answering, heading straight into the keep. The thick double doors shut behind with a boom.
My boots echoed across the marble floors as I climbed the grand stairs toward my private quarters with Blaze following behind.
Several pack mbers lowered their heads the mont they saw , but I barely paid them any heed.
I was trying to escape my naughty best friend after my slip-up.
"I’ve never seen you like this," he said casually. "Head over heels? And for a girl you barely spoke to?"
I grabbed a crystal tumbler and poured myself a drink from the decanter on the side bar, ice clinking as I moved.
"She’s not just a girl," I said coolly. "She’s Alpha-born. The Bloodfang Alphas’ fated mate."
Blaze froze, one brow arching high. "You’re serious?"
I stared into the amber liquid in my glass. "I saw it in her. The power. The restraint. She’s wasted on them."
"Wasted? She’s bound to five of the most feared Alphas alive."
I sipped the drink, the burn sliding down my throat. "Exactly."
Blaze scoffed. "You want her."
I paused, my eyes finally settling on his. "I want to make her my Luna."
He exhaled slowly. "You planning to start a war over her?"
"If I have to," I murmured, my gaze drifting toward the window, where snow began to fall again.
"I’ve fought for less and this ti, the war... might just be worth it."
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