Ava had spent the entire day preparing.
Zari had worked her magic, taming Ava's hair into regal waves that shimred. The dress fitted in all the right places.
Not a Luna yet. But I can damn well look the part.
She had been discarded, rejected, treated like an Oga no one cared to acknowledge. But tonight was different. Tonight, she was walking into power.
And power looked damn good in red.
Yet, the second she stepped outside, a cold shiver ran down her spine. Thick clouds rolled across the sky, blocking out the moon.
Great. Perfect. Just what I need.
Her feet led her toward the training yard.
She should have known better.
But, well... she had never been the smart kind of stubborn.
Her first clue that she had made a mistake was when she collided head-first into what felt like a brick wall. A very warm, well-muscled brick wall.
Her second clue? The wall slled like pure temptation.
Ava stumbled back, her breath catching. And, of course, there he was; shirtless and sweaty.
"For the love of sanity, Kade," she glared. "Do you ever wear a damn shirt?"
Kade smirked. A slow, lazy, I-know-I'm-hot smirk.
"I didn't know it affected you that much," he teased. "ntal note to never wear one again."
Ava huffed. "Where are you headed?"
"Patrol," he said. "All week. And you?"
"I'm spending the night with the Alpha," she said evenly.
A mont. A flicker. A shift so small, it was almost imperceptible.
Kade's wolf eyes flashed amber before vanishing.
His fingers curled at his sides. "I see."
That was it. Two words. Nothing more.
But sohow, it hurt.
She swallowed and tore her gaze away. "See you at training," she muttered.
*****
The guards at the Alpha's ho exchanged a glance as she approached, hesitating.
"I'm here to see the Alpha," she said.
The guards looked at each other again.
Okay, now they were just annoying her on purpose.
"Are you both suffering from a case of 'selective deafness'?" she snapped.
They quickly stepped aside.
Finally.
But Ava's stomach twisted the mont she stepped inside.
Because standing there was Sarah.
Ava's jaw clenched so hard it could cut diamonds.
Sarah smirked. Ava stepped forward, standing beside her, refusing to be overshadowed.
Monts later, the door swung open, revealing Beta Drogan. His brows lifted at the sight of both won.
"Well," he mused. "This is awkward."
Ava ignored him. "I am here to see the Alpha."
Before Drogan could speak, Sarah stepped around him, practically floating into the room.
Ava's blood boiled.
"No. No. No."
She tried to follow, but Drogan's arm shot out, blocking her path.
"Did he summon you?"
"No," she said through gritted teeth.
"Then you cannot be here."
Ava lifted her chin. "I am the Alpha's concubine. I demand to see him."
Drogan laughed.
"Uh-huh. And I am the Alpha's Beta. And I say you will wait until he calls for you."
Ava was done. Done being humiliated, discarded, treated like nothing.
So, she ducked under Drogan's arm and sprinted forward.
"Ava!" Drogan barked.
But she barely made it three steps before his vice-like grip latched onto her arm, yanking her back.
"Let go of !" she hissed, kicking his shin.
"Ow! You little—"
"Let. Her. Go."
Lucas's voice bood through the space.
Drogan's grip vanished. Ava adjusted her dress, her head remained high.
Then she saw Sarah step out from behind Lucas, smirking like she had already won.
Ava wanted to claw that smirk right off her face.
She forced her attention back to Lucas.
"I ca to see you," she said. "I wanted—"
"Did I send for you?"
The coldness in his tone struck like a whip.
She faltered. "No, but—"
"Did you inform before coming?"
"...No."
Lucas's golden eyes burned with fury.
"Do you have a screw loose?" He stepped closer. "What gives you the audacity to storm into my ho and make a mockery of yourself?"
Ava's breath hitched.
She had prepared for everything. Except this.
Except rejection. Again.
Her lips parted, but no words ca out.
"You will go back to your room," Lucas continued. "This madness must never happen again."
Then his gaze flickered—nostrils flaring.
His expression changed.
Ava frowned.
Lucas took a sharp step back.
Because he slled it.
Heat.
Impossible.
She had no wolf. No possible way of—
Unless... unless he was projecting on her.
Lucas's jaw clenched. He needed space. Distance. Control.
Ava turned away before she could shatter.
She refused to cry in front of him.
One foot in front of the other.
She walked past Drogan, barely seeing him.
She had thought being a concubine would bring her closer to power.
But what use was a concubine who had no power at all?
She wasn't just playing a losing ga.
She had never been in the ga at all.
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