A scrap of paper waits on my windowsill, three days after Adrian vanished into the dawn. His bold, slanted handwriting stares back at me: Meet me at the old mill tonight. No name, no sorry for the guards trailing my every step, just a quiet command dressed up like a choice. I trace the ink, my fingers trembling, heart a tangled knot of hope and dread.
"Evie, you hearing me?" Lilah's voice snaps me out of it. She's sprawled on my bed, painting her nails a loud red, the sharp scent stinging the air as she rambles about market gossip.
"Of course," I mutter, folding the note, tucking it into my pocket like a secret I can't shake.
"Then what'd I say about Mrs. Chen's daughter?" Her hazel eyes narrow, brush poised mid-stroke.
My mind's blank, still snagged on Adrian's words. "Uh… she's doing great?"
Lilah snorts, rolling her eyes. "I said she's pregnant with twins and might challenge the Beta's mate for her spot. Honestly, Evie, you're a million miles away."
"Just tired," I mumble, dodging her stare.
"Or mooning over a certain Alpha who's got you under guard like some prized catch." She snaps the polish bottle shut, the clink too loud in the quiet room.
My stomach twists, a cold lurch. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Please." She leans forward, curls bouncing. "Everyone's noticed Marcus and Thomas loitering around our cottage, taking turns like sentries. Why, Evie?"
I force my face to stay blank, lips tight. "Maybe there's a threat or something."
"The only threat's you falling for someone way above your station." Her words land like a slap, sharp and true. Adrian Blackthorn, powerful, born to rule, all sharp edges and command. Me? Just an Omega healer, caught in a storm of scent and moonlight.
I should stay home, lock the door, forget him. But when night falls, my feet carry me to the mill anyway.
The old mill hunches at the edge of pack lands, its water wheel still, a relic swallowed by shadows and time. Adrian's there, leaning against the weathered wood, moonlight carving his face, strong jaw, gray eyes glinting like storm clouds. My walls, the ones I've patched together since he left, crack at the sight.
"You came," he says, surprise softening his voice, like he thought I'd turn away.
"Shouldn't have." My arms cross, a flimsy barrier.
"But you did." He steps closer, and his scent, pine, leather, a deep, male warmth, hits me, waking my wolf with a needy whine. "That's something, Evie."
"Is it?" I tilt my chin, voice sharp. "I've been turning that night over in my head, Adrian, and I can't figure it out. What am I to you?"
He doesn't speak, just closes the distance, hands cupping my face, and kisses me, deep, desperate, stealing my breath. When he pulls back, his forehead presses to mine, warm and steady.
"You're everything," he whispers, voice rough, breaking. "Everything I didn't see coming."
My heart wants to soar, but a shadow in his tone, strained, heavy, twists the ache in my chest. "Then why the guards? Why are Marcus and Thomas stalking my house?"
He stiffens, jaw clenching. "To keep you safe."
"From what, exactly?"
"From packmates who wouldn't get… this." He gestures between us, eyes dark, conflicted.
"What is this, Adrian?" I step back, voice rising. "Because it feels like I'm your secret, something to hide in the shadows."
His gaze flares, dangerous and bright. "You think that's what this is?"
"I don't know!" My hands fly up, frustration spilling over. "You vanish for three days, leave a vague note, drag me to an abandoned mill like we're sneaking around, doing something wrong."
"We are," he says, quiet, the words landing like stones. "At least, the pack would think so."
"Why?" My voice cracks, raw.
"Because you're an Omega, I'm the Alpha. There are rules, expectations, "
"Screw expectations!" The words burst out, hot and fierce. "If we're mates, if this bond's real, nothing else should matter."
His face shifts, surprise, then something darker. Before I can move, he's got me pinned against the mill's rough wall, his body a warm, unyielding cage. "You want real?" His voice is low, a growl. "This is real."
His mouth crashes into mine, hard, hungry, and I melt, anger and all, into the heat of him. His hands roam, possessive, tracing my curves, and when he murmurs my name against my throat, I'm gone, lost to the fire.
We move together, desperate, rough against the wall, trembling with the intensity. He carries me inside, lays me on the dusty floor, and claims me again, slower, deeper. I let myself believe it's more than stolen nights, more than whispers in the dark.
Weeks blur like this, notes slipped under doors, secret meetings, his arms wrapping me tight as he growls promises the daylight never sees. He's fiercer each time, teeth marking my skin, voice low and sure: "You're mine." My wolf hums, alive, but the pack sees none of it. At gatherings, Adrian's cool, distant, a polite nod my only sign he knows I'm there. The guards stay, shadows outside my home.
"You're glowing," Sarah Chen says one afternoon, her voice warm as I wrap her sprained wrist in the healing hut. The air smells of herbs, sage, lavender, and her dark eyes study me, too sharp.
"What?" I fumble the bandage, cheeks heating.
"You look… different. Brighter, maybe." She smiles, knowing. "Like someone's keeping you up in a good way."
I laugh, short and awkward. "No idea what you mean."
"Sure." She tests her wrist, flexing it. "Just… be careful, Evelyn. Happiness tied to someone else's choices? That's a shaky thing."
Her warning sticks, rattling around with whispers I've tried to drown out. Pack chatter's growing, guesses about the guards, my scent, the way Adrian's eyes flick to me, quick and guarded, at meetings. Darker rumors swirl too.
"Did you hear about the Bloodmoon Pack?" Mrs. Patterson's voice drifts from her garden as I pass, her tone low, urgent.
"What about 'em?" her neighbor asks.
"Word is, their Alpha's daughter's up for a political match. Some say Adrian's in talks."
My steps stumble, but I push on, heart thudding. Alliances happen, packs trade bonds for strength. It's nothing, I tell myself. Just talk.
But doubt takes root, a cold, twisting thing.
That night, in Adrian's cabin, first time he's brought me here, not some hidden spot, I blurt it out as we lie tangled, sweat cooling on our skin. "There are rumors."
"Always are," he murmurs, lips brushing my shoulder, lazy and warm.
"About you." I prop up, watching him. "An engagement."
He goes still, muscles tensing under my hand. "What kind?"
"A political one. Serena Blackthorn, Bloodmoon Pack."
Silence stretches, thick, heavy. His voice, when it comes, is flat, careful. "Pack politics are messy, Evie. Alliances, treaties, we've got to think about them."
"That's not an answer." My chest tightens, breath shallow.
He rolls away, sitting on the bed's edge, back to me, shoulders rigid. "It's all I've got right now."
"Why?" I clutch the sheet, sitting up. "If we're mates, if this bond's real, just tell me the truth."
"The truth's not simple." He turns, and his eyes, stormy, guarded, chill me. "Bloodmoon's got resources we need. They'd bolster us against rogues."
"And Serena's part of that." My voice is steady, but it hurts.
"She's their Alpha's daughter. A tie between us would, "
"Would what?" I cut in, anger flaring. "Matter more than this bond? More than us?"
"What we have…" He rakes a hand through his hair, frustration etched deep. "It's beautiful, Evie. But it's not always enough."
"It is enough!" I scramble up, grabbing my clothes, hands shaking. "Either you want me or you don't. Either this bond means something or it's nothing."
"It means something," he says, voice low, urgent.
"Prove it." I face him, heart pounding like a drum. "Go public. Tell the pack I'm your mate."
"I can't." The words land hard, a punch to my gut.
"Why not?" My voice breaks, raw.
"Politics, pack duties, things you don't get." His eyes plead, but I'm past hearing.
"Screw your duties!" I snap, fury burning through me. "What about your duty to me? To this bond?"
"The bond doesn't change what's real, Evie. I'm Alpha. I've got, "
"And I'm just an Omega, good for a night, right?" I'm dressed now, backing to the door, tears stinging.
"That's not it." He reaches, voice cracking.
"Isn't it?" I'm out, running through the forest, tears blurring the trees, the mate bond a sharp, aching wound in my chest.
The pack banquet fills the great hall, tables groaning with roasted meat, bread, and berries, the air thick with chatter and clinking glasses. I nearly skip it, curled in bed, but Lilah yanks me up, shoves me into a blue dress that hugs my frame, her hands gentle as she braids my hair.
"You can't hide forever," she says, fingers deft, voice soft. "Whatever's breaking your heart, don't let it win."
If she knew how broken I already am, she'd stop talking.
The hall buzzes, packmates in fine clothes, laughter bouncing off the walls. I slip to a back table, hoping to fade into the noise, but my eyes find Adrian at the head, regal in dark attire, every inch the Alpha. Beside him, a stranger, tall, elegant, blonde hair pale as moonlight, blue eyes sharp and cool.
Serena Blackthorn.
My gut clenches as she leans in, whispering, and he smiles, a real one, soft, rare in public. Jealousy bites, sharp and ugly.
"Who's that?" Lilah murmurs, following my stare.
"Bloodmoon Alpha's daughter," I choke out, throat tight.
"She's stunning," Lilah says, and I hate that she's right, poised, perfect, an Alpha's mate in every way I'm not.
The meal drags, food tasteless, conversations a blur. I'm halfway to an excuse to flee when Adrian stands, tapping his glass, the ring cutting through the din.
"Packmates, friends, allies," he starts, voice strong, steady. "I've got news."
The hall quiets, and my heart claws up my throat, pounding.
"Strong alliances keep us safe, thriving." His gaze sweeps the crowd, never touching me. "Tonight, I'm honored to announce the Blackthorn and Bloodmoon Packs will unite through marriage."
The words slam into me, a hammer to my chest.
"Serena Blackthorn has acc
epted my proposal. We'll mate at the next full moon, binding our packs in strength."