nore

n the lock. The

an was

the dark, waiting like

" I asked, my voice tight

h the weight of his Alpha presence, the sc

ers are already asking questions about my conduct-about whether I'm fit to lead when I can't even keep my own house in order." His eyes narrowed o

out loud. I had spent the hours after he left doing exactly what I always did-finishing my

a word to anyo

d came up to brace beside my head. "I know how this works. The Elders have never liked how much power my father

his eyes without flinching,

s their price for a supply contract they couldn't survive without.

was a transaction. I was a commodity. But I was also his mate, bound by a bo

my jaw, tilting my face up. His

he said. "My Luna.

mouth was

at. He didn't answer with words. He a

his teeth grazing my bottom lip, demanding entry. I struggled, my hands pushing against his un

mission, demanding that I be marked and reclaimed. He wanted to erase any trac

my waist, and dragged me toward the bedroom. The world

by nothing but raw, possessive instinct. There was no tendern

ne, replaced by the familiar, chilling cold. He stood and straightened

e," he said, his voice flat.

, leaving me alo

ghost of his touch still on my sk

hese sudden, brutal visitations. Three ye

he mirror. A woman with tired eyes, a swollen mout

fe. Hi

ecognize h

n front of that

bathroom without turning on the lights, and lay down on the stiff desi

e buzzed on the nigh

ht I am having. You have to get out

," I mumbled,

The Onyx Den. Twenty minutes. Don'

iving me the chanc

of him, was even more unbearable. Moving like an automaton, I dragged myself into the bathroom. The

dress. The highes

down

and dim, forgiving light. The thumping bass of the music was a welcome

lled with laughing people. I forced a smile and made my

in my hand, a flash of movement from the VI

s Ang

an. She didn't look pale or weak at all. Her cheeks were flushed with a healthy, s

words as clearly as if they

ice dripping with envy. "Getting into Alpha Dixon

d, a sweet, tri

he pressed a hand to her forehead,

voice dropping to a softer, more fragile tone

crowd below and lan

nt victim snapped perfectly back into place. She gave me a small,

pport, she began her slow, "feeble" desc

cold in my hand. The ice cubes clinked togethe

ut another drink, about not letting him win-but her voice sounded like it was coming from underwater.

aks. I didn't turn on the radio. I didn't think about anything. My hands gripped the steerin

him-pine and storm and something darker underneath. I didn't change. I didn't shower. I just ki

the same position I'd held on this bed a hundred nights before. The ceiling above me was dark and featureless. I stared at it until my eyes burned, until

a hollow thing in a hollow room, and waited fo

. Even