Owen
The house is full of her. I can’t escape it. I ran ten miles this morning, pushing my body until my lungs burned and my muscles screamed for rest. It didn’t work. The moment I walked back through the door, her scent hit me like a physical blow. Sunshine and wildflowers. It’s clean and bright and impossibly soft. It clings to the air, the furniture, the very wood of the walls. It’s a poison that promises salvation.
From the first second she walked into my home, I knew. The wolf inside me, the beast I have spent my entire life mastering, rose up and howled a single word. Mate.
And the man, the future Alpha, the son of Marcus, recoiled in absolute terror. Because the law is not a guideline. It is an inscription in stone, paid for with the blood of our ancestors. Humans are fragile. Humans are a weakness. Mating with a human is an act of treason against the pack, a dilution of the bloodline. My father would sooner see me dead than bound to one. He would see her dead, too.
So I use the only weapon I have. Coldness. I build a wall of ice around myself and hope the chill keeps her away. Every harsh word is a lie. Every glare is a shield. When I look at her, I see the other half of my soul standing in a field of fire, and I am the one who lit the match.
I’m heading downstairs when I hear the engine. A low, arrogant purr that I know as well as my own heartbeat. Seraphina. Of course. Her timing is, as always, impeccable. A political maneuver in a silk dress.
The air in the living room is tense when I enter. I feel it before I see it. Liam is a stone wall. Maya is a worried bird. And Sasha… she is sitting on the couch, small and still, looking like a fawn cornered by a predator. My eyes find her instantly. They always will. She’s the focal point of any room, the center of my gravity.
Then I see the predator. Seraphina, dripping with casual cruelty, her eyes fixed on Sasha with a look of possessive disgust. She is assessing my territory. And she has identified an intruder.
“Owen, darling!”
Seraphina’s voice grates on my nerves. She closes the distance and wraps herself around me. Her perfume is a chemical assault, cloying and heavy. It tries to smother the scent of sunshine, and my wolf snarls at the violation. I stand perfectly still. A block of ice. If I move, I will shatter. If I hug her back, I am a liar. If I push her away, I am a fool who has just declared war and put Sasha in the crossfire.
Her arms are a cage. Her lips press against my jaw. My hands are fists at my sides. Every instinct screams at me to throw her off, to put myself between her and Sasha. To show this she wolf who the true threat in this room is. But I can’t. My father’s eyes are always watching, even when he isn’t here. The pack’s eyes are always watching.
My gaze is locked on Sasha. I watch her flinch at Seraphina’s touch. I watch her shrink into the sofa. And I hate myself with a violence that leaves no room for air.
Seraphina follows my gaze. She knows. Of course she knows. She is a wolf. She can smell the storm in me. She can see the direction the lightning wants to strike.
“We were just getting acquainted with your new… pet.”
The word is a lit match thrown on a trail of gasoline. A growl rips through my chest. It’s low, guttural, and not entirely human. I can’t stop it. It’s the sound of a promise. The sound of a threat. The sound of a king defending his territory. It’s a catastrophic mistake.
Seraphina’s smile wavers. She feels the vibration of it against my chest. Her eyes flash with possessive fury, but she recovers, sliding a manicured hand down my shirt.
“You’re tense. Has it been bothering you? Don’t worry. I’m here now. I’ll help you take out the trash.”
Her words are for me, but her eyes are a pair of daggers aimed at Sasha. Each syllable is a fresh cut. I can feel Liam’s power rising beside me, his own protective instincts flaring. I can feel Maya’s fear. They are all looking at me. Waiting for me to fix this. To put the human in her place. To reaffirm the order of things.
I should say something. I should snarl at Sasha to leave. I should agree with Seraphina. It would be the smart thing to do. The safe thing for everyone. But the words are ash in my mouth. I can’t form them. All I can do is stare at the woman who is unknowingly ripping my world apart.
Then, something shifts. Sasha closes her textbook. The soft thud is like a gavel in the silent room. She stands. Her legs are unsteady, I can see the slight tremble. But she does it. She stands. She faces a pure blood she wolf who could snap her neck with a flick of her wrist.
“My name is Sasha.” Her voice is quiet. But it doesn’t break. “And I’m not a stray, or a pet, or the trash. I live here.”
A tidal wave of pride crashes through me. It’s so powerful it nearly brings me to my knees. She is not fragile. She is not weak. She is a fortress. And I have been treating her like a pane of glass. The self loathing I feel is a physical sickness, crawling up my throat.
Seraphina’s amusement dies. Her beautiful face becomes a mask of rage. “It speaks,” she hisses. “How bold. Owen, you really must learn to train your things better.”
She turns that rage on me, demanding my allegiance, my power to back her play. My silence is a betrayal to her. It’s a confirmation of her deepest fears. I am choosing not to side with her against this… human.
“Fine,” she sneers, her voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. “If you won’t handle your little human problem, I will.”
She moves toward Sasha. My world narrows to a single point. Every muscle in my body coils, ready to launch myself across the room. I will kill her. I will tear her throat out before I let her lay a single finger on my mate.
Liam is faster. He understands the politics. He places himself in her path, a solid, immovable object. A beta protecting his future Alpha from making a fatal mistake.
“That’s not a good idea, Seraphina,” Liam warns.
She laughs, the sound sharp and ugly. “Oh, please. Don’t act like you could stop me. None of you.” Her eyes sweep the room, over Liam, Ben, Marco. She dismisses their power, their loyalty to me. “I am to be the Luna of this pack. This is my house. And I will not have it infested with vermin.”
Luna. The word slams into me. It is my future. My duty. My prison. It is the title my father has chosen for her. A political alliance to strengthen our territory. A loveless, soulless pairing for power.
And it is the one word that means Sasha can never be mine.
Seraphina turns her back on the confrontation she has created, all manufactured drama and dominance plays. “I need a drink,” she announces. “Owen, darling, come talk to me. We have so much to discuss. Plans to make.”
This is my out. The way to deescalate. The way to protect Sasha. I have to go to her. I have to play the part of the dutiful fiancé. The future Alpha who has his priorities straight.
It feels like walking to my own execution.
I give Sasha one last look. I try to pour every unspoken thing into it. The apology. The warning. The agonizing truth. My eyes plead with her. Please understand. Please be safe. Please don’t hate me more than I already hate myself.
Then, with an effort that tears something vital inside of me, I turn my back on my mate. I walk toward the woman I am expected to marry. Each step is a betrayal. Each step moves me further from the sun and deeper into the cold, political darkness I was born into.
