ter

ene

against the warm sunlight filtering t

clean, the room airy and bright. I inhaled deeply - the air smelled of dried herbs an

lanced through my ribs, but it was distant, dulled. Like what

edge of the bed. The plush fur rug tickled my bare

world beyond. Throwing caution to the winds, I cre

he type only the most revered of alpha families would inhabit. Intricate carvings

y to hastily clap a hand

? Was this some twisted game my tormentors wanted to play? No...su

me stiffen. Quickly, quietly, I slipped through

rustic cooking areas the packs favored - all heavy beams,

ver a tray of dirty dishes. Slender, with dark hair twisted up in an

ce known or turn back the way I'd come. Before I c

st be Logan

e she hadn't expected me there. Then again, wh

wisting into more of a question o

With a deft hand, she scooped up the tray of d

ardiness." Her eyes sparkled with a hint of mischief. "I'

squared my shoulders, forcing

red tray between my hands. "It's a pleas

er echelons of a pack's hierarchy. I could play the role of d

l. "And don't fret - I'll make sure my bully of a brother treats y

. Before I could formulate a response, Gi

re finished with those dishes?" She gave me a reassuring squeeze. "We needn't stand o

his...was this truly the way the elite class behaved toward their subordinate

ght myself just in time. "Gina

he released my arm, plant

stuffiness, Selene

cut off as a booming barito

hear about you harass

oorway. I straightened instinctively, my grip tightening on the tray

all rippling muscle, chiseled features and an aura o

ad chest. His tawny hair was tousled, as if he'd just risen from sleep or a vigorous workout. But

g a step back. "I was just having a frie

as a rabbit before a hungry wolf. The alpha - Logan, his sister had

ebumps along the nape of my neck. "Well, Gina, I hate to be the bea

confusion as Logan's bur

ument, "is no mere servant." One side of his full mouth qu

k oak beams overhead. I felt my jaw drop open in shock, only Gina's squ

r eyes wide and owlish behind a loose tendri

errupted smoothly, never once breaking eye contact with me. "Selene's

uff, throwing up her hands

fixed me with narrowed eyes, as if reevaluating me through th

ing a measured step farther into the kitchen. "Unless you'd l

heard her teeth click together. She shot a sour look at h

om the kitchen. "I'll not be the one to invoke the Willow Matriarch's wrath when

ared down the hallway, shoulders stiff

in the name of the Goddess was happening here? One minute, I was being treate

hed over me. The tray of dishes slipped from my suddenly-numb fi

ng one massive hand against the small of my back. I sucked in a sharp breath,

baritone sending shivers cascading along my s

into the nearest chair. I sank into it, my mind whirling as h

ruggling to make sense of the maelstrom i

up efforts, piercing eyes

s voice lowered to an intimat

oused knuckles brushed my knee - whether i

ce. "You've been through an ordeal most heinous, one that very nearly ..." His jaw tightened almos

ith exquisite tenderness. I shuddered, feeling lightheaded in the onslaught of foreign sens

oldering with a naked yearning that made my pulse gallop. "A connection, forged in the ethe

on of masculine power as he rose to his full, towering height before me. My breath came in shall

ending one broad palm in a silent entreaty. "I have absolutely no intention of being circumspect wher

s if my very soul had been awaiting this moment since the dawn of time itse

in those amber depths. For I knew, with a bone-deep certainty, th

destiny...m