Freya’s POV


    65


    <b>+5 </b>Free Coins


    Ss’s entire body jolted as though struck by lightning. His eyes widened, filled with disbelief as he stared at me.


    “You… what did you say?” His voice trembled, barely more than a rasp, and even his breath hitched as if he were afraid to exhale.


    For a heartbeat I thought he might have misheard me–or worse, that he believed I hadn’t meant it. That fear shadowed his expression, the dread that this was nothing more than his own desperate fantasy.


    I smiled faintly, meeting his gaze with steady certainty. “Ss, I want you. Do you want me?”


    His throat bobbed as his Adam’s apple slid hard, the sound almost audible in the charged air between us. How could he not want me? His wolf pressed at the edge of his control, its hunger bleeding through.


    “I want you, Freya,” he whispered hoarsely, reverence and hunger twined in his tone. “I want you so much it’s tearing me apart.”


    The next second, his arms swept around me, strong and sure, lifting me effortlessly off the ground. He cradled me as if I weighed nothing, carrying me across the room until my back met the softness of the bed.


    My breath caught. I’d shared this bed with him countless nights since returning to the Capital. Nights of quiet closeness, the simple weight of his body beside mine. But tonight was different. Tonight, the thought of what was about to happen set fire to my skin and sent my pulse into a frantic rhythm. 1


    He lowered me onto the bed with startling gentleness, hovering over me, his dark eyes searching mine. “You’re sure? You won’t regret this?<b>” </b>


    I arched a brow. “And if I change my mind?”


    His lips pressed into a thin line, his stare steady and unwavering. “Then even if every part of me burns for you, I won’t touch you. Not unless you want me.”


    Something inside me softened. He was an Alpha–he could have taken what he desired without question. Yet here he was, promising restraint, promising to wait for me.


    Iughed softly, tugging at his arm until his bnce gave way and he toppled onto the


    10:16 <b>Tue</b><b>, </b><b>Sep </b>16


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    :


    <b>65 </b>


    <b>+5 </b>Free Coins


    mattress beside me. My hand pressed to his chest, feeling the thunder of his heartbeat beneath my palm.


    “I won’t regret this,” I murmured. “And you–don’t you dare regret it either.”


    Then I pulled him down and kissed him, hard and certain. My fingers moved lower, fumbling at the leather of his belt until it loosened beneath my touch.


    His entire body shuddered. Wherever my hands grazed, his skin flushed hot, trembling faintly, like a warrior barely holding back from unleashing everything inside. He knew–I was finally opening my heart fully, letting him in where no one else had ever been allowed.


    “Freya,” he breathed against my lips, his voice breaking with raw emotion. “I love you.”


    The words made my chest ache. He had once thought his body nothing but a scarred vessel, a shell unworthy of adoration. But now, he was offering all of himself to me–as Alpha, as man, as wolf. If this body could please me, he seemed to believe, then perhaps it had worth after all.


    That night, the Irond Alpha trembled against me again and again, breaking apart in my arms. His rough gasps, the low growls of need, the unrestrained sounds that escaped his throat -they painted his desire in every note. His body was taut with tension, alive with shivers of pleasure and hunger.


    Through it all, I felt his love in every touch, every movement. He cherished me as though I were his salvation, and I realized that, to him, I was.


    By the end, I was utterly spent, every muscle quivering as though I’d fought through a battlefield. My fingers could hardly twitch, exhaustion dragging at me heavier than anybat training ever had.


    Through a haze, I felt the brush of lips against my forehead, feather–light, reverent.


    “Freya,” his voice whispered ragged in my ear, “don’t ever leave me.”


    Fool, I thought hazily. How could I ever leave you?


    That was thest thought I carried into sleep.


    Morning came far <i>too </i>soon. I stirred, blinking blearily against the light.


    “Awake?<i>” </i>His voice drifted warmly from beside me. “If you want to rest more, stay in bed. I’ve already taken care of it–you don’t need to go in today.”


    I froze. “Wait. What do you mean you’ve taken care of it?”


    <b>10:16 </b><b>Tue</b><b>, </b><b>Sep </b>16


    :.


    :


    <b>65 </b>


    s


    He leaned casually against the bedframe, already fully dressed, looking maddeningly fresh while I felt like I’d been trampled by an entire pack. “Lana called this morning, asking why you hadn’t shown at SkyVex. I told her you were exhausted fromst night and needed to take the day off. So I asked her to give you leave. Forgive me–I didn’t wait for your permission.”


    My eyes widened. “You–what?”


    Moon above. Lana. If her imagination hadn’t already run wild, she’d probably be halfway to the Bloodmoon Pack by now to gossip about it.


    It wasn’t that I minded people knowing. I had chosen this, chosen him, and I wasn’t ashamed. But the thought of Lana’s knowing smirk and relentless teasing was enough to give me <i>a </i>headache.


    I rubbed my temple and forced myself upright–only to wince as every muscle in my body screamed. The soreness ran through my limbs like fire.


    And then I looked down.


    My skin was littered with marks–red and purple, bold derations of his im. My jaw dropped.


    Goddess help me. How many times had we…? Heat med across my face as I yanked the nket up to cover myself.


    When I dared a nce at Ss, he was already buttoned, belted, groomed to perfection- radiating the calm power of an Alpha who’d conquered the night.


    I nearly groaned aloud. How was it that after a night like that, he looked like he’d just stepped out of a strategy council, while I could barely move without whimpering?


    The difference between male and female wolves after a night of passion was brutally unfair.