AliyahI watched as Brayden pulled out his luggage from the guest room and threw his clothes into it disorderly. Just when I thought he was going to zip up his suitcase, he suddenly paused and started rummaging through my dresser, pulling out my clothes and tossing them into his luggage as well. I was taken aback by his actions and couldn't help but ask, "Brayden, what are you doing?""We need to get out of here as soon as possible. It's not safe for you to stay in this town any longer.""But why?"He froze, gazing at me as though he were contemplating how much to reveal. Carrying the huge baggage, he finally said, "Those bastard bears are after you. If you stay here longer, they'll find you, and God knows what they'll do.""T-the bears?" I struggled to comprehend his words. But goosebumps formed on my skin just at the mention of the bears. Of course, he wasn't referring to regular bears, but those bear shifters similar to what Ashton and I had encountered back in the wild. And then I

Alpha BraydenEarlier…That moment I saw the log rotating and approaching our direction, I knew our lives were in huge trouble, especially for Aliyah, whose human body was fragile. But before it hit the windshield, Ashton was already covering my woman with his own body, shielding her from the impact.My wolf growled. I should be the one protecting her! "Why are you here?" I questioned Ashton."Protecting my mate. What else would I be doing?" he replied, his eyes never leaving Aliyah's. "She's wounded. She needs to be healed."I looked down at her arms, and my heart sank. I could see the blood seeping through her shirt, staining it crimson. "No, no. This can't be!" I angled toward her, placing my hands on her bruised arms. I knew mates could heal each other, especially those marked ones. So I focused all my energy on trying to heal her wounds. But I frowned, as if nothing had happened. "How the fuck was she not healing?" I muttered in frustration. "She's losing blood too quickly!"I wa

In the next blink of my eyes, I was transported back to the room with Tasha, or, should I say, my grandmother."Are you alright, dear?" she asked when I collapsed to the floor.I looked up at her. My mind was reeling from questions I wanted to ask her, but one of them came out first. "Why didn't you tell me that you were my grandmother?"She exhaled. It seemed like she was already anticipating my question. "Let's get you to the chair first." When we settled on the sofa, she took my hands and said, "I arrived at this pack after the explosion happened. Your parents were gone, killed by those rogues who overtook the pack. I was devastated. I didn't know if you were alive, so I ran away and settled on a territory where bears were dominating for my protection. But Brenda found me, though she didn't know I was connected to you by blood.""But why didn't you tell me at once?" I questioned her, but I still couldn't believe what I was hearing. She sighed, "Because learning your true identity c

AliyahMore cars were pulled up to the glade, all of them composed of Ashton's men. They circled the glade, but their attention was on Ashton, waiting for any order he might give. I watched my mate as his lead warrior strode toward the stage. He was huge and imposing, with a scar running down his cheek that only added to his threatening presence."Who invited these people? They are not welcome here!" he yelled, pointing at the lead warrior."Brayden Connor, you must come with us and face your fate," the lead warrior shouted, his voice echoing around the clearing. "Theon and Dahlia Connor are already in captivity after confessing in front of King Ashton.""Are you fucking kidding me? Those people are rogues. They are fooling you with their lies! I will never go with you w

AliyahAfter a couple of months, I was back here in Jadeisles. The vibe of seeing the castle again seemed different from the first time I arrived here. Before I was brought here to be a slave to the alpha king, now I am returning to sit by the king's side as the queen luna.Servants flocked around me and Ashton, greeting us with smiles that made my heart swell. They'd been nothing but kind to me since my first day here, and now their affection only seemed to intensify.Ashton wrapped his arms around my waist as we entered the grand gates of Castle Donovan. I never knew it was formerly called Castle Everhart. No wonder I felt at home at once when I first got here."Father and Mother are waiting in the throne room to officially welcome you as their daughter-in-law," Ashton