Mallory’s POV Three sets of nostrils flared the second Cary and I walked into the Alphas’ office at the packhouse. If the entire situation hadn’t been such a disaster, it would have been almost comical to see the vastly different expressions on the three men’s faces. Clay looked livid. Colton wore a pained expression, like he was remembering his scent on me and wished it still was. But it was Nathan;s expression that sent guilt searing through me like lightning strikes and threatened to split my chest open. Because Nathan just looked . . . heartbroken. “Nathan, I-” I started softly, unsure what to say but wanting to say something to erase that look from his face. “I have some important information to share.” Nathan stood abruptly, tucking his pain away and adopting a formal expression that was all business. Seeing the effort it took for him to hide his feelings almost hurt more than his blatant sadness, But I shook it off, letting my arms fall limply at my sides. It was my cros

Colton’s POV “What happened to you?” Darcy looked alarmed at the sight of my disheveled appearance as I stormed over to the booth where she waited for me at our favorite restaurant. “How could you, Darcy?” More of an accusation than a question. “What? Colton, what’s going on?” She deflected. “You come barging in here like a charging bull, looking like you clawed your way across a battlefield to get here. And you’re asking me how I could have done some obscure thing I have no frame of reference for like I should have anticipated the question." I studied her perplexed expression for a moment, trying to determine her sincerity. If she was lying, it wasn’t written on her face. But then again, if she’d done what I thought she had, the girl deserved an Oscar because she wasn’t the girl she’d convinced me she was for the past two years. “How could you sell out Mallory to her enemy, put her life in danger? I told you about her heritage in confidence. I trusted you! Did you even stop to

Mallory’s POV Colton’s kiss stole the breath from my lungs and the heart from my chest. It was heat and desire and worshipful all at once. The need I felt coursing through the bond from him was mind-numbing and toe curling. I’d never felt so cherished or so powerful, like I was vital to his very existence. With every heartbeat, my mind slammed me with warnings. Stop, thump, this, thump, now, thump! Bad, thump, idea, thump! But I couldn’t be bothered to listen. I might regret it later, but those gorgeous baby blues of his, and all the love they held . . . he might as well have locked me up and thrown away the key for all the hope I had of breaking free from the spell he had me under. “Fuck!” He cursed against my swollen lips before sinking his teeth into the bottom one and tugging at it. “I’ve never tasted anything as sweet as you, love.” “Mmm,” I moaned, too drunk on his intoxicating flavor as well to say more. Colt’s tongue delved back in, less insistently this time, like

Clay’s POV I sat in a chair at the end of Mallory’s bed, watching her sleep in my brother’s arms. She was supposed to meet me at the packhouse this morning. So when she didn’t show up I got worried and rushed over to check on her. I assumed maybe she was still too exhausted from her ordeal to keep our appointment. The last thing I expected was to find Colton in her bed with the smell of sex still lingering in the air. Seeing the absolute contentment on my mate’s face had me fighting a war in my head. Cary and I had hoped for so long that Colton would come around, accept our mate and eliminate the only roadblock to our happiness aside from Mal’s own reluctance. And by all appearances, he had come around. At the same time, I couldn’t deny the jealousy and anger I felt at the thought of him fucking her. Since the mate bond snapped in, he’d done nothing but cause her pain, from outright ignoring her to making her promises he didn’t keep. If he ran back to Darcy after this, it would br

Mallory’s POV Waking up to find Colton still in my bed did funny things to my insides. The fear I’d subconsciously buried that he would regret what we’d done, run back to Darcy and beg her forgiveness, was instantly alleviated when I found he hadn’t left. I liked waking up in his arms, perhaps a little too much. But despite finding his fabulous body laid out next to me, his deliciously ripped torso on display with the bedsheet draped just below his v-line, I couldn’t ignore the fact that what I felt for him went well beyond lust. And with that truth came an even harder one to face. I had to tell Nathan. Couple that realization with the fact that a very pissed off Clay had just all but stomped out of my room, the day was not shaping up to be the lazy, peaceful one I’d hoped for. But when Colton woke up, his eyes searching for mine and sparkling with so much adoration, I decided to shove all of that to the back of my mind, at least for a little while. “Good morning, little Omega