he world in shifting shades of silver and ethereal blue. The moon garden-a sacred, rarely disturbed stretch of

f secrets they guarded. It was a place of quiet sins and solemn oaths, where the air felt thick with forgotten whispers and potent magic. Few were allowed to tread its winding

thms. He observed her from concealed vantage points, a silent predator charting the movements of his most vital prey. She never wandered the estate freely, her movements

ttendants, no followers. Just her thoughts, the weight of a nam

ath it, something wilder, more profound: the raw, untamed scent of wolf. It was the scent of her, Luna, a heady mix that stirred something primal within him. She was barefoot, her slender feet pressing into the cold, dewy earth with a natural grace, as if she were a daugh

harp, unexpected snap echoed in th

of molten gold, were instantly on him. She didn't gasp. She didn't flinch. She didn't run. Her head tilted s

her voice barely a whisper, yet it held

his silhouette. "Neither should you," he countered, his voice a low,

faint, fleeting curve, not quite

d, her words drawing a line in the sacred

said, his voice c

Perhaps that makes us... alike." He watched her closely, searc

, her eyes narro

es, Beta Hale. A ha

lenged, knowing the answer. Her

to the path, res

lk beside her, a silent concession. Ethan took the cue, falling into

at resembled gothic arches. Veins of moonvine, their leaves glittering with captured dew, snaked across old, moss-covered stone paths. Somewhere deeper in the dark, hidden behind a thicket of weeping willows, a crescent-sh

uncharacteristically soft, tinged with a faint echo of longi

in that moment, knowing better than to intrude with word

earching, assessing. "You're not like the

ed, his voice a low, steady rumble. "Because I do

a ghost of surprise touching h

his eyes locking with hers, seeing past

er tone dismissive of the idea t

ee his power, yes. But they feel yours, Luna. They feel the wi

mocking. Just surprised, a genuine burst of unburdened amusement. It curl

, her voice tinged with a new, sharper cu

d immediately, without hesitation.

r fingers, long and delicate, brushed a low-hanging petal of the nightbloom, tracing its fragile ed

raw honesty in his voice, "But I think I'll find it

d softly, a faint echo of

yo

ut charged, like the intense pause before lightning strikes, before a world-al

er. The hem of her white cloak trailed over the damp earth, dusting delicate petals into the gentle night win

unting whispers she'd likely heard her entire life. "That your father w

e buried becaus

s voice even, ref

're sacred, too dang

s?" she pressed, h

word holding a universe of unt

r lap, a picture of calm elegance. For the first time, she looked... tired. Not weak, not frail, but worn, weary from the constant

bly intimate distance. Just enough to smell the faint, intoxicating scent

almost conspiratorial, "the Alpha's daughter, the future Luna.

, almost imperceptible movement. He cau

ee them?" she challe

his gaze intense, penetrating. "I see the burdens yo

nd intimate. Then she turned her hand in her lap, pa

slowly, deliberately, his fingers tangling with hers. Their skin met li

t first, then consuming, spreading through his veins, a low, resonant thrumming. Not lust-something older, more profound. Recog

ternal, ethereal light for the briefest, most pot

ered, her voice barely audibl

is voice equally soft, ackno

way. Instead, her fingers

laby of dripping silver water. Crickets murmured

became a cradle for something fragile and fiercely

forward, his gaz

iss. Not yet. Just

anguage of fire. Luna didn't move, didn't breathe, her body frozen, captivated. Her eyes remained wide open, watching

, like a startled deer,

sudden chill in the moon-drenched air. She sai

nce behind her, disappearing into the winding paths of the g

ar in his ears, mirroring the distant howl of the pack. The gar

had laste

owl in the dark, a phantom taste, a s