After almost an hour, I felt a pair of arms wrap around my waist. Unlike when Brandon touched me, there was no gut feeling telling me this touch was wrong. I turned around and grinned at Asher, placing my hands on his shoulders as I bobbed up and down. The tips of my toes grazed the silt at the bottom of the lake, just barely.“I should have put floaties on your arms.” His lips twitched into a smirk, and his eyes narrowed playfully.I gave him a look full of offense and frowned, “I’m short, that doesn’t mean I’m going to drown. I still know how to swim. Besides, if I had floaties on, then I wouldn’t need to do this.”I wrapped my arms around his neck, letting my fingers tangle in the unruly strands of his hair. He was beginning to need a trim, which gave me plenty to grab onto. I felt his reaction the moment I slid my legs around his waist. All too quickly, my hands left his hair and traveled down the hard expanse

I made it halfway down the beach when a series of cheers and whooping filled the air, followed by laughter and thundering feet. There were at least a hundred men and women running down the beach, towards the forest’s emerald leaves, muted from the dark but still beautiful beneath the moonlight.A few shifted prematurely, shredding bathing suits and swimming trunks as fur sprouted from their arms, neck, and torso. For many the shift was instant, an animal breaking free from its two-legged prison. Large paws dug into the sand, spraying those who hadn’t yet shifted. Some shouted and groaned, while others laughed and tried not to get it in their eyes.“Manhunt! Manhunt!” A few guys chanted, dispersed throughout the crowd. Their voices were nearly drowned in the laughter and cheering. Still, the word brought nothing but confusion.‘Isn’t manhunt like adult hide and seek?’ I asked Maya, even though there was no way she’d

Asher arrived minutes after I had accepted Cordelia’s help, slipping through the front door with much more stealth than he should’ve had for someone his size. I spotted his towering form from across the room, the crease between his eyebrows and tension in his shoulders were among the first things I noticed.“Was everything alright with patrol?” I asked, drawn to his side. He slid an arm around my waist, letting his hand rest inches above my backside. I could feel the ire he was holding back and gave him a stubborn look.I let my thoughts mix with his, so that he would be the only audience to what I said next. ‘You’re not running this pack all alone anymore, Asher. You can tell me things.’“Patrols are running smoothly. It’s just quiet out there.” Asher cleared his throat, directing my attention from his plush lips and eyes of molten honey. His thumb skated along my pulse, those lips twitching as they re

“Alright, so maybe he can use me to get a rise out of Asher.” I sighed under my breath, wincing when Brandon’s fist slammed into Asher’s jaw. My mate absorbed the hit with a straight face, his golden eyes bright with anger as he grabbed his brother by the throat and shoved him back.Brandon, as cocky as ever despite the massive hangover he was sporting, quickly regained his balance. His dark hair was messy on his head and lacked the charm of naturally tousled hair. He narrowed his bloodshot eyes and snarled at his older brother, charging forward with enough force to knock a grown man off his feet.It was clear Brandon was a glutton for punishment. He knew Asher would find him after what he pulled last night—especially after laying a hand on me.He stumbled out of some sorority house I had no name for, directly across the street from the afterparty most of the University attended. Half-dressed and grinning ear to ear, he spr

I had never been good at sugar coating things, but I tried to tone down the details as I told her what I knew. There was a nervous flutter in my chest because she hadn’t turned and bolted up the stairs. She was still here, listening even though her eyes were somewhere far away. “Her name is—was Carson, she went to the University in town and ran one of the sororities. She had friends and a family.” I explained, “I know it’s a long shot, but I had to ask. I know you weren’t aware of our father’s plans, but this was how it started before. She’s the first, but there’s too high a chance she won’t be the last.” Holly was silent for so long that I wondered if coming here was useless. She was unnaturally still. Tristan was the only one who wasn’t on edge, leaning against the wall as if this was common occurrence. “I don’t always see things, sometimes its sounds or feelings.” Her voice was soft and a few octaves higher than mine. I met her gaze unflinchingly,