Lenaleia

For six years, I was Hazel, girlfriend to the future Alpha, Julian. I thought we had forever, a cherished place in our werewolf pack, even as a human. Then Mate Hunt night ripped it all away. I woke up lost in the forest, only to find Julian with her – his true fated mate. His words hit harder than the forest floor: I was just a 'placeholder.' Six years together, and he tossed me aside, his fingers bruising my throat as he growled that I meant nothing. My world, my heart – shattered.

Left for dead, freezing and injured, a different kind of predator found me. A colossal black wolf, eyes glowing gold, big enough to swallow me whole. But instead of tearing me apart, he curled around me, a warm, terrifying shield against the biting cold. For a moment, I felt safe.

That safety vanished when my pack, my family, found us. The Alpha who raised me, Maxen, didn't see a survivor. He saw a disappointment. Turns out, he’d only taken me in hoping I’d magically become a werewolf like my mother – the fated mate who’d rejected him. When I couldn't shift, he cast me out, branding me an omega, the pack’s punching bag.

Now, I'm less than nothing, surviving on scraps and enduring their cruelty. What they don't know, what I don't know, is that my monstrous protector is no ordinary rogue. He's Lykos, the wolf of Kael, the Lycan King. And Lykos has decided I am his fated mate – a human. Kael is furious, but his wolf has a will of its own, dragging the King himself towards my abusive pack.

My old life is over. My only ally is a creature of legend. And the most feared Lycan in existence is on his way. Is he coming to save me, or is the King's arrival just another nightmare waiting to begin?

A King’s Curse, A Wolf’s Claim

I squeezed myself into the narrow space between the kitchen counter and the small dining table in Sera's RV, heart pounding. The aggressive knocking at the door continued, each thud making me flinch.


"It's Jules," I whispered, voice trembling. "He found me."


Sera raised an eyebrow, seeming completely unbothered as she took a slow sip of her tea. "Patience is a virtue so few possess these days."


The pounding grew louder, more insistent. I gripped my soda can with white knuckles, watching Sera set her mug down with maddening calmness.


"Aren't you going to answer it?" I hissed.


"When I'm ready," she replied with a shrug. "Not before."


Another round of knocking rattled the thin walls. My nerves were frayed, every scenario running through my mind worse than the last. How had Julian found me? What would he do? The memory of his fingers around my throat made me shudder.


After what felt like an eternity, Sera sighed and stood up. "Let's see what all the fuss is about, shall we?"


Chapter 48 - The Coconut Scent of a Runaway