Kaelen’s voice filled the locker room. His pack, the Ironclaws, stood before him, their heads now lifted, eyes locked on their alpha. "This isn't a friendly. This isn't a scrimmage. This is a bloodbath. No rules, no scores, just a fight till bone breaks." His words cut the air. "We play the Ravens in seven days. This isn't for pride. This isn't for standings. This is for Lyra. We will not lose."

A murmur rippled through the pack. Kaelen’s beta, Roric, stepped forward. "Alpha, Jax is too strong. His wolf, it's… formidable. The game will be a duel between the two quarterbacks. While we try to stop Jax’s offense, you must focus on leading us, on making us win."

Kaelen’s golden eyes blazed. He clenched his fists. "I will do anything to win. Anything. If it means I take on Jax directly, I will." He paused, then dropped a bombshell. "I'll play cornerback."

A shockwave rippled through the pack after the declaration. Cornerback? The alpha, the quarterback, playing defense? Disbelief etched itself onto every face.

My heart thumped against my ribs. I saw the raw determination etched on his face, the fierce protectiveness in his stance. He would fight for this team, for me, with a ferocity I had never witnessed.

“That's…” The words caught in my throat. I didn't know what to say.

A cold dread coiled in my stomach. I knew Jax's wolf. I knew its immense power. I made him get that wolf.

A forgotten, ancient secret stirred within me, a dangerous knowledge bubbling to the surface. I was the last Inker, the final living member of a lineage of wolves who knew the sacred routes, the hidden maps to the ancient tombs. These tombs housed the very essence of the alphas of old, their power preserved through millennia.

I had guided Marc, Albert, and Jax to these hallowed grounds. I had helped them absorb that raw, untamed power, cementing their packs as the top three in the Lycanthropic League.

For Kaelen to survive Jax's unleashed fury, he needed that same level of primal strength, perhaps even more.

“We start practice tomorrow,” Kaelen continued. “I need you to say farewell to those who need to hear it, because in seven days, I will either win or win. If there were another result, I'd rather die.”

“Alpha!” They said one after the other, and the pack dispersed.

The vast clubhouse, now empty, felt immense around Kaelen and me. He led me to a spare room. "This is yours," he said, then he left.

The quiet of the room was deafening. My mind raced, a whirlwind of thoughts and conflicting emotions.

The desire for him became a hot, insistent flame, warred with my ingrained caution, the bitter lessons of past betrayals. He fights for me, a voice whispered. He defends me. My body pulsed with a need I hadn't acknowledged in years. I should too.

A decision was solidified. I stood to my feet and paced across the room, taking one final moment to probe my decision.

My fingers flew to the buttons of my shirt, discarding it, then my pants. I pulled on a pair of G-strings and a matching bra. Then, a sheer, almost transparent nightgown flowed over me, hinting at the curves beneath.

My heart hammered. I was doing more than I budgeted, at the same time less than it. I wanted him in me, not in my heart.

I walked down the hall, each step a tremor of anticipation, a prayer for a different ending.

His door stood ajar, a sliver of light escaping. I raised my hand to knock, but then I heard it. A low moan, followed by another, distinct and undeniably female.

My hand froze. My breath hitched in my throat. I pushed the door open, just a crack, enough to see.

The scene struck me like a physical blow. Kaelen was pressed against the wall. Before him, her legs wrapped around his waist, was a lady. Her head was thrown back, a soft moan escaping her lips. His hands gripped her thighs, holding her aloft, her body a sinuous curve against his. The sight ripped through me, a thousand tiny shards of glass piercing my chest.

He took her close to the bed and placed her on the edge. His hands fell beside her head and positioned himself between her. Then…

Thump.

Thump.

Thump. He banged hard.

The sudden ache in my heart eclipsed the dull ache of Jax’s public dismissal. It hurt more. It was a betrayal not of a past relationship, but of a nascent hope.

My eyes caught a glimpse. Between their intertwined bodies, her legs parted, I saw it. His cock. Thick. Long. A formidable weapon. Too big for someone his age, I thought, a desperate, illogical detail clinging to my breaking mind.

I imagined it, the feel of that massive length filling me, stretching me. The thought was a searing brand, a twisted fantasy in the face of crushing reality.

Too late, Lyra. Too damn late. He was young. He was agile. And he was with her. I stated to myself.

I should leave. But I looked on. My throat became dry at a feeling that wasn't mine. My chest heaved in deep breaths.

Then, suddenly, he turned in my direction and I let go of the door crack.

My feet moved on their own, carrying me back to my room. I collapsed onto the bed and clutched the duvet to my chest.

Did he see me? I wondered.

It doesn't matter.

Is it happening again? I asked myself.

A love, I now knew, that had bloomed in the space of a single day, only to be crushed by the weight of an old, familiar pattern.

Fuck!