Lamborghini, now!” Ethan’s voice cracked through the night, his command slicing into the silence. His green eyes flicked from Selene to Lucy.

“Lamborghini,” he growled again, and Lucy snapped her mouth shut with a quick nod, fear flickering in her perfect features.

“Rest of you too,” Zachary ordered lazily, and the other girls scrambled toward their vehicle.

Selene did not move. Instead, she ran straight into the arms of her family. Victor caught her in a fierce embrace, his grin breaking through the solemn night as he lifted her off the ground.

Selene clung to him, burying her face against his shoulder, tears spilling hot and fast. She had only seconds before the bastards dragged her away, but she refused to waste them.

“Selene!” her father’s voice cracked like a whip, sharp with warning, while her mother gasped in horror.

“You must go!” Elara’s voice trembled, begging, but Victor only held her tighter, his warmth wrapping around her like the only safety she had left in the world.

Selene’s throat closed. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” she whispered, her voice breaking, clinging to a hope that felt like ash on her tongue. “It was nice to meet you.”

Victor’s arms tightened until she could hardly breathe. Then a feral growl shattered the fragile silence.

Selene’s eyes flew open it was Ethan. His storm-dark gaze locked onto them, thunder rolling in his chest.

Victor let her down quickly, and Selene spun, standing between her brother and the Alpha without thought. Gasps rippled through the villagers. Her mother’s hand closed around her wrist in panic, but Selene’s spine burned with reckless defiance.

“You belong to the Alphas tonight,” Ethan said, his voice rumbling deep and primal. His chest vibrated with restrained fury, but Selene’s anger flared hotter.

She was wearing their ridiculous lace dress. Their humiliating silk underwear. She was freezing, degraded, paraded for their amusement and now this wolf was furious because she had dared to embrace her own brother?

“Are we going?” she demanded, her voice sharp as she jabbed a finger toward the waiting carriages. “Or are we just standing here so you can keep glaring?”

The villagers froze, horror etched on their faces. Zachary and Cole exchanged wary glances, watching the tension crackle between Selene and Ethan.

“Learn your place,” Ethan warned, his voice low, dangerous.

But Selene didn’t step aside. Her heart thundered, but her eyes didn’t break from his.

“Can you stop?” she snapped, fury spilling over. “I haven’t even met my brother because of this offering nonsense, but I’m still here still doing it. So can we get on with it already? It’s freezing.”

The air thickened, charged. Ethan’s glare bored into her, fire and storm all at once. Then, without another word, he spun on his heel and strode toward the car.

Selene followed, chin high, though her insides shook with adrenaline. She risked one last look at her family her mother’s tear-streaked face burning into her memory before climbing inside.

The air inside the carriage was warmer, but no safer. The Alphas filled the space, massive bodies pressed against her from every angle. Selene was wedged between Zachary and Cole, her arms brushing against the hard planes of their biceps. Heat radiated off them, suffocating.

Zachary inhaled sharply, looking down at where their skin touched. “Sh*t, you’re cold.”

Before she could answer, his arm was around her, pulling her against him, his hand rubbing warmth into her chilled skin.

Selene let out a short laugh, brittle and sharp. “It’s almost winter, and you put us in silk dresses. Was I supposed to be warm?”

The words slipped out before she could bite them back. Careful, she scolded herself. They could kill you for less.

Zachary’s chuckle was deep, rough, disarming in its ease. “What’s your name, spitfire?”

“Sel.”

“Your full name.” Ethan’s command cut across her answer like a blade.

Selene’s jaw clenched. His authority pressed down on her, but her tongue itched with rebellion. She spat out the name she hated.

“Selene. Happy?”

Ethan’s eyes darkened, heat rolling off him in waves of possession. His gaze dropped to where Zachary still held her, and a growl rumbled through him.

“Mine.”

Zachary released her instantly. Something wild and reckless rose in Selene’s chest. Without thinking, she slid across the seat and pressed herself against Zachary, deliberately stealing the space beside him. His eyes widened at her audacity.

“I’m freezing,” she said with a defiant smirk. “And you said I’m yours. So either help me warm up, or let him do it.”

Zach burst out laughing. Cole smirked. Lucy’s nostrils flared.

Then, with a sudden growl, Ethan hauled her onto his lap. Selene squealed, breath catching as his arms caged around her, trapping her against his chest. Heat consumed her, a sigh spilling from her lips before she could stop it.

Cole, meanwhile, coaxed Lucy onto his lap, his tone deceptively soft. Lucy trembled like a rabbit caught between wolves, her cheeks flushed as Ethan buried his face in her hair with an exaggerated groan.

Selene looked away, disgust tightening her stomach. They don’t care she’s terrified.

She tried to slip off Ethan’s lap, but his grip tightened, iron around her thighs.

“You wanted this. Now sit until we reach the city.”

“No.” She tore at his hand, pushing away.

Ethan snarled and slammed her back down, his chest rumbling. “Mine.”

“F*ck you,” Selene spat, fury lashing out before she could stop it.

The growls that answered her shook the car. Ethan roared, his wolf straining for dominance. His massive hand closed around her throat, pinning her back against the seat.

Selene gasped, her fingers clutching at his wrist. Fury burned in his stormy gaze, but something else simmered there too, lust, raw and unrestrained.

Her pulse thundered. She should have been terrified, but instead heat coiled low in her belly. The danger of it the sheer power of him pressing her down it lit something dark inside her.

What’s wrong with me?

Her breath hitched. She lifted her hips, pressing against him.

Ethan’s eyes flashed. His c*ck was hard against her thigh, and the realization sent a shiver down her spine.

“Make me,” she whispered, taunting, reckless, her lips brushing his as she ground against him again.

He groaned, shaking with restraint, his wolf clawing for control.

“Ethan.” Cole’s warning cut through the haze.

Ethan froze, then tore himself away from her with a guttural snarl. He released her throat, shoving back into his seat, his chest heaving.

“Don’t tempt me,” he growled, his voice ragged.

Selene slid to the far end of the seat, her hands trembling. She turned her face to the window, hiding the flush that burned across her skin.

The blood moon’s reflection stretched across the black waters outside endless and red.

And in the shadows beyond the lake, something stirred.

Something or someone was watching them.