Chapter 9
Elowen's POV
I shivered at the memory of today. "He was my boyfriend."
"Was," Casper repeated, eyes flashing. "Past tense. Forever past."
I nodded, stopping to pick a small daisy growing at the path's edge. Suddenly, Casper pushed me gently but firmly against an ancient oak tree, his arms creating a cage around me. His face dipped to my hair, then my neck, his cheek brushing against my shoulder, leaving his scent everywhere he touched.
"Remember," he whispered, his breath hot against my ear, "if another wolf tries to hurt you again, I won't just humiliate him. I'll make him disappear completely."
His words sent conflicting emotions through me—safety and discomfort, protection and possession. Juno called to me: «Accept his marking. It's both protection and honor.» But the human part of me resisted this ancient claim.
Casper carefully tucked the daisy into my hair, his fingers lingering on my cheek. The tenderness of the gesture caught me off guard.
"You're being too obvious in public," I warned quietly.
He leaned closer, amusement in his voice. "What are you going to do about it, little freckles? Call your mother to scold me?"
As if summoned by his words, my mother's scent drifted through the trees. Jessica Hartley approached, wearing the formal attire of a Beta, her eyes sharp as she examined me.
"You're dressed too conspicuously," she said coldly. "That gown is meant for Alpha family females, not someone of your position."
Before I could respond, Casper moved to my side, his hand settling naturally on my waist.
"I love her choice. She looks beautiful in it," he said. "Is there a problem, Mrs. Hartley?"
My mother's expression froze. As a Beta, she couldn't directly challenge an Alpha's son.
"I'm simply reminding my daughter to remember her place," she said, then her gaze swept the crowd as if looking for someone. "Where's Drake? You should be with him."
Casper's laugh was low and dangerous. "I beat the shit out of him earlier. Not sure he'll show his face tonight."
My mother's eyes widened in genuine shock. "What? You shouldn't have done that. Drake is a good boy—"
"Good?" Casper cut in, voice dripping with mockery. "That's why your Beta radar is broken, Mrs. Hartley. The guy's a walking asshole."
The color drained from her face, and for once she had nothing to say. I felt something I'd never experienced before—power. Someone was standing up for me against authority.
The ceremony bells rang, signaling the moon's rise to its highest point. Casper guided me toward the ceremonial path, lined with silver moongrass that glowed in the gathering darkness.
"Head high, shoulders back," he whispered in my ear. "Show your strength. You deserve every wolf's respect and admiration."
I took a deep breath, letting Juno's power flow through me. My steps became more confident, more graceful. Pack members lining the path turned to stare, surprised to see the Beta's daughter receiving such obvious attention from the Alpha's son.
For the first time, I felt like I belonged, not as an outsider but as someone worthy of my place in the pack.
Suddenly, a sharp prickle ran down my neck. An intense gaze burned into my skin like a physical touch. I turned instinctively.
Cassian stood at the end of the moonlit path, no longer hiding in shadow. Moonlight carved sharp angles across his face—high cheekbones, a jaw that could cut glass, deep black-brown hair falling in perfect disarray over his forehead. His ice-blue eyes had shifted into wolf-gold at the edges, and the two silver studs in his left ear caught the light like tiny stars. He looked like sin poured into a black suit, every inch the future Alpha who knew exactly how lethal his beauty was.
A low growl rumbled from his throat, meant only for me: "Tonight, little prey, you won't escape my sight."
Then he moved.
Cassian prowled forward with that lazy predator grace that made every wolf on the path step aside without realizing they were doing it. When he reached us, he stopped close enough that I could smell cold ore and rose on his skin.
"Casper," he said, voice smooth as velvet dragged over steel, "when did you start getting so cozy with my little prey?" His gaze dropped deliberately to the hand Casper still had on my waist, then dragged up the length of my gown. "Dressing her up like she's already yours. Forgot today's our sister's mating ceremony? She's the Beta's daughter."
The words carried—just enough for the wolves nearby to hear. Whispers rippled outward like poison in water. I felt the shift immediately: curious stares turning hostile, judging, dismissing. My cheeks burned. Why was he doing this? Last time we'd been alone, his hand had slid up my thigh, fingers tracing patterns that still made my skin remember.
Casper's arm tightened, pulling me flush against his side. "Careful, brother. Your jealousy is showing."
Cassian smiled, slow and dangerous, and leaned in until his breath brushed my ear. "Jealousy? No, little prey. I'm just reminding everyone whose attention you've actually been craving." His voice dropped to that dark purr that turned my knees liquid. "Aren't you?"
The air between the three of us crackled—possession, challenge, raw want. Two Alpha brothers staking claim while the entire pack watched, and me caught in the electric middle, pulse racing so hard I was sure they could hear it.
Casper's laugh was soft, deadly. "Cassian," he said, tilting his head, "you're jealous she's closer to me right now. I can smell it on you—sharp, green, delicious." His fingers spread possessively across my hip. "Want to fight me for her in front of everyone? Or are you just going to keep growling like a pup who lost his toy?"