What the Heart Wants

Loving him will cost them everything… Not loving him will cost more. Derek has one goal: survive high school without drawing too much attention or pissing off his pack’s alpha. As the youngest son of the alpha, his life is governed by lycan hierarchy, tradition, and politics. With no signs of awakening a lycan spirit, his only value is what he can do for the pack’s image. He knows he’s only ever one misstep away from exile… or worse. Then, he finds a boy trapped in a locker on orientation day, and everything changes. Derek shouldn’t want Nikolias. He’s off-limits. A risk Derek can’t afford. So why does it feel like he’s the only thing worth fighting for? Nikolias has just lost everything: his parents, his home, and any sense of peace. Sent back to the town his family left years ago to live with his prejudiced and controlling uncle, who wants nothing to do with anything—or anyone—not human, he’s trying to do everything in his power to get out quickly. But then he meets Derek again, and all of his plans vanish in the soft, yearning flecks of gold in Derek’s green-hazel eyes. He’s drawn to Derek in a way that’s impossible to deny, and he thinks Derek feels the same way, despite the danger their relationship holds for him. As Moonshadow's politics turn deadly, Derek and Nikolai are caught in the crossfire of a war that had started long before they were born, and their bond becomes a threat and a lifeline that neither can afford to sever. Because the heart wants what it wants…. And it never asks permission. TW: Graphic Violence, Suicide Ideation, Suicide Attempt, Child Abuse, Cult-Like Behavior