Chapter 3

Fiona

Jackson's pupils trembled, followed by a panic he couldn't quite explain.

This was madness—feeling this way because of this woman. He tried desperately to suppress the feeling that disturbed him so much.

I lifted my chin, my gaze sweeping across every face in the room. Then I looked at Kathy.

She seemed to realize something and shrank behind Jackson.

Too late.

I took two steps toward her. My hand rose and fell.

Crack.

The crisp sound echoed through the office. Kathy clutched her face, eyes wide, lips trembling, unable to speak a word.

"Not crying now?" I patted her other, unblemished cheek.

Jackson glared at me fiercely, but I didn't stop.

I turned, raised my hand, and delivered a hard slap across Jackson's face.

His head snapped to the side and stayed there for a long moment. Shock flashed across his face, followed by fury. Golden light burned in his pupils. An Alpha being slapped in public—this was unprecedented in the entire pack's history.

But I didn't step back.

"This slap," I flexed my stinging fingers, "is for the pup I lost."

My voice finally began to tremble, but not from fear.

"Eight years. I bled and sweated for you while you called her name in bed. And just a week ago, when my pup left me, you spent the money I earned to set off the grandest fireworks for Kathy."

Jackson's mouth opened and closed.

I stopped looking at him. I turned toward the door. Beta Timothy stood there, expression complex.

"I'm done playing this stupid love triangle with you two," I told him. "The Council of Elders has approved my proposal. Fiona Stone officially withdraws from Stone Lake."

Then I turned and walked out that door, stepping on coffee stains and broken glass.

Behind me, dead silence.

Only my footsteps, steady and determined, one after another, walking toward the exit.

The wind at the exit was cool, gently brushing through my hair, seeming to carry away all my exhaustion.

I exhaled a long breath, smelling freedom in the air.

Then I made a call to my best friend Elena, who was also Jackson's sister.

The call connected quickly. A clear female voice answered. "Fiona?"

Hearing that familiar voice, I couldn't hold back my tears anymore, but I quickly steadied my breathing and told her everything that had happened recently in the briefest terms.

Elena was silent on the other end for a long time before finally speaking. "I thought you'd keep loving him forever."

"But this is good. My Fiona should be this free. Let the past be the past."

I smiled. Elena always understood me.

"I've already booked the nearest flight! When I get back, we're going to a bar to celebrate your breakup!"

"You need a palate cleanser—find a hot guy, sleep with him, forget about my asshole brother."

I wanted to say I didn't need that, but as soon as Elena returned, she dragged me to Crescent Bar.

The bass in the bar shook my bones. Alcohol and perfume mixed together, making me wrinkle my nose.

"You need this." Elena pushed me down at the bar and snapped her fingers at the bartender. "Two tequilas, doubles."

The tequila burned down my throat, intoxicating. Jackson's outline gradually blurred.

"Look at that one." Elena jutted her chin toward a man standing against the wall in the corner.

I followed her gaze.

He was tall, noticeable even in the crowd. Dark shirt, sleeves rolled to his forearms, revealing solid muscle and an old scar running from wrist to elbow. His face was half-hidden in shadow, but his eyes were a beautiful amber color.

I felt an irresistible pull toward him.

What was he doing here?

"Silvano Moretti," Elena whispered in my ear, excitement in her voice. "Leader of the Shadow Pack. One of the most dangerous Alphas in all of America. Also voted sexiest bachelor by the Werewolf Association three years running."

"Your dream man too?"

"Oh no, Fiona, you should know every single she-wolf should dream about him. Except you—when Jackson lost to him in that border training match years ago, you called me and cursed this champion Alpha for an hour straight."

My gaze drifted back to him involuntarily.

Just then, he turned his head. Those amber eyes caught mine precisely across the entire dance floor. He saw me, and his lips slowly curved upward.

"Go," Elena gave me a push. "Tonight he's yours."

I don't know how I walked up to him. The alcohol? Fate? Or my wolf heart finally waking up?

"You look like a woman who knows what she wants." His voice was low, watching me with interest.

"What makes you think that?"

"The way you walked over here," he looked down at me, his gaze slowly sweeping across my face. "Very decisive."