Dillon’s POV What the fuck just happened? One minute I had Zoe in my arms, her soft body pressed against me, relishing her taste and drowning in her scent while she melted under my touch. My heart was soaring, knowing she finally belonged to me. Then suddenly everything changed and I still had no idea why. Every cell in my body told me to go after Zoe, to not let her walk away from me so easily. But my feet refused to move, paralyzed with shock over what had just happened between us. Of all the scenarios I’d tortured myself with in the days leading up to Zoe’s birthday, the one that just played out had never crossed my mind. I’d been deliberately late to the party tonight, unable to overcome the soul-shattering fear of seeing Zoe mated to someone else. I knew it would crush me to watch her find her mate, erasing any possibility that we could end up together, as if my love for her had never existed at all. For someone who considered himself a fearless warrior, that thought had ter
Blair’s POV “Hold the fuck on! I’m coming! I yelled at whoever was banging on my door so hard it rattled the windows. I was just getting out of the shower when someone decided to rain hell on my poor front door. I quickly wrapped a towel around my body and ran to answer it without drying off, leaving little pools of water on the floor in my wake. “Open the door now, Blair!” Dillon barked, pounding again. Hmm. I hoped he was here for another angry fuck. Those were the best and it just so happened I was already dressed for the occasion! I wondered what the skinny little Beta bitch did to piss him off now. Hopefully my special gift had done its job and she’d told him to fuck off once and for all. “Hello, Dil-” I started to greet him but the fury on his face caused me to swallow back the words. The gold threads in his dark chocolate eyes blazed like tiny streaks of lightning and his Gamma aura flared around him, almost knocking me back with its strength. His face was a mask of ho
Zoe’s POV “Go away!” I grumbled in response to Zayne’s incessant knocking, but he pushed his head in anyway. “Not happening, princess. I’m not sure what’s going on with you but it’s gone on long enough.” He said bossily. “You haven’t been out of this bed since the night of your party and you’ve barely eaten anything. I wish you’d talk to me.” I flinched at the mention of my birthday party. I didn’t want to remember that night, didn’t want to think about it, I wanted to shut out the world so I wouldn’t have to face the cruel reality fate had dumped in my lap. “I’m not hungry.” I responded flatly to my brother’s complaints. “Fine. I can’t force you to eat.” Zayne replied, and I sighed in relief thinking he was going to let it go and leave me alone. I was wrong. “But if you think I’m letting you go off to college alone without feeling satisfied that you can protect yourself, you are dead wrong. So get out of this bed and get ready because you are going to training with me this m
Zoe’s POV Even if my wolf hadn’t alerted me to Dillon’s arrival at the training grounds, I was sure I would have sensed his presence anyway. Only seconds after Cinna’s declaration, I could feel the heat from his stare burning into me. I could feel myself flush as the warmth of his gaze traveled over me. “Zoe?” He breathed my name in my mind. I could hear the question in his tone, wondering if my presence meant I was willing to talk to him now. But I didn’t respond, quickly throwing up the block to our link that I’d so carelessly left down. I could feel his mind pushing against the wall between us, giving me a migraine. “Just open the link and the headache will go away.” My wolf offered unhelpfully. “Not going to happen! Just focus on training!” I snapped at her, immediately regretting it. None of this was her fault. “Mate.” She pouted quietly, slumping back on her haunches in defeat. Every fiber of my being was drawn to him, urging me to move closer. My body moved of its ow
Dillon’s POV I sat in my office, throwing back another tumbler full of whiskey as I savored memories from the morning’s training session. She’d been there! I’d felt her the second I stepped out onto the field. Dorian had yipped in my head, racing in circles in his excitement to finally see his mate after days of missing her. I had scanned the crowd and immediately located Zayne but she wasn’t with him. Where was she, I wondered as I continued my search. Finally, my eyes landed on her. She was hiding in the back, probably avoiding me, but I wasn’t going to let her get away with that. Not when she was right in front of me, within my reach. Nice try my little love. She’d ignored me for a whole week and it had taken every ounce of restraint I possessed not to kick her damn door in and tie her to a chair, or better yet, the bed, until she heard me out. Instead, I’d sat outside her suite like the loyal fuckin’ puppy dog I was, hoping she would take pity on me and let me in. I knew it
Zoe’s POV “Zayne, we need to talk!” I burst out with determination the second I walked in the door to our suite. “Well, hello to you too. My day was great! Thanks for asking!” He commented facetiously. “I guess I already know how your day was. What’s on your mind, Zo? “I want to leave for school early, take some time to get settled in before classes start, and find a job. Can you get me a ticket to Ashmouth for tomorrow morning?” I asked, softening my tone and giving him my best puppy-dog eyes. “Tomorrow!” He jumped up from his seat. “Why so soon? What’s going on, Zoe?” “I just need a change, Zayne. I’m about to crawl out of my skin here. I feel suffocated.” It wasn’t a lie. “Am I suffocating you? Because I know I’m not the best surrogate parent, but I try to give you as much space as I can while still making sure you know I’m here for you.” He said, his brow furrowed like he was trying to work out where he went wrong. I felt the pain on his face like a stab to the gut.
Zoe’s POV I thought about ignoring Dillon’s demand, but I knew it would be futile. He would catch me easily and drag me back. I was going to have to face him, face the reality of this disastrous bond. Steeling myself for the inevitable, I squared my shoulders and turned to face him. “Dillon, please-” I began, hoping to deflect his barrage of questions but he cut me off. “Don’t! I don’t want to hear your excuses anymore, Zoe! You’re going to talk to me, like it or not!” He said abruptly, his voice sharper than he’d ever been with me. “But, I-” I tried again, but he wouldn’t let me speak. “I said don’t!” He barked again. “And we are definitely not having this conversation here.” Dillon wrapped a large hand around my upper arm and pulled, forcing me to follow him. He led me out the front door and started dragging me towards the woods. But apparently I wasn’t moving fast enough for him because he suddenly swept my feet out from under me, lifting me into his arms so he could
Hello again lovely readers, Welcome to A Cruel Fate: Her Gamma's Regret! If you are joining again for this third and final book in this trilogy, welcome back! For those of you who read the first two books, Dillon and Zoe's story was happening concurrently in the timeline with the other two so we are going back in time a bit, but rest assured, this book will take us beyond book two, to the end of the line for the wolves or Dark Fae. Only time will tell who prevails. In addition to A Cruel Fate, I am currently writing another book that will be coming to GN soon. In order to continue with that process and maintain expectations for publishing both books in a timely manner, I will be updating this book on Monday, Wednesday, Friday evenings Hawaii Standard Time. This will allow me to update the other book on alternate days and have a rest on Sunday. Thank you all so much for joining me on this journey! Every comment, review, and gem means more to me than you know! Much love, Cara