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She tore him apart and remade him. It took her less than a second.
Im talm bout inniiittttt
“Let. Me. Go,” I spit out. “Shut up.” The vinegar of his scent stings my nose. He’s even more worked up now. And I’m in even deeper shit. “I may not be allowed to kill you, but I can make you hurt a whole fucking lot before I—” “Can you, though?” A male voice interrupts him. It travels in our direction from some place in the thicket of trees. A rich, slow curl, at once vicious and detached. No answer exists that could faze this voice. “Can you really, buddy?”
Oh daddys home
Alpha. His deep scent is unmistakable. Solid and placating. The perfect counterpoint to the panic of the Vampyre.
Im so unbelievably pathetically sat rn
for it. “You are Koen Alexander, aren’t you? The Alpha of the Northwest.” “I sure am. What’s your name, bud?”
Bud is doing it for me
“As far as offers go, Bob, this one is lazy as fuck.” Koen spreads his arms. “What do I get out of it? You’re supposed to offer something in return. Split the reward, wash my car—” “They say she’s your mate.” It’s like the forest hears the words. Like it understands them. For a brief second every critter, every leaf, every drop of water stills, as if waiting for Koen’s reaction. “Do they, now?” He advances, still relaxed. He’s taking a night stroll. Wandering around a museum. Unburdened of all worries.
He is rly that bitch
“What Misery is to Lowe, you are to me.” Oh. Oh? Oh. “Is this a, um…terminal diagnosis?” His lips twitch. “No cure, I’m afraid.” “I see.” I clear my throat. “Well, this relationship sure escalated quickly.”
“I hope I don’t sound conceited, but…how is it different from the reaction of most Human men I’ve met?” I cringe the instant the words are out. “God. I do sound conceited. I’m sorry. I promise I don’t walk around thinking that my face launches a thousand erections—” “You’re the most beautiful woman that I’ve ever seen,” he says simply.
EEK
“I meant what I said, killer. This mate thing is about fucking. The part of me that matters isn’t interested in you. Like me, or don’t,” he says kindly. “I really couldn’t care less.”
Ok liar
think you owe me an apology.” “For what?” “The way you stared at my tits.” Silence. Then, instead of the I’m sorry or Go to fucking sleep I expect, he says, “I think you owe me an apology.” “For what?” “How spectacular your tits are.”
HAH
Lowe’s diplomatic Yes, but completely overlapped with Koen’s curt No. His favorite word, coupled with his favorite tone.
Me as hell
An out-of-body experience, that’s what this is. My soul is up on the ceiling, dangling monkey-bar-style from a truss, staring down at my unresponsive body as it learns that it might not be able to have children. For the first time. In front of dozens of people.
“Women? They belong in the kitchen. I don’t, though.” I can’t see Koen’s face, but the smile in his voice is bloodcurdling. “I get around. Would you like to apologize to the lady, or would you like to learn what that means?”
Koen ignores them all. “You have two options, shitmuncher. You can apologize to the lady this very instant, or you can wait till later to be fucked up. Your choice. And don’t worry, I won’t be disappointed either way.” “I’m not afraid of your animals. Send them after me, and see what—” “Whoa. Highly offensive. Whatever have I done to make you think that I wouldn’t kill you myself?”
LMFAOO the use of the word shitmuncher is cringe but I love the last line
Lazily, I paw at Koen’s shoulder and stretch in his arms. “I can walk.” “Me too. Wanna start a club?” “Can I be president?” “Treasurer at most.” “No deal.”
One thing about Ali Hazelwood is her banter is SO good
Selamio Jr. and Baby Ross are assholes, but they’re not stupid. They know that entering the trilateral alliance would be for the best.” “So…why are their parents still alive?” Koen asks. His leadership philosophy seems to be if inconvenient, why not dead?
If inconvenient, why not dead? 😭😭
You’re like, thirty-five, had much longer to grow accustomed to your role.” His expression clouds. “I’m not thirty-five, Serena.” I flush and scan his sculpted, complicated face. He doesn’t look old, just like he’s been through shit. “It’s the whole”—I lift my hand to his face, gently stroking his beard—“um, facial hair and stuff. Ages you. I could trim your hair, it’d take me ten minutes, tops. I used to do it for Misery—” “I’m thirty-six. Even more decrepit than you thought.”
Im cackling
And since it’s all I can do, I sit, bury my face in my knees, and wait.
Homegirl is about to go into heat and she doesnt even know it
“Pretty sure being Alpha of this pack gives me a pass to run people through the paper shredder and make dinosaur-shaped nuggies out of what’s left.”
I love his ass already
Koen’s hand is gripping my headrest, so far from my face, I must have dreamed of his touch. Which is on-brand for my recent maelstrom of psychosexual neuroses. The fact that my stomach is not twisting and turning, even though I’ve been abhorring all forms of physical contact, is proof of it.
Is she that dense?? Cant he smell it on her?
“I, on the other hand, am a fucking delight.” I watch him unearth several pillows. “Does it not bother your back, Koen?” “You mean, the supermassive weight of my ego? No, it does not.” “Oh, come on. How did you know—” “You’re gonna have to come up with more creative insults than that, Serena.”
“The worst part is…” We’re both breathing heavily. Her blue eyes bore into mine as she tries to set up an armbar, this time on me. “I wouldn’t have wished this on him.” “This?” I choke out. “You.”
Jesus
Cute, how she thinks he’d ever let her out of his sight.
puking. True to his word, Koen skulks outside the cabin in wolf form. My eyes catch his through the window when I sneak into his room to steal more pillows. And his duvet. They keep me warm. Smell good. Are soft. With a few additions, my bed feels like sinking into a hug, and I have no regrets.
Shes literally nesting guys wake up
so I agree to whatever he has me trying on, even though my skin has been very sensitive for weeks,
Heat.
I shift my attention to the third thing. And I stop breathing. Because every single thing I glanced at, grazed, examined, eyed, or even considered when we were at the grocery store, every single thing I decided to walk past, every single thing I told myself I didn’t need—every single thing has somehow made it here, inside Koen’s house.
Bring him to my quarters immediately
“You’re just stuck with her because she’s…” “Because she’s what?” Boden seems to have found his limit. The one thing he isn’t willing to bring up. “Come on,” Koen urges calmly. “Say it. What is she?” “Your mate.” “Ah, yes. I’d forgotten about that.” Koen slaps his own temple with the heel of his palm. He continues, monotone, “Since you’re so sure that everyone here despises her, including me, let this be known: fuck with my mate, and I’m going to kill you so slowly, draw it out so long, tectonic plates will move and create whole new mountain ranges. And when the rest of your family comes to
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CLEARREEEDDDDDDD!!!! OOOOH BABY
“That sounded mean,” I say softly. “Yeah. Unfortunately, I am mean.” He says it like he couldn’t care less but feels like he should. Kind of endearing. “And no one’s touching you on my watch.”
This is like dessert to me
“I told you,” he says calmly. All of a sudden, he’s ice cold. “I’m not interested.” My stomach hollows. The words reverberate through me, harsher than a slap.
This is giving "dont touch me like that."
The cabin smells like… Impossible. He must be losing his mind.
IT SMELLS LIKE HEAT!!!!!!!
“Hey,” I say. His nostrils work. “Hey, killer.” I clear my throat. “You look so much more dignified, now that I’ve de-shed you. Cuter, too. Just like that hot guy. From that movie.” “What movie?” “All of them.” I wet my lips. Look down at my toes. “Serena.” There is something in his tone, something that I refuse to contemplate, something I need to cover up quickly.
Oh when they finally get down its going to be filthy.
A deep intake of breath. Then a voice, hushed, barely audible through the wind. “Eva.”
Who the fuck is Eva
Feverishly, he whispers, “As the prophet said. As the prophet wills.”
“Not all is lost, though,” Koen says, suddenly pushing me half behind his body. His posture switches—protective to predatory. “Serena is off-limits, but you may still have a playdate with me.”
Lol
“Your name doesn’t fucking matter. You are my killer. Okay?” A laugh hiccups out of me, a little wet. “Okay.” “Good. I need to meet with the Assembly.” His thumb swipes against my cheekbone. “Do you want to come with me?” Yes, with every single cell of my body. “Why would I come with you?” “Because the idea of having you out of my sight makes me want to flip those cars one by one.” I stifle my chuckle. “The Assembly is very concerned that you’re breaking your covenant. I doubt me coming with you would help your case.” “Good point.” He seems to consider it. “On the other hand, fuck my case.”
Im gonna be so ruined by them
“Killer?” “Yeah?” There is a false start. Like the words are too foreign to flow out with ease. But then he says, “Before I leave, I think I need to hold you for a minute.”
Swoon
Serena: Would you love me less if my name was Eva? Misery: Yes. Misery: But not like, by a lot. I bury my face in the pillow to laugh and cry at the same time.
I forgot how much I love Misery
“What if I accidentally attacked a weaker pack member?” “Guess I’d have to spank you.”
Since this is an opportunity, one of few I have left, instead of sliding inside I wrap my arms around his torso, fisting the flannel at his hip. My face presses into his side. I inhale the scent of him, wondering if anything else this good has ever existed, and ask, “Can I say something really, really selfish?” I feel his assent. I think he might want to know everything that’s in my head. I think he could shake every thought I’ve ever had out of my skull, rummage through them for years, and still not be bored. I think that in a parsley-shaped world, he and I would have had some fun. “If today
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And if i said im crying then what
He easily resigned himself to a lifetime without her, but… Simply put, he is unwilling to contemplate a universe in which she no longer exists.
Oh brother im unwell
“Why did they kick him out?” “Ruining the vibes? Unclear.
“Stop.” At the what of what? “I liked you better when you were a virgin.” “Yeah, well, Lowe didn’t. So.”
“Feel free to stop acting with reckless disregard for your life.” “Aw. Thank you. Anything else I’m allowed to do, Alpha?” His hand comes up to snatch my chin. “You could be fucking good, for once.”
Bites lip
“I…” A tear slides down my cheek. I cover my smile with the palm of my hand. “I just realized that I’m going to need some sunscreen.”
AHH
cock my head. “Am I Mommy in this scenario?” “Or Daddy,” Saul offers. “You get to pick first, since you provide the pancakes.” “Nice. I’ll take it.” Twenty minutes later, when Mommy steps out of his room freshly showered and cleanly shaven, they are in the middle of a bitter argument.
I cannot
“So this is what’s going to happen. I’m going to walk in there and take the drugs Layla gives me. This Heat won’t happen. And as soon as the issues with the Vampyre council are officially over and Ana is safe, which will be any day now…I’ll go back to the Southwest, where I won’t be keeping you from the people who need you. And you and I…we’ll make sure to avoid each other in the next few decades. Won’t we?”
The angst is angsting so good
“The thing is…We need him, too. The Northwest needs Koen precisely because of everything I just told you. And that’s why I’m not going to tell a soul.” Her lips, I realize, are quivering. “No one will ever know where he’ll spend the next few days. He’ll be yours for a while, Serena. But after, you must return him. So think of it as a loan.” One last, sad smile. “What I always tell my daughter is that all lies come to light. Let’s hope that I’m wrong.” A few minutes later, the cabin falls silent. Everyone leaves—except for Koen.
Oh my god theyre about to get nastynasty
Indecent. Filthy. Outrageous. Lewd, in the best possible way. Those are the words he’s thinking of.
Give it to me
I wonder if he’s storing every little touch for later. If he’s even aware of what he’s doing, staring at me with a faint half smile that is just… Lovesick. It’s like a boulder in my stomach, the transience of this. Of us. We’re momentary. Impermanent. Doomed.
“If someone had given me a piece of paper and asked me to list everything I liked, everything I dreamed of, everything that I was sure would make me happy, you would have been the final product of it.”
Ok. Goodbye x2
“There could never be disappointment, because there were never any comparisons, or expectations, or hopes, or standards to meet. There’s only…” He casts a glance around the room, searching. Then his eyes settle on me. “There is only you, Serena.”
