Page 33 of Alpha's Promise

"Accepted by witches, or something else supernatural?" Dakota pondered, her mind racing as she connected the dots. Pieces of her past started to click into place, a mosaic forming from fragments she'd never known were part of a larger whole.

"Or wolves," Landon said softly, his breath warm against her ear. "Your great, great grandfather might have been more than just a man with a disdain for witchcraft."

Dakota stared at the screen, the family tree that now seemed to contain more than mere names. It held secrets, identities lostto time and magic. "Are you saying he was a wolf-shifter?" she breathed.

“That would be my guess.”

"And if he was... then I am, too."

He nodded; the stillness of the house seemed to press in around them, the shadows deepening as though reacting to the unveiling of ancient truths. The air itself felt charged, waiting for something momentous to occur.

"Hidden from you by a curse," Landon said, his tone laced with wonder and a tinge of sorrow for the years she had lived in ignorance.

"Until now," Dakota mused, her mind reeling with the implications. The pieces of her identity, once jagged and disjointed, began to form a cohesive whole. The curse was the missing link, the final clue that explained the yearning she felt when the moon was full, the instincts that seemed to guide her without reason.

Dakota's fingers trembled as they hovered over the keyboard, the soft glow of the computer screen casting an otherworldly light in the dim room. Her heart thrummed a rapid rhythm, echoing the suspense that filled every crevice of her grandfather's study.

"Until now," Landon repeated; his voice broke through the silence, deep and resonant.

She turned slowly to face him, the realization cascading over her like the first heavy drops of a long-awaited storm. She had broken the curse without even knowing it—the barriers erected by ancient grievance, crumbling at her unwitting command.

Landon watched her, his presence a grounding force amid the chaos of her revelations, a solid truth in a maelstrom of questions.

"Without realizing it, you've done what none of your ancestors could," he said, his tone imbued with a senseof reverence, laced with an undercurrent of something more, something akin to desire—for understanding and for connection.

The air around them was filled with the magic that swirled invisibly between them. Dakota felt the pull of her lineage, the call of the wild that had been muted for so long, now yearning to be acknowledged.

"Your blood," he continued, stepping closer, his cowboy boots soundless on the thick rug, "has been accepted by those of us at the ranch. By me."

Dakota's breath caught as she processed his words, their meaning sinking into her bones. The Copper Canyon pack—Landon and his people—had unknowingly fulfilled the condition of the curse. For the most part, they had welcomed her into their midst, had recognized her as one of their own.

All that remained was for her to accept what they offered, to embrace the legacy that had been waiting dormant within her, to let the wolf that had been hiding in the shadows step into the light.

"Accept?" Her voice was a mere whisper, the ambiguity of his statement sending a shiver down her spine that was not entirely due to fear. There was a seductive undertone to his words, a promise of things unsaid that set her senses alight.

Landon's hand reached out, stopping just shy of touching her. She could feel the warmth radiating from his skin, the electric charge that seemed to dance between them, begging to bridge the gap.

"Accept the truth of who you are. Accept your heritage, your power. Accept me as your mate, your protector in this new world you're about to enter."

The moment stretched between them, laden with anticipation and the sweet ache of possibilities. Outside, thewind picked up, howling against the walls as if heralding the rise of a new era.

CHAPTER 16

DAKOTA

The air in the study was heavy with dust and secrets, the late afternoon sun spilling through the window in lazy, golden beams that seemed to touch each leather-bound spine with reverence. Dakota stood motionless amidst a sea of scattered papers, her breath caught in her throat as she absorbed the gravity of the truth she had just uncovered.

"Impossible," she muttered to herself, though the ancient texts and faded photographs strewn across her grandfather's desk seemed to be pretty clear. Her heritage, her very essence, lay bare before her—she belonged to a lineage of wolf-shifters, a past so expertly concealed it felt like emerging from one dream only to wake in another.

With deliberate motions, Dakota began to gather the evidence of her newfound identity. She packed her grandfather’s papers, the scent of aged parchment clinging to her fingers like a persistent memory. The computer, once a silent sentinel in the corner of the room, now held the keys to unlocking further facets of her existence. She unplugged it and then disconnected its cords with a gentle tug, bundling them together, the soundsof wrapping up her grandfather’s life echoing in the quietude of the room.

Her thoughts drifted momentarily to her ex, a man whose love, in the end, had felt like a cage—a constriction she could no longer endure. She considered leaving him a note; no words of affection or even respect, just a token to allay any fears of robbery. Yet as she hovered over the desk, pen poised above a blank sheet, a wry smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. Let him worry, she decided. His feeling even an ounce of concern would be a novel twist, and perhaps fitting retribution for the sleepless nights he’d caused her.

The setting sun cast long shadows across the room, the encroaching darkness a subtle mimicry of the unknown path Dakota now trod. The path ahead was filled with both excitement and uncertainty, the unexplored corners of her mind alive with potential dangers and opportunities.

As the papers found their place in her bag, nestled between the realms of history and myth, Dakota felt an unexpected thrill—a shiver of anticipation that trickled down her spine. She imagined Landon's eyes upon her, his dark gaze igniting a familiar fire within her. The thought of their intertwined destinies sent a familiar surge of arousal through her body, the allure of the unknown intensifying the simmering connection between them.

After leaving the house, Dakota locked the door behind her, the soft click serving as a final period on her old life. Each step away from the study drove her deeper into the heart of a mystery only they could unravel together. Dakota knew that with Landon by her side, she was about to embark on a journey of self-discovery that would transcend the ordinary, and lead her to a destiny she could never have imagined.

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