Page 35 of Burning Embers

There are over fifty packs in the town, all of them ranging from a few members to a dozen or so. Most wolves know who will be in their pack by the time they reach puberty, but some never receive a marking.

Some…like Desiree.

Everyone assumed that meant she was a pack’s Heart—the members’ fated mate who will help tie them all together in a way that can’t be articulated with words. Fated mates are immensely rare, which makes it all the more exciting when someone is suspected of being one.

But when Desiree’s eighteenth birthday came around and she didn’t receive any mark—and no packs felt the mating bond with her—the truth became abundantly clear.

She wasn’t a pack member or a Heart.

She was a lone wolf.

Of course, her millionaire daddy couldn’t handle his precious baby being without a pack and potentially turning feral. Because of Ethan’s actions a few months prior, Daddy Desiree made a deal with our pack—aka, the bastard blackmailed us.

We were to pretend to be Desiree’s fated mates, since it was apparent none of us were to have a fated mate of our own.

Even just thinking about the lie has bile scorching my throat and the taste of ash settling on my tongue.

Not only is Desiree the queen bitch, but she’s also one of the few wolves with a special gift. Hers just happens to be the sight. As in, she can see into the future when she touches someone.

It was only a few months ago when she grazed my hand and told me in no uncertain terms that she’ll never love any of us and we’ll never love her. If we were to continue this sham of a “mating,” we would be miserable for the rest of our lives.

When Ethan innocently asked her why she didn’t just break this off, she responded with a flippant, “I don’t have a choice.”

And that was that.

We’re chained to her irrevocably now because of a decision Ethan made.

“People are going to get suspicious,” Desiree insists with a scowl. “Everybody knows that my eighteenth birthday was months ago. And they know that I met my so-called fated mates. When they discover it was you four all along, they’re going to wonder why you behaved so coldly to me.”

“Maybe it’s because we hate you?” I suggest with a smile that’s more of a baring of teeth.

Desiree simply narrows her eyes at me. “I get what I want, Enoch. And I also get what Idon’twant but need. That just so happens to be you and your brothers. We have a deal?—”

The sweetest scent hits my nose then, and I tense. Fire rushes through my veins, and I have to bite back the cry of pain that threatens to escape me.

What the fuck?

My veins are burning. Lava is scorching my skin. My blood is boiling. I swear a thousand needles are being jammed into my brain, and each one has been lit on fire.

At first, all I can do is gape at Desiree, wondering if she’s the one eliciting such a reaction from me.

But then I hear a soft, lyrical voice, and the world goes still around me.

“Ethan? Are you okay?”

Mate.

My wolf perks his head up inside of me,ambling to his feet and beginning to prowl. A stabbing pain takes up residence in my chest, and I half wonder if I’m dying. But if this is death, then I’ll embrace it with open arms.

Mate.

The woman…is my mate.

“Emery.” Desiree’s scowl deepens as she stares at me in confusion, but I’m already dismissing her and turning towards the voice.

I briefly register the appearance of my goddamn brother, but I force him out of my mind. For now.

I can’t focus on anything but the blonde beauty before me.

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