Chapter One – One Year Too Many
VPH
165
Elara’s POV
Snow had been falling since morning, soft and heavy, turning the Montana mountains into powdered sugar peaks. The Ashthorne Pack’s territory looked like something out of a postcard — all crisp air, frosted pines, and curling smoke from lodge chimneys.
–
It should have been the perfect night.
I was supposed to meet Kaleb Morvan at the pack lodge’s private dining room for our first anniversary. He’d been insistent about making it “special.” His exact words: Dress up for me, Elara. I want tonight to be unforgettable.
So I had.
—
My long, dark hair was swept into loose waves that brushed the open back of my deep green dress the one that hugged at the waist and flared just enough to make me feel like my hips might be worth noticing. My bright gray eyes, framed with a little more mascara than usual, looked back at me in the reflection of the lodge’s polished glass doors with a mix of nerves and hope. A light dusting of freckles crossed my nose, barely visible under makeup. I’d even worn heels in
the snow – stupid, romantic me.
The plan was dinner, maybe a dance by the fireplace if the lodge wasn’t too busy, and then… well, I’d let myself imagine what “unforgettable” might mean.
But as I stepped into the warm, pine-scented foyer, something pricked at my instincts that quiet little warning every wolf learns to listen to. The air carried more than the smell of woodsmoke and roast venison. There was something
–
1/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
–
Chapter One One Year Too Many
:
sharper underneath… perfume. Sweet, cloying, and not mine.
VPH
55
I followed it past the empty front desk and down the hall toward the private rooms. The door to the farthest one was cracked open.
A low laugh floated out – feminine, familiar. My stomach dipped.
I pushed the door open the rest of the way.
—
Kaleb was there, back to me at first, his tall frame leaning against the dining table. His dark hair the kind that always fell just right without trying — caught the amber glow of the overhead light. Broad shoulders filled his navy shirt, sleeves rolled to show tanned forearms. I’d always thought he looked like the poster boy for rugged charm.
Now he looked like a liar.
Because pressed against him, her manicured hands tangled in his hair, was Mira Ashthorne – Alpha Marcus’s youngest daughter.
Her rose-pink dress was bunched high on one thigh, her golden-brown curls spilling down her bare shoulders. She was laughing into his mouth like my heart wasn’t currently shattering two feet away.
It took a full two seconds before either of them noticed me.
Kaleb’s hazel eyes flicked up first, widening. “Elara-”
Mira turned lazily, as if I’d interrupted a boring conversation instead of my own anniversary date. Her green eyes glittered with satisfaction. “Oops.”
I stepped inside, letting the door click shut behind me. “Oops?” My voice came out calm, which was impressive, considering my pulse was hammering in my ears.
2/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
VPH
55
Chapter One One Year Too Many
“Elara, it’s not what it looks like ” Kaleb started, the classic line already sour in my mouth.
“It looks like you’re making out with Mira in the room where we were supposed to celebrate our anniversary,” I said, tilting my head. “So tell me – what part of that am I misunderstanding?”
Mira smirked. “Maybe he got tired of waiting for you to loosen up.”
My wolf growled low inside me, claws itching under my skin, but I didn’t move
toward her. I moved toward him.
Kaleb shifted back, guilt flashing over his face before he tried for a charming smile. “You’ve been… distant lately. I just―”
“Don’t,” I cut in, my voice steel. “Don’t you dare stand there and try to make this my fault.”
–
His jaw clenched, and I knew exactly what he’d say next — the excuses, the deflection, the you’re overreacting. I’d seen it before in other couples, and I’d always sworn I’d never put up with it.
Well. Promise kept.
“You know what, Kaleb?” I said, turning toward the door. “Congratulations. You just made tonight unforgettable.”
I walked out without looking back, because if I did, I might rip Mira’s smug little smirk off her face- and that would give Alpha Marcus exactly the excuse he’d been waiting for to throw me out.
The hallway outside the private room felt colder than the snowy street. I didn’t rush — not because I was calm, but because running would feel like
3/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
–
Chapter One One Year Too Many
:
VPH
155
defeat. The heels I’d been so stupid to wear clicked against the polished wood, every sound echoing like it was announcing Elara Quinn, freshly humiliated.
Whispers followed.
“Is that…?” “She looks pissed-” “Wasn’t she—”
I kept my chin high, eyes forward. Wolves smelled weakness like smoke. If I gave them even a flicker of hurt, the gossip would hit the pack faster than the
winter wind.
By the time I reached the foyer, I had my coat half on when a voice like dry gravel scraped behind me.
“Elara. A word.”
Alpha Marcus Ashthorne stood in the archway to his office, one hand resting on the carved frame like he’d been waiting for me.
He was still an imposing man at fifty-five, tall and sharp-featured, with silver just beginning to thread through his dark hair. His suit was cut to fit a leader who could command both a boardroom and a battlefield. Those pale blue eyes didn’t blink much they just measured and weighed.
—
I didn’t want this conversation tonight. But no one ignored an Alpha’s summons, especially when you were already hanging on to pack standing by a fraying thread.
His office was warm, firelight throwing gold across leather-bound books and the mounted elk head over his desk. I stopped just inside, refusing to sit in the chair he gestured toward.
He noticed. Of course he noticed.
“I heard there was an… incident,” Marcus said, voice calm in a way that felt
4/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
—
Chapter One One Year Too Many
rehearsed.
VPH
55
I folded my arms. “If by ‘incident’ you mean I caught my boyfriend with your daughter, then yes. There was an incident.”
One corner of his mouth twitched. Not guilt. Not surprise. Satisfaction.
“Mira is young,” he said. “Impulsive. She’s not meant to be judged by the same
standards.”
“Right. Because she’s your daughter and I’m—”
“A complication,” he finished smoothly. “Your father served this pack well. His death was a loss to us all. But your position here was… always tenuous.”
My stomach dropped, but I kept my face blank. “Meaning?”
–
Marcus leaned back, steepling his fingers. “You’re not bonded to anyone in this pack. Your mother’s Valemont bloodline is an old one, and your loyalty — understandably is divided. That’s not ideal for a Beta’s daughter who no longer has a Beta to anchor her here.”
–
“So Mira sleeps with my boyfriend and somehow I’m the problem?”
He didn’t answer, which was answer enough.
“You’ve wanted me gone for years,” I said, voice low. “Now you think you’ve got your excuse.”
His smile was faint. “I think it’s time you consider returning to your mother’s people. I’ll arrange transport.”
I let out a short, humorless laugh. “Don’t bother. I’ll handle it myself.”
For a moment, his eyes glinted – predator satisfied with a clean kill.
5/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
–
Chapter One One Year Too Many
VPI
55
I turned and walked out before he could say anything else, the warmth of the office giving way to the sharp bite of winter air as I stepped outside. My breath came fast, misting in front of me, but it wasn’t the cold.
I wasn’t just leaving Kaleb tonight. I was leaving Montana.
The walk home cut through the quietest part of the Ashthorne territory, where the cabins sat far enough apart to make the night feel larger. Snow crunched under my heels until I gave up and yanked them off, letting the cold bite at my toes.
Lights glowed in our cabin windows-warm, golden, steady. The moment I stepped inside, the scent of chamomile and cedar hit me, easing the knot in my chest just a little.
“Sweetheart?”
–
My mother’s voice came from the kitchen.
Seraphina Quinn still looked every inch the Alpha bloodline she was born into – tall and willowy, her silver-streaked dark hair braided over one shoulder, bright gray eyes so much like mine they could have been a mirror. Even in a simple sweater and leggings, there was a regal calm to her, the kind that made wolves lower their voices when she walked by.
She took one look at my face and set the teapot down. “Tell me.”
I dropped my heels by the door and tried for a shrug. “Kaleb’s busy tonight. With Mira.”
Her expression didn’t change, but the temperature in the room shifted, the air going taut. “You’re certain?”
6/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
VPH
155
Chapter One One Year Too Many
“I walked in on them. In the lodge.”
For a moment, she said nothing-just pressed her fingers against the edge of the counter like she was keeping herself still. Then: “And Alpha Marcus?”
“Already knows. Already told me I should ‘return to my mother’s people.” My laugh came out bitter. “He’s been waiting for this.”
Seraphina exhaled slowly, eyes softening as she came around the counter to stand in front of me. “Then we go. Tomorrow.”
The finality in her voice was a relief I hadn’t expected. “You’d really leave?
Just like that?”
She cupped my face in her hands, her palms warm against my chilled skin. “Elara, there is nothing for us here but ghosts and politics. Valemont is our bloodline. Your uncle will welcome us, and there you will be more than an
inconvenient Beta’s daughter.”
Her certainty steadied something in me.
I nodded, a weight lifting off my ribs. “Okay. Tomorrow.”
—
Seraphina’s lips curved in a faint smile not of joy, but of decision. “Pack
light. We’re not coming back.”
米米米
The Minnesota winter was sharper than Montana’s, a dry cold that clung to your lungs and painted every breath in frosty plumes. The drive from the train station wound through miles of pine forest before the road opened to the Valemont Pack’s heart.
7/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
Chapter One – One Year Too Many
0:0
VPH
55
By the time we stepped out of the SUV that had brought us from the station, my toes were numb again. But warmth hit me almost instantly- not from the cold, but from the sight in front of me.
Alpha Darius Valemont stood on the lodge steps, broad-shouldered in a thick wool coat, salt-and-pepper hair pulled back, his piercing gray eyes brightening the moment they landed on us. He moved down the steps in three long strides, boots crunching over the snow.
“Seraphina.” His voice was roughened by age, but the affection in it could melt glaciers.
—
My mother didn’t hesitate she closed the distance and threw her arms around her brother. He lifted her off her feet for a moment, the kind of embrace that ignored rank and years alike. “You look the same,” he said into her hair.
“You lie worse than you used to,” she teased, her voice thick with emotion.
When he set her down, his gaze shifted to me. His mouth quirked into a grin. “Elara Quinn. Didn’t I just see you last year, hogging the dessert table at the
Solstice Feast?”
I rolled my eyes, but my smile slipped through anyway. “That was Cassia, not me. And you know it.”
He gave a low chuckle. “Still blaming my daughter for your crimes, I see.”
Before I could answer, my cousin barreled across the snow.
Cassia Valemont was all bright eyes and wicked grin, her coat hanging open despite the cold. She hit me in a hug that knocked the air out of my lungs. “Finally! I was about to start a rescue mission.”
“From what?” I laughed into her shoulder.
8/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
1
Chapter One One Year Too Many
0:0
VPN
55
“From boredom..” She pulled back, looking me over like she was cataloging changes. “You got prettier. It’s annoying.”
Before I could retort, a deeper voice called from the lodge porch. “Move over, Cass, you’re hogging her.”
Caius Valemont – Cassia’s twin
Cassia’s twin-came down the steps at a more relaxed
pace. He had the same bright eyes, but his hair was shorter, his smile lazier, and his gait carried that laid-back charm that fooled people into forgetting how sharp he was. He wrapped me in a one-armed hug, warm and steady.
“Missed you, El,” he said simply.
“Missed you too,” I answered.
Cassia looped her arm through mine like she’d just claimed me for the rest of the night. “Come on, we’re kidnapping you for cocoa and catching up. And by catching up, I mean you’re telling us everything about Montana’s latest
disasters.”
“Some of it’s classified,” I warned.
Caius smirked. “Translation, the good parts come later when she’s tipsy.”
Darius’s voice cut in, calm but warm. “You can gossip all night in the lodge. Your rooms are ready, and the fire’s going.”
I glanced up at him, and his expression softened.
“You’re home here, Elara,” he said. “No one will make you feel otherwise.”
just… steadier. The
Life in Valemont moved differently. Not slower, exactly pack didn’t pulse with the constant undercurrent of rivalry like Montana’s did.
9/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
–
Chapter One One Year Too Many
Here, people waved when they passed you on the street.
VPH
$55
It had been three weeks since my mother and I arrived, and the sharp edges of Montana were finally wearing off. My days had fallen into a comfortable rhythm, mornings spent in the cozy corner of the lodge library with my laptop, afternoons helping my mother in the healing rooms, evenings with Cassia and Caius in the lounge, where the fire snapped and the scent of hot cocoa clung to
the air.
Cassia had made it her personal mission to ensure I wasn’t allowed to mope, sulk, or “turn into a tragically romantic poet” about Montana.
Tonight, the three of us had taken over our usual corner of the lodge lounge. Cassia was sprawled sideways in an armchair, legs over one armrest, a mug of cocoa balanced dangerously on her knee. Caius was across from her, shuffling a deck of cards like it was muscle memory, the firelight catching on the faint scar along his jaw — a souvenir from a sparring match years ago. I was curled up on the couch between them, notebook in my lap.
Cassia leaned forward suddenly, nearly spilling her cocoa. “So… I’ve been
thinking.”
Caius didn’t even look up. “That’s dangerous.”
She waved him off. “I mean really thinking. Deep, soul-searching stuff.”
I smirked. “This should be good.”
“We should go to Europe this spring,” she declared, sitting up like she’d just announced the cure for every problem I’d ever had.
I blinked. “Europe?”
“Yes, Elara. Europe. You, me, and maybe Caius if he promises not to be a fun-sponge.”
10/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
–
Chapter One One Year Too Many
Caius arched a brow. “Fun-sponge?”
VPN
55
“You absorb joy,” she said solemnly, then turned back to me. “Picture it: hopping between cities, eating our weight in pastries, getting lost down
cobblestone streets where handsome strangers are legally required to fall in love with us on sight.”
“Legally required?” I asked.
“It’s an unspoken European law,” she said, sipping her cocoa like she’d just cited a credible source.
I glanced at Caius. “Translation: Cassia wants to day-drink in Paris without your dad finding out.”
“Exactly,” she said without missing a beat. “And you, dear cousin, need a distraction. You’ve been here three weeks and you haven’t done one reckless
thing.”
“I moved across the country,” I reminded her.
“That was survival,” she countered. “I’m talking about living. The kind of living where, five years from now, you tell the story and people gasp and say, ‘You
didn’t!””
I hesitated, because part of me wanted to roll my eyes… but the other part, the restless wolf inside me, leaned forward.
“Paris,” I repeated slowly.
Cassia’s grin widened. “Paris. We’ll start there, then maybe Florence, maybe Barcelona-”
“Barcelona?” Caius cut in. “You failed Spanish in high school.”
11/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
–
Chapter One One Year Too Many
:
VPN
55
She pointed her mug at him. “I failed because Mrs. Ricci hated me, not because I’m bad at languages.”
“She hated you because you used Google Translate for your oral exam,” he said dryly.
Cassia looked at me for backup. “Creative problem-solving. Anyway, Paris is the main event. Come on, El—when’s the last time you did something purely for
fun?”
I tried to think of something. Anything. The silence stretched a little too long, and Cassia’s eyes lit up like she’d caught me.
“Exactly,” she said, triumphant. “Pack your cutest dresses. We’re doing this.”
“You’re insane,” I said, but I was already smiling.
“And you love me for it,” she said, flopping back into the chair.
Caius chuckled, shaking his head. “This is going to end in trouble.”
Cassia pointed at him. “Trouble’s just the start.”
“Mm-hm,” Caius said, leaning back. “And what exactly is Dad supposed to say when his beloved only daughter and favorite niece vanish across the ocean together?”
Cassia smirked. “We won’t vanish. We’ll… take an extended cultural education
trip.”
I snorted. “Do you think Alpha Darius is going to buy that?”
“Buy it?” Cassia said, her grin turning wicked. “He’ll fund it. Eventually. When we send him pictures of us ‘researching pack diplomacy’ in front of the Eiffel Tower.”
12/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
–
Chapter One One Year Too Many
:
VPN
55
Caius shook his head, a small smile tugging at his mouth. “I give it three days before Dad calls me to track you both down.”
Cassia turned to me, her eyes bright. “See? Even my twin knows this will be epic.”
I glanced between them – my chaos cousin and my unflappable
cousin-brother
and felt the first real flicker of excitement since Montana.
“Fine,” I said. “Paris first.”
Cassia grinned like she’d just won the lottery..
Caius groaned. “I’m telling Dad right now.”
Cassia lunged across the table for his phone, and the lounge dissolved into laughter.
13/13
12:47 Tue, Apr 14 N
–
