\u00a0<\/p>\n
< Unclaimed, Unbroken\u00a0<\/p>\n
Claim\u00a0<\/p>\n
Unclaimed, Unbroken\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe thinks she can fight us. Cute. She\u2019ll learn.\u201d \u2013 Seth Caine\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seth\u2019s POV:\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, she\u2019s not boring, I\u2019ll give her that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rory let out a low chuckle, shoving his hands into his pockets. \u201cBoring? She\u2019s two seconds away from trying to rip our throats out.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLet her try,\u201d I grinned, tilting my head back against the wall. \u201cKind of into it, honestly.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jaxon groaned, scrubbing a hand down his face like he was already exhausted. \u201cFocus, Seth. This isn\u2019t a game. She\u2019s our mate, and she\u2019s scared. We need to tread carefully.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I side-eyed him, unimpressed. \u201cSince when do you do careful, Jaxon?\u201d I threw my arms up. \u201cYou\u2019re\u00a0<\/p>\n
about as subtle as a damn battering ram.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEnough,\u201d Callum\u2019s voice sliced through our conversation like a blade. His gray eyes were sharp,\u00a0<\/p>\n
unreadable. \u201cThis isn\u2019t about us. It\u2019s about her.\u201d His law ticked, and his grip flexed at his sides.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s ours, and she needs to understand that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe understands,\u201d Rory muttered, rolling his shoulders. \u201cShe just doesn\u2019t like it. And she\u2019s going to fight us every step of the way.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I smirked, my lips twitching at the challenge. \u201cGood I like a fight.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jaxon let out a long breath, clearly trying to keep from strangling me. \u201cThis isn\u2019t about what you\u00a0<\/p>\n
like, Seth.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, but it\u2019s about her,\u201d I said, my tone shifting to something more serious. \u201cAnd if you think she\u2019s\u00a0<\/p>\n
going to fall into our arms because we\u2019re standing around looking all broody and obsessive, you\u2019re\u00a0<\/p>\n
dumber than you look.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Callum\u2019s jaw clenched, but I caught the flicker of reluctant agreement in his eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rhea wasn\u2019t the kind of girl to roll over and submit.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was a f*****g storm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And if she thought we\u2019d be scared of a little thunde?\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had another thing coming.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jaxon\u2019s POV:\u00a0<\/p>\n
As we made our way to the dining room, my mind kept replaying the way she said Alpha. That mocking little jab had Blaze pacing in my head, teeth bared.\u00a0<\/p>\n
111\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/6\u00a0<\/p>\n
< Unclaimed, Unbroken\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018She\u2019s testing us, Blaze growled.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Yeah,\u2019 I muttered. \u2018And we\u2019re letting her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blaze snarled. \u2018For now.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n
Claim\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her defiance was like a drug-pissing me off and turning me on at the same damn time. Every sharp remark, every glare, every f**k you radiating from her eyes made me want to break down her resistance and show her exactly who she belonged to.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But Callum\u2019s voice cut through my thoughts like always. \u201cWe need to stay calm,\u201d he warned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rory scoffed, crossing his arms. \u201cYou pinned her to the bed last time.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Callum\u2019s jaw flexed. \u201cI learned my lesson.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you?\u201d Seth\u2019s voice dripped with amusement. \u201cBecause it definitely looked like you were two\u00a0<\/p>\n
seconds away from-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEnough,\u201d Callum snapped, his voice low and final. The guilt in his eyes flickered-just for a second.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yeah.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We all needed to do better.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rhea\u2019s POV:\u00a0<\/p>\n
I paced the room, my arms crossed, trying to breathe through the frustration boiling under my skin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Alphas-because f**k them, I was definitely calling them that just to piss them off-were absolutely insufferable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Move into the packhouse?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Have a curfew?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Be chauffeured around like some helpless, delicate thing?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I clenched my jaw. Who do they think they are?\u00a0<\/p>\n
The worst part? It wasn\u2019t just about control.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t just about them making rules or throwing their weight around. It was the way they believe\u00a0<\/p>\n
d-with every fibre of their being-that I was theirs. Like it wasn\u2019t even a question. Like the universe itself had written my name next to theirs in some twisted, cosmic love story I never signed up for.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That kind of certainty? That unshakable, bone-deep conviction?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t know if I wanted to scream or-\u00a0<\/p>\n
No.\u00a0<\/p>\n
< Unclaimed, Unbroken\u00a0<\/p>\n
I hated that.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There was no or.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They were convinced we were bound by fate, but me?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t feel a damn thing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Claim\u00a0<\/p>\n
No sparks. No magnetic pull. No deep, soul-wrenching knowing that every mated wolf supposedly\u00a0<\/p>\n
felt when they met their other half.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nothing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And I wasn\u2019t about to pretend.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I wasn\u2019t about to get sucked into their world, let myself hope, let myself feel, only to end up\u00a0<\/p>\n
shattered and alone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Never again. Right?\u00a0<\/p>\n
A knock at the door made me stiffen.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cCome in,\u201d I called, sharper than I meant to.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The door opened, and Rory strolled inside, carrying a tray with coffee and toast like he had all the\u00a0<\/p>\n
time in the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou skipped breakfast,\u201d he said, placing the tray on the table.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I lifted my chin. \u201cI wasn\u2019t hungry.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was hungry. Starving, actually. But I wasn\u2019t about to admit that to Mr. Smirky McSmooth Talker\u00a0<\/p>\n
over here.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rory arched a brow, unimpressed. \u201cEat. You\u2019ll need your energy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what? Another round of you four steamrolling your way into my life?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His lips curved slightly. \u201cSomething like that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I narrowed my eyes, but my stomach betrayed me, growling loud enough to make Rory smirk.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Asshole.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Still, I grabbed the coffee. \u201cThanks, I guess.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
And maybe, just maybe, I let myself enjoy that first sip a little too much.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Callum\u2019s POV:\u00a0<\/p>\n
From the hallway, I watched Rory with Rhea through the crack in the door. She was still bristling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
370\u00a0<\/p>\n
< Unclaimed, Unbroken\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThen lead the way, Alpha,\u201d I said sweetly, watching his jaw tick.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yeah.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was going to make this hell for them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jaxon\u2019s POV:\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was taunting me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Every sarcastic jab, every roll of her eyes, every time she spat Alpha like it burned her tongue-\u00a0<\/p>\n
infuriating.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Intoxicating.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blaze growled. \u2018She thinks she can fight this\u2019.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I clenched my\u00a0<\/p>\n
fists.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018She\u2019ll learn.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because she might think she could fight us.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But we weren\u2019t letting her go.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not now.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not ever.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Shadows Of Passing Time \u2013 Carter Hughes 108 \u00a0 < Unclaimed, Unbroken\u00a0 Claim\u00a0 Unclaimed, Unbroken\u00a0 \u201cShe thinks she can fight […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[86],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29749","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-melting-the-ice-princess-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29749","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29749"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29749\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29749"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29749"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29749"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}