My Room Mate from the Pack

He set a plate down in front of me without a word. No sarcastic comment. No drama. No accidental smirk. Just the clink of porcelain and tension so thick I could chew it. We ate in silence. It was easily the most awkward meal we’d ever shared, and that was saying something, considering our origin…

The truth was, I couldn’t stay here. Not another hour. Not another minute surrounded by his things. His scent. His memory pressed into the throw pillow on the couch and his hoodie hanging crookedly on the wall hook. In the bathroom our toothbrushes stood side by side like little sentinels watching over our intermingled toiletries.…

And just like that, the illusion snapped. The music kept playing. The lights stayed warm. The champagne still sparkled in other people’s hands. But the ache in my chest stayed. Because I knew what came next. And I wasn’t ready to lose him. Maggie I was on my third glass of wine and my third…

“I’ll take it,” I said when the saleswoman reappeared. Maggie gaped at me. “Seriously?” I nodded once. “It’s the one.” I paid while she changed back into her real clothes. I didn’t look at the receipt. I’d pay double if it meant I got to see her in that dress again. We walked out of…

I raised my hand. “If it’s not alphabetical, it’s chaos. How do you find anything in there?” The host moved on, grinning. “Roman, how does Maggie comfort you when you’re upset?” The world tilted a little. I cleared my throat. “She doesn’t push. She sits next to me. Sometimes she hums. It’s awful and off-key,…

Because I loved her. But I couldn’t. So, I bit down on the capsule and let the fake blood trickle across her shoulder. The heat of her skin against my lips nearly undid me. I pulled back slowly, my mouth stained red. Maggie reached up and touched the mark like she couldn’t quite believe it.…

“It’ll pass.” “What will?” “The bite. It’ll pass as real. Just don’t let anyone get too close.” I stared at him, at this man who had fake-bonded with me and lied to his alpha, and yet somehow made me feel more like myself than anyone else ever had. I wanted to ask him what he…

Roman was standing at the kitchen counter when I entered, like some domestic fantasy that had already expired. Like nothing in the world had shifted since I left. His head snapped up, eyes alert and concerned. “You okay?” I walked past him, set my coffee on the counter a little too hard, and crossed my…

I snorted before I could stop it. Her sarcasm cracked something in my chest open. “Sadly, no. But we could make one. Add it to the fake-dating archives.” We started planning. Fake blood to simulate the bite. Scent-masking herbs to throw off the enforcers afterward. I’d wear something sharp enough to look like I still…

There was only one more day until the ceremony, and I still didn’t have a damn clue what I was doing. I headed toward the woods. Toward silence. Space. And a decision I wasn’t ready to make. The air outside was sharp, cold, bracing, and it fit my mood perfectly. My boots crunched over frost-laced…