Luna POV
They came through the doors like violence with legs.
Luna's training kicked in automatically. Face blank. Body relaxed. Breathing steady. Five years of discipline meant she could lock everything down while her insides were breaking. Control meant nothing moved. Control meant perfect stillness while the world burned.
But her entire nervous system seized up.
The pull didn't arrive gently. It crashed through her like an electrical storm, anchoring itself in her chest. Every cell in her body recognized something her brain was still catching up to. Something ancient. Something that felt like a name she'd been hearing whispered in her sleep for years.
It was him.
Black hair that caught the light. Broad shoulders. Storm gray eyes that swept across the room and then locked onto hers like he'd been searching for her his entire life. Like every moment before this second had been him waiting to find her.
Grayson.
She'd heard the stories. Every pack knew about Dark Moon's lethal warrior. The one who fought like violence was a language he'd grown up speaking. The one who made experienced fighters nervous. The one who'd never lost. But the stories didn't mention how he moved. Like danger was something he wore without thinking. Like the world bent around him whether it wanted to or not. He had the kind of presence that filled a room without him saying anything.
He wore Dark Moon colors. Fresh scars on his hands. Eyes older than his face should allow. He'd seen things. Done things. Become something most wolves could never become no matter how hard they tried.
And he was looking at her like nothing else in this room existed.
His pupils dilated. His shoulders tensed. The air around him shifted like the temperature had changed.
He felt it.
The bond recognized itself and they both went still.
Luna could feel the room watching now. The wrong kind of quiet. The kind of quiet that meant something had shifted. The kind that made warriors nervous. The temperature dropped. She could see her breath for just a second against the cold.
Marcus's hand moved to the sword at his side.
One of the Silverwood warriors stood up like someone had yanked him from his chair. Another one shifted closer to Luna in a protective move. Everyone felt it. The way something had tilted. The way something impossible was announcing itself in front of witnesses. The way the world had just changed and they were all standing in it.
Luna forced herself to look away.
It cost her everything. Every wall she'd spent five years building. Every discipline she'd learned from Marcus. Every piece of control she'd constructed to keep her wolf locked down. She pulled her eyes away from his and looked down at her hands on the table.
Steady. Ice cold. Perfect.
But underneath the table, where nobody could see, her hands were shaking.
She treated Grayson like he was just another Dark Moon warrior. Like he was a stranger. Like the bond wasn't screaming to be acknowledged. Like her body wasn't desperate to move toward him. Like every instinct she had wasn't demanding that she claim him right there in front of everyone.
When she spoke, her voice came out calm. Professional. Empty of anything real.
"Welcome to Silverwood," she said to the room in general. Not to him. Not to those storm gray eyes that were burning into her skin.
One of the Dark Moon warriors stepped forward. Older. Gray streaked through his black hair. Probably the delegation leader.
"We appreciate the welcome," he said smoothly. "Kade sends his respect."
Marcus stood up. His hand was still near his sword but his face was controlled.
"We honor Dark Moon's interest in peace," Marcus replied. "Please, sit."
The warriors moved to their chairs. Luna could sense Grayson taking a seat directly across from her. Could feel his attention like weight pressing against her skin. She could feel it and she couldn't make herself breathe normally.
The older warrior started talking about borders and hunting rights. Luna listened because it was her job to listen. Because it was her responsibility to pay attention. But underneath the table, her hands wouldn't stop shaking.
Her instincts weren't restless anymore. They were purposeful. They were hunting. They were recognizing something that Luna's human mind didn't want to accept. Something that would change everything.
She'd spent five years building walls to keep romance out. Five years telling herself that her body would eventually accept control. Five years pretending that the need for a mate would fade into background noise if she just ignored it long enough.
She'd been completely wrong about all of it.
The negotiations continued for hours that felt like minutes or minutes that felt like hours. Documents passed around. Questions about water rights. Luna answered when she was supposed to. Made notes on her papers. Kept her face blank and her voice steady. Professional. Untouchable.
But she could sense him breathing across the table. Could feel the way his eyes never moved from her face. Could feel the intensity of his attention burning into her skin like a brand she'd never be able to wash off.
This was impossible. The bond between packs like Silverwood and Dark Moon was supposed to be impossible. Mates came from your own pack. From wolves who understood the same rules. The same loyalty. The same priorities.
Not from enemies.
Not from a warrior sworn to an Alpha who wanted Silverwood destroyed.
She risked a quick glance at him and instantly regretted it.
His jaw was tight. His eyes were darker now. Much darker. Hungrier. He sat perfectly still but she could see the tension in his shoulders. The way his hands gripped the table edge like he was using physical control to keep himself from moving. The way he was fighting his own instincts just as hard as she was fighting hers.
He looked at her like she was already his.
Like it didn't matter that this was impossible.
Like he'd already decided what he wanted and nothing else mattered.
Luna looked away because she couldn't hold his gaze without her entire body betraying every promise she'd made to herself. Without her wolf completely taking over. Without her control shattering completely.
The meeting continued for another hour. Then Marcus called for a break and the warriors stood up to stretch their legs. Luna stayed seated. Her legs didn't feel reliable. Didn't feel like they belonged to her anymore.
Through the corner of her eye, she watched Grayson walk toward the door with the other Dark Moon wolves. But his head turned. His eyes found hers one more time before he left the room.
He paused in the doorway.
His jaw tightened and he stared at her with an intensity that burned through every wall she'd built. Every defense. Every promise to herself that this was impossible and therefore wouldn't happen.
The way he was looking at her said something completely different.
It said this was just the beginning.
It said that whatever was between them, it was going to burn everything down before it was
finished.