The Snow Wolf's Mate

A Pack of Smiles and Knives:

[POV: Dayana]

I had rehearsed every word.

Every sympathetic smile. Every carefully timed sigh. Every glance that would appear heavy with sisterly concern. I wore the part like a second skin—soft silk and sorrow.

And now, as we crossed the threshold into Crimson Fang territory, I played it perfectly.

“Such a long journey,” I murmured, clutching my cloak closer as if the wind had teeth. “But what choice did we have? Family comes first.”

Cole rode silent beside me, his jaw clenched, his eyes distant. As they had been for days.

Before us, my parents followed, Father regal and cold, Mother all tight smiles and glittering lies.

Hayden’s wolves met us with caution. Suspicion thickened the air from the moment we stepped through the main gate. The guards flanked us all the way to the Alpha’s estate, their postures tense, but I didn’t falter.

I needed them to see me as calm. Measured. The image of a concerned younger sister seeking only to bring her lost family member home.

The doors to the grand hall opened, and there he was.

Alpha Hayden.

A towering presence with a stare sharp enough to cut granite. And beside him—Aria.

My jaw clenched before I could stop it. She stood near him in a deep green tunic, her hair half-tied, cheeks flushed from the cold. And worse—he touched her.

Lightly, yes. Casually, perhaps. A hand brushing her lower back. But his hand. Her back.

It was enough to set my blood boiling beneath my skin.

She had the nerve to look surprised. Surprised to see us. As though she hadn’t known this moment would come. As though she hadn’t expected us to come find her like the disgrace she is.

“Dayana,” she breathed, pale now. “Father, Mother… Cole.”

Mother stepped forward first, ever the picture of maternal concern.

“Darling. Thank the Moon Goddess you’re safe. We’ve worried for so long.”

Aria blinked slowly. “Worried?”

“Oh, Aria,” I said sweetly, stepping between our parents and Cole. “Don’t be like that. When we found out where you were—well, how could we not come? We’re family.”

Hayden didn’t flinch, but his hand dropped from Aria’s back.

“Alpha Hayden,” Father said, extending a hand. “Thank you for welcoming us into your home. We’re honored to be guests in the Crimson Fang territory.”

Hayden nodded, his tone cool. “We honor our alliances. No more, no less.”

And that was it. The tension tightened.

Still, we followed him and Aria into the grand dining room, a place lined with stone and silver, fur rugs beneath our feet. Servants filled glasses and brought out meats I didn’t recognize. I sat across from Aria and beside Cole, who wouldn’t meet my gaze.

Of course, I made a point of looking at him. Often. With practiced warmth.

“Cole,” I said softly during the meal, “remember that time you taught me to track snow lynx in the Northwood Ridge? You were so patient with me.”

Cole shifted uncomfortably, offering a stiff nod. “Yeah.”

“Oh, but you were,” I continued, resting a hand lightly on his wrist, “so attentive. I wouldn’t have caught my first trail without you.”

Across the table, Aria was frozen. Her fork hovered, untouched. Her eyes met mine once—and I smiled. But then Hayden spoke.

“I’m told you’ve come to bring her back,” he said, voice like frost.

Mother smiled, all innocence. “We only wish to talk. To remind her of where she belongs. Of her home.”

“This is her home now,” Hayden said flatly.

Father’s smile tightened. “Surely you can understand, Alpha Hayden. A family loses a daughter. Then hears rumors of her—alive, hiding, unstable—”

“She’s not hiding,” Hayden snapped. “And she’s not unstable.”

The silence that followed was thick and pointed.

“She’s been thriving,” he continued, “in a place that values her strength. She’s earned her position among our warriors, and more importantly, she’s begun to unlock abilities that were stifled in her former pack.”

I tilted my head. “We only want what’s best for her.”

“Then you should have shown her that years ago,” he growled.

I narrowed my eyes. “It’s touching, really. How fiercely you defend her. I suppose bonds grow quickly when… instincts are involved.”

Aria flinched. Hayden didn’t look away from me. “I don’t care for the implication.”

“No implication,” I said smoothly, then turned to Aria. “We just miss you. That’s all. Cole especially.”

At that, Cole finally looked up—but not at me. At her. And in his eyes, I saw something I hadn’t expected.

Regret. Longing. Love.

It stung more than I let to show.