FRACTURED MORNINGS
Chapter 1
The sharp crack of a slap echoed through the Voss family kitchen.
Elena’s head snapped to the side, her cheek burning hot. She tasted the metallic tang of blood where her lip had split against her teeth. She didn’t cry out. She never did anymore.
“You useless girl!” her mother, Sophia, snarled, towering over her with eyes blazing in fury. “I told you to have breakfast ready by seven. Lucas has early training, and you can’t even manage a simple meal? What kind of worthless wolf are you?”
Elena kept her gaze lowered, staring at the spilled orange juice slowly spreading across the marble floor. Her hands trembled slightly as she reached for a cloth. “I’m sorry, Mother. It won’t happen again.”
From the doorway, her younger half-brother Lucas watched with a conflicted frown. At sixteen, he already carried the confident posture of a future warrior, but he shifted uncomfortably, avoiding Elena’s eyes. He never stopped it, but sometimes...on rare good days...he would quietly slip her an ice pack later.
Sophia grabbed Elena’s chin roughly, forcing her to look up. “Your father would be ashamed if he saw what a disappointment you’ve become. Clean this mess and remake everything. And don’t think I won’t tell Damien how ungrateful you are when he visits.”
At the mention of his name, Elena’s heart stuttered. A familiar warmth bloomed deep in her chest, chasing away the sting on her cheek for just a moment. Damien.
Even now, after all these years, just hearing his name sent heat rushing through her veins. She could picture him clearly...tall and commanding, with those piercing silver eyes that seemed to see straight into her soul, broad shoulders filling out his tailored shirts, and that deep, velvety voice that haunted her nights.
In her dreams, he wasn’t her father’s best friend. In her dreams, his strong hands roamed over her body, his lips claimed hers with hungry passion, and he whispered things that made her wake up flushed and aching with need. Forbidden. Impossible. But so painfully real.
She had loved him in secret since she was sixteen...repressing every stolen glance, every fluttering feeling, every steamy fantasy. He was noble, powerful, and engaged to Lila, the perfect she-wolf who would one day become Luna.
“Stop daydreaming and get to work!” Sophia snapped, shoving her away.
Elena moved mechanically through the rest of the morning...cleaning, cooking fresh breakfast, ironing Lucas’s training clothes, and staying invisible. The house smelled of rich coffee and fried bacon, but to her it only carried the bitter taste of resentment.
Later, as she wiped down the counters, her best friend Mia texted her:
Mia: Saw your mom at the market earlier. You okay? Meet me at the oak after dinner if you can sneak out. I stole some pastries for you.
A small, genuine smile touched Elena’s swollen lip. Mia was her lifeline...bold, funny, and the only person who knew the depth of her obsession with Damien. She always found ways to sneak Elena moments of freedom and reminded her that her eighteenth birthday was so close.
As evening fell and the house grew quiet, Elena finally slipped out to meet Mia under the ancient oak tree at the edge of the property. The cool night air brushed against her skin, carrying the scent of pine and damp earth. Mia was already waiting, wrapped in a hoodie, holding out a warm pastry.
“You look really sad,” Mia said softly, pulling her into a hug. “What happened this time?”
Elena leaned into her best friend’s embrace, letting the tears she had held back all day finally fall. “The usual. But… Damien is supposed to visit tomorrow. Mother always pretends to be civil when he’s around.”
Mia pulled back, studying her with knowing eyes. “And you? Still dreaming about the man you can never have?”
Elena’s cheeks flushed in the moonlight. She didn’t deny it. The obsession ran too deep...years of repressed longing that only grew stronger with time. She knew it was wrong. He was her father’s best friend. Older. Engaged. Completely off-limits.
But deep down, a quiet, desperate voice whispered that this might be her only chance.
Little did she know, fate was already turning.
