Bound By The Moon

Chapter 3: Before the Fall

Liora let the storm soak her skin and cool her sated body, but Grayden’s absence left her hollow and trembling. She pulled the shredded remains of her dress around herself and stared at the empty spaces where he’d vanished—a ghost in the night, still tethered to her by the burning, sacred bond.

He was broken. She felt it as if the ache were her own—a howl of grief and need. She pressed her hand to her heart, breath shuddering, and let the rain mingle with tears she barely noticed. She remembered the boy he’d been, the promise in his golden eyes, the secret vows whispered under the blood moon. The memory was salt in a wound that would never close.

She slipped from the clearing, the forest swallowing her, and let her mind tumble back through years and pain, to the night everything changed.

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*Years earlier—*

The night air was thick with summer and anticipation. Liora crept through the woods, heart hammering, a stolen thrill tightening her thighs. The blood moon hung low and red, painting the world in secrets. Grayden waited for her in the clearing, already stripped to the waist, his broad chest scarless and smooth, jaw shadowed by boyish stubble. He was the Alpha’s son, every inch of him carved from legacy and expectation, but when his eyes found hers, Liora saw only the man who craved her.

She went to him, barefoot, whispering his name. His hand found her waist, rough with calluses, and drew her close. The bond shimmered between them—fresh and wild—a golden thread only they could feel. She pressed her lips to his, tasting sweet wine and the promise of forever.

“Are you sure?” he whispered, voice trembling.

Liora grinned, bold in moonlight. “I want you, Grayden. All of you.”

He groaned, mouth capturing hers, hands urgent as they pushed her simple dress up, baring her thighs, her hips, the ache he alone could ease. He knelt before her, reverent, and pressed his lips to the skin above her heart. She gasped as his tongue traced the shape of his mark, a secret they’d carry forever.

She tugged him up, eyes hungry, and undid the ties at his waist. His c**k was heavy and hot in her hand, her name a desperate sound on his lips. He laid her down in the grass, the moon watching, the forest holding its breath. He slid between her thighs, his body fitting hers like a secret song, and when he entered her, she arched, clutching his shoulders.

He moved slow at first, worshipful, whispering her name, drinking her cries. The bond flared—her pleasure his, his hunger hers. Every thrust drew her higher, every kiss a silent vow. When she came, the world spun red and gold; she marked him with her teeth, blood bright on his shoulder.

They lay tangled after, hearts racing, skin sticky with sweat and need. He pressed his forehead to hers, breathless. “We’re bound now, Liora. Forever.”

She smiled, believing it.

But forever ended days later.

The village woke to panic—the old elder dead, poisoned, the air thick with accusation. Grayden was summoned, accused, the evidence stacked too neatly to be chance. Liora pleaded, denied, but the council’s eyes were cold. She felt the spell—twisting, choking, nudging her words, her memories. When the elders forced her to stand and speak, fear and power made her voice a stranger’s.

“Did you see Grayden by the elder’s hut?” one demanded.

Her tongue twisted. “Yes,” she heard herself say, horror blooming as the words spilled. “He was angry. I saw him arguing with the elder.”

She saw the disbelief in Grayden’s golden eyes, the heartbreak as the council pronounced him traitor. She tried to run after him, to take it back, but hands held her still. His gaze haunted her—betrayed, shattered, forever burned into her memory.

The bond did not break. It withered, quiet and aching, a song with no end.

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Liora shuddered in the present, knees buckling as she stumbled through the storm. She pressed the torn dress to her chest and let herself sob, grief and arousal tangled, a torment only he could answer. She understood now—the bond would never die, not while either of them drew breath. And somewhere in the night, Grayden howled, his pain and longing echoing through the wild, calling to the part of her that would always be his.