Second Chance Luna: Fated To The Two Cursed Alphas

*Marry Me*

Chapter 7

Aurora's POV:

"What the hell are you doing here?" I ask, almost losing it.

Ivar glances at me briefly before returning his gaze to the road ahead. "You seem busy tonight."

I whip around at the sound of engines roaring nearby.

Two vans screech around the corner, tires grinding against the asphalt as they grind to a halt.

Backups. Of course they'll bring backups.

More panther shifters pour out of the vehicles. My eyes widen.

"The f**k— Drive!" I order again.

He doesn't move. Instead, he asks, completely calm and oblivious to my problems, "How did you end up dealing with a group like them?"

I stare at him in disbelief. He must be completely out of it to ask for a backstory with my life on the line. I pause for a second, two seconds, and then realize he will not move unless I say something. A heavy sigh escapes my lips before I speak.

"I took out a loan," I say quickly. "Interest doubled twice."

"And what did you do about it?" My eyes roll at the question, but I continue.

"I tried to kill their boss. Twice."

He looks mildly impressed.

"You're quite ambitious, princess."

It had started a while after I got here. Loan sharks that turned out to be shifters, and probably the most dangerous group around here, and a boss I tried to seduce and kill at a private event.

I failed. Woefully.

Ever since, his men had been hunting me. And now they had found my home address.

I clench my teeth.

"Drive."

Instead, he extends his hand.

"The dagger."

I hesitate for a second before handing it over.

Without warning, he lowers the window and tosses it into the night.

My jaw drops.

"Are you insane?! Do you want me killed?"

"Aurora," he says calmly, "a dagger against ten shifters is not strategic. It's suicide."

I glance outside. The men are already closing in. The ones from my apartment have joined the others. Judging by their expressions, they are ready to tear me apart.

I am not waiting for that.

I shove him back against the seat and climb onto his lap, grabbing the steering wheel.

The engine roars to life.

The car shoots forward as I drive like a madwoman, swerving hard while the vans chase us through the streets. Behind me, Ivar leans back with one arm resting behind his head, completely relaxed, like we are on an evening drive and not running for our lives.

The road grows rough as I turn toward the hills. The car bounces violently across the uneven terrain, and every jolt throws me back against him. I keep my eyes on the road and my hands on the wheel and pretend I do not notice the hardness beneath me.

Several minutes later, the car rolls to a stop.

I slam the steering wheel in frustration.

"What now?!"

Headlights appear behind us. Two vans. Another van pulls ahead, blocking the narrow dirt road.

The doors open. The panther shifters step out carrying weapons — pinch bars, hammers, and metal spikes.

I curse under my breath.

We are trapped.

I climb off him, running a hand through my hair. Sweat trickles down my temple. My mind keeps repeating the same thing over and over.

*I'm dead. I'm dead. I'm fuckin' dead.*

"f**k," I mutter, dragging my hand over my face. I turn to him. His expression remains calm and nonchalant.

"We're gonna die, do something!"

"Ok," Ivar says, and calmly opens the car door. He cracks his knuckles and rolls his shoulders.

"What are you doing?" I grab his arm.

"Going out to play. You asked me to do something."

"Are you insane? Let's get out of here."

He ignores me. He just smiles, leans in, and presses his lips to my temple, a teasing kiss which leaves me completely dumbfounded.

"Watch."

Then he steps out of the car.

I stare after him. "Are you serious right now?"

He raises his hands casually toward the approaching men. "Gentlemen," he says, with the kind of tone people use at dinner parties. Calm. Reserved. "We wouldn't want trouble now, would we?"

One of the men laughs. "Who the hell are you?"

Ivar slowly removes his pistol from his belt and drops it onto the dirt.

"If you turn around and leave," he says, "we won't have any problems."

The men exchange confused looks. This man is showing absolutely no fear and they don't know what to do with that.

"Leave the girl with us," one of them calls out.

"If she owes you, wait your turn, dude." Laughter ripples through the group.

They give him a moment to step aside.

He doesn't.

"Step aside," the leader says.

"Eat me," Ivar replies.

The nearest panther lunges. Ivar moves, so fast I barely see it. A sharp crack echoes through the night as the man collapses, clutching his ribs.

The others attack immediately. But Ivar moves between them smoothly. A punch. A snap. Another body hits the ground. One of them swings a metal pipe. Ivar catches the arm mid-swing and twists. His bones crack with a sickening sound.

Within seconds, most of them are groaning in the dirt.

"Still want to fight?" he asks calmly.

The remaining men barely have time to react before something about him changes.

It starts subtly. His shoulders roll back. He tilts his neck. The air around grows heavier, thicker, the way it does right before a storm breaks.

Even the panther shifters feel it.

They step back.

Then his eyes change.

The grey I have come to recognize darkens before shifting completely into a deep, burning gold.

I feel the change before I understand it.

One of the men whispers it like a warning.

"Wolf—"

A loud crack breaks the silence.

Ivar's body twists forward, his spine arching violently, muscles expanding beneath his skin like something is forcing its way out. His shirt tears across his back. His hands hit the ground, fingers stretching as sharp claws burst through the skin. His legs reshape themselves. Thick black fur spreads rapidly across his body.

The transformation is fast, but brutal.

Bones shifting. Muscles twisting.

And then the man is gone.

In his place stands a massive wolf. Jet black from head to tail. Enormous in a way that makes my chest tighten. Golden eyes burn in the darkness.

The panther shifters freeze.

Someone curses. "Shit."

The wolf doesn't wait.

It launches forward, and the clearing erupts into chaos.

I grip the side of the car and don't move.

The screaming starts.

I hear the unmistakable tearing of flesh. Something heavy crashing into the ground. Branches snapping violently. Another scream that cuts off too quickly.

Then snarling. Low and vicious.

Then a sickening crunch.

Then silence.

The forest goes completely still.

I swallow hard. *What the hell.*

I get out of the car slowly, ears straining.

A few seconds pass before the bushes shift.

Something steps out from between the trees.

Ivar.

Human again.

And completely naked.

I blink.

Once. Then again.

Every piece of clothing he had been wearing is gone, destroyed somewhere in the trees during the transformation. He walks calmly toward the car like there is nothing unusual about any of this. Blood streaks across parts of his skin. Or his blood though.

My brain stalls.

My eyes follow him anyway.

For a brief, humiliating moment, my eyes go somewhere they have absolutely no business going.

I shake my head hard.

*Get a grip, Aurora.*

Ivar doesn't even bother covering himself. He walks to the trunk, opens it, pulls out a spare set of clothes, and wipes the blood from his skin like this is a routine he has performed many times before.

I look away.

Then look back.

"Unbelievable," I mutter.

He pulls on pants first, then a shirt, moving slowly and casually. By the time he is done, I am still standing where I was, trying to piece reality back together.

He closes the trunk and walks toward me.

"I spared one of them," he says.

I blink. "You what?"

"One survivor. He'll deliver the message."

I stare at him. "You killed the rest?"

I open my mouth, then close it again. I had heard the screams. And the silence after. If it wasn't for him I would have handled it the way I had for the last two months. Run. Escape. Disappear.

Now there is a body count and a witness and nowhere to disappear to.

Ivar steps slightly closer.

"Do you see the problem now?"

I frown. "What problem?"

"You. A wolfless girl with a knack for trouble and no one watching her back."

His voice drops slightly.

"That man will return to his boss and report what happened here. When he does, they'll come back with more. And they will not underestimate you this time."

I cross my arms. "I'm pretty sure I can handle myself. I have done that for the last few months, before you decide it's time to call a witch hunt on me."

His golden eyes study me without blinking.

"Look where that has gotten you."

I say nothing.

"They will kill you next time." He says it plainly. No drama. Just a fact he is stating for the record.

I glare at him. "You enjoy this, don't you?"

"Enjoy what?"

"Watching me struggle."

A faint smile. "I enjoy watching you try to survive."

I scoff. "Too bad for you. I'm not interested in your help." I turn to leave. "Hope we never meet again."

He moves, closing the distance between us just enough.

"Your life is in danger, Aurora."

I stop walking. I don't turn around.

"You have no allies. No protection."

My fingers slowly curl into fists.

"And no options."

I spin on him. "Then what do you suggest I do?"

His smile deepens.

The same calm, dangerous expression I remember from the hotel suite. He looks straight into my eyes.

"Marry me."