It was over.

It was finally over.

For the first time in years, wolves from all seven packs stood together without bloodshed, snarled threats, or the constant fear that one wrong word would send everyone reaching for each other's throats.

The glow of string lights hung between towering pines while music drifted through the warm summer air. Bonfires crackled throughout the clearing, casting dancing shadows across laughing faces. Everywhere I looked I could spot reunions happening between people who had spent years wondering if their friends would ever make it home.

I should've been enjoying myself.

Instead, I found myself leaning against one of the buildings doing what I always did.

Watching.

My eyes scanned across the crowd, noting where members of my pack stood, which rival Alphas had arrived, and which wolves still seemed uncomfortable standing too close to former enemies. The war might've been over, but peace was still new. Fragile. The kind of thing that could be broken by one bad decision.

"You're working."

Mark's voice broke through my thoughts as he handed me a beer.

I took the drink gratefully.

"I'm here, aren't I?" I asked. "Partying with everyone else."

"Really?" Mark snorted. "Because from where I'm standing it looks like you're mentally patrolling the perimeter."

That earned a laugh from Liam.

I shot both of them a look.

Neither seemed particularly concerned.

Apparently becoming Alpha hadn't magically made my two best friends respect my authority. If anything, it had only encouraged them.

Mark clapped a hand against my shoulder.

"Relax. Nobody's trying to kill anybody."

"Give it time," I muttered.

Liam shook his head.

"That's exactly the attitude we're talking about."

I rolled my eyes but took a drink anyway, letting my gaze drift back across the clearing. A familiar ache settled in my chest as I watched younger wolves gathered near one of the bonfires. Roy would've loved this. He'd spent years trying to keep peace between the packs before everything fell apart. Seeing everyone together again would've meant the world to him.

The thought lingered longer than I wanted it to.

Roy had been gone for seven years now.

Some days it felt like yesterday.

Other days it felt like a lifetime ago.

Before I could sink too deeply into the memory, a scent drifted across the clearing.

I froze.

My wolf surged forward so suddenly it nearly knocked the breath from my lungs.

Mate.

Every muscle in my body locked.

No.

My wolf ignored me.

Mate.

The scent hit me again.

Soft.

Sweet.

Completely distinct from the hundreds of others surrounding us.

My pulse stumbled.

I searched the crowd.

Across the clearing, beyond the bonfires and dancing wolves, I saw her.

For a moment my eyes refused to leave her.

She wasn't doing anything remarkable.

Wasn't looking at me.

Wasn't even aware I existed.

Yet somehow she stood out from everyone else around her.

My wolf was practically pacing circles inside my head.

Mate.

A knot formed in my stomach.

Of all the nights.

Of all the wolves gathered here.

Of all the possible times.

Seriously?

Mark followed my line of sight.

Then he went suspiciously quiet.

Liam looked between us before his gaze settled on the same figure.

Understanding immediately crossed his face.

"Oh."

I dragged a hand down my face.

"Don't."

Mark's grin appeared instantly.

Far too instantly.

"You found her."

I contemplated several responses.

Most of them involved violence.

Unfortunately, my wolf was currently being even less helpful than Mark.

Go to her.

My jaw tightened.

My wolf couldn't have cared less about rival packs, fragile alliances, or the fact that peace had only existed for a few months. It didn't care about politics, negotiations, or what the other Alphas might think.

It wanted exactly one thing.

The problem was that my wolf wasn't the one responsible for keeping the peace together.