Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted (Ava and Lucas)

Chapter 160 Ava: Eyes Wide Open

It smells like him, Selene grumbles, her wet nose twitching as she sniffs around the plush rug in the center of Lucas' bedroom. Everywhere.

I glance up from where I'm unpacking my suitcase, one eyebrow arched. "Well, it's his room. What did you expect?"

She huffs, her tail swishing in annoyance. I expected not to be assaulted by the scent of alpha male posturing every time I breathe. Her mental words are sour, but without the bite they used to have when she spoke of Lucas.

A laugh escapes me despite the heaviness still lingering in my chest from the earlier confrontation with Margot. "Posturing? Really? It's just his scent."

Yes, really. She flops down on the rug, her chin resting on her paws. It's like he's marking his territory. Letting everyone know this is his space.

"Is it really posturing when he just sleeps in here?"

Yes.

I roll my eyes, turning back to my suitcase. She's reaching for reasons to complain, but knowing that her grumbling doesn't have the fierce hatred of before helps a lot. "He's the alpha. Isn't that kind of his job?"

There's a difference between being an alpha and being obnoxious about it.

Her complaints continue as I move about the room, hanging up clothes and arranging my toiletries in the en-suite bathroom.

It's a beautiful space, all dark wood and rich fabrics, with a massive king-sized bed dominating the center. It's all masculine without a single feminine touch, which somehow pleases me.

The thought of sleeping here, surrounded by Lucas' scent, makes me smile—even if my wolf hates it.

But Selene's complaints nag at me, pulling me out of my reverie. I pause, a shirt dangling from my fingers, and turn to face her.

"Okay, what's your deal with Lucas? I thought you were over your issues with him now that we're together."

deflate her entire

shirt on the bed and move to sit beside her, my fingers sinking into her thick

there's less heat

of what? Lucas has proven himself time and time again.

a good man,

and cryptic words of some sage, but at times like this, she's just a sassy friend in

"But…?"

thumps against the ground. Once.

day, Ava. I'll explain it another

pet her head and ears. "Promise that it's not the same kind of 'another day' where you don't say anything until I'm kidnapped, rescued, and then go into

hadn't gotten yourself kidnapped again in the first place, Selene grumbles, though it's obvious she doesn't mean

me quicker, it wouldn't have been that long either." Teasing her a little to get her out of her little funk, I add, "Besides, I didn't get kidnapped by

lot of confidence for someone who hasn't

"Hush."

before me. The small city feels stagnant, a far cry from the bustling

back in time by a few

shoulders hunched. They move with a sense of urgency, as if they're afraid to linger too long in any one place. It's a

gender dynamics that have always been present in the Blackwood pack,

about gender dynamics. I'd even seen the difference when I attended school in White Peak, or worked there.

Now?

experiencing the relative equality and freedom of

core. This is not

voice echoes in my mind,

female I recognize hurries across the street, her arms laden with bags. She has a few young pups, if I

something, his posture aggressive, and the female shrinks back. Even from this distance,

up their confrontation, that I realize my shoulders are tense and drawn up, my fingers gripping