Eclipse Sector (V-Clan #3)

1. Ivana

CHAPTER ONE

IVANA

“Dance with me.”

It wasn’t a request so much as a demand, one that had Cillian sighing the moment I materialized beside him in the shadows of the ballroom.

Goading the too-serious Alpha was one of my favorite pastimes. It was almost as fun as sniffing out his hiding spots.

The Elite —a fancy term for pack enforcer —had a penchant for blending into the background, his stealth skills admirable. However, Cillian wasn’t the only one who enjoyed being a chameleon.

Which was how I constantly found him—because his mind worked similarly to mine.

“No.” His response was flat, his tone brooking no argument.

Typical Cillian, always playing hard to get.

One of these days, I would win this game between us.

Hopefully sooner rather than later, as I’d been waiting a long time for Cillian to decide to take a mate.

Maybe now he would consider it since his two best friends had recently chosen their Omegas. Granted, Lorcan appeared to be in a mating of convenience with Kyra. But it counted in my book. Primarily because it would prove to Cillian that he could be both mated and an Elite.

I respected his choice to protect King Kieran—Cillian’s other best friend—and Kieran’s mate, Queen Quinnlynn. However, Cillian seemed to be under the impression that he had to choose between his own happiness and his sense of duty.

Now that Lorcan had Kyra, perhaps Cillian would realize how ridiculous his sacrifice truly was and consider mating the Omega standing beside him— me .

Alas, that didn’t seem to be on the agenda for this evening, something he told me by shadowing to another area of the room.

I followed him, simply to prove a point. “I know all your hiding places, Prince Cillian.”

“Not all of them, I assure you,” he replied, his Irish lilt thicker due to his frustration. “And it’s Cillian , not Prince Cillian .” He finally looked at me, his dark eyes immediately entrancing me in his spell. “But if you feel the need to be respectful, then you can address me as Alpha Cillian and accompany the phrase with, Have a good night .”

“Hmm.” I considered him for a moment. “For that to be a truthful statement, you would need to dance with me. Otherwise, it won’t be a very good night.”

“For you, perhaps.” His gaze left me for King Kieran, his eyebrow winging upward.

“For you, too,” I murmured quietly, aware that he and the Blood Sector King were now engaged in a silent conversation.

Cillian’s ability to read minds and converse telepathically was well known in the sector. It was probably why he didn’t have many friends.

Or perhaps it was his hard approach that scared everyone off.

He and Lorcan both were incredibly intimidating. King Kieran, too. However, I’d never feared them. Maybe it was a result of how I’d originally met Cillian.

Oh, he’d been terrifying then. The way he slaughtered…

I cleared my throat, not wanting to recall the violent memory.

Instead, I glanced at the hero of my past.

Cillian .

His near-black eyes trailed back to me, his ability to hear my thoughts likely catching his attention as I’d mentioned his name.

I simply smiled.

He didn’t smile back.

“Go find another Alpha to dance with, Ivana. I’m not interested.”

Those final three words packed a punch, one I was used to receiving from him. He’d been claiming that lie for years.

I would believe him if I didn’t frequently catch the heat in his eyes when he looked at me. Like now as he tried not to notice the deep V-neck of my dress.

He clenched his jaw, his irritation palpable as he returned his attention to the Blood Sector King.

“My Queen and I are retiring for the night,” King Kieran announced suddenly. “Enjoy the wine. It’s spiked with blood.”

Cillian snorted beside me while several others startled at the Blood Sector King’s abrupt announcement—one he punctuated by promptly escorting his Queen out of the room.

Lorcan joined us in a blink, his intense focus on the room as he inclined his head toward Cillian slightly. The latter grunted, telling me the two were conversing mentally about something.

Likely Kieran’s early departure.

The whole point of a coronation was to celebrate the newly crowned King and Queen, but apparently our royals had a different evening agenda on their minds.

“We can still dance,” I told Cillian. “In fact, I think we should. How else am I going to test the functionality of my dress?” I twirled to emphasize my dress’s skirt, the carefully designed slits meant to allow for fluid movements. “Cameron called this versatile fashion . I’d like to show off his creation.”

I nearly winced at my ridiculous excuse. Cameron didn’t need me to show off anything. He was Blood Sector’s primary dress designer, one everyone sought to work with. And Cillian definitely knew that.

The Alpha’s jaw clenched again as he noted my exposed leg. “I’m in charge of security for the night, Ivana. You’re going to have to find someone else to waltz you about the room.”

I heaved a long, drawn-out sigh. “Always working.”

“Yes,” he agreed, his dark eyes burning into mine as he met my gaze once more. “ Yes , I am. Now go find another Alpha to pester.”

I rolled my eyes. “One of these days, you’re going to ask me to dance, Cillian, and it’ll be too late.” It was a lie. I’d wait for him for eternity. My wolf had chosen his, just as I was certain his had chosen mine. I just needed the stubborn man to realize the truth.

“We’ll see, won’t we?” Cillian murmured.

“I suppose we will,” I chirped and shadowed to the other side of the room, primarily to stop myself from shaking some sense into him.

“Still playing hard to get?” a deep voice drawled to my right, causing me to loudly sigh in response.

“Yes.” I gritted my teeth like Cillian had a few minutes ago. “He’s infuriating, Benz.”

My best friend chuckled as he handed me a much-needed drink. He was the reason I’d chosen this side of the room to teleport to—I knew I’d find his hulking form near the buffet and drinking station.

Although, for the amount of food I knew he could consume, his body didn’t show it. The Beta male was pure muscle—all six feet, two inches of him.

Taking a sip of the bubbly liquid, I peered at the shifters moving around the ballroom, my lips tugging into a scowl. “He told me to find another Alpha to dance with.”

Benz whistled low, his turquoise gaze running over me with intrigue. “In that dress? He must be in a killing mood.”

“Or he just doesn’t care,” I muttered. Stubborn fucking Alpha .

Cillian could probably hear me.

But I didn’t care.

He deserved the insult.

“Trust me, darling, he cares,” Benz replied, his subtle Germanic accent caressing the endearment. “He’s just preoccupied with Kieran’s ascension. The minute he sees you twirling around with another male—let alone an Alpha —he’ll lose his damn mind, and his possessive instincts will take over.”

“Hmm, no. I’m starting to think those possessive instincts don’t exist.” I was talking more to myself than to Benz. However, to him, I added, “And you know I’m not the type to try to provoke him like that.”

“Maybe you should be the type.”

My eyebrows rose. “Oh? The type to do what, exactly?” I asked, suspicious of whatever idea he’d just concocted in that wicked mind of his. Because Benz had a knack for indulging in pranks, something that often got him into trouble

“Dance with another wolf,” he replied, his dark brown eyebrows dancing with the suggestion. “A wolf like, oh, I don’t know, me .”

I gaped at him. “You want to dance?”

“With you? In this dress?” His gaze ran over me again. “Yes, I very much do.”

I laughed. “If I didn’t know you any better, I’d say you were trying to flirt with me, Beta Benz.”

“Darling Omega, I might be a Beta, but my wolf is too proprietorial to let me flirt with you while you’re craving an Alpha’s knot.” He held out a hand. “But I will absolutely enjoy showing you off on the floor if it means waking up that Alpha’s possessive side.”

“Didn’t you just imply Cillian might kill another Alpha for dancing with me?”

He shrugged. “I’m a Beta, not an Alpha.”

I shook my head. “You just want to prove you’re right about his possessiveness .”

“Of course I do,” he admitted. “But I also want to show you off.” He wiggled his fingers at me. “Indulge me, Sunshine?” The nickname—one Benz had given me—rolled off his tongue in a sugary caress, causing my cheeks to heat. Not because I was necessarily attracted to him, but because I couldn’t deny his appeal.

While I might crave a certain Alpha, there was no escaping Benz’s alluring traits. Even if some of those traits resulted in devious schemes.

One of which I was considering now as I glanced down at my gown. It was glittery, giving it an ice-blue appearance that matched my eyes. And it made my skin appear that much paler.

“Well, it really is a crime not to show off Cameron’s creation,” I mused. “Although, we’ll need to shadow to the other side of the room to ensure Cillian sees us. Otherwise, he won’t even notice.”

“Oh, he’d notice you anywhere. But if that’s your preference, then I’ll follow your lead.” He mock-bowed. “After you, my lady.” His brown hair tickled his ears, the unruly strands always managing to be artfully sexy.

Blowing out a breath, I shook my head and shadowed to the opposite side of the room again. Only this time, I didn’t materialize beside Cillian, just close enough for him to definitely see and hear me when Benz arrived.

Except the sound of Cillian’s deep tones had my eyebrows lifting in interest as he said, “Maybe you should just let your wolf knot her, see if that helps cure you of the distraction.”

Cillian? Talking about knots? I smiled. Yes, please .

If he heard me thinking about him, he didn’t show it. Probably because I was one of the many minds he had blocked in the room. I wasn’t a potential threat, something he more than knew, so why monitor my mind?

“Are you projecting, Cillian? Is your wolf craving a certain distraction ?” Lorcan taunted back at him, causing my lips to part.

Because Lorcan never spoke out loud.

“I don’t crave Ivana or anyone else.” Cillian’s flat reply had me blinking.

What?

“It’s just hard to ignore such a determined Omega, even if she’s playing in the wrong league,” he went on, causing me to stop breathing.

A snort echoed from someone. Lorcan, maybe? I… I wasn’t sure. I was still replaying Cillian’s words through my head. Playing in the wrong league…

“She really needs to start looking for a more appropriate mate, someone who won’t mind her misguided penchant for telling Alphas what to do,” he added, each word piercing my chest with a sharpness I’d never known Cillian was capable of.

Except… yes, I did.

He constantly rejected me.

But… but I thought…

I thought he was just in denial.

“I think she enjoys irritating you” was Lorcan’s reply, his comment barely registering over Cillian’s harsh statements.

“Yes, and that’s precisely the problem. She needs to find someone better suited for her childish games. Someone who will actually appreciate her unsavory qualities, such as her boldness and her misplaced confidence.”

Unsavory qualities? I repeated to myself, my arms folding around my stomach. Misplaced confidence?

How…?

How have I so utterly misread this situation?

I…

I don’t…

“My point is, I’m not the one hung up on an Omega, mate. I just happen to have one who is annoyingly persistent. You have one consuming your focus. Those are very different situations.”

I flinched as Benz pressed a hand to my shoulder, his presence at my side something I hadn’t noticed until now.

One look at his expression told me he’d just overheard everything, too.

And the pity…

No . I shadowed out of the room, incapable of facing him right now. Incapable of breathing, let alone talking.

It felt like Cillian had punched a hole through my chest.

Ripped out my heart.

And crushed it beneath his heavy black boot.

I covered my face with my hands, my insides burning as my lungs forced me to inhale. But all I heard was this… this… wheezing sound.

Sort of like a sob?

But… but fractured?

Worse.

Destroyed.

“Sunshine,” Benz whispered, obviously having followed me.

I just shook my head. I couldn’t do this right now. “I’m fine.” Except I didn’t sound fine at all. I sounded raspy. Like I’d just run a marathon or something.

But no.

I’d just been run over by Cillian’s cruelty.

“That was him convincing himself that he’s not into you,” Benz insisted. “Trust?—”

“ Don’t ,” I told him, my tone harder than seconds ago. “ Don’t make excuses for him.”

“Sunshine—”

“No,” I cut him off. “I… I just need…”

Well, I wasn’t sure what I needed, but I shadowed back into the ballroom, primarily to escape Benz. Which was stupid. He just wanted to comfort me.

However, I didn’t want comfort .

I… I wanted…

My jaw clenched, my arms encircling my middle again.

I wasn’t sure what I wanted.

The Alpha I desired… the Alpha I’d been convinced was meant to be mine…

Playing in the wrong league.

Unsavory qualities.

Misplaced confidence.

Childish games…

I winced as the words revolved through my thoughts, my shoulders caving in. What childish games? I thought numbly. I… I thought you were just being stubborn. That you didn’t want a mate— any mate — and just needed to see that it was possible to be mated while also serving as an Elite .

But that hadn’t been it at all.

Cillian just didn’t want me as a mate.

I’d been blinded by my wolf’s desires, seeing things that didn’t actually exist.

All the while, he’d been truly irritated with me.

Annoyingly persistent .

The ballroom around me blurred.

I need to go, I realized. I need to run. To chase away this… this agony.

Swallowing, I wrapped myself up in darkness again and teleported to one of my favorite snowy fields at the base of a sleeping volcano.

Blood Sector—former-day Iceland—was full of landscapes like this, making it the perfect place for peaceful retreats.

I ripped off my dress and kicked off my shoes, never wishing to set eyes on the outfit again—an outfit I’d worn with him in mind.

Then I fell to the ground and let my wolf take over.

She might not have understood Cillian’s words, but she understood my pain. Just as she understood he’d been the one to cause said pain.

A howl spilled from my snout the moment my shift completed, my animal’s torment rivaling my own.

Our chosen mate doesn’t want us.

Our hero… isn’t a hero.

Our Alpha no longer exists to us .

My paws pounded through the snow, the chill a welcome kiss to my senses.

This is what we need , I thought. Freedom. Fresh air. A new perspective.

Each bound and leap took us further into the past and pushed us into the present.

A present where we started over.

A present where we remembered our worth.

A present where we decided the Alpha wasn’t in our league.

Because no potential mate would ever say that about his Omega.

Omegas were rare. Powerful. Destined to be worshipped. Not belittled with sharp words. Rejected on repeat. Ridiculed for having confidence .

Cillian isn’t our mate.

We deserve better.

We desire more.

An Alpha who loves us. Cherishes us. Fights for us.

It was time for us to move on. To stop wallowing in Cillian’s potential.

He really doesn’t want us , I thought again, my wolf stumbling a bit. Well, then we don’t want him.

My wolf yipped as though agreeing with me.

And took off across the icy field.

We’re done salivating over Cillian.

He thought I’d been playing a childish game ?

Well, that game had just come to an end.

And Cillian? He’d just lost.

Because the right Alpha would see me as a prize.

The right Alpha will actually want me.

You can have tonight to mourn, I told myself. But tomorrow, you’re going to move on and forget all about the wrong Alpha.

It shouldn’t be hard.

It wasn’t like Cillian ever sought me out.

He probably wouldn’t even notice, would just be glad to be rid of my annoyingly persistent presence.

My heart panged in my chest, my wolf stumbling once more.

Tonight, we grieve , I reiterated to myself. Tomorrow, we step into the future. And begin the hunt for a worthier mate…