Brooke and Jasper spent the rest of the night enjoying each other's company. They swapped stories about all the mischief they got up to as pups, cuddled together on the couch, and watched the Goddess's constellations peak out from the thinning clouds outside.

They eventually shared one last, lingering kiss before going into separate guest rooms for the night. The thunderstorm had long since calmed to a leisurely drizzle, but anxiety still flooded Brooke's mind as she tossed and turned all night long.

The next morning, she dragged herself onto her father's boat as if someone had tied anchors to her limbs. Grit clung to her eyelids from the brief sleep she'd managed, and massive, jaw-cracking yawns had left her face sore. Goddess, she was exhausted.

As rough as the morning was for her, Jasper looked worse. His knuckles whitened against the guardrails along the side of the boat, and his legs trembled so hard Brooke was afraid the slightest breeze would send him tumbling into the ocean.

"Seasick?" Brooke asked. "Dad always keeps ginger candy onboard if you need something to settle your stomach."

"Not this time." Jasper gave her a shaky smile that left her less than convinced. "I just have a lot on my mind. It's not going to be easy to explain everything to my pack."

It was her fault he was dealing with all this. If she hadn't run off, he'd be back at the Cowrie Cabana with dry land beneath his feet and a much less complicated future ahead of him. "Sorry I made you come out here."

"You didn't make me do anything. I don't think the Goddess Herself could have stopped me from going after you." The railing groaned beneath Jasper's hands as he tightened his grip. "I still can't believe Mr. Evergreen attacked you."

With how upset Jasper sounded, it would be a miracle if he didn't lunge at the other Alpha the instant they came ashore. Brooke had barely been able to make him promise not to tell her dad what had happened, and even then he'd only agreed to keep it secret after she'd told him it wouldn't look good for the Cowrie Cabana if their head chef attempted to drown an Alpha.

If he knew Mr. Evergreen had invaded her nightmares, she doubted anything would be able to stop Jasper from tearing him apart.

"I've dealt with guests getting upset before, but..." Brooke's throat tightened. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure her dad was still busy steering the boat before lowering her voice to a whisper. "I've never had anyone go after me like that."

Jasper removed one of his hands from the railing and pulled Brooke close, burying a kiss in her hair. "I swear in the Goddess's name I'll never let him hurt you."

Brooke's heart skipped a beat. For him to invoke Her meant he'd do everything in his power to fulfill that promise until his dying breath. There was no greater vow any werewolf, selkie, or vampire could pledge.

"Thank you," she said hoarsely. She wrapped her arm around his waist as much to steady him as to anchor herself. As long as they were holding each other, nothing could tear them apart.

"You're welcome." Jasper yelped as the boat lurched over a particularly rough wave. He groaned and gagged over the railing. "The closer we get to Mr. Evergreen, the more I feel like I'm going to throw up. He literally makes me sick."

"Every time he comes near me, I feel like I'm going to sneeze my head off." Just thinking about him made Brooke's nose itch. "I don't know what in the Goddess's name he puts in his perfume, but I'd rather scrape the barnacles off all the boats in Periwinkle Port than smell that ever again."

Jasper growled under his breath. "That perfume is such a dirty trick. Mr. Evergreen knows such a strong scent is a huge distraction, especially for anyone with a sensitive nose."

"Guess it suits him, then," Brooke said. "Goddess knows his attitude stinks."

Both of them chuckled, but Brooke's stomach still tightened as they approached the Cowrie Cabana. As easy as it was to poke fun at Mr. Evergreen when he wasn't there, she knew exactly how scary he could be in person.

Both too soon and not nearly soon enough, her father docked the boat near a crowd of werewolves and selkies. Jasper's parents, Kudzu Pack's highest-ranking members, and half the resort's staff had gathered to welcome them back.

None of them dared to stand in her mother's way as she marched down the dock.

Brooke shrank back. Sweet swordfish, she was in such deep trouble. "I'm so sorry I made everyone worry," she blurted out. "I was halfway to Grandma's island before I realized—"

Her mother wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug. "I'm just glad you're safe," she said. "We can talk about what happened once we've all had time to get settled."

"I'd say we've waited more than long enough." The muscles in Mr. Evergreen's arms twitched as he crossed them over his chest. "The entire reason my pack is staying here is Jasper was supposed to marry my daughter last night. Instead of carrying out our agreement, he ran off with one of your staff."

Brooke longed to tell everyone that wasn't what happened, that Mr. Evergreen had forced her to leave. But her tongue weighed as heavily in her mouth as a swollen sea slug, refusing to budge as Mr. Evergreen's gaze burned her skin.

Arms caging her against the wall. Thick-fingered hands grabbing her sealskin. Water burning her lungs as she screamed. Brooke's heart thundered as cold sweat dampened her palms.

"As far as I'm concerned, our arrangement is null and void!" Jasper's voice snapped Brooke out of her memories. "While Gwen is a wonderful person, I cannot promise my heart to her. I love Brooke as much as the moon loves the stars, forever basking in their brightness."

"And I love Jasper more than words can describe," Brooke said, blinking back tears of joy. What could she possibly say that would do her amazingly well-spoken werewolf justice?

Murmurs of unease rippled through the gathered crowd. Behind his Alpha, Waylon bared his fangs, and Jasper's father watched the exchange slack-jawed and speechless.

"This is ridiculous." Mr. Evergreen rolled his eyes. "You visited the Luna and, as Gwendolyn testified, were found to not be soulmates. Pursuing whatever it is you think you feel for this selkie would be in violation of our contract, despite how much you'd like to ignore it."

"As you are well aware, our packs agreed I would have ample time to search for my soulmate," Jasper said. "I'd hardly call spending days attending events you arranged a good way for me to search for my soulmate."

"Seems disrespectful to spit in the face of all the opportunities I provided for you. And who was it that prepared all those events?" Mr. Evergreen let out a mocking gasp. "Could it be that selkie sabotaged your chances of finding your soulmate?"

Brooke's eyes widened. That awful Alpha was twisting Jasper's words the same way she created balloon animals, bending them until they were no longer recognizable. She knew as well as anyone else who worked at the Cowrie Cabana that they'd done their best to follow their guests' directions.

Beside her, Jasper bristled, a low growl rumbling beneath his words. "What about the week Gwen and I spent so closely chaperoned we couldn't travel freely?"

"The one after you proved you were committed to spending time with this selkie instead of searching for your soulmate?" Mr. Evergreen asked. "It's not as if you used your free time as your father and I expected, Jasper. I gave you ample time to search for your mate on your own until it became clear you weren't following our agreement."

Murmurs broke out among the gathered crowd as both packs debated which of the two Alphas was in the right.

"He always did look distracted whenever he was supposed to be mingling with the other packs."

"Can you blame him? Hard not to be distracted when you've got everyone fawning over you."

"A vow's a vow. If he can't be trusted to honor one, how can anyone trust him to be faithful to his future mate?"

Brooke's stomach tossed and turned like the ocean in a thunderstorm as the packs snarled at each other. She had to find a way to calm them down. Fast.

"Jasper and I spent a lot of time together because he and I had to discuss everything leading up to the Blue Moon Ball," she explained. "We never wanted to go against your contract. We just—"

"Couldn't help yourselves." Mr. Evergreen's lips pulled into a mocking smile. "Is that what made both of you abandon your responsibilities and leave the Blue Moon Ball before Jasper could marry my daughter?"

"She left because you attacked her!" Jasper yelled.

Brooke's mother sucked in a sharp breath, her hands tightening into trembling fists at her sides. "Is this true?"

"He cornered me by one of the travel tunnels and said if I didn't leave the resort, he'd..." Brooke couldn't finish that sentence. She grabbed the sealskin tied around her waist, praying to the Goddess no one could see how hard she was shaking.

"All I said was since she clearly had feelings for Jasper, it might be best for everyone if she stayed away until after the ceremony," Mr. Evergreen said. His tone stayed perfectly even, but his eyes betrayed how furious he was. Gone were his green irises, replaced by a wolf's pale yellow. "We wouldn't want anyone's feelings to get hurt, would we?"

"That's not what—"

"Enough." Mr. Evergreen bared his teeth in a patronizing smile as his Alpha command snapped Brooke's mouth shut. No matter how hard she strained, her lips remained sealed, and her throat tightened each time she tried to say a word. "It seems to me Ms. Wells is confused. She had an exhausting day, and she must not have been thinking clearly considering she swam into a storm."

A chill raced down Brooke's back as if someone had dumped a bucket of ice water onto her. No! That wasn't what happened. But she still couldn't speak.

All she could do was cry.

Jasper was beside her in an instant. He pulled her close to his side, his jaw cracking faintly as his fangs receded into human teeth. "I won't let him hurt you," he whispered before turning his gaze to Mr. Evergreen. "I will never agree to any arrangement with your pack as long as you're leading it."

Growls erupted among the gathered werewolves. The nearby selkies huddled together, protecting each other from the agitated guests. "Settle down, everyone!" called out Brooke's mother. "It's clear we have much to discuss about what happened during the ball," she said with a pointed look to Mr. Evergreen, "but I do not believe it would be productive for us to discuss it until we have had time to calm down."

"And after that, we can see about adjusting the arrangement between our packs in light of recent developments." Mr. Stillwater's jaw twitched as he spoke. As Jasper tensed beside her, Brooke couldn't tell whether the Alpha's anger was directed more toward his son or Mr. Evergreen.

"We certainly have much to discuss," Mr. Evergreen said. "After all, we've already missed the initial deadline for the wedding. I'd hate to have to further penalize Cedar Pack for one Alpha's unwillingness to fulfill his commitments."

"I won't have anything to do with planning another ceremony for you," Brooke spat. Now that the Alpha command had worn off, nothing stopped her from speaking her mind.

Mr. Evergreen tsked. "You're lucky I haven't demanded a refund for all the stress you've caused my pack. Must you make your family look just as undependable as Jasper's?"

"You have been nothing but rude to me since you got here and even worse to Jasper," Brooke said. "My grandma founded the Cowrie Cabana because she wanted to share the paradise she built with everyone. I've spent my whole life trying to make her proud, and I can't do that without Jasper. He's my paradise."

"You care about him that much?" her mother asked, her expression unreadable.

"I do," Brooke said. "When I felt the Call of the Sea, it didn't just pull me to Grandma's island. It took me to Jasper first."

Jasper pulled her close. He didn't need to say a word for Brooke to know he felt the same way about her as she did about him.

"Your grandma would be very proud of you, my little barnacle," her mother said. "Finding love wasn't easy for her either, but she and your grandpa found a way."

They had. Despite everything, her selkie grandmother and her human grandfather had turned their dream into reality. What had started as their shared fantasy transformed into their paradise.

Transformed. That was it!

"I know a way we can find out if the Goddess approves of Jasper and I being together," Brooke said.

Mr. Evergreen scoffed. "The Luna already proved you're not soulmates."

"This is something else," Brooke explained. "Werewolves have their way of proving the Goddess wants them to be together, and selkies have ours."

Her mother's eyes asked a silent question. Brooke nodded. This was the only way she could think of for her and Jasper to stay together without breaking his pack's contract with Mr. Evergreen's.

"Very well," Mr. Evergreen growled. "If it allows us to put this foolishness behind us, I don't see any harm in indulging in one of your kind's customs."

Brooke could only pray to the Goddess that her idea would work.