“When Chris and I were teenagers, you used to give us these pills,” I whispered, trying to maintain the strength to keep going. My father’s tone was anything but friendly when I’d mentioned them, but reliving the memory of that night created a need for answers. “They were some trial you were working on, but then once we turned eighteen, they just vanished. What were they?”My father cut into his steak slowly before dipping it into a runny egg and staring at me, “I think you are mistaken sweetheart. Maybe all of the stress you’re under has you imagining things.”I felt my brows pinch together, “No. I used to have these episodes. I remember hearing someone in my head. Almost like an inner voice, but it sounded different. When you put me on the meds, the voice stopped.”“Enough, Rosalind,” my father’s voice held a harsh edge to it as he carefully set his fork and knife on the napkins next to his plate, “I’m not sure what you are talking about. Voices and medications,” he shook his head,
The whiskey in my hand sloshes back and forth as my body trembles. I’m not sure if it’s anger, rage, sadness, frustration. Hell, it could be a combination of each and every one of those emotions.Bright orange stares up at me from my desk like a menacing monster. Thick with the contents of my torn up heart tucked inside.Every moment of the last few months replays in my mind, and I wonder if I was ever going to convince her to stay. I tried to demand that she stay. I tried kindness and honesty. I tried chasing her across the fucking country. But nothing was enough for her not to call of the divorce.Everything circled back to Marina and having two mates.“Fuck you,” I stared at the ceiling, hoping my message to the Goddess would find its way to her. She’d fucking destroyed my life.My forehead smacked the table as the scent of expensive alcohol seeped into my senses and then my skin.“Fuck,” I growled, sending the crystal glass flying across the room. It bounced off the impenetrable w
“Are you sure mom and dad have left?” I whisper to Chris as he unlocks the front door of our family home.“Why are you whispering?” he turns around with an annoyed look on his face. “Do you think I’d be here if they weren’t? I’m not rushing home to spend quality time with our parents these days.”I called Chris to pick his brain about the meds, and he was just as confused as I was to hear how our father had reacted. Hence, the reason he is here now.His exact words were “No mission is complete without the third musketeer.”Shawn glared at Chris, which was comical considering both men were the same size. Right now, they looked like oversized children.Stepping between them, I walked through the front door and was met with the familiar smell of my mother’s overpriced perfume lingering in the air. It was as if she found a way to place it in the vents so that it would circulate through the entirety of the mansion.The smell should bring me some sort of warmth, but it feels more like a rem
I smacked my hand into my forehead, “Why didn’t I think of that?”Shawn chuckled again, the sound so deep that I found myself swallowing down the way it made me feel. But more importantly, who it reminded me of.James’ face was at the forefront of my mind. The way he’d laughed our last night together. So carefree and unforced. I’d chipped away at the mask he’d been wearing for years, only to find this gem of a man underneath.The James Wood that he wanted me to believe he was, was cold, harsh, and manipulative. The man that I’d seen that night was soft, funny, and charismatic. But the more I think about it, the more I wonder which man is the true James Wood.Maybe the man from that night was the lie, and he’d simply been pretending in hopes that he’d still find a way to get me to stay.But then I remember everything that he told me. The way he’d trusted me with information that would likely ruin his life if it got out.Would anyone even believe me if I’d said my ex-husband was a werew
The sound of footsteps has me rushing to shove to scoop up the photos and the medication bottles into my bag. My eyes met Shawn’s and guilt etched into my soul as I masked my shock with disappointment, “I got in, but there is nothing inside that will help me.” “I’m sorry Rosie,” Shawn’s lips pulled into a frown. “You’re not crazy. I remember the pills and the movie night. I’m sure we will figure it out,” he walked over, wrapping his arms around me as the guilt intensified. “It was so long ago, I don’t know why I even care,” I lie, “I guess my father’s insistence that it never happened fueled this need to prove that it did.” “I get it,” Shawn whispered, running his hand up and down my back. “The last time that you experienced one of those episodes was terrifying.” “I’m surprised you remember that.” Something felt so wrong being tangled within his arms as it felt right, and my mind was confused about what to do. There was this deep ache to feel some form of connection, but at the v
James’ brows pinched together as his emerald eyes roamed over my face. The tips of my ears still felt hot as I forced myself to look at his eyes, and not the rest of him.He grabbed the towel around his neck, wiping it over his forehead, “What are you talking about?”“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” I spat, feeling everything from the day fill me with more anger than I’ve ever experienced.“I’m sorry, but I don’t,” he looked genuinely confused, and for a fleeting moment, I questioned the truth behind Edwards words. But then I remember the man standing in front of me. He gets what he wants, and it doesn’t bother him to play dirty.“Fifty million dollars ring a bell?”The muscles in his jaw flexed as his teeth ground together, “I should have known he was a snake,” James growled under his breath.“He’s the snake,” I scoffed, shaking my head as frustration bloomed in my chest. “You’re the one who tried to pay my lawyer fifty million dollars to disappear along with our divorce!”
It was as if my brain and mouth had entirely disconnected from each other.I simply stared at the scattered photos on the ground.Why did I have them? How do you tell your husband that you found photos of his other mate in your father’s safe while simultaneously finding Aconite?“Rosalind,” James’ voice had an edge to it as his fingers gripped my chin, forcing my attention back to him.“I found them.”His brows pinched together in confusion, glancing down at the discarded photos one more time before meeting my gaze, “What do you mean you found them?”I chewed on my bottom lip, trying to force the right words out, but I found myself swallowing down every attempt.“I found these in my fathers safe…. Along with a bottle of Aconite that I think he used to give me when I was younger.” I blew out a heavy breath, not daring to look at James.He squatted down, gathering the photos, and looking at them one by one. His large fingers creased the edges as he went through them again and again.“I
Rosa’s bright, honeyed eyes stared at me in shock. As if she never thought those words would ever leave my mouth.“I have fallen in love with you, Rosalind.”Every moment I spent with my wife, learning who she was. Getting to know the woman that I’d so callously pushed aside for years has showed me what a fucking fool I’d been.And to be honest, I don’t deserve her forgiveness, but I’ll be damned if I don’t try to earn it.The moment she left me standing outside of that church, I knew I couldn’t fight the four-letter monster any longer. Sure, I’ve never been against love per-say, but I simply imagined it going differently in my head.With Onyx gone, I had to fall for Rosa in the way that a human would. Knowing that she’s my mate somehow makes me feel like I’m on this high that I’ll never come down from.Her glassy eyes move to the photos in my hand, and then the bottle, before lifting to meet my worried gaze.The one thing that terrifies me the most is her not feeling the same way.Sh