“Chris,” I whisper, approaching him on the small aircraft carrying us to the unknown location. “Can we talk?”There is a long silence before he finally pushes his sunglasses to the top of his head, his bloodshot eyes boring into mine, “Sure.”His tone is short and unlike him, but I don’t blame him. Once the relief of finding us alive dissipated, he was left with anger, and despite his normal use of drugs or alcohol to make him forget, I imagine it’s not quite that easy when it comes to Shawn and me.“Before you start,” he whispers, “I want you to know that I’m not interested in excuses. I’m not interested in half truths. I’m on a fucking shoebox of an airplane headed to bumfuck nowhere, and I don’t even understand why.”“Of course,” my voice cracks, “There is no reason to hide anything from you anymore,” I shake my head, “There was never any reason to hide anything from you. I don’t have a good reason for keeping you out of the loop… I guess I just didn’t understand what was going on
“I have to say,” Chris spins around, eye wide with excitement, “I could get used to this. Do you see that fucking view?”This place was like a miniature paradise. The air smelled fresh, like the scent of a frigid breeze during the first snowfall. A serene lake sat in front of a picturesque log cabin. Smoke billowed from the chimney, and mountains stretched across the entire horizon, painting a scene that was nothing short of extraordinary.“It’s a bit colder than I’m used to,” Shawn’s words left his lips on a puff of air. “But Dante has taste. This place feels like its own little paradise.”The three of us headed inside, and I gasped at the warmth in the cabin. The scent of pine and cedar swirled around with a hint of smoke. Everything was bathed in warmth. Stained wood decorated the walls, and deep colors accented the feel of the space.“It’s homey,” Chris glances around, his brows knitted, “Kind of expected something more modern.”“It’s a cabin in the middle of nowhere,” Shawn mutte
I’ve been sitting on the large, four post bed that sits in one of two rooms for over an hour. Dante really wasn’t kidding when he said that Shawn… Shay and I would have to pretend to be married. I haven’t told him of our complicated past, but it’s clear that he’s intuitive enough to see that we’re comfortable with one another. That or he knows deep down that Shawn has always held a piece of my heart. Either way, this feels too soon, and my chest aches as I sit here, staring at the floorboards. A soft knock at the door startles me, “Come in.” My voice is barely above a whisper. Shawn peeks through the crack, “Can we talk?”I nodded, scooting over towards the headboard to give his large frame space to sit. The bed dipped as he took a seat beside me, close enough for our knees to brush. I feel his eyes on me, studying me before he sighs softly, “I don’t know what to say right now,” he whispers with a shrug, “How are you holding up?” “If I’m being honest, I don’t know what to tell y
Today marks the three-year anniversary of her coma. The woman my husband loves. The. Woman. My. Husband. Loves. It also happens to be my birthday. What an unfortunate coincidence. I’m unsure of all of the details, as James has barely spoken of his time before me or his time with Marina, but his true love saved him from some form of brutal attack that killed almost his entire family. The doctor that I was shadowing at the time took the woman, as she was barely breathing and I took the man, who despite all of his wounds, was almost stable. It was a miracle. Something about this man felt like we knew each other. The familiarity was undeniable, like how I would imagine love it first sight. I tended to his wounds for a week before he’d finally woken up and the moment I saw those bright green eyes, I was hooked. I’ve never been the type of woman to fall head over heels for a man. Hell, my father made it impossible for me to even date. No one would be good enough for the heir of Red
I went to follow James out to the ambulance. As Marina’s caretaker and James’ wife, I felt a duty to be there, but he turned abruptly, causing me to bump into his chest, “You’ve done enough already. Can’t you see that?” he growled, turning and slamming the door in my face. He rode in the ambulance with Marina while I stood plastered in the spot he’d left me in, wondering what to do. Chewing my bottom lip, I stared at the closed door feeling empty inside. I’ve done everything he’s asked. For three years I’ve made sure Marina had the best care. Three years I’ve carefully followed every one of James’ requests, attempting to show him where my heart was. The entire time mine broke just to get a scrap of attention from him.I wasn’t about to throw all of that hard work in the trash. I rushed down to the garage, where our driver stood posted, “Mr. Green, I need a ride to Saosin Medical. Please," I pleaded with him, fighting the emotions that were swirling in my gut.He nodded, walking
After seeing the look in his eyes, I was certain he’d agree to her requests, but instead he’d changed the subject, “I have so much to tell you. So much has happened in the last three years.” “Why aren’t you answering my questions?” Marina whined, sounding more like a child than a twenty-three-year-old woman. “Can you just let me enjoy the fact that you are finally awake? Goddess, Marina. I’ve just gotten you back and you want to drill me about things that don’t matter compared to you being okay,” James reached up, tucking a strand of Marina’s hair behind her ear. His fingers lingered lovingly before I watched her lean forward, closing the distance between them and pressing her lips against his. I didn't miss the subtle dig in his sentence. I thought my heart couldn’t feel any worse, but I was wrong. He didn’t bother telling her that he wouldn’t break our sacred vows. We said until death do us part. That was supposed to mean something to him. Sure, maybe not as much as it meant
There aren’t words to describe how happy I was when Marina finally opened her eyes after all this time. Here in the human world, I am James Wood, heir to Wood Industries and the CEO of a billion-dollar corporation. I am active within our community. With more money than I know what to do with, I participate in Charity Galas, help with political campaigns, and help fund schools. The world knows me as the selfless billionaire CEO. What they don’t know is that I am known as the ruthless Alpha of Blackwood. My pack was my life. It was ingrained in who I was. I kept everything running like a tight ship.But my pack was destroyed in an attack that left only two members; Marina and me. The last three years have been hell with the only connection to my past life lying in a coma. That attack cost me everything, including my wolf. He has been silent for three years. Locked away in some sort of holding cell in my head. I can still feel his presence, but it’s as if there is something keeping
“Rosa, wait,” James ran after me, gripping my arm and spinning me towards him. I stared into his green eyes, wondering how I’d ever mistaken this man for someone that would find it in his heart to love me. “What is so wrong with me James? After three years, the least you can do is explain that.” His head fell back as he released a heavy breath. James interlocked his fingers behind his neck muttering curses under his breath, “Nothing. There is nothing wrong with you. It’s me.” Anger bubbled just beneath my skin, “What an original line that is,” I scoffed, shaking my head in disbelief. “You don’t understand,” he started, but I cut him off, “Then make me understand.” His hand found the small of my back as he led us away from Marina’s room and back down to the room we’d been in previously, “Don’t do this.” James’ voice sounded as if he was pleading with me, but it was too late. I’d made up my mind the moment he walked back into that room and suggested I was simply the help and e
I’ve been sitting on the large, four post bed that sits in one of two rooms for over an hour. Dante really wasn’t kidding when he said that Shawn… Shay and I would have to pretend to be married. I haven’t told him of our complicated past, but it’s clear that he’s intuitive enough to see that we’re comfortable with one another. That or he knows deep down that Shawn has always held a piece of my heart. Either way, this feels too soon, and my chest aches as I sit here, staring at the floorboards. A soft knock at the door startles me, “Come in.” My voice is barely above a whisper. Shawn peeks through the crack, “Can we talk?”I nodded, scooting over towards the headboard to give his large frame space to sit. The bed dipped as he took a seat beside me, close enough for our knees to brush. I feel his eyes on me, studying me before he sighs softly, “I don’t know what to say right now,” he whispers with a shrug, “How are you holding up?” “If I’m being honest, I don’t know what to tell y
“I have to say,” Chris spins around, eye wide with excitement, “I could get used to this. Do you see that fucking view?”This place was like a miniature paradise. The air smelled fresh, like the scent of a frigid breeze during the first snowfall. A serene lake sat in front of a picturesque log cabin. Smoke billowed from the chimney, and mountains stretched across the entire horizon, painting a scene that was nothing short of extraordinary.“It’s a bit colder than I’m used to,” Shawn’s words left his lips on a puff of air. “But Dante has taste. This place feels like its own little paradise.”The three of us headed inside, and I gasped at the warmth in the cabin. The scent of pine and cedar swirled around with a hint of smoke. Everything was bathed in warmth. Stained wood decorated the walls, and deep colors accented the feel of the space.“It’s homey,” Chris glances around, his brows knitted, “Kind of expected something more modern.”“It’s a cabin in the middle of nowhere,” Shawn mutte
“Chris,” I whisper, approaching him on the small aircraft carrying us to the unknown location. “Can we talk?”There is a long silence before he finally pushes his sunglasses to the top of his head, his bloodshot eyes boring into mine, “Sure.”His tone is short and unlike him, but I don’t blame him. Once the relief of finding us alive dissipated, he was left with anger, and despite his normal use of drugs or alcohol to make him forget, I imagine it’s not quite that easy when it comes to Shawn and me.“Before you start,” he whispers, “I want you to know that I’m not interested in excuses. I’m not interested in half truths. I’m on a fucking shoebox of an airplane headed to bumfuck nowhere, and I don’t even understand why.”“Of course,” my voice cracks, “There is no reason to hide anything from you anymore,” I shake my head, “There was never any reason to hide anything from you. I don’t have a good reason for keeping you out of the loop… I guess I just didn’t understand what was going on
“Why does this feel like we’re going into the witness protection program?” Chris groans, his sunglasses balancing on the tip of his nose. I know he’s only got them on to hide the fact that he was drunk last night, but I don’t comment on it.Part of me wishes I had been drunk last night instead of silently sobbing to myself curled in an armchair next to Shawn’s bed.“That’s precisely what this is,” Dante mutters, “It’s just a bit more under the radar than your typical witness protection. Instead of the government, you get me.”“Yay,” Chris mumbles, dropping his head back against the headrest.Guilt eats away at the remnants of my soul, and each day that passes leaves me feeling hollower than the one before it.The windows of the vehicle Dante drives have been blacked out to the point that you can’t see a thing inside of the car, and there is very little visibility from the inside.“Where in the hell are we going to go that no one is going to recognize two millionaires and a famous foot
“Still no word on where they’re at?”I’ve spent the last four days in the hospital, unwilling to leave Shawn’s side while he recovered. They tried to send me home, but I refused. Shawn is in this mess because of me, and I’ll be damned if James or Marina somehow finds their way back to him.Dante pinches the bridge of his nose. He comes by every day, and I see the guilt swimming in his eyes. “I told you he was smart. I’ve not been able to track him through his accounts. Money has been moved from investments, but they’ve got to be using an alias that I’m not aware of.”He frowns, “I’m sorry I don’t have more to go on. Like I said, James is smart. He planned this all out right under our noses and didn’t leave a crumb behind that he didn’t want left behind.”I mull over Dante’s words, my mind scattering in so many directions, my head begins to ache. Dante had said James intentionally bought that warehouse under his main bank account because he knew it was trackable, but why would he do th
My eyes widen as a gasp leaves my lips. The air around us feels instantly stale, and my heart jackhammers in my chest.Neither of us utter a word, unknowing if the voices we hear are there to help. Honestly, in my current state, I’m unconvinced that they’re even real.“Rosa,” Joanne voice breaks through the heavy shuffling of footsteps, and I find the strength to stand, untangling myself from Shawn’s arms.“Oh my goodness,” our eyes meet and hers widen when she takes in mine and Shawn’s appearance. “What has he done?”Her voice is barely above a whisper, but I see the horror reflecting in her normally warm eyes.“I found them,” she shouts, still standing rooted to her spot. Moments later, police and paramedics rush towards us and a few moments after that, Dante and Chris on an ATV.“Rosie,” Chris jumps out of his seat while the vehicle is still moving. He stumbles as he runs towards me. His eyes are a mixture of pain and relief, “Fucking hell, Rosie. You’re alive. You’re both alive.”
Shawn and I ran as fast as our battered bodies could carry us. Pain sears through my body and my muscles scream in protest.I saw a workout shirt once that said ‘Everything hurts and I’m dying’. How fitting would that be to have on at this very moment?“Shawn,” I hiss through my teeth, feeling darkness shroud my vision. “I don’t know how much further I’ll make it.”“You don’t have another choice, Rosie,” he grits out, “We have to make it out of here.”My lungs ache with every breath. It feels as if I’ve inhaled tiny shards of glass, and each breath sends them further through the surface of the organs that aid my breathing.Is this how I’m going to go?Shawn falls back, scooping me into his arms.“Shawn,” I gasp, trying and failing to fight him, “You won’t make it anywhere carrying me.”“If you haven’t realized this yet,” he growls through his pain, “We’re getting out of here together. You should really stop making me say it.”The sound of paws slamming against the Earth sends my brain
I’ve never wanted to kill anyone. Not once in my life had the thought crossed my mind.Until now.I fucked up keeping my heart sealed away from Rosie. I thought I was doing her a favor by keeping my distance. I loved her with so much depth, that I let her go, and I’m going to regret that decision until the end of my life.Rosie was a Red. She was royalty to the world. An heiress. A billionaire. Her namesake was a given, and me? I was Shawn Pierce, son of two drug addicts that didn’t want him, and a hoard of mental issues that were never discussed.I lived with them through my childhood until Jeremy Red found me huddled in a closet one day with my hands over my ears, rocking back and forth. I was sobbing uncontrollably, and my heart felt like it was going to explode.Instead of dragging me out of there and telling me to man up as my father had done in the past, he rushed a doctor to the residence and had me diagnosed with anxiety. I was prescribed medication, that Mr. Red paid for, and
Searing pain rolls through my body. My back arches against the pole, and I feel myself ripping at the restraints.A scream echoes around the warehouse, but I’m not even sure if it’s mine.Everything hurts and I feel as if I have lava swimming through my veins.“Rosie!” Shawn’s voice shouts. “What’s happening?”“It…. IT HURTS,” I scream again, unable to contain it.I’ve experienced pain. In the last year I’ve not only been bitten by a shark, but also a werewolf. Both of which hurt more than I care to admit, but I’d get eaten alive by a shark slowly over this.“JUST KILL ME,” I scream at the flashing light bulb in the corner.“Rosie, what is happening?” I hear him grunt. Something keeps hitting my fingers, but I can’t tell if I’m doing it or if Shawn is.“Please,” I sob as the pain tears through my chest. “It’s too much.”My vision tunnels, and I feel weaker by the second, but the pain eases up, and I finally fill my lungs with a sharp inhale.“Everything hurts, Shawn,” I whimper, feeli