I allow Gabriella to lead me into the club’s back alley. I focus on the feeling of her hand in mine to calm myself down, but every time I do, I see her wrapped up in that human’s arms. It makes me want to open the Earth and watch this entire club and everyone in it sink into oblivion. He might be gay, but the hurt and rage I felt seeing them in each other’s arms… it was like walking in on Apaki all over again. I hate this. I feel so stupid and weak, no better than a human. Then there’s Gabriella. I saw the fear in her eyes. Under the haze of my rage, that look in those glacial mint eyes broke me inside. I don’t want her to fear me or ever feel unsafe around me. Perhaps I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions, but can I truly be blamed? Once we’re alone in the alley, I wrap my arms around Gabriella, sighing when I feel her body relax against mine. I hold onto this feeling for just a moment longer before teleporting us to my estate. I gently caress her hair, trying to focus on being g
I lead her past one of the curved staircases, turn to the left, and lead her into the grand kitchen, watching the way her steps falter as she takes in the size. Gabriella regains her footing and steps forward, her high heels clicking and echoing against the white marble floor. The entire kitchen is pure white with a grand chandelier hanging from an ornamental ceiling. Gabriella runs her fingers along the sandstone countertop of the massive prep table in the centre of the room while glancing down at the built-in wine fridge. The countertop is flanked by several bench chairs, while the right of the kitchen is lined with drawers and cabinets and all the usual kitchen fixtures. There is also a long six-seater kitchen table at the far end of the room against the windows, with smaller chandeliers hanging down the length of the table. “You really like white huh?” she comments. “It’s my signature colour,” I say casually. “It’s the most opulent kitchen I’ve ever seen,” she says in awe. I h
In no time at all, she exits the bathroom, comes over and lays down on the bed beside me. She snuggles up to me and rests her head on my chest, my skin burning from the contact and instantly putting my body at ease. I free my hand from behind my head and lazily run my fingers through her hair, loving how soft the strands feel between my fingers. “How are your feet feeling?” “Throbbing like a son of a bitch, but thank you for asking,” she says smiling up at me. I shift my body, lifting her with ease and propping her up against the pillows. I place her feet in my lap and hold out my hand as a bottle of massage oil appears in my palm. I place it on the bed, pump a few drops into my palms, and begin to massage the oil into her feet, being sure to be cautious with the pressure. “Holy crap…” she drawls, her body sinking into the pillows as her eyes roll back. I chuckle, but continue to massage her feet, “You like this, I take it.” “That feels unbelievable. Mmm, I can’t remember the la
Well, I can’t be mad at the man. He said he made no promises, and he was true to his word because the bastard made me pass out again. Correction, he made me pass out several times throughout the night. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised to find a God has an insane sexual appetite, but I didn’t think Gods were cunnilingus machines. This other-worldly being ate my pussy like it was an all-you-can-eat buffet gifted to a man on death row. He worked his fingers and tongue in ways that no sex toy could ever compete with. The man even dry humps to the point of fucking multiples, and as amazing as that is, I’m annoyed. I know, I know. You’re going to say, ‘Ella, what the fuck is your problem?’ and believe me, I have no problem with his skills. I think I came more times last night than I have in my whole life, and I can tell you my entire body is suffering for it. My pussy is swollen, my clit is swollen and sensitive as fuck and every muscle in my body feels like I had a straight week of rehe
I shake my head, choosing to accept my animai’s – still a weird word – ways, and make my way over to the door, placing my bag of clothes on the kitchen counter. I open it to find my new neighbour, Kaley, standing at my doorway looking dishevelled and wet. “Kaley, are you okay?” I ask in concern. “I’m so glad you’re home! I really don’t mean to be a bother, but I’m hoping you have a number for the building’s plumber. I can’t find my list of contacts on account of unpacking and the pipe under the kitchen sink burst. If this were a hole in the wall, Kallie could have it patched up in minutes, but unfortunately, neither of us are plumbing experts,” she says, sounding utterly exhausted. “Jesus, that’s shit timing. I mean, a busted pipe is never good timing, but when you’re just moving in is especially shit. One sec.” I keep the door open with my foot, lean around the wall, and grab my list of building contacts off the refrigerator. “Here you go,” I say, handing her the list. “You’ll fin
After getting the all-clear, I race into the emergency room and find Derrick lying in one of the beds looking pale and exhausted while Wyatt holds his hand and affectionately strokes his hair. Seeing Derrick like this makes my chest ache. Why the fuck didn’t I think to grab my shit before leaving the club? “I’m so, so, so sorry,” I chant, rushing over and enveloping Derrick in a big hug, but being careful with the pressure. “I forgot my bag at the club last night and didn’t get it back till this morning. I came right over as soon as I saw the texts. How are you feeling? What’s wrong?” I ask with rapid-fire, pulling back to look at him. “I was starting to worry about you; you never go anywhere without your phone and after what Wyatt said…” says Derrick, looking me over searching for something. I look between them, Wyatt avoiding eye contact. “Why the fuck are you worrying about me? You’re the one in hospital. What happened?” I ask, sitting on the edge of the bed and holding his hand
I descend the stairs, tying my hair up in a messy bun for my shift at work. I grab my handbag off the kitchen counter, sling it over my shoulder and do a quick check to make sure I have everything and that I’ve turned everything off. As I’m about to leave, a massive bouquet of gorgeous flowers with stunning white multi-layered petals appears on my kitchen counter, vase and all. A huge smile breaks across my face and I let out a squeal of delight. Jartre sent me flowers! No man I’ve dated has ever given me flowers! I step closer and take a whiff of the floral arrangement, but don’t pick up any strong fragrances, which I don’t mind. I turn the vase around, admiring the blooming flowers from all sides when I notice a card sticking out of the bouquet. I grab the white card and admire the gorgeous calligraphy scrawled on it before I read the words. Roses are red Violets are not blue Sugar is sweet And your pussy is too I double over as I burst out laughing, clutching the counter to k
As I continue to serve customers, I can’t wipe the smile from my face. I thought it was already so sweet of Jartre to send me flowers, but to realise how much thought and meaning went into choosing them... It just makes me love them even more. I’m feeling like I’m on cloud nine, but that feeling vanishes faster than a married man's wedding ring at a brothel when I look up and see Mitchell in the crowd, headed my way. “Oh, what in gay hell,” I say in exasperation. “Hey, this place isn’t gay hell, it’s gay heaven,” Cassandra corrects me. “It was, until Rosemary’s Baby walked in,” I say, jutting my head towards Mitchell. Cassandra looks over, her amber eyes hardening as she spots Mitchell. “Want me to put dirty dishwater in his drink?” I deliberate on that for a second. “Very tempting. I might take you up on that.” “I got you, girl,” she says with a wink just as Mitchell walks up to the bar. “Hey Gabbie,” he says with a warm smile. My stomach churns uncomfortably but I manage to c
I walk down the front steps of the beach house, making my way across the sand and over to Jartre who continues to stare out at the horizon. I sense his anguish and guilt and if our bond were complete I’d probably be crushed by their weight. That’s the thing most people don’t realize about Jartre. Jartre feels everything far more intensely than others. His own emotions are a destructive force to himself and those around him. His love for Apaki nearly destroyed the world and then his love for me nearly did the same thing, only on a much larger scale. His guilt, disgust and shame birthed a new God and that has come with its own set of problems. I can’t blame Jartre for wanting to run and hide from his feelings all these years because it seems whenever he lets them out, someone gets hurt.“Are you going to keep standing there watching me?” he utters, not sparing me a glance.“I didn’t want to disturb you. Do you want to talk?” I gently ask.“I’m sure you already know what happened, so wha
I appear in a wide open, sparse living room surrounded by walls of stone and endless glass windows that look out onto an incredible mountainside from atop a hill with trees as far as the eye can see. The sound of the rain echoes around this somewhat hollow domain, each drop beating down on the glass ceiling and cascading down like a waterfall all around me.“What do you want, Jartre?”I look over to see Oshmin sitting at an oversized dining table, his head buried in his hands while flecks of golden glitter in his azure hair manage to twinkle in the light of such an overcast day. A simple whiff is enough to tell me Yildiz is here too, but as I pay closer attention I can feel her energy emanating from somewhere upstairs.“I’m sure you would love more than anything to throw me out, and that would be more than fair, but I’m hoping you’ll give me a chance to speak,” I say with all the confidence I can muster. I feel like a human child confronting their disappointed parent. It feels revolti
Instant relief washes over me when Gabriella finally appears. She crawls onto the bed, collapsing and snuggling up to me, wrapping her arms tight around my body and nuzzling against my chest, setting my body ablaze. I put the TV on mute, wrap my arms around her and plant a tender kiss on the top of her head.“How did it go?”“I knew it would be emotional but…that was even harder than I anticipated,” she exhales.I gently comb my fingers through her green locks as I tenderly run my fingers up and down her arm, her scent swirling around the room putting me at peace. “Did Fretez put up a fight?”She shakes her head, “No, she was very sympathetic and understood why I wanted to do this and said that ultimately it’s my decision and she no longer has a say on the matter. That alone is crazy to me. I mean… having the power to move the spirits of the dead from one plane of existence to another…it’s insane to think that’s something I can do now.”“And how did the young Alpha handle it?”“I thin
The tender moment is interrupted by the suite's buzzer, so I reluctantly free my hand from the mighty grip of my daughter and answer the door. I stand there, mouth agape, looking up at the 7’7” Goddess standing at the threshold of my suite. Dark, yet radiant forest green hair frames her face in long natural waves while her bright, silver eyes look down at me with apprehension.'What would a Goddess have to be apprehensive about?' Zara utters in astonishment, echoing my own thoughts.'Beats me, but a better question would be: why in the hell is a Goddess at my front door?''That is definitely the superior question,' Zara nods in agreement. 'What kind of God rings the doorbell?' Zara appears more lively than she has in weeks. I’m not the only one who lost both her parents. Just like me, the only things keeping her going are Ace and their pup.“I’m so sorry for just showing up like this. It’s Amelia, right?” she says hopefully. “Sorry, I mean, Alpha Amelia,” she quickly corrects herself.
As I look down into the bassinet, listening to the steady thumps of my precious baby girl, I lose count of how many emotions are running through me. My mum tried to brace me for how overwhelming having a baby is. She warned me that from one moment to the next I won’t know whether I want to laugh, scream or cry and she was right, but I still wasn’t prepared. However, the one thing she didn’t prepare me for was how to do this without her.Zara whimpers quietly in my mind as I look over at the framed picture by the television of my mum holding my daughter the day she was born, and I can feel the tears filling my eyes. She tried so hard to make herself look healthy and strong for her granddaughter that day. It’s such a beautiful, bittersweet photo. My mum’s radiant red hair almost cocooning my daughter, her thick black tufts a stark contrast against my mum’s red. Mum was so happy to meet her granddaughter and even though my daughter was fresh out of the womb, it’s like she knew what my mu
I place a glamour over my eyes just as Jartre taught me, allowing people to see my eyes as they once were and not as they are now. I figure this will make it a little easier to take in my new appearance. I wait until Wyatt steps out, then let myself into Derrick’s hospital room. I walk over to the bed and look down at my best friend, his hair damp with sweat and his face pale. He doesn’t deserve this, and I feel like a bad friend for not being there more for him lately because of all this supernatural drama.I quietly pull up a chair and sit down, reaching out and holding his hand between mine. Derrick slowly opens his eyes and looks over at me, first his brows furrow in confusion, but soon his eyes widen in disbelief as he looks me over.“Ella?”“Hey, you,” I say softly.“What…Is that a wig?” he asks in confusion.“Uh no.” I grab a strand of hair between my fingers and look down at it scornfully. “This is my real hair.”“You hate the colour green.”“Oh, I still hate the colour green,
“According to sources, the FBI is working with local law enforcement throughout the states of Oregon, Washington and Idaho to get to the bottom of this sudden wave of unexplained disappearances. Conspiracy theorists are going wild on public forums suspecting everything from alien abductions to human trafficking. As for the real cause behind these disappearances, authorities still have no leads on the matter.”I take in a deep breath, guilt strangling me as the news shows more faces of people who have been reported missing since the eyti were released. I allowed this to happen. Those people aren’t missing. They’ve been pulled into an unfathomable dark abyss, infected by the eyti set free from their prison and fuelled by the malice that lives within every human.The TV turns off and I look over to see Jartre getting up from the couch and making his way out to the patio, anger and frustration radiating off him in waves, rippling against the radiating pure white of his essram, now spotted
Whoever said exposure therapy was ideal for curing people of their fears was a sadistic fucking cunt.From the moment I met Gabriella, my greatest fear was that I would lose her. Whether it be at my own hands or due to her humanity. Nothing could have prepared me for what it would be like to feel her life slip away from mine; to feel her soul leave her body and to hold her corpse in my arms. That pain will haunt me for the rest of my life and as an immortal being, that means this ghost will be with me always.I look down at Gabriella as she sleeps peacefully on her bed, her mind needing to recharge from all that has overwhelmed it today. I can feel in my essram that she is still the same Gabriella at her core, but I can’t help still feeling a sense of loss. I carefully reach out, picking up a lock of her dark, forest-green hair and run it between my fingers. It has the same luminous quality Fretez’s always had, and yet it seems more intense to my eyes, perhaps because of what she is t
He holds his hands out in front of him, conjuring a giant ball of black energy and purple electricity. I watch as it draws darkness into itself, but then I notice where the energy is coming from. As I glance around to the barely recognisable field, I see the eyti getting pulled towards it. I don’t think he’s even aware of what he’s doing, but he’s using them to power up his attack, and that’s one thing I can’t let happen.I glance at Zarseti who gives me an encouraging nod. She told me to trust my instincts, and that’s what I’m going to do.I reach out through my mind, feeling for Merlos’ thoughts. Her eyes connect with mine when she senses the connection, quirking an eyebrow at me. 'Merlos, I need you to blind every mortal around us,' I say urgently through my mind.Her brows deepen in confusion for only a second when realisation fills her expression and her mouth quirks up into a smirk of approval. 'Now that, I can do.' With a disinterested wave of her hand, she fills the eyes of ev