Six months agoNala. I knew something was wrong, It had been wrong all week long. At first I thought it was because I still couldn't come into terms with the fact that Salvatore hadn’t come home for weeks. But then it got worse. I couldn’t keep anything down and had this weird cravings. I sat in the bathroom my hands trembling, my whole body was shaking and my palms sweating profusely as I held on to the pregnancy test. I have had my suspicions for the past few days that Maybe I was pregnant but, I had tried to ignore it, hoping it will all go away like it was a bad dream. The last thing I needed was to be pregnant. I had no relationship with Salvatore despite the fact that we had been living together for two months. We were like strangers, he would sometimes come to my room drank and in the morning he was always gone. I know my father had said my duty was to give Salvatore a heir, but I didn’t want to have a child with a man who barely looked at me, Atleast not yet. I didn’t even
Nala. "And here I thought I will never get to see you again." the man said still standing in the doorway. "Jordan, she said."i said looking up at him meeting his gaze. "Yes, Jordan Craig." he said licking his lips. "you are the last person I expected to see here today." i said honestly wondering what was his deal. "what's your deal anyway, or are you stalking me Mr Jordan Craig?" i teased with a big smile on my face. Something about him gave me fire and lut me up, unlike Salvatore I wasn’t scared of being around at him. He brought out a childish flirtatious side of me I didn't even know existed. " And what if I am?" he asked now standing up straight his hands in his pockets as he walked towards me. "stalking you I mean.""Well in that case you should know am a married woman, and my husband wouldn't like that at all." i said showing him the huge diamond ring on my finger, and there was a huge grin on his face, "But you already know that, don't you?" i added remembering what Caro
Nala. The cool ocean air ruffled my hair and I grasped a few errant strands of my hair to tuck them behind my ear. I had taken refuge on the back veranda, Salvatore and the pack were still relaxing inside. The house was filled with wolves on both two feet and four and as a full human, i felt decidedly out of place. The baby stretched and pressed against my stomach, snaring my attention. I placed my palm over a small bulge he caused. I wasn’t sure if it was a foot or hand. It was simply my child.“I’m here for you, sweet pup,” i whispered, thankful for the bursts of wind that would wash away my words. “I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise.”At least not while I’m alive, I added silently. I was not sure why i tried to hide my thoughts from the child since he sensed them anyway and squirmed inside me. “Shhh… Give me a break, sweetheart.”The scuffle of feet on the flagstone announced someone’s approach. No, not someone Salvatore, I thought to myself a little irritated. It was
Nala. “Can I check you now?”Already, my son calmed and i nodded. He approached slowly, steps measured and careful, and he gently sat his bag on the ground before dropping to his knees.“I’m Dr. Perrin Liakos.”“Salvatore’s brother,” i murmured.He nodded. “His brother and also the highest ranking pack doctor.” He flicked open his bag and pulled out a stethoscope. “Mind if I take a listen?”I shook my head. Why deny him? I wanted my son to be healthy and i needed to accept that for now, i had no control over my situation. I carefully reached for the bottom hem of my shirt to bare my belly to have a snarl freeze me in place. That was followed by one from the doctor and he quickly rose and spun toward the source of the sound. Salvatore. Who else?“You will not expose me to everyone,” he snarled at Perrin before turning to me.“You will not expose yourself.” Perrin’s voice was calm but firm. “And you will not speak like that to my patient. If you want the mother and child to live, you w
Nala. By unspoken agreement, Salvatore and I tried to do things together following his brother's instructions to keep me and our son safe. We had breakfast every morning, and Salvatore would murmur something to me before dropping to his knees and saying something to my belly. The first time he had done so, it had been a little awkward and stilted, but I had given him permission and accepted his touch. Now it had become common place for him to press his ear to my stomach, hands on the roundness as he growled and “spoke” to our son. We still refrained from conversing more than necessary, but we weren’t together because we were in a relationship, it was for our son.I simply had to remind my heart of that daily.Such as when he took me for walks through the expansive gardens or when he paced at my side while we toured some of the small shops and prepared the nursery. Those were the most difficult times, when i would stare at an adorable blanket or an even cuter stuffed animal and know
Nala. This was a place i savored but didn’t want to return to. There was no joy or answers to be found there.Swallowing hard and clearing my throat, i shuffled away and grasped the roughhewn stone cliff face. I reached for my ankle, raising my leg at the same time, and realized it so wasn’t happening. I tried again, straightening and then bending downward in an attempt to grab my ankle, and yet again was unsuccessful. A little chuckle came from my left and i shot him a glare before trying the third time.“Nala, there is a reason I placed the shoes on your feet.” He strolled forward and lowered himself, reaching for my ankle and carefully cradling my foot. “Because it means that I can remove them from you.”And wasn’t that more than a little suggestive?“You don’t want to take anything off me. You hate me,”I blurted out the words before i could think better of them. It was the truth whether i wanted to say the words aloud or not.Salvatore didn’t say anything, merely continued unbuck
Nala. He stepped closer and i didn’t have the good sense to back away. Not when a familiar tenderness filled his gaze immediately followed by a small frown. His hands rose, palms coming to rest on my cheeks. “I have been pushing you and that is unforgivable.” He leaned forward and pressed his lips to my for head,speaking against my skin. “No more. I swear it. We will bring this pup into the world with happy parents.”Damn him for teasing me, for tormenting me, but i refused to reveal my knowledge, hoping he would see his error before it was too late. “Okay.”“Excellent.” He released my face and snared my left hand, entwining our fingers and then carefully leading me deeper into the water. “Come. I know you love the waves and this will make our pup happy.”He wasn’t lying on either count. Our baby was unmistakably excited and enjoying my happiness in the ocean. For now, i would push everything away.No future. No past. There was only now with Salvatore . With his wide smile, sparklin
Nala. I was sure how he had managed it, but a week later I stepped out of the bathroom after a long hot shower and soak to find a gorgeous evening gown laid out on the bed. It was a deep teal, the sumptuous fabric like silk to the touch and it was so light, it almost felt like air. The cut was beautiful, clinging yet not, flowing. I wouldn’t look like i was wearing a circus tent, but I also wouldn’t look like a stuffed sausage.“It will look beautiful on you.” The deep masculine voice sent a shiver of need down my spine.I held the massive bath sheet in place and turned toward Salvatore. He leanednL negligently against the doorway, arms crossed over his chest and ankles crossed as well. His hair was windblown and unruly, his pristine white shirt was wrinkled, the top few buttons undone and the arms were rolled up and pushed to his elbows which exposed his deeply tanned and strong forearms. His slacks were equally disheveled, the harsh straight creases now flattened while other wrinkl
Nala.I woke up slowly taking in my surroundings. All the walls were white with no painting at all. It was just plain walls. And then then there wS the smell of medicine that made me nauseous."What's going on?" I asked no one in particular sitting up. That's when I saw him sleeping peacefully by my bed. He looked so peaceful, but also so uncomfortable sleeping in that chair. "Hey, hello beautiful." he said as soon as he saw me, "How did you sleep? How are you feeling?" he asked coming to my bed as he helped me sit up properly, putting a few pillows for me to lean on. "I am sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up." i said slowly feeling the pain of my incision. "No it's okay baby. Am glad you are up." i said looking around. "The baby?" I said almost absent mindedly. I do not remember at all having the baby, I just felt pain in every part of my body. "She is Fine." Jordan said proudly, "and yes it's a she. They just fed her she is sleeping. You will see he when she is up.""I am sorry
Jordan. One moment, we were dancing, I was holding her, monitoring her breaths, smelling her rose vanilla hair, the next she was lying on the floor in a pool of blood. This was not happening to me. It could not be happening. I felt as if I was losing my mind. I could not believe what I was seeing. It could not be. It just could not be. I dropped to my knees next to her. My hands were shaking. Jesus, God, no. Not her. Not her. Not my miracle.She was looking up at me, with a strange expression on her face, as if she was surprised to see me, as if it was me that was hurt, as blood was oozing out of her wound and spreading into her stomach area of her lavender dress. The assassin had been aiming for me, but he had hit her instead. This was all my fault and I knew it was Salvatore. I had taken his son away from him, he wanted his revenge. One more shot rang out and I heard the shrill announcement.“It’s clear! We have him!”“Hey you,” she said softly. Then she frowned, her hands were
Nala. A shiver crackled through my spine at his words. Because I knew that look in his eyes, the almost ferocious gaze and I knew what usually followed after that.The last time he had had that look in his eyes and told me to get over to where he was, I had been fucked against a doorand left in a puddle at his feet.“Um,” I swallowed. “I need to go to the Ladies first?”“You are going to be sorry if I have to repeat myself.”“Please. Someone could come in.” All I could think about was his mother or sister or even father walking in on us. “No one will come in until I allow them to.”Through the glass, I could see the other people around us, and people passing in between. I was pretty certain that theycouldn’t see into our own encasement, but they would definitely be able to hear us especially since there was no way that I would be able to stay quiet after he touched me.“But people can hear us,” I whispered.His gaze darkened even further, and I had to accept the painful truth, tha
Nala.The round lights in the ceiling as they rolled me into the OR barely registered. The only thing in my mind was the brutality of my contractions. Waves of paincoursed through my body and my fingers dug into my palms to help relieve some of the pressure.I had never in my life been in so much pain.But then I remembered his promise. Everything will be fine. I believed him, and that more than anything gave me thestrength to hope for a time beyond this pain that seemed as though it would never end.The Anesthesiologist put a mask over my face. “Count backwards from ten, ” she said kindly.10, 9, 8, 7… 6… then everything went dark.I woke up slowly. My whole body felt heavy. Even moving my fingers was an effort. I knew I was in a hospital. I felt fear.My lips moved.“My baby,” I called weakly. “Where is my baby?”It was only then I realized I was not alone. There was an arm and a head on my thighs. The arm lifted and he straightened.I stared at him in shock.He looked haggard. Mo
Jordan. we were riding back to Torrington Hall. Our bodies at least two feet apart. I stared out at trees, all cast in darkness, as we left the city.Who was I angry at? Was it at myself? For reacting like a jealous fool. Or was it at her for pointing it out? I couldn’t decide, but either way it didn’t feel good.I knew she was scared for her friend’s safety, but I had no intentions of doing anything to him. At that moment when Isaw him touch her so casually I wanted to throttle him, but now that my blood was no longer boiling, I could clearly see he was only a little gnat. Even the tiny effort required to squash him would not be worth my time.“ I… uh… I wanted to speak to you tonight about the greenhouse, ” she said hesitantly. Her tone was soft and docile.I turned my head to look at her. In the soft light coming fromthe console, her skin looked like alabaster.“Thank you for allowing me to work there,” she continued.“I need to buy some seeds. I will purchase them on my own of
Jordan. I felt as if I was losing my mind. I could not believe what I was seeing. It could not be. It just could not be. I dropped to my knees next to her. My hands were shaking. Jesus, God, no. Not her. Not her. Not mymiracle.She was looking up at me, with a strange expression on her face, as if she was surprised to see me, as if it was me thatwas hurt, as blood was oozing out of her wound and spreading into her stomach area of her lavender dress. The assassin had been aiming for me, but he had hit herinstead. This was all my fault and I knew it was Salvatore. I had taken his son away from him, he wanted his revenge. One more shot rang out and I heard the shrill announcement.“It’s clear! We have him!”“Hey you,” she said softly. Then she frowned, her hands were still cradling her stomach. “What happened?”I shuddered as my hand went to touch her face. I was so terrified I was almost paralyzed. “It’s okay, ” I whispered even though I didn't really know if it was. “Everything i
Jordan.I took her to Boston’s harbor hotel with its Sixty foot stone archway and its panoramic views of the city’s skyline. It was also a personal favorite for other reasons. Security was easily monitored by my men, and my requests for privacy were always immediately fulfilled.As I mostly moved in the shadows and appreciated places that helped me maintain things that way.Across the terrace, private and heated transparent igloo-like boxes had been erected to both tackle the frigid winter air,and to provide privacy. One of the things I liked the most about these encasements were how the glass made it possible for you to see out, but for no one to see within.I sat at my usual enclosure with my customary glass of Dirty Martini and tried to imagine Nala working in the greenhouse… and couldn’t. I’d never even been inside it. I had to admit I’d never given the idea of gardening muchthought, but I had formed the general impression gardeners were gardeners because they couldn’t find bett
Nala. It was still dark the next morning when I got out of bed and went to the kitchen. There was no one else around, but Jordan's mom was already up andsitting at the table drinking something from a cup and. looking into an open notebook. She looked up at me and frowned.“Is something wrong?” she asked worried I shook my head. “Nothing is wrong. I was wondering if I could have some cake or cookies.” I said feeling embarrassed "Ofcourse yes. I can't tell you how much cravings I had with Jordan. I gained over one hundred pounds." she said smiling as she served me a plate of chocolate chip cookies with warm milk. I looked at her confused, wondering what she was talking about or why she was even telling me about that. She saw the confusion and smiled again. " oooh, Jordan told us about your news.""What news?" I asked even more confused as ever. "That you are pregnant." she said looking at me with that judgemental look of hers. "My son always wanted to be a father you know and g
Jordan. 001It had taken a lot of pursuading to say get her to come with me. But I needed her there. I needed her to see how hard I was working to make things right between us. I needed her to know I was doing everything in my power to get her son back. I glanced at the poised woman by his side as i wound my way through the curvy hills toward my home. The top was down, and her gold red hair blew in the wind in a tangled mass, but she didn’t seem concerned. Her pursed lips told me she was thinking hard, probably getting into character to meet my family. It was not the first time, but it was since she recovered her memories. During the last twenty four hours, I had learned a lot about Nala. Unfortunately, the tiny glimpse only made me crave her more.The vivid green of trees and brown earth flashed by and welcomed me in a way that soothed my soul. My family owned land from generations back, which had all been passed to me. But i had always known from my first visit to New York City th