EARLIER On leaving the dining room, Belinda searched through the west wing of the mansion, where she found Draven. He stood beside a window, occasionally glancing at the garden outside as he spoke into the phone. She rushed to him, till she stood directly in front of him. "Yes... I see... Then don't..." Draven continued his conversation with the person at the other end of the call as though she didn't exist. Belinda clenched her jaws, not because she was angry but because she was anxious. She was anxious to get this confrontation over with. When Draven at last distanced the phone from his ear and tucked it into his trousers, her heart skipped a beat, and not for good reasons. He nodded to Cantor and the Beta moved away, but still stayed nearby, watching them. Draven then faced Belinda squarely, his eyes boring a hole in her. "I can explain." Belinda started. Draven did not reply her but waited for her to continue. However, Belinda realized that she actually couldn't expla
"I can't believe your family let you have an engagement party. They never even threw you a birthday party in the past." Lexie Lancer slowly strolled past a hat store at the mall, admiring the pretty hats on display as she walked. She wore the camera she usually carried during her work hours around her neck, using a hand to support its weight. "Maybe they finally had a change of heart. I'll be Female Beta soon and they were probably thinking I at least deserve a good sendoff." A small black hat with a short net veil caught Belinda's eye. She decided to come back for it if her budget allowed it. Lexie snorted. "Yeah right." Both women stopped in front of a store named Grandeur. Belinda had never shopped there herself, as they sold luxury pieces, which she usually stayed away from, mostly because she couldn't afford them. She'd heard though, that this was the best place to shop for second-grade fashion items at a most affordable price. She and Lexie walked into the store with
As Belinda slipped her phone back into her purse, she asked, "How well can you make something go viral?" "What?" The sudden question surprised Lexie. "I'm asking how big is your social media presence. How many people listen when you talk?" "Well..." Lexie shrugged. "I've only got a few hundred followers on Instagram, but I'm a paparazzi. I have connections. If you want the internet in an uproar, I'm just the girl to call." "It's a good thing I have you then." For the second time that day, Belinda genuinely smiled. "I asked you to bring your camera today because I need photos of me of Derek shopping together taken. We have to make the picture of the perfect loved-up couple. Every pack on the continents, and even human blogs, needs to be talking about our engagement party. They must be expecting the wedding of the year." "You want people talking?" Lexie saluted, her straight face causing the action to appear even funnier. "I definitely am your girl." Belinda ga
Drinking out of his wine flute, Paul took a look around at the guests crowding the villa's ballroom. Damn it! More people had shown up than he'd expected. Werewolves from his pack laughed and chatted with the few prominent wolves from other packs, glasses of drinks in their hands. A few enjoyed the sweets and pastries from the buffet tables, and even fewer took pictures on their smartphones. Paul nearly choked on his wine as the one person he didn't want here walked in. All eyes immediately turned to the Lycan, in his sophisticated black suit, and his beta, who was just as eye-catching, behind him. Murmurs immediately erupted in the hall. People wondered who the two gorgeous men were, especially the one with the smothering gaze and the long hair tied in a ponytail. No one knew who they were, but everyone could tell they were important people. No riff-raff gave off that much class and swagger. As the host of a party would, Georgina went to greet the new guest, but this time, Paul and
Derek met Belinda at the end of the stairs, where she flashed him an appreciative smile and took the hand he offered. Leaning forward, he whispered into her ear, "You look beautiful." He got a wider smile as a reply. Hand in hand, the two joined the crowd, the entire ballroom as audience. Cecily gaped as she watched guests flock to the couple. Had they forgotten she was just Belinda? Had a stupid dress changed the fact she was a filthy omega? "Don't do anything dumb." Suddenly, Paul appeared beside Cecily, keeping his gaze straight ahead and his facial expression blank.The fact Belinda had intentionally drawn attention to herself instead of fading into the background did anger him. After all, he had arranged this party only to fulfill all righteousness, but he couldn't punish her for her insolence as the Lycan was in attendance. Paul would play along with this game his wretched stepsister was playing till they were alone. Cecily swerved to Paul, venom drawing lines on her fac
EARLIER Derek was horny. He didn't know why and he couldn't understand how, but his penis was as hard as stone. Tugging his suit's blazer, he tried to use the jacket to hide his erection, smiling and pretending he wasn't feeling so damn uncomfortable. He was standing in a group of men and women, but he only nodded as they talked, because he wasn't hearing a single word they said. All his attention was focused on the raging boner between his legs. "Excuse me for a second." Derek couldn't take it any longer. He had to find somewhere to at least give himself a hand job, or he would go insane. Cecily appeared in front of him then, and his gaze immediately fell to her breasts. His entire being was consumed by the rise and fall of the two creamy globes as she breathed. He wanted to place his tongue there and run it down her stomach till he came across the juicy V between her legs. Fuck! Derek's eyes popped out when he noticed Cecily's nipples were standing, the two peaks poking throu
No one else noticed. They were way too busy discussing the latest drama, but even if they had been paying attention, the drug was already ingested in the culprits' bodies. Draven's nose, however, was too powerful to not catch the faint scent of aphrodisiacs. He then easily figured out what had happened. Unknown to Belinda, he'd monitored her every move at the engagement party. He'd seen her feed both Derek and Cecily wine, then lock all doors except the one to the garden. When Belinda had led them through the glass doors, he'd guessed that she had more sinister intentions than sightseeing. The aphrodisiac had been the final piece of the puzzle. The omega had put a sex enhancer in the fiancé and stepsister's drinks to make them horny, and knowing they wouldn't be able to resist each other, had locked the doors so they'll be forced to fuck nowhere else but the garden. Then she brought an audience to enjoy the show. Draven smiled. He really did like this woman. She wasn't just smart...
Cantor held open the door to the back seat of the SUV, and Draven promptly got in. Belinda, on the other hand, simply stood still, staring at the dark interior of the vehicle. For some reason, she was hesitating to follow the Lycan in. "I think you've already figured out by now he doesn't bite without a good reason. You'll be safe with him." Cantor's voice was surprisedly kind as he spoke to Belinda. Deciding going with them was a far better option than staying back here with her family, Belinda climbed into the car. Draven ignored her throughout the car ride, almost as if she was not literally sitting beside him. Although he did not so much as glance her way, Belinda found her gaze straying to his handsome profile every now and then. She couldn't help wondering what would have happened to her if he hadn't stepped in earlier. How far had Paul been willing to go? She didn't want to imagine. The SUV drove into the underground garage of a skyscraper in the heart of town. After hol
Draven never locked his doors, because every living being in the building knew to never disturb him without being summoned first. The only exclusion was his Beta, who he'd grown quite fond of over the decades. That privilege did not yet extend to his Beta's son and successor. The boy knew that, yet he walked through the front doors of the penthouse uninvited. And what was worse, he'd brought company. Dropping all he was doing, Draven leaned back into his chair, waiting for the trio to arrive. They found him soon enough, halting in front of his office's door. A soft knock sounded a second later, but the show of courtesy did little to lighten his mood. "May we come in, my lord?" Marcus' clear voice rang from behind the door. "You seem to have already come to a conclusion on that." The annoyance wasn't lost in Draven's reply. It should have been to scare them off, to give them the hint that he was not in the mood to entertain any guests. Yet, the wood swung open, ushering thr
Derek returned home well into the night, way past the customary 5 pm. He was newly discovering that a CEO working hard to revive his company was no easy job, and it often left him drained after a long day. Tonight, he heaved a sigh as he removed his suit blazer and pulled off his tie. As he stepped deeper into his apartment, however, he realized that his housemate's scent was way too faint, meaning she wasn't home. That made Derek frown, especially as to how late the hour was. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, absentmindedly strolling into his kitchen as he prepared to call her. That was when his eyes caught a piece of paper pinned onto his counter by a pan. He instinctively picked it up and went through it. “... wish for my own privacy...would appreciate if you respect my wishes.”Anger coursed through Derek at the words in the note. Like hell Belinda had moved out because she wanted “privacy”! She was simply locking him out again. Damn it, she hadn't even had the guts to
After closing the door behind her, Belinda gazed ahead at the room she would now be staying in till further notice. It wasn't the most luxurious quarters, but that was the thing about second-rate hotels—they were just below perfect and affordable.Dragging her luggage along, she advanced deeper into the room. She randomly deposited her bags on the floor and moved onto the bed. The soft mattress jerked as she plopped her bottom onto it, her mind too far gone to notice the bounce. Absentmindedly, she picked up the remote and switched on a channel. Although she gazed at the screen, she was not watching the TV program playing. She was thinking about too many things at once. Slipping out of Derek's apartment had been easy. As the other went to work early in the morning and came back late in the evening, she'd been able to pack her bags and leave without him realizing. She wasn't exactly running away. She'd left a piece of paper on the counter with her new address, which also specified the
"I've got a solution for all our problems." The proud declaration did not have the effect thought it would. Paul simply stared dead on at her, his flat expression displaying anything but curiosity. Georgina was no better. She did not appear irritated like her son, but her look was anything but impressed. "And what is that, dear?" Her tone was patient and indulging, like she was talking to a child she did not expect to say anything meaningful, but let him speak nonetheless. It annoyed Cecily senseless, but she forced herself to get past her anger. Pushing her chin even hire, she said, with just enough confident arrogance. "We trace the problem back to the source, and that's Belinda." "Moon goddess help me." The groan came from Paul. He rolled his eyes upward, praying to the deity above to grant him patience, because he was on the verge of committing murder. "Can you—for once in your life—not make everything about yourself and your crazed beliefs?" He snapped once he jud
Cecily was frustrated. She screeched, stomping her foot repeatedly like a child going through a tantrum. Her plan to spy on her stepsister to prove that she was the source of all their family's problems had gone to shit. Actually, she hadn't been spying on Belinda at all. She'd struck gold the first day she'd followed that omega paparazzi. However, neither she nor Belinda had done anything suspicious throughout their meet-up. When they'd separated, Cecily had naturally switched to following Belinda, but she'd lost her. Cecily neither knew where Belinda was staying, nor where she frequented. So, she'd been forced to revert to her original plan, waiting outside the skyscraper for Lexie. She'd tailed the latter for ever since, but was yet to spot her best friend. As a last resort today, she'd returned to the bank, and had crossed her fingers, praying that her target would show. No such luck. Why was the entire universe against her? Cecily screamed again. Why did everything have to go w
He knew him very well? Derek found himself feeling confused for the first few seconds. Then it hit him—this was not the first time he was coming face to face with the King of Alphas. Indeed, he'd met the Lycan not once but twice. The first being that faithful day he'd followed Belinda to this very building, and confronted her after recently recovering from his rejection. The Lycan had caught them in a very compromising position, and there had been no mistaking the fury in his eyes and he warned Derek off his mistress. The latter had ignored the directive, and had gotten Belinda into an accident. Another dreaded meeting had occurred. Heat rose Derek's neck, but not as much as alarm bells rang in his head. Somewhere in between the crazy events of the past months, he'd forgotten these encounters. He might be very well standing in front of a man who was out for his blood—a very powerful man at that. That couldn't be helpful to his cause. "I apologize for that time—I didn't intend B
A knock resounded in the small but organized study and to it, Draven replied, "Come in." With the scent wafting into the room, he already knew who the visitor was, and he had only given one person permission to come up to the penthouse. A man entered the office a beat later, bowing low before closing the door behind him. "My lord." The man greeted with worshipful respect. He was tall and quite bulky, with gleaming brown skin ripped around bulging muscles. However, behind his gruff exterior was a highly intelligent man, who could be subtle when he wanted. And that was why Draven had assigned him to this particular task. Pausing what he had been doing, the Lycan propped his pen between the pages of his open book. He leaned back into his chair, his pose casual yet powerful, his focus zoning in on the man in front of him. "Well?" He probed flatly. With a solemn nod, Travis Jonahson went on to deliver his report, like he'd been doing for the past few weeks. "In the last week,
Belinda watched Derek through the large screen of the television. He looked handsome, in his pressed black suit and meticulously combed hair. He was standing on a podium with a microphone bent towards his mouth. Below the steady timbre of his voice, cameras clicked and voices murmured. Occasionally, when a reporter asked a question, the screen switched to their faces, their viciousness masked in polite curiosity. They were baiting him... waiting for him to say the wrong thing. "You say the former CEO of Knights & Co. retired due to personal grievances. Do these grievances have anything to do with his recent multiple scandals? Or does he consider himself no longer fit to lead?" Derek waited a while before replying, clearly measuring the answer he was to give. "The former CEO is a competent leader who has dedicated himself to Knights & Co. for years. The decision to step down was a difficult one, but he believes it is time to usher the company into a new age." More reporters made
They sat across each other at a table in a pub a few buildings from the bank. As it was only afternoon, the place was almost empty, but the two women didn't concern themselves with the scantiness. They were too busy staring at each other. Belinda felt extremely uneasy in Lexie's. She hadn't seen the other since that fateful day she'd walked out of the Lycan's residence. Despite being convinced she'd done the right thing, she couldn't help feeling guilty about the horrid things she'd said to Lexie. Belinda warily studied the woman in front of her. Usually, Lexie was skittish when placed in an awkward situation. There was no trace of that jumpiness in the hard features of her face, however. She sat with her arms folded across her chest, her eyes narrowed in a condemning glare. "Well?" Lexie bit out bitterly. "Aren't you going to say something?" Belinda gingerly raised an eyebrow, her expression blank and her tone flat as she said, "Long time no see?" Her humorless quip made Lexi