The men look more uncertain now, exchanging resigned glances which give me hope I’ve finally gotten through to them. They know I’m right, even though they don’t like it. “What about the pup?” Henry questions, throwing out one final impediment to my plans. “This baby survived my first shift – hours
Ella I look back and forth between Roger and Isabel, noting her pallid skin tone and his quiet concern. “How long overdue is the plane?” I inquire, checking the time on my phone. “It was supposed to get in five hours ago. James has never been late before.” Isabel pipes up, bouncing Sadie in he
James growls and tugs her closer, burying his head in her neck. She allows him this much, though she still has the sulky energy of a she-wolf who is determined not to be mollified. James purrs, and she finally relents, melting into his arms. I look away, knowing she wouldn’t want her private moment
Sinclair I lean over the back of the sofa in my guest suite, my hands closed in white-knuckled fists around the frame. My phone is lit up on the table in front of me, Gabriel’s name glowing on the screen. Hugo and the Black Alder Alpha, Callahan, stand beside me, looking on with somber expressions.
“Well put.” Dad praises, “we need to combine PR with diplomacy and hard line action. This isn’t just our fight anymore.” “Do it.” I agree. “I trust you all, authorize whatever funds and resources we can, and put out feelers to contacts throughout the continent. Forward me any correspondence for app
Ella After hanging up with Sinclair, I return the King’s cell phone and look around at the gathered men. “When does Leon arrive?” I inquire, forcing down a shiver. “Within the hour.” Gabriel replies, solemn-faced. Though they’d all agreed that the developments back home warranted accelerating
“I… I don’t know.” I stammer, not really wanting to move deeper into the possibility – after all, if my first incident with them resulted in the binding of my wolf, I’m not eager to find out what might have come next. “Don’t resist the ether, Ella.” Leon advises. “Just let it carry you. I know it’s
Trigger Warning - Sexual Assault, Violence Ella I turn on my heel and run away as fast as my feet will carry me. My would-be kidnappers curse and soon their footsteps are pounding into the pavement behind me. I fly through the sleeping city, careful to make sure I travel in the opposite direction
He shakes his head at me as tears fill his own eyes and he leans forward, pulling me against him while somehow miraculously managing not to crush our children between us as he holds me tight in his arms. “So, I guess it wouldn’t matter,” he murmurs against my hair as I sniff back my tears and nod.
“Even more than the kids!?” I gasp, my mouth falling open a bit. “I mean, the kids,” he says, shrugging as if they’re not much, which makes me laugh. But then he goes a little rigid as he realizes something, raising his eyes to glare at me a bit. “Wait, are you saying you like the kids more than m
Ella “Nope,” Sinclair says, heaving himself out of bed and grabbing his phone off the bedside table as he does. “I can’t live like this, Ella – I’m calling Roger, I’ve got to know –“ “Dominic!” I say, laughing and grabbing for him, trying to catch the edge of his pajamas and failing because I’v
She laughs and I look first at Sinclair, who shrugs, and then back at my sister. “Come on,” Roger says, nodding at the crowds of people waiting to congratulate us and at the small table of refreshments. “Let’s decide this over some champagne.” Sinclair nods at me and I sigh, moving with my famil
The last image, though, lingers. Ariel, with Rafe and Jesse on either side – as they always are – and her two mates behind her. All standing together on a battlefield with Ariel at the center, magic welling between her hands and passing to her brother, to her cousin. Their faces are serious as t
Cora The images of Ariel’s future come in quick flashes, and somehow I get the impression that the Goddess is eager to share these glimpses of her life. The ones that come first are what I sort of expected, especially after seeing some images of Rafe’s childhood and hearing about the ones that
“We are not,” Cora scoffs, gently taking Ariel into her arms as Sinclair and I laugh. Roger grins, leaning forward to kiss me on the cheek before passing Jesse to me. “You know I’m kidding, right, Ells?” he whispers. I smile at my brother-in-law and gently pat his cheek. “When in doubt, Roger,”
Ella Three weeks later – Ariel was born under a waning quarter moon, not a new moon like her brother and her cousin – I stand anxiously in the woods, my little girl held tight in my arms. “I’m sensing some anxiety,” Cora says, grinning at me with a little too much glee as she comes up to my sid
“Oh my god,” I say, the words spilling out of my mouth. “Oh my god,” I sit up straight, staring at Henry, my eyes flicking to his legs – because honestly, I don’t even notice his chair anymore, or think of him at all as someone whose abilities are hindered. Or of me as someone who is able to do an