“This entire thing is incredibly barbaric,” I whisper-hissed. “They didn’t let me clean myself, as I’m sure you and everyone else know.”Radiating an air of pure smugness, Caius leaned down and murmured in my ear. “Because I ordered them not to.”As if on cue, an upbeat melody drifted through the ai
Anastasia“I’m a coward, aren’t I?” I brought my knees up to my chest with a huff. The bruises peppered along my body had healed long ago, but still I felt the phantom ache, the incessant reminder, of what had happened between Caius and I in that forest.I swore it was the mark playing tricks on me,
“Blackwell adventures.” As we descended into laughter, neither of us commented on the undertone of sadness in our voices, or how it fell upon the room like a dark shroud.I leaned back against the headboard and searched through the snippets of my memory. “There was something else. At one point the h
AnastasiaEvangeline’s eyes shimmered with mischief. “I have a fun fact for you. The Windsor family spent upwards of 1.4 million dollars in PR firms, cybersecurity experts, and legal teams. They staged a scrub that spanned the globe, Ana. That takes money and power. It’s like CIA level shit. I’m tal
“I’m doing this because I’m a good person,” I announced, purely because I was becoming more and more intoxicated, and I needed to remind myself why I shouldn’t go through with Evangeline’s revenge plot. This felt like the simplest reason. “Hype me up before I do something I’ll regret, and we both kn
AnastasiaI had done an excellent job of avoiding Caius all morning. Or so I thought.Once Evangeline went home, I froze time long enough to make a mad dash downstairs. The throbbing in my head was relentless. Every werewolf knew magic and alcohol did not mix, but most of us were too stubborn to lis
I watched in utter bewilderment as his face slowly transformed into a grin.“You steal my shirt, interrupt my hangover, and now you’re making jokes?”At some point we must’ve made it to his office, because he nudged open the door and stepped inside all without jostling my coffee. The retort died in
AnastasiaCaius’s jaw clenched, his eyes flashing dangerously. A crack of thunder sounded from outside. “I should have torn them apart,” he growled, his voice low and menacing.I shrugged, trying to maintain my nonchalant facade. Caius’s rage was like being swept away in a storm. “You didn’t know. B
“You were made to be mine.” I tore the robe from her body and relished the sound of fabric splitting. Grabbing her wrists, I pinned them behind her back and flipped her around so that her back was flush against my chest. Sweeping an arm out, I cleared my desk of everything, earning a gasp from Anast
I kept moving, my senses stretched as far as they could go. A soft shuffle, nearly undetectable, had me turning left. I continued to follow the hall, turned again, then stopped when I saw her.At the very end of the hallway, bathed in shadows and pale slants of moonlight, was my wife. She was hardly
CaiusUpon returning home, I had one of the few remaining staff draw Anastasia a bath. The woman spent most of her time in there. Not that I paid much attention.Only I did.I told myself it didn’t matter. That I wasn’t counting the minutes she spent in there, listening for the hum of that fucking t
Caius let out a pained grunt, then lifted me from his lap.“I know, which is exactly why we’re coming to an agreement now and not later.”I grinned, feeling victorious. “You won’t regret it.”But as I turned my gaze back to the book on my lap, and to my troubled thoughts, the strange unease in my st
I didn’t admit it to him, but his words made me feel better.“She spent my whole life teaching me to hide my ability. She drilled it into me that I couldn’t trust anyone with my secret, and then she just up and left. Lied about dying. Now I find this note telling me not to look for her. That she had
AnastasiaThe jet hummed softly as it carved a path through the sky, the pack still hours away. The cabin was dim, the lights turned low, and the air thick with unspoken thoughts.I was beginning to suffocate on them.To make matters worse, Maverick sat just a few rows over. Caius apologized prior t
Then there was Caius.Traveling with him wasn’t hardest because of our bickering—that was expected. It was hardest because, somewhere along the way, I had started to enjoy being around him. We were learning each other in ways that felt dangerous. Intimate.I knew how he favored lighter suits as the
AnastasiaBy the time the movie ended, my frustration had dulled to a simmer. The rom com had done its job, distracting me from my own life long enough to keep me from spiraling. Fallon stretched her legs out and released a yawn before turning to me with a smirk.“So, care to talk about your problem
Caius stilled for just a second, his mug raised halfway to his lips. A flicker of something crossed his face—something guarded, almost unsure. Then, as if making a decision, he let out a slow breath and leaned against the counter.“I reacted, because I know someone who can do what he claimed you cou