RUBY.One Week Later…The last week was nothing short of interesting.Clinton had taken it seriously when he said he was going to date me. No day passed without him taking me out on a date. And oh, did I really say that? We went on a date every morning and evening, except on the day we set aside for pleasuring each other.We toured the whole city, rode horses because one day when we went sightseeing, we came across a ranch. There, we met an old woman in her late fifties teaching a younger version of her—one whom I instantly guessed to be her grandson—how to ride a horse before she vanished inside. But then a mishap happened—the poor boy was nearly thrown off his horse, and I had to come to the rescue.“Hey, little boy, are you okay?” I asked, looking up at him with concern.He pulled his little mouth into a pout and shook his head. “No, I'm not.”I smiled at him and rubbed his puffy cheeks with my right hand. “Hey, hold on. Let's go and meet your momma, I'm sure you'll be fine soon.”
RUBY. “What has gotten into you?” I grimaced. “I only said I love every book that Alex Aster writes.” I purposely repeated what had him so riled up, my eyes not fleeting from his face. His hands clenched and unclenched, making my head tip into a frown. I stopped moving backwards and waited to see what he wanted to do.Clinton grabbed the blouse I was wearing, bringing his face closer to mine as he glowered at me. My eyes widened in disbelief, and my hand shot up to slap him. But before I could, he grabbed hold of me, his huge frown cracking into a wide grin.Letting go of me, he continued grinning and reached out to grab me again but I was quick to swat his hand off. “Take your hands off me!” I snapped, making sure to lower my voice because of others in the library because the last thing I needed right was getting my ass thrown out. “I was only trying to gauge your reaction, dear.” The grin wiped off his face once he realized how serious I was. I rolled my eyes at him, not in the
RUBY.My eyes snapped open to the sound of knocking on the door. I stretched my arms and let out a groan as every part of me ached, as though my bones had been crushed.I tried to sit up on the bed but fell right back on it, a tired sigh escaping from my lips.The knock came again, and I groaned. I wanted to lay back down and pretend I hadn’t heard it. It could be one of the hotel staff wanting to clean, and if they didn’t get a response, they’d probably assume I was asleep and come back later.But then again, another knock came, and I knew I could no longer ignore it. I rubbed my eyes to clear the sleep away, and a yawn escaped my lips.“Give me a minute, please,” I called back to whoever was knocking.Trying to get up from the bed, I was hit with another wave of pain. But after taking a deep breath, I tried again and managed to get up.And that was when I realized I was naked. My cheeks flushed with embarrassment as memories of the previous night surged back—Clinton and I had spent
RUBY. Clinton shook his head with a small laugh as the bike picked up speed. The wind whipped around us, and I had to tighten my grip on the seat just to stay steady. I could feel the power of the engine beneath us, but all I could focus on was the thrill of the ride and the warmth of his back just inches from my chest.I was enjoying myself when the bike hit a bump, and I was lifted slightly off the seat. My heart leapt into my throat as I tried to steady myself, but the sudden jolt made it impossible to maintain my balance. My hands shot forward, gripping Clinton's waist tightly, my fingers digging into his sides. The rush of the adrenaline courses through me, and I felt a wave of fear mixed with embarrassment. “Whao!” I gasped, my voice shaky. Clinton’s laugh rumbled through his body, vibrating against my palms. “You okay back there?” he asked, his tone light, as if he didn't just laugh at me. I slapped him playfully at his back. “Shut up now. Keep going.” “I thought you'd rem
CLINTON. I lay in bed, trying hard to fall asleep, but I couldn’t. My mind kept drifting back to the conversation I had had with Ruby after breakfast.I wanted to tell her that I was falling for her, but she didn’t want to listen. I couldn’t pinpoint exactly when I realized I was falling for her. Was it the first day I saw her, or when Gamma Eric mentioned that Beta Asher had told him I was in love? I wasn’t sure, but does it really matter? What matters is that I love her, and I’ve realized it now.I had believed all this time that she was beginning to like me more, but was I wrong? Was I too blind to read between the lines?The urge to slam my head against the headboard was overwhelming, but one look at her peacefully sleeping beside me made me hesitate. The last thing I wanted was to disturb her rest.She looked so peaceful while she slept, as if she had no worries at all. I wondered what might have happened if she had listened to our conversation. Would she have accepted my feelin
RUBY.The journey back to Eryndor took nine hours.Once we arrived, we set out to find the valet Clinton had entrusted with his car. Fortunately, I spotted him on a call and quickly tapped Clinton's shoulder to get his attention.“Look over there,” I pointed at the man in a downright low cut. “That's the man.”Clinton grunted in response and nodded before starting to drag our luggage toward the man, leaving me to follow behind.By the time we approached the man, he was already done with his call and was slipping his phone inside his back trouser pocket.“Hello, remember us?” Clinton pointed between him and me without looking at me. “We're here for our car.”The valet nodded, and I glanced around in search of the car. I spotted the red Camry beside a white Rolls-Royce.“Oh, alright, please wait here, let me get it,” I heard the valet say before he walked away.Four minutes later, he reappeared with the key in his right hand. He handed it to Clinton, who accepted it with a nod, slipping
RUBY.Moments later, I sprawled across my bed, with Kiara lying at the foot, her hands propped beneath her chin.Clinton had left without a word after he dropped off my luggage. I couldn't blame him because, after all, I wouldn't have if I were in his position.Because I knew how to hold a grudge.That time I woke up after having a nightmare, I had left our hotel room in search of him because I didn't want to remain there alone. When I closed my eyes, all I saw were those creepy creatures and the image of my mom in that cage. If not for the fact that I attended my mom's funeral, I would have believed it was a vision or something of that sort because of how real it felt.I met Clinton on a call and waited until he was done before I approached him, but then something caught my ear. Whoever he was talking to said something about a funeral, and it was only then that the word Oakwood Pack registered in my head.Alpha Frederick wasn't buried yet.That tiny piece of information was enough to
RUBY. “Henceforth, I want you to address me as Natasha, please,” I informed Clinton once he drove us into the packhouse, peeking at the several cars and people loitering in the compound through the window.He stopped the car and gave me a look. “I have so many questions, but I'll wait until you're ready to answer all of them.”My heart skipped a beat, words forming lumps in my throat, but I managed to nod. He cared enough to trust me; that was all that mattered. But I couldn't help but wonder how he'd feel after my identity was exposed. Shaking the thought out of my head, I flashed him a grin.Before he could come to my side of the car to open the door for me, I was already out, taking my bag along with me. His eyes lingered on my face for a while, then he nodded, extending his arm for me.I placed my hand in his as we walked towards the front door when a guard approached us and bowed to Clinton. Anger surged through me when I recognized the guy—Maddox, one of the guards who had hit
Ruby's P.O.VFLASHBACK CONTINUED. “What are you going to do with her?” someone asked, though I couldn’t place the voice. I wanted to open my eyes so badly, but I wasn’t sure if it was the right move. Maybe pretending to stay unconscious would buy me time to come up with a plan to escape.“I don’t know. I could have her killed for everything she did to me, but I won’t,” Seraphina’s unmistakable voice rang out, and I barely held back a snort. Everything I did to her? Ridiculous. “You mean you're just going to let her go? Just like that?” The first voice, filled with surprise, questioned.I was just as curious. After all her threats, why was she planning to let me go? Maybe she feared what Clinton would do to her if she killed me.“Yes, I won’t kill her.”“What if she tells the King what you did to her? Do you really think he’ll spare you?”“You’re too scared, Mom. Relax,” Seraphina laughed. “I have a plan. Don’t worry, it’ll work out perfectly.”My stomach knotted at her words. What
Ruby's P.O.VTRIGGER WARNING: Some scenes are abusive, but there's no rage. If you don't like physical torture, please skip this chapter._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _FLASHBACK TO TWO DAYS AGO.I regained consciousness to someone pouring cold water on me. I gasped and shivered, cowering away as though that would make whoever it was pouring the water stop.And I was wrong.A half-naked man emptied another bucket of water on me before dropping it to the ground like he did with the last one.Seeing as I was now awake, he approached me and sent a kick to my stomach, making me yelp in pain.Raising my arm, I rubbed my face on it, wanting to clear the water out of my eyes because it was starting to make them tear up. It was the only way I could wipe my face because my hands were tied.“I thought you weren't going to wake up,” a familiar voice taunted, making me wince.It sounded like Seraphina, and I started to panic because I knew I wasn't going to leave here unscathed. And maybe... she wouldn'
Later that day, the doctor announced that I was free to go home and I followed my Dad and Pearl back to our palace. Not many things had changed. My room was still like I left it except that it was neat. When I mentioned this to Pearl, she told me that she always asked the maids to clean it up, with the hope that I would return soon. She said that she didn't want me to return and find my room in despair. I was touched. Who wouldn't? Pearl forced me to eat even though I didn't have an appetite to. I couldn't believe that everything I had known had been a lie. Learning that I'm special and what I could do, and that my mom was something else entirely, it was too much. And the most painful part of the information I learnt was the one that Alpha Rhys wasn't my mate. I rejected my pack and left my family for a man who wasn't even mine and wanted me killed. All I wanted to do since I returned from the hospital was stay cooped in my room, with bottles of beer lined in front of me. But Dad a
Flashes of memories flooded my mind, each so vivid they played on an endless loop, over and over again.Dad gave Alpha Rhys—my mate—two choices: reject me or choose me. He rejected me without hesitation.Yet, Dad killed him.He cut off his head.No!!I shook my head, desperate to erase the memory. Sobs wracked my body, trembling violently as the images refused to fade.Pearl embraced me, and I let her. I cried into her chest, and when the sobs finally subsided, I looked up to see Dad standing before me. Tears shimmered in his eyes, and it only fueled my anger. Moving out of Pearl's arms, I lunged. “You killed him! Stop playing like the victim here because you are not!” I panted in between kicking him and raining blows on his chest. “Don't you dare cry as if you regret what you did!” I sent another kick to his knee, propelling myself to stop before I went animalistic. “I hate you!” I held his gaze for a while, letting him see the hate in my eyes before I eventually looked away and
Ruby's p. o. vI woke up with a start.The incessant beeping of a machine and the constant drumming nearby made my head spin. I wish they could move it away. I wish they could—Oh, shit.Where was I? I gazed around the unfamiliar room. I wasn't home. This wasn’t mine and Clinton's room. This was somewhere else. Did we sleep somewhere else…?Something clicked—a memory, sharp and raw. The library. I was abducted and warned never to return to my mate, or I'd be killed.I tried sitting up, but pain lanced through my body, pulling a cry from my throat as I collapsed back down. My mind raced as I took in my surroundings, trying to piece together how I got here. The last thing I remembered was running like my life depended on it—because it did.A drip hung on the wall, and panic surged through me as I noticed it was attached to my left hand, the IV's beeping in sync with my racing heart.Thud. Thud. Thud. My heart pounded faster. I needed to leave before someone came in and started hurting m
Clinton's p.o.vIt has been a few hours since we started searching for her. Our search came up empty. She was nowhere to be found. I was getting tired but I knew I could not go in without her. I needed to see her before I went crazy. Kai had been going berserk in my head, he needed to see his mate before he could calm down but there was nothing I could do. I was yet to hear from the warriors if they had seen her and I knew because of my threat, none of them would dare return without her. In as much as I wanted to beat my Gamma up for his foolishness, I knew it wouldn't bring her back. There was something strange going on. When I went back to her work place to look for her, she wasn't there and Kai and I couldn't sniff her. It was as if her scent had been wiped off completely, and it was making me more worried. I was pacing around when I heard footsteps behind me. I didn't turn around before I knew who it was. I could recognize my Beta's scent anywhere. Musk and coffee. “Any news
Clinton's p.o.v I had a really hectic day. I noticed something wrong with my company report, so I spent the day at the office, searching for the problem. Eventually, I found it—a mistake with one of our products had caused a huge shortage. We lost a lot of money, but I didn’t fire the man responsible, even though that would have been the easy, fair choice. After interrogating him thoroughly, I knew it was an honest mistake. And mistakes are meant to be forgiven. Afterwards, I got in my car and drove to a flower shop and bought a bouquet for Ruby. A lot had happened between us, and I wanted to make sure she was happy. I already fucked up twice, and this was time for me to make things right. Seraphina nearly tore us apart, and I was thankful we managed to deal with her before more damage could be done. The Elders had been surprisingly understanding, accepting my mate without hesitation. It didn’t matter if Ruby held the Queen title or not—she was known and treated as my mate. An
ONE MONTH LATER. Everything had been going well between my mate and me. He had taken me on several dates, where we had a lot of fun because we were in our pack, and I was with him as my mate. We hadn't heard from Seraphina since, and I was grateful for that.The Queen hasn’t paid much attention to us either, though in my encounters with her, she would mostly glare at me, making sure I knew she didn’t like me. Even though I had proven that I wasn’t the prim and proper type of Luna—by taking care of the sick and helping with the house chores—she still doesn’t like me. And right now? I’ve given up. I’m lucky to have Clinton; he’s been a very good mate. I’ve also gotten along with both the Beta and the Gamma.Although I hadn’t had a Luna ceremony yet, the pack treated me as one. I held meetings with the women, and most came to me for counseling. I never knew I could give them the advice they sought, but after seeing the smiles on their faces, I knew I had helped in the small ways I could
The ride to the meeting hall was silent. Clinton had told me about meeting with the Elders because he thought it was finally time. He also wanted to plead our case and discuss what Seraphina had been up to. We kept what she could do to us a secret, except from the Beta and Gamma.Not only that, he also shared his fears about losing his position as King, since it wasn't his birthright. Any misstep from him could cost him the throne.Even the man I encountered yesterday, Carlos was it? Clinton told me everything I needed to know about him. He was his greatest rival and he wouldn't hesitate taking him down from the throne if the opportunity arose. That wasn't all. I learnt that he couldn't just kill the man if he wanted to, even though Carlos was nothing but a thorn in his flesh. He was only tolerating him because it was against the wolf law in killing an Alpha. It came as a shock to me because back in the Lycan Kingdom, Alpha could do as they liked. Because that was because my father—A