SOFIA'S POV Five years later… “Mommy, mommy!” My twins chorused as they tugged my hands, pulling me forward. Alex tried to simultaneously pull his sister forward too, forgetting we were already moving at the same pace. He nearly tripped over his own feet but quickly regained his balance. “Yes, my babies? Alex, be careful. Come here, hold my other hand.” I reached out, and he walked over and slipped his tiny hand into mine. “Mommy, New York is huge! Has it always been this big? Mommy, what's that thing there? Mommy, it's going so fast!” Alex spoke quickly, his words tumbling over each other like they couldn't wait to escape. His wide eyes darted around the airport terminal, taking in everything at once. “Slow down, Alex. You're confusing me.” Alexia, his twin sister, complained, her tone much more measured and firm. “But Mommy heard what I said, didn't you, Mommy?” He looked up at me, his eyes the color of clouds. He didn’t even wait for a response before turning back to his sis
SOPHIA'S POVThe rush hour arrived, and the bell on the door chimed accordingly, signaling the entrance of customer after customer. While that usually would have snapped up my attention, the man just a little behind everyone else caught my eye.I watched him raise a sign and read it just as he whispered in my ear, "Need a hand?" That seemed to do the trick, yanking me from my shock. I crossed the space in what usually took me more seconds, shoving against the onslaught of people coming in.I stopped when I was right in front of him.“Hi.” I was breathless from basically sprinting to meet him.“Hey, you.” He stepped closer, into my space. “I see you're a blonde now.”“Why does everyone keep saying that?” I shoved him on the shoulder. “Did you and Grace plan this?”He laughed, catching my hand to stop the attack. “No, we didn't. And hey, is this the greeting I get after all these years?”“It will be if you continue this. You should know not to comment on a woman's hair unless you have
SOPHIA'S POV“Hey hey, stranger danger. It's just me. Calm down, tiger.” Lucas chuckled as he entered the kitchen, holding his hands up in mock surrender. He walked up to me and grabbed the makeshift weapon from my hands, the pan clanging on the board.“Yeah, sorry. I just thought it was someone else.”“Who else could it have been?” Lucas asked, brushing it off.His question brought up a concern that had been lurking in the back of my mind for the past five years. If they ever found out…I shook my head, bringing myself out of it. Not right now. I couldn't worry about that right now. “So, uhm, yeah, you said you wanted to talk?”“Yeah, I wanted to… Are you good?” He looked hesitant to carry on, probably having sensed the change in my mood.“Yeah, definitely. I'm good.” I reassured him, adding a smile for good measure.“You know you can talk to me about anything, yeah? Anything at all.” Lucas probed, his eyes searching. I couldn't afford to give anything away, so I brushed off his conc
Sophia’s POV Five Years Ago… “Are you sure you wanna do this?” Grace asked, following me into the room where I was shoving things into a bag. She had been a constant presence in this house ever since the phone call about a month ago. It was still fresh in my mind… She had arrived and met me watching over the twins. “Hey. You sounded stressed over the phone. You wanna talk about it? And I promise, I’m being a friend and not your therapist right now,” she ended with a little nudge. She waited, but I still said nothing. “Wow. Tough crowd.” “I don’t want to make a mistake with them. Just looking at them… they’re the best thing to ever happen to me. I can’t lose them.” “Hey, hey. You won’t lose them. I promise you.” Grace rubbed my shoulders comfortingly. “But you don’t know that, Grace. You don’t know that.” And she really didn’t know that. There were too many unknowns, and too many factors to consider that could come into play. How was I supposed to balance everything? How was I
SOPHIA POVThe ride to the airport was silent, neither of them wanting to fill it. The twins were in the backseat, blissfully asleep. It had been a blessing that they were usually peaceful. Grace had made a comment about how she wished that when she had children, they would be as peaceful as Alex and Alexia.But she didn’t know the circumstances whatsoever. I almost felt bad about withholding the truth from my best friend, but she wouldn't understand. It was for her own safety.And besides, she wouldn’t believe me even if I told her. I wouldn’t believe it if I were in her shoes either. Really? Werewolves?I smiled ruefully to myself, and Grace picked up on it. “Something up?”“No, nothing.” My facial muscles returned to their normal resting position.“Good. So, have you told Lucas yet?”“Told him what?” I asked, playing dumb.“You know what I’m talking about.” She gave me a sideways look.I sighed, knowing there was no way out of this. “No, I haven’t. And before you say anything, it’s
SOPHIA'S POVThe drive back to my place reminded me of old times. Grace had the windows down, her wavy chestnut hair blowing in the wind. Her face was mostly free of makeup, her elegant features needing no help to shine the spotlight on her beauty. She threw her head back and laughed, the energy free between them.“You know, you really have changed.”I shrugged in reply. “Well, what can I say? The Italians really rubbed off on me.”“I'm sure they did. Am I friends with a bilingual person now?” Grace asked jokingly, and they laughed. But their moment was short-lived when her phone rang, cutting off the sound of their voices.She glanced at the screen, then dropped it back, letting it ring out. It stopped for a bit, then started up again. I glanced between her and the phone, not saying anything.Finally, my curiosity won out. “You're not going to answer it?”“No. I'm not.” Her hands gripped the steering wheel a bit tighter.“Okay. Why not?” I pushed more, knowing I was missing something
SOPHIA'S POVHearing that had really put things into perspective for me. Before he went home that day, he had found me trying over and over to get the sweet bread right. Although the academy was usually closed during Christmas, that year, they had decided to leave it open. A few of us had stuck around, and I spent that Christmas baking the bread until it turned out perfectly. The dough had been okay, it had proofed for the right amount of time, and the temperature had been perfect.Mr. Antonio had dropped by to get something from his office and had peeped into the cooking space, unbeknownst to me, and found me celebrating my success loudly.“You like how that feels?” he had called out. I paused and turned around, finally aware he was there. “That's the result of perseverance, dedication, and strength.”He left, and I really understood what he meant that day in his office. I couldn't focus on the past. I could only focus on the future and put my all into shaping everything I wanted it
SOPHIA'S POVThe plan was very simple. It was one that I had put months into planning, and it was slowly coming to fruition. The plan was divided into four parts, and the first phase of it was complete.Coming into New York, I had known that it would not be the easiest thing to return five years later to the New York culinary scene, knowing the hustle and bustle of the city. But I had not spent those last couple of years in vain.No. It had been used to build up everything I needed to come back to New York and to come back in style.Phase one of the plan was to give a test run of what I wanted my future to look like. It had only been a sliver of it, but it had gone even better than I had anticipated. I was appreciative of the efforts everyone had put into it, but that hadn't even scratched the surface. If everything goes according to plan, then Il Cuore de Sofia would be the next best thing.And now...I checked my emails and saw the replies to the blast I had sent out earlier. All of
NATHAN'S POV“We have to do something about this! I refuse to let this stand!”One of his Betas screamed in his seat where I was, on my left-hand side. The headache that had been slowly forming in my head continued to bloom like a flower in spring.“No. We have to wait. We can't rush in when we don't have the full story. We have to be patient, Rodney!” another one of my Betas emphasized on my right side.Everyone just seemed to be having opinions left and right, I thought to myself as I rubbed my head. They couldn't seem to agree on anything today.A couple of spies had been caught near the border of our pack, and upon further investigation, it was brought to light that the intruders were from a neighboring werewolf pack: the Silverfang Pack.The pack had existed side by side with us for years in peace and harmony after the first war they had that brought about destruction and calamities to both clans. But when their leader was killed and leadership changed, they drafted something of
SOPHIA'S POV What?! I stood paralyzed, my eyes fixed on nowhere in particular. The scene in the restaurant still continued on like normal, no one having the faintest idea that I just had a life-changing phone call. I understood what it meant; on some level, my brain had caught up with the moment, but I was still in denial. This cannot be happening. Although I had planned for this moment, it came way too soon. And it was way too early. And why did it have to happen in school? In the eyes of the prying public? “Miss Lancaster? Hello?” The voice reminded me that I was still on the phone call. “Yes, Mrs. Jones?” The principal started speaking. “Yes. Like I was saying, would you be available to come to the school now? Your presence is needed.” “Alright. I'll be there in about twenty minutes. Please tell my baby to just sit still, and Mommy’s going to be right there.” “We'll be expecting you.” I took the phone off my ear, a sign that the conversation had ended, but Mrs. Jones was
SOPHIA’S POVThe sun shone brightly over the New York horizon, its reflection working wonders on the streets of the city. I could watch its people for hours, always amazed at how they seemed to strive no matter the situation. Their go-getter energy is infectious, and it’s practically the anthem of everyone who lives here. You couldn’t be a New Yorker without being made from a different material, cut from a different cloth.It was why I had chosen to settle here. I was confident that with their varying cultures and tastes, the limits of what I could achieve here would be endless.And today marked an important step in the journey as my restaurant was officially opening. I watched as the place filled up, with every known food critic and some big names in the industry that I had amassed over the years. It brought me pride and joy that all my efforts had not been in vain.The place was filled and then promptly closed to the public. The placement of the unique design was a smart choice, as
SOPHIA'S POVThe plan was very simple. It was one that I had put months into planning, and it was slowly coming to fruition. The plan was divided into four parts, and the first phase of it was complete.Coming into New York, I had known that it would not be the easiest thing to return five years later to the New York culinary scene, knowing the hustle and bustle of the city. But I had not spent those last couple of years in vain.No. It had been used to build up everything I needed to come back to New York and to come back in style.Phase one of the plan was to give a test run of what I wanted my future to look like. It had only been a sliver of it, but it had gone even better than I had anticipated. I was appreciative of the efforts everyone had put into it, but that hadn't even scratched the surface. If everything goes according to plan, then Il Cuore de Sofia would be the next best thing.And now...I checked my emails and saw the replies to the blast I had sent out earlier. All of
SOPHIA'S POVHearing that had really put things into perspective for me. Before he went home that day, he had found me trying over and over to get the sweet bread right. Although the academy was usually closed during Christmas, that year, they had decided to leave it open. A few of us had stuck around, and I spent that Christmas baking the bread until it turned out perfectly. The dough had been okay, it had proofed for the right amount of time, and the temperature had been perfect.Mr. Antonio had dropped by to get something from his office and had peeped into the cooking space, unbeknownst to me, and found me celebrating my success loudly.“You like how that feels?” he had called out. I paused and turned around, finally aware he was there. “That's the result of perseverance, dedication, and strength.”He left, and I really understood what he meant that day in his office. I couldn't focus on the past. I could only focus on the future and put my all into shaping everything I wanted it
SOPHIA'S POVThe drive back to my place reminded me of old times. Grace had the windows down, her wavy chestnut hair blowing in the wind. Her face was mostly free of makeup, her elegant features needing no help to shine the spotlight on her beauty. She threw her head back and laughed, the energy free between them.“You know, you really have changed.”I shrugged in reply. “Well, what can I say? The Italians really rubbed off on me.”“I'm sure they did. Am I friends with a bilingual person now?” Grace asked jokingly, and they laughed. But their moment was short-lived when her phone rang, cutting off the sound of their voices.She glanced at the screen, then dropped it back, letting it ring out. It stopped for a bit, then started up again. I glanced between her and the phone, not saying anything.Finally, my curiosity won out. “You're not going to answer it?”“No. I'm not.” Her hands gripped the steering wheel a bit tighter.“Okay. Why not?” I pushed more, knowing I was missing something
SOPHIA POVThe ride to the airport was silent, neither of them wanting to fill it. The twins were in the backseat, blissfully asleep. It had been a blessing that they were usually peaceful. Grace had made a comment about how she wished that when she had children, they would be as peaceful as Alex and Alexia.But she didn’t know the circumstances whatsoever. I almost felt bad about withholding the truth from my best friend, but she wouldn't understand. It was for her own safety.And besides, she wouldn’t believe me even if I told her. I wouldn’t believe it if I were in her shoes either. Really? Werewolves?I smiled ruefully to myself, and Grace picked up on it. “Something up?”“No, nothing.” My facial muscles returned to their normal resting position.“Good. So, have you told Lucas yet?”“Told him what?” I asked, playing dumb.“You know what I’m talking about.” She gave me a sideways look.I sighed, knowing there was no way out of this. “No, I haven’t. And before you say anything, it’s
Sophia’s POV Five Years Ago… “Are you sure you wanna do this?” Grace asked, following me into the room where I was shoving things into a bag. She had been a constant presence in this house ever since the phone call about a month ago. It was still fresh in my mind… She had arrived and met me watching over the twins. “Hey. You sounded stressed over the phone. You wanna talk about it? And I promise, I’m being a friend and not your therapist right now,” she ended with a little nudge. She waited, but I still said nothing. “Wow. Tough crowd.” “I don’t want to make a mistake with them. Just looking at them… they’re the best thing to ever happen to me. I can’t lose them.” “Hey, hey. You won’t lose them. I promise you.” Grace rubbed my shoulders comfortingly. “But you don’t know that, Grace. You don’t know that.” And she really didn’t know that. There were too many unknowns, and too many factors to consider that could come into play. How was I supposed to balance everything? How was I
SOPHIA'S POV“Hey hey, stranger danger. It's just me. Calm down, tiger.” Lucas chuckled as he entered the kitchen, holding his hands up in mock surrender. He walked up to me and grabbed the makeshift weapon from my hands, the pan clanging on the board.“Yeah, sorry. I just thought it was someone else.”“Who else could it have been?” Lucas asked, brushing it off.His question brought up a concern that had been lurking in the back of my mind for the past five years. If they ever found out…I shook my head, bringing myself out of it. Not right now. I couldn't worry about that right now. “So, uhm, yeah, you said you wanted to talk?”“Yeah, I wanted to… Are you good?” He looked hesitant to carry on, probably having sensed the change in my mood.“Yeah, definitely. I'm good.” I reassured him, adding a smile for good measure.“You know you can talk to me about anything, yeah? Anything at all.” Lucas probed, his eyes searching. I couldn't afford to give anything away, so I brushed off his conc