Once everyone's seated again, Ashly wipes her nose with the back of her hand and then takes a deep breath. "My heat is coming," she blurts. Alex whips his head up to look at her, eyes wide. Ashly looks right back with an apologetic look on her face, wishing she hadn't said that without telling her mate first. Jenny gasps, holding her hand to her heart. She gets up again so she can scurry to the other side of the table and hug her daughter, kissing her cheek. "Oh, Ashly, baby, it's ok, we are not pressuring you for pups; you guys can take your time," she exclaims, becoming the clearest voice among all of the others. "Did you still take your pills, love?" Brandon asks; he understands that maybe both Alex and Ashly need some time. Well, they married each other out of peace, not because of love. Ashly has lost count of the days already; she doesn't even know when she takes her pills. She's been too busy worrying about what Alex and Pack are doing; it's hard to keep track. "No, I think,
Ashly and Alex walk for five minutes in complete silence. Ashly doesn't even realize it when she walks them around the same area twice. "I have to rest already," Ashly sighs. The Alpha looks over at his unoccupied hand and notices that it's slipped underneath his jacket, pressed against his arm. Maybe he shouldn't be making Ashly walk this much. But he also wants Ashly to have some fun; maybe next time he will insist she change her wolf form so they can go into the forest. Speaking about wolves, Alex never saw his mate wolf. Only five minutes later, Ashly spots the Shadow Pack house and begins walking toward the driveway, dragging Alex behind her. Before they go in, Alex stops her and reaches up to wipe the tears off her rosy cheeks, warming her up in the process. Alex can see how Ashly is shivering because of the cold; he feels bad making her come out here with him when it's so cold. When they open the door and walk in together, the family is eating again. The married couple doesn
The two end up looking each other in the eye again. Alex now holds his mate's face with both his hands, and he leans in and kisses her again and again, making Ashly feel like she is in heaven. It gets even better when they separate and their faces are still only a few centimeters away, and Alex's gaze switches repeatedly from his mate's eyes to her lips and backs up again. "Let's take this slow, okay? We need to know each other better for now, as Ashly and Alex, not as Alpha and Omega," he admits. Ashly didn't say anything; she was not in the right state of mind to say anything. She still smiles until her dimples show, which makes her even more beautiful. - The next day, Alex holds Ashly's hand at the hospital. Or just say Ashly grabs her partner's hand in the middle of a checkup and digs her nails into his palm so hard that they bleed, but Alex doesn't care because he can heal in just a second. When they go back to the pack house, both Rose and Seth welcome them and ask them about
When everyone met up that night at the dining hall of the hotel for tea, Alex looked irritated, and Ashly made sure to steer clear of him. As Ashly was putting salad on her plate, giving the chips a sad, longing look, a sharp jab in her ribs made her jump and yell, nearly dropping her plate in the process. She turned to give the culprit an irritated glare and found herself face-to-face with a smirking Alex, but the smirk didn't hide the anger in his eyes. Ashly sighed in resignation. "What, Alex?" Ashly asked her Alpha, her voice full of annoyance, as she turned back to the buffet to continue filling her plate with healthy food. She tried to eat healthier because, when they were on the plane, she tended to eat a lot of crap. "You can't just call me a liar and then walk off, Ashly," Alex said angrily, poking Ashly's side harshly again, making her plate tip and a bunch of lettuce fall from her plate. Ashly half growled and half exhaled. "Fuck it," she muttered, moving over to the chip
The local club was humid and full of bodies of Alphas, Omegas, and Betas. Ashly could feel skin all around her as she moved in time to the beat, the crowd grinding on one another and not noticing the omega smell in their midst. Monika had wandered off to get a pint, chatting happily with some red-haired lass at the bar when Ashly had last looked over. Ashly took a long pull from her glass of juice before pressing the cold glass against her forehead in hopes of some kind of relief from the heat. She sighed when it didn't work and quickly put her hands to the bottom of her vest, tugging it up and off of her body to the sounds of catcalls and cheers from both men and women around her. She grinned, feeling buzzed and liquid from the five glasses of juice with a drop of alcohol mixed on them; she'd already downed in quick succession. When a fit man came up behind her and slid his hands to Ashly's hips, Ashly rolled her eyes and ground back against her, enjoying the feel of someone else's b
As Ashly expected, Monika and Rose were still waiting anxiously outside her door. One look at her furious and red lips, and they yelled in shock, both of them running up to his to check her face, and Rose shot worried looks at the room door until Ashly rolled her eyes. "I didn't kill him, Rose. Go check on him if you're worried; he's probably standing like an idiot," Ashly said sarcastically, and Rose rolled her eyes and smirked but quickly went into Ashly's room to check. "Can I use your shower?" Ashly asked Monika calmly, but even Ashly heard the simmering anger in her own voice. Monika nodded silently and led the way back to her room, where Monika handed Ashly a towel before leaving her alone in the shower. She slipped off her clothes and stepped into the shower, turning the water hot and taking a deep breath. Ashly stood and let the water drench her, her hair trailing down her neck and over her face in a curtain of straight brown that she didn't have the energy to push back. A st
During meeting time with some of America's biggest pack, Alex smiled at Ashly a lot, and Ashly laughed and blushed when others teased them for being stuck in the hounymmon phase even after more than one year. She laughed a lot harder than usual, and they touched at every opportunity. They knew that these moments would be used as evidence by their annoying sisters and friends of their'relationship', but they didn't really care. They were enjoying things between them while being easy for the moment. They had no idea that after the meeting, the rug would be pulled sharply out from under their feet. They'd run off the hotel as soon as they could, all of them smiling, and Ashly and Alex were walking so close that their arms brushed with every step, and Alex had come to a sudden stop. When Ashly saw Alex's face go from shock and masked disappointment to a big, false smile that didn't meet his eyes, she looked around to see what had caused it, and she felt her stomach drop. There was a beaut
"You need to let go. You need to ignore him when he does things like flirt and touch you, and you need to live your own life. Maybe shagging two hot guys hadn't been the best of plans, but going out that night and having fun had been a good start," Rose said with a roll of her eyes at the mention of those two hot guys. "To be fair, I didn't go out with the intention of doing anything; I just got offered one," Ashly said diplomatically. "Wow, Ashly, you are really something." Rose grinned, and Ashly smirked, finally starting to feel like herself again. "How do you fall out of love with someone?" Ashly asked Rose softly, and she was aware that her eyes were filled with desperation, but she just didn't know how to start. "I honestly don't know, Ashly. I'm sorry that I can't help," Rose said, knocking her forehead against Ashly in an affectionate apology. Ashly realized that for a little while she'd become withdrawn from the others; there was too much going on in her head about Rose an
By the time Ray arrived at the Downtown, the tavern owned by his 22-year-old childhood friend, Alvin, it was only a quarter to seven. It was still so early; there were only two patrons there, sitting at the bar. Henna was their bartender. RK, another friend of theirs who also worked with RK, was setting up the stage. It was jazz night. Alvin was at the bar, cleaning some of the glassware. Ray went to the bar and sat in front of Alvin. The older man took one look at him, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Well, you look like shit." "I feel like shit too." "What happened?" "Milly pregnant." "Ah," Alvin said, now understanding Ray's troubles. "You knew she was pregnant, didn't you?" There was no accusation in his voice, just resignation. Alvin nodded. "Of course I did. I think everyone who knew Milly knew. This town is not really a big town. People gossip." He took a bottle of beer from the shelf behind him and pushed it in front of Magnus. "Here, have some. It's on the house." "Thanks
In his room, Ray changed and sat on his bed. His phone lay in front of him, and he stared at it. He didn't want to admit it earlier, but he knew Jane was right. But it had only been a few months, and everything was still raw. He loved Milly, and he still does. He had been in a few relationships before Milly, but he never loved someone like he loves the omega. It wasn't just some Alpha lust. And he knew Milly hadn't moved on either. After Milly broke up with him, Ray spent weeks stalking Milly through F******k and I*******m since the latter wouldn't answer his calls, not that Milly updated much. In fact, Milly's F******k relationship status was still "in a relationship". That gave Ray hope, and he continued to stalk Milly's social media updates until Jane, Jack, and Tommy held an intervention. He wasn't allowed to obsessively refresh Milly's I*******m account or F******k page in the hopes that Milly would post something regarding the two of them. Once he stopped stalking Milly on soci
Both of them got up on their feet, and Milly threw away the pregnancy test and cup in the rubbish bin under the sink before washing her hands. She followed Mai to the kitchen, and Mai told her to help herself with any drinks she wanted. She took a soda for the Mai and was about to look for something for herself when the smell of cheese hit her nose. She was hit by a bout of nausea and quickly excused herself and made her way to the bathroom in the hallway between the dining room/family living room and the second living room, where they entertain guests. By the time Milly returned, Mai had set everything up in the family room. On the coffee table, there was a bowl of popcorn, a plate of crackers, and a pot of tea. The cheesy nachos Mai made earlier were nowhere in sight. "How do you feel about the Marvel movie marathon?" Mai asked as she held out three DVDs. "I just bought a collection of Marvel movies." "Sure." Milly wasn't that interested in Marvel, but she knew quite a bit because
Ray laughed before removing his robe and boxers. Then, he continued his meditation on Milly's jaw while his hands started playing with Milly's boobs. He trailed kisses down to Milly's neck, nibbling on it, biting it, and marking Milly while pinching and twisting the reddened verginia with his fingers until she became a complete mess. When he trailed kisses down to Milly's chest, he replaced his fingers with his tongue on one of Milly's boobs. His free hand, on the other hand, moved down to Milly Verginia. It was already wet once more. Milly whimpered when Ray gave his attention to her other boob, circling the hardened nub with his tongue. She whimpered, "Please, Ray. Enough foreplay. I want to feel you inside me." Ray straightened up and shook his head. "No, you deserve the best, love. And because it's your first time, I am going to make sure you feel thoroughly loved." He dove down again and trailed kisses down Milly's torso. His tongue dipped into Milly's belly button before he rea
On any other day, Milly would have been amused by the deer-in-the-headlights look on her boyfriend's face. However, today was not like any other day, so she walked into Ray's bedroom without a laugh, with a frown on her face instead of a smile. "Milly, hey," Ray greeted his girlfriend. He quickly sat up on his bed, his legs crossed. "Why are you here?" Milly had her hands crossed over her chest. "Shouldn't I be asking you that question, Ray? You said you had practice today. The funny thing is, Shine told me practice was cancelled." Shit, Ray thought. He forgot that Milly was friends with Shine too, and she always talked to him and Cecily on the phone. The excuse he gave Milly when the final class ended was the first thing that came into his mind before he all but ran out of the classroom. "Sorry?" he said, although it came out more like a question. Milly sighed and climbed onto the bed. "Why are you avoiding me?" Ray forced out a smile. "Who said I was?" "We've been together for
"There's no threat here. I'm just trying to show you that my brother and I are more useful to you alive than dead." Eliott seemed to take in his words for a moment before talking again. The more he considered Ray's proposal, the less focus he put on keeping hold of his brother. If he lost control and became totally distracted, maybe he wouldn't be able to keep Shine under control. Maybe he could free his brother and get Shine to fight alongside him. Apart, they were nothing more than trained wolves with no real fighting experience or skill, but at the bare edge of their full potential. Together, though, they might be enough. They might even be unstoppable. It was a long shot and probably a stupid idea. It was also the only idea he had, so Ray would make it work. "Even if I believed you, how can I know they won't kill me as soon as they find us?" "You must know a defense technique that is strong enough to prevent that." Ray shrugs, trying to appear casual. "Also, my parents value o
The first time Ray ever met Shine, he came back when he heard about his Omega brother. When Ray entered their home, he saw Shine, who was just a mess of pale skin and fancy pajamas on his dad's lap. At the time, of course, he didn't think about being an Omega big brother. Ray was just scared and confused about how he was going to take care of his omega brother. Everyone around him was talking and smiling, and he didn't understand. Nothing made much sense at all. Ray knows the meaning of Omega in this world, but society still doesn't accept it. His own mother is a big example. When Cecily was born, Ray was relieved; she was born as an Alpha, but now... His dad snapped him out of his daydreaming and smiled at him as he came to offer his hug, then offered him a look at the boy in his arms. Even though Shine was already 3 months old back then, he still loves Ray and Cecily's scent. Maybe it'll make him safe, and Ray will make sure to protect him all his life. Seven Years Later: Ray f
Alex and Ashly didn’t write their own vows this time. This time, they just repeated whatever the fake prince told them to, and they swapped the same rings they already had on. Alex even pressed the button on his bouquet to make it sing the wedding march. It was very tacky and nothing fancy. But their friends were there—their family. It was perfect. Monika was tearing up in the front row, with Rose soothing her from the side and smiling at Ashly like she was proud of her. Adom and Seth gave them a thumbs up, throwing confetti over them when they walked down the aisle afterwards. It was a spur-of-the-moment, I-dare-you-to-do-it decision on their part, but Ashly thinks that it doesn’t matter. Because if Alex is really happy with them, he wouldn’t say no to anything. “I thought it was lovely. Priest even sang a few lines from ‘Can’t help falling in love with you’.” Monika comments when they sit on a bridge, looking over the Vegas lights. Her legs dangle over the edge, and she’s hol
They sit in the huge living room, complete with a flat-screen TV that takes up a whole wall and a fountain in the middle of the room. Ashly just knows that Shine would've loved that fountain. "So, we need—Monika, where'd you get that?" Alex eyes Ashly's sister, who's sipping a new cocktail, this time a mai tai. "There was a bar downstairs, duh." She waves the yellow drink at them, lounging on the armchair. She looked stunning as ever in her black glittering dress and black stilettos. "Are you sure you don't want to slow down? What even is that?" Seth asks and comes closer to sniff at the cocktail. "Mai tai. I never mix alcohols, and today is a rum kind of day." Monika responds, ignoring the first part and giving Seth a sip. "That's actually good." "I thought men only drank brown liquids." Adom teases, and Seth flips him off. "People," Alex gets their attention effortlessly, his ringed fingers catching the light from the great chandelier on the ceiling, his voice commanding. "Th