Flashback:- Everything aches, and she feels so heavy as she wobbles through town, shopping for all the last things she needs to execute her plan. For the past hour or so, Ashly had been to the supermarket to get some snacks and food to last her for the next couple of days; at the baby shop to get her son newborn outfits; then she went to the pharmacy to get some basic painkillers and vitamins; and after that, she went to the bank to withdraw any money she had. It wasn't much, but it was at least enough to get her started. Of course, due to her very pregnant state, she had to sit and rest a lot in between, all the while trying to ignore the endless, shameless stares she was receiving. Rumors about her have been running wild since people started to realize that she was pregnant, and she hated every moment of it. Ashly couldn't wait to get as far away as she could from that god-forsaken town and all the stuck-up snobs that lived there. Once she was done at his last stop, Ashly began
"Can I get you anything to drink?" Alex questions, and Ashly is glad that at least he sounds just as nervous as Ashly feels. Ashly turns to look at him again and shakes her head. "No, thank you." She declines, then looks around herself in discomfort as a tense silence falls between them. "Is Ray home?" she finally asks, then bites her bottom lip in anticipation. This time Alex shakes his head. "No, but he should be soon," he says, scratching the back of his neck, looking hesitant before he goes on. "He's on the way home; the school bus is dropping him off here." "Okay." Ashly responds shortly, because there's not much more she can say, and really, there's not much more she wants to say. "Look, while we wait, I want to talk to you about something." Ashly looks back at Alex at the sound of his voice, the words sinking in slowly and causing her insides to burn, already sensing this will lead nowhere good. "Okay," the omega manages in a small voice. "Why don't we sit?" Alex gestures
Flashback:- It wasn't until she was parked outside the huge Moonlight Pack house that Ashly finally realized where she was going. Ashly remained seated for a long moment, her seatbelt still buckled and her hands still on the steering wheel. Taking a few deep, calming breaths, Ashly looked up at the house, unaware of the time passing by. Then, before she could overthink it or talk herself out of it, Ashly turned off the engine, unbuckled the seatbelt, and stepped out of the car, struggling to stand with her 7-month pregnant belly. Taking small, hesitant steps, Ashly made her way up to the front door, all the while praying to hell that she's doing the right thing. She had no idea what she was going to say or what would even happen, but she knew she at least had to try. Unfortunately, she could no longer climb up the tree to the Alex window, so she had no choice but to knock on the front door and pray that it was Alex or one of his parents that opened it, not one of his girlfriends or
"I was hoping, however, we could start discussing the matter of Ray custody." At the sound of the words Ashly dreads most, a cold shiver runs through her body as a wave of dizziness washes over her. "What?" Ashly manages to choke out. "Look, I don't want to fight or make it ugly," Alex goes on quickly, gesturing with his hands. "I just want a chance to get to know my son, and I want to talk about shared custody." "No." Ashly quickly blurts out in a panic, shaking her head frantically, "No, you can't have him." "Ashly, I don't want to take him away from you." Alex tells him, but it does nothing to calm Alex. "I just want..." "I don't care what you want." Ashly snaps angrily, slamming her hand down on the table, causing it and everything on it to rattle, and earning some strange looks from the people around them. Alex jolts slightly at the sound and outburst, and Ashly can't help but get a bit of satisfaction out of that. As the people around them seem to settle back into their own
Flashback:- The large pendulum mahogany behind his father is ticking; the sound, which is usually drowned out by the other noises that fill the mansion, is now echoing loudly in the eerily silent room. Trying to comprehend the words his parents had just spoken, Alex just sat there at the table as he slowly let the information sink in. But the more he thought about it, the sicker it made him feel, the harder his heart pounded, and the hotter his blood boiled. "I won't do it." Alex finally decided, looking up at his parents with fire in his eyes, "You can cut me off if you'd like, but I am going to forget about Ashly; I am not going to marry someone else. Ashly is the only love of my life." "Don't be so foolish." His mother hissed, rolling her eyes dramatically, "You will not give up your whole pack for that Omega, who ran away; God knows where." "Ashly will be coming back. She is my future," Alex retorted angrily. "This pack is your future; May is your future; and taking over her
Alex just frowns in confusion, "what do you mean?" He asks, sounding a bit hurt, "Of course it matters." Ashly finally looks up at him with a vulnerable gaze. "I mean, you and May, while no longer married, you still have a family; you have two boys together, and I have hidden the truth from you and Ray for so long," Ashly explains sadly. "There's just so much, too much between us." "Ashly, May, and I... we've never actually been a real family, at least not in the way you think." Alex says slowly, then seeming to make a realization, his eyes grow wide as he goes on, "Shit, Ashly, we never actually wanted to get married, and the boys... they're not biologically ours." For a long moment, Ashly just stares dumbstruck before finally choking out, "What?" "Our parents forced us to marry; otherwise, they would, um, you know my story with May; it's also somehow the same." Alex begins to explain, nerves evident in his shaky voice, "And we went along with it because we were idiots, stupid, an
Flashback:- Over the past few months of her pregnancy, Ashly has compiled an escape plan of sorts. Besides saving up every single penny she could, she searched for the best places she could escape to. The best place to bring her baby is the world, where they have the highest chance of survival. After serving the internet on the local library's computer, Ashly finally found a shelter for pregnant omega's in Big City. Then she used a pay phone to call them and check if they had a place for her, then reserved a spot. Of course, Ashly also had a plan just in case Alex ever came back to find her, but she kept it in the back of her mind, never actually daring to hope that she would be able to use that plan. But also not being able to really prevent herself from hoping. As she drove away from the Moonlight mansion with the check Jasmine bribed her with, sitting beside her, Ashly kept her blurry eyes determinedly trained on the road. When the insistent vibrations of her phone started to e
When they get back to Alex's penthouse, Ashly hovers awkwardly by the entrance as Alex disposes of his keys on the mantle. After he removes his jacket and hangs it on the coat rack, he turns back to Ashly and smiles bashfully at her. They just stand there dumbly staring at each other, both trying to figure out 'what now'. Then Alex finally clears his throat and breaks the silence. "So, umm, would you like to take a bath? Or shower?" he questions nervously. "While a bath sounds divine, I fear I may fall asleep in it." Ashly tells him, chuckling lightly, "So I think I will settle for a shower for now." "Okay." Alex nods, then leads her into his master bathroom, because it has the best shower, and leaves her to it after providing her with a nice fluffy towel, a bathrobe, and pajamas. Once Alex steps out and closes the door behind him, Ashly takes another moment to look around the luxurious bathroom, which fits very well with the rest of the apartment. It's perfect; it's everything Ash
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