The air was filled with the subtle scent of lemons and candle wax.Gold tapestry runners featuring Batik motifs graced the tables by the entranceway to the hall, and crystal vases filled with white roses spilling out sat atop them, while bouquets of white roses wrapped in blue silk ribbons decorated the ends of the old wooden pews. The early morning sun shone through the stained-glass windows of the wedding hall and reflected pretty images onto the floor of the hall. Dozens of candles in every size were placed on the altar, ready to be lit when the ceremony started; they would lend a soft and warm glow to the happy couple as they stood before friends and family professing their love for one another.Zia studied the decorations with a critical eye—everything had to be perfect. She had pale yellow roses braided into her long dark hair and her dress, a long column of silver—not quite white and not quite grey—that shimmered under the lights with every moment. Satisfied that everything was
Everyone remembers their first love. The happiness that always came when that person was around When Lucus met Moni, they were in middle school. Lucus stepped in to save Moni from an Alpha group of older boys who were picking on her. Lucus instantly realized the smaller girl was Omega. Lucus, who presents as an Alpha, finds himself protective of the small Omega. They were strangers then, but after a few weeks, they became the best of friends. It was Lucus who fell first. Actually, he fell the moment he swooped in to save the Omega and only continued to fall every moment after. It wasn't until his freshman year of high school that Lucus had the courage to confess. It was scary watching his best friend's eyes widen at his words. Lucus trembled as he admitted his feelings, scared of rejection but even more so of losing his best friend. But when Moni kissed him only a moment later, it felt like Lucus had saved a nation in his past life. Moni had accepted his feelings and even confess
"Oh! My baby, welcome back!" Emma was pulled into a crushing hug by her mom as soon as the door was opened for her. Emma didn't think twice before hugging her mom tightly. Her mother's Omega nature makes their bond even more beautiful. "Come inside, love; the dinner is ready! We were just waiting for you!" Her mom said this as she was led to the dining room. "You guys didn't have to wait for me, mom." Emma pouted, making her mom chuckle. "Oh, don't even worry about it. Now that you're here, we can enjoy our time and talk." The Omega smiled softly at the smell of her favorite food. Her mom would always make her favorite dishes when Emma was staying for dinner. Emma didn't live with her parents; she is a strong and independent Omega. After she finished her studies, she started working with her father. Emma greets her father, and they start eating immediately. It was comfortable, and they talked about work a bit and their busy lives. Emma talked about how she was halfway through the
Lucus comes out of the car with his parents. They are having a dinner with the Madden family; he really doesn't want to come here, but he doesn't have a choice. His father is not listing him at all, and his mother, well, she is happy to meet her favorite child after a year. "Lucus, you should behave, okay? Don't embarrass me. And don't you dare to say that Omega name in front of Emma." His father commands him, and he just nods at the older Alpha. They make their way to the main door and click the doorbell. "Mr. and Mrs. Madden, please come in," the lady said. Lucus bows his head, showing respect, before he gives a box of cake to the woman. As they make their way to the dining room, Lucus hears a voice coming from upstairs. "Sorry to keep you waiting," a man with a deep voice says, taking his seat. "So, how are you? Wait, is that him?" "Yes, he's my second son, Lucus," his father said. Lucus bows his head and says hello to the other Alpha. "He looks so manly. I'm sure a lot of Om
Lucus peeled off his clothes, folded them carefully, kept them in his usual place, and shifted into his wolf form. He sniffed the air with his wet snort and started running towards the woods. The morning sunshine was peeping through the trees, touching the ground, and the more he ran away from the city, the more nature looked beautiful. The green leaves, dark brown earth, and wetness under his claws felt so amazing that he could almost forget his cruel destiny.Moni.The girl had beautiful eyes. Lucus first love and maybe his last too, Lucus remembers when he first saw her. Out of all the beautiful omegas, she was outstanding. Out of all the beautiful omegas, she was outstanding.They became friends when Lucus saved her, and one night Lucus couldn't stop himself from asking her hand for a dance. Eyes fell on them; everyone knew about their friendship, and they somehow saw them as a couple.That day, Lucus let her fly through the air, taking her gracefully into the hall. Her eyes never
The sun kissed the ground for a new day, and it's been almost two days since Emma gave her answer. She really wants to say no, but she can't disappoint her family. She is sure that after their wedding, her and Lucus relationship will be fine.Madden's already welcomed her into their family, and today she is going to meet Alex, Lucus big brother. Alex and her never talk much, as the Alpha is more than seven years older than her. Her mother told her that Alexa didn't marry or mate.According to her mother, Alex is not ready, and his parents understand this, but what makes her even more confused is that she is sure Lucus is also not ready to get married, at least not this soon, so why do Madden's parents want their younger son to get married?Emma groans when suddenly her car stops in the middle of the road. "Seriously? Not here." She knows now that she can't do anything. Her phone is already dying. Emma sits back inside her car and starts thinking about her future. Before meeting Lucus
Wedding Day:(Lucus's thoughts)Standing in front of Emma James was probably the hardest thing Lucus Madden had ever faced.'Mmm, too young, too dumb to realize,'He couldn't accept it. He was getting married. The love of his life, the one he had been head over heels for for three years, was crying because of him. Suddenly, all those intimate moments—the joking kisses, that one special kiss that made them both realize that they felt the same way—meant nothing. It was a load of bullshit.'That I should have bought you flowers,'Lucus looked at Emma, who stood at the white altar, a beautiful wood-woven arch painted a pure white covering her head, threaded with fresh red roses and daises, and complete with lush green leaves. The venue was a lovely place: three huge gardens surrounding the one they were in, one of which was a rose garden with the flowers reaching up to his hip, a huge water fountain with three horses carved into stone with him standing in the middle just off to the side o
Wedding Day:(Emma's thought)The pastor's name was Anth—Father Anth, who, despite his old age, was eager to wed the couple. He had known both pups ever since they were born; he had run into them when they used to play with mud and saw how genuinely kind they were. Little did he know, then, that he would one day marry them and bond them with each other.Not only did the whole town know about the wedding—in fact, the whole country and possibly the entire world were aware of today's celebration. The ceremony was to be performed outside, on the balcony of a tall, graceful building, so everyone who wanted to come could see it. The building itself was more like an old castle, made out of stone and decorated along the outside walls with fresh, colorful flowers and shiny banners announcing the celebration.The balcony was large enough to seat the pastor, the grooms, the groomsmen, the bridesmaids, and the parents of the grooms. All four parents of both men had attended, which had struck some
The air was filled with the subtle scent of lemons and candle wax.Gold tapestry runners featuring Batik motifs graced the tables by the entranceway to the hall, and crystal vases filled with white roses spilling out sat atop them, while bouquets of white roses wrapped in blue silk ribbons decorated the ends of the old wooden pews. The early morning sun shone through the stained-glass windows of the wedding hall and reflected pretty images onto the floor of the hall. Dozens of candles in every size were placed on the altar, ready to be lit when the ceremony started; they would lend a soft and warm glow to the happy couple as they stood before friends and family professing their love for one another.Zia studied the decorations with a critical eye—everything had to be perfect. She had pale yellow roses braided into her long dark hair and her dress, a long column of silver—not quite white and not quite grey—that shimmered under the lights with every moment. Satisfied that everything was
A small family could be heard all the way down the street from their apartment. A toddler was throwing a fit by the sounds of her crying and screams, and two people could be heard arguing."You! Get out of my home now!!"Emma hissed at her father, who was standing a few feet from his daughter and granddaughter, sporting a scowl.Emma was doing everything she could not to gently set her daughter down in her playpen and lunge for her father's throat. Nadia is now four years old; she's grown to be a beautiful toddler. She was clinging to her mother like her life depended on it and was crying hysterically. Emma was rocking back and forth in his arms and glaring at Robert in hatred."That thing is an abomination. She shouldn't even exist!" David spat, glaring at the toddler in disgust.The toddler whimpered at the insult and clung even tighter to her mother. Emma was enraged and could barely control herself. The only thing keeping her from screaming at her father was the little girl in her
Emma complied, taking the last few steps towards Lucus. The Alpha pulled her into his arms, stroking her back lovingly. Emma wrapped her arms around Lucus as well, not able to prevent the smile she was holding back from spreading across her face. Lucus suddenly felt tense. Emma looked up at him and noticed a sour expression written across his features."What's wrong, Lucus?" She whispered."Nothing."Emma glared, not taking too kindly to being lied to. Lucus sighed in defeat and met her gaze. His eyes held so much sorrow and fear. "I'm not a good father," he whispered sadly.Emma gasped out in shock. How could Lucus think like that? It's not like someone can go from never being around children to being an expert on them in only a few weeks! Lucus was being too hard on himself, setting his expectations too high. Emma would do everything she could not to let Alpha beat himself up over not being experienced with kids."Lucus, you love both Clary and Nadia to pieces! How could you say tha
Lucus made quick work of her shirt as well before Allen returned with a white hospital gown. Lucus lifted Emma up slightly so she could slip it on her. They had just laid Emma back down when a door burst open and the doctor walked in. She was wearing her pale pink hospital gown and white flats.She came strutting through like she owned the place. She shoved Lucus and Emma aside, making her way over to Emma. She was currently panting and sweating as if she had just run a marathon. She grabbed one of the towels from the nightstand and dabbed it with some of the cool water in the bucket. She wiped the sweat rolling down her face before she began setting up everything she would need for the delivery.The group sat there for the next hour and a half. It was silent. Allen was in the other room talking to Alex, who had arrived ten minutes beforehand. Emma had requested that they leave the room. She didn't feel comfortable with anyone witnessing her give birth to the baby other than Lucus. Sh
A tap on Lucus window startled him out of his thoughts. He saw a woman in her forties with messy brunette hair standing in front of his window with a takeout bag. He rolled the window down, and she shoved the food at him. He rolled his eyes as she walked away. He looked down into the bag and noticed something strange.There was only lava cake.He snatched the bag and stormed out of the vehicle and into the restaurant. He slammed the bag on the counter in front of a startled-looking employee. She had her purple hair tied into a bun, and her green eyes were wide. He felt no remorse."I have been to two different Burger King's! I've had soda spill on my shirt, and then an old woman slapped me in the face! I got pulled over by a cop who vandalized my car and gave me a seven-hundred-dollar ticket simply because I'm married to Omega! Now your ignorant people make me pull off to the side to wait for onion rings that I've never received! I demand three large orders of onion rings, another sli
5 Years Later:"Lucus!"Omega sighed, placing her rainbow-striped bookmark in her fantasy drama novel. She strode out of her office and into the living room.His Alpha was sprawled out on the sofa, his chin in his palm, as he watched an episode of Modern Family. Emma was wearing nothing but an oversized hoodie and a pair of grey shorts. Despite the baggie hoodie and fluffy red blanket covering her torso, her nine-month pregnant belly was obvious.They'd wanted to be married for a little while before they had another child. So, after two years of traveling the world and going on many fun adventures, they settled down back in their apartment with Clary. They then proceeded to make mad, passionate love all night long. It was more overwhelming than any other time. Of course, it only took one round to impregnate Emma, but once they got started, they couldn't get enough of each other."Yes love?" Lucus asked.He couldn't help but eye the dozens of candy wrappers strewn about the floor. The
The whole idea had been Allen's.When she'd suggested the idea to Emma—to celebrate Clary's birthday in a cute and fun way that the little one could enjoy—she hadn't come up with anything wrong with it.Neither of them had taken in Alex as a factor, though. Which, between the three of them, they really should have?"I don't think that outfit is appropriate for children."Lucus raised his eyebrows in confusion. He gestured to Clary, who was clad in dark blue denim jeans and a deep green knit sweater, before turning to Emma with an expression that suggested he really thought Emma had lost her mind this time."I meant yours," Emma explained, pointing to Lucus bright yellow skin-tight jeans and glaringly obvious rainbow singlet, which he'd paired with a deep red jacket and black shoes."We're going to a zoo, Lucus, not a nightclub."Lucus pouted, and Emma sighed."Just dress it down a little for me today." She asked. "Please? I'll let you choose my outfit another time if you do this for m
"Where are you getting it?" Zia asked Emma, taking a cotton ball and dipping it in antiseptic."On my wrist," she says, holding out her right arm. Zia nods, wiping the skin of her wrist beneath her palm.She puts the cotton ball down and then purses her lips."Could you... I might need you to swap chairs with Lucus; I don't want to do this upside down."Emma nods. "Of course."She and Lucus switch, darting past each other. Lucus raises his eyebrows, hoping to get something out of either of them, but neither Zia nor Emma say a word."This is borderline torture." He complains, flopping into his seat. Zia smiles sympathetically, as if to say "This wasn't my decision".Emma just looks a little nervous."So, I'm going to outline the drawing in marker first, so you can be certain of its placement, and then if you're happy, I'll start." Zia explains.Emma nods, her eyes darting over to Lucus before returning to Zia. She smiles encouragingly, picking up a black, fine-tip, skin-safe marker and
"You want to get a tattoo?"Out of all the things Lucus ever thought he'd hear Emma say, getting a tattoo was not even a registered possibility."Yes." Emma nods, and Lucus knows Emma enough to accept that she's being completely serious."But you already have my mating mark on your body." Lucus states. He folds his hands behind his head, leaning backwards against the headboard. He had a feeling this conversation would be one he'd need to be relaxed for."Well, yes, but that's not the same." Emma replies. He sighs as Lucus raises his eyebrows."Mark's fade; some are permanent, but not all of them, and they're different. Mating marks speak of my mating. Tattoos are something that both of us can have, and it's more special and ... forever."Lucus leans over and kisses Emma's bare shoulder."You genuinely want this?" He asks to be certain. There's a warmth flooding him just from hearing that Emma wants to get something permanent that they can both share. Something different that no other