Francesca’s POV It took me a minute to process Alpha Ian’s words. I wasn’t sure how to react exactly. What was the appropriate thing to say in this situation? It remained a fact that I had fucked up because I’d spoken about a situation I knew nothing about. Dominic had every right to react the way he did. My comments were insensitive, and who knew what wound I’d added salt to?There was also a part of me that wasn’t particularly surprised that Damien was Dominic’s fated mate. It made sense. I remember the first time the Beta mentioned the vampire king. I could still see the expression on his face so vividly. It was one of awe, and something else hidden in the depths of his eyes. It was an emotion so profound but at the same time mysterious. I didn’t know how to place it, and because of that, my instincts warned me to not comment on the issue.Seeing them together at the wedding put things into perspective for me. It seemed as though Damien’s world narrowed down to a single focus and
Francesca’s POVAfter the bitter and scalding words left my mouth, I stood there still submerged in my fury. It took so little for it to overtake me even when I wished to be nothing other than amiable to Alpha Ian. Sometimes, just looking at him was enough to make me angry. The memory of that faithful night when we found out we were fated mates comes rushing back to me in full force. The agony of his rejection was strong enough to bring me to my knees. And now that I’ve learned Dominic has spent the last five years refusing to give his fated mate a chance, I’ve been triggered. Something has to be wrong with these two brothers. This type of behavior couldn’t be normal.Alpha Ian stared at me a long time after my outburst. He opened his mouth several times but ended up closing it. Again, I had no idea what he was thinking, and he was giving me nothing. It was still incredibly frustrating, because both my soul and wolf yearned for a connection with this man, even if such a connection was
Francesca’s POV “Everyone knows that you and Bianca are fucking,” Alpha Ian said, tone cutting. “It’s all the two of you have been doing lately. And flaunting it in everyone’s faces as well. What point are you trying to prove, huh?” I could only laugh at those words. I suddenly felt so happy, giddy beyond belief. Watching the cool and level-headed Alpha lose his shit over me and Bianca was incredibly satisfying. It wasn’t why I started sleeping with her in the first place. I was doing it because I genuinely liked her. I enjoyed her company, and I had great admiration and respect for her. She endlessly inspired me given how amazing and badass she was. And the reason why we’ve been flaunting our hook-up situation was because it’s a new and exciting thing. We could barely keep our hands off each other. We were both into risqué and thrilling kinks and we’ve also been doing a lot of exploring and rediscovery. We’ve been experimenting with BDSM and I’m falling more in love with being
Francesca's POVIt felt like coming home, being in his arms. I was only too happy to stay there and let myself be held. I didn't want to utter a single word because I was afraid the spell would be broken. It felt like we were cocooned in a beautiful dream and I wanted to stay there forever.Something in me settled the longer we held each other. My head was buried in his chest whilst my arms were around his neck. His face was buried in my hair and he was rocking us back and forth. War was over.From now going forward, I wanted us to work through our issues and build a healthy bond even though it wouldn't be the easiest thing in the world. The anger and resentment couldn't continue. It was too toxic and it was corroding me from the inside. Pretending I didn't care about him wasn't working either. It was just me fooling myself and being in denial. There was constant tension in our home because Dominic and my mother were stuck in the middle. Whenever the Beta tried to talk to me about hi
Francesca's POVI spent a few more minutes with Alpha Ian at the shooting range, laughing and talking. He teased me about how Dominic won't be happy when he heard that he'd been replaced as my personal tutor. It was all in good fun though. We both knew Dominic would love the fact that Alpha Ian and I have decided to put our differences aside and reconcile. Or rather, I'd decided to stop being stubborn and meet his elder brother half way. It was something he has been begging me to reconsider for weeks now. I also knew I would finally get back in my mother's good graces. In some way, this was a win win situation.Our home would be more cohesive and this could only straighten our standing in the pack. Not that my mother and Alpha Ian weren't already revered as leaders but presenting a united front has never hurt. I knew it was one of the reasons my mother has been so angry with me. These are all things she taught me were important from a young age. And now she probably thought I was just
Francesca's POVAt first, I wasn't sure how to react when Dominic started sobbing. It was so unexpected. I couldn't have seen it coming in a million years. This was Dominic Astor. He wasn't someone who was easily overwhelmed by anything. Trust me, I've seen him put in all sorts of situations while we are in training. He was like a Buddhist monk, stoic and unshakeable. But now he was sobbing in front of me, tears running down his face as he tried to wipe them away as fast as they were falling. I think I knew what was going on but I also wasn't hundred percent sure.At some point, it snapped in my head that I needed to move and do something. I couldn't just continue to sit there with my mouth wide open. I left my seat and walked over to his side of the table. I wrapped my arms around him and he didn't hesitate to bury his head in my midriff. He cried for the next few minutes, soaking my shirt but that was the least of my problems. I couldn't care less about a piece of clothing when my f
Francesca's POVDominic's words kept reverberating in my head but before I could spiral down a rabbit hole, my mum and Alpha Ian joined us in the dining room. I got up from the chair I was sitting and moved back to my original place, opposite the Beta. Dominic had gone back to looking like his perpetual relaxed self. If you didn't look at him closely and notice his red-rimmed eyes, you wouldn't have been none the wiser that he had been sobbing some minutes ago. It made me think that over the years, he's probably gotten very good at hiding his breakdowns over Damien. The thought made something twist in my chest. It was unfortunate what he was doing to himself and his fated mate. Jessica Reginald didn't look surprised to see me at the dinner table. I was right in assuming Alpha Ian had probably told him about the change in status quo. It occurred to me then that I didn't even tell Dominic why I had decided to attend dinner tonight. Well, he hadn't ask either. My mother made her way ov
Francesca’s POVAs the weeks progressed, everyone in the household got used to me attending family dinner, including the maids and chefs and they didn’t hesitate to express how happy it made them that their food was being enjoyed by us all as a family. It should be the norm. It made them sad that I always ate my food separately, most times in the privacy of my bedroom. This also made me consider one important thing about presenting a united front. Even the house staff were constantly watching. They needed to see us as a family that deeply loved and respected each other.A family that had no weak links our enemies could explore.There were times when family dinner wasn’t just the four of us. There were times when I invited Bianca and Patrick over. Those days were the most chaotic. Bianca and I were hard-pressed to keep our hands off each other. I would always endeavor to push my chair as close to hers as possible. All of this so our thighs can brush against each other. I could randomly