I shook my head quickly, recalling the interview with my college professor all too well. “That won’t be necessary,” I said, forcing a small, wry smile. “I think you’ve already made your point pretty clear.”His lips twitched, the faintest hint of a smile playing at the edges of his mouth. But his ey
AgnesThe design room still felt as stifling as it had the very first day I had walked in here. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the screen, and my heart was pounding faster than ever.It was everywhere. Somehow, someone had managed to snap a picture of me and Elijah in the midst of an… intimate mo
“There you are!” she exclaimed, pulling me into a hug the moment I reached her. “You look amazing.”I laughed as I sat down beside her. “You’re the one who looks amazing.”“Flattery will get you everywhere,” she quipped, sliding a menu toward me. “But seriously, Agnes. How’s life as Luna?”I rolled
ElijahThea’s laughter rang out through the house as she darted behind the couch. Her stuffed bear, newly dubbed Mr. Snuggles, was clutched tightly in one hand. For my part, I had been tasked with “the hunt”—her words, not mine—and despite the sharp ache in my knees from crawling around on the floor
Her words hit me like a punch to the gut. I blinked, struggling to find a response. Thea just stared back at me, her chin jutting out in defiance, as if daring me to disagree with her.And truthfully, I couldn’t.“Thea,” I began, but the words wouldn’t come. How could they? What could I possibly say
AgnesThe cold wall slamming against my back sent a sharp jolt of pain barking through my body, but it wasn’t enough to clear the haze that was creeping into my mind.I tried to push the man away, but my limbs were suddenly feeling sluggish and weak. It was like trying to fight through the onset of
Agnes & ElijahAgnesThe first thing I noticed was the dull, throbbing ache behind my eyes. It pulsed with every beat of my heart, like a rhythmic reminder of the drugs coursing through my veins.The second thing I noticed was the nausea. My stomach churned violently as if I was stuck at sea, and as
A cold chill swept through me, despite the warmth of the blankets. The thought of that man touching me, marking me like some kind of tool for his twisted revenge, made fresh bile rise up in my throat again.“But it didn’t work,” Elijah continued. “I destroyed his phone. None of those photos will eve
“What do you think it was like for her?” I said after a moment. “My mother, I mean. Living her whole life afraid that someone would find out what she was.”Elijah’s thumb traced circles on the back of my hand beneath the water. “Lonely, I imagine.”“She never told me,” I whispered. “My own mother, a
AgnesThe saltwater felt like heaven against my overheated skin. I’d been soaking in my in-ground pool for nearly an hour now, but the heat that had built in my body still hadn’t completely subsided.Honestly, I was surprised that I hadn’t burned down the entire bar earlier. My finger had certainly
“Yes,” he insisted. “Because Elemental Enterprises is owned by your stepmother’s family.”The world seemed to tilt beneath me. I gripped the edge of the table to steady myself. “What?”“I’ve been keeping your true nature from your stepmother all this time,” he continued, the words coming out of him
AgnesI fidgeted in the passenger seat as Elijah pulled into the dive bar’s parking lot. The place looked exactly as I remembered it from my past life—grimy windows with neon beer signs, chipped paint on the exterior, and a crooked sign hanging above the door.Years ago, I’d spent many nights here t
“Elijah, wait.”I froze, expecting to feel the tug of the mate bond, that infuriating compulsion she’d used so many times to force me to listen to her, to stay when I wanted to go. But it never came. For the first time, she hadn’t used the bond to control me. Today was full of surprises, wasn’t it?
ElijahThat morning, I made yet another trip to the prison. I’d hoped to never set foot in this place again, because frankly it was cold and uncomfortable and unsettling, but here I was. I just hoped that Olivia would keep true to her word and that this conversation would be worth it—and that it wou
I hated that he was making sense. And even more than that, I hated that a part of me—a much bigger part of me than I wanted to admit—was actually considering it.“What if it’s a trap?” I asked quietly. “What if he’s involved with Elemental Enterprises somehow? He could be trying to get to Thea.”“Th
AgnesI stared at the letter in my hands the entire night, reading and rereading the words until they were practically burned into my brain. By morning, the paper had taken on a slightly crumpled appearance from how many times I had folded and unfolded it.By the time the sun rose, I wasn’t sure if
Elijah, noticing the tension leaving my shoulders, offered me a soft smile. “And I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t sexy as hell when you get like that.”I blushed and looked away. “Stop it…”“But I mean it,” he murmured, his voice growing husky as he leaned closer to me. His lips brushed mine ever so