CJI whistled loudly to myself, feeling lighthearted that my daughter Mariselle was coming over. Her last episode was quite dangerous, and I needed her to visit to administer her medication that would help tame her wolf.Whenever her period fell during the end of the month, it made her restless and more aggressive, so we had taken measures to prevent it with a mild tranquilizing wolfsbane that only affected the wolf and weakened it.I was taking out thick fillets from the refrigerator when my third member reminded me that Mariselle and Lenora were best friends, and there was every possibility of Lenora coming here to see her.Now that was something.Thoughts of Lenora made a lusty feeling of warmth steal over me and the bulge in my pants ached with longing.I grimaced at my foolishness, gathering my ingredients: olive oil, salt, black pepper, and garlic powder while I preheated the pan on the stove. The smell of tomato sauce filled the kitchen, then I took a knife and began to careful
Lenora Linda and the boys suggested we head to Dunkin' Donuts because she was craving some. It was off-peak hours, and there were only two customers besides us. Mariselle was in my school and I couldn't stop thinking about so many things, especially CJ. I was expected to head to the staff quarters, but bumping into CJ was extremely dangerous and I had to fight my overwhelming need to rush to his house. "Earth to Lenora," Kilian nudged me, "what are you looking at over there?"I blinked, turning sharply to face him. "Oh, I'm sorry. Did you say something?""Yeah," he pointed at the glass counter. "I'm going to make an order for you. What's your preference?"A smile formed on my lips."Trust me, I can eat anything you place in front of me."He laughed. I was by no means blind to the way Killian stared at me, eager and erratic as a summer storm in full force. He didn't have a girlfriend and never showed any interest in anyone other than me, not even the busybodies in class. "I like a
Lenora The knock on my door interrupted me from what I was doing, and I wondered who it was because Jovita had just left the room.I opened the door and took a step back, surprised to see Killian."Killian. Hi.""Hey ,Len, if this isn't a good time, I can head back. I was bored and decided to come see you.""Oh no. It's fine. Come in."He stepped into the room, and I sighed in relief that I had just cleaned up, the faint scent of lavender in the air. "Nice place," Killian's gaze wandered across the posters on the wall and also my arranged desk beside my bed."I don't know if that's supposed to be a compliment, but this dorm is a shithole."He chuckled and was about to sit on Jovita's bed when I rushed to stop him, startling him."You can't sit there. Please," I said and brought out a chair for him to sit on."Why not? Is there a snake under the bed or what?"I burst into loud laughter. "You are so silly. I have a very problematic roommate, and she might come in here and cause a scen
CJMy ribs squeezed tight with envy and the unkind thoughts I had towards the boy Lenora was holding against her chest scared me. She had her head turned in my direction, standing dangerously close behind the dark-haired boy, and it took all my self-control not to yank the boy away and toss him into the trash bin.A small smile played on her lips as she watched me struggle to keep myself from making an obvious fool out of myself in front of her boyfriend. I'd seen the boy in my class, and from the look on his face, he was surprised to see me."Professor CJ," he stuttered and turned to face Lenora. "What's he doing here?""Oh, I forgot to inform you that he's Mariselle's dad.""Really? Wow," the boy looked fascinated and stretched out his arms for a handshake. "I'm so honored to have you here, and I must say that you're one of the best and smartest lecturers I've ever come across.""Thanks," I said flatly, forcing a smile and pretending that Lenora wasn't behind him. "Is there some
Lenora Spending the night in Killian's spare room was a mistake. I was so stupid to stay back after Mariselle and Regé left.On the surface, I was pretending to be okay, but deep down, it wasn't entirely true. I was giving Killian the green light, and he was getting too comfortable with me. I wondered if I was doing the right thing or jumbling things up. First, it was my stupid crush on CJ. Then I rushed into a relationship with Ronin, and now Killian was acting as my pretend boyfriend.All in the bid to forget CJ. Although a small part inside of me was happy that I got a reaction from him when Killian kissed me and I found satisfaction in the fact that he was jealous, yet, I was not being fair to Killian. If he found out that CJ was the man I was in love with, he'd flip. CJ and I were in different stages of life. I was just beginning, and he couldn't align with someone half his age, and in the long run, we might not even be compatible, whether I loved him or not. Killian and I
Lenora My phone beeped with several texts from Killian, asking how the journey was going and that he missed me.The train neared our destination, and we stepped off. Mariselle and Regé headed back to school while I took a taxi home."Dad. I'm home!" I announced, climbing up the front stairs. My dad rushed out of the kitchen with Buddy, his chimpanzee, behind him."Sweetie, welcome back, my dear." He hugged me, and I burst out laughing."Dad, you're squeezing the life out of me.""Sorry," he chuckled, releasing me. "I missed my little girl so much.""Little girl? You better find another adjective. I'm in college now and an adult.""Please." He rolled his eyes. "You will always be my little girl, no matter how grown up you become. I'm happy you're home.""Hi, Buddy." I shook the chimpanzee, who jumped around in the background, making funny faces. "Did you miss me?""I think he missed you more than anyone. He's been a little bit off since you left. So tell me, how has college been?""J
CJBrooklyn and I sat opposite each other, with soft, glowing candlelights dancing on her face. We went on our first date at an Italian trattoria, waiting for our food to arrive with Brooklyn chatting animatedly, her eyes sparkling with excitement.This was stupid. It was stupid and unfair to give Brooklyn the green light, knowing how much she was interested in me. She’d made it very clear that she wanted a romantic evening out and I found myself in this small, rustic trattoria, where all the tables were squeezed together around a small bar, with no room to move between them. There wasn't even enough space to get off your chair without bumping into someone sitting there, but Brooklyn assured me their food was finger-licking and that she loved Italian food so I put up with it. Her smile was bright enough to blind me as she laughed over every comment I made which gave me a damn headache. I didn't want to lead her on or give her false hopes. Brooklyn was beautiful, sophisticated, and
LenoraAfter a highly uncomfortable weekend, with me avoiding Esme like the plague that she was, and my dad doing everything possible to cheer me up and mend the bridge between me and Esme, I was glad to return to school on Monday evening.My dad did his best, bought me all flavors of chocolate, took me out for dinner, and credited my account with a fat amount of cash.Nothing worked."She hurt me badly, Dad. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that my sister would hold such resentment towards me. And for what? It's not like I forced myself to come into this world.""Darling…""No, let me finish," I cried. "She doesn't realize that I'm a victim as well. All my life, I never experienced what a mother's love feels like. No one was there when I got my first period…"My breath hitched and I wiped the tear that strayed down my cheek. "You helped me choose a dress for my prom and attended all my PTA meetings alone. I felt so isolated and different from other people with mums. I
LenoraI was busy making sure that the party was going in full swing and tried as much as possible to avoid Titan. Unfortunately, his charming smile and seductive voice had gotten some females in the house, including the married ones. He flirted with anyone, not caring whether they were married or not, and I was annoyed. I couldn't wait for him to get the hell out of my house.I hated him so much because he was a very good pretender and hated myself for falling for his cheap ploy. The party was over. CJ asked me to show the entourage their rooms. I was about to walk past a room but gasped in shock when he drew me inside and shut the door."What are you doing, Titan?" I yelled, giving him a dirty look. I never knew I was capable of being this angry. I felt like using a knife to stab him.My nasty look didn't stop him. Instead, he was adamant and had an amused smile. "You know you turn me on when I see you mad. I missed your lips, darling. And this is between you and me, but I came here
RubyI couldn't believe that that wicked boy and his father were here. It hurt more that he was sitting at the dining table chatting with my dad, looking so smug and confident as if he had done nothing wrong and was fooling my dad, who didn't know how terrible the boy was.He didn't even glance at me and was acting like I was invisible. I felt a surge of pain. How could people be so cruel and heartless? I wanted to scream at him, to tell my dad and everyone how much he hurt me. But I couldn't do that because the Lycans were very important and powerful, and they were my dad's guests. My dad beamed with pride, and I could tell that he was so happy.I was glad that my sister spiked Enzo's food, and I wished she had done more. I couldn't stand being in the same room with him anymore, so I excused myself to get some fresh air. My mom gave me a worried look but didn't say anything. She was also battling with her demons.It didn't help that Jade and Luca were also around. I didn't want to se
Ruby My niece, Jade, hugged me so hard I could barely breathe. Squealing in delight, she wrapped her arms around my neck, almost lifting me off the ground."Can you believe it, Rubs? We're in senior year! This is going to be the best year ever, especially now that I have a boyfriend," she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with happiness.Pretending to share her enthusiasm, I returned the smile. There were familiar faces here and there, all chatting, laughing, and reminiscing about their summer. I wished I could escape from it all and go back to my quiet room where I could lay in bed all day. I didn't care about senior year or any of the things that Jade was babbling about. I just wanted to be left alone.I was in the bathroom doing my thing when I heard Tammy and the other queen bees of the school walking to the bathroom. They were putting the finishing touches on their makeup and also talking about who was dating whom. My stomach tightened when they mentioned Luca and Jade."Oh my God,
Lenora After the craziness the previous night, I woke up at five-thirty with a splitting headache. Luckily, there were painkillers in the drawer. After taking them, I decided to go for a run to clear my head and escape from the nightmare that had happened last night.I put on my running shoes, grabbed my phone, and checked the flight app again, hoping to find a way out of this hell, but the next available flight was at seven PM, which meant that we had to wait for another fourteen hours before we could leave Bali.Muttering to myself, I tiptoed out of the room without wanting to wake Ruby, who was sleeping peacefully on the bed. She looked so innocent, like an angel, and I felt like a failed mother, for exposing her to strangers who had tried to hurt her.I began running along the beach, feeling the sand under my feet and the breeze on my face. The rising sun painted the sky with orange and pink hues but I couldn't enjoy the beautiful scenery and, despite trying not to focus on what
RubyI sobbed uncontrollably, bitter with myself and that pretender, Enzo, who ended up being everything I never thought he'd be. He seemed harmless, but little did I know that he was up to no good.My mom led me out of the nightclub, her eyes wide with fright. Although I suspected she was a bit tipsy from her stumbling movements, she still managed to hail a taxi and shove me inside.I hated her. I hated her for making me come to Bali with her. I hated her for encouraging me to explore and have fun. I hated her for being a hypocrite and a liar.But I couldn't tell her these things, so I kept quiet.We arrived at the hotel, and she locked the door behind us and turned on the lights. She looked at me with concern in her cornflower-blue eyes."Baby, what happened?" She asked softly. "Did that boy hurt you?"I glared at her through my tears. "And how's that any of your business?"A gasp escaped as if I'd struck her, and her face paled with tears gathering in her eyes."Don't raise your vo
Lenora The first thing that hit me when I stepped into the nightclub with Titan by my side was regret. Unable to fill my lungs, my thoughts turned inwards. I didn't know what it was, but it felt like Titan was controlling my mind, taking control of every cell in my body and keeping a tight grip on my consciousness.When I got to the door, I realized just how stupid I was acting. After CJ called me earlier, I decided to stay away from Titan, knowing that I was growing an attraction for him, but here I was in the club with him, ready to dance the night away. He took my hand and gave it an appreciative squeeze before releasing it.The music was too loud, and the lights were flashing everywhere, making it impossible to see past the crowd, but Titan's eyes were glued to me as if he wanted to see what was under my clothes.I didn't belong here. Maybe if Ruby hadn't gone out for the karaoke night with Enzo and I had someone to talk to, I wouldn't have agreed to come out with Titan.But when
Lenora An adorable smile appeared on Ruby's face, and Enzo grabbed her hand as they ran off, laughing. My daughter looked so happy and carefree, and I could tell she was into the boy. I couldn't blame her. The young man was dashingly handsome, with eyes that seemed to sparkle in the sunlight. His hair was parted neatly on one side of his head, with a few tendrils that had escaped, falling onto his forehead. He had a well-built body and strong arms.Standing beside his father, I stole a glance at him. His eyes lit up with a warm smile as he watched the children."It seems our kids are really into each other," he smiled, thrusting his hands in his pockets."It seems so," I cleared my throat and smiled back. But when Titan leaned closer to me, my body froze with paranoia, my blood started beating rapidly, and my heart skipped a beat as though it wanted to escape from my chest."You know, there's something very unique about your girl. Something I can't quite place my finger on," he reac
Ruby I was as high as a kite. The vape was so powerful, and it made me feel dizzy and lightheaded. Enzo was high too, and he was smiling, talking, and even touching me."Enzo, please. Let's go," I tried to push him away, but he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me closer. Then he planted a kiss on my neck."Come on, don't be a sourpuss. We're having fun, sweetie."My body shivered, and I pushed myself away from him. "I really have to go to my mom."Adding enough strength, I stumbled away from him and towards the hotel, hoping my mom wouldn't be in the room. But when I opened my door with my key card, she was on the couch watching a movie on the TV.My heart skipped, and I hoped she wouldn't notice. She merely looked in my direction and waved at me. I sighed in relief when I snuck into the bathroom to wash my face with cold water.After failing miserably to sober up, I snuck into the bedroom and hit the bed, pulling the covers over my head and closing my eyes.I woke up hours late
Ruby I ran into my mum at the hotel lobby, just as I was coming back from the beach. She looked surprised to see me and flustered, like someone running away from something."Darling Where have you been?" she asked. "You need your sunscreen so you don't get sunburned," she said in a motherly voice."I was at the beach. What about you? Where are you coming from?" I asked, staring at her flushed cheeks.She smiled sheepishly and glanced around. "Oh, I was just... sightseeing. You know, enjoying the beauty of Bali."I raised my eyebrows and smirked. "Sightseeing, huh? With whom? That man?"She blushed and shook her head. "No one, just by myself."I didn't believe her for a second. I knew she was lying but decided not to confront her about it. I didn't want to ruin our vacation. Besides, it was none of my business. She was a grown woman, and she could do whatever she wanted except cheat on my dad."Come on, let's go to our room," she grabbed my hand..We entered our room and locked the do