CJ Kia's welcome party grew more intense as more guests arrived, with warm smiles, hugs, and a truckload of gifts. I trusted my pack members to turn up to parties. I had no hand in this, but I suspected that India and the rest of the women were going to create a festive atmosphere.The house became a madhouse with people shouting over one another and fighting to get in the kitchen at any given time. It was loud and chaotic as their Luna who liked parties was back. Kia always wanted everyone to gather around her and have a nice time without leaving anyone out of the flow.Everyone wanted to hug her: old friends, acquaintances, family, and even some members of other packs. They called her return a miracle, the best thing to ever happen to the pack, and were happy to know that she was alive.The stories and rumors were wild, so everyone came to see for themselves. I was surprised at the assorted dishes the buffet table held; Mini Beef Sliders, Bacon-wrapped scallops, Spicy Buffalo Chick
LenoraI've never felt this degree of restlessness in my life before. It pierced into my heart, and the bed I lay on seemed like it was surrounded by pins and needles. The air around me was suffocatingly thick and my lungs ached so badly that I could hardly think about anything else but getting out of bed. It had been hours since I walked out of CJ and his wife. Biting down hard on my lower lip, I stared at the ceiling. CJ was with her in the master bedroom, and the thoughts of what they could be doing under the sheets were tearing me apart.I imagined her naked as she caressed CJ, him touching her the way he touched me, making her feel so much pleasure… Arghhh!!My greatest fear was coming to pass. CJ would betray me and choose her over me because it was the most sensible thing to do.If this wasn't an eye-opener, then I was a big fool. I tried hard to forget and catch some sleep, but nothing worked. I needed his reassurance, and nothing more.When sleep refused to come, I began
Lenora CJ suggested that we go for ice cream to help with my throat, and away from the pack house, I felt a semblance of peace, away from all the toxicity in the pack house. Although it was only a small gesture, I appreciated the fact he cared enough about me to suggest this. He took my hand and strolled to the ice cream parlor located on the other side of town.It was useless telling him what India did because the witch was going to deny it.We spent some time together in the ice cream parlor, and while I was staring at the chalkboard menu high on the wall that listed specialty desserts and their prices, CJ wrapped his arms around me from behind. Everything became an echo in the background: the whir of the blender, the customers in line, and the jingle of the cash register.Even though I knew I was being foolish for staying with CJ despite the glaring warnings, I couldn't help it. I was hopelessly in love with him. I didn't know if it was my age, and lack of maturity, but all I kn
CJThere was an outrage in the governing council meeting, and everyone wanted their opinions to be heard. They were speaking over each other, causing me to have a nasty headache."I think it's stupid that we are not allocating more funds to education and, instead, packing every fund into defense, especially now that our arch-rival, Giovanni, is dead," one of the council members, a man as thin as a rake, said."Education is crucial," another one countered, "but we can't compromise on defense. Also, let's not forget our roads that need repairs.""You know what? You are the problem here, Fabian," the lanky man accused, pointing a finger at the first speaker. "You want all the contracts to be allocated to you so that you can squander the money as you please."Fabian fired back with a glare. A crimson hue spread from the bridge of his nose to every part of his face."How dare you accuse me of squandering funds when you find every possible excuse not to pay the teachers in the pack?""Are t
Lenora "I think I am dickmatized," I winked at CJ while exhaling. It was funny how lovemaking made me feel so content. CJ laughed and pulled me against his side, kissing the top of my head as he held me close. "I'm your boy toy, baby" A giggle escaped my lips and CJ wrapped an arm around my shoulder. The sky had darkened and the crisp air smelled of honeysuckle as the moon and stars rose. This evening gave me more than enough reassurance to realize that I wasn't foolish after all. I leaned closer to CJ when he casually anchored on my hip. "I'm happy with the job well done. My customer satisfaction is my priority and I can see the euphoria in your eyes. I feel like telling everyone about my success of always making you orgasm like a fountain.""Stop," I laughed, bouncing lightly on my toes and stepping away from him. My gaze turned wistful while I stared at him. "I wish my happiness with you could last forever. It scares me sometimes that one day, it will vanish like a puff of ai
Lenora I was so restless, but couldn't shut my eyes. TV didn't help, so I reached out for one of the novels I had seen in the library, "Pride and Prejudice." I tried to immerse myself in the lives of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy, but when I adjusted the angle of my desk lamp, the pages blurred, and with each turn, my interest waned.My mind wandered to CJ and Kia in the bedroom. It was ironic because she had more right to him than I did. She was his wife, and I was just the other woman.A humorless smile played on my lips as I lay on the bed. If a movie director used my story, it might earn him a Grammy, and I would be portrayed as the foolish girl whose life revolved around a man.The thought of CJ being intimate with Kia would be a breaking point for me. Even though he reassured me of his love and his responsibility for Kia's mental state, I couldn't shake the images of him in bed with her. Could I even handle this? My subconscious mocked me, reminding me of my sister's words about goi
CJI was heading past the gates with Harrison when I heard a small commotion in the garden area. My heart somersaulted when I saw Kia dragging Lenora on the ground, with people watching and not doing anything except Magda who was trying to separate the two women."Fuck, this is bad," Harrison said, and I rushed to them, pulling Lenora away from Kia."Have you lost your mind?" I screamed at Kia. She halted, surprised to see me, and burst into a fit of tears. "She hit me first, CJ! Then she began calling me unprintable names, and I couldn't bear it. You know I would never lose my cool.""Don't tell me you hit her again!" I screeched at Kia, who paled and shook her head, her eyes glazed with hurt. Deep sobs racked her insides, but I tore my eyes away from her. Lenora was bleeding profusely from the several scratches on her shoulder. I grabbed a clean hanky and wiped the sand off Lenora's face. "I told you to ignore her, didn't I?" I snapped, breathing hard. "What the hell were you thin
Lenora Earlier, CJ talked about some family ritual or something. I wasn't interested and stayed upstairs. I would rather poke my eye than go for any outdoor events in this pack.I overheard Kia and Mariselle talking about their matching outfits. Kia also tried a headpiece on her daughter and helped her with her makeup. I headed upstairs to the bedroom to sleep when CJ walked in, already dressed. His eyebrows drew together with a small frown on his face."Baby, you're still in your PJs. Why aren't you dressed?""Dressed for what?" I asked, pretending not to know what he was talking about."Come on, Lenora," he groaned. "I told you about the family ritual. You must come with me.""No thanks," I said flatly, while his frown deepened."But why?""Hello. I'm not a part of your family, remember?" I said. "Matter of fact, it's funny that you think I can just waltz into a room full of werewolves and expect me to be comfortable with their snide remarks and their caustic frowns. I'd rather sta
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