To absolutely no one’s surprise, nearly as soon as Isaac pulled me into his arms, cocooning me in his warmth, I fell right to sleep. It was peaceful, and dreamless, just as all my sleeps in Isaac’s proximity had been. When I woke up, though, I was alone. I looked around anxiously, hoping maybe he was just in the bathroom or something. After a bit of investigating, it was clear that was not the case. So, I grabbed Isaac’s shirt from the floor, and made my way downstairs. It was somewhere around the bottom step that I remembered Isaac had friends, and I was fairly certain he was also keeping Blair as a house guest. There was, realistically, only a slim chance we were the only two people here at the moment. But it was a little too late, as I had already been noticed. “Princess!” a masculine voice called. It was familiar and friendly, but not the one I particularly wanted to hear at the moment. I blushed, crossing my arms over my body as if that would hide me better than a shirt
When I reappeared in the main living area - fully dressed this time - a woman had joined Kaleb. I had heard he had a chosen mate that was part of Isaac’s inner circle, but as they had stayed back at the royal pack, I hadn’t gotten a chance to meet her. I could only assume that was the woman he was flirting with, anyway. I had adjusted to the significant size discrepancy between male wolves and my runty self over the years. With women, however, it still threw me off. Maybe it was because my mother had also been a runt, but I had never gotten used to she-wolves towering over me as well. My napoleon complex had apparently come pre-programmed. When she turned to me, though, deep blue eyes abright with excitement, I couldn’t help but mimic her smile. “Hi!” she chirped warmly. “You must be Maise.” Alright, maybe she wasn’t that bad if she supposedly knew I was once the Princess and still used my name. So, I decided I could drop the ‘cross me and I’ll kill you’ defense mechanism and tr
True to my word, I snuck into Isaac’s bed that night. He didn’t complain, and was quickly asleep. If it weren’t for the way he held onto me, I would have tossed and turned all night. Just as the moon was beginning to relinquish the night, I gave up on any attempts at sleep. With monumental effort, I disentangled myself from Isaac, deciding it was time to straighten out all the tangled webs of confusion in my mind. I crept down the hall, finding my way to my room. I swung the door open to see Blair was also wide awake. She had her grimoire laid out before her, and if my familiarity with her magic was correct, she was performing a scrying spell. My entrance broke her concentration, though, and she looked up. Usually, she would chastise me for something like that, but today she said nothing. “Hi,” I whispered, not knowing what else to say. Blair’s lips twitched with the thought of a smile, but there was too much tension in the air to allow it. “Can I ask you a question?” I pro
Isaac POV Magic hummed through the air. The aftershocks of it had been haunting me for hours, now drawing me out of sleep. It was too much, more than I was capable of processing. I reached across the bed, hoping to find Maise, but it came as no shock that she was not there. She had been restless all night. Whether it was because she was a night owl or too lost in her own head, I couldn’t tell. Absently, my hand found Maise’s staking mark on my chest to massage a dull stinging sensation away, but I recoiled at the shock of pain it sent along my skin when I touched it. My eyes shot open. The tang of magic lost its particular flavor of the day - one that tasted like Maise - and corroded into one so vile I wanted to retch. I was far from experienced with managing this particular brand of supernatural energy, my own skills not extending much past scrying, but I knew enough to know a shift like this could only mean bad news. The source of the magical energy that had been swimmi
…And I woke up at home. I was cocooned in a sea of blankets, and was well on my way to becoming one with a bed that had been my haven for so long. I cuddled further into the warmth, sighing happily.This was the most extreme form of physical exhaustion I had ever felt. If this was how people felt after they used magic, I couldn’t understand why anyone ever used it. I’d have to ask Blair about that when I got back to the lycan pack. Back to the lycan pack. Oh. Why was I back in Vermont? How did I get to my apartment? How had I gotten out of the spell Blair and I had cast? The last thing I remembered was the horrifying woman pushing me away from her, but that shouldn’t have been possible; my back was against a tree. I had been cold. So, so cold. But then safe. I sat up slowly, expecting my body to hurt. I felt good, though. Warm, and like my insides were sparkly. It was the most complete I had felt in a long time. An arm wrapped around my waist, pulling my body gently back to
I whipped around, coming face to face with Leah. This was not going to be a heartwarming reunion given the look on her face. Leaned against the entryway to our apartment, arms crossed, and a scowl that would put the mothers of teenage boys to shame, I could only imagine the sight before her. A lycan, a werewolf, and a witch stared back at her, wide eyed and probably more afraid than if we were facing Ammit herself. “Leah,” I choked out. “I… I missed you!” “I'm sure,” she sneered. “You took off for weeks without so much as a goodbye! And then Blair goes after you? And then you randomly appear again with some mysterious hottie. Is he my sympathy souvenir, at the very least?” I had no control of the growl that rumbled out of my chest at her insinuation. “No.” “Okay, then,” Leah huffed. “Then you need to tell me what the hell you guys were just talking about, since I won't have anyone to distract me from my annoyance.” I stuttered, trying to come up with an excuse. “We were -” “Re
I woke up to screaming. A blood curdling cry of distress that had alarms going off in my head. I tore myself away from Isaac’s body and was on my feet before I even attempted to process the situation, let alone what form I was in. The large, black lycan was quick to follow, towering over me protectively. “Oh my god, you’re actually wolves!” Leah shrieked from where she stood in the doorway to my bedroom. “There’s no full moon right now! It’s daytime!” How are you all wolfy?” I let my body relax, thankful the threat was only human shock. I let go of the wild, and my wolf form gave way to human skin. “It doesn’t work like that,” I sighed. “We can shift anytime.” Leah blanched. “You’re naked!” I stared blankly at her. “Yeah. Wolves don’t wear clothes.” “Oh,” she mumbled. “Is that Isaac, then?” I looked back to my silent protector as I made my way to the closet. He was still in wolf form, watching Leah cautiously. “Yep.” “Is he going to eat me?” I couldn’t help but laugh. “Why
Isaac POV Maise and I argued all day about whether or not visiting the club could wait until tomorrow. I was of the mind that another day wouldn’t hurt - the damage couldn't get much worse - but she insisted it had to be sooner rather than later. Clearly, I had lost that argument. I had suggested everything. From going by myself for recon, to seeing if anything could be learned about the place at Djinn and Juice, to maybe a real date. I knew Maise well, though, and I knew when she decided something, there was absolutely no way to change her mind. So, I was following five feet of determination though the city streets of downtown Burlington like a lost puppy, still trying to argue my case. Call me old fashioned, but I really wanted my first night out with my mate to be anywhere but at a strip club. I didn’t think a “city” this small could have a seedy part of town, but the hipster downtown area was quickly fading away into the bleak echoes of broken promises. It was exactly where