CARLY WOODS The home office door swung open and I stood gaping with my gaze locked on Alpha Jace's smoldering green eyes. He didn't look quite pleased to have me by the door considering the confidential meeting he had with Beta Ian. "What the fuck are you doing here?" "My apologies, I—I," I gulped, remaining silent, my tongue trapped to the roof of my tongue, unable to mentally sum up why I came here at first. Jace had a secret up his sleeve, the glint in his eyes suggested I was only floating on the surface. There was more to things. I needed to know more about this even though I could get in a whole lot of trouble if Jace knew I just eavesdropped on him. My features were expressive, instantly, I bucked up, and offered him a sweet smile that seemed to soften the rocks in his features. "I'd love to grab a few things..." He grabbed my arm in an unexpected move, tugged me away from his home office to the living area. His rapidly softening hold on my arms made it ap
ALPHA JACE "You're not listening, Addie." Ian tried to get Addison to look at things from our perspective. "What the hell do you mean she's pregnant? Game or not you've actually gotten another wolf, a runt pregnant!" Her accusing voice filled the home office. "Could you at least shut the hell up and listen more?" I matched her tone already irritated from everything that had happened in the last few hours. Everything felt good, went smoothly when planned but actually living out the plan felt more hazy, laced with headache and rage. Addison found it hard to recover from the shock, her face flushed from exertion, plumped-out lips hanging open with her gaze solely on me. "We're not getting married?" Her tone became instantly soft, fear momentarily crossing her blue eyes. This stabbed straight into my heart, I loved Addison. "That's not true, babe," I left where I stood by the window to take her hands, squeezing them reassuringly. "I love you and it's why we're doing this. I
CARLY WOODSAlpha Jace hastily jerked away from me as though I burnt him."What?" He queried, knitting his brows together, struggling to make sense of what I had mumbled.Trying to figure me out.What would he do if he discovered I overheard his initial conversation with Ian?Why would Beta Ian concede to something like that? Were my feelings never considered when they imagined something as despicable as that?To think the decision was made by the commanders of the pack. The people who were supposed to protect their members. Granted I was a lowly omega but that didn't give them the right to treat me however they pleased.Would he try punishing me for eavesdropping on the Alpha, for invading his privacy or would he lock me up to prevent me from hightailing to the hills?Well, if he was willing to kill his first blood then I couldn't put anything past him now, could I?No. That became a chance I wasn't willing to take with my child.The thought of anything happening to my baby made my
Carly Woods "Good morning, Alice." I chirped with an extra dose of sweetness as I stepped into the kitchen in a red strap dress that stopped a little above my knees with white strap sandals, my brunette hair was in a messy high bun. I sit on the kitchen stool while biting into the apple I grabbed from the fruit basket, slowly glancing around the kitchen Alice was running around preparing a breakfast feast which was more than what she usually fixed for me. It's been a week since Alpha Jace kept me locked up in his mansion and life here was not filled with cotton candies, unicorns, or white clouds. "Hey, what's with all the food? Surely Jace and I can't finish up all this." My eyes stopped on a stack of fluffy buttermilk pancakes, waffles, omelets, and some French toast. There's a pitcher of orange juice which had me thinking we'll be having company. "Morning dear, you seem happy today." She paused to spare me a glance. "And you ain't looking bad." She said causing my fac
CARLY WOODS POVI sat in my favorite spot under the tangerine tree hugging my legs to my chest.I mostly come here to clear my head after an encounter with Addison."This place reeks of slut...."How could she possibly say that when she threatened me to sleep with Jace?I wished Jace would say something to stop her or Nate, but why would they? I was just an omega whose feelings could be trampled on.I wasn't expecting much from them but, it would've been nice to have someone stand up for me.I knew Jace wouldn't go against Addison, he just feigned to be unaware of the insults she throws my way, well he too isn't very far from her since he does throw his fair share of insults.I hate myself for wasting my tears on these people. Biting my lips, I tried to swallow a whimper that was forming in my throat.Allowing the tears to silently burn a path down my face, I closed my eyes, my head leaning on the tangerine tree as I placed a protective hand on my still-flat stomach.I still remember
JACE BALDWIN POVThere has been a recent rumor of the outlanders trying to attack my pack and that has brought an unsettling feeling of fear to my members.My Beta Ian and Gamma Nate came over for an early morning meeting so we can map out a plan, on how to scale through if they attack. I can't afford an attack right now with the Gaia curse yet to be broken. I was slowly losing my strength and the last thing I need is for my pack members to realize I was not strong enough to lead them.I know I shouldn't underestimate their potential, it could lead to disaster, by this evening, training time will have to double. It's about time my warriors know what is lurking in the dark.I wasn't too surprised to see Carly serving breakfast this morning, knowing Addison must have asked for her to be the server just so she could be ridiculed by her friend.After breakfast, the guys and I retreated to my office to continue working on some strategies to protect the pack.I focused on the task at hand
JACE BALDWIN POV "We had plans today remember?" Addison quirks with a voice that does nothing but irritate my ears.I had a bunch of things to deal with. With Nate's sudden attraction to Carly and Carly being in the condition she's in at the moment.If Nate wanted her back, then he'd have to wait for that child to be born then he could do as he pleased with her.I guess that child was the reason I had the strange urge to protect her. I can't have Nate try to sabotage the plans we had on ground with his unwanted jealousy.Yes, he was her destined mate but he did reject her, the unwanted omega. Besides, it could've been any omega.If Nate wasn't comfortable with the plan he should've said something. So why was he now after? Was what Carly said true? Was Nate jealous of me?It can't be, we've been friends from childhood, he just needed his mate. Nothing biggie."I'm sorry my love but we'll have to take a raincheck on that." My voice was soft, trying to coax her into not making a fuss ov
CARLY WOODS POV The first thing my brain registered when I started regaining consciousness was pain. An excruciating pain that had me groaning. My hand shot up to clutch my head, in an attempt to relieve the pain even in the slightest bit.Slowly, the events crashed down on me as I remembered how horrible my morning was. To think my day started with a slight happiness.Nate had attacked me and then played it out to be my fault at his friend's arrival.The cold look Jace had sent my way probably was what made me pass out completely. Yes, I was injured and was losing more blood than could be considered medically safe and I felt dizzy yet I still fought to stay awake, I fought the hazy feelings but one cold look from that stormy sea-green orb made shivers run down my spine. I couldn't stand being on the receiving end of his anger so passing out was the safest thing my weak body could adopt to keep us safe.I tried opening my eyes but my lids seemed to be too heavy for me to manage. Gro
JACE BALDWIN'S POV "I FOUND IT MAN!" The following day, I was busy in my office when Ian busted in, a lottery-winning smile wide on his face."What are you talking about?" I asked, leaning back on the leather backrest of my office chair, a bit startled by his sudden outburst."You remember the encounter Carly had with those rogues?" Snatching the seat on the other end of the table, he plopped down on it, the seat squeaking under his weight."What about it?" I sat up immediately giving him my undivided attention at the mention of that disastrous night."She said those rogues were certain the earth wolf is in the Brookside pack, the other rogue said the same thing. He came to scout the territory hoping he got lucky.""I remember and from what I could gather, there's no specific sign for anyone to know who this mystery wolf is. She has no emblem on her. The goddess of fertility wasn't bothered enough to drop some hints." I ran a hand through my hair before slumping back into the chair.
Carly pushed her small frame into my large and muscular body, her hands holding mine behind her back, trapping her body into mine, her swelling stomach pressed into my hard six-packs.Her hair was pulled into a messy bun, and a few strands decided they were too prim to be held in such a bun."I'm sorry," she cried out, her tears instantly soaking up my round-neck T-shirt where her face was pressed on."Carly?" I tried to release my hand from her hold to check if she was alright but she cried harder, pushing her body to become one with mine."No, stop." Her grip on me was firm and I decided to keep my hands where she wanted."What's going on?" I was perplexed by her behavior which was a polar difference from the spite fire feisty woman that smacked me earlier."I'm sorry please don't hurt me, tell Lykos I said I'm sorry okay, that I was so mad and right now I don't even know what got me so worked up to the point of disrespecting you and him."What the fuck? She thought I came to punish
JACE BALDWIN'S POV When I approached Carly, I was hoping to have a casual conversation, I never expected to be slapped twice within 3 minutes by the same woman.Damn woman!Still in shock at the unexpected turn of events, I stayed rooted in place as I watched the angry woman blur away.Strangely, I wasn't offended by her actions in any way, if anything Lykos was cracking up at the back of my head."I didn't think this day would ever come." Lykos chortled."I'm honored to be the object of your entertainment," I grunted at him. Slowly, my hand touched the spot on my cheek that was already burning up from the impact of the assault. I could bet my wisdom teeth and her little fingers were duplicated on my face.A smile appeared on my face. That woman was something, why kiss a man when she was going to slap him for returning her kisses?That kiss, even though it was short was the kiss I'd never forget in a hurry. How could I when I received the first slap of my life after something as hot
After fifteen more minutes of playing with the kids, some mothers approached him and they talked while occasionally glancing at the kids happily running around with smiles on their faces."I'm afraid of not being strong enough for him," I murmur looking down at my intertwined fingers, feeling a little bit sad at the thoughts plaguing my mind.What if I'm not able to protect him and he gets snatched from me? Will I be able to live with myself knowing my son was taken because of my weakness because I couldn't shield him from the harshness of this world?"By him you mean the alpha or your son?" Mia tilted her head, her hands grabbing her bent knees as she stretched her back into the tree trunk."I'll have to be the alpha's mate first before I think about being good enough for him, of course, I'm talking about my son." I rolled my eyes at her, tucking my hair behind my ears. "Hmm. Don't look but he's coming this way." My head whipped around to see the alpha casually approaching where we
CARLY WOODS POV I woke up the next morning a Saturday feeling refreshed and happy for no real reason. I didn't want to leave my bed because of Jace's comforting cologne that lingered on my bed from when he fainted the day before.I couldn't get enough of his scent on my pillow. Sighing, I pushed my nose further into the pillow willing myself to go back to sleep. After twenty minutes of hugging my pillow like a koala, I decided I'd had enough and needed to get on with my day.Humming to random tunes that popped up in my head, I went to the washroom where I prepped myself for the day.Today was Saturday and since I was feeling happy and giddy, I decided not to waste a good day lounging in my room. Unlike my previous room, I didn't like this new one and I'd rather spend less time here."Hello there my little Alpha, how are you feeling in there?" I spoke into the mirror while running a brush down my hair, trying to unknot all the tangles from my hair. "You're hanging in there, yeah?" I
I got home a few after midnight, and my tired feet led me to Carly's door. I stood behind the closed door, listening in on her slow and steady heartbeat that indicated she was trapped in a sleeping daze.Without giving much thought to it, I pushed the door open, before sneaking into the small confines of her room.Why on earth did she see the need to move into this cramped space, even if she wanted to change rooms she could have gone for a better one than this.I made a mental note to make her change her room the next day.Discarding my shoes and clothes, I sneaked into her bed, before pulling her into my warm chest with a soft kiss on her forehead.I missed this, try as I might, I couldn't keep away from her for too long, I needed her soft and translucent scent wafting through my nostrils, calming every nerve cell in my body.Unconsciously, she moved closer to me, her hands and legs instinctively wrapping around my large muscular body.We stayed that way for about thirty minutes befo
Stephanie let out a short laugh as she gathered her raven hair into a tight bun. "No offense intended but you? You want to give me fighting tips?"My sentiments exactly.Her smile didn't falter which caused my heart to swell as a smile involuntarily crawled up my face.With that smile on her face, she was more beautiful than ever. "You want to learn this or what?" She sounded a bit annoyed, yet her smile was still in place."Humor me." "The first thing is very simple and I think you can do that, fight as if your life depends on it because it does with hundreds of others who would need your protection as a warrior. If Addison for some reason beats you, trust me when I say, I'll be the first to clap and hoot for her.A serious look graced her face as if she was an instructor rather than a harmless pregnant woman. Taking two steps forward, she got closer to Stephanie who also had a serious look and her face, the air around them thick with seriousness."The second and the most vital tip
JACE BALDWIN POV It was a Friday and Mr. Nelson the trainer fixed another combat session for the women. It was a way of keeping them interested and competing since most of them wanted nothing to do with fights.I didn't want to make an appearance since it wasn't necessary but Ian demanded I did because of some words going around that I was in a coma.That must have been the reason I got different surprised looks and gaps from some people.Some people just didn't have what to do with their lives.I didn't sleep much last night because my mind kept wandering around what Carly and her boyfriend were doing. Somewhere around 4 am, my brain finally shut off from exhaustion and I slept off, only to be woken by an angry Addison.Damn it, can't a man take a few hours without any drama?"I'm going to fucking kill that little shit, you left me to come to sleep in this cramped space with her? How dare you?" She screeched, stomping towards the closet door that was ajar from the night before."CA
CARLY WOODS POV The next morning, the bright sunlight that shone without mercy from the opened blinds pulled me out of my peaceful slumber.I was in one of his white shirt he allowed me borrow from his wardrobe, my hair stick around in everything direction.Beta Ian and I had spent a few more hours in the open bar, talking about random things.He pushed me to tell him the problem between the Alpha and me, and I told him there wasn't any.Honestly, there weren't any problems between us. I told him Jace simply drew the boundary in our arrangement. He had Addison whom he was engaged to be married to then came the dare that ushered me into their picture-perfect life.Or not so perfect life.I didn't make the mistake of asking him about the curse or the earth wolf. Beta Diaz was a smart fellow, he was quite an observant fellow.The woman in question who prompted my visit to the bar left an hour later with one of the men she was drinking with.I didn't say anything to Ian, though I asked