Arya"Arya! You're home very late!"Queen Helena rushes to the door as soon as I come in, looking like she's worried sick and a little bit angry."We were messaging you nonstop," she continues as I take off my coat and hang it on the rack. "We've been trying to call you and Arthur. Were you not out with him?"The sound of Arthur's name is making me smile. I think back to all the things that happened to us earlier and I just can't help but glow inside.We're finally together. Arthur and I. Just like my friend predicted we would.And I can't believe that I'm actually the girl he's been talking about for weeks! I don't know how I didn't notice or feel anything. I guess I was just too caught up in my own life and worrying about what he felt for me. The signs were all up in my face all along.I let out a little giggle and the Queen looks at me like I have just grown corn out of my ears. "Are you drunk? Is this what you're doing with your friends on a Friday night?""Mom!" I look up at her
Arya“It’s my honor,” I tell Arthur in a low voice, but butterflies are fluttering inside my chest. I look into his eyes and it was as though a spell is cast on me.I can’t look away.He leans forward and I find myself hoping that he’ll just go all the way and kiss me. The memory of that kiss is still very much fresh and I want it to happen again. I put my hand on his chest, hoping that’s enough of a sign to make him do it. . . .But then he pulls away and whispers, “We can’t.”And that’s what makes me snap back to my senses. “You’re right.” I shake my head to get rid of the daze. “We’re still out and people might see us.”“I know.” He sighs and I feel his frustration. “Your parents . . . they’re not from here, are they?”“No,” I say after a beat. I almost told him that my parents were the King and the Queen, and I don’t know what kind of trouble that would get me in. “They’re from another place . . . another Lycan kingdom. They sent me here to study and train because . . . well, it’s
LeviMy alarm rings but my eyes are already open. I press the snooze button and close my eyes again, but I can no longer sleep.One month has passed. I still haven’t found my second-chance mate, and I’ve been all over the different packs with Daniel trying to find that special connection that Theo experienced. I talked to probably a hundred girls, wanting to see us click, but I don’t get any of that.All I feel is this sinking emptiness knowing that Arya was the one and I blew it.I get up and get ready for the morning, showering and taking a quick breakfast before heading to the office.And Daniel was already there, staring into sheets of paper in front of him.“Good morning,” I greet him, but he barely looks up. “Are you alright?”Only then does he look up at me and nod. He rubs his eyes and looks around like he doesn’t realize where he is. “Oh. Um, yeah. Good morning. I’m okay, thank you for asking.”I sit on my desk and I stare at what he was looking at. I manage to get a glimpse
Arya“What?” I ask urgently. I stand up and stare into her eyes as she looks up at me. “What do you mean by that? Is something bad going to happen?”“I don’t know yet, Arya,” Nancy says, her voice low and a little shaky. “I can’t really see anything clearly. All I have are vague flashes and ideas and I don’t really know how to make sense of them.”“Can you try?” I say.I know that sounds off. I know that’s too much to ask from someone I don’t really know well and it’s very demanding of me, but the way she said it . . . it just feels ominous. Like something bigger and more threatening is going to come and ruin everything, not just my relationship with Elliot.My heart is hammering inside my chest now, so fast that I have to take pauses to catch my breath.Nancy must have noticed that I’m basically hyperventilating, because she stands up and puts her hands on my shoulders. Her eyes are wide with concern but I can’t bring myself to stare back at them.“Hey, calm down, Arya,” she whispers
Arthur“What?” is the only I can ask.Duke Richmond and my dad exchange glances like they can’t believe I have the audacity to ask them a question, but I don’t care. My heart is racing from what I heard and I can’t believe they would suggest something like that to me. I can’t believe what I just heard and I refuse to hear any more until I get my piece out.“I’m not marrying someone I don’t know,” I declare, looking at my dad and the duke and even the King and the Queen. “I refuse to do that.”All the adults are exchanging glances now. My dad pulls me by the arm towards a corner and whispers in my ear, “Don’t you dare embarrass me, boy.”“Then don’t dare make me marry a stranger,” I say back, staring into his eyes even though he looks like he’s about to murder me.King Samuel must have heard of our little exchange, because he comes right in between us and says to me, “You don’t have to decide now, but I’m telling you, the Richmond heir is a beautiful young woman with lots of talents an
Arya“You will be marrying my daughter.”The words from Duke Richmond are playing over and over in my head and I have no way to make them stop.When Arthur walked out, the little gathering immediately ended and I get taken home by my parents, who are talking about the whole ordeal on the way home.“I wonder why Arthur refused,” King Samuel says. “I met the duke’s daughter, and she is quite a lovely person.”“Perhaps they just need to meet and get the ball rolling,” Queen Helena points out.My heart hurts. I can actually feel it with every beat, screaming at me to end the conversation by screaming that Arthur is mine and we have been together and in love for quite some time now.But how will they react? Will they get mad at me for getting into a relationship behind their back? Arthur is of noble birth and they should be happy, right? But what if they don’t want me to be with anyone because they already set their sights on someone else for me to marry too?The thought makes me sick. Lik
Arya"Oh, my god," I mumble under my breath.Is this true? Is this really happening? Or this is just a hallucination because I was sick and distressed last night and this is just an aftermath of the emotional suffering I have experienced before?I shake my head and blink rapidly, my hand still wrapped around the doorknob. The voice doesn't speak again, which gives me the idea that hey, maybe it is just an illusion.With a sigh, I open my bedroom door and go inside, confident now that I probably just need some sleep.But then, the yelling in my head starts."Really?" the female voice asks incredulously, like she doesn't grasp how I have the audacity to behave like this, or even the audacity to exist. "Are you really just going to ignore me like that? What an ungrateful human you are."I slam the door in fright at the sudden reappearance of the voice."Arya?" Queen Helena calls from downstairs as she hears the slam. "Is everything okay?"I don't answer. I just run to my bed and push my
AryaArthur and I jump apart from each other, still dazed and feeling the heat from the kiss, only to find the King and Queen standing by the doorway with their mouths wide open.In my head, Ivory is wincing. She even has the nerve to say, “Uh-oh.”I want to tell her to shut up and be quiet, but all I can do is stare at my parents. My face is hot and it feels like my whole body is getting numb, but I still force myself to look them in the eye. Maybe that can help, right? Maybe that can make them think that this isn’t as scandalous as they probably think.But the horrified look in Queen Helena’s eyes tells me otherwise.“What. . . .” she trails off. “What is happening here?”“Your Majesty.” Arthur tries to bow but I can tell that he’s scared too. And who wouldn’t be? King Samuel is glaring at him like he couldn’t wait to get his hands on his neck and strangle him. “I . . . I promise, it’s not what you think. I just thought that I would see her personally since I don’t think I will be a
LeviI tighten my hands around Lauren’s throat, feeling it pulse under my touch. There’s the level of satisfaction to that that I can’t explain.It's dark and it's something that I don't even want to acknowledge, but I would be lying if I say that it doesn't feel good.As I watch her eyes grow bigger with alarm, I feel more and more determined to end it this way. With her right under my hands, trying to fight off the force of my strength around her neck.I hate her, I realize as I try my best to finish her off and get this over with forever. She might just be an accomplice to her shitty brother, but she knows what she's doing.And if tonight is proof, I would say that she's not as innocent as she pretends to be. She's perfectly capable of making choices that would fuck other people up even more. She knows what she's doing.I still want to know so many things, like how she got to copy the scent of Arya and why she needed it anyway, when I can just tell completely that she's not my mate
LeviMy heart nearly gets stuck inside my throat. I want to scream, but I find that I can’t. The pain in my chest is still much too great for that, and I hate that I’m not even sure I’m seeing the right thing.Is Lauren really here, or am I just manifesting the stupid dreams and thinking that I am seeing her?I blink rapidly to see if she is indeed there, and to my horror, the image of her smiling in the corner doesn’t vanish. She’s walking close to the bed I’m lying on, but Gammie doesn’t even move. She doesn’t even flinch. I know for a fact that she’s a very sensible old woman who can practically feel everything, so this worries me.I look at Lauren again and see that she's getting closer and closer, and as though to confuse me further, she touches the side of Gammie's shoulder.And the woman doesn't flinch.Is Lauren real right now? Because I can hear her footsteps. I can smell her scent. I can tell that she's getting closer to me and she feels very much solid right now.Could this
LeviI was locked in a constant state of dreams and uncomfortable thoughts when they were operating on me.Part of me was conscious, but a bigger part of me just wasn’t. It was constantly floating in a state of blankness and anxiety, just a mish mash of things that shouldn’t go together. Sometimes I find myself dreaming of my parents and my childhood. Sometimes I find myself dreaming of my teenage years and my short days as an Alpha.But most of the time, I was dreaming of Arya.However, when I was about to wake up, I was dreaming of something else entirely. Something that resonated with my fear, the reason why I thought about bringing down the whole arena instead of participating in the fight that Connor and Lauren wanted to see.* * *In my dream, it was nighttime, and the lights in the arena are almost blinding me. My heart is pounding so fast that I feel like it's going to give out any moment. There are so many people around us. Too many, in my opinion. And they're all looking at
Arya“Arthur,” I mutter, his name leaving my lips like a plea as I shift around in his bed. I know perfectly well that I’m sleeping, but I also know that even in this state, Arthur is still the one in my mind. My Lycan, my mate, my love. Even though I know consciously that our relationship is in jeopardy because of his choices, I still want him, and he’s still the face I long to see in my dreams.And in my dream, I see him getting dragged away by the Rogues.“No!” I yell, but in this dream world, I’m voiceless. I’m powerless. All I can do is stand there while my mate gets clawed at by the dirty outcasts. All I can do is watch while he screams for me.“Help me, Arya!” His voice rings out in the darkness of our background. “Don’t let them take me!”He holds out his hand to reach for me. I extend my arm to get him. However, he’s already too far. He’s already too close to the mouth of the dark tunnel they’re taking him to. One of the Rogues, seeing that he has his hand outstretched, kick
AryaMy mouth goes dry at the sight of Arthur.He closes the distance between us, getting on top of me and taking both of my hands before putting them over my head.His lips are urgent on mine, intent on devouring. I can feel his hardness against my thighs. His hungry mouth travels down to my neck and on my collar bones, lower down to my breasts. When his warm mouth closes over my nipple, I almost explode. He sucks it, his tongue sweeping over it until I feel feverish. I close my eyes, not even aware that he let go of my hands until he starts to squeeze my other breast.He pulls his head away from my nipple and begins to suck the other. My hips are moving on their own. I'm so wet I can feel myself dripping on the sheets.I bury my hand in his hair, moaning loudly. But he's not done with me, cause before I knew it, his lips are traveling lower again. Until his face is between my legs. Lucien grabs my thighs and pries them apart. Then he leans forward, sweeping his tongue on my wet core
AryaLike an idiot, I turn to Arthur and ask, “About what?”He laughs softly, but the humor doesn’t reach his eyes. There’s a certain hint of sadness there, combined with another emotion that I can’t really place. Either way, seeing it in his eyes is throwing me a little off balance. I want to come with him and get to the bottom of it, but at the same time, I feel like he’s so serious that I don’t want to find out what he wants to say.“Just come with me,” he says gently. “Please?”“Well, of course,” I say, glancing back at Levi who is now sleeping soundly. “Who will be watching him? He can’t stay here alone, can he?”"I'm right here," Nancy says all of a sudden, appearing seemingly out of thin air. She wedges herself into the room and immediately comes to look at Levi, adjusting something on the IV that he's connected to. "I will be watching over him for the night. You two go talk, okay?""Thank you, Nancy," Arthur says, then he turns to me with that very same smile that doesn't reac
AryaMy heart leaps with joy. It’s something that I haven’t felt in what seems like forever, and I can feel it spreading all over me like a warm ray of sunshine. A smile appears on my face, and I look at Arthur.“He’s awake,” I whisper, and even I have to notice the sheer relief in my voice. “He’s alright. He made it. . . .”Arthur smiles at me and leans over to kiss my forehead. “I know, and I’m happy. Now go talk to him okay?”I nod, and with that I go with Nancy, who suits me up with a protective layer of clothing before we go inside.They have converted the infirmary room into a real hospital room. There are machines beeping everywhere, and there are also potions emitting sweet smelling steam somewhere in the room. There are some tools laying around, but the only thing that catches my attention is Levi lying down on the bed, his pillows fluffed up to prop him up into a sitting position.His face is pale, and his hair is slicked back over his handsome face with sweat. I can tell th
Arya“What is it?” I ask Nancy with my voice shaking immensely. I get up from my seat but I feel like the ground is lurching under my feet and I feel like I’m going to fall over if I don’t have something to cling onto. Thankfully, Arthur gets up and offers his arm to me. “What’s the problem?”Nancy hesitates, and I honestly hate how angry I became just in that moment. I want to scream at her and tell her that I am not playing games around here, that if something is up, then I must know immediately because I’ve been waiting for a long time to hear about him. Besides, the only person he has right now is me. His parents are not here and the others are back at the pack. I am the only one he has. . . .“Please,” I just say in a strained voice, looking at her and wanting to get on my knees and beg and corner her at the same time. Emotions are just running high inside my chest and I want nothing more but to know. “Please, what is happening? Is Levi okay? Will he make it?”“The truth is, I do
Arthur My blood goes cold. I swallow hard, thinking of what to say, but my mouth is completely dry and my throat is closing up. I want to assure Levi that I won’t leave him here, but he’s looking at me like he’s daring me to say those words just so he could reject them completely. So instead of talking it through with him and risking any rejection, I lift him up to his knees and very carefully start to chip away at the piece of rock lodged inside his body. Thankfully, the rock is easy to chip off, as it seems to be made of hardened mud instead of actual stone. I manage to clip it down close to his body so it won’t move or damage anything inside him. He kept groaning and screaming the entire time, and I just had to close my hearing so that I wouldn’t hear it and experience the pain of seeing him go through it. When I’m done, I take him into my arms, not caring about how weird it could look or what he has to say, and it seems that he still has a lot to say. As though to prove my poi