Either they had gotten used to seeing us here, or they weren’t ones for the political or social gossip. The people who ate here were all of the working class. They cared more about their own families, and their own pizza, than they did about whatever we were doing.The laid back attitude of the plac
Aria’s POVMy plans set, I moved through my days with a new sense of purpose. Having something to look forward to helped me maintain my focus on the events to come. No longer was I a prisoner to the past.At least, that was true most of the time. There were sometimes, unfortunately, when Lucian crep
“Thank you,” I said instead, though I had no idea what I would do with this much money. As Dr. A, I’d already acquired all I would need for the move, as well as enough to live on for a good long while. I didn’t need this gift from them, and I felt guilty having it.There had to be something I could
Lucian’s POVMost of the elders are shocked by my words and the harsh tone I delivered them. The elder who recovered first, the senior to the others, glared at me instead.“You do not take that tone of voice with us, Alpha King or not,” he said flatly.I didn’t have the patience for his threats, my
Aria’s POVAdoption?!“Uh. No. No, that’s not why I’m here,” I said, stumbling over my words in shock. I hadn’t meant for this to be any kind of newsworthy event. I just wanted to support the orphanage that had taken care of me after my parents died.“What other reason could you have for being here?
Aria’s POVAt work, Cathy, Piper, and I gather in the office that morning over coffee. At my insistence, Cathy didn’t bring the newspaper with my photo on it, but to my dismay, Piper already had one. I believed she was fully ready to frame it and hang it behind her desk.“You know that my identity i
Weak with heartsickness, I peeled back the cover of the diary and began to read a later chapter, from nearer the end of our marriage.Dear Diary,Tomorrow is Lucian’s birthday. While he’s never been much for celebrating, I still want to do something special for him. With hope, maybe this will start
Lucian’s POVAs I watched, Sheila’s entire demeanor shifted, from happy and curious to increasingly upset and alarmed.“That’s Aria’s room,” she said.“Yes,” I replied, seeing no need to hide it.“Why were you in Aria’s room?”It wasn’t any of her business, but I knew I couldn’t just say that to She
Lucian’s POVI had no idea how some of these nobles received permission to be in this room for this revelation, but at this point, I was beyond caring about logistics. The facts were, they were here and they were giving Aria grief. That was more than enough reason for him to, not just lose his tempe
Lucian’s POV“No,” I said quickly. “I couldn’t be.”Early in our marriage, Aria and I had tried rather enthusiastically to have children, but we never managed to succeed in getting Aria pregnant. Eventually, I came to the realization that we couldn’t get pregnant, for one reason or another.Likely,
Aria’s POVI waited until I was back at Cathy’s at the end of the day to pick up her phone and call Jasper. Of all people I knew with the connections I needed, he was the one I could most depend on. Silas was still in Moonglow, too far away to help me, and I wasn’t ready to face Lucian again so soon
“You should have went with her to Moonglow,” I insisted.“She would have refused me,” he said. “She’d already rejected me.”“But those kids needed you –”“They need their father,” Jasper said. “Their real one.”His words hit me hard, and I finally realized what he was trying to say. “You aren’t the
Lucian’s POVI stormed into the Alpha headquarters building, looking for Jasper, ready to go to war. With my hands curled into fists, I thought I might start throwing punches before I would even be able to speak.My wolf was even angrier, prowling back and forth in my mind, scratching at my consciou
Lucian’s POVAs Aria checked to ensure that her disguise was in place, I stepped out of her personal office and back into the main one. The kids, by now, were showing each other their crayon drawings, while Cathy sat patiently in one of the waiting chairs.Cathy was watching me. Maybe she could see
Aria’s POVLucian’s question wasn’t unexpected, considering all he had witnessed up until this moment. However, that did not make it any easier to answer.This secret of my identity was one that I had kept for so long, lately just to stop Lucian from learning the truth.It had become more habit than
Aria’s POVSeeing Paul, Frank, and Harry walk through the office door, entering just behind Lucian made my stomach drop. I’d expected them to track me down, and knew there would be trouble when they did. But I had no idea it would be while Lucian was actually already in the room with us!What could
Aria’s POVThe next day, I reached a point in my research where I needed to run a few tests on Cathy, so I had her come to the hospital. Julia and Harold offered to babysit, but they had spent most of the day before with the kids, so I knew they’d be tired. Instead, I had Cathy bring the kids with h