Eloise might have pretended to ignore it but she also noticed how restless Ian was around the house since he arrived.At first, she thought it was only because of his rut, then she wondered if the changing environment and his father’s presence had anything to do with it but to think it was something that huge—Eloise felt speechless, staggering back until her back met the barrel chair behind her.“This doesn’t make any sense." Eloise mumbled repeatedly but Ian still picked it anyway. “Are you sure? You could be wrong?” Eloise felt nervous all of a sudden.“Mom, you once told me the one thing a wolf would never mistake is the mate bond... you know it’s impossible to mistake such a thing, her scent, her touch... it’s been killing me since I came here,” Ian confessed and Eloise frowned, wondering what he meant by her touch but decided not to ask, dismissing it as probably so little as them brushing shoulders.“Was she why your rut suddenly came?” The realisation dawned on her, leaving her
Avery didn’t really care about her father getting married to Eloise; he already married her in secret. What’s the point of a few thousand people finding out about it? But why does the idea, which had ceased to bother her years ago, suddenly make her uncomfortable now? Is she still not over it? Avery wondered as she anxiously shook her crossed leg against the sofa she was seated in under the hut in the garden, a small relaxation spot she often used before she got uncomfortable with Eloise’s parading around the house and moved out.Avery had her laptop placed in front of her on the glass table while holding physical files to match the reports from work but quickly got distracted at the thought of Ian angrily walking out on their father after his announcement.It’s weird that his actions made him seem like he was against the idea; Avery had thought he’d be thrilled by it but surprisingly, she caught a frown on his face as he walked out.“I wonder what’s up with him; if anything, he shou
It’s been two days since their kiss and Ian still couldn’t get it off his mind. Ian wished the kiss had lasted longer, wishing he could have his fill of the sour taste of the lemon juice Avery had on her table right before she brought him in.The happiness of their little moment would probably have lasted if Avery didn’t suddenly perfect the acts of avoiding him.Seeing him only when they're having their meals together, and by meals, it meant meals Finn was present, or she’d have her meal brought up to her room instead.Ian wished it was just things between her and Avery that had been awkward. Eloise and Finn seem to be having a thing of their own; of course, his mother still often helps his father, who could now barely do anything on his own but he could tell things were awkward between the two. He wasn’t sure why, and Eloise doesn’t seem ready to talk about it either and things were just about to get worse between Eloise and Avery as well.Ian thought after following Avery after s
Of course he likes her, how could she not tell, if it wasn’t her cold attitude and indifference towards him, the whole house would have probably picked his interest in her.Ian has never tried to hide that he was attracted to her, from the persistent gaze of his that follows her every movement to his actions of blatantly holding her in the middle of the courtyard where any passing person could have seen her.Maybe that was what scared her; Ian seemed indifferent to everything else but with her, he laid his emotions bare like the sky flashing its rainbow colours after a heavy rain.Even though Avery had tried her best to discourage his obvious interests by remaining cold to him and constantly reminding him of his place, she didn’t think she’d falter so soon.After a call with Lewis about the Christmas break for Apollo employees, she went straight to bed but woke up after a dream of her first night together with Ian.His gentle caress, strong muscular body unbefitting of his cute boyish
Ian thought he could manoeuvre his way into Avery's space.Having dealt with pack politics before, he knew the type of person Avery was and he planned to use that to his advantage.Even if it was just gossip and jumbled words to derive traffic and sales, he read through almost every article about Avery, mostly about her likes and relationships and Ian figured out one thing.Avery was someone who only associated herself with people who needed her; she enjoyed being needed.It was her assurance of a relationship and more than that, she loved being in control, probably another reason why she pretends to be strong, the other reason being her kind heart which was why Ian pretended to be pitiful, to spark her urge to help since she can't resist offering a hand.But when Avery belittled his affections, as merely a moment of confusion, Ian lost his cool.Maybe Avery was right, he doesn't know her well enough, to be in love with her but the moon goddess doesn't make mistakes, the attraction Ia
Avery couldn't bring herself to join them for dinner or breakfast after what happened with Ian.As she woke up the next day, she saw the maids had already started on the Christmas decorations; Eloise and Finn were no exception, instructing the staff about how they wanted the house to look like while Finn also helped hang a few Christmas tree decorations on his wheelchair.Christmas, huh? Avery furrowed. Christmas has always been a disaster for her, since she always spends the day alone.Her douchebag exes never bothered to spend Christmas with her, thinking she'll be spending it with her dad, who ironically spent every Christmas with his mistress.She stopped hoping for Christmas, living the day like it was any other day after a few years of disappointment, working her ass off or binge-watching a series on her couch, although Rosie did extend invitations for her to spend Christmas with them; she wasn't sure she could handle watching their harmonious, big, happy family while hers has l
According to Kaden, the moment the Moon hound pack, a neighbouring pack that has fought their pack over territory for years, heard about his absence from the pack, they attacked Raven Hills.Of course, his grandfather didn’t sit still; he defended his pack like he always did, they probably attacked after underestimating his strength but there were a few casualties, including Kaden’s mother, who was the pack's official gamma.Although Kaden assured her that he didn’t need to be there, the attack was over, and everything was back in order again. The moon hound pack has been pushed back yet again after they suffered even larger casualties, but Ian wanted to visit the pack; he needed a break, even if it was just for a day; he needed a change of environment.It was almost laughable; he spent his entire life in the pack and never thought he needed a break from the environment but after a week with his parents, he found himself searching for home because he could never feel at home with the
Avery couldn’t help but feel conflicted after hearing Ian left the house just like she did.Did he want a time-out like her? Was he feeling conflicted like she was? Did he finally decide to give up on her?She’ll probably like that, it was never gonna work between them, maybe things would have been different if they didn’t share the same blood, maybe just maybe things could have been different.But Avery couldn’t help the ache in her heart. “Fuck!” Avery let out a silent cuss that Damian somehow heard.“You okay? You look a little distracted Avy” Damian’s said his amber eyes squinted in worry.“I’m…I’m okay. I just have a lot going on” Avery replied, her fingers unconsciously tracing the edge the of the glass up with the orange juice Derrick had handed her.“Is this about this Ian kid? You’ve been out since Derrick mentioned him” Damian pointed out, reminding Avery how attentive he has always been. “D’you wanna talk about, you always like telling me stuff” ‘That was beacause I had a
The party turned out to be somewhat a terrible experience for Avery.Seeing her parents and coincidentally bumping into her boyfriend, whom she couldn’t even challenge outside for daring to bring another girl to the party, well, people were already aware they were half-siblings.Maybe she could have kept things a lot more under control. When the headache started, for a minute, Avery thought she was going crazy, the voice in her head practically threatening, Natalite to stay away from Ian.But that voice soon died down like it wasn’t even there, but after that comes a terrible headache that made her lose the balance of her body as dizziness accompanied it and the ground felt like it was swirling under her feet.She wanted to wait around some more, see more of the party since the highlight of the party was completely different from what she expected.Once again, Avery clarified the existence of werewolves as the MC made jokes about the alphas and Luna’s invitation.Hearing the MC go on
Chapter 57Ian, after Natalie’s advice, sighed softly and turned away since he figured she was right. there’s one problem, though: Kaden has been acting so weird since he touched Natalie and Natalie on the other hand, seems to be doing her best to ignore him.The party was like every other Elite party, with representatives from the hosting pack talking about the unity of the werewolves and the importance of sticking to ethics, not encroaching on or eyeing other’s territory and peacefully resolving territorial disputes.No matter how many times the matter was emphasised by each meeting or party, it doesn’t mean that pack wars don’t happen, after all… alphas will always be alphas.Ian was lost in thought trying to come up with ways to see Avery separately; they needed to talk and he was nearing his limit, waiting for it to happen naturally.Ian instinctively snapped his head in Avery’s direction after a groan slipped out of her lips, and for a second she wobbled on her feet, her face sc
Chapter 56Avery started feeling restless from the moment Ian walked in with Natalie; she tried hard to maintain her composure and not glance in their direction but seeing them together stings more than she thought it would.Was it because she put some distance between them? was that why he showed up to the party with some other woman? Was it because he didn’t want the public to speculate about them or was it because he just didn’t care?Whichever the option was, she almost couldn’t hide how betrayed she felt and anytime her eyes darted in their direction, Ian was always busy with the girl.Ian said the girl was just a friend but why are they acting so chummy and familiar? Why is he holding her hand?‘This is ridiculous, Avy. I can’t believe you’re thinking that way when he blatantly walked into a party of Elite members of the society with another girl in his arms.’ Avery thought, her fingers tightening around the glass of wine she was holding while talking to other members of Damian’
‘Well, this is awkward,’ Natalie thought while clutching down on her gown.Avery’s questioning and cold glare were practically burrowing into her skin; it was almost hilarious and Ian; Natalie had never seen him look that mad before.Ian reluctantly turned away from the two after Avery asked him to leave for his seat; to avoid the spread of any weird speculations, wild rumours, and careless gossip, it was better they didn’t escalate matters.Natalie, however, was impressed by Ian’s self-control.For a minute, Natalie thought he was going to drag Avery away from the place, which would have resulted in a more awkward situation but Ian, despite looking so pissed, just quietly led her to their reserved seat.“That sly bastard, he did this on purpose,” Natalie heard Ian mumble, his eyes still crimson. Natalie walked over to their side of the table and grabbed herself a flute of champagne.Watching Ian fume about his mate being another alpha’s date wasn’t as entertaining as she imagined it
Chapter 54Damian felt strangely proud that people just can’t keep their eyes off Avery, her stunning dress and that choker necklace she had on that bare her pale neck, and the sweet smell of her chocolate perfume, which for some reason was unusually strong on her.Damian felt this the last time they met, when he asked her to come to the party with him; her natural scent was unusually dull, almost nonexistent, but because he thought she was wearing more perfume than usual, he didn’t think much of it.But with his unusually sharp nose, Damian still couldn’t pick her scent even though she was standing right next to him; it strangely made him frown.The urge to lift Avery’s flamboyant black lace sapphire choker necklace that matched her sapphire earrings and bracelet rose, wondering if, by any chance, Ian had his mark on her yet.Even if he’s an alpha with a territory, he’s still young and he should probably know better than to do stuff like that without permission.‘Maybe I’m just overt
Avery sighed softly as she stood up, ready to leave the cafe where she met with Damian.After giving her response, she didn’t think there was anything else to talk about and immediately tried to leave.“You wanna get some tarts? you love tarts...my treat,” Damian suggested, pointing at the pastry shop displaying tarts right next to the cafe as they walked out of the cafe together while ignoring the gaze of the two girls by the entrance who seem to have recognised her even though she was wearing the simplest clothes possible.Avery for a minute hesitated but the pastries looked nice.“Sure,” Avery accepted before they both walked right into the pastry shop but right before she let go of the glass door, Avery was sure she heard a camera shutter.‘I wonder what those reporters are up to now.’ She thought while waiting as Ian ordered her some fruit tarts and packed them up for her.“Thanks,” Avery grinned before they both walked out and headed towards their cars.“Well, they reminded me o
Chapter 52Avery sighed softly as she stood up, ready to leave the cafe where she met with Damian.After giving her response, she didn’t think there was anything else to talk about and immediately tried to leave.“You wanna get some tarts? you love tarts...my treat,” Damian suggested, pointing at the pastry shop displaying tarts right next to the cafe as they walked out of the cafe together while ignoring the gaze of the two girls by the entrance who seem to have recognised her even though she was wearing the simplest clothes possible.Avery for a minute hesitated but the pastries looked nice.“Sure,” Avery accepted before they both walked right into the pastry shop but right before she let go of the glass door, Avery was sure she heard a camera shutter.‘I wonder what those reporters are up to now.’ She thought while waiting as Ian ordered her some fruit tarts and packed them up for her.“Thanks,” Avery grinned before they both walked out and headed towards their cars.“Well, they re
Chapter 51Even if Ian had promised to wait for Avy who said she needed some time to sort stuff out, it was hard to keep himself from contacting her.Being cooped up at home while still blatantly giving Eloise the cold shoulder was terrible.After all, she forced him into accepting her conditions.Ian was only able to accept her proposal after brainwashing himself into thinking he wasn’t doing for her but Avery.Doing the internship at the company and changing schools would mean he gets to stay by Avy’s side for a while.His grandfather is only filling in for him as the alpha because of school.Ian knew he had to return to take his grandfather’s position the moment he was done with school, which means he only has a couple of years to spend with Avy and convince her to be his Luna, since being his Luna might change everything for them.Ian, while still drowning in his thoughts, decided to visit Natalie since he finally made up his mind on what to do about the Elite party, which invitat
“This is surprising; I never expected you’d actually show up here.” Natalie grinned after Ian showed up at her place of work and paid for her hours since she was an escort for alpha werewolves.Since she was reserved only for the VIPs of the bar, buying her hours without reservation was expensive, and somehow Ian paid for it to talk to her.After their first encounter, Ian and Natalie, naturally, got close since he was new in town and Natalie knew all the fun places.While Ian could call Derrick to hang out, he still couldn’t discuss werewolf matters with him since he was yet to tell him about who he really is.Natalie had met Ian outside before; when his father died and he needed a drinking buddy, it kind of seemed like Ian had more worries than his father’s death at the time but Natalie never got to ask since it was officially the third time they were meeting.And though Ian did seem like he genuinely wanted to be friends with her, Natalie was sure it was all because Ian still hasn’