Chase held the pendant, looking around as his eyes met mine. “This necklace held a spell that stopped Zara from feeling any pain when Asher was cheating on her. It was why she never knew.” I swallowed, the hurt and betrayal becoming more painful by the second. “All of these are lies,” Asher spat out, but Chase was not yet done. “Shut your mouth before I order the kingdom priest to step in,” Chase said. “You can do that then,” Asher mumbled, even though I could tell he was scared. “I will. But I also spoke to the priest's daughter who said that he’d made this spell for you, Asher. And how this spell was shattered on the night of Zara’s bachelorette party.” I sucked in breath without moving as the priest was ushered into the room. He’s old and had been the priest of the kingdom for as long as I could remember. The priest greeted the king by bowing his head as he sat on the table with us. Asher and Lina looked petrified. “So, what do you have to tell us about this?” Chase as
CHASE. Lina’s voice cut through the council again, shrill and annoying and I was seriously getting tired of her screaming. “So that’s it, isn’t it?” she spat. “You’ve always been the whore. You and Chase, together that night, carrying on like you had some claim to him.” The whore word again? When was she going to learn? Maybe never, because that was why she opened her mouth to Edward and told him about Zara cheating on the bond when they visited. It was why he had the guts to insult her moments before I killed him. And now, even after being caught in a lie with her vile husband, Lina was still going to war for him. I was very impressed by how loyal she was no matter what was thrown their way, but she’d called my wife a whore and I wasn’t going to let that slide, not even one bit. Before she could spit out another vile word, I was already moving. I held out my hand as I grabbed Asher by the collar, and before anyone could blink, my fist crashed on his jaw again. He gasped in pain,
I took a step away so that everyone could focus on the bouncer as I walked behind Zara’s chair to keep her company for a while. My hands found her shoulders and began gently massaging. She seemed so stiff and in shock and I wanted to do anything to make her feel better. Maybe a kiss. Or a hug. Anything to take off the tortured look on her face. I leaned down to her ear as I whispered. “I’m sorry.” She squeezed my hand on her shoulders and blinked, the words she said shocking me a bit. “I love you, Chase. More than you’ll ever know.” “You’re not upset? I did this without you knowing?” She looked up to smile at me. “I love that you’re protecting me and that’s all that matters.” I squeezed her shoulders again and lifted my head to face everyone once more. “You can speak now!” I ordered the bouncer. “I was hired to make Zara…” I cut him off quickly. “That’s queen Zara of Betnerd to you.” He cleared his throat. “I was hired to make queen Zara look compromised,” he said, look
ZARA. My heart was pounding when Chase and I got into the car, making our way back to the airport. This entire day has come as a shock. I mean, I had no idea that Chase was planning this. I sat in the car, watching the gorgeous trees in the kingdom I'd call home all my life blur past. Tears were stinging my eyes, but they were not falling. I simply held my husband's hand and from time to time, felt him give me a reassuring squeeze. Still, in the midst of everything, I was still in disbelief and couldn't wrap my head around the fact that Asher and Lina had gone to those lengths to get rid of me. They had been having an affair since the beginning of our relationship and I had no idea because Asher had gone extra lengths to make sure I wouldn't know he was cheating. And I almost married him. Almost merged my life with his. And to rape me? Really? Had I never meant a thing to them? Had I always been a thorn in their sides? Was that it? Had they hated me that much? To be able to g
I gripped the leather of the car seat so tightly I was certain my nails would leave marks. The pain I felt was one I’d never felt before in all my life and I was trying… and failing terribly… to keep it together. I couldn’t catch my breath. My vision blurred with tears, and all I could do was gasp, clutching my belly as if I could somehow contain the ache that tore through me. Okay, I’d heard tales about childbirth and even Margaret had scared me with one a couple of days ago, but I didn’t think that it would be this painful. Beside me, Chase was handling the whole situation even worse than me. He was practically yelling at the frightened driver and I was just hoping that we don’t end up driving up a tree with how much tension filled this car. “Can’t you go any faster?” Chase said to the driver, his hand reaching for mine. I could feel his worry, but I couldn’t comfort him right now, not when I was clinging to what little composure I had left. He rubbed my hand. “It’s okay,
ZARA. "Go Zara! Go, Zara! Go, Zara!" The girls all shrieked and egged me on in unison as a dark-haired stripper kept grinding on me. My eyes were focusing on anything clearly because I'd taken one too many tequila shots, and the dimly lit bar we were in seemed to blur around me. I could feel the oontz oontz vibrations of the music pulsating around me, but that was it. The stripper's proximity sent wave after wave of uneven shivers through the entirety of my body, his touch igniting a wild fire within me. My partially non focused eyes caught a balloon hanging from one of the chairs that was pink and shimmery and had the words 'bride to be' on it. I looked down at the sash across my red dress and noticed that it had ridden up to reveal a hint of stocking. There and then, surrounded by the loud music and the intoxicating scent of alcohol, I couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement mixed with a tinge of nervousness. The bachelorette party was in full swing, the energy was infe
The first rays of sunlight shone down on my face, stirring me awake from my sleep. I blinked groggily as I opened my eyes and tried to take in my surroundings.The room seemed to blur into focus, revealing itself in all its unfamiliarity. There was minimalistic dark artwork on the walls, and the room was filled with beige and neutral tones. A sleek modern dresser stood against one wall, its surface cluttered with different items. I glanced around the room, searching for any familiar trace, any sign that I had been here before. But as I took in the clean lines and unblemished surfaces, it became painfully clear that this was a place I had never set foot in before until now. Dread filled me, and I tried not to panic. Where was I? What was going on? How had I ended up here, in this stranger's room, on my wedding day?Then, slowly, snippets of the previous night began to flood my memory, a sinking feeling settling in the pit of my stomach. Rodrigo dancing on me. Excusing myself to go t
CHASE.You know what they say about chaos knocking on your door and you falling for it? That was exactly what I did. Falling into the arms of a lycan I had never seen before until yesterday. And now, she has vanished!I’d nearly forgotten that Asher, my nephew’s wedding was today. All because my brain had been fucked with by the woman from last night. Just what was I thinking?I hissed as I hurriedly got dressed so I could rush to the venue.‘So, Whose fault was it?’ I broke the silence between Drew and I. ‘I mean, you kind of went berserk the moment we saw her, and I think you pushed me into taking her. And now she’s gone.’‘We will find her,’ came Drew’s short reply. ‘Nothing to worry about. We need to find her. I need her again.’‘Well, too bad she left no contact details. Or did she leave one with you?’ I snickered, as I buttoned up my crisp white shirt.‘We will find her,’ he said again, sounding more determined. ‘I will find her.’I said nothing to that as I finished dressing u
I gripped the leather of the car seat so tightly I was certain my nails would leave marks. The pain I felt was one I’d never felt before in all my life and I was trying… and failing terribly… to keep it together. I couldn’t catch my breath. My vision blurred with tears, and all I could do was gasp, clutching my belly as if I could somehow contain the ache that tore through me. Okay, I’d heard tales about childbirth and even Margaret had scared me with one a couple of days ago, but I didn’t think that it would be this painful. Beside me, Chase was handling the whole situation even worse than me. He was practically yelling at the frightened driver and I was just hoping that we don’t end up driving up a tree with how much tension filled this car. “Can’t you go any faster?” Chase said to the driver, his hand reaching for mine. I could feel his worry, but I couldn’t comfort him right now, not when I was clinging to what little composure I had left. He rubbed my hand. “It’s okay,
ZARA. My heart was pounding when Chase and I got into the car, making our way back to the airport. This entire day has come as a shock. I mean, I had no idea that Chase was planning this. I sat in the car, watching the gorgeous trees in the kingdom I'd call home all my life blur past. Tears were stinging my eyes, but they were not falling. I simply held my husband's hand and from time to time, felt him give me a reassuring squeeze. Still, in the midst of everything, I was still in disbelief and couldn't wrap my head around the fact that Asher and Lina had gone to those lengths to get rid of me. They had been having an affair since the beginning of our relationship and I had no idea because Asher had gone extra lengths to make sure I wouldn't know he was cheating. And I almost married him. Almost merged my life with his. And to rape me? Really? Had I never meant a thing to them? Had I always been a thorn in their sides? Was that it? Had they hated me that much? To be able to g
I took a step away so that everyone could focus on the bouncer as I walked behind Zara’s chair to keep her company for a while. My hands found her shoulders and began gently massaging. She seemed so stiff and in shock and I wanted to do anything to make her feel better. Maybe a kiss. Or a hug. Anything to take off the tortured look on her face. I leaned down to her ear as I whispered. “I’m sorry.” She squeezed my hand on her shoulders and blinked, the words she said shocking me a bit. “I love you, Chase. More than you’ll ever know.” “You’re not upset? I did this without you knowing?” She looked up to smile at me. “I love that you’re protecting me and that’s all that matters.” I squeezed her shoulders again and lifted my head to face everyone once more. “You can speak now!” I ordered the bouncer. “I was hired to make Zara…” I cut him off quickly. “That’s queen Zara of Betnerd to you.” He cleared his throat. “I was hired to make queen Zara look compromised,” he said, look
CHASE. Lina’s voice cut through the council again, shrill and annoying and I was seriously getting tired of her screaming. “So that’s it, isn’t it?” she spat. “You’ve always been the whore. You and Chase, together that night, carrying on like you had some claim to him.” The whore word again? When was she going to learn? Maybe never, because that was why she opened her mouth to Edward and told him about Zara cheating on the bond when they visited. It was why he had the guts to insult her moments before I killed him. And now, even after being caught in a lie with her vile husband, Lina was still going to war for him. I was very impressed by how loyal she was no matter what was thrown their way, but she’d called my wife a whore and I wasn’t going to let that slide, not even one bit. Before she could spit out another vile word, I was already moving. I held out my hand as I grabbed Asher by the collar, and before anyone could blink, my fist crashed on his jaw again. He gasped in pain,
Chase held the pendant, looking around as his eyes met mine. “This necklace held a spell that stopped Zara from feeling any pain when Asher was cheating on her. It was why she never knew.” I swallowed, the hurt and betrayal becoming more painful by the second. “All of these are lies,” Asher spat out, but Chase was not yet done. “Shut your mouth before I order the kingdom priest to step in,” Chase said. “You can do that then,” Asher mumbled, even though I could tell he was scared. “I will. But I also spoke to the priest's daughter who said that he’d made this spell for you, Asher. And how this spell was shattered on the night of Zara’s bachelorette party.” I sucked in breath without moving as the priest was ushered into the room. He’s old and had been the priest of the kingdom for as long as I could remember. The priest greeted the king by bowing his head as he sat on the table with us. Asher and Lina looked petrified. “So, what do you have to tell us about this?” Chase as
ZARA. Excuse me? It took me a moment to process what I had just heard. A whole moment to figure out the rate of my heartbeat. This whole thing looked like a badly written movie script and I had no idea how much I could take in before I began to scream. It started like a play, with Chase revealing Lina’s branded mark, and how everything was slowly making sense. I replayed the night of the bachelorette party in my head, pieces of the puzzle slowly clicking together. I hadn’t been black out drunk that night… at least, not in the way I made myself believe. The truth was, I wanted to fall into someone else’s arms, to escape, even if just for a moment. It was a farewell to my freedom, a desperate attempt to hold on to something I could control before I got into a marriage that felt like a trap. Even if at that moment, I hadn't thought of it that way. Months before that, maybe even a year, Asher became a completely different person. I slowly started noticing that he was not the man I’
Gasps filled the room as everyone took in the mark on her wrist, the shock most evident on Asher and Lina’s faces. But they didn’t gasp or flinched because they’d both known this all the while and had kept it a secret. I let go of her wrist as she tried to regain her composure. I looked at her and then Asher with satisfaction on my face. “Would you like to explain why you’re wearing a mark that only appears when someone’s slept with another wolf that isn’t their mate?” Lina’s eyes flashed with anger. She tried to hide her hand deeper into her coat, but everyone else had already seen it. The damage had already been done. “What are you playing at, Chase?” My brother yelled, clearly pissed. “What sick game is this?” “You!” Lina screamed at me, her index finger pointed shakily at my face. “You did something to me. You… you’re trying to set me up. That mark you just showed up now. It isn’t real.” “Then why are you desperately trying to make them believe you? Take out your hand and
CHASE. The meeting hadn’t begun officially, but I was already livid. I couldn’t wait to put Asher and Lina in their place and make them pay dearly for everything they’d put Zara through. In a way, I was grateful for them because they were the main reason I was able to find my mate, the love of my life. My queen and the mother of my child. Hopefully, children. But still, it doesn’t dismiss what they’ve done and how much they’ve made her a laughing stock in her own kingdom. ‘Make sure to put them in their damn places,’ Drew growled. I tightened my palms together until it turned into a fist and clenched my jaw. ‘I fucking intend to.’ I knew that organising this meeting meant digging up past trauma for Zara, but it had to be done. Especially given the fact that she had no idea what I was doing. Seeing their ashen faces was the highlight of my mood right now. Gripping the table more, I asked again. “I asked you both a damn question!” I snapped. “Would you like to do the honors or
I blinked at nothingness as the words kept repeating in my head. I was struggling so hard to come to terms with what I had just heard. It has been months since I've been back here, after I was thrown out like scum of the earth and then Chase had stood up for me. But now, I had no idea why I was here. I decided to leave Zakori behind and never look back, but for some reason, that didn't happen. For the longest time, this place had felt like home to me and I didn't know anywhere else. I barely traveled out of the kingdom and state because I didn't need to. I was content with the life I had here. Until the day of the wedding. The day my entire world came crashing down and I couldn't stop it. The place I'd grown up in, the place that used to feel like safety. Now felt like judgment. Like I was stepping into a trial. I wasn't ready for that again. I turned to Chase now, my eyes filled with questions. "Why are we here? I thought we were going to a tropical state or something?" My voi