I wasn't going to wait around or call her back to answer any more questions, but I needed to get answers somehow. And I certainly wasn't going to ask Leander. Abruptly, Ever was standing behind me. I turned to face him."So, are you done laughing at them?" His lips twitched.I couldn't help the grin that spread across my face. "How did you know?""You made quite an impression...by doing nothing at all. Well, you did giggle at the six most formidable shewolves in the Pack, so maybe that's something." He rubbed his chin. "After this morning, Leander was worried a fight was unavoidable. Once again, he was wrong about you."Ever's words surprise me. He almost sounded impressed."I know what I can do. I didn't feel the need to prove anything."He nodded and mused, "You're good for him," and then he added, "Never thought I'd say that."I didn't bother to analyze his words. "Where next?""First, the collar...and then my house."That damn collar. I narrowed my eyes.He tensed as he watched me
LEANDER'S POV I'd paced a path through the carpet in my office, anxiety running rampant through my body. Hycinth was in good hands with Ever, but it didn't stop me from stressing, particularly after her interaction with Sydney this morning. I cringed. Of all the shit conversations to have, my little mouse had somehow convinced me to give her a list of my past lovers! I cursed myself again and again for allowing that to happen. Nothing good would come of it.Of course, I hadn't expected Sydney to come off with that level of aggression. That part surprised me. Maybe it shouldn't have. Sydney hadn't been pleased when I broke it off with her three years ago. Truthfully she'd been relatively relentless in trying to change my mind over the years, but I couldn't do it.I told Ever to remove her collar during her session with Sydney and her team of she-wolves because I'd been sure a fight would break out. I'd even thought about attending the session myself, trying to head off the problem, bu
Ever just stood, staring at me silently, his expression a mixture of frustration and lost hope. Because he too knew the answer, she would never believe me. I said quietly, "You need to go home. It's been a week since Gwen finished her heat. She's going to need you tonight."Now his expression looked pained for an entirely different reason. His mate had finished her heat seven days ago, and within hours, he would either scent a pup in her belly, or she would begin the process of expelling the birthing byproduct no longer needed in the absence of a pup.He nodded, turned and left.I sank back down into the chair. After another moment, I finished my drink. I missed my little mouse. There was still some daylight left, and there was some place I wanted her to see."Where are we going?" She looked up at me curiously as we walked through the woods."A place of refuge and adventure I went to as a young pup.""Oh," she breathed and then lapsed into silence.After a moment, I asked, "Did you se
Everthing I WantHycinthThe water pounded onto my skull, hot and burning. Steam billowed in the space around me, clouding the air and fogging up the transparent glass walls, making it impossible to see through them. Not that I could see anyway. My eyes were red and puffy, swollen from my tears. I listened to the sound the water made coming out of the shower head. It echoed in my ears, resounding with its own heartbeat in my head. I was desperate for it to drown out all of my other senses -to make me numb. I wanted to forget what I'd just seen...what I'd just heard. The tortured wails of a shewolf, unfathomable, heart-wrenching cries of pain ripping from her throat. Her mate, on his knees, crying for her pain and also his own. I've never seen anything like it before. I've never heard anything like it before.I understood everything now.I understood why Leander was so desperate for this claiming ceremony to happen. Gwen wasn't the only she-wolf struggling in the Pack. Over the last f
Wicked GamesLeanderI'd dealt with some messed up shit in the past but never pain like this. My heart felt like it was going to explode from my chest. My head was pounding, and my Wolf was howling mournfully, his agony echoing mine. So that was it. She told me everything I needed to know. And she had a foolproof plan to make everyone happy- everyone except me.I'd told her how I felt- I wanted her as my real mate.And she told me how she felt she was never going to be capable of loving me.Fuck, those words hurt.I looked up to find myself in my office. I didn't remember walking there. Robotically, I headed toward a $600 bottle of Bourbon I'd been saving for a special occasion, opened the top and turned it up to my lips, drinking straight from the bottle. It burned as it went down -it was precisely what I needed. Right now I needed to be numb to the world because if I unleashed the chaos inside of me, I knew I had the potential to do a lot of damage in some form or another.I settled
HYACINTHS'S POVHe'd said yes.He'd agreed to my deal.I couldn't believe it. I was going to have my freedom in a little more than a month from now! I was going to get to walk away and never look back. I wouldn't have to run from him anymore. I'd made him promise last night, swear on his life to stick to the arrangement once I was gone. He'd agreed. He'd sworn he wouldn't try to look for me. He would let me go. His only other condition of our arrangement was complete secrecy. The pack could not know about our agreement until it was over. He didn't want them to worry. I was fine with that.I was getting everything I wanted, so why did it feel like a large part of my heart had been ripped out of my chest?I pushed the feeling away. I couldn't dwell on it. I didn't have time. Most of the wolves were already gathered outside. Shockingly, they had pulled together all of the arrangements for our Announcement Ceremony in less than eighteen hours.I looked out the window, down at the wide ope
LEANDER'S POV As soon as I walked into the room, Hycinth got off the bed and faced me. She stared at me for a long moment, expression contrite at first. But then it slowly transitioned into fury."What the fuck happened?" I snarled. The Ceremony she'd just recklessly ruined with her hot-headedness was meant to give the wolves in the pack an outlet to express their appreciation and thanks. That certainly wasn't how it turned out.I couldn't believe she'd put me in that position! An open challenge always required a public punishment. There was no way that she was ignorant of that fact, and yet instead of talking to me, like I asked her to do, she decided to issue an openhanded challenge right across my cheek!If she'd done that in private, I would've handled it differently. But she didn't. And my Wolf would never allow that disrespect to go unpunished.So here we were, glaring at each other, and I was hoping for an explanation soon, which didn't look like it was forthcoming with the wa
Ever had told me she owned a tattoo parlor, but for some reason, I never anticipated she would have tattoos, primarily because pure silver extract had to be added to the ink. Otherwise, our bodies would reject the ink and heal around it. But using silver made the normal pain of getting a tattoo about a hundred times worse.And she didn't just have one cute little heart or flower on her belly. No, she had a stunning Phoenix nestled between her breasts, its wings fanning out over her pert mounds, but designed so that the flesh around her nipples was left untouched- looking as though they were peeking out alluringly from behind the bird. And if that were not enough visual titillation, the tail of the bird curled around the entire left side of her torso and flared out into beautiful swirls and tail feathers covering her belly. Like her nipples, the skin around her belly button was left untouched revealing an enticing belly button piercing.The design continued low on her stomach, flowing
I remembered screaming for a minute before my world blacked out and I lost consciousness. When I woke up, the first thing that struck me was the thick scent of death and blood. I didn't want to imagine where I was or who had taken me but there was an idea in my head.Just an hour before I was blacked out, I recalled a man I knew warning me that they were coming for me. I ignored all the flags waving in front of me and continued with my life.The Alpha of the Night shade pack Cade.He had me.I placed my hand underneath and pressed my palm against the cold, unknown ground. My eyes opened wide, but I couldn't see anything. It was pitch-black and silent as a graveyard.And my hands were tied.The ropes were digging into my wrists as I tried to break free. My hands were tied behind my back therefore every time I stood up, I fell back on the ground without any hope.A few seconds later, when I began feeling my sore legs, I quickly realized that my feet were tied together. My shoes were ta
In the middle of the morning, my phone began ringing and buzzing. I thrashed over the bed, my eyes still closed and a pain sweeping through my head. My hand stretched and reached for the phone. I wanted to silence and cut the call, but a glimpse of the unknown number at the caller ID tore the sleep right through me and forced me up.I picked up the call and heard heavy breathing on the other end for a few seconds before the man spoke up. "They are onto you." He said, giving me a warning. "Be careful."I didn't say anything but I knew the person who had called to warn me. A few more seconds passed before the call ended. I pulled the phone away from my ears. My heart thudded hard against my chest.Fuck. I groaned at myself while rubbing my forehead, hoping the throbbing would leave me for a minute.They were onto me.By saying "they" , he meant Alpha Cade of the Night shade pack. He was also among the Alpha's that worked with Dagger to bring me down. He was among the bastards that wante
HYCINTH’S POVThere was no peace.Not in this world. I had no peace and I no longer wanted it.I think I had cried for exactly six months before wiping my own tears and setting my focus on something else, my revenge. There wasn't a single day I hadn't thought about my unborn child that was viciously murdered by someone who had a grudge against me. I had mercy before but right now I didn't have that in me.I wanted that bitch."Please, please, don't kill him. He hasn't done anything to you." The naked woman nearby begged, her hands clasped together and meeting with her chest.I never looked in the direction of weakness. Not since I ran away from Leander and came here, hoping to find peace. The world ahead of me was red, full of blood, death, and an urge to kill. And I wanted to revenge for everything. Yes everything happened, l lost my unborn pup but luckily the moment I left Leander the moon goddess helped me and gave me back my wolf.Before getting it, I spent nights and days cryin
LEANDER'S POVEverything good had to come to an end.It was how the world worked. Even with all the riches and power, no one could save anyone from death. There was no such thing as immortality or giving one a life. There were two instances where I had ever cried, one was where my mother died, where I couldn't do anything to bring her back, where I felt the weakest of all, where I felt nothing could help me and the second time was when my unborn child was killed.Same feelings.Same emotions.Different people.Different deaths.One's grave was big and the other one was small. The tears were the same and the pain was the same. But I never thought I was ever going to cry for someone who was living, breathing right next to me. It took courage and a lot of strength to love someone and seeing them going through pain was worse than the pain of any death.When I held Hycinth in my arms after her surgery of abortion, I wept like a child while she struck her fists into my chest, screaming how
Every body moved away, creating a path for us as l moved quickly. I clutched Hycinth to my chest as she writhed and began to groan in pain. The guard's eyes widened as they saw Hycinth spitting up blood in my arms. “Guard around the pack, no one in , no one out , there might be a reason why she is vomiting blood”, l shouted at my beta, Ever brushing past him to run.I didn’t wait for his response.Gwen was running behind me as I raced for the pack’s infirmary. My heart was beating painfully in my chest as l pushed myself faster than I had ever moved before. “Lay her on the bed here”, Gwen gestured to the first open bed and l gingerly laid Hycinth on bed. I held her head to the side so she wouldn’t choke on the dark colored blood. “Hycinth my darling, can you hear me?”, My voice was strained as l held her face and brushed her hair back from her forehead.A cold sweat was forming on her face and she continued to spasm in pain. Somehow her cloudy eyes seemed to find me and her lips moved
I wasn't sure if Hycinth's surprised response and rapid heartbeat were related to Sydney's actions or my reference to her as my Luna. "I can only tell you what I've seen. I really do think her punishment changed her perspective, and again, we will discuss it with her to confirm exactly where she stands now, but she has held you in her lap while kissing your hair and whispering softly spoken sentiments of affection. She watched over you whenever I was forced to leave your side and whenever I returned, she never failed to whisper a loving goodbye to you.Hycinth blinked, her eyes taking on a glistening shine. After a long moment she said softly, "Okay."Transitioning back to our original conversation, I asked quietly, "Were there any other reasons you kept our daughter from me?""No," Hycinth whispered. "I've always known you would be a good father. I knew you would come for her...you would save her." Expression turned glassy, utter anguish radiated through the bond.Still connected to
Leander's povHycinth's startled lake-blue eyes quickly cut from person to person.Her audience sat in rapt attention, smiles and excitement radiating on their faces, waiting for her to say something.But Hycinth's countenance reflected a far different reaction from theirs. Brows furrowing closer with each sweep of her confused gaze, Hycinth abruptly clutched her rounded abdomen protectively and sank as far away into the bed as she could.Instantly, I delved into her mental state, dreading what I would find.FearApprehensionMistrustMy heart dropped.Certainly not the happy reunion I had foolishly hoped for. Hycinth sucked in a harsh breath, unable to keepup with her continuously accelerating heartbeat.She blinked back tears.Without even a word to coordinate their identical reactions, Ever, Asher and Milo all stepped forward and lifted their mates. "Time to go," Ever spoke gruffly. Expression stricken, Gwen reached toward Hycinth, her mouth opening but no sound came out as Ever c
Glancing over, I found Gwen's expression radiating with happiness, tears streaming down her face.Confused by both of their responses and fearful of the unknown, Ever asked urgently, "What...what's happening?"Eyes wide, Gwen whispered, "It's a mate bond.""What?" Ever asked blankly while I echoed with my own shocked, "What the hell?""It feels like the first time I saw you," she giggled softly.Ever shook his head. "But that's not possible.""I don't know how to explain it. It just feels that way."I had no idea what Gwen had actually felt, but I agreed with Ever. I'd never heard of such a thing before.Refocusing on Hycinth, Gwen gently smoothed a strand of hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear.After a long moment, Ever murmured, "I think we should bring Willow in." "Ooh, that's a good idea," Gwen instantly agreed and looked up at me expectantly.I held a hand up. "Wait. I don't know about that. Yes, Hycinth seemed to react well, but what if more people becomes too much
Ever squeezed my shoulder."I intend to stay by her side and take care of her until she's awake."Quiet agreement was murmured as they nodded their heads. Eagerness to help was transparent on their faces.From the corner of my eye, I saw Gwen carefully make her way through the crowd toward me. Once she reached my side, her little chin came up, fierce determination in her expression. "Leander, let me help you care for her."I hesitated. "That's okay. I can handle it."Clearly unwilling to take no for an answer, she continued, "Leander, I know you love her but she is going to need more care than just you. Ever explained a little bit of what you're dealing with. I love her too. I knew there was no way she was aware of the full atrocities her parents had inflicted. She couldn't. Her innocence was too transparent and her sweetness of spirit. Nobody is that good of an actress. I am your Beta Female. Now, let me do my job."From my back, Ever murmured, "I think it's a good idea."Somewhat su