“Jade, wake up!” My eyes flipped open and I found myself staring into Rowan’s worried eyes. “It’s ok, my love,” he said soothingly. “It was just a dream.” “Nyla,” I whispered. “What about her?” “I have to go and check on her,” I said and got off the bed before Rowan could stop me. “Was your dream about her?” “Yeah, sort of.” I hurried out of the room without even bothering to wear a dressing gown. I needed to see my baby and hold her in my arms. I needed to be sure that she was ok and that nightmare was nothing but a bad dream. “What is it?” I asked her nanny when I saw her carrying Nyla and rocking her gently. “She has been fussing all night,” she said. “I think she’s coming down with a fever.” “What’s going on?” Rowan asked, coming into the room. I carried Nyla from her nanny and I was shocked at how hot she was. “Oh, dear,” I gasped. “She’s
He bent down until his lips were only inches away from mine. “We could have had something beautiful, Jade,” he said softly. His lips brushed against mine as he spoke.“I know, but – ““I don’t want to hear it,” he said sharply, surprising me. He straightened himself and turned away from me.“You can stay here tonight but you must leave tomorrow. That’s not open for negotiation.”He walked out of the apartment and slammed the door behind him. I let out a shaky breath. Good gracious!What was wrong with me? Had I just nearly had sex with my one-time ex? If Sahid hadn’t walked out now, would I have succumbed to his charm and let him seduce me back into his bed? What a mess!“Get a grip on yourself, Jade, “ I told myself. “That’s not why you’re here.”I strode to Sahid’s bar and poured myself a drink. It was going to be a long night here. I knew I was safe tonight but tomorrow was another matter entirely.If Dominic was still alive and out there, then tomorrow might just be my last day al
I was extremely annoyed but there was nothing I could do. As much as I hated the Lycan Alpha’s condescending tone, I couldn’t help but go along with his suggestion.Dominic was still out there waiting for me to show up so that he can kill me. Now, Rowan would have to abandon Nyla to come and rescue me. It made me sick to my stomach to imagine our poor daughter being without us even just for a few days.“I’ll leave,” I said flatly. It had taken all of my courage to arrive at this decision.“Suit yourself,” said the Alpha King. “I will not sacrifice anyone from my pack for your little adventure.”“This isn’t an adventure for me. My life is in danger and you’re refusing to help me.”“You can spin this anyhow you like but my decision is final. You will leave alone.”“Fine!”I marched out from his presence, half hoping that he would call me back and reconsider his stance, but that never happened. I walked out of the palace straight into the streets.The day had begun and people were going
We raced into the palace and went straight to Nyla’s room. She was gasping for breath on her bed and the pack doctor was sitting beside her, holding her little hand.“What’s going on?” I asked. I hopped on the bed beside my daughter and gathered her in my arms.“We have carried out all kinds of tests and placed her on various medications, but nothing seems to be working,” said the elderly doctor. He was the best in the Highlands.“That doesn’t make any sense,” said Rowan. “Jade, didn’t you say that Nyla would recover once we got rid of the necklace?”“Well, not exactly. It was supposed to be destroyed,” I said.“But the only person binding you to it is dead. Shouldn’t Nyla be fine now?”I understood his frustration because I felt the same way. “I don’t know.”He ran a hand through his hair and began to pace across the room. “Get me Tarik!” He barked at the nanny. She ran out of the room immediately like a scared rabbit.Tears ran down my face as I watched my once lively daughter lie l
“Where am I?” I wondered aloud.“In the chasm,” a female voice replied. “It is the realm between life and death.”The woman appeared in front of me. Even in the pitch-black darkness, I could see her clearly. She was divinely gorgeous with platinum blonde hair and turquoise eyes.“Who are you?”“I am Lunaria, daughter of the Moon Goddess,” she replied.“I have never heard of you before. I never knew the Moon Goddess had a daughter.”“She has many children who are the ancestors of all werewolves. We are the gods and goddesses that you all worship alongside our mother.”“Wow… why am I seeing you now? Am I dead?”“No, you’re not dead yet. You’re in a deep sleep.”“You mean like a coma?”“If that’s what you call it, then yes.”I looked around me fearfully. There was nothing to be seen but endless darkness.“How do I get out of here?”“That is entirely up to you.”“What do you mean?”“You have to decide if you truly want to return to your reality or remain here and find the answers to every
“What does that mean? I had nothing to do with that damned necklace!”“But it has become a part of you and you a part of it, like those before you,” Lunaria replied calmly.“I want to be free of it!”“I know.”“Why didn’t you destroy it?”“I didn’t have the will to. Neither did my daughter. She was the first Luna of the Moon Pack and the necklace showed her visions.”“What kind of visions?”“All sorts. It showed her the past and the future. Like me, she gave it away too.”“To who?”“A traveller whom she fell in love with. He was a Gamma from another pack. My daughter loved him but she knew she would never earn the respect of her pack by getting mated to a low-ranking werewolf.”“So she sent him away?”“Yes, with a parting gift. The necklace.”“Why would she do that? Didn’t she see any vision showing her how destructive the necklace was going to be?”“She did, and like me, she didn’t have the heart to say no to her lover who desired the necklace.”“Oh, boy…”“It was his priced possessi
Because of my fragile state, I couldn’t join Rowan and his Betas on the hunt for the necklace. I was so weak that I couldn’t get out of bed.Eating or drinking water was a struggle because my throat kept closing up at intervals. I couldn’t sleep either because whenever I tried to, I had terrifying nightmares.On Rowan’s instruction, Tarik had sent out another announcement, calling for a Moon Pack seer to come to the palace as soon as possible. It was as if all the Moon Pack members had disappeared into thin air.“What’s this wild goose chase you have sent Rowan on?” Ria asked when she came into my room. She’d been staying in the palace since my health issues began on my birthday.“The necklace,” I managed to moan. I felt so uncomfortable but I could tell exactly what was wrong with me.“What stupid necklace?” She snapped. “Ever since you came into this palace, my son has not had a moment of peace in his life.”“That’s not true,” I protested weakly.“Isn’t it? If it is not one of your
“And what’s that?” I asked curiously.What could he offer that would be great enough to entice anyone to surrender their newfound treasure?“Half of everything I own will be given to the one who brings the necklace within a week. The announcement will be made tonight.”“Rowan, you would do that for me?”“Yes, my love. I meant it when I said that you’re the light of my life. I would rather die than watch you die. You are my life.”“Rowan…”“Yes, Jade. I live for you and I’ll be damned if I let one stupid necklace steal you away from me. You’re mine forever.”Whatever I had to say was swallowed up in tears. My love embraced me and consoled me as I wept. I was overwhelmed with love and gratitude for him.How could he offer to share everything that was his with someone who may not be worthy of it just because of me?After he sent the word out, there were murmurs of disagreement across the pack. I wasn’t surprised, in fact, I had expected it.Then there was the issue of his dead mother who
“You’re back,” Rowan whispered happily. I blinked. “Where am I?” “We had to bring you to the pack hospital. Your bones were broken badly from the fall,” he explained. “But don’t worry, you’re the only one here. We cleared out the hospital to give you some privacy.” I looked at him and noticed how tired he looked. There were dark circles under his eyes and his beard was overgrown like his father’s own in the chasm. “I am so sorry,” I apologized. “I have put you through a lot. You don’t deserve any of these troubles you’ve experienced because of me.” “Please, don’t say that,” he replied tenderly. “We are one. You’re my mate and that means that whatever affects you affects me. We’re in this together.” “Thank you,” I whispered. “From the bottom of my heart, I say thank you, Alpha Rowan.” He smiled tenderly. “You’re welcome, Luna Jade. Always and forever.” He leaned down and kissed my forehead softly. “I have some good news for you,” he whispered. “Let me guess, you found the neckl
“Here she is, my lord,” Tarik announced as he led me into Alpha Jaxon’s lair.“Leave us,” he growled and Tarik promptly disappeared.Alpha Jaxon watched me warily like a predator. He was sitting on a wingbacked chair, nursing a goblet of wine. His beard was overgrown and his bloodshot eyes told me that he was piss drunk.“Where have you been?” He asked me. His deep voice rumbled like thunder.“I – I…”“Answer me!” He barked and I nearly peed on myself.Why the hell did I agree to this? Why did I let Lynda talk me into this nonsense? I wasn’t even Sasha, so why should I receive her punishment?“I’m not Sasha,” I blurted out fearfully.“That’s not the answer to my question,” he rumbled again. “I will ask you one more time only.”I swallowed hard. My heart was pounding wildly in my chest.“Where… have… you… been?”I began to shiver with fear. “I am not Sasha,” I repeated stubbornly.He was out of his chair like a shot and was standing in front of me within a second. He grabbed my throat
The last thing I remembered was Albert and Lattie shifting into their wolf forms and meeting Damian mid-air. I don’t even know how I found my way out of the cottage but I did.“I have to get to the Highlands! I have to get to the Highlands!” I chanted again as I ran towards the dock.I couldn’t see Damian but my wolf senses told me that he was already behind me. I could almost feel his breath on my back.As I reached the dock, a boat was just pulling up and the only passenger on it got off through the gangplank. He was a dashing guy that I would recognize anywhere.“Sahid! What are you doing here?”He stared at me blankly. “Who are you?”“It’s me, Jade.”“Watch out!” He yelled and pushed me out of the way.Damian crashed into Sahid, knocking him to the ground. He tried to come after me but Sahid wouldn’t let him. He held onto the Alpha’s hind legs, stalling his movement.“Get away from me, you fool!” Damian shouted and kicked Sahid savagely.Once he broke free from the Lycan’s grip, h
“Slow down, girl. Why are you running?” An old woman asked me.I had reached the southern village and I was heading to the dock to get a boat ride to the Highlands. I’d stopped briefly by an empty stall in the market to catch my breath when the woman showed up.“Are you ok?” She asked.She was standing in the shadows where I couldn’t see her properly but I recognized her voice.“Lattie?”She stepped forward and the moonlight shone on her face. She was staring at me with a puzzled expression.“Do I know you?” She asked.“Not in this life,” I replied plainly. “Where’s Albert? Do you think he’ll be willing to give me a ride to the Highlands?”Lattie was speechless at first. “Who are you?”“My name is Jade. You don’t know me yet or maybe you do and don’t remember, but I know you from another time.”“Child, that doesn’t make sense.”“To you, it doesn’t but to me, it does. Where’s Albert?”“He already packed up and left. I only stayed back this long to sell off my last batch of fresh apples
“You don’t even know me,” I said.“Doesn’t matter,” he replied promptly. “Come here.”I sighed. This new life was filled with more sex than I’d had in my other life. I’m not even sure if that’s a good thing at this point but I could tell that it was purely a physical thing for me at this point.“What a stubborn fellow,” I grumbled under my breath.“I heard that,” he said. “Don’t worry, I’ll make this worth your while.”“Whatever…” I mumbled. An image of Hazim fucking Sasha on her kitchen cabinet flashed through my mind and I nearly gagged. Yikes!“Why do you look like a lamb approaching the slaughterhouse?” He asked me with a chuckle. “You’re not afraid of me, are you?”“No.”“Then what is it?”“I don’t want to have sex with you.”“Oh.” He looked disappointed. “Well, you don’t have to.”I stared at him. “Then how do I get my necklace from you?”He threw it at me and it hit me in the face. That reminded me of that nightmare I had in my other life where Dominic threw the necklace at me.
“Intruders!”My eyes flew open. Hycinth and Lola woke up with a start too. We could hear loud voices outside our tent and what sounded like a stampede.“What’s going on?” I gasped.“That’s what I intend to find out,” Hycinth grumbled. I could tell that he was seriously pissed about being woken up so rudely.We scrambled to get dressed but we were barely halfway through it when Gertrude burst into our tent. Her eyes were wide with fear.“Quick, we have to flee! There’s an army of werewolves out there trying to kill everyone!” She shouted frantically.“Where are they from?” Hycinth asked.“Who cares? There’s too many of them and they’re here for blood.”We ran outside with Hycinth in front and we were shocked to see the chaos going on outside. The enemy werewolves were pouncing on every Gypsy in sight, attacking them viciously.It only took me a few moments to recognize the Alphas leading them. Fear paralysed me. I knew I should run but I simply couldn’t.Hycinth swung into full battle
All Hycinth and I ever did was have sex at the slightest opportunity. We did it anytime and everywhere until Gertrude became annoyed.“You must have been starved of sex in your previous relationship,” she commented one day. “Don’t you ever get tired?” “You could ask Hycinth that too,” I replied cheekily and that silenced her.Hycinth and I were unofficially mates. His mother had tried to choose a mate for him a couple of times because he never felt the mate bond with anyone.According to him, once he’s had sex with them, he loses interest in having a proper relationship with them. He’s had a ‘taste’ of all the young she-wolves in the pack to the annoyance of the elders.“What happens when I eventually leave?” I asked him when we settled down for the night in our tent later that day.“Why would you leave?” He asked with a questioning look.“I can’t stay here forever. I have several unanswered questions burning in my mind.”“Have you regained your memory?”“Uh, no but I’m curious about
“Who is this?” Gertrude asked as we entered the camp.“This is Jade. I rescued her from the jaws of a beast that tried to kill her.”“Why? What did you do?” She asked me.“I don’t know. I don’t remember,” I said. I’m going to stick to my amnesia story and see how this plays out. I didn’t want to get myself in trouble by saying the wrong thing.“She appears to have lost her memory,” said Hycinth.“Something traumatic must have happened to her. Come on, then. Let’s get you cleaned up and fed.”She led me through the camp where everyone stared at me curiously. She assigned Lola and Cherise to take care of me. It felt odd that they didn’t recognize me.“Your wounds are already closing up,” said Lola. “Are you from the Moon Pack? They’re famous for healing faster than every other werewolf.”“No, I’m not. I’m from…” I bit my tongue before I blurted out my identity.“From where?” Cherise asked me.“I don’t remember,” I lied.“It must be very frustrating to not remember anything about your pa
“We’ll send for you when the time is right,” said Damian.It was two days after the tragic stillbirth of Domarius. My birthing injuries had finally healed but I wasn’t ready to be kicked out yet.“Why are you all blaming me for what happened?” I asked softly.“Because you gave us false hopes. We will send for you when we get over this disappointment. Goodbye, Jade.”He shut the door before I could manage to get another word in. So, here I was, mateless and babyless in what should have been my comeback.I went to Nana’s cabin to see where she’d buried the baby’s body. I saw the small mound of sand where she’d put him and my heart broke.“Who’s there?” She asked from inside.“It’s me, Nana,” I replied.She came outside and met me there. Her expression softened when she saw my tear-stained face.“Oh, Jade. Can you ever forgive me?”“There’s nothing to forgive, Nana. What happened wasn’t your fault. I think we both miscalculated the outcome.”“When are the triplets coming to see the baby’