(Leo Bloodstone POV)Why did I take Piper to a comedy show for our first date? Because I knew things about Piper. Many things. Things that she did not even know that I knew about her. And those things included the fact that she had wanted to go to a live comedy show for a long time.Did I feel guilty about using what I secretly knew about Piper to make her start to fall in love with me? No. Not even a little bit. I was willing to use whatever trick I needed to use —regardless of whether it was dirty, ethical, or borderline— to get her safely where she needed to be, which was by my side.To be fair, securing Piper was not exactly easy for me. My eagerness to get Piper to fall in love with me included doing things far outside my comfort zone.Case in point: the comedy show. That was not at all what I had pictured for our first date. There was nothing formal or romantic about it. There wasn’t music or dancing. Most she-wolves that I knew would not be caught dead in the venue
(Jenny Brogan POV)My mate, Nick, and I have finally arrived at the Bloodstone Pack. It is the 75th and largest pack that we have visited in the last year. From what I can see so far, the pack itself is beautiful, but I am exhausted and not really in the mood to be here.Our official reason for travelling so much this year is that Nick and I need to find a new pack to live in. That is definitely true, but it is only half the story.I do not like talking about painful memories, but suffice it to say, Nick and I have struggled the past several years. That is thanks, in large part, to some really horrible things that each of our sisters did. Although I eventually helped expose our sisters’ misdeeds, I made some huge mistakes of my own along the way, and as a result, the relationship between Nick and I almost fell apart completely. In fact, we lived apart for over a year.Thankfully, Nick and I eventually reconciled, and we are in a good place now. However, I am still haunted by some
(Piper POV)I woke up when I felt the enjoyable warmth of sunlight hit my face. I stretched my arms and legs, realizing that I felt well-rested for the first time in several days.I opened my eyes and rolled over, expecting to see Leo. He was not there. However, on his pillow, he left me a note:“Little Pea –Sorry for not being here when you woke up. I needed to get a workout in before our guests arrive, and you looked too peaceful to wake up.I will meet you for breakfast with our family at 8 am.Leop.s. I had a great time last night.”I couldn’t help but smile as I read Leo’s note, and his use of the word “our” when referring to his family made my heart sing. I started to wonder why I had ever allowed Xander to talk me into running away from my wedding. If I had stayed, could Leo and I have been happy together all this time? Could I have been with my family and friends, instead of missing them and worrying about them? No, Leo wasn’t my mate… but that did not seem to matter
(Piper POV)Obviously, I survived that round of pain. No surprise there. You may think that my fear that I might drown was an overreaction, and maybe it was. But I did not know how long the pain was going to last or how bad it was going to be, and the rounds that preceded it had been absolutely awful. I was not exaggerating when I said that it was really hard to move during them.Unfortunately, consistent with my fears, the “bathtub wave” of pain was probably the worst it had been yet. Thankfully, though, adrenaline helped me get myself out of the bathtub, and I was able to lay myself on the floor (in the fetal position) just in time. Also thankfully, this round of pain only lasted for about 15 minutes… although fifteen minutes was, of course, 15 minutes too long to listen to Penelope whimper inside my head.In any event, once the pain passed and Penelope and I were able to catch our breath, I quickly took a shower and got dressed. I also took an extra dose of the herbs, hoping
(Ingrid POV)Some days… most days… I really hate Leo Bloodstone. Today is one of those days. Ever since things ended between us, he has acted like he is better than me, like I am disposable, like I do not mean anything to him. And now he is also behaving like his precious blond is better than me too. Like hell any of that is true.To make matters worse, ever since Axel had a stupid little accident last year, Leo has also been judging me for my parenting decisions, and for the way that I run my sh&t show of a life. He likes to conveniently forget that I am raising Axel by myself, without a father, because of choices that he himself made. Despite what Leo likes to tell himself, any she-wolf in my situation would be behaving the same way that I am. I am certain of it.My phone rings, drawing my attention away from the pity party that I have thrown for myself. Answering my phone requires getting up off the couch —because my phone is currently plugged into a charger in the kitchen—
(Leo Bloodstone POV)“I don’t understand. Why is the werewolf council an off-limits conversation? Isn’t it going to be natural for them to want to talk about it, given who Nick’s sister is?”I sighed.After breakfast, Piper and I had stepped into a small conference room so that we could talk before we met with Nick and Jenny Brogan for the first time.To her credit, Piper was not angry with me when I asked her to avoid talking about certain subjects with them. However, she was genuinely confused… and I was not enjoying having to lie to her.“Yes, they probably will bring it up. But I will try to steer the conversation away from the council as much as I can, and I would appreciate it if you did the same.”Piper continued to look at me with her big, beautiful, confused eyes.“But… why?”“Because I do not want to talk about anything that might lead to questions about who you are and where you came from.”“But I don’t know anyone on the werewolf council, and I never have. Why would ta
(Leo Bloodstone POV)After taking a minute to readjust ourselves… and a second minute to steal another short kiss… Piper and I walked hand-in-hand to the large conference room. The room was designed with a large but cozy seating area as well as two traditional conference room tables. I used to think that it was strange that this room was designed that way, and even stranger that my father often used this room for welcoming out-of-town guests. However, I eventually came to appreciate the wisdom: the enclosed room offered privacy; the seating area provided for a welcoming greeting; the single entrance allowed control over who left and entered the space; and the large size ensured that my father could have many guards spread out, watching and on the ready without their presence seeming obnoxious or overwhelming.As Piper and I walked inside the room, we immediately spotted my parents sitting on a couch in the seating area section and we walked towards them. A young, nicely dressed
(Nick Brogan POV)Just before we separated into two groups, I took a minute to talk to Jenny privately. “What the hell were you doing earlier?” I asked her.“What do you mean?” she asked innocently.I scowled at her. “You know exactly what I mean.”She sighed.“Fine. But it’s her, Nick.”“I figured that much out.”“So then why are you upset with me?”Frustrated, I put my hands over my face.“Do you have any idea who the Bloodstones are, Jenny? They destroy other packs for sport. You were practically taunting them.”“I just wanted to get information about her while I could.”“You had all the subtlety of a pickaxe.”“Was it really that bad?”“Worse. You seemed like you were on the attack. Leo looked like he was ready to kill both of us. That’s why I mind-linked you to back off.”Jenny frowned.“Don’t you think it is strange, though?”“What?”“The marriage. She isn’t his fated mate, and she doesn’t smell like she is a ranked wolf.”“So? You weren’t a ranked wolf before we met e