(Leo Bloodstone POV)Something is wrong with Piper.I was so distracted and angry after that confrontation with Ingrid that I did not notice it at first, but there is definitely something going on. But for the fact that we are going to see the doctor, I would refuse to move another inch until Piper tells me whatever it is that she is holding back. Worried, I walk with Piper into the hospital. We take the elevator to the fourth floor, which is where Dr. Tuttle’s office is located.Just as the elevator doors begin to close, we hear a male voice yell out “Hold the Elevator!!!!”. My instinct is to ignore the request, but Piper’s instincts are obviously different. She reaches out and pushes the “hold” button.Moments later, a young male wolf jumps on the elevator with us. His clothes are disheveled and he reeks of sex. He is not one of my pack members, but I recognize him. He is Dr. Tuttle’s nephew, and he is here for the summer doing a medical school internship.“Oh, hi Alpha,” h
(Piper POV)Ten minutes later, and we are now in Dr. Tuttle’s office. Dr. Tuttle is behind his desk, with Kade seated on his far-right side. Meanwhile, I am seated on Leo’s lap, which is the only place he would even consider letting me sit after he saw Kade sitting there. I briefly considered demanding that I have my own seat, because Leo’s jealousy and possessiveness were a little obnoxious. However, I figured it was easier to just cooperate with him so that we could focus on the meeting and getting the answers that we need.“And you like sitting on his lap,” Penelope reminds me. “You also find his possessiveness to be a turn-on.”Urgh. Okay, fine. She is right. But Leo doesn’t need to know that. No one else needs to know that either. Dr. Tuttle starts off our meeting with what should be good news.“The lab ran several tests on the herbs, and Kade and I did research on this particular combination. It turns out that it was frequently used by wolf spies in the 1800s, befo
(Piper POV)Leo made no secret of the fact that he was not happy when we left Dr. Tuttle’s office.When we got back to the packhouse, we sat down side-by-side on a shaded bench in the garden to talk about it. Thankfully, no one else was around… although I am pretty sure that was because Leo mind-linked everyone to leave.“Little Pea, you can’t take the herbs again.”“You said it would be my decision, Leo. And you heard what the doctor said.”He rubbed his hand down his face. “I did say that. And it is your decision. But… not really. I’m sorry, Little Pea, I really am… but I can’t let you take the herbs again.”I glared at him. Was he really going to go back on his word? I tried to move over to put more distance between us, but he pulled me closer to him instead. I resisted, but he was stronger than me. He used one hand to tilt my chin up so that I was looking directly in his eyes. “Little Pea, I know what I promised you. But my gut… it is rarely wrong. Those herbs are da
(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—