EllaMy cheeks were still flushed from the moment of tension between us. Logan seemed genuinely hurt and offended that I implied that I didn’t believe him, and for reasons that I didn’t want to admit, I hated seeing him like that.So, stumbling over my words, I tried to mend the conversation. “Logan, I didn’t mean to imply that you were lying about your intentions. I just... I wondered if your original plan to actually take down the mafia would ever materialize.”He looked at me, his eyes softening. “Ella, I honestly hope it will. I can’t be entirely sure, but I’ll do everything in my power to make it happen. We have a contract, remember?”My eyes met his, filled with something like relief, mixed with a lingering note of embarrassment. “I’m sorry, Logan. I really am.”He broke into a grin, shattering the intensity of the moment, and lightly punched my arm. “Hey, I’m pulling your leg. I’m not actually offended. I get it, you have every right to be wary. I am the son of a mob boss, afte
EllaThe unexpected sign on the door was like a punch to the gut—a vivid, glaring announcement that one of my favorite spots had been shut down.“CLOSED FOR BUSINESS”, it read. I felt the corners of my mouth turn downward as I stepped“Man, this sucks,” I mumbled, still unable to shake off the disappointment.Logan looked at me, his eyes reflecting a softer hue of concern. “Damn. You seem like you really liked this place.”“Yeah, I did,” I confessed, running a hand through my hair. “I know it’s silly, but they had really good food, and I came here a lot when I was younger. I wonder why they shut down all of a sudden.”He chuckled, a warm sound that instantly reminded me that not everything had to be doom and gloom just because one of my favorite restaurants had closed. I think what really struck me more than anything, though, was the fact that it just reminded me of the fact that not everything could stay the same.“Well,” Logan said, “I guess we’ll have to find somewhere else to go.
Logan I was eight years old. The walls of our house were cold and uninviting, filled with the scent of cigars and the persistent feeling of tension. My father’s office was the epitome of this atmosphere—a sanctuary of order and discipline. Mahogany desk, leather chair, and shelves teeming with meticulously arranged books. He sat at his desk with the stern posture that always intimidated me, his icy eyes scanning through documents on his laptop. “Dad, can we go to the fair? Matty and Greg are going with their families,” I said, barely containing my excitement. I clutched a crumpled flyer for the fair in my tiny hand, complete with pictures of cotton candy, carousels, and game booths. But my other hand was clenched nervously into a fist, my knuckles white with anticipation. Leonard’s gaze lifted from his computer and met my eager eyes. His face was like a chiseled statue, cold and unyielding. “A fair?” he sneered, as if the word itself was a blemish on his refined vocabula
EllaThe carousel slowed to a gentle stop, its enchanting melody fading away into the night air, replaced by the laughter and chatter of families and couples around us. I stepped off the platform, feeling like I had just traveled back in time to a simpler era of my life—one that I often yearned for, even now as an adult.Logan, his face glowing in the wash of colorful lights from the ride, looked like a man who had just conquered a personal demon, albeit one dressed up in the innocent colors and nostalgic sounds of a carnival game.“Well?” I asked, my eyes searching his for a trace of the boy who never got to ride a carousel. “How did you enjoy your first carousel ride, Mr. Barrett?”His grin was my answer, wide and genuine, a snapshot of pure joy that I wished I could freeze in time.“I know it’s silly, but thank you for doing that with me,” he quipped, his voice tinged with an emotion I couldn’t quite place—perhaps nostalgia, or maybe relief.I shrugged, thumbing the brass ring that
Ella“The Ferris wheel?” I asked, cocking my head at Logan.Logan nodded, a soft smile gracing his lips. “Yeah. Will you come with me?”Maybe out of the fear of getting closer to him, I blanched slightly at the prospect. “You know that’s the ride people either take their small children on or where couples go to make out, right?”I said, unable to hide a hint of blush that crept into my cheeks at the thought.Logan turned to me, his eyes mirroring the lights of the carnival. “Stop being such a downer, Ella. I promise I won’t try anything. I just want to see the city from up high. Don’t you?”Something in the way he said it—so earnest, so innocent—made me relent. “Okay,” I sighed. “Let’s go.”The cart—small, intimate, and barely large enough for the two of us—awaited as the Ferris wheel descended to greet us. Logan allowed me to step in first, a courteous gesture that both touched me and stoked the fire of conflicting emotions burning in my belly.As we ascended, the world below us shran
EllaSleep was as elusive as ever that night.I tossed and turned, the sheets twisting around me until I felt utterly restricted. First I was too hot, then too cold, then scared of the monsters under the bed. I found myself checking the lock on the door, opening and closing my blinds, and turning this way and that until I finally began to give up hope all together.I had never been one to sleep well in a hotel room. Ever since I was a little kid, I always preferred sleeping in my own bed. I recalled going to a handful of slumber parties, only to be calling my parents in the middle of the night, asking to come home.And that wasn’t all that lurked in the shadows, either. In the dark, my thoughts always seemed to circle around me like black specters. Tonight in particular, those thoughts revolved around Logan: our kiss earlier, our complicated feelings, and most of all, his meeting with my parents in the morning.I found no solace because of this, not even in the luxury of this swanky h
LoganThe drive to the restaurant the next morning was a tangled mess of tension and silence.Ella was visibly nervous, her hands darting to her hair every so often, running her fingers through the wavy strands as if that simple act could calm her racing heart. From where we sat in the back of our cab, I wanted to reach out and comfort her in some way.But after everything that had happened the night before, I was hesitant.“Don’t do it again,” she had said after I kissed her.It really wasn’t intentional. I wouldn’t have done it if it weren’t for the way that she looked so beautiful beneath the theme park lights, if it weren’t for the way that the powdered sugar stuck to her lips and made her look all the more sweet.My wolf had pulled me closer then, and I wasn’t able to resist. She had tasted just as sweet and delicious as she looked, and I could tell that she wanted to kiss me, too. But when we had pulled away, she was colder than ever.She was cold, too, on the balcony, even thou
EllaThe moment my dad said that line—about Logan ‘stealing away his little girl’—my cheeks felt like they were on fire. My dad always seemed like he knew exactly how to stir the pot, to bring that embarrassing dad humor into even the most nerve-wracking situations.And the worst part was, Logan thought that he was being completely serious. I could see it in Logan’s face; the way his eyes went ever so slightly wide. He was trying to hide it, but I could tell.“Dad, take it easy,” I chided, punching my father’s arm lightly. “Can you play nice for one day?”My father chuckled, the corners of his lips pulling up into that trademark smirk of his. “I’m just joking,” he teased, his eyes meeting Logan’s. “Really, I’m happy that my daughter has met her fated mate. Please, let’s sit.”We took our seats, and the tension began to dissipate, floating up into the air along with all of the other sights, smells, and sounds of the fancy restaurant.I still remembered when my father was a serious man.