Aria's pov; I expected the banquet to be everything but what was in front of me. As soon as the huge doors were pushed open by guards, all the attention of everyone in the hall turned in on us. At first it was like a dream but the more stares fell on us, the more nervous I became. There was no way Orion wasn't feeling how sweaty my palms had become in an instant while wrapped in his. Rather than trying to pull away, I held on tighter, secretly fearing for my life that among all these stares, there was definitely a few or more that held ill intentions toward me. "It's alright. You can be how you like. I'm here with you," Orion whispered to me as we began to make our way to the first seat of the hall. It was surprising and yet suffocating how much he controlled the attention of this much crowd. If it was up to me, the only thing I would do at this point was escape from this hall that reeked of money and evil, then flee for my life. I didn't fail to notice the glares of a
Aria's pov; "It's my pleasure to meet you tonight, Alpha Orion. There haven't really been much news about you for the past months," said an old man, his colored teeth on full display. As soon as he said his greetings to Alpha Orion, his squinted eyes turned to me, with a very innocent look on. Unlike the others who despite the fake smiles they had on their evil intent was still very clear in their eyes, that of the old man was very much innocent, almost as if he wasn't born to this world and was too pure. "Young miss, you are truly like an angel....," he said, now smiling wider at me and before I knew it, one of my hands was already in between his palms as he patted away. I dared to look into his eyes, shocked at his boldness and friendliness at the same time. In his eyes were nothing but pure emotions. Emotions which would be difficult to find in a place like this full of the wealthy and their ill intentions on getting more wealthy. "Umm...," I started to say nervous
Aria's pov; There was no way I could forget the same name I saw on the documents that got Ronald all fired up and even my mother had been protective of one that looked just the same. The old man Rodriguez kept smiling at me, not even trying to shy away and his grip on my hand became firmer even as he continued to pat my hand. For an old man who should have been reserved and laid back on interacting with me, he seemed not to care at all about what others thought. If anything, he was far too happy to even pay attention to them. "Oh Aria, don't you remember Rodriguez anymore?" Orion spoke, finally joining in the little conversation. His question finally piqued my interest, making me turn to look at him and then back at the old man. Was I supposed to know this man at all? I dared to take a proper look at him but even so, it didn't strike my brain that I had possibly come across him in the past. To me now, he was just a total stranger but from the way Orion spoke, it se
Aria's pov; "Mate!" my wolf internally growled, stirring awake. Even though her enthusiasm was weak-willed, I was dissatisfied with the fact that she still held on to what had happened in the past. The loss of the child that had been in my belly had caused her to be more quiet than before and I expected her to show hatred towards the said man who was meant to be our mate but instead, here she was, waking from her slumber just at the mere inhalation of his scent. Wasn't this betrayal of my wolf? I rid myself of the thought, choosing to go with the fact that she hadn't done much other than calling him with less enthusiasm than she used to. At least it was better than being horny for him. Was it not? I didn't realize how long it was since I was staring and battling with myself. It wasn't until I heard the crowd go quiet and felt a piercing gaze on me did I realize what was going on. The crowd was no longer blocking the entrance and instead, in all his glory, with a black su
Aria's pov; "Mind sharing the gist with me?" I wasn't the least bit surprised to hear Ronald's voice interrupting whatever it was that was Orion had been saying. Thanks to the one scent that still smelled as intoxicating as ever and also brought back memories that shouldn't have been occupying space in my head. I wished for these memories to get buried along with what happened but instead, each second, each minute, I was reminded of the feeling of his hands creating circles on my bare back while I laid on him, breathing in his scent and enjoying how much peace it used to bring to me. Was it meant to be like this? Was I supposed to have these thoughts and feelings after everything. Each time, seeing his face had been only but a cruel reminder of the knife stabbing into my chest, telling and reminding me of what I lost. As if in sync, at certain times, my belly pulled sharply in pain, mocking the feelings I had, showing me how stupid I was for still having them. I f
Aria's pov: Never! I would never cry because of this again! This was the assurance I gave myself but it couldn't be helped that my vision had become very blurry all of a sudden. The more I tried to fight against my tears, the more it became vexed, wanting to show all the more. It was almost as if it had a life of its own and was ready to proclaim its existence despite my adamance. No amount of effort i was putting in showed in any way. How could someone be battling with their inner self like I was? Well, as it turned out, I wasn't like every other person and my situation was still very complicated even if I already ended it all. "Come on, let's go. We don't have to face him if you don't want to," Orion whispered silently, his voice filled with so much assurance that I almost had a doubt in myself and the resolve I managed to build. I opened my mouth to speak but not even a sound managed to escape my lips. To make matters worse, I tried to move but instead, it seemed like
Aria's pov; The urge to burst out in laughter was suddenly stronger than every other feeling I had been having. It surprised me how much a few words from him could get me roused to this point. Wasn't the goal not to be affected by anything he did or said? Or even the past? And yet, the one thing I wanted to do right now was to scream in his face for having so much audacity as this. After what happened, how could he be so bold to ask of this from me? "Look at her. Isn't she a slut? Not only does she want Alpha Orion for herself but she's also not ready to leave the other man! Shameless!" Slowly, the voices of the ladies around began to filter into my ears. "Talking about the other man, do you know what pack he belongs to? I'm only seeing him for the first time and anyone that's able to get an invitation in here is not ordinary. Can anyone tell me who he is, maybe he'll be my next target?" Laughed another, each one of them giggling amongst themselves but mostly staring at
Aria's pov; After just two steps, purple shiny heels suddenly appeared in my line of sight since my eyes had been on the floor. "Looks like you're still very much alive and you've gotten yourself a new man too!" There was no way I didn't remember whose voice it was. My heart skipped a bit as I slowly raised my head, facing my nemesis. None other than Esmeralda who, despite what she did, was standing before me with a smug smile on her face, while holding Damien's arm tightly, leaning on him. With one quick look at her, without as much as acknowledging Damien's presence, I turned to Orion. "Let's get going. Maybe you can show me around," I said, smiling softly at him and the concerning look on his face gave me a bit of reassurance that at least, someone other than my mother cared. Speaking about my mother, I needed to look for what it was I had come here for. If I wasn't careful enough, it was possible to get carried away by all of this and in no time, I'd go back
ARIA'S POV; " Please, can we talk later? Do you promise to call me so we can talk? I'm so sorry about yesterday. I didn't know anything about those things that happened," another string of Damien's apology filtered into my ears for the tenth time that morning. Sleep had been so far from me throughout the night and sharing a room with my mother hadn't been pleasant due to her insistence on trying to get me to talk to her. At times like this, I wondered if she was being inconsiderate and not even giving me time to think about the shocking information I had only gotten to know about yesterday. As I made my way out of Damien's mansion with my luggage in tow, and only one place in mind for me to head to, I ignored Damien who kept trying to talk to me. Call me petty but knowing his parents had a hand in the misfortune of my father and if worse, his miserable death was all shades of angering. Knowing I'd possibly have no choice but to listen to him sooner or later or have hi
ARIA'S POV; I stepped into Damien's room, feeling a mix of nerves and anticipation. Every bit of confidence I had before stepping into his home crumpled in an instant. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was determined to learn. Damien closed the door behind me and gestured to the pole in the center of the room. "Okay, first things first, we need to get you comfortable with the pole." I was glad there was no form of talk or awkward discussion and we were just going to get right into it. I nodded, my eyes fixed on the shiny metal rod. Damien walked over to me and handed me a pair of high heels. "Put these on. You'll need to get used to dancing in them." I took the shoes and slipped them on, feeling the familiar click of the heels on the floor. Damien nodded in approval. "Good. Now, let's start with some basic moves." I was glad I had chosen to put on a trouser and a crop top before coming here and to avoid me being in an awkward situation. I pulled off my jacket, handin
Aria's pov; "Look me in the eyes and say all you just said now and I promise I'd let you go and would never appear in your sight again," said Ronald, tightening his hand around while but the seriousness in his voice and the air being thick with tension was the only thing that reminded me not to push this further than I already have. I didn't have to turn to look at him to know he was dead serious and this itself was like being monitored and my hands being tied together, unable to do a thing. "Aria, look me in the eyes and say all you just said again and I swear it, I'll let you go," said Ronald for the second time in all seriousness. My hand which I was just about to pull out of his remained frozen, different thoughts and scenarios running through my head. There were only two ways to this thing. If I truly wanted him out of my life and only claimed him to be a buyer, then by all means, I ought to let him go. Instead, I couldn't find myself doing that and it was as if I co
ARIA'S POV; I've always had a thing with laying on the bed and then closing my eyes, fully aware of my surroundings. As best as I could, it was a coping mechanism of shutting myself out from the things I had to face after waking. The smell of disinfectant and drugs hadn't been familiar since the past month when I didn't have to visit my father in the hospital again. I let my eyes remain closed, only letting my ears do the work of figuring out our surroundings and my nose also do a bit of work. Aside the strong smell of disinfectant, there was the scent of Ronald. My stomach flipped just strong fingers I knew belonged to him gently squeezed mine. The last time I had seen him was when he had waved me off to the club and Caroline asking him about an adoption he was yet to tell her. Curious as to what he was going to say while I pretended to be asleep, I laid unmoving, letting his hand squeeze mine in reassurance while trying not to react to the spark between us. There
ARIA'S POV;I walked through the school gates, feeling a mix of emotions. It happened to be my first day back after the accident, and I was nervous about seeing everyone again, not knowing whether the news had spread already.My mind went back to the brief meeting I had with the dean of my faculty earlier this morning. It was a letter reminding me about the part of my tuition fee I had to pay. “Aria Marblemaw, opportunities like this are rare. So, I suggest you try to meet up as best as you can. The college has helped you enough to the best of its abilities and now, you'll have to do the same,” the dean had said to me and every one of her words hit a certain part of me that had pushed me into picking this college and coming here in the first place, far away from home. Thankfully, my mother had gone back home, leaving me to continue my job back at the club but unlike before where the profit had seemed enough, now, I became aware of how behind I was. As I made my way to my lecture ha
KHALEESI’S POV; Darkness slowly carried me and I willingly let it, too weak to fight against it. Shadows floated above me and I fought for my consciousness, hoping to bring myself out of whatever state this was. Forcing my eyes open, I closed them back immediately, trying to get used to the sudden brightness that almost blinded me. I forced them open again, only to see shadows swimming at the edges of my vision, their hands stretching out to me as if asking me to come. Their hands were spread out towards me, inviting me and immediately, I tried to force my eyes open. “Ah!” With a loud gasp, i sat up on the bed, my eyes flew open, my back cold with sweat and a creepy feeling crawling up my spine. The cold that slowly washed over me was none like no other and the odd scent of burning wood happened to wake my senses. Staring around me, the first thing that came in sight was a small traditional pot with a small fire burning at the middle. Slowly, I let my eyes roam towards the
Aria's pov; If you were to ask me years back that how did I picture how my first time making live was going to be, then I was ready to tell you a lengthy story about it. I was prepared to even given out details that were never true but I hoped was going to come true. Each and everytime I had painted images in my head, there happened to be a point where a gentle tweak was going to happen and there after, there was a possibility of everything changing, like a whole new scene. As I sat back on the recliner chair, thinking about the past of the thoughts I had back then when I had no idea that things like this wasn't going to happen, a smile spread on my face just thinking about it. What had I pictured my first time with my lover was going to be? At that period, most ladies my age had all had their fair share of what sex was but yet, there I was, in a whole new fantasy of mine. I had prioritized having these thoughts over going out to experience them myself and then Cole came
Aria's POV; Today was supposed to be my father's burial, where I was supposed to peacefully lay him to rest without any worry but instead, my mind was more on something else. Deep down, I was curious as to how none of my father's relatives had been introduced to me up until his death. A sudden flash of the adoption documents I had accidentally found in my father's drawer came into my mind. Was he adopted? Is that why I haven't seen any of his relatives? Every attempt to ask my mother had been futile since she was still in mourning, finding it hard to cope with the loss of her husband. “Are you going to be fine? You only just entered college, and now, you have to bear this brunt and carry this on your shoulder,” one of the neighboring people I've always known said with a small squeeze on my shoulder. She bent a bit, seeing as I was a few inches taller than her, before taking my hand into hers. Staring into her watery eyes, once again, the bitterness and pain I had be
Aria's POV; Today was supposed to be my father's burial, where I was supposed to peacefully lay him to rest without any worry but instead, my mind was more on something else. Deep down, I was curious as to how none of my father's relatives had been introduced to me up until his death. A sudden flash of the adoption documents I had accidentally found in my father's drawer came into my mind. Was he adopted? Is that why I haven't seen any of his relatives? Every attempt to ask my mother had been futile since she was still in mourning, finding it hard to cope with the loss of her husband. “Are you going to be fine? You only just entered college, and now, you have to bear this brunt and carry this on your shoulder,” one of the neighboring people I've always known said with a small squeeze on my shoulder. She bent a bit, seeing as I was a few inches taller than her, before taking my hand into hers. Staring into her watery eyes, once again, the bitterness and pain I had been desp