Izzy stands through the entryway of her room. Her mind is still fixed on that scene with Alpha Landon. Miles accompanied her to her room and is looking down at her, observing her reactions. “Thank you, Miles,” she murmurs.She is grateful for his intervention with Alpha Landon earlier. She can’t even imagine how things would have turned out if he hadn’t stepped in — or what she could have allowed him to do — and that makes things even scarier. “And sorry about earlier.”“Why are you apologizing?”“Well, about that thing with the alpha. Thank you for stopping him.”Miles frowns. “You mean when he was about to touch you? You could have stopped him yourself, though.”Her shoulders slump at his words. “I don’t think I can,” she admits, glancing down at her hands. “This mate bond is trying to cloud my senses, making it hard for me to resist him.”“Only resist him?” Miles frowns. “You mean that you will also… with—“She looks up, apprehensive. And seeing the look on her face, he takes a dee
She tucks her head against his chest, taking comfort in his presence. Tranquility starts to settle over them as they just lay there, tangled together on the bed."Hey Miles," she starts after a while, her words muffled by his shirt.He hums in response, his fingers lightly tracing her spine. "Yeah?"She swallows nervously before continuing. "Can you... can you loosen your hold on me?" she asks hesitantly. "I mean, it's getting really tight..."Miles chuckles softly, causing his chest to rumble. "Are you saying I'm suffocating you?" He teases, his grip slowly loosening around her waist."No, it's just..." she fumbles with the words again, feeling oddly vulnerable under his gaze. "I can't think clearly...""About what?" His voice is a soft inquiry and Izzy can feel his warm breath against the top of her head.She looks up at him to scold him, but he might have seen the need in her eyes, because the next thing she knows is that he is leaning over her and placing a kiss on her lips. Izzy'
Izzy groans audibly and then she takes another deep breath to calm herself before speaking again. “Look, I’m sorry. But can you please quiet down for a bit? I really need to focus on my work.”Carter nods. “Of course, my love,” he says, understanding her need for space and quiet.Yet, that little endearment tugs at her heart all the more. Carter quiets down and stays on her couch and starts to work on some documents, same as her. She sighs and rubs her temples.She is turning into someone she doesn’t like. But then, why of all people should she have three mates?! She was content living on her own, working hard to achieve success in her career! But now, everything seems so complicated and overwhelming!With a shake of her head, Izzy tries to push her thoughts aside and focus on finishing her report. However, it’s proving to be difficult with Carter constantly popping up in her mind. She can’t deny the sexual desire she feels for him. But she also can’t ignore the fact that their persona
Izzy’s stomach grumbles as she scours her eyes around the place. It is grand and elegant, with sparkling chandeliers and plush velvet chairs. She can’t believe that Carter took her to a five-star restaurant for their first date. And it’s even in a different town!“Next time, can we have dinner somewhere nearby?”“You didn’t enjoy the ride here?” he asks. “Maybe I should pilot the chopper next time?”That’s not the point! She’d like to tell him, but then a waitress approaches, and she can’t help but notice how Carter seems completely at home in the fancy setting. He even flashes the waitress an easy smile.“So, what’s the cuisine of the day?” he asks, his tone smooth and charming, as if he just didn’t show Izzy that pained look earlier. It is the reason why she agreed to a dinner date with him. It is a token of apology for being mean to him.As the waitress starts to recommend dishes that she is not familiar with, Izzy’s attention goes to how Carter carries himself outside. He’s already
Izzy gulps nervously as the limousine comes to a stop. She can feel the tension rising as she and Carter alight from the luxurious vehicle.“Where are we?” she asks, craning her neck to look at their surroundings.Carter takes a hold of her hand and pulls her along with him. “It’s a surprise,” he says with a grin.They walk along the path, their footsteps clinking against the gravel. She feels the butterflies in her stomach as they stop in front of a building — a hotel that looks like a mansion.Once inside the building, Izzy is taken aback by its opulence. The floors glisten under the soft lighting, and the walls are adorned with expensive art pieces.“Whoa,” she mutters under her breath, feeling like she doesn’t belong in such a grand place.Carter chuckles beside her. “Impressed?”“I don’t know,” she says, looking around. There are no ushers, and after the employees greet them, they go about their own way. “The service doesn’t seem to be good. No one is guiding us.”“Why would they?
Izzy’s lips tremble as she looks at him. She can feel it, her body is throbbing with desire for him. The mate bond is making her heart race and yet, her mind is telling her that this guy is a jerk, and it’s better to steer clear of him.“Izzy,” he whispers again. “Just tell me what you want and I will make it happen.”Her eyes peer into his eyes. Desire. No, not just the mate bond. It’s him. He’s attractive and his scent is making her heady. She groans. No! It’s just the mate bond acting up again!When he moves closer again, she hits the wall. Their bodies are almost touching now. The heat between them is palpable and she can feel the pull of the mate bond throbbing in sync with her heartbeat.“Should we go outside and swim?” she asks, trying to evade the combustion that’s about to happen.“Don’t be shy,” he says with a smirk, his eyes still locked on hers. “I’ve told you. Just tell me what you want me to do.”She swallows hard. He clearly knows what she wants! Especially with this mat
“Let them watch,” Carter murmurs, his gaze never leaving hers. Beneath the water, his hand shifts to rest on her waist, pulling her ever so slightly closer.“Carter,” she warns, yet it is not much more than a whisper. A part of her wants to pull away, to preserve the fragile neutrality of their relationship — but another part, the one connected to the mate bond, urges her to lean in.“You worry too much,” he tells her, tracing his thumb gently along the curve of her cheek. “They are used to this. You’ll see, once we start, they are going to leave this place.”Izzy swallows hard. She’s aware that she’s treading dangerous waters. Yet, being with Carter is exhilarating. His touch is a different type of fire.“I haven’t selected yet,” she says, struggling to keep her voice steady as he gazes at her face.“No problem at all. You just need to reject the mate bond with the others. That will solve all your problems with having three mates.”Suddenly, his lips go to her neck and despite herself
Suddenly, Izzy pulls back from his hold. Her face is burning as she gazes at his confused face. ‘Damnit Aria... You should have stressed out the warning about how good he is with a woman’s body!’ Izzy thinks. His presence is intoxicating, his scent is making her dizzy and lightheaded.She looks around, like what he said, the employees are nowhere to be found. She wonders when did they start leaving?“Izzy?” Carter asks.“You said there is no penetration,” she whispers. “This ain’t right…”“What’s not right about it? You’re my mate and we both desire each other. It’s only natural,” he argues, his voice low and seductive.She purses her lips as she gazes into his eyes. She tries to fight the pull towards him. But it feels like he is a predator, and she is the prey.“It’s not natural,” she counters, taking a step back. “Not for me.”She takes a deep breath, breathing deeply as the cool water calms her heated skin. She needs to get away from Carter before things escalate further.Carter i
Izzy walks into the Alpha’s house, her heart racing as she follows Alex to the living room where Alpha Landon is waiting for them. She takes a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves. Certainly, she won’t jump into his arms the moment she sees him… right?As they enter the living room, Izzy can’t help but stare at Alpha Landon. He looks even more attractive than before, if that’s even possible. His dark hair is styled perfectly and his deep blue eyes seem to be scanning her from head to toe.He stands up from his seat and Izzy feels like her knees might buckle under her. He is tall and muscular — every inch an alpha in his prime. He really looks effortlessly handsome in his suit, the ideal man she always fantasized before — that is, before she decided that she doesn’t want a mate.“You look beautiful,” Alpha Landon says softly, as if he needs air to breathe.Izzy blushes at the compliment and all she can say is, “Thank you. You are very handsome, too.”Alex clears his throat and says w
Izzy quickly changes into more presentable clothes and meets Alex in the living room. He looks her up and down before nodding in approval.“You look good,” he comments. “I don’t think it will be hard to find something that will fit you for the party.”“I’m not entirely sure if I will take that as a compliment,” she replies, slightly self-conscious under his scrutiny.Alex only smiles and leads her out of the house and towards his car.“We’re going somewhere far?”“My brother insisted on getting the best for you.”She snorts. “Because you think I will be the new Luna?”“You never miss things, huh?” he comments. “That’s a nice trait for a Luna.”As they drive outside the werewolf’s pack jurisdiction and into the city, Alex starts a conversation with her about her life. She answers politely but doesn’t reveal too much information. Besides, he is a stranger to her.“So, what kind of clothes do you usually wear to parties?” Alex asks, breaking the silence as they drive along a series of cl
Izzy stares at the spot where Carter was standing moments ago, her lips still tingling from his sudden kiss. She blinks a few times, trying to process what just happened.In all sense of the word, the kiss is really supposed to be a punishment. However, due to the blasted mate bond, she kinda feels like it is a reward instead… Even her inner wolf is doing a little dance for being kissed by him! No, erase that — How dreadful could that be?!Izzy shakes her head and tries to ignore the fluttering sensation in her stomach. There’s only two more days and she will have a free day on her hands. She can make use of that to think about all the confusing things.She enters her room and closes the door. She better catch up on her work and all her personal things while she still has the time, because she plans to spend her Sunday lounging around and just… thinking.**********************The sun peeks through the curtains, signaling the start of a new day. Izzy yawns and stretches her arms above
Izzy opens the front door and is surprised to find several maids standing outside. She steps back, allowing them to enter the house.“Beta Carter paid for our services,” one of them explains as they enter the house.“Ahm, thank you,” she says, surprised. “…I guess.”She looks over her shoulder to where Carter is leaning against the wall. His wet clothes cling to his muscular frame, making him look even more enticing than usual. But there’s also a hint of something else in his gaze, a desire that matches hers.She moves towards him, and with every step she takes, his desire grows stronger. She can feel it radiating off of him like heat.“Is this common for you? Having pack members help out with the laundry and chores?” she asks, trying to distract herself from the intensity of their desires for each other.“If I am busy and overwhelmed,” he answers in a deep voice. &ldqu
As they reach the house, Carter offers to help with the chores. Izzy hesitates, but she’s too tired to argue so she agrees. She is also afraid that her desires will flare up during an argument with him.“Fine,” she grumbles. “You can help me with washing the blankets.”Carter grins and follows her inside. “I knew you can’t resist my charms.”Izzy rolls her eyes and starts taking out the blankets that smell like they’ve been stored in the cabinet for a long time. She hands a pile to Carter, who takes them without complaint.They work in silence for a few minutes, until Carter breaks it by saying, “You know, I used to do this kind of thing all the time when I lived in the packhouse.”“Oh, really?” she asks. “Why did they allow you to stay there? You have a mansion, and your chain of hotels is not too far from here.”“The elders don’t want the
Carter leans to her, and she savors his smell. She wants more. She wants him to do more than just imprison her between that same nice body and the rows of grocery items.“My dear Izzy… I know that you want me too… And if I really am the selfish man that you think I am, all I need to do is touch you and you will jump at the chance to make love to me. You are my mate, and I can sense your inner wolf begging for me.”She is about to say something when he presses his finger to her lips. “Shhh…” He presses himself to her and she can feel his hardness between her legs. “Like you, I am also starting to lose myself the longer we don’t make love. Just your smell, your voice, the heat from your skin, is making me heady… so please, don’t look at me, or I might not be able to control myself anymore.”And just like that, she tightly shut her eyes.“Good girl, just stay like that.”Then she felt his hands on her shoulders. And when he moans, she shivers. “What are you doing, Carter?”“Shhh… Let me
Izzy wakes up early on Thursday, feeling refreshed and determined to start her day. She gets dressed quickly and heads downstairs to grab some breakfast. As she is about to take a bite of her toast, there’s a knock on the door.She frowns. It’s too early for Carter. She sets down her toast and walks to the door. She takes a deep breath before opening the door.“Can I help you?” she asks coolly.Carter gives her a small smile. “I came to accompany you today…” he says. “…as what is expected of me and especially of you.”Izzy snorts but can’t help but allow him into the house. “I’m going somewhere.”“Where?”“Somewhere.”“Izzy…” he says, a scolding tone in his voice.“Grocery,” she finally answers as she returns to her breakfast. “I also need to buy a couple of items.”“I can accompany you with that.”“Ah, the young master will do such menial things, huh?”He presses his lips and she can feel his pain because of her words. She takes a deep breath and apologizes. “I’m sorry.”The hurt in
Izzy wakes up to the smell of bacon and eggs. She sits up groggily, rubbing her eyes before glancing at the clock on her bedside table. It reads 7 AM and so she goes outside of her room and finds Miles, who is already up and about. He is cooking breakfast in the kitchen of the house that he has allowed her to stay at. She watches him for a moment, still feeling a little awkward after last night’s events.He turns around and catches her staring at him. “Good morning, sleepyhead,” he says with a smile, flipping the bacon in the pan.“Morning,” she mumbles, running her fingers through the ends of her tangled hair.Miles serves them both breakfast and they sit down at the small dining table. Izzy watches him as he pours them each a cup of tea.“Other than the bacon and eggs, I also prepared you a tea, because I know that you will be drowning yourself in coffee the entire day. Don’t worry—”“About last night…” she interjects.Miles looks up from his plate, his expression unreadable. “It’s
“Hey, Izzy, I prepared dinner,” Miles says as he peeks through Izzy’s door. “Would you like to eat with me before I leave?”The answer is a resounding NO, and yet, Izzy shifts her attention from her laptop to Miles. It’s late now. However, she finds the need to pretend that she’s busy just so there would be no more conversation with him. In fact, she already finished half of her work for tomorrow!“You don’t have to cook for me, Miles,” she answers as she returns her attention to her laptop. “Besides, I am still busy.”She hears the door open wider and she can’t help but look at Miles again. He is scrunching his brows at her, as if he knows that she is just pretending to be swamped with work.“Do you really want to pretend as if nothing happened between us last night?” he asks.“Not now, Miles.”He moves closer to her desk and places his hands on top of it—making it impossible for her to ignore him any longer.“What do—”She stops because Miles surprises her with his next actions. He