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Ch. 18: Apollo & Old Mr. Gray
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Related chapters
Pain Before Bliss Ch. 19: Artemis & Fashion Design
They decided to have lunch together and then Derreck made his departure. He would eventually tell his driver and bodyguards of his identity, but not yet. They are already sworn into secrecy and Derreck Gray was their primary responsibility. If anything happened to the Young Master, the Gray family would have their heads!When Derreck arrived back at the villa, he went over to his father and told him of the events that had transpired while he was away at the Gray mansion.Hartley nodded approvingly. “Sounds like you’ll progress quicker than originally anticipated; Apollo is doing well. I’m grateful to know your wolf takes on his role seriously.”“Indeed, father. These next few months, I will have to express balance. From the office, to the Old Family Mansion daily, at least for 3 months.”“Very well. Don’t overdo it, Derreck. Yes, you are training hard and we are on a tight schedule as we are nearing my retirement as Alpha, but you still have to maintain less stress. It becomes worse o
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Pain Before Bliss Ch. 20: Calling His Bluff
Denice never expressed the contempt she had in her heart while she spoke with Pierre. She did her best to be vague, without giving herself away.“Miss Harrison, if there are any questions that you may have, please don’t hesitate to call.”“Thank you, Mr. Davidson.”With that, Denice left the man’s office after shaking his hand. When she got back to the Harrison residence, she asked her grandfather if he had a lawyer that specialized in business contracts.He looked at her with confusion in his gaze. “Yes, I have someone on hand for business contracts; it’s imperative. What’s the matter?”“Grandfather, if I may be frank, I don’t think that Pierre is who he says he is. Something about him tells me he’s shady. He may have been in business a long time, but I think he chooses to undermine me and place a clause in the contract that creates a loophole of benefit for him.”“And you’re sure?”“Yes. Me and Artemis agree. I intend on calling his bluff.”“Very well, I will contact my lawyer and h
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Pain Before Bliss Ch. 21: First Full Moon
After leaving Davidson HQ, Gregory and Denice made their way back to the Harrison family villa. Gregory made sure to transfer the money directly to Bryan’s bank account once they made their way back. The rest of their week wasn’t as eventful as that Tuesday afternoon. The more time that passed on, the more that Denice trained with her grandparents.***Meanwhile back in Aurenda ***Derreck was becoming more and more exhausted from all the training, but he didn’t dare complain. Thursday had come around and Peter knocked on his office door hesitantly. His boss’s cold voice boomed behind the closed door.“What is it?” His asked with slight irritation and frustration. “Sir, about the matter last week—”With an arched eyebrow, Derreck looked at Peter; the glare that was evident in his gaze, rendered Peter frozen and slightly speechless. Nonetheless, Peter recomposed himself and continued speaking.“The matter you had asked me to look into over at Jackson Industries, I have finally gathered
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Pain Before Bliss Ch. 22: A Shift In The Wind
*** In Aurenda ***After getting their breathing under control, David let out a howl and Derreck followed. As night turned into day, they reverted back to their human form. As David stated, it was definitely a much easier transition from his wolf form back to his human form. Once the transition was complete, Derreck made his way back inside the villa to wash up and prepare for the long day at work. He was determined to become the greatest Alpha in his family.~As winter had slowly descended across the land, springtime was begging to be captivated by the 5 senses. The blooming of the flowers was almost in full swing, but it never stopped them from achieving the goals that they had set for themselves. ~It had been some time since his first full moon, and Derreck was making the best out of his time. He fought his urge on many occasions, to go find Denice. The more that they were away from each other, the more that Apollo slowly grew restless and slipping into madness without his mate wi
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Pain Before Bliss Ch. 23: Learning the Past
After going back to his office, Dylan thought long and hard about what more he could do to fix this crisis. With all of the shareholders wanting to back out, he had come up with a temporary solution to keep them in the company and their worries at bay. However, they were becoming more and more weary and understandably so, since the company was declining; it was only a matter of time before the company completely went under. Once the marriage alliance was complete with Brigette and Jason, he wouldn’t have much to worry about.Thinking of this, a sinister smile crept up to his lips as he made the connection. He then called Brigette into his office. She walked in with her long blonde hair pulled into a soft bun with a short red dress, heavy makeup and some black heels. She was known around the company for dressing as such. Dylan looked at her with displeasure.“You should stop dressing so provocatively.”She merely crossed her arms and retorted. “Is there anything the matter? Why did you
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Pain Before Bliss Ch. 24: Video Call
Derreck nodded and there was pain visible in his gaze, but Hartley didn’t go there. He knew that from now on, it will be a touchy subject. Denice was Derreck’s mate and there was nothing he wouldn’t do for her.As much as he wanted to crawl into her skin and keep her by his side forever, while hiding from the world. He wanted her all to himself and that wasn’t going to stop; the more they talked and spent time with each other, the harder it would become for them to keep their distance.Hartley began wracking his brain for a solution. He beamed. “How about a video call?”“Do you really think it’ll work?”Hartley shrugged his shoulders in response. “It’s worth a try.”Derreck hummed in reply and got up to leave the study. Before leaving, Hartley’s voice sounded behind him. “She’ll come back at some point and visit.”With his back still facing him, Derreck replied. “I know she will.”With that, he walked out of the study back down the long corridor. When he got near the door, Linda was s
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Pain Before Bliss Ch. 25: True Feelings
Denice still couldn’t believe what she was seeing. But his presence was SO CLEAR to her! She knew her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her!‘Artemis! That means—’‘We’re fated to each other! The current we felt those months ago—’‘Was the mate bond; though Grandpa and Nanna told us! His wolf doesn’t seem fazed at all, which can only mean—’‘He knows! He’s known all this time and it appears he’s kept it a secret, even from Derreck.’‘This can be a good thing, but I don’t know how much longer he can hold it out.’‘Neither do I. Now we also know why we’ve been feeling all this pain, even though Grandpa told us. We can see it truthfully!’Denice forced herself out of her mind and didn’t notice the small smile that crept on her lips and danced across her eyes. Apollo noticed too and the glint in his grey eyes glimmered like the sun. Derreck looked at her confusingly while acknowledging the glint in Apollo’s eyes.As if reading her mind, he asked, “What are you thinking about?”Denice quickly
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Pain Before Bliss Ch. 26: Shifting Stance
Derreck remained mum for another brief moment before speaking in a cold, distant tone.“Round up the boys, we go to the Gray Family Mansion this evening. Reach out to father and tell him that his presence is requested; tell him it’s the matter of importance we discussed. He should know what it’s about.”“Yes, sir. I will get that done right away.”Peter let out the breath that he didn’t know he was holding and continued the drive to the office; Derreck closed his eyes softly and his breathing remained even.Once they made their way to the building, they parted ways; Peter went on and did as he was told. It had been a rough 3 ½ months for Derreck, but he knew it was time to let his team know about his identity. He was very shaky about it, however, his Grandfather told him that when the time came, he would be by his side to relay the information to his team. His father stated that he would be there also, when the time was right.~~~Since it was nighttime for her, Denice prepared for he
Last Updated : 2024-10-29
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Pain Before Bliss Ch. 66: Heartfelt Confession
After getting everyone to safety and initiating the lockdown protocol, Denice and the warriors checked the perimeter.“Your Majesty.” Jason began. “We understand that you are the monarch and need to protect your people, but as your Royal Guard, you are our number one priority. We will do all that we can to find and eradicate the threat once and for all, but we need to get you to safety Your Highness.” He finished.Denice looked at him. “I appreciate you taking your role very seriously, but as you have stated, it is my duty to protect my people. It doesn’t matter how many crazed psychos I have looking after me, the Prince and Princess are my succession. I don’t care what happens to me and I have made peace with that.” ‘Mate or not.’ She linked him then continued aloud. “But I will not stand in the shadows while my people put their lives on the line to protect me and this kingdom. My succession is all I care about.” Denice finished.Jason bowed his head. “Yes, Majesty. We will continue t
Pain Before Bliss Quick Note
Hello readers!School has officially started back up and I am managing A LOT better this semester than I was last semester. I had 2 math classes that were kicking my ass, but this semester my load is slightly lighter. I do also work full-time, so please keep that in mind.Now, I have made Nolan a bit more emotional than most male leads have been in other books that I've read or noticed. This is because Denice has had her fair share of bullshit. She is going to open up to him in a way that she can and only she knows how. When you've been hurt like that, it's not an easy task to open up to someone and be so open to the idea of a relationship, much less a mate bond. In my own mind, I sometimes wish we had our own mate bonds; a way to feel what the other person feels and tap into what they need, but at the same time I don't .. that's just me though.Anyway, I will shift gears and slide a way into going back to Aurenda and showing what's going on there, but I'm focusing on Denice; she's my
Pain Before Bliss Ch. 65: Drowning in Darkness
Denice got off of Nolan’s lap to face him. He stood up and pulled her closer to him. Nolan’s eyes were searching hers and their lips met in a fiery, but passionate kiss. Denice smiled into the kiss. “As much as I love the attention you give me and being away from eyes and ears, we have to talk about something.”Nolan pulled away from her slightly. “I could drown in your affection all day long and I can’t wait to drown in your screams.”Denice’s skin burned from the heat of his gaze and his words. “Easy Alpha. For now, the council doesn’t know that we’re mates or that I’ve accepted the bond. We will have our mating ceremony once the Purple Moon Pack is out of our hair. Until I’ve told the council and the pack, we can’t have any PDA going on. They would want to push the mating ceremony on me and that’s not what I want. I want that done in OUR time, on OUR terms. I will choose you every day, in every life, every time. I love you Nolan and I know it seems sudden, but that’s what the mate b
Pain Before Bliss Ch. 64: Repair, Forgiveness & Love
Denice continued sobbing uncontrollably while in Anna’s arms; she was pissed, she was hurt, but most of all, she was terrified. Terrified of losing her mate, pissed that her brother went against her wishes and waited for months to tell her about it, and hurt that Nolan walked away.It took a while, but Avery had finally caught up to Nolan. “Alpha Whitfield, can we talk?”Nolan was pacing in the middle of the clearing. “Prince Avery, please let me be alone for a while.”Avery stood rooted in the spot. “That’s something I cannot do. You need to hear the whole story; only then will I leave you to your thoughts.”Avery sat down in the lush grass and began. “Since we found each other, Denice has dedicated her life to looking after us and our kingdom. She didn’t want the mate bond to hold her back and at the time, she was mated to Alpha Gray back in her home country. Denice realized that she would never be able to be at 100%, nor would she be able to be a Luna, since that isn’t her only titl
Pain Before Bliss Ch. 63: Their Carelessness
The room was eerily quiet. Alexander stood with his mouth agape, Avery’s aura was shifted to one of utter confusion, Anna was in awe and Garrett stood with a questioning look in his eyes.Dr. Jason knocked twice before entering the room. Nolan’s gaze was still fixated on Denice, as he stroked her hair softly. After removing the tube from Denice’s throat, she coughed uncontrollably. Artemis was still in a groggy state, so she couldn’t mind link just yet, but Nolan knew exactly what she needed.“Doctor, can you bring a cup of water with a straw please?” Nolan asked the doctor without turning his head.“Of course, Alpha. I’ll be back momentarily. Your Majesty, after bringing your water and after you’re up for it, we’ll run some tests. We are beyond grateful that you are awake, but we still want to monitor your progress and keep an eye on things.” Dr. Jason informed her.Denice nodded softly and Dr. Jason excused himself before leaving her room and getting some water for her.After Dr. Jas
Pain Before Bliss Ch. 62: Truths & Confessions
After stepping out of Kai’s room and finding a private space inside the palace, Avery, Garrett and Alexander each grabbed a drink and gulped it down in one go.Avery looked exasperated as he spoke. “Are you fucking kidding me!?! We got rid of one and now there’s another?! When are we ever gonna catch a fucking break!?!”Garrett looked at Avery. “What do you mean another?”Avery sighed exasperatedly and ran a palm over his face. “Remember we told you about the war? We had a traitorous bastard then and one of the Alphas were executed as a result.”Alexander looked thoughtful for a moment. “You don’t think he’s come back, do you?”Avery looked at Alexander. “It’s possible; he does have some sort of vendetta against us, so I wouldn’t put it past him. Besides, we weren’t able to find him that day and we still haven’t heard a word, which makes me nervous. He must still be working with someone here and I won’t rest until we find out who! We’ve done everything necessary to protect our kingdom
Pain Before Bliss Ch. 61: Unexpected Encounters
Dr. Justin stood rooted in his spot. Avery looked down the hall at Nolan and Anna gasped.“I will take you to her.” Anna stated slowly.Alpha Nolan took a deep breath and walked over to Anna. He was given a change of clothes before he made his way deeper inside the palace. As he walked, he was silent the whole way to her makeshift room and when he walked inside, his heart shattered, and his limbs grew heavy. The sight of his new mate in her state made the world crumble beneath him.After what felt like hours of staring at her unconscious body, he found his voice. “How bad is it?”Avery looked at Alpha Nolan with so much suspicion; it wasn’t because he didn’t trust him, quite the opposite. He’s seen what he’s capable of on the battlefield, but Denice wasn’t the battlefield; she was his sister. He loved his siblings with all his heart and Denice wasn’t awake to confirm the newly formed mate bond. Alpha Nolan hadn’t been around her since she rejected Jake, so acknowledging that she has a
Pain Before Bliss Ch. 60: Knocking on Death's Door
They maneuvered through the packhouse both swiftly and silently. The horrors of mangled bodies throughout the packhouse were now burned into their minds. ‘Get on my back and keep your senses sharp. The slightest thing you notice, you tell me. Hold on tight and don’t let go. I will protect you; I promise.’ He demanded Anna, his aura imbued in his every word.Quickly, she got onto his back, and they continued up several flights of stairs to get to where they believed Denice and the others to be.“I saw her go this way. I’ll finish the job when she comes out of there. She can’t stay up there forever.” A voice said near the Alpha stairs.‘Anna, is there another way up?’ Garrett asked Anna through the link.‘In the Alpha’s office on the first floor. In the closest, there’s a hidden elevator that can only be accessed with a code.’ She answered back.‘Let’s go.’ He stated firmly through their link.He made his way back down the stairs and into the Alpha’s office. When they got in there, they
Pain Before Bliss Ch. 59: Ambush
Garrett looked around the room calmly. “You can’t be serious D?!” He asked her full of shock.Denice sighed and walked around the front of her desk.“On the contrary Garrett, I am. A lot has happened since I left Aurenda and I’ve had to shoulder many responsibilities, including being a Queen over this land. Avery has not completed his Alpha training and quite honestly, I don’t want him taking over that pack. As a Royal, his place is here within the Royal grounds; especially after what we’ve been through since I got here.” She sighed and walked over to the window. “Garrett, I trust you, along with the people inside this room. Even my grandparents are exempt from that trust.”Garrett looked somber. “What happened to you?” His eyes filled with tenderness.Denice sighed. “Enough. We’ve all been through so much together and they have all been patient as I sat taking shit from all sides. Avery and Anna unfortunately must be kept under a watchful eye at all times; it’s not something that I wa
