RAYMOND’s POV…“Thank you, doctor.”“You’re welcome. Honestly, I still think it’s too sudden to leave the hospital, but judging from what’s happened, I know it’s best she goes home; to a place she’s more comfortable.”I nodded in agreement. The harasser’s presence in the hospital had startled her and even though I’d let her believe the harasser was dead so she wouldn’t worry anymore, I knew he wasn’t.That man had killed himself too easily to be the harasser. There was someone else and I would find the bastard and make him pay for every single moment of restlessness Aria had been in.“The hospital will make security more uptight, and scrutinize the employees more.” Regret and guilt coated his voice as he took out a file and handed it to me.“Those are his details. Before he died, he’d been in some debts. I’m guessing those will help.”We spoke for a little bit more before he had to excuse himself.I stretched my hand, letting the man behind me take the file before I returned to the w
ARIA’s POV…“You still won’t tell me why you asked me to come with you?” This was another attempt at getting him to speak, but he didn’t.“You said it was because you didn’t like the idea of leaving me alone at the house, but we know that’s not true. So, tell me the truth. Why am I actually coming?”He took his hand off the steering wheel, gently placing it on mine and smiling reassuringly.“You know I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you though, right? You know that whatever I do, I do with your best interests at heart.”I nodded. I’d been running from it for so long, but it was the truth. Lately, I’d come to see that he’d actually changed and everything he did, he actually did for me.“It’s fine if you don’t want to talk about it.”It wasn’t, but I couldn’t say anymore.It had been so sudden, him asking me to return to his pack with him because he was worried something would happen. In the days that passed, he’d managed to calm me about the whole harasser situation and since there’d been
RAYMOND’s POV…I could hear the murmurs that followed my announcement and I wasn’t surprised. They’d witnessed everything. They’d been here when I got ‘married’ to Aria. They’d also been here when I took Ashley in and treated Aria like she meant nothing. Now, I’d brought that same woman back. I couldn’t judge them for their murmurs. If I was in their shoes, I’d do the same.“Ashley, Alpha James, Beta Luke.” I called their names with disgust. “You’ve all been screaming to be let go, but never once have you asked what you did wrong. I assume you already know.”The guards brought Luke forward, throwing him at Ashley and her father’s feet and I smirked in satisfaction at the look of utter shock on his face.“You thought your tracks were clean, didn’t you? You thought you could kill everyone off so nothing would be traced back to you and it would be fine, didn’t you?” I clicked my tongue. “Pathetic.”I honestly felt insulted at how easy it’d been to catch all three of them.“I have—I have
RAYMOND’s POV…One minute, I’d been celebrating my wisdom and victory. I’d been so proud of the fact that I’d outsmarted Beta Luke who’d tried to flee the pack.The next, Ashley had made her comment.Somewhere within that minute, someone had stabbed Aria, and within that same minute, I’d run over to her, on my knees, holding her unconscious bleeding body in my arms.“Get the damn doctor! An ambulance! Get help!” I screamed like a crazed lunatic, everything in me paralyzed.The guards had seized the attacker, but I could care less at this moment. Right now, I could only think about one thing, one person— Aria. My mate, the love of my life, the woman whose life was now in danger because of me.“Alpha Raymond!”No one mattered at that moment. All that mattered was Aria and saving her life.“Aria, it’s fine. You’re fine. Please.” I muttered, unsure of who I was.I carried her in my arms, rushing out of the mansion immediately. I didn’t know how the black car got here, but I got into it i
RAYMOND’s POV….“What? How?” I yelled, almost losing control and snapping at the doctor. “What the hell is going on, goddamnit?”“Alpha Raymond, please calm down.” Eric tried to calm me, but I couldn’t be calmed.I was losing it, going crazy. With every second that passed, it felt like I was losing her, and losing her meant I was losing myself. I couldn’t deal with it.“She was stabbed, I got here almost immediately, so what fucking poison could be spreading through her right now?” I still had my hands on the doctor and he tried to get away in a respectful manner.“The knife had poison on it. It was a planned murder attempt. She’s still alive right now because you’d brought her here in time.”I let go of him when I heard she was still alive. I knew she was still alive because I could still feel life in my wolf. He would never survive if he’d lost his mate.“And the poison? How are you going to get it out of her?” My voice had lowered now and I felt like a person with imposter syndrom
ARIA’s POV….“Raymond! Slower please…” I tried to get his name out to be as audible as possible as we hit climax, my vision as foggy as possible as he took his head out of my neck, our gasps filling the room as we both crashed by each other, our hearts— or maybe just mine— beating extremely fast.I gulped as I gently put my hand to my neck, caressing his mark. The mark signified our bond. As I closed my eyes, relishing in the warmth from our moment just now, unable to believe I’d just been marked by my Alpha, his icy voice shot through.“Our nominal mate contract ends in three months.” When he spoke, so coldly, without an ounce of emotion, it felt like my breath had been caught in my throat.I fiddled with the sheets, waiting for him to say something, anything other than what he’d already said, but no other words left his lips. “Ra—“ I tried to get the words out, but they failed me, leaving me with no other option but to cling on to denial.He looked so calm that you wouldn’t have gu
ARIA’s POV…..I’d change everything. Perhaps, if I tried harder, I’d make him fall for me and then I’d tell him about our child.These thoughts crossed through my mind as I set the ingredients aside. As I set up the dishes, the revving sound from outside caused me to turn as Raymond’s black SUV came into view.Reflexively, a smile came up my face as I cleaned my hands on the apron I was on, rushing outside to go greet him. It didn’t matter what he’d said yesterday, or that his words still rang fresh in my head.I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind— where they belonged— as I stood outside the door, all smiles. How this man managed to make me so happy with just his presence; I couldn’t tell. All I knew was that I was in love with him. Too deep to come out of it at all and hopefully, by the goddess’ grace, in these coming months, I wouldn’t have to because he’d be too deep in love with me, too.“Ray—“ My excited call out to him got caught in my throat the moment the blonde got
ARIA’s POV….If I had been holding on to little fragments of hope for our relationship that was already failing all this time, now, I was holding on to dust.As Raymond stared at me, his expression went back to being unreadable as he let out a sigh. “No one important.” My heart clenched as my eyes became glassy. “She’s just a maid, there’s no need for an introduction. Your kind has nothing to do with hers.”Ashley raised her brows as she took a step closer to me, wiping off an invisible dust on my shoulder as she let out a mocking scoff disguised as a pitiful one.“You poor thing.” She kissed the back of her teeth. “It must suck trying to act all high and mighty when in reality, you’re nothing more than this, doesn’t it?”I turned to Raymond who just stood there like I wasn’t being mocked and downgraded in his presence and it hurt to see that even though he could defend me and spare me all this pain, he didn’t.“As a princess, I can understand the pain your kind goes through every sing
RAYMOND’s POV….“What? How?” I yelled, almost losing control and snapping at the doctor. “What the hell is going on, goddamnit?”“Alpha Raymond, please calm down.” Eric tried to calm me, but I couldn’t be calmed.I was losing it, going crazy. With every second that passed, it felt like I was losing her, and losing her meant I was losing myself. I couldn’t deal with it.“She was stabbed, I got here almost immediately, so what fucking poison could be spreading through her right now?” I still had my hands on the doctor and he tried to get away in a respectful manner.“The knife had poison on it. It was a planned murder attempt. She’s still alive right now because you’d brought her here in time.”I let go of him when I heard she was still alive. I knew she was still alive because I could still feel life in my wolf. He would never survive if he’d lost his mate.“And the poison? How are you going to get it out of her?” My voice had lowered now and I felt like a person with imposter syndrom
RAYMOND’s POV…One minute, I’d been celebrating my wisdom and victory. I’d been so proud of the fact that I’d outsmarted Beta Luke who’d tried to flee the pack.The next, Ashley had made her comment.Somewhere within that minute, someone had stabbed Aria, and within that same minute, I’d run over to her, on my knees, holding her unconscious bleeding body in my arms.“Get the damn doctor! An ambulance! Get help!” I screamed like a crazed lunatic, everything in me paralyzed.The guards had seized the attacker, but I could care less at this moment. Right now, I could only think about one thing, one person— Aria. My mate, the love of my life, the woman whose life was now in danger because of me.“Alpha Raymond!”No one mattered at that moment. All that mattered was Aria and saving her life.“Aria, it’s fine. You’re fine. Please.” I muttered, unsure of who I was.I carried her in my arms, rushing out of the mansion immediately. I didn’t know how the black car got here, but I got into it i
RAYMOND’s POV…I could hear the murmurs that followed my announcement and I wasn’t surprised. They’d witnessed everything. They’d been here when I got ‘married’ to Aria. They’d also been here when I took Ashley in and treated Aria like she meant nothing. Now, I’d brought that same woman back. I couldn’t judge them for their murmurs. If I was in their shoes, I’d do the same.“Ashley, Alpha James, Beta Luke.” I called their names with disgust. “You’ve all been screaming to be let go, but never once have you asked what you did wrong. I assume you already know.”The guards brought Luke forward, throwing him at Ashley and her father’s feet and I smirked in satisfaction at the look of utter shock on his face.“You thought your tracks were clean, didn’t you? You thought you could kill everyone off so nothing would be traced back to you and it would be fine, didn’t you?” I clicked my tongue. “Pathetic.”I honestly felt insulted at how easy it’d been to catch all three of them.“I have—I have
ARIA’s POV…“You still won’t tell me why you asked me to come with you?” This was another attempt at getting him to speak, but he didn’t.“You said it was because you didn’t like the idea of leaving me alone at the house, but we know that’s not true. So, tell me the truth. Why am I actually coming?”He took his hand off the steering wheel, gently placing it on mine and smiling reassuringly.“You know I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you though, right? You know that whatever I do, I do with your best interests at heart.”I nodded. I’d been running from it for so long, but it was the truth. Lately, I’d come to see that he’d actually changed and everything he did, he actually did for me.“It’s fine if you don’t want to talk about it.”It wasn’t, but I couldn’t say anymore.It had been so sudden, him asking me to return to his pack with him because he was worried something would happen. In the days that passed, he’d managed to calm me about the whole harasser situation and since there’d been
RAYMOND’s POV…“Thank you, doctor.”“You’re welcome. Honestly, I still think it’s too sudden to leave the hospital, but judging from what’s happened, I know it’s best she goes home; to a place she’s more comfortable.”I nodded in agreement. The harasser’s presence in the hospital had startled her and even though I’d let her believe the harasser was dead so she wouldn’t worry anymore, I knew he wasn’t.That man had killed himself too easily to be the harasser. There was someone else and I would find the bastard and make him pay for every single moment of restlessness Aria had been in.“The hospital will make security more uptight, and scrutinize the employees more.” Regret and guilt coated his voice as he took out a file and handed it to me.“Those are his details. Before he died, he’d been in some debts. I’m guessing those will help.”We spoke for a little bit more before he had to excuse himself.I stretched my hand, letting the man behind me take the file before I returned to the w
ARIA’s POV…“Aria.” Raymond rushed in, straight to my side as he pulled me in for a hug. “What happened?” He was referring to the pieces of glass on the floor.“The harasser. They— they—“ I couldn’t get the words out so I just handed him the most recent note from the attacker. “They sent another. It’s not over, Raymond. They’re not done.” I cried.He took the note, sliding it into his pocket, his hand rubbing my back.“It’s fine. All of this will be over soon. I promise you.” He sounded so calm and collected, like it wasn’t my life and that of my baby’s at stake.What did I expect, though? He was an Alpha. He was used to being calm and collected. A knife could be held to his neck and he still wouldn’t show a single emotion.“I just want to go home.” I admitted, my hands still wrapped around him. “I’m tired of being here, of being somewhere that’s not home. It’s suffocating. I can’t stay here anymore.”“Come with me to my house.” I withdrew from the hug, staring at him, confused. “Not t
ARIA’s POV…‘Keep going, Aria. Keep going.’ A voice in my head urged me and even though my feet, vision, and body weren’t in compliance, I kept going.“Aria!” I heard my name again, but this time, the voice was even more faint.I was losing consciousness. I could barely keep up. I needed to get my baby to safety.I kept running, willing to give it my all, when a car suddenly came out of nowhere with blinding headlights. I screamed, coming to an abrupt stop and turning, I crashed into a firm chest.“Argh!”I’d thought it was over for me and it would be one of the men, but it wasn’t. It was the only man I wanted to be with at that moment.“Raymond.” I muttered weakly as his hands came around me, hugging me tightly while his mouth did the pressing of kisses on my head.“It’s fine. You’re fine.”I felt relief wash over me, but I didn’t get to savor it for long. I’d hit my limit. Raymond’s assuring words were the last thing I heard before darkness enveloped the course of my entire being.**
ARIA’s POV….“Wh—what are you doing?” I screamed, struggling to get free.“Taking what’s rightfully mine.” I heard a voice and that was the last thing I heard before I was knocked out.I slowly opened my eyes to find myself in a dimly lit room. Judging from how sore my hands felt and how hard I found moving, I knew I’d been tied up.“Damn it.” I cursed, letting out an exhale as I tried to get out of the bounds.Stress isn’t good for your baby. I tried to remind myself. Whatever I was doing right now, I had to make sure I played it safe so as not to hurt my precious baby.“I’m telling you, she’s some pretty shit. Definitely would be good for a round or two.” I heard a voice say alongside footsteps approaching.I instantly knew that the people who’d kidnapped me were on the way. I jerked my head back, quickly feigning unconsciousness. I didn’t know what my harasser wanted to do to me, but I was very sure he wouldn’t like to see me conscious. What if I was knocked out again? Too risky.“S
ARIA’s POV….My head was spinning. I couldn’t think straight and it felt like my vision was getting worse.I grabbed the door knob as I walked out of the restroom, still in shock and fear from what I’d read in the restroom.“Aria, are you okay?” I raised my head to see Raymond staring at me with concern written all over his face.“I’m fine.” I lied. I was anything but fine. It was safe to say I was dying on the inside at this moment.His hand came around me as he looked to the door. “Did something happen? You don’t look okay.”“I don’t want to talk about it.” I sighed as I took his hand off me, walking back to the reception with my emotions all over the place.“Is it your stomach? Are you in any pain? Let’s go to the hospital. They’ll check you and—““I’m fine!” I banged the table out of frustration. I didn’t mean to, but it already happened. I dropped my head as I let out a tired exhale. “Really. I’m fine. I just want to be left alone. Please.”“Okay.” He seemed to understand that I w