Naya’s POV
‘Elisa!’
Having a wolf that was as strong as Elisa was the envy of everyone. An envy that I had known for twenty-five years before my first life ended.
But none of them knew the disadvantages.
Despite being my wolf, Elisa could take over my body while I was in human form.
And she always did it at the worst timing. Like right now.
I gulp as the man’s eyes fall on me; his blue eyes are clear and bright. So clear that they want to pull me in.
Yet, there’s a chilling coldness in them that makes me want to stay away. And even as a shifter, I feel like he could be a threat to me.
Was this man human?
And if he wasn’t, why couldn’t I smell his wolf on him?
“You need a groom?” He finally asked.
I take a deep breath while trying to find the most logical explanation for what just happened. Yet, in that moment, the struggle for control between Elisa and me is even stronger.
Like always, she wins.
“Yes, I need a groom.”
The man gives me another piercing stare that seems to go on for minutes before nodding his head.
“Well, then. Ladies first,” he said while gesturing for me to go ahead.
I glance at him one more time before I move forward, my legs feeling a lot heavier than I could remember.
I can’t tell if it’s the fear of getting married to a stranger or if it’s because my mind isn’t the one pulling the weight of my body right now.
“You would thank me for this, Naya,” Elisa croons.
I don’t bother to give her a reply. Not like I could stop her and I definitely had no intention of thanking her.
The marriage process went very quickly, and soon, I was holding the marriage certificate with my name and signature on it.
Rowan Yorke.
“My grandfather is the one that needs a bride, so you can go with…”
Wait what? His grandfather?
Before he could finish his words, the man beside him stepped forward.
“Miss Naya, what he’s trying to say is, meeting his family is very important so if you have some time today, we can go back to meet his family.”
“Mrs.” Rowan corrected from the side and somehow, the one word manages to make my heart thump in my chest.
I took a deep breath of relief at his words and nodded.
“I have some matters to settle right now. Maybe later in the day…”
“Since that’s all, give him your contact card. I'll have him pick you up this evening.”
The rest of our exchange is pretty much the same, and Rowan leaves with his assistant, Mr Henry.
All alone, I glance at the time in the waiting room and finally sit down.
Liam would be here in about fifteen minutes.
I needed those fifteen minutes to get my act together.
Twelve minutes later, I stood up and ripped one side of the tacky dress that Sophie had designed for me.
My designs were way better, but in the past, I had settled for this because I wanted to make her happier.
As for now?
I tore one more end and then ruffled my hair. Once I was sure that everything was out of place, I stepped out of the county office with a sour expression set in place.
“What are you doing?” Elisa asked as I stepped outside.
I should be pissed at her for what she did earlier, but perhaps it was knowing that I was responsible for her death in the last life; I couldn’t stay mad at her.
“Getting an explanation for Liam.”
Just as my words landed, Liam’s familiar car pulled over, and his door flew open even before his car was properly parked.
I scoffed internally as I watched him rushing over to him, a worried look etched on his face.
These were the things that had deceived me in the past. Thinking that he adored me and worshipped the ground I walked on.
In reality, all he was good at was putting on an act. When it came to his actions, he rarely ever put me first.
“Naya! What’s the matter?”
“I have been here for the last hour. Did you not check your messages? How could you come late to our wedding, Liam?”
I could see the slight crack in his expression. He was definitely shocked that I was displeased with him.
“Naya, something came up. How could I willingly come late to our registration?”
“Besides, what happened? You look like a mess!”
It was hard to control my expressions as I was already used to displaying my every emotion for all to see.
But I couldn’t slip up.
Putting on the most pitiful expression I could manage, I grabbed a fistful of the dress.
“I don’t know what went wrong when Sophie was producing this. Just getting down from the taxi was more than enough for it to rip by the sides.”
Liam glanced down at his dress, and I could see how his eyes darkened when he picked up on the hints I was dropping.
I wanted him to think that Sophie had deliberately ruined the dress to sabotage today.
“Liam, Naya, why are you guys out here?” Sophie exclaimed as she stepped down from her sports car.
“We were just about leaving.”
Sophie glanced between the both of us before her eyes finally fell on Liam.
“You guys are done with the registration?”
Liam turned to me, his eyes full of questions. “Why are we leaving?”
“You really think I want to get married looking like this?”
He lost his act for a moment as his eyes turned stern. “What are you saying? How can we go back home because of a ripped dress?”
“Besides, we already made plans to visit the pack tomorrow. How can we go back home?”
From the corner of my eyes, I saw Sophie biting her lips while staring at Liam.
“Liam, I waited for you for more than an hour. Right now, I just want to be back home.”
Seeing that he didn’t make a move, I took a step forward and was not surprised when he grabbed my arms.
“Naya, our love goes beyond our appearance or anything that you have on. Don’t you think it’s too superficial to change dates because of a dress?”
Perhaps, if I didn’t know him, if I didn’t know that I had died in the hands of this monster holding on to me now, I might have been swayed by his passionate words.
“Liam, it’s a bad omen for a thing like this to happen on the day we want to register our marriage. You aren’t going anywhere, right?”
I glanced at Sophie, allowing my words to hang in the air before adding the final stab.
“Let’s do it another day.”
Liam stared at me intently for seconds, his eyes boring jokes into mine.
Although it was hard to stare him in the eyes and not let him see how much I hated him and how much I wanted to tear him apart, I did my best.
As he looked away, my shoulders slumped in relief.
“You guys can leave. I would like to take a walk.”
The office was in a remote area, and it was the perfect excuse for me to be away from these two.
Sophie glanced at the two of us and then nodded.
“I will leave you both alone.” Without another word, she entered her car and left.
As for Liam, he stayed and watched me walk off before he finally entered his car and left.
With him gone, I felt like I was able to breathe one more time, and I took a deep breath.
“Naya, is there something you aren’t telling me?” Elisa’s voice rang out, and I stiffened.”
However, before I could reply, a loud honk rang out, and a car parked beside me.
It’s only been minutes. How can you look this terrible?” Rowan said as he rolled down the window.
Seeing his eyes shining with interest, I felt embarrassment flush through me as I glanced down at my ruined dress.
“Come in.”
At first, I wanted to refuse, but the thought that the man before me was now my legal husband made me change my mind.
Henry rushed to open the door, and I settled in beside Rowan in the backseat.
“Since today was our first meeting, I will let it pass that another man was hugging you,” Rowan started and I froze, not daring to meet his eyes.
“Whether you wanted it or not, don’t forget that from now on, you have become my woman.”
“And I don’t like to share.”
Liam's POV“Take it easy, Liam. It's nobody's fault,” Sophie says as she gets down from her car and walks to me.I slap a palm onto my face. “Then explain to me, Sophie. You've been designing for more than four years now. Why did you make a dress that is easy to tear?”“I told you to keep your feelings out of this. I told you!”Her eyes widen as she stares at me with surprise. My angry side is something she hasn't witnessed personally.“I didn't make any underhand design,” she argues. “The material, the pattern… all of it was in perfect condition before I handed it over.”“And then it ripped apart while she was coming down from the taxi. Fuck, I should have known something like this would happen,” I rant.I pick up a glass of water and take a gulp. Shouting for the past twenty minutes has really turned my throat sore.“You know what, Sophie? Saturday. You will make another wedding dress before Saturday. Do you understand?”“Darling,” she purrs, resting a palm on my chest, “you're soun
Naya’ POVA magnificent mansion is a few meters away from us. From the distance, it beams of royalty and wealth. Completely different from anything I had seen.“This is yours?” I intentionally ask Rowan who has just shown me that he can stay thirty minutes in a vehicle without saying a word to his spouse.“Yes.”That is all he can say.I sigh softly and manage a smile. “It’s gorgeous.”“Just like you,” he blurts out. It's a beautiful compliment, but it's so plain cause he doesn't even look at me when he says it.I manage to put on another smile. “Thank you.”Some minutes later, our car parks in front of the mansion and Henry rushes out to get the door for me and Rowan afterwards.He whispers something to Rowan and he nods in agreement to whatever it is.Rowan walks up to me and hangs his arm open.“Hold me,” he orders and I do that immediately. We are a newly wedded couple, so it's only natural that we act like one. But it seems a bit weird.The moment Henry opens the door for us to
Naya’s POV I have always hated the smell and looks of hospitals since I lost my mom in them about ten years ago. Because of that, Dad made sure that the recuperation area in the pack's clinic was more like a stop-by inn. It was plain, hardly reeked of medicine and you could see the beautiful scene outside from your bed. The thought of him has my heart aching one more time. Since the last two years of his death, I have come to accept that there was no way I could move on. Deal with the pain and accept it? That was impossible. He has always been an important part of my life for more than twenty three years. And my only family for thirteen. Although he always said he was happy that he was leaving me in the hands of someone who I loved and who loved me as much. It still didn’t make the pain easier to deal with. Sweeping through the empty hallways, I realise there’s no staff around to ask how Liam is doing. Instead of going back, I drag myself to the male section of the clinic.
Naya’s POVI might have pinched myself a little more than ten times in the last minutes. It suddenly seemed like my entire life was falling apart, and as I finally gained the strength to stand up, a familiar scent flooded my nostrils. In seconds, Liam’s familiar figure rushes through the door, only that, he doesn’t stop. He probably didn’t even see me there, and I watched from where I stood by the door as my husband rushed towards Sophie. Sophie no longer had the fierce and aggressive demeanour from earlier. Instead, she has this frail and lost look in her eyes that reminds me of the many times that she asked me for a favour.But what is even more baffling is Liam. He looked nothing like someone who just got a transplant. “L…Liam… I told you that Naya would be angry as soon as she finds out,” Sophie says weakly and then burst into tears.Liam finally glances at my side, our eyes meeting. But it’s not him that’s staring at me. The Liam I knew, the Liam I married, always looked
Naya’s POVI wonder if I get to meet with Selene. Would I be angry at her for making me the chosen one? Or would she be angry that I couldn’t do the sole thing that she chose me for?To protect her people.When all the swirling and turning finally stopped, I pried my eyes open.Shock rushes through me as I take in the sight before me. The scene before me is nothing like what I expect the afterlife to look at. Instead, it was a scene that I knew too well. Remembered too well. Was the moon goddess trying to remind me of the day that I had made the worst mistake of my life? Of the day that I said yes to the monster that had taken everything from me?As I stare in the mirror, staring at the wedding dress from that day, my fists clench tightly.Wait…“How do I still have my body?”“I was wondering when you were going to realise it, silly,” Elisa’s familiar voice rang out, and I froze.“Lisa!” “What’s going on?” “We seem to be back in time, only that I don’t remember anything else f