Sheryl ’s POVBy the time I could form words out of my mouth, Scott was already snoring. I stood frozen at the door,just staring at him. That’s all I could think to do.Hearing his words caused my heart to ache. She hated me because I was a Volana wolf. I know my kindisn’t accepted by some; they find us dangerous and threatening. But I have never tried to pose a threatto anyone. I stand up for what I believe in and help those in need. I’m far from dangerous but I knownot all in our world see it that way.“What did he just say?” Ashton asked; for a moment, I forgot he was standing near me.I saw the complete confusion on his face.I didn’t want to stay in Scott’s room any longer, so I left. As we got into the empty halls, I turned to him,trying to keep the tears out of my eyes.“Please don’t tell my father,” I managed to utter as I stared up at him.“What did he mean that you are a Volana? Is that true?” His tone seemed cold.“I never want to hurt anybody,” I whispered. “If Sarah
Ashton’s POV“Are you sure about this?” Bastien asked once I explained what happened with Sarah. “Why would Sheryl want to keep this from me?”“She thinks there’s good in Sarah and doesn’t think that punishing her will do her any good. For whatever reason, she just wants peace.”“Yeah, that sounds like something she would say,” Bastien sighed. “Even so, this is still a punishablecrime, even if Sheryl made a speedy recovery. But I’m afraid without proper proof, I won’t be able to doanything.”“Can’t you speak to the board?” I asked. “Or maybe I can speak to them—”“And then what? It’ll get dismissed if we go to them without proper proof. Not to mention Sarah’sFather basically owns that school. If he gets word that his daughter is being accused of a crime, he won’tstop fighting us. If we want to proceed in punishing her, we need actual proof of the crime.”“What about pictures?” I asked. “Were there any photos taken at the party?”“There were some that took pictures, yes. We alrea
Sheryl’s POV“Remind me again why you have to go to the Calypso pack tonight?” Rachel asked, watching me pack my suitcase from her bed.“Because Professor Ashton is my ride to my pack,” I tell her. “Per my father’s orders…” I add.“So, why go to his pack?”“I guess there’s an issue there he needs to address,” I explain. “The dinner my mom is having isn’t untiltomorrow. So, we are going to the Calypso pack tonight so he can address whatever is happeningthere. Then, we are leaving for Elysium tomorrow.”Before she could say anything more, there was a knock on our door. I went to answer it and saw Ashtonstanding before me, holding his own suitcase.“Are you ready?” He asked, his face remaining expressionless.“Almost,” I answer, I let him inside my dorm as I finish packing my suitcase. Rachel was standing to herfeet quickly, adjusting her closing and giving Ashton a quick bow of respect.“Hello, Professor,” she said quickly.He didn’t respond to her; he looked her over briefly before
Sheryl’s POVIn the picture, my grandmother, Corinne, was sitting in this same vanity, in this room. I frowned andglanced around.Could this have been my grandmothers’ old room?Did she live in this packhouse?My mother never mentioned that my grandparents lived in the packhouse.I couldn’t get over how beautiful my grandmother was; she looked exactly like my mother. It made mesad that she was no longer around. I wished I could have met her. I continued rummaging through theother pictures that occupied the mirror and saw that there was another one with my grandmother,standing beside my grandfather, James.They looked so happy and in love. This was the kind of love story I wanted. Minus the dying and thebeing held captive by the Alpha for years. I wondered how long after this photo was taken mygrandfather was held captive and my grandmother died.It made me feel sick to think about it.I placed the pictures on the vanity; it was strange that they were just sitting there. As if th
Ashton’s POV“Alpha… thank you for coming. I’ve been so frightened. I haven’t opened the shop all day because I wasworried they would just return,” said the Jewelry shop owner, Eliza.She was practically trembling when I entered the shop.“Tell me everything that happened,” I ordered, following her toward the camera room.“They walked in, they were wearing masks and hoods. A couple of them had guns. Said they’d shoot meif I didn’t comply. Then, they took the sapphire necklace and left.”“Only the necklace?”“Yes,” she answered. “It’s the most valuable item in the store.”“Let me see the footage.”She typed something from the keyboard attached to the monitors and soon the image of the thievespopped up on the screen. As I got a better look, I took notice of everything I could see. Their darksweatshirts and worn-out jeans; their dark masks. The cameras are old, so the images were a bitpixelated.They looked to be my height, if not a little shorter.I watched as one of the guys went
Sheryl’s POVMy feet were working in overdrive; as soon as I heard her plead for help, I knew I needed to get there assoon as I could.The town wasn’t far from the beach; I climbed over the fence that separated the beach from the rest ofthe town and made my way through the dark streets only lit by a couple of street lights. It was late, sothere weren’t many cars on the road, but I had to pause for a moment for a car to pass before quicklycrossing the street.I picked up speed as her screaming grew louder.“Please, stop!! I did nothing wrong. You can take what you need, but please leave me alone!!”She was sobbing as she pleaded those words. I couldn’t hear what her attackers were saying, their toneswere deep and mushed into one low sound.I did hear some laughing though.Whatever they were doing to her, they were enjoying themselves.Her pleading was now drowned out by the sounds of her crying.As I rounded one of the corners in the town, leading to a dark alley, I saw about 4 me
Sheryl’s POVI hadn’t even realized I was cut until I saw the look on Ashton’s face when he told me I was hurt. Then I felta small sting on my forehead and the blood trickling down the side of my face.His eyes were dark and fixated on my features.I’ve honestly had worse injuries; this was minor in comparison. But I don’t tell him that. Instead, he doessomething I wasn’t expecting.He wrapped an arm around me and lifted me into his arms, cradling me like a child. My heart leaped in my chest and my eyes widened as I gazed up at him. He was going to walk me back to the packhouse.“I can walk you know,” I tell him.“This will be faster.”Before I could ask him how on earth this would be faster; he starts to run. He wasn’t even in his wolfform; he was just sprinting with me in his arms. I wrap my arms around his neck to steady myself,pressing my face against his chest and breathing in his amazing scent.Val was in complete bliss.I had to keep reminding her that this wasn’t the guy w
Sheryl’s POV“You don’t want a mate…” I continued, keeping my eyes on the back of my head; his entire demeanorhad changed at that moment. “So, why haven’t you rejected me?”“Do you wish for me to do so now?” He asked, turning to glance at me.His face was hard to read; I wasn’t sure how to answer that.“If you don’t wish to be with me then…”“You are my student; it’s more complicated than that,” he said quickly, silencing my words. “If word getsout that I rejected my mate, it will make me look bad as an Alpha.”“So, you are trying to protect your image?” I asked, raising my brows. I was trying to keep the hurt outof my tone, but I knew he could see the disappointment in my eyes. “Is that the only reason?”I thought maybe he would say something else, but his features hardened as he stared around my face.“Something like that,” he muttered, before turning away and leaving the room. Leaving me with only mythoughts and the soft cries of my wolf.…I couldn’t sleep all night.In the mo
“Earlier today,” I answered with a shrug, trying to seem nonchalant. “But you were busy taking Connie tolunch.”“When did you find out about this little vacation?”“It’s not a little vacation,” I said in return. “It’s a huge opportunity. Plus, I’ll be working as Cassie-Ann’s assistant the entire time. Plus, I could get into that school and really take my career to the next level.”“You can take it to the next level here too,” he said, still trying to process my words. “Why do you needto go across the world to do that?”“Because there’s no better school than the one in Monro,” I said, furrowing my own brows together as I stared over at his amazing side profile. He was so handsome no matter what the view. “Don’t you want me to succeed?”I said that last part using a small voice. I was afraid of his answer because it looked like he had beenthinking about it for a long while. However, he didn’t respond. “I was going to tell you about it…” I said in a softer tone. “I just didn’t think y
Sheryl’s POV My heart was racing in my chest because of the amount of adrenaline rushing through my veins. I hadnever done anything like this before but here I was, breaking somebody out of the hospital. “I can’t leave without knowing if Ryan is going to make it or not,” Rachel said, sliding out of bed. I couldhear the hurt in her voice, and it made me feel sad for her. “I’ll keep you updated,” I promised her. “But for right now, I need to get you out of here. I’m going tocall my dad when we are on the road. I won’t let them take you away to that awful place. You almost died the last time you were there. They should be investigated and shut down.”I still couldn’t believe a facility in a place that I love could be so cruel to other species. I had no ideathose with dark hearts could linger in Elysium. It was always such a loving place. Or maybe I have just been too blind to see what was in front of my face the whole time.I zipped her back and threw it over my shoulder as I made my
Sheryl’s POV“So, you are going to go away all summer?” Becca asked with large eyes as we sat in the studentlounge. “Yes, I think so,” I answered with a head nod. “It’ll be a good opportunity for me. Plus, my parent’s thinkit’ll be a good idea.”“What am I going to do all summer without you?” Becca pouted. “Rachel will probably spend thesummer at the hospital with Ryan.”“I’m sure you’ll figure something out,” I chuckled, but then I frowned once I thought about Rachel. “Any word on how Ryan is?” I asked, peering over at her. She frowned as well and shook her head. “None yet,” she said. “But they are thinking about getting Rachel admitted into a rehab facility. They want to bring her back to the one she was in a few years ago.”“What?” I gasped, my heart falling into my stomach. “I had no idea she was even in rehab before. But they say she went to some place in Elysium,” Beccasaid, thinking more about it. “They want to send her back. I don’t think the doctors talked to her aboutit
Ashton’s POV“Today, I’ll be teaching you how to shift in the air,” I announced to the class of students. “It’s all in thelegs. We kick off from the ground and then begin the shift right when the legs are being pushed off the ground.”I demonstrated with ease, and I was met with applause. “This is used mainly for sneak attacks. I want you to try and sneak attack your partners. Trade-off eachround.” Everyone went with their partners to a different section of the arena for some space. Sheryl stood in the distance, waiting for me because I’m her partner. We hadn’t spoken since my confession at the art show, and I was hoping we wouldn’t have to talk aboutthis again. It was a moment of weakness on my part, and it wasn’t something I was going to allow tohappen again. Connie was right the other day when she said I needed to stay away from Sheryl. It was for her own good. But her tight yoga pants and a tank top that she wore, hugged her body and fit around her every curveso perfectly tha
Sheryl’s POV“An election? This student committee was my idea,” I said, staring between all the school board’s faces until my eyes landed on Sarah who stared at me with a smug grin.I could tell that her intentions weren’t pure, and my stomach was forming into a tight knot. “Yes, but it’s a student committee. Meaning we need to give all students a chance to—”“Take my role as the leader?” I interrupted; they all looked startled by my stubbornness. I wasn’ttypically a stubborn person like this, but I was honestly hurt that it was this easy for them to just replace me. Sarah folded her arms across her chest. “I’ve done a lot of wrongs while I’ve been at this school. This gives me the chance to do somethinggood for once,” she said, eyeing me carefully. That smug look was still in her eyes though. She was pulling their strings. She didn’t care about this committee; she just didn’t want me to have it. “If I lose, where does that leave me?”“Worried you’ll lose?” Sarah asked, a grin appea
Ashton’s POV“You went to the art show, Ashton?” Connie nearly hissed, stepping in front of me as I sat on the couch in my living room. “What are you even still doing here, Connie?” I muttered, kicking off my shoes. “Didn’t your contract end a week ago?” She pouted, folding her arms across her chest. “Yes,” she answered. “But I don’t have anywhere else to go. I’m in between jobs and my next contract doesn’t start for another couple of weeks.”“So, why can’t you stay elsewhere?”“I don’t know anyone on this part of the continent,” Connie said, shaking her head. “You are my onlyfriend in town, and I’d like to stay close to you. Is that such a crime?”“Are you going to be a pest the entire time?” I asked, but I meant it almost teasingly despite how dry my tone was. Connie could see through my humor right away though and rolled her eyes as she sat beside me. “You are trying to avoid the conversation,” Connie pointed out, reminding me just how well she knew me. “You went to the art show.”
Sheryl’s POV What did he just say?I stared up at him with wide and shocked eyes. I could hardly breathe standing in front of him. We were outside and the air was starting to get brisk.It was growing late in the evening and only the faint lighting of the moon, hidden behind a few clouds, lit up the ground around us. “I can’t seem to get you out of my head,” Ashton repeated, keeping his eyes locked on mine. “And that’s a problem.”I wanted to say something to him, anything, but no words were coming into my head. I couldn’t believe he was saying such a thing. “Ashton, I—” Before I could utter a single word more, he stepped closer to me, closing the small gap that sat between us. He wrapped his hand around the back of my neck to hold my head in place as he paced hisforehead against mine. His breathing slowed down to match mine and his eyes shut for a brief moment before he openedthem and gazed down at my lips.I wanted to stand on my toes and kiss him; I didn’t know what else to say o
Sheryl’s POVThere was a part of me that was hoping that Ashton wouldn’t show up. Emily and Kate were especially happy to meet him when I told them he agreed to come. We spent most of the morning setting up the gallery for the show. The caterers arrived just in time toset up their stations for food and drinks and per request, Brody arrived with his guitar. After talking with Brody over time, I discovered that he was huge into music and that it was a passion of his. I heard him playing in the student lounge and I knew he would be perfect entertainment for the art show. “Where should I set up?” He asked, holding up his red velvet guitar case. “I’ll show you,” I said, walking toward a secluded area where a few paintings were set up. “You can set up your station however you want,” I told him with a kind smile. “Hey, Sheryl! Can you help me place napkins around the tables?” Cassidy-Ann asked from across the room.I nodded to her and went to grab the napkins in the back room. As I was in t
Sheryl’s POV“Absolutely not!!!” Val growled with fury boiling through her. I had to clutch the desk to keep her tameand not lose control. “We will not be introducing these whores to our mate!!”“Maybe he would finally reject us if we did though,” I said, trying to reason with her. Yes, it was painful to think about, but this might be a blessing in disguise. Perhaps this was the pushAshton needed to finally reject us and let us live our lives without the burden of being his mate. My stomach was in a complete knot as I stared around at the eager faces that stared back at me. They were waiting for an answer and Val wasn’t letting me say anything to them. “We know he’s unmated because he hasn’t found his mate yet. We heard through a grapevine that he’s on the market for a chosen mate,” one of the chuckled. “Yeah, that famous singer Bethany is staying with him, trying to get him to choose her. She has a better chance than anybody, but we would also like a shot.”I couldn’t believe what