I changed my mind on my way home. Instead of taking Aithan to the house like I planned to do, I drove him to the hospital instead. I needed to be careful with him, to avoid regretting my decision just because I wanted to hug him to myself all day. I had to drive him to the only hospital owned by the werewolves, the one with werewolf staffs instead of humans. To keep the humans out, the hospital always charged an obnoxious amount whenever they got human patients, so they could drive them out. Since the time they built it, they had admitted no human to it. I was right to take Aithan to the hospital, though. The doctors confirmed the poison would have slowly killed my lover if I didn't bring him over. Marcus knew it was lethal. He recognized how dangerous it would be to Aithan, and how it wouldn't affect me. It was clear he wanted to kill him and keep me alive, so I could return to the heartless killing machine I was for him.For a week, Aithan remained unconscious. I'd never been as w
Aithan woke up two weeks later. I had lost hope of ever seeing his pretty blue eyes, of ever seeing them smile when he finally opened it. The two weeks I spent by his bedside were the worst days I ever had. My heart felt like it was slowly dying each day that passed. His mark on my neck felt hot like it was being melted in a cauldron heated several times. I thought the worst. I thought the pain was because my mate was leaving, slowly losing grasp of the world. Sophie and Max stayed by my side, rendering their support the best they could while keeping the house running in my absence. I was too worried about my mate to care about the family and anything else. Viktor located me a few days ago, but I refused to let him see his son. It wasn't easy to do that. Had it not been for our location, there would have been a bloody fight between us. He was the father, after all. It wasn't like I cared. I didn't trust him enough to let him see my Aithan in this state. He might take him from me,
AITHAN “What the hell are you talking about?!” Viktor yelled, his veins popping out. His eyes looked like they would jut out from their sockets should he add more strain to them. “I'm leaving with Alex.” While he was seething, I was calm. I had already decided on this. Alex killed his father, to save me. Not everyone would do that. If he didn't love me, he wouldn't have harmed his blood just because he tried to kill me. It was time to break free from Viktor's hold. I'm no longer a kid who hides behind his father. I could tell it was near, the time to start a new life and a family. “You don't know what you are saying.” He drew close. “Did you, by chance, hit your head on anything? Is that why you aren't making any sense?” He placed his right hand on my forehead, to feel my temperature. “It's not hot. You are okay. So, why are you talking like a kid who lost his mind?!”“I didn't.” I shook my head and sat up on the bed. “I know what I'm talking about, Viktor. It's time to let go of
ALEX I felt like the only man in the entire world. Having my Aithan with me was the best feeling, like the first drop of water after a long winter. For the first time, I felt like I had found my meaning, the place I belong, where I was supposed to be.I got down from the car and walked around it to open the door for my mate. Aithan humoured me by staying put, waiting for me to do so. He smiled when I opened the door. “We are here.” I offered my hand to him, and he took it.He let me help him out of the car. I closed the door behind him and took his hand in mine, turning to look at the house. As if on cue, all the men gathered in front of the house, in two straight lines, leaving a space between them, enough for two people to walk through. Puzzled, I watched them, waiting to know what was going on. It was the first time I had seen something like this with the men. Max stepped out of the house and walked toward us, smiling. “Welcome home, alpha.” He bowed to me when he was a few pa
AITHANWho knew women could be so strong and energetic? I didn't know, though, but it all changed when I met Sophia De Luca. She looked harmless with those soft brown eyes and auburn hair that she had up in twin ponytails. I watched her walk around; the hair bouncing with each step she took, intrigued. I'd never had a sister before, and the brother I had was almost non-existent. To me, I was an only child, and that never bothered me until I met Sophia. She was so fun to be with that she made me imagine how my life would have been if I had grown up with her. Would it have been the best?“Have you seen our photo album??!” she asked, rather excitedly. From the door, she led me to the house and straight to her room. She wasn't shy about having a man in her bedroom, and I realized it had to do with my relationship with her stepbrother. She knew I was taken and wouldn't have any thoughts about her. Her room was as feminine as she looked, with her cute pink sundress and ribbon she used in
He didn't disturb me anymore. The promise of a reward was enough to keep him in his room for the rest of the hour. I looked through the photo album with Sophia, laughing at how cute Alex was. Who would have thought someone like him had such a soft side? I realized, though, that the cute pictures stopped when he got older. I didn't need to calculate to know it was around the time our mothers died. Obviously, his mother was the one taking those pictures of him. When she died, Marcus stopped it. He started training his son to take over from him in his death. I noticed how sad and serious the pictures after the cute ones were. Alex only smiled in three of the pictures, and they looked forced. His eyes lost that sparkle they had when his mother was still alive. Whatever happened to him was enough to rub him of his innocence, turning him into the man he was.“Alex changed after he met you,” Sophia whispered, causing me to look up at her. I was so lost in my thoughts that I forgot she was
I walked down the hallway to Alex's room. Sophia would have escorted me, but she got a call from her brother and had to speak to him. I left her alone to do that after I saw her expression. She didn't seem that thrilled to talk with him.I knocked on the door but didn't get any response. Trying it for the second time, I pushed it open and stepped in. The first thing that assaulted my senses was his scent. It enveloped the room, instantly wrapping me up in warmth. I closed my eyes and inhaled the smell I liked the most in the entire world. It was almost like the time when I rolled on the bed after spending time with him in his cabin, inhaling his sweet scent. I opened my eyes to look around, seeking the owner of the room, but he was nowhere to be found. Letting out a sigh, I let my gaze run around the room, taking the furniture, the masculine decor and the arrangement, in. The bed, a sturdy oak frame with a plush grey duvet, perched against one wall, flanked by two nightstands with
“No, I don't!” He lifted me from the bed before I could say another word and walked straight to the other door opposite the one I stepped in. “What are you doing?!” I panicked when he opened the door and I realized we were in his bathroom. “Getting her scent off you." He carried me to the bath and placed me on it, switching the tap on. “You are mine, Aithan. I don't want you to smell like other bloody people. I hate it. It makes me want to rub it off you." Despite the tingle in my stomach at how possessive he sounded, I couldn't help but lament, “And that's why you want to soak me up?” “Just bear with it. I don't want to perceive her scent on you. It's irritating.” He glared hard at my neck, his face pulled up in a dark scowl. "Why did you let her come close to you?" "It's not that strange, is it? She's family and —" He cursed under his breath, cutting my words short.“Don't go after her,” I warned, narrowing my eyes at him. “Why? Are you taking her sides now?”I rolled my eyes
I never imagined that such a day would come, and faster at that. I wouldn't have believed that I would tie the knot with the person of my choice someday. I had always resolved I would get married to a girl Viktor picked, but Alex showed up and changed my mind. “You look handsome,” Pink said, standing behind me. “You are the most beautiful groom in the entire world.”“Oh, spare me that.” I rolled my eyes. I had gotten enough compliments from Viktor and Sophia, who thought I needed to hear how good I looked, for my ego. I smoothed my suit even though it wasn't necessary, staring into the mirror as a small smile crept up. They were right. I had never looked as good as I did today. It being my wedding made it the best. The black suit fitted me more than I thought it would even though it was custom-made.I paired my black jacket with a crisp white shirt and a black tie, a gift I got from Viktor. He didn't want me to match with the tie that came with my suit. He wanted something of his on
But I wanted more. I wanted him. I tugged him up, kissing him fiercely, then rolled us so I could straddle him.“My turn.” I licked down his chest, tasting salt and heat, then lingering on his nipples until he groaned my name.“Ly, you’re driving me crazy.”I went lower, sucking him slowly and deeply, savouring every shudder he gave me.I moved lower some more and gagged, and Alex’s hand pushed my head back down when I tried to escape, his fingers tangling gently in my hair.“Easy, Ly,” he murmured, his voice a low rumble, his eyes locking onto mine, soft but insistent. I groaned around him, the stretch of my lips around his thick cock sending a shiver through me. I held his gaze, determined to please him, to make him see how beautiful this was.The moonlight spilt over us, catching the gold in his hair, and I felt my chest tighten with how damn beautiful he looked, all raw and open for me.“Fuck, Aithan, you’re so good at this.” He kept brushing my cheek, guiding me as I took him dee
AITHANIt has been a month since the encounter with that bastard rapist, and things had gotten back on track. Ryder like I had suspected wasn't as bad as they made him out to be. Marcus was the one who pulled the string, controlling him with his position as the head of the family. With Ryder gone, the rest of the family united. We got rid of the mafia families that tried to challenge us. After a long day of work, Alex suggested we take a walk in the spring close to his cabin.The spring glittered under the full moon. The surface was a mirror of silver light that stretched across the clearing.I sat beside Alex, my bare feet brushing the cool grass, my eyes fixed on the sky.His golden hair caught the moonlight, shimmering like a halo, and I couldn’t help but steal a glance at him. His eyes were soft yet intense as he stared upward too.He could feel it as much as I could do, the beauty of this moment.The air was crisp, laced with the scent of pine and damp earth, and the night felt
ALEXMy heart left my body when I heard Sophia's words. I leapt from my chair and reached for her, ripping the phone off her hand. My blood grew cold as I read the text. “Did they say what they want?” Ryder asked behind me, reaching my side in a few strides. “Yes, they —”I passed the phone back to Sophia before she could complete her words and headed out, almost ripping the door off its hinges from the force I tore through it with. I heard echoing footsteps behind me as I headed for my car, but before I could open the door, Ryder placed his hand on the doorknob, stopping me. “Get your hands off!” I growled. “This isn't the fucking time to play!”“Do I look like I'm playing?” He glared, matching my tone. “You can't drive in your state. Let me do that. I promise I will take you there in time.”“Fuck off! This doesn't concern you.” I ripped his hand off, but he was persistent, holding me before I could open the door. “It concerns me, Alex. Now that I have decided to forgo the past
AITHANI know I was such a fool when I left the house without telling Alex the truth of where I was heading. I lied to him that I was going over to my bar when I wasn't. Today made it 2 days and close to 48 hours since I received the letter, and I was on my way to meet whoever sent it. On the back of the letter, they had written how to meet them. One of the specific requirements was for me to come alone else they would send the video to Alex. To keep my lover from discovering my past from them, I had to do something stupid.I know I can fight should it get to that, but there was no way of knowing what I would be up against. What if they had a gun? What if they had other people with them? I couldn't risk it. I had to play it safe, no matter how much it pained me to do so.I didn't take my car with me, as that would make it difficult for me to keep Alex in the dark. He has a tracker in my car and would know wherever I am. To be on the safer side, I had to leave my car at home and take
ALEX“Can I have a chat with you?” Ryder said when he walked into my study. He knocked before he stepped in, though. What I didn't like was how he looked like it was his right to speak to me, even if I didn't want that. “What do you want to talk about?” I closed the laptop to face him. He lifted a brow. “Won't you offer me a seat?”I gritted my teeth, keeping my anger in check. So he wouldn't gloat that he had won. I gestured to the seat across from mine. “Have a seat.”“Now that's more like.” Grinning, he sat on the chair and crossed his legs, watching me. He didn't say a word for a long time. He just watched me. “What is it you wish to discuss? Don't tell me you came in here to stare at me?” I broke the silence between us, irritated. “What if I did?” I narrowed my eyes. “I don't have all the time in the world for your shenanigans, Ryder. Why are you here?”“Where is Aithan? Your lover?”“Why? What's with you asking about him?” If I was suspicious about him from the time he step
AITHAN Ryder was lucky I was in the sitting room with Alex when he arrived, else his blood would have decorated the floor. Alex would have had his head for just looking at me, but I stopped him. My lover just doesn't seem to know his stepbrother was baiting him. Ryder, despite knowing what would have gone down if I didn't stop Alex, smiled, winked at me, turned on his steps and walked towards the stairs with his small bag. We watched him leave, humming under his breath and with a slight swag to his steps. It wasn't until he was out of earshot that I heard Sophia exhale. “Thank fuck," she whispered, looking at me with a sad smile. He didn't even look at her. What a brother he was. I bet he only wanted Sophia to return with him to the city, so she wouldn't be near Alex. “I hate him,” Alex muttered under his breath. “He's not —” I swallowed down the word I wanted to say. Letting it out would infuriate my lover, who looked like he was losing it. Ryder wasn't bad, though. I didn't
ALEX I would be a damned liar if I said I didn't feel there was something Aithan was keeping from me. I knew he didn't tell me everything, but there was no way to confirm that. He hid that letter, and I couldn't find it in the room when I searched for it. I couldn't shake off the feeling that something wasn't right, but Aithan kept on insisting that he was okay and that the letter was just from someone who might have seen him killing those men. I asked if it was the same man he thought he saw at the restaurant. He hesitated before he denied it. I didn't believe that, but who was I to argue with him?I couldn't just afford to be given cold shoulders, as that was something Aithan was excellent at. Any minor argument, he will keep a long face, and make me grovel on my feet just to get back with him. Not like I was complaining or anything. “Good morning,” he whispered, rubbing his eyes. I had been long awake, staring at the ceiling, while he slept. I didn't just want to disturb him
“Open the letter and check. You might get an inkling of who sent it,” Alex said, his voice breaking the silence.I hesitated for a moment, my heart racing with anxiety. What if it was something bad? What if it were someone from my past, come to haunt me? I didn't want to open it. I wanted to throw the letter as far away from me as I could, but Alex's encouraging gaze gave me the courage to open the envelope. I slid my finger under the flap and pulled out the letter inside.As I unfolded the paper, my eyes scanned the page, my heart sinking with every word. It was a letter, all right. But it wasn't from a friend or a bill collector. It was from someone who knew my darkest secrets, someone who threatened to expose me to the world.My hands shook as I read it, my mind reeling with fear. How did they know? Who told them? And what did they want from me?Blinking, I reread the letter. "Aithan,I know what happened that night. I know what those men did to you. And I know what you did to the