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Chapter 42
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2024-10-29 19:42:56HOPE
I stood nervously outside the door. I could hear the crowd inside the ballroom, and I had seen the reporters being admitted earlier. Nicco was turning this announcement into a whole big thing, and I was really uncomfortable with it.
After we had our moment in the living room, Nicco had gotten on the phone and an hour later three women were at his door with evening gowns. They dressed me in a silvery, glitter sheath and put my hair up into an elegant updo with curled tendrils falling over my face. Despite my protests, they strapped me into heels that I teetered around on, trying to see through my heavily mascaraed lashes. I didn’t recognize myself in the mirror and I wasn’t sure I liked the look.
But I was proclaimed perfect. Nicco didn’t want me looking like a young, inexperienced girl. He wanted me elegant and sophisticated and, according to him, my reflection reflected this. I sighed, shift
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NICCOHope fell asleep in the car on the way home, sprawled on the seat with her head on my lap. I looked down at her, a smile on my face. She was perfect tonight. My Luna.I caught Vinnie looking at me in the rear-view mirror. I frowned at him and his response was a huge grin. “You can’t fool me, Alpha,” he said, quietly. “Sweet Hope has finally captured your heart, too.”I let my features soften. “Yeah,” I admitted. “She has.” I reached down my finger and stroked her cheek. “She was really good tonight, wasn’t she, Vinnie.” Vinnie nodded. “She sure was. She’s going to be a great Luna.”“I hope so,” I said, softly, not wanting to wake her. That was true. I really hoped she would be a good Luna. I still had doubts because she wasn’t a shifter, but that punch to Angelica’s mouth today was a pretty good one. Not many human women could best a she-wolf. I was assuming she caught Angelica by surprise, but still. That was a good shot.Vinnie smoothly pulled up in front of
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HOPEI rolled over and snuggled into Nicco. He put his arm around me and tightened it and I almost purred in pleasure. I was here, in his arms, and I was his Luna. And he had marked me. I was so happy.Too soon he rolled away from me and kissed me on the forehead. “Early morning meeting,” he whispered. “Stay in bed a little longer. We can have lunch together and then go into the office.”“I’d like lunch,” I said, tossing back the covers. “But I’m not going to stay in bed. I’m going to go down to the fitness center and then I’ll be up. I want to look at the programming again.”Nicco nodded. “Why don’t you come to the office after your workout,” he suggested. “I can send Vinnie back with the car to get you.”I shook my head. “It would be easier to work at your office
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NICCOI looked at my watch with irritation. It was 10:30 and I had pushed my meeting to be done sooner so that I could hang out with my mate. She had said she would be here by nine but she was nowhere to be seen and she wasn’t answering her phone. I picked up my phone and called Eloise.“I waved goodbye to her around 8:15, Alpha,” Eloise said, her voice tinged in worry.“Did she have anything with her?” I asked, sharply, wondering for a moment if she had run away.“No, Alpha. A small purse, that’s it.” Eloise seemed even more worried now. I sighed. “Will you call down to the front? Find out who called her a cab.” I disconnected and looked at Vinnie. He also looked worried.“She wouldn’t run, Alpha. She loves you.” Vinnie seemed to be picking up on my doubts. I sighed.“I marked her last night,” I admitted. “Maybe it scared her.”Vinnie shrugged. “I doubt it. Hope is different. She’s tough. If she had a problem with it, she would have talked to you about it.”“Or just
Sweet Hope for the Alpha Kingpin Chapter 46
HOPEI turned to see what Billy was looking at and I began to scream. Two men were advancing on me, including the doctor that had a medical fetish.“Hey, Hope,” the doctor said, leering at me. “You filled out nice.”I began moving away from the men, towards Billy. I looked out towards the main sidewalk, but the business of the city drowned out my noises. I turned to look at Billy again and he grinned.“Just come quiet, Hope,” he said. “I don’t want to hurt you. You’re worth more to me intact.” He grinned again, showing me a hunting knife he was holding. I recognized it. I had been cut with it on more than one occasion before.I let my shoulders drop, acting like I was being submissive. The three men grinned but then I leaped at Billy, kicking at him, running for the sidewalk. He went down but managed to grab my foot, p
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NICCO “We have an approximate location, Alpha,” Vinnie said softly. I knew that there was something he wasn’t saying. An approximate location would be good enough. We were wolves. Our wolves would find her scent and then find her. “It’s near the Fishermans’ Harbor,” Vinnie explained. I groaned. The overwhelming smell of dried seaweed, rancid fish and the stagnant waters that got caught among the rocks was hard on our wolves. They wouldn’t be able to track her down there. “Phone number is registered to a Billy Horton,” Vinnie said. “That’s her stepdad.” “He found her,” I said quietly. I knew that Hope still had nightmares about what happened to her when he took custody of her at fourteen. I had vowed to someday find him and kill him so that she didn’t ever have to wonder if he was after her. “Looks like it,” Vinnie said. “Charlie didn’t find anything at Angelica’s apartment.
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HOPE With all the strength I had, I managed to turn my head so that I didn’t have to look at the doctor. Not seeing what he was going to do to me made me braver. When I knew what was coming, I panicked. I felt his hands on my breast, pinching my nipples. I squeezed my eyes shut. I felt him rearrange my legs, bending my knees and pushing them up so that my heels touched. I tried to move but the drug he gave me was too powerful. It hadn’t begun to wear off yet. I felt something sharp on my nipples and then I felt my labia being tugged open with the same sharp stinging feeling. I warily opened my eyes to see the doctor looking at me. “Just a little electricity, Hope,” he said with a grin. I felt the tears in my eyes. I knew this was going to hurt. He fastened a few more electrodes on my body, both on my arms and legs. Then he picked up the little box that I knew was going to
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HOPEI could feel hands on me again and I started screaming, trying to fight through the drugs and the electricity. Then a sense of calm overcame me and I knew it was Lupo reaching out through the mate bond, soothing me. “How do I turn this off?” I heard Nicco frantically scream at someone. I feebly tried to move my arms. “There’s a box that the wires are attached to,” I mumbled, my body still jerking with the electrical impulses flooding through it. I was getting to the point where I was about to pass out and I fought through the blackness. I was afraid if I passed out, Nicco would somehow disappear, and I couldn’t take that. I wasn’t sure he was real.“I got it, Alpha!” I could hear Vinnie’s voice. Then, mercifully, the electricity stopped, and my body stopped jerking. Nicco rolled me over and cradled me in his arms. I could see Vinnie, his clothing in shreds. He must have shifted to come find me.“Is there a blanket we can put on her?” Nicco asked. I was shaking, but no
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NICCOHope fell asleep on me in the car. I held her close, looking at her mark that I had made on her last night. Maybe that was a mistake. Humans are so fragile.Vinnie carefully pulled up to the curb and I lifted Hope out, still wrapped in her blanket and nothing else. The doorman was too well trained to do or say anything, and he respectfully averted his eyes as I carried her in. The ride in the elevator was straight to the top, thanks to a generous yearly tip that I made to all of the elevator attendants.I lightly laid her on the bed while Eloise hovered. As soon as I put her down, she opened her eyes and looked around in panic.“Shhh,” I whispered. “I’m here.” Her eyes locked with mine and she gave me a small smile.“I was afraid I dreamed you,” she whispered.Eloise dabbed at her eyes and slipped out of the room. I had gotten a mind link th
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HOPE POVBeing behind the wheel of my van was like coming home to an old friend. I knew her idiosyncrasies and I loved them. The engine responded to me and the familiar hum lulled me. My mind began to wander. So much has happened in the past few months. It was hard to remember that, just a few months ago, I was working as a mechanic. Since then, I found out about werewolves, had several adventures, found my mate, had a few bad encounters and have changed as a person. I feel like I am a completely new person, but the old Hope was still inside me.I put on the blinker and slowed down. My map said that there was a campsite up to the left. I had headed northwest to try to avoid Nicco’s Pack, and my map said I was hundreds of miles from them. I should be safe enough to spend a night or two here while I tried to get my head on straight and to come up with a plan.I found the road in the dim light and drove the rough terrain that winded through towering pine trees. It opened up t
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NICCOI started by gathering all of the residents of Moon Tower. I wanted answers and Lupo was pissed. We lost our Beta and I wanted justice. Not as bad as Charlie did, though.The wolves began arriving, most of them confused, especially when we ushered everyone into the basement. It was dank and dark, but it was the only place that was large enough for what I wanted to do.“They’re all here, Alpha,” Caleb said, checking the last wolf off the list. I walked to the far end of the room, my pack members nervously shuffling out of my way. Charlie was already standing in the front of the room, his arms folded across his chest and glaring at everyone. “This meeting is to be kept secret,” I shouted in my Alpha voice. I could see everyone’s neck bowing to my authority, exposing their vulnerable necks to me and showing submission. I hated giving Alpha commands. It reminded me, and everyone else, of my father’s realm where Alpha commands were given multiple times a day. They should o
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NICCOI raced over to Vinnie’s apartment. Despite his Beta status, he chose to live in an apartment building that I owned and used to provide living accommodations to members of our pack who worked at my companies. He had at least taken one of the top floor apartments, using the excuse that the view was amazing. It was.I didn’t wait for the elevator and, instead, took the stairs two at a time. It helped Lupo work off some of the nervous energy and gave me an outlet for mine. We made it to the top in record time and I gently knocked at the door.There were no police, no crime scene tape and no techs dusting for fingerprints. We handle things in house. There would be no outside involvement. And when I found out who did this, there would be no trial, no jury. Only swift justice.Charlie opened the door, his face white and his jaw set. He stepped aside and I slipped in, closing the door behind me. Until we knew what we were dealing with, I didn’t want to let anyone else know w
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NICCOI frowned at my watch. Hope was late and that wasn’t like her. I was glad she wasn’t early as usual, though. I didn’t want her running into Lucia. What a hateful brat. My phone chirped and I grabbed for it, a smile playing on my lips. It was probably Hope, begging for forgiveness because she got caught up in some sort of shopping expedition with her new friends.“Alpha?” It was Charlie and his voice sounded strained.“Yes.” I could feel my stomach tightening in a knot. Charlie rarely sounded this way. Nothing bothered this wolf. He and I grew up together and the wolf was cold.“It’s dad. He was killed.”Lupo reared up inside me and it took all of my self control to push him back down. I knew why he felt this way. He had immediately felt for our bond with Vinnie, the tether that held him to me, and we couldn’t find it. It was broken and the only way it could be broken was either by banishment or by death. I had lost my Beta.I threw some money on the table blindly,
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Chapter 70HOPENicco irritated me beyond belief sometimes. After all his lectures to me about lying, he goes and does it to me. Our mate bond must be getting stronger because I could tell he was lying. I was so angry, I was growling under my breath. When I caught myself, I giggled a little bit. I was picking up on Nicco’s habits.I had a good morning showing Mario and Gia around and getting them settled into their own apartments. Nicco had been kind enough to get them apartments at one of the many buildings that he owned. They were small, but they each had their own, which was usually unheard of. “This is amazing,” Mario gushed, coming back in from the little balcony. His apartment consisted of a tiny kitchen, a small living area and a bedroom with the balcony. “I have never had this much space before.”Gina’s apartment was almost the same, though I had picked out one that had a larger bathroom and more closet. Girls have to stick together and there are just some things t
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NICCOMila’s attitude shifted and her face got dark. “You’re never around anymore,” she complained.“What did you do?” I asked, suddenly tired. I always felt guilty about Mila. The attack that killed her parents had taken place right after I became Alpha. I had been warned that it was coming, and I was too arrogant to listen to anyone. We had found Mila in the rubble, her limbs mangled and her little body limp. It had taken the talents of multiple healers and doctors to get her to where she was. “I just wanted to get your attention,” she said, the tears starting. I forced my emotions to harden. She was manipulating me, and I knew it but my guilt made it easy for her to do so.“Who?” I asked. Mila shrugged. “I don’t know. It came in an encrypted message.”“And you thought it would be a good idea?” I asked, dumbfounded. Mila was never one to consider the consequences.“They only borrowed the money. It was always put back,” Mila said, pushing out her lower lip. “I should k
Sweet Hope for the Alpha Kingpin Chapter 68
NICCOHope and I stayed up the rest of the flight, trying to figure out what the signature meant. She was the one who finally did. She had gone to the bathroom and had come back, her eyes tired. Before she sat down she stopped with a start and softly chuckled, staring at the paper.“We’ve been making this harder than we needed to,” she said.I looked at her in confusion. “Yeah? If you have figured it out, I’d like to know. It’s driving me crazy.” I was irritable. She grinned and took the pen from my hand, writing over the top of the random letters and numbers that we had been working on, transforming them into one word. BITE.“I’d guess the hacker is a wolf,” Hope said mildly. I looked at the word, my vision clouded. I knew who went by that name and I couldn’t believe it. Hope picked up on my fury.“Do you know who this is?” she asked.“No,” I lied. I didn’t need her to know until it was over. I was going to confront this wolf and find out everything. I would get my ans
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Chapter 67HOPE POVI woke up with a start, not sure of what had awakened me. I was laying in the only private bed in the back of the plane with Nicco. I listened carefully and his breathing was still even. Whatever woke me up didn’t wake him.The only noises I could hear were the normal noises of the plane. There was no turbulence. So what had awakened me?I carefully rolled on to my back, trying not to waken Nicco. There was a moment when his breathing changed so I lay still until it went back to normal. Then I slipped out of the bed.I used the bathroom in the dark, not wanting to waken him. Something was still nagging at me. It was like I had forgotten something very important and my brain was trying to remind me.I sighed. I wasn’t going to go back to sleep anytime soon. I slipped out of the bedroom in the back and into the main part of the aircraft. Vinnie opened one eye and looked at me, going immediately back to sleep. Mario and Gina didn’t move.I reached up into
Sweet Hope for the Alpha Kingpin Chapter 66
Chapter 66HOPE POV“I don’t care what he said,” I said, impatiently. “I am sick and tired of staying inside. The beach is out there calling my name.” I tried to get past Mario who was blocking the door to the hotel with his body. He looked terrified of me but I knew he was more afraid of Nicco, so he was doing what he could do to keep me in the room. I didn’t blame him, but it still made me mad.“Luna, we could watch a movie,” he suggested. I shrugged, sighed and acted like I was going to go back to the sitting area. He visibly relaxed and I took that opportunity to dart around him and dash into the hallway. “Sucker,” I heard Gina tease Mario behind me. I took off running for the elevator, giggling as Mario ran behind me, trying to reason with me. “Please, Luna Hope. Alpha is going to kill me,” he begged.“Tell him I forced you,” I suggested. I turned just in time to see him roll his eyes. “Just for that, I’m not coming back with you,” I said, jumping into the open eleva
