[Apple] My phone feels like a rock as I place it in my pocket. I thought I'd feel better, texting Thorne for a date. But I don't. I just feel angry, hurt, and confused.I should text him back, and tell him it was a mistake. I'm such a mess, maybe I shouldn't have any type of relationship with anyone right now, no mater how kind they seem. My heart hasn't had enough time to heal from my previous heartbreak. Just last week I was head over heels in love with Zion, ready to share the last of my body and all of my heart only to have it shattered into a thousand pieces. And then I met Sylvester. One of the sexiest, most powerful creatures on two legs. He tells me I'm exactly what he wants me to be But I rejected him. Because his power and passion terrifies me. Because a girl like me shouldn't crave something so dangerous. When this Alexis person showed up it felt like a confirmation of every dark thought I've ever had and every nasty word that has ever been said about me. I'm too
[Apple]Beta Rudy grins as he steps out of the car. "I am so glad you changed your mind."Before I can respond, he hands me the updated contract. "We should probably get this part out of the way." I look the contract over carefully with shaking hands. Everything seems to be in order. Inhaling deeply, with a fluid stroke of the pen I sign the rental Luna contract becoming a temporary member of the Silver Crescent pack.I hand the contract back to Rudy and take my place in the back of the car. Riding in silence, I watch the buildings pass by. Soon we are pulling up to a tall, shining building of glass and gleaming steel.When the car door opens, Rudy hands me a key card."Welcome to the Silver Crescent Packhouse, Luna LeRoux," his grin lights up his whole face. "Welcome home.""Home," I repeat. That word has so much weight. I haven't felt at home since the day my mother died.Thinking about her, I barely hear what Rudy has to say until we stop in front of a large, metal door."This card
[Apple]A pair of warm arms scoop me up and moves me out of the street so quickly I'm not even sure that the car even noticed I had ever been in it's path. "Luna," Rudy's out of breath. "Thank the Goddess I was on my way back. You..."As soon as I realize it's Rudy, I wrap my arms around his neck and weep. "Take me out of here, Rudy," I ask. "I need to be somewhere else. Anywhere else."A growl rumbles behind us. Rudy turns and I see Sylvester standing there in a pair of sweats, his hair still wet from the pool. "I didn't invite her," he states, his expression flat. "Rudy change all the locks. Alexis was here." "Of course, Alpha. Immediately," Rudy answers quickly. "If you don't mind," he looks where I'm resting in Rudy's arms. "I'd like to speak with my luna.""I think she needs a few moments," Rudy speaks up in my defense. A light flickers across Sylvester's gaze and he bows his head. Meet me at the alley in an hour," he commands. "I'll be waiting."The Alpha turns his back and
[Apple]Grabbing a towel, I scrub the writing from the mirror as best as I can, but instead of coming clean, it leaves a pinkish-red stain across several panes of glass. Next, I try soap and a bit of cleanser I find under the sink, but the best I can manage is to make the letters a little less clear as if reading them while wearing a friend's glasses. Giving up, I look around for something to cover my face, I tie a hand towel over my nose and run around the room opening every window in an attempt to dissipate the smell. When I look over at the bed, I see that my nose didn't deceive me when I first walked in. "That nasty bitch peed on my bed!" I growl. "Come on! Doesn't she know I'm just doing my job!""She's just trying to scare you away," the voice inside my head suggests. "Don't let her win." Grimacing, I hunt under the sink until I find a pair of rubber gloves and pull the comforter off of the bed along with all of the sheets, blankets, and ruined clothes. Once I have everything
[Sylvester]I knew that she was the right pick for this job. She is so different from any she-wolf I've ever dated. She shapes the world around her with her smiles and frowns, brightening the room with her light. She almost glows with energy, and when I saw her with the pups tonight, I could tell that they could feel it too. If she were a wolf, I'd have been afraid to make her my Rental Luna. A wolf with that much charisma is destined to run a pack. Because she's a human, she'll never be a threat. "She'd never be a threat because she is ours," Rufus rolls his eyes in my mind. "Alexis was once ours too, remember?" Or so we thought. I don't understand why she's come back. I know it's not for me, no matter what she's been telling the Board of Directors. "Apple is different," Rufus insists. "She is OURS. Alexis was never really ours." The way he emphasizes our ownership of her usually means one very particular thing--something that can't be possible. If it were, I'd send her as far a
[Apple]"Good Morning, Apple," the Alpha stretches slowly. "Did you have pleasant dreams? You were making quite a bit of noise in your sleep." He plants a kiss on my temple and then rolls out of bed as if waking up next to me is the most natural thing in the world. I try not to watch him stalk around the room in his boxers but I fail. Miserably. He's an absolute Adonis. His body is so well-formed that even his muscles seem to have muscles. He isn't overly bulky but moves with the predatory grace of a wild animal designed to hunt its prey.And right now that prey is me. I take long steadying breaths as he walks toward his bathroom. "How did I end up in your bed," I ask in what I hope sounds like a neutral voice although internally I'm seething. I fell asleep on the couch, the only way I could have gotten here is if he carried me in here from the couch where I fell asleep."Don't worry," he says to assuage my worried frown. "We didn't do anything more than sleep next to one another, a
[Apple] "Alpha," I pull on his arm. We are seated in the car, just moments before Rudy opens the door. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"I try to pull my dress to cover the mark and the alpha growls softly. As I move my hand slowly away, I look to see his eyes watching me attentively. "Don't cover it, Apple. You should be proud of it. That mark on your neck is better than an engagement ring. If my wolf is so smitten with you that we'd willingly leave that kind of mark on such an important location," he explains, a touch of anger in his voice. "Most people will assume I'm very close to declaring you my official mate." Reaching down, Alpha Sylvester adjusts the deep v of my dress, until it frames his nibble mark like fine artwork. Looking me up and down appraisingly, he smiles widely. "I wasn't planning on this mark appearing, Apple, but I plan to take advantage of it. I was only thinking of saving your honor last night, but now that I think of it, I really couldn't have planned i
[Apple]Sitting at my desk, drinking a cup of coffee, and shouting into a phone, is the she-wolf of my nightmares.Alexis.Looking poised, professional, and every inch the Luna in charge, she sits in my place like she belongs there. As Rudy starts to growl softly in outrage, she raises her eyes briefly, then blinks away as if we are invisible, returning to her call.The nasty bitch who peed all over my room just snubbed me. I'm usually not a violent person, but I have a sudden urge to claw out her eyes. "Excuse me," I almost raise my hand to get her attention but remember myself. "Um...Hi, I'm..."Irritated, she closes her phone and addresses Rudy, ignoring my presence entirely. "Oh, you're finally here," she holds up a stack of papers. "Can you run these down to accounting?"To his credit, Rudy doesn't flinch. In his calm, easy-going way he says. "I'm sorry, Ms. Greystone, but you have the wrong office. I'm sure you'd be more comfortable in one of the visitor's suites down the hall.