Find out what happened between her and Alexis in the next chapter...
[Apple]Alexis is leaning over the reception desk as she screams, "Get your boss on the line, NOW! Or so help me I'll..." "Ms. Greystone, I told you, Ms. Weaver is not available, and I..."Alexis leans in far enough that only the tip-toe of one of her very high heels is still on the ground. "I know what you said, but you need to do as I said," she elongates her words, over-enunciating very loudly, and very slowly. "I. WANT. TO. TALK. TO. YOUR. BOSS."Her jasmine scent is cloying, making me gag as I remember how it tastes in the back of my throat when mixed with the added aroma of her urine. Hearing me cough, Alexis spins around. "What are YOU doing here?""Taking a refresher course," Rudy raises his eyebrow, answering on my behalf while also creating a barrier of muscle between us. "Why are you here harassing this poor woman?""I'm simply making a request," Alexis stands up straighter adjusting her suit jacket. There is a carpet burn on the right side of her cheek from when Rudy push
[Apple]The alley is dark and cold. I don't know this part of town, I'm not sure where I'm going, all I know is that I need to get away from those women. Wandering, I let my feet take me down the alley, onto the street, and around again until I end up somewhere completely different.I don't know where I am, but my chest hurts too much for me to care. "They hate me," I kick a rock and watch it skip into a puddle. "Of course they do. I'm a complete fraud." The air is cold, clean, and moist. It must have rained while I was inside because all of the surfaces are a little damp, including a small broken chair leaning up against a wall. It makes a squelching sound as I sit, not caring if the water leaks into my sweatpants or not. Closing my eyes, I place my face in my hands. Folding in half, I let everything go--every fear, every heartbreak, every moment of uncertainty pours from me, as I consider everywhere I've been and what I'm being asked to do. It's all too much. I wasn't a good enou
[Sylvester][Earlier that evening]The world went dark when I arrived and found her gone. "What do you mean?" I demanded of the receptionist, a too-blonde woman with a frozen smile. "How did you lose my Luna?""We...we sent you a message...I'm so sorry Alpha..." Her brown eyes are large and teary, "She never showed up for her second class. She just walked out the back door and...""RUDY!" I screamed as I marched through the halls looking for my Beta. "APPLE!" My heart is beating so hard and so loud that I can feel it vibrating through me as my stomach turns. Where did she go? I can't smell her. "Sir, please calm down." the perky blonde begged as she followed after me, her shoes clicking behind her. "We've already looked everywhere. Your Beta is now outside looking for her and...""I was told she'd be safe here," I growl and the woman shrinks away. "I was trusting you all with her safety. She's my, she's my...""We were hoping you could connect to her through your bond," the girl shri
[Apple]I cannot remember a time when I last slept so safely. I cannot remember much about my time with my mother before she married Doc, except for the smell of her body and her warmth wrapped around me as I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep. It is one of my clearest memories of the time before everything went gray. She smelt like mint and fresh-cut wildflowers. Waking up next to Sylvester felt similar, but different in so many ways. Firstly, I do not remember ever sleeping with my mother nude. Nor did she have biceps large enough to be pillows. Or a downy chest to warm my face. She didn't smell like warm nights resting by a fire while drinking green tea. And she didn't purr contentedly like a giant cat while she slept. And yet both these moments feel like home. But I shouldn't let myself get too comfortable. I am after all just a fake Rental Luna pretending to be his real true love and fated Luna in a ridiculous plan to help Sylvester save his pack. "Rest," he kisses my tem
[Apple]In a flustered huff, I stomp towards the booth. If I had claws they'd be drawn now, ready to slash those posters to pieces. How embarrassing. It's bad enough that I am a Rental Luna, but to have my business spread around campus. "They can't do that," I point to the cutouts of me grinning out at us in a way that suggests AI may have been involved. "They can't just use my image to sell their product! Service! Whatever!!"Rudy holds me back with gentle hands. "I'm sorry Luna, but they can.""What?" I gape at him, aghast. "I never gave permission for ...for...this!" I shout and the woman at the table flinches. I forget sometimes how clear werewolf hearing can be. Even from a distance, they can likely hear everything. As he turns me towards the Botany department, he explains that Rental Luna has owned the right to use my image from the moment I joined their academy officially. "It was part of the deal we had to make to get you set up quickly and discreetly within their system," he
[Apple] The door to the Rental Luna facility doesn't look any more welcoming today than it did yesterday. If anything, it looks just as bad if not worse, as the bright medicinal-pink paint threatens me with degradation masked in toxic positivity. In other words, it promises to make me feel good about feeling back about myself. "Can't we just skip this today, Rudy?" I groan. "I'm tired and this place sucks." "Alpha's orders," he folds his arms. "Now come on, I'm staying with you today to make sure you get to your classes." The Beta handed me a blue button-up, "He also insisted you wear this today. He's worried that your scent will be too weak without him here to renew it." Wrapping it around me I feel much calmer, my body relaxing into his scent. It's crazy, just last week I was still running away from him, but now the smell of him brings me comfort and joy. Wearing his shirt is like having his arms around me and I smile. It all feels very sudden, while also feeling like
[Sylvester] A raging tornado, Apple storms through the door, her fists clenched and her heart beating so rapidly that I can see her pulse beating along her neck. Her scent is so strong that it almost blows me back. She hardly smells like me, but I'd almost mistake her for an alpha. "I'm done with that place," Apple fumes as she makes her way through the condo. "I'm not going back!" I don't need to ask where, or why. She's struggling at Rental Luna but I can't think of a better way to teach her what she needs to know. "Do you know who showed up today?" she stands there half-naked, wearing one of my oversized shirts that I insisted she wear to keep our scents blended. I can smell her ripe folds and I know she's not wearing anything underneath. My mouth waters. "She's upset. I know what will calm her down. We can give her a nice, long kiss," Rufus licks his own lips and I scold him. Apple does not need me to kiss her down there right now. She needs me to empathize with her and lis
[Apple]Sylvester has been so patient and caring. When I first met this alpha wolf, I was terrified, convinced he'd see me as prey. I realize how stupid that is now--He'd never hurt me. Even then, when he didn't know me and was upset at me for saying no, he'd never have laid a harmful hand on me.He's only ever been gentle. Gentle touches, gentle kisses. Even when his words sting he's never been cruel.I wish I could be everything he needs, but after today, I doubt I ever will be. Alexis made sure that I saw exactly what he liked and didn't stop until I understood how I couldn't ever be enough. Because to care for all of his needs, I can't ignore one of his needs for physical connection. All wolves crave connection, but Alpha Wolves in particular NEED to feel connected to those they care about.I've always thought I'd wait for true love before I gave my body to anyone, but now I'm starting to wonder if maybe I'm not so different from Sly after all. Maybe I need it too. And yet, when