LAYLAI shuffled the pile of clean sheets in my arms and muttered to myself as I made my way through the twisting hallways of Del Morinos magnificent pack house. Even though being a maid wasn't exactly one of my dream jobs, at least I didn't have to put up with the women he usually walks around with tonight. I guess they are minor triumphs. I didn't actually like Del Morino's presence even though he was handsome and will have any kind of woman drooling over him. I stopped outside the door to his room while balancing the linen on my hip. I could see him leaning over his desk with a thick book open in front of him, through side of the door. His broad shoulders were tense as usual, brooding and his dark hair appeared slightly tousled as if he had been fingering it.I opened the door gently and stepped in like a cat and I placed the sheets on the tiny side table and hoped to blend in with the background and vanish without him noticing my presence.As badluck would have it, his dee
DEL MORINO I never planned for this stupid meeting, infact I was trying to avoid it at all cost and I had postponed it three times but today of all days, this two fools had found a way into my pack.There was a lot of tension in the conference room . I sat at the head of the table staring at the two men who were seated on the other side. Leaning forward with his arms resting on the table Beta Torren of the Darkridge Pack had a challenging look in his piercing eyes. Beta Lyle of the Emberhowl Pack sat next to him reclining in his chair and pretending not to pay attention but his keen eyes saw everything and on the mug of freshly brewed coffee he had requested and drank and still waiting for more but he didn't have the balls to request any because the scowl on my face couldn't let him.He was here for the meeting nit to finish all the coffee in my pack. As I waited for one of them to say something, the only sound
LAYLAI rushed down the hall while holding a tray full of supplies for the Alpha. The sound of my heels clicking against the wood floors sounded throughout the silent hallway. As usual whenever I was close to Alpha Del Morino's office I felt like I had to be extremely cautious. The man was known for being a tyrant but I thought he was just intolerable. I sighed .He was standing right in front of me when I knocked on his door and pushed it open. His towering body made me look like a dwarf and there was no space for me to pass through. There was hardly time for me to understand what was happening before—*Bam!*. The carefully arranged jug, saucer and plate of and other items were all over the floor when the tray fell out of my hands. My jaw tightened as I gazed at the mess and then at the man who was the cause of it. Alpha Del Morino remained unflinching. He didn't even look remorseful, he pretended like he didn't see me. But rather, he raised an eyebrow and folded his arms a
LAYLA I shut the door behind me as soon as I left the kitchen. Anger flooded through me making my chest to heave. Why did he have to make things so hard for me?I wanted to cry.Del Morino had given me another impossible task just when I thought he had made the decision to behave normally and very kind to me.He was just the devil in disguise. I scowled at the he had previously given me: *Bouillabaisse. * A soup that until today I had never heard of. It wasn't just any bouillabaisse either, it was the kind that needed uncommon ingredients from the nearby pack or maybe two packs away from what one of the maids had told me. I muttered to myself as I strode over to the pack gates .Does he think I’m his servant or something? He enjoys torturing me even though he has all the power in the world. My legs felt like jelly by the time I reached the nearby pack.And I knew he had asked all the drivers to vanish into thin air .So I had to trek like I was going to the temple of the moon
LAYLA My hands were shaking with annoyance as I bounded out the back door. I still couldn't believe that he had poured the soup away just because he saw I and Adrian talking.What did he think we were even talking about? If the moon goddess wears stilettos or not?I could still hear Del Morino asking me to read him a document. I hissed in frustration.You really can't shame the shameless.After the gall to carelessly pour the soup I had laboriously prepared down on the floor and some of it pouring on my arm. Didn't he notice that I had been working nonstop all day to please him and despite been tired I went to the next pack because of him? Tears were on the verge of spilling from my eyes and my chest tightened with the sob that was threatening to escape. I needed to leave, even if it was just for a while, because if I spend one more minute here, I might remove that stupid mask from his face and give him a dirty slap. I was hurrying outside ,the cool evening air brushing my face
DEL MORINO My room's thick curtains let in the morning sun but it didn't provide any warmth—rather it served as a stark reminder of the emptiness that engulfed me.I was even very restless and something like guilty gnawed at my heart I sat at my desk, staring at the unfinished breakfast tray. Like an iron vice, the weight of my memories pressed down on me, my hands also pressed down against my temples. There was a gentle tap on the door and I looked up."Come in." I said in a raspy voice. The door squeaked open and before I could say anything else , I perceived her scent and wondered why I was having her scent drift .I sighed and looked away. Layla took deliberate steps and bowed her head trying to avoid my gaze.I guess, she was still angry with me."Your new sheets." she said quietly as she put them down. She paused standing near the cabinet as though she wasn't sure whether to go or stay. " Layla." I called but her hand froze in mid-reach and she tensed. Her big unsure eyes
DEL MORINO The weight of our unsaid words made the silence linger. As her eyes scanned the document I had thrown at her, Layla continued to hold another sheets in her hands.At first ,she didn't say anything but I could sense that she was quietly staring me. I cleared my throat and poured myself a glass of vodka."What did you mean when you said your father despised you?"she asked with a softer almost hesitant tone I looked out the window and away from her. I didn't want to look at her while I was speaking—not right now, not with everything I was going to say. "You shouldn't mind." I said softly trying to end the discussion. But she refused to let it go. She stepped closer ." I do mind ." She said with a quiet sincerity in her voice that surprised me. " I want to understand."With my chest pressed against the weight of the past, I clenched my fists. I could feel the frustration and rage building inside of me. Bringing her into the turmoil of my past was the last thing I want
DEL MORINO Layla looked at me as if I had gone insane, her brows furrowed in a look of shock and rage. Her hands shook a little but she was still holding onto the document that started everything then it fell from her grasp slowly."Me? Your mate? She hissed raising her voice." You have to be kidding, Del Morino. I would never consent to such a thing in any way."I kept quiet, staring at her and also amused.She tried to calm herself but I could tell she wasn't finished and the look on her face gave me the impression that if she had had a chance, she could have given me a dirty slap.She paced the room asking."Do you even hear yourself? Why would I be your mate? What could have possibly convinced you that this is a good idea?" She yelled, staring daggers at me."Do you know what people will think or say?"Like arrows pointed at my chest her words were coming quickly but I didn't feel them.Nah.It was funny seeing her very angry for the very time.Even though I could sense her annoy
LAYLA'S POVDel Morino was supposed to be my mate, the one I loved, the one that should have been mine. Thats what everybody says anyway, that's what I knew, right ?But my heart was aching and no matter how hard I tried, that nagging sensation couldn't just leave . It was there . As we strolled through the bustling night street, the aroma of street food danced into my nose. He moved next to me, his hands holding mine lovingly and I knew I should be listening to what he had to say and how he spoke. But I couldn't , I had other things on my mind. My thoughts were faraway and I tried pushing them out.Del had knocked on my door and I hastily slipped the letter Adrian had given me into the pocket of my jacket. Its weight against my side served as a reminder of something I couldn't forget and that I didn't want Del to know about it, or it could cause trouble for me or Adrian, well, I don't even know."I'm taking you out." He said laughing." Not the normal dates." His eyes locked on min
LAYLA I was having trouble breathing. My chest felt tight as if I were being choked by invisible hands The words echoed around me and immediately I felt like passing out.The words were swimming before my eyes as the parchment shook in my hands but I was unable to understand them. I didn't want to. Aunt Charlotte. Uncle Benjamin. Gone. Just like that?I couldn't tell how long I stood there speechless and unable to think, my mind too consumed by the awful thought of their deaths. It was just so unbelievable, I felt something wet on my cheeks and it was when I touched my cheeks that I realized that I was crying.All I could feel was the emptiness that radiated through my body, the tightness in my throat and the raw sting in my chest. They were the ones who were there for me after my parents death. I had grown up with them. I could not recall anyone else loving me or caring for me in the same way that they did. And they had vanished. In that exact same way my parents had left.Not a
LAYLA My fingers curled around the parchment Adrian had given me and when I set the mug down the tea was just lukewarm. As I tried to read the exquisite script, the ink continued to smudge beneath my fingers. It was definitely from Drake, the man I had once believed would be my mate but who had turned me down. I was baffled as to why he sent me this. How did Adrian get it anyway? I turned to face Adrian who had somehow gotten closer to me while I was absorbed in my thoughts. His eyes were unreadable and calculated as he stared at me. His normally composed manner felt more abrasive and menacing just like that of a predator circling its victim. A darker, more eerie quality had taken the place of the warmth that had once surrounded our friendship. "How do you know about this?" My voice shook a little as I waved the letter at him.How did you even get this from Drake?."Too controlled and too practiced Adrians lips curled into a tiny knowing smile. "Drake and I go way back." he said
LAYLA.The weight of Del Morino's words began to press down on my chest in the late afternoon. Del had gotten me a new chamber and I had pease here.I tried to distract myself by arranging books on the couch in different places and running my fingers along their spines But nothing was able to divert me from our earlier discussion. Little shivers of confusion ran through my mind as his voice continued to echo. I believed I understood the strain of living in his world and I felt really sorry for how unstable his life had been from the onset. I shifted uneasily on the couch and flipped through a book, hardly reading the words. My gaze was constantly drawn to the window. I exhaled and tried reading when I heard a knock. I quickly rushed there hoping it was Del but when I opened the door, I was kind of surprised "Adrian." I said surprise lacing my tone""Hey,Layla." He said quietly. "It's been a long time." I said, moving aside to give him access. I knew Adrian well enough to fee
LAYLA Sitting across from Del, I tried to quiet the raging mental storm but it couldn't go away. Carleton Antoine Morino. That name, I have heard it before but where? The name sounded awfully familiar.Del was staring at me when I looked up. He was waiting and I sensed it. He was waiting for me to ask, for me to say something that would cause a chain reaction. I was unsure of what to say. His name *that name* weighed a lot on my chest. Even though I thought I had heard it before, the memories were so distant and out of my grasp. Why did my heart race each time I thought about it and why did it seem so important? At last,t when I couldn't hold my questions any longer, I spoke barely raising my voice above a whisper. "Del I've heard that name before, especially the name Antoine. I am certain that I have. But I don't know where or why does it seem so familiar?"He shrugged and reached for a glass of water, took a sip and continued staring at me but there was something in his eyes.S
DEL MORINO I was staring out the window when I felt Layla's eyes pressing down on me. The room was flooded with moonlight, which created shadows on the walls that appeared to get bigger by the moment. I couldn't bring myself to speak, not just yet, so our silence dragged on longer than it should have. Sharing was never my style as a man. Not with anyone. Not her at all. But tonight something was different. I was now staring out of the window as I sipped from a glass of Martini. There was something about the way she was staring at me that suggested she genuinely wanted to know and understand me. It made the words flow out of me in a surprising way. For a moment I believed I could ignore it—pretend like nothing was wrong—because the air between us was heavy with unsaid words. Act as though I didn't have the urge to tell her the secrets I’d long kept hidden. But I always pretended not to care. Isn't that the thing about me? As if I was independent. The silence was broken by Layla'
DRAKEIt felt like ages since dinner. The sound of cutlery clinking on dishes,Sophia's chuckles and her kind smile. The storm raging inside of me was cruelly contrasted with everything else. Tonight was supposed to be normal for me. I had shamefully returned from Corbin's pack into the waiting arms of Sophia, as I stared at her from across the table I remembered that my role was to pretend to be the man she believed me to be. But I couldn't maintain the persona for very long. It felt like an insurmountable burden was pressing down on my chest every minute I spent with her smiling and acting as though nothing was wrong. She talked about the delicious food but I could hardly hear her because I was seated across from her at the dinner table and my mind was elsewhere. Her tone was gentle, almost reassuring. I should have felt better after that. Rather it merely served to remind me of what I had just done. I told her a lie. I explained to her that I had been going about some business a
DEL MORINO I rushed into my chambers feeling the weight of the world pressing down on me. I couldn't release the rage and sadness that were boiling inside of me. Even clenching my hands into fists didn't help. Terese was gone, just like my mother, the one person who had been by my side since I was a young child. When my father had pushed me off like trash, like I wasn't his son, when my mother was too sick to look after me, Terese was there.I slammed the door so hard that it shook violently. I ran my fingers through my hair as pain exploded in my chest.Piece by piece I could feel my heart breaking. I had the feeling that I was choking and was unable to breathe. She was more than just a nanny. How could she be gone? How could I have lost the one person who had always supported me? She served as a protector, a steady presence in my life during a time of instability. And she is gone now. Only the moon goddess knows what she had wanted to tell me I slammed my fist into the wooden d
DRAKEAs I arrived at Corbin pack gates, I felt the burden of the journey pressing down on me. The pulse of my rage echoed through my veins, and the roaring beats of my heart were too loud for me to ignore. They had taken Terese, my only hope of finding the Seal.I know Corbin more than anybody, and I was sure that the idiot was going to lie that he didn't take her away, but he didn't know that I had gotten first-hand information that she had been abducted by his men and held captive for reasons I didn't know, and I didn't care to know.I wasn't here to socialize or have a peaceful discussion. No matter the cost my only objective was to bring her back and get the damn Seal. I slammed the car door with a loud bang that reverberated through the silent forestWithout exchanging words, my guards silently followed me while their eyes scanned the area. Each of us was aware of our purpose. “Remain vigilant,” I yelled, my tone steady but tense. “Corbin won't make things simple.”Before we