ZIRA“Zacharias! Zachar-” A door opened, and James walked in with Zacharias in his arms. He was smiling down at him, making stupid baby noises. How dare he hold my baby like he was a good person? Immediately, anger overcame my anxiety as I glared at him. I walked over, took Zacharias from him, and placed him back in the bassinet. “Zira, if I could say something,” James started, but I didn’t want to hear it. “No, you need to leave. I don’t want to hear anymore.” “Please, let me explain….” I reached out and grabbed his arm, which was a mistake. We both froze and gasped at the sudden touch. I closed my eyes to take it in, and the moment I opened them, James’s eyes were dark gray. It must have been his werewolf because Nina was pushing to come forth, but I held her back. I was still in a towel and didn’t trust her, let alone James’s werewolf. “James,” I whispered through shallow breaths. I was still touching his arm, and the longer I held on, the quicker my breathing got. Finall
JAMESI stood there facing the door, rubbing my poor ear. Man, Zira has a firm grip. My hands were sweating, and my body tingled from her touch. My feet were rooted to the floor, refusing to leave, or it could have been Deacon. Her little stunt excited him even more. Horny bastard!Though I didn’t blame him. Her scent was overpowering, and it was a struggle to keep it out. I knew this would be hard, but she was driving me crazy. I wanted to be near her and keep touching her, and of course, Deacon made it worse.“At least I was brave enough to go after what I wanted. Can’t say the same for you,” Deacon growled.“Yeah, and look at where it got us.”
JAMESI woke up in a bank of snow. It’s cold but soothing to me. I sat up and looked at my surroundings. I was in the middle of a forest. As I got up, the most intoxicating scent caught my attention. It smells of juniper berries and something else...fir or sandalwood. It kept changing, but I knew it was her.I started to make my way through the forest. I needed to find her. Maria? No, Zira? I couldn’t tell who I was going after. I ran for what felt like hours until I came to a crossroads. How cliche? Their scent surrounded me like a cloud as I looked back and forth between my options.Then I heard her voice. It was…Maria.“Jamesy-bear.” Her nickname for me. I hated it, but it made her smile, and that was goo
ZIRA It’s been a while since I had a nightmare like this. I was lucky that James decided to check in on us. I don’t know what I would have done. After a few minutes of crying into his chest, he got up to get me something to clean my face. I walked over to check on Zacharias, who was awake and probably hungry. I checked the time; it was close to three in the morning, meaning I only got two hours of sleep. James returned with a warm towel I used to wipe my face with. “Thank you.” “Of course,” he replied, sitting at the edge of my bed, ensuring distance between us. I picked up Zacharias and walked around the room. I saw the door joining our room flat against the floor. Can’t
ZIRA James’ words shocked me, but I wasn’t ready to trust him yet. “Why should I tell you? You seem to know more than you let on.” He laughed as if there was some inside joke I was missing. “I told you about Maria and how she was killed by a jealous witch.” I nodded even though I knew he wasn’t waiting for me to answer. “That witch was Alaia. I grew up with her, and during that time, she grew an attachment to me. Unfortunately, it made her vindictive towards anyone who showed me affection. Even after I took Maria as a mate, that didn’t stop her from her ridiculous ideas of us being together. Those ideas led her to kill the only woman I’ve ever loved.” He sat closer to me and grabbed my hands. “Then you came into my life, and everything that happened to Maria flooded my b
JAMESWhen I returned home from the Black Moon Pack, my first instinct was to search for Zira, and I found her on the warriors’ field. I watched as she sparred with one of the warrior women. I refused to let any men near her and was glad Alpha Fiona understood. Like any other day, she held my attention. The connection between us has been getting stronger, even with my absence.She was wearing tight black sweatpants that showed every delicious curve. She had on a matching black crop top, showing off her stomach for the first time since she gave birth. She was getting stronger, which meant it wouldn’t be long until she rejected me and left. Deacon didn’t like the idea, and now, neither did I.“Then let her mark us and complete the bond,” Deacon said.
JAMES I picked her up as she wrapped her legs around my waist and moved us to my bed. I kissed her again before traveling down the side of her neck and sucking on my mark near her collarbone. She arched her back as another moan escaped her lips. I kissed further down her body until my hands came to her panties. My hands were shaking, and my entire body was pulsating with need. It felt as if a fever had erupted over my skin. “Goddess, I want you something fierce, Zira,” I said, sliding her panties down her leg while maintaining eye contact. “James,” she said with a breathy sigh, “I don’t know if….” I threw her panties to the side and moved to capture her lips before she could finish. I broke our kiss and stared into her eyes. Her lips were parted slightly, and her b
ZIRAIsaiah! No!My eyes shot open just as I reached out to grab Isaiah, only to realize it was just air. The last thing I saw was Isaiah standing dangerously close to the edge of a cliff. I screamed for him, but he couldn't hear me. I was less than a foot away when I tried to grab him, but my fingers barely touched his shirt as he went over.A rush of calm washed over me as I saw James staring at me. He was talking, but I couldn't register what he was saying. Was I still dreaming? I shook my head to clear the fog in my mind."Zira, it's okay. It was just a dream."James pulled me into