Roman When word reached Roman about Sofia's imprisonment, to say he was surprised would be an understatement. He never thought that she would have the stomach for that kind thing. Sure, they had conspired to kill Almara together, but he would have been the executioner.Sofia did not like to get her hands dirty. He was positive that Sofia hadn't worked alone. Someone had taken advantage of her, most likely. Even knowing that, Roman would never be able to forgive her. She had almost killed his grandchild.His son may have had a reputation fo
Almara Today was going to be such a good day. Arthur had taken the day off and he had promised that we would spend the day together. We hadn't had much time to do anything together other than the few weeks that I had taken care of him, but that didn't count. We had never left the house other than to go see the doctor.It seemed wild that it would literally be our second date with everything that we'd gone through, but I guess our relationship had been completely unconventional so far. It didn't feel that weird. But I still wanted to make a big deal out of it. I want to dress up and pretend that the accident nev
Arthur Arthur was a married man now. And he was going to be a father. He couldn’t believe his dreams had come true. The Moon Goddess must have truly blessed him. That was the only thing that could explain everything that had happened.It was a complete miracle that he and Almara had stumbled into one another on that cruise ship. His grandmother may have been the one to nudge her in that direction, but there was no way she could have orchestrated the night that they met. Or that Almara’s dickhead of a boyfriend would spend all of her money.
AlmaraI walked into Arthur's office, not bothering to knock. I had expected him about twenty minutes ago for dinner, but he hadn't showed up. So I put on my big girl pants and went to fetch him.I did not expect to see Arthur's father sitting across from the desk, Nor did I expect to see Arthur chugging some disgusting looking drink from a nondescript bottle. When his eyes fell on me, I could see the guilt in them."What was that?" I asked nervously. Every instinct in me screamed that whatever was in that bottle wasn't good. Nothing Roman brought could eve
It had been five days since Arthur collapsed. It had taken a full day for the staff and doctors to convince me that Arthur wasn't dead. He was just in a magically induced coma. His soul was far away, fighting a battle that we couldn't help him win.Every day and every night, I was at his bedside. Just like I had been when he was recovering at the hospital. I was terrified to leave. I was so afraid that if I left for even a minute, something would happen that I could have prevented if I'd only just been there.I had staff bring me food and water. I took extremely quick shower
"What?" I asked stupidly, not sure I had heard him right. It had sounded like he said 'mate,' but that couldn't possibly be it. I wasn't that lucky. I had never been blessed by the Moon Goddess. Honestly, I had often wondered if she had forgotten about me."You're my mate," Athur repeated, a wide grin on his face. He winced as he pulled himself into a seated position."What?" I asked again because I honestly could not comprehend what I was hearing.Do you know any word other than 'what'? Y
It was the next morning and the day of the wedding. I was fully expecting the seamstresses that we had worked with before to bring an off the rack dress so imagine my surprise when I unzipped the bag to find the dress that I designed.I looked at them, my eyes wide. "How did you get this? I thought it was gone forever."They smiled warmly at me. "Alpha weddings can tend to be more…unpredictable than other weddings. We always make a spare just in case something happens."I nodded. That made sense. Every wedding involving an alpha that I had ever heard of or seen on TV had usua
Neither of us knew what to expect from the consummation of the mate bond. Fated mates were extremely rare and the ones that we did know about kept their sex lives to themselves. All we did know was that it was going to be intense.After we had given each other our marks, we’d both gotten pretty nervous. The mate bond was thrumming with power, enticing us to complete it. But we had agreed to slow down, to enjoy the night. Once the bond was consummated, nothing would be the same.I traced my fingers over the mark I had given Arthur. I had never given one before, not even with Robert. It had never seemed like the right time. I had always found an excuse not to
Almara’s Pov5 Years Later“Cheers,” Arthur sys clinking his mixed drink of vodka and lemonade with my non-alcoholic lemonade. I’m pregnant, again. This pregnancy is completely different than my first two, I actually get to relax. Which is exactly what we’re doing in the manicured garden of our backyard.We sit stretched out on zero-gravity pool chairs, sweat
Almara’s PovAfter a much-needed week of rest and restoration, Arthur and I are back on the vampire territory. I suppose that it can officially be called that again now that it has been reclaimed.My body healed magnificently after months of not only growing another being, but also fighting a war. It’s amazing what good rest and proper nutrition can do. Of course, the real healing ingredient came from the sacrificial love of my wonderful husband.Even though he suffered his own inju
Almara’s PovFinally, after several journeys back and forth from our homeland to the enemies we come to the final steps. We saw plenty of wolves making their expedition back home and there was a unspoken agreement that what everyone needs right now is peace.Thankfully, no one came up to us with questions, grief, or comments. It’s like we have this new kinship with the gammas in our world that we didn’t before. We seem to understand each other, or at least truly see one another.
Almara’s PovOn the way home we make a pitstop to a very special place. “Why are we seeing more dead bodies?” Grace asks, her tone telling me we are nearing a full-blown tantrum.“This body belongs to someone very important in our family,” I tell her calmly and hike her up on my hip. I’m not sure if my words got through to her, or maybe it’s her father's serenity as we ascend up one final hill to where Bess lays.Bess’s gravestone is set apart fro
Almara’s PovWith the vortex closed off and gone, the air becomes breathable again and the storm lessens. Still, my paws squelch in the wet terrain.Unfortunately, as I look around at the battlefield and see the piles of bodies slumped over one another, I think it’s more than just mud causing the stickiness.I try not to look down at the innocent blood shed on the ground. As I take careful consideration to step over and around the bodies, I tell myself they chose to come out and hel
Almara’s PovCathy and I weave through the castle, barely missing rubble crumbling off from the stony walls. We leap over counters, using everything we have in us to catapult ourselves past knocked over statues of gargoyles and shredded velvet furniture.“Catch!” Cathy calls out and reflexively I snatch a jagged shard of ceramic in my hand. I recognize it from a broken pot on the ground. Then out of the corner of my eye I see something else flying at me, though I don’t catch it this time, I duck.
Almara’s PovI’ve never seen Cathy look more confident and proud than she does at this moment. She stands tall, cuts strewn across her body, but they only add to her tough exterior. She’s covered in her enemy’s blood and she has a thrilling look in her eyes.“Have you seen Arthur?” I ask cutting to the chase. Cathy nods back towards tall white cabinet doors. I turn back to look at my mother who nods in confirmation. I rush over to the door and throw it open.
Almara’s PovI awake to a familiar beeping sound. It’s faint at first, like a distant call from far away until it’s suddenly blaring in my ears. My eyes shoot open and the blood in my body rushes to the important organs and I sit up with a jolt.“Where’s Grace?” I ask before I can make out anything else. “Arthur? Robbie?” I call out, hoping the sound of my distressed voice will cause Robbie to cry back.“Shhh,” a gentle voice says with
Almara’s PovArthur flings open the door, this time it breaks off the hinges. I guess there’s no changing our mind now. I keep Robbie wrapped up in both my arms and under my shirt.Arthur uses his body to guard mine, outstretching his arms and a puffed-out chest as he keeps his eyes zeroed in on every moving body around us all while moving us forward and falling in exact pace with each of my steps.We fight through sideways rain and vicious winds, it dawns on me that this storm isn&