I wake up gasping, sweat coating my entire body. The dream decided to visit me last night. I take in a deep breath and wait for my racing heart to slow. Ethan lays beside me sleeping peacefully and I resist the urge to reach out and touch him. Carefully I slide out from under the sheets and move towards the dresser.
Quickly, I grab joggers and a workout bra for training. The sun hadn’t risen yet and the moonlight filtered in through the window. The outcome replaying over and over in my mind. A constant reminder of what could happen to everyone I care about.
My heart restricted, pushing the thoughts aside I headed into the shower to prepare myself for the busy day I had ahead of me. I didn’t have time to sit and wallow in sadness and depression over something that hasn’t happened yet.
Soon I was walking down to the eating area with a zip-up windbreaker over my training clothes. My body tingled a
“But what?” He repeats.“There is someone who doesn’t particularly give me friend vibes,” I say.“How so?” He inquires.“I beat him in a fight and I think it bruised his ego,” I laugh.“Ignore him and everyone who gives you a hard time. They’ll know this weekend who you are anyway. Their mentality and behavior towards you will do a 360 as soon as they know who they’ve been harassing,” he says, waving him off.I broke into a grin and his shoulders relaxed as he returned it.“I’ve also got a cake tasting thing today. I can’t wait to try all the different flavors,” I sigh.“To answer your question earlier, I can’t go with you to practice. I’m meeting with one of the Deltas regarding some irregularities,
By the end of the session, I was sore all over. Sometime in between practice Ethan had come in and sat on the sidelines watching everyone train. Before it ended he spoke to Darci and left without a word to us.Some of the members remained standing and some sat on the floor. My tired out of shape self was sitting on the floor with my legs splayed out in front of me. She had run us through the wringer workout after workout. I prayed she didn’t make us split up into groups to fight because I don’t think I could even defend myself at this point. It was sad.I noticed Leo periodically through practice and noted he wasn’t tired or out of breath. He broke a sweat but his stamina was through the roof. I was impressed but still hated him for it. Because fuck him and his goddessdamnasshole agenda against me. The more he tried for my attention the more I was determined not to give it to him.As my h
Leo narrowed his eyes on me as he dropped his hold on my arm and folded his arms across his chest. His eyes dropped to my mark for a split second before growling.“Whenever you want a rematch let me know. I won’t shy away from a challenge but don’t come at me like some third-grader at recess. This is immature of you.”Before he could respond, I turned on my heel and turned my back on him. As I shifted my gaze forward I locked eyes with Odis. The look on his face was murderous as he stalked forward. I knew this wouldn’t end well and decided to distract him with a smile.Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Leo straighten and did not want to be caught in the middle of a fight right now.“I’m sorry. I was running late,” Odis bit out, his eyes never leaving Leo. My heart was pounding and my throat felt dry.“Wou
I practically flew down the hall as I rushed against time. I had two minutes to get there and when the elevator doors opened, I pushed the button an insane amount of times. I pushed the thoughts of Odis and the encounter with Leo aside and decided to focus on the cakes and enjoying every flavor. When the doors slowly opened, I squeezed through the space and moved faster than I knew was capable. I ran straight, and curved to the left, and came to a stop. My chest rose and fell and I soothed my clothes and headed into the kitchen. The kitchen staff smiled at me as I walked in and I nodded at them. “Thank you so much for your help today. I appreciate it.” Sasha stands among the help but doesn’t say anything. I haven’t had any issues with her over the past few months. I’m not going to make a big deal out of her if she doesn’t make a big deal around me. “There is no need Luna. It was our p
Ethan“How do I tell her?” I asked Elijah.He chuckled and shook his head.“She’s not going to like it, and from what we’ve seen on the training field, she doesn’t need one,” Elijah said.I remember the way she looked. I was thoroughly surprised when she came strutting onto the field the first day. The way she held her own against her opponents honestly blew me away. I’ve always seen her as fragile and needing my protection but the woman I saw on the field was not who I knew.And yet.“Every Queen needs one,” I press.“Every mortal Queen,” he blocked.I sigh.“She needs a bodyguard,” I said.“Look, why don’t we talk about what this is all really about?&
“Did you just?” I start to say when he strips his shirt over his head.He stares down at me with eyes promising a sinful night as he drops his shirt to the floor. He held the entirety of my focus as he lowered himself on the bed. I watched him as he made his way up my body.His mouth found mine and he kissed me hard, the taste of his need mixing with mine. His fingers danced along my collarbone and his hand slid down and squeezed my breast.“I love this dress,” he murmurs, “Pity.”The sound of material ripping drags my eyes downward. He gripped my dress and ripped it in half. He trapped my arms above my head and smirked down at me. There was too much space between us and I arched my back in hopes of closing the distance.“Are you… happy?” Ethan asked in a gruff voice. His eyes were a dark green as he peered dow
I sat in the lobby and tried not to fidget as I waited for the Princess to come down from her high tower. A smile pulls at the corner of my lips. The sound from the elevator announced Gabe’s arrival. I jump to my feet and turn around as the doors open.I have to stop myself from crying. Gabe is looking the best I’ve seen him in a long time. I rack my brain and realize I haven’t seen him look this much like himself since before Olivia’s disappearance.His hair is a little unruly and he’s sporting a five o’clock shadow. He’s gone for a relaxed look for brunch. He’s wearing gray sweat shorts and a loose striped teal and white crew neck. His eyes dart around the room before spotting me.“Took you long enough!” I joke as we meet in the middle.“You’re so dramatic Hun,” he said, rolling his eyes. “I was gone MAY
I was right of course. He loved the decals and his eyes went wide when he saw the menu. He oohed and awwed at the dessert selection but in the end, he chose the waffles called “The Love Note”. I convinced him to get rid of the ice cream so he could have a healthy start to his day. When the waitress brought our food to the table, Gabe wasted no time. He took a bite and threw his head back before letting out a not-so-subtle moan; which I’m sure was similar to the one he let out in the throes of passion. “There are kids Gabe! Shh,” I giggle. “So, I’m guessing you approve?” “Fuck yes,” he groaned before taking a stab at another piece. My eyebrows jump as he picks up a blueberry and pops one into his mouth. “I’m even eating blueberries. I HATE blueberries.” I stifle a laugh as I bite into my breakfast panini. I need to figure out how to bring up Darci. I clear my t
The first month back at Desert Moon had been hard. Not a day went by without us fighting. Ethan rejected Mavy as his mate before we came home. A part of me knew he was hurt about it, missed her like I missed Shane. I felt like he was only with me because I was his Luna, because of obligation and duty. I didn’t know why he wanted to be with me. He didn’t know why I was with him when I loved Shane. We were at our lowest. We were ugly, we were at our rawest. It wasn’t until month two that we finally talked about everything. We talked bout what happened and we talked about the past. The one that I remembered and by this time, the one that he remembered. It was hard, facing the man I loved in this life and the man I hated in the past. He wasn’t him anymore, he hadn’t been him for a long time. We dug into the past and were completely honest with each other. He fell to his knees and apologized for what he’d done even though I told him it wasn’t him, that wasn’t him anymore. He asked me if I
Mavy fell back as if she’d been physically struck. She collapsed on the couch, her eyes watering. She didn’t look back at me, she kept her gaze focused on Ethan. I watched as her world crashed around her again for the second time in five minutes.“Where does that leave me?” Mavy asked. “I’m… your…” she shook her head and turned to look back at Ethan. “That’s not possible. I’m… I can smell it. I can feel it. Can’t you?” Mavy whispered. I heard the desperation in her voice.“I don’t care what you think or how you feel. I am already mated and my mate, my partner, my love, MY QUEEN sits in this room. Don’t disrespect her again.” The emotion in his voice caused me to choke up. Mavy bit into her lower lip and tears streamed down her cheeks. She dropped her head.“Yes, Alpha,” she said submissively.“I killed your Alpha,” Ethan said. “I’ve killed your brother.”“Yes,” she murmured.“Will you fight me on this?” Ethan asked.“As the next in line, I submit to you,” Mavy whispered.Ethan dismiss
The voices were getting louder, my head was hurting. I wanted to roll up into a ball and disappear from the world. Instead, I closed my eyes and tried to drown it all out, trying to ignore everyone. I wasn’t ready to deal with it.“She’s in shock…”“She’s confused…”“Enough!”A door slammed and footsteps paddled quickly towards me. Soft frail arms wrapped around me. Tears soaked my cheeks and my neck as Mavy cried. Did she know? She had to know.“Are you okay?” Mavy sobbed.I wrapped my arms around her and nodded. The tears started up again and streamed down my cheeks. Her t-shirt bunched in my fingers as I held her close. We cried and held each other.She inhaled deeply and froze. Slowly, she lifted her nose into the air and took another deep breath. Turning from me, she tried to follow the scent. She stopped, her gaze locked on someone, I turned and followed her gaze.I should have known, expected it but I’d been so caught up in my feelings that I didn’t think. I don’t know how it w
I didn’t have an answer for him and I don’t think he would have liked what I would have said. Hell, I didn’t know if I liked what I thought or how I felt. Instead of hurting him and cutting myself open for him, I didn’t say anything. I remained quiet. My world was crashing around me and my ears were ringing. I lowered my head and the tears flowed of their own volition.Ethan leaned down and I flinched as his arms wrapped around me. They were strong and broad. His embrace was warm and promised I could lean on him. I attempted to get to my feet only to fall. My face twisted from the pain and I wanted to cry and wallow in my own self-pity. Standing, he pulled me up and held me as my body gave up. I collapsed against him.I wanted to get to Shane, needed to. As if on cue, the weak mate bond snapped, and just like in my dream, it was gone. Only, this time, the pain I was feeling was because of Shane and not because of Ethan. The world was cold, the warmth I’d been able to feel from Shane f
Did what I do to him last night not bother him? I betrayed him. Did he not care that I came here to hurt him? Did he not care that I chose Ethan? I wanted to cry and scream. I wanted to run into his arms. I wanted this to stop. I wanted them to stop fighting. I wanted it all to stop. I screamed, it was painful and gut-wrenching but I screamed. I cursed the Goddess, damn her, she was useless in all of this. She sat up there above the clouds and did nothing to help us. Did she enjoy watching us suffer? When I couldn’t scream anymore, I inhaled deep breaths of air. I looked up and froze as Shane stared back at me. The way he looked at me told me he knew he was going to die. The look in his eye told me he knew he lost but for me, there was a small spark as if he wouldn’t just lay down and take it. I watched Ethan punch him. It was as if he was moving in slow motion. He hit his jaw and Shane’s head snapped back hard against the ground. Shane’s body tensed and he punched Ethan in the gut.
For a moment in time, they stood glaring at each other. The sun was blaring down on us. My gaze darted back and forth between the two. Shane’s eyes wandered away from Ethan and landed on me. “Look at me, mutt. You don’t get to look at her after what you’ve done,” Ethan spat. “I’m not so weak that you can look away from me in the middle of a fight.” “What have I done?” Shane taunted. “You’ve touched what’s mine,” Ethan growled. “I haven’t done anything other than touch what is mine. I haven’t done anything but make love to what is mine. I’ve claimed her. She may not wear my mark, thief but she is mine. Don’t claim her as yours. She was mine, she was always mine. She doesn’t belong to you, she never did.” A look came over Ethan’s face as if he knew as if this was confirmation as if he was reminded of something he’d forgotten. “You’re the one who touched someone who wasn’t yours. You are the one who took what was mine. Don’t try to play the victim. Don’t pretend to be something you’re
No.Not Odis.“Devin,” I gasped.Devin heard me but didn’t stop. He didn’t look up at me, didn’t even hesitate as he continued to stomp Odis into the ground. Blood spurt from Odis’ mouth and I think I heard his ribs crack. I took a step closer to stop it, to stop him. In a flash, someone was on top of Devin. Strong arms held Devin’s prisoner in a headlock and his legs wrapped around Devin’s abdomen.I wanted to scream but it quickly died in my throat as Odis and I realized the man in front of me was Gabe. Gabe. It was Gabe and he was on top of Devin. Well, he was wrapped around him like a python ready to suffocate his prey. Gabe grunted as he continued to squeeze Devin’s head, blocking his airflow.I wanted to cry out happily but I couldn’t. Gabe was here. Why was he here? He wasn’t supposed to be here. Things were going differently since he was alive. He was standing, breathing, his head was still attached to his body. Maybe things were turning out differently.Maybe Gabe was safe, ma
“Do you understand what I’m saying?” Odis asked. I couldn’t find the words to speak, so I nodded. “Good,” Odis said as his grip on me loosened. “Why don’t you let her go?” A voice called out to us. Looking up, I searched for the source of the voice. My eyes widened as I found Devin watching up. His gaze locked around Odis’ arms that were still wrapped around me to his hands that gripped my arms. “I promise I’m more fun,” Devin teased. I know what it looked like. It looked like I was being held back from moving. It looked like Odis was stopping me from helping Shane. It looked like I was stuck between two packs, two men. The situation I found myself in was precarious. I was now stuck between two Betas who were supposed to protect me, despite their conflicting thoughts regarding me. I hadn’t had much time with Devin since I’d been back. He hadn’t been the nicest, shit, I don’t think he even liked me. That didn’t change the fact that Devin was Beta of Half Moon pack. Shane was his
I didn’t have an answer and I prayed I didn’t have to make the choice. Not only had everyone stopped moving but it had gone deathly silent. For a moment, everyone and everything froze. There wasn’t a whisper of wind in the air, the trees stood still, and it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. It was the calm before the storm. It felt like someone had pushed the pause button and all at once the play button was pressed and all hell broke loose. As if planned, the two of them ran toward each other. I looked past Ethan and my gaze landed on Shane’s chest. The sword had been taken out, a gaping hole was left in its place right next to his heart. Now that it was gone, I could see I had barely missed his heart. If I’d been one inch to the right, he would have died. How had I missed that? I didn’t kill him. Was I not paying attention? Why hadn’t I looked at his heart? I had aimed, hadn’t I? Had I meant to miss it? No, I had meant it, or else I wouldn’t have stabbed him at all. I tried to