Am I jealous?“Well…I…I don’t think so,” I stammered a bit with Victor staring at me like that.“Excellent,” Victor said, his gaze softened.“But even if I were, I would never show it here in public,” I said.“Let’s sit down then,” Victor said with a smile. “Our meal should be arriving soon. And then maybe I can arrange for you to dance with William.”“That would make Diana very happy,” I nodded.Right. Victor should be the one that help William and me. Why would I get nervous at that simple question earlier?We sat down, and the waiter began bringing our meal. The pâté was good, and the venison carpaccio was exquisite.We enjoyed every bite and washed it down with more sparkling grape juice. When our dessert came, William moved his chair to our table and joined us.“Mom and Dad are across the room chatting,” he said. “They’ll be gone for a while. Do you mind if I have my dessert with you?”“Not at all,” Victor said. “We’re having the chocolate-diamond ice cream.”“Me too.” William gr
Since I wouldn’t be missing an actual class, Principal Jones agreed to let me leave school early each day. She gave permission for William, too, when he didn't have football practice.We met at the front entrance after we signed out and walked out to the student’s parking lot together.William helped me into the passenger seat of his Mustang, and I gave him directions to the parking garage's entrance below Alex’s office building.“Wow! Your father owns this whole building?” William asked while parking in a slot near the elevators.“Yes, and this is only one of his buildings,” I replied. “Come on, let’s go upstairs.”We took an elevator up to Alex’s office, and William had a good look around before we started on the files that had been placed on the deskWilliam took a glance at some of Alex’s holdings and whistled. “I knew your family was wealthy, but I didn’t realize they were this wealthy.”“Your family is wealthy, too,” I said.“Not like yours,” William observed. “I’m impressed. An
Victor and I had a productive afternoon at the office. I was learning more about effective advertising and human resources issues.When we were finished, he took me home in plenty of time to prepare for the big Alpha Association party.I had a simple dinner with Alex before going to my room to get ready. It would take some time. I wanted to look just right.I chose a more serious dress for this party. It was a boatneck, A-line, calf-length dress made from tan mulberry silk.Jennifer styled my hair in a bun at the nape of my neck, and my makeup was flawless yet subtle.“You’re just perfect, Miss,” Jennifer crowed. “No one will be able to find fault with how you look.”“Thank you, Jennifer.”I picked up the small tan clutch that was lying on the bed and put my phone inside of it before going downstairs.I stopped to see Alex while I waited for Victor to pick me up.“You look stunning, Daisy,” Alex said as he examined me from his bed. “I know you aren’t thrilled about attending this even
My anger kept me awake when I first went to bed that night. There may be some good Alphas, but the party showed me there were none in a position of power willing to change things.The party reinforced my belief that the present werewolf lawmakers were mostly greedy and selfish individuals who didn’t care about the people they governed.I was still in a bad mood when William picked me up to go to the office. But it would be quiet there on a Sunday morning for me to learn.Plus, I was looking forward to spending time with William.Diana awoke and cheered when he opened the Mustang door for me, and I heard Mark calling her name.“How was the party last night?” William asked as he slid into the driver's seat.I made a face and shook my head.“It couldn’t have been that bad,” William said. “Was it?”“It was awful,” I replied. “The Alphas of the association are a bunch of greedy, selfish jerks.”“I thought you already knew that,” William teased. Then he saw how upset I truly was. “Do you wa
When I got home, I forced a smile on my face before checking on Alex. I didn’t want him to know I was upset.But he was in a deep sleep, and the nurse said he hadn’t been awake since I left that morning. The doctor was on his way, but they didn’t think there was anything he could do for him.Alex looked pale again, and when I took his hand, it was ice cold. I tucked it under the blankets and kissed his forehead before I left the room.I was going to cry again, and if he happened to wake up, I didn’t want him to see my tears.I felt as if everything was crumbling around me.As soon as I reached the hallway, sobs erupted from my throat, and I dashed into the living room before anyone saw me falling apart.I couldn’t stand to lose Alex on top of everything else. I only had him for such a short time. How could he die before he got to see me graduate, run the company, get married, and have children?When I lived with my adoptive family, I wanted to be alone. It was a life goal. But now tha
The next morning I was feeling much better. The doctor was confident Alex wasn’t near death yet. He had woken up by the time I returned to the mansion with Victor.He was well enough for the nurses to get him out of bed to sit in a chair while we had dinner!He ate well and seemed more alert than I’d seen him since he came home from the hospital.After the nurses arrived to help him prepare for bedtime, I came up to my room and sat on my balcony while I brainstormed ideas to raise more money for the foundation and other ways to help the poor.There were several ideas that I felt excited about, but I wanted to talk to someone with more experience in fundraising first to make sure I wasn’t jumping in over my head.Some of the ideas were pretty big, and I would need assistance. But, as Victor had told me, there was nothing wrong with asking for help.Perhaps I should talk to Lana. I hadn’t seen her for a while, and I owed her a thank you for straightening out the mess with the Sandersons
How did I get into doing so much public speaking?Yes, the program to use Alpha students to help Beta and Omega families was my idea, but if I couldn’t speak clearly to my audience, I wouldn’t do any good.I was terrified I would freeze up on the stage in front of the entire school and be laughed at and mocked like I was that day in werewolf history class.“Read it to Jennifer and me,” Victor requested as we sat together in the mansion's drawing room. Jennifer was honored when we asked her to help me practice.I stood before them and began reading the speech I had written to deliver at an assembly in front of the entire school.“Hello, most of you know me, but in case you don’t, my name is Daisy Wilson.”So far so good.“I’m on this stage today to talk to you about the urgent needs of families in our community. There are city blocks full of families who don’t have the things we take for granted every day.”They don’t have the money to buy food, clothing, or to pay their rent. Many can
The response to my speech was incredible. Two days later, at least a quarter of my school’s students had volunteered their time to help in some way.Homes were being cleaned and repaired, food drives were organized, and donations to the Wilson Foundation were setting records.But my success was bringing the reporters back into my life.Yet, I didn’t mind answering their questions about the charity work being done. The publicity was making more donations pour in.“You’re doing incredibly well, Daisy,” Victor said as we sat in my office at Wilson, Inc. “You learn incredibly fast. And what you’ve done with the charity is fantastic. You should be proud of yourself.”Victor’s words made me blush, but I must admit I felt good about myself lately. Everything seemed to be falling into place.Even Alex was doing better. He couldn’t work, but he spent more time out of bed each day.My happy bubble was about to burst when one of the secretaries buzzed my desk phone.I answered. “Yes.”“Miss Wils
I woke to the enticing scent of dark roast coffee. I stretched and realized I had slept more than I thought I would that previous night. The smell of coffee grew stronger, and I felt steam on my nose.Opening my eyes, I saw Amy standing over me, waving a mug under my nose. “Wakey wakey,” she crooned. “It’s your wedding day. Victor expects to see you at the chapel in two hours.”I reached for the mug and took a sip. The coffee was laced with dark chocolate almond milk and a touch of steamed heavy cream.“Mmm, thanks, Amy. It’s just the way I like it,” I said. “This is such a treat.” I stretched again and took another sip.“Enjoy it, but don’t dawdle in bed,” Amy put her makeup bag on the nightstand. “You need to get in the shower and wash your hair. Anna will be here to help us soon.”After waiting for this day to come for so long, I was both ecstatic and a little nervous that something would go wrong.“Is it really going to happen?” I asked my best friend. “Am I really going to be his
Kayla kept her word. The estate that we named Juniper Acres because of the dozens of Juniper trees on the grounds became ours a few days after my talk with her.I liked the small trees. They had a pleasant, fresh, and woodsy scent, and the blue/ green berries were pretty and had many uses.Besides making arrangements for our wedding, Victor and I spent the last three weeks getting our mansion ready for us to move in. It was a labor of love, knowing it was all ours.We painted some of the rooms in different colors that we preferred. I especially liked the shade of yellow that we painted our breakfast room.Like Alex’s mansion, our breakfast room had many windows facing east for plenty of natural sunlight. We would enjoy our mornings together, enjoying our first cup of coffee in the room.The living room now had comfy, overstuffed furniture in light blue and walnut. The carpets and drapes were neutral colors that set off the polished wooden floors.It was an inviting room. I looked forw
Victor called the realtor while I stood beside him with my fingers crossed. There had to be a way to fix the snag, whatever it was. The estate was perfect for us. We couldn’t lose it.I heard the realtor’s voice when she answered his call. “Victor, I’m sorry for giving you bad news.”“What’s the problem?” Victor asked. His voice was calm, but I saw the tension on his face.“The current owners of the Juniper Lane estate are two granddaughters of previous deceased owners. One of the young women refuses to sell to Miss Wilson.”Puzzled, Victor and I looked at each other.“Why?” Victor asked.“She claims Miss Wilson did something to cause her problems in the past,” the realtor responded. “I can’t change her mind. She refuses to sign the papers to finalize the sale.“Does she know the size of the offer we made?” Victor asked as I searched my memory for the identity of the granddaughter.But I couldn’t think of who I had angered that much. I shrugged at Victor and did a palms up.“Who is sh
“I’m sorry,” I said and knelt down to pick up the pieces of broken glass.“That’s alright, Miss Wilson,” Benson said. “Thomas will take care of the mess.” He motioned to a footman. “Let me get you another glass of tea.”“Are you okay, Daisy?” Cassidy asked. “We shouldn’t have shocked you with the news in front of guests.”I shook my head and tried to smile. “No, I’m fine. I was just surprised. Congratulations. I’m happy for both of you.” But was I? I had been an only child since Alex found me.Even though I knew Alex would continue to love me, my only experience with having a sibling wasn’t a positive one. Andrea enjoyed making my life miserable.So, I wasn’t sure how I felt about having a half-sister or brother. However, I was sure Alex and Cassidy wouldn’t treat me like the Smiths, and I’m optimistic the baby wouldn’t be like Andrea.But what would change in my life?“Are you sure, sweetheart?” Alex asked. He looked concerned, and even though I had been shocked, I didn’t want to spo
Victor’s POVDaisy was terrified. I could tell she was afraid her stutter would return. If she was scared enough, it could happen. She needed my love and support.I stepped forward to kiss her cheek and whispered in her ear, “No matter what, I love you. But you can do this. I’m right here with you. Pick one person in the crowd and talk to them.”Daisy gave me a weak smile, and I saw her take a deep, trembling breath. She looked out at the crowd of strange faces, and I knew the instant she saw someone she recognized.It was Amy, standing with Justin, William, and Penny among the sea of reporters. They must have heard about the press conference and come to support us. They were true friends.I sensed Daisy was relaxing, and she began to speak.“When I was seventeen, I worked in a restaurant owned by my best friend’s father. While waiting on customers and bussing tables, I dreamed of going to college and getting my law degree.“I wanted to use that degree to help the werewolf classes who
Victor and I freshened up while trying to think about what we wanted to say. Then we went back downstairs and watched the reporters and news anchors arrive outside the mansion.“There are so many,” I said. “I’ve never seen this many reporters at once before.”“They are coming from other cities to be here,” Shane said. “Your and Victor’s vision for the future is big news. There are rumors that Victor is going to quit the leadership, and you’re moving away from Denhurst.”Findlay snorted. “I heard that rumor, along with several crazier ones. I think the people need to be reassured of your good intentions for everyone.”“I can understand that,” Victor said. “How about you, Daisy?”All I could do was nod. I understood, but I was growing nervous about going out there in front of such a large crowd of reporters and photographers. There were so many. It was like a sea of people forming over the vast front lawn.My hands began to tremble when the estate staff began moving the temporary stage
I cried all the way back to the mansion. Amy remained silent, patting my arm occasionally and handing me tissues when I needed them.She pulled into the driveway and to the front entrance before she spoke.“It looks like Alex has company,” she said. “Who’s limos are they?”I punched the seat. “That one is Lana’s, and the one pulling in next to us is Lily James’s. The nerve of that pushy woman. She followed us!”“But look, Daisy,” Amy pointed toward the front doors. “Victor is here.”I wiped my eyes and saw Victor coming toward me. He opened the car door and took me into his arms.“Don’t cry, sweetheart,” he crooned. “Gisele called and told me what happened. So I had Findlay call everyone here for a quick meeting to set them all straight.”I stopped crying and nodded even though I wasn’t sure it would help.“This nonsense will stop now,” Victor took my hand and helped me from the car.We waited for Amy to put the baby in the stroller before going inside.I looked around the foyer, unab
Victor’s mouth opened, but no words came out at first. Then he shook off his surprise.“Are you serious?” he asked.“Yes, I’ve been thinking about it for weeks,” I replied.Why did Victor look so shocked? During the few times we had spoken about kids, he said he wanted a family.Tears stung my eyes, and I turned away from him. “Maybe I shouldn’t have brought it up.”Victor gently turned me around. “I know you’ve been upset since Amy had the baby, but I didn’t know it was because you want one too.”“When I first held Brendre, I felt such a rush of love that it was all I could think about for days,” I explained. “I never thought much of babies before. I think it's because my adoptive parents rejected me when they had their own baby.”“That makes sense.” Victor took my hand and started walking down the beach again. “Anyone would feel that way.”“Holding Amy’s baby made me realize I very much want to be a mother,” I said. “And I don’t want to wait a long time to start our family.”“What a
Daisy’s POVI couldn't believe Victor was leaving. Couldn’t he stay with me at the beach house for just one day?An emptiness in the pit of my stomach started when he turned to leave. It grew after he went out the door. Through our bond, I felt his painful, churning emotions and wondered if he was finished with me.I couldn’t lose him! I’d return to Denhurst this minute and marry him in any ceremony his mother wanted. The only thing that really mattered about my wedding was Victor must be the groom.I had to stop him from leaving. I needed to know what was on his mind and in his heart.Running out the door after him, I saw him climb into his car and start the engine.“No!” I cried as I jumped in front of the Lamborghini. “Don’t leave me, Victor. I love you!”The Lamborghini’s engine stopped, and Victor leaped out of the driver’s seat. He hurried to my side.“Why won’t you stay with me?” I asked.“I thought you wanted to be here alone,” Victor replied. His body was trembling with emoti