Nicholas held my gaze the longest. He finally glanced away when a girl tugged on his arm. The music started and she pulled him toward the dance floor. It seemed that anonymity made everyone feel a bit bolder than usual tonight. Myself included. I stopped by the drink table to grab a flute of
Tonight at the Second Ball felt like a night where anything could happen. As Nicholas pulled back from our kiss, I immediately wanted him to return for another. I had butterflies in my stomach, remembering the way he said my name. He said it again now. “Piper.” “How did you know it was me?”
Terry waited through the length of my indecision. When he motioned a second time for me to sit, this time I joined him on the couch, sliding down onto the spot he indicated. “Tell me about the girl in the black dress,” I said. “Uh, uh. Demanding is not very becoming, Piper. Here, have some champ
Nicholas I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Terry, my uncle and advisor to the King, and his hands on Piper as if he intended to touch her intimately. And Piper was practically passed out beside him, unable to give consent, unable to do anything more than cry. Red hot fury burned through my v
I could stare at her forever. I used to, back when we had been dating, on the rare occasions that she stayed the night. We didn’t do anything sexual. We just liked to hold each other. I would wake up earlier than her, just as the sun was creeping in through the windows. It would shine on her, cove
In sleep, I felt safe and warm, like I was rocking in a boat on gentle waves under a bright sunny sky. Here, my troubles seemed so far away. I was at peace, distant from those who wanted to hurt me or bring my family harm. Once, I had thought myself to be in Nicholas’s embrace. I almost recognized
By the next morning, the drug had worked its way through my system and I felt like my old self again. I went down to breakfast, where I was reunited with Elva, who had stayed with Susie the night before by order of Nicholas. I was grateful for his foresight. Mortified as I was by my actions and so
When I asked Julian if he wanted to continue the investigation, I had thought he might be a hard sell. What I hadn’t expected was for him to put me down flat. “No.” “No?” I said, startled. “No, Piper. Nicholas is right. It was wrong of me to try to include you. I knowingly placed you in danger
Instead, the Queen pulled me into a hug. It was uncomfortable and brief, but a hug none the less. From the Queen, this was a tremendous breach of decorum, and I froze, unsure how to react. Even Nathan, standing dutifully as his King’s side seemed shocked.“I have misjudged you dearly,” the Queen sai
I wasn’t sure what to expect when our car delivered us from the train station to the palace, but even in my wildest dreams, I wouldn’t have guessed what actually awaited us.Cheering crowds lined the outer walls of the palace. Balloons and streamers of various colors were abundant. A stage had been
At once, my heart leapt up into my throat, while simultaneously crashing down into my stomach.I pulled away from Nicholas enough to push myself up onto my hands and stare down at him.The thought of breaking the engagement had never crossed my mind! Nicholas proposing had been one of the best momen
In a war between the wolves and the bears, only the lost bear princess will be able to stop this fighting. Else, the bears will continue to fight themselves to exhaustion or to death.“It’s up to you,” Nicholas said. “I believe in you. You can do this.”I closed my eyes. Miracle was still exhausted,
Slowly, my grief subsided for now, enough for me to look up at Nicholas and feel the relief of being reunited with my fiancé.My… mate.“I love you,” Nicholas said. “I’m sorry it took so long for me to reach you.”“How are you even here? It’s impossible for you to have found me this quickly?”Nichol
Joyce, despite his best efforts, was not a fighter. He was not bred for war and battle like Hawke was, so even calling on the power of his Alpha wolf, Hawk tossed Joyce aside like he was a sack of potatoes.However, Joyce did show amazing tenacity, and stood back up time and time again. Roaring, he
Nicholas was here. I didn’t know how. I didn’t know why. But he was here, and that gave me the strength I needed to act.I ripped my arm away from Joyce’s hold and rushed into the room where Hawk was choking my sister on the ground. Using all of my strength, I plowed into Hawk.My surprise more than
We slipped into the hallway easily enough. The lights were off, so we stuck to the shadows. We didn’t go far when we started to hear raised voices.“I want to know if Piper was telling the truth.” It was Jane.“You cannot mean to trust her more than me,” that was Hawk. His cold voice sent shivers ru
A mating bond…?Yes. Even though Nicholas and I had never talked about the love between us, I had still felt it grow over these months together. Nicholas had never made a bonding bite on my neck, yet inside of me, that bond had cultivated. Our hearts were bound together, mating bite or now.There wa