When I looked back up at Nicholas, he was still staring at me. Maybe he would have stared forever, I didn’t know. But then Olivia appeared near his arm. She touched his forearm and he had to look down at her. She wore a dress the color of the ocean, fluid, with white trim. Nicholas wore a matchi
Nicholas continued to stare at me, waiting for my answer. He seemed entirely unbothered by the gathered crowd of their assumptions. “Piper?” he asked, when I hesitated. “Of course we can speak,” I said. Nodding, he turned. “If you will excuse me,” I said, first to Julian and then to the gath
Then, to me, Nicholas spoke again, “Look at me, Piper.” I hesitated at first, but he didn’t move from his spot in front of me, like he was patiently waiting me out. So, eventually, I chanced a glance upwards. Nicholas captured my gaze with his own and held me captive. He held so much emotion i
The King and Queen watched from atop their thrones as the princes danced with and among the candidates and guests, while the cameras swooped in and out to capture all. We kept our smiles bright, eager to show how much fun we were having – all to maintain our standing in the competition, of course.
That was Jane. I had zero doubts. What I needed to do now was keep my promise and alert Nicholas. Yet when I turned to find him, I saw him stepping onto the stage where the thrones were, with Olivia on his arm. The King and Queen were greeting them warmly. I couldn’t exactly interrupt that witho
“Piper and I have been having an affair,” Joyce said into the microphone. The King stepped forward and attempted to rip the microphone from his hands, but Joyce, younger and stronger, shook him off with relative ease. “Let me speak my truth, father!” “You are out of your mind!” the King snappe
As Jane lunged toward me, I made my own move, reaching into my bodice. Jane grabbed my left arm, but I used my right hand to wrap the cuff on Jane’s wrist. I expected her to wince, or gasp, or have some kind of reaction at all. Instead, she just seemed amused. She stopped short, but she also smi
I complied, unwilling to be skewered. She hid the knife against my side as she ushered me toward the door. I looked back but none of the royal family was to be seen. Neither was Veronica. I maybe could have caught Susie’s attention, if I called out or flagged her down. She was valiantly trying to
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