hope you liked the wedding! the kids started school today and I have a massive headache, because I slept badly. the kids slept really bad too, I think they were nervous or something. anyway, going to do stupid laundry now, which is a lot because of the holiday and then I'll see if I have time to write some more.
Elora’s pov"I just loved the wedding of Eve so fucking much, but on the other hand, I always wanted a huge fucking wedding with the whole pack here. Like a big ass party.""Mom?" I asked, trying to find the right words. I didn't want to hurt her feelings, but I didn't see why it was taking years for her to get married. "Why did you want to get married? And why did it take so long?"Mom shrugged, "it’s not that fucking long."I raised my eyebrow. She didn't tell me why she wanted to get married, but I always suspected it had something to do with me and Aeryn being gone. I heard their relationship wasn't always as good as it is now. "You and dad have been together before Aeryn was born; she is almost twenty now, so...."Mom growled softly, "you’re making it sound like we’re fucking old! Eve and Zayn are much older!"Argo came from behind me, having heard most of our conversation. "Actually, Eve is only a few years older than dad. But Zayn is older, yes.""Whatever. I waited because I wa
Elora’s povI still remember meeting Eli that first day, but since becoming Eli’s friend, it’s like we’ve been friends forever. Things are easy with him. He makes me laugh and try new things. I’m used to behaving like a good girl, and he gets me out of my comfort zone and makes me break the rules sometimes.For some reason, Aeryn doesn’t like Eli. She hasn’t said anything, but I can see it. It’s not like I’m going to date Eli; we’re strictly friends, and I’m secretly still crushing on Darian, knowing all too well I shouldn’t."You should keep staring at him," Eli whispered, knowing all too well about my little crush.It was like I was drawn to Darian, but the more I knew about him, the more I understood that that’s all it could be. A crush."I know," I sighed, turning my eyes back on my best friend, who had a scowl on his face."I wish you would listen to me about Darian. I mean, I am hearing a lot of bad things from my cousin back at his pack," Eli said, as if he were my parent. I lov
Darian’s povSeeing Eli with Elora every day made my skin crawl, especially knowing it was my own fault.For months, I had tried to stay away from Elora after she said she couldn’t be tied to the Goldacre name in any way. She had her childhood stolen, and my father was mostly responsible. While I hoped people would be able to view me as separate from my father, with my last name and my job, it was impossible.Even though I had no part in the School or whatever happened there, everything I owned was made with money that came from selling girls and women. I had debated dismantling the entire company, but there were thousands of people working for us. The School was just part of our business; we had factories and other businesses all over different parts of the country. That’s why I joined forces with Rain, hoping that his company could take over my father’s company in time and that I’d be just someone working there.Being the boss wasn’t something I had ever wanted to be, but I had no ch
Elora’s povWith Darian’s words and the feel of his lips still in my mind, I ran back to my room. Darian had done everything Eli said he would. He would charm me and try to kiss me, but Eli said it was all a lie.So why didn’t it feel like a lie?Everything Darian had said felt like he was telling the truth, except the part about why he hated Eli. A disagreement between them? That was way too vague. Something more has had to happen. Especially since they weren’t friends or even acquaintances, according to Eli. Everything he knew about Darian was through his cousin. So how were they able to disagree on anything if they didn’t know each other that well?The glow-in-the dark stars on my ceiling were the first thing I picked out for my room. They were silly and meant for younger kids, but I loved the idea of them and have kept them ever since. I stared up at them, thinking about this night. I never would have suspected that it would have gone like this.That I would have my first kiss with
Elora’s povMy feet just kept walking, with no clear direction. All I knew was that I needed to walk away from Eli right now and get some space.None of this made sense. Why would Darian hire someone to get to know me? I mean, I joked about him being a stalker, but that is like a scary stalker move. And if this were true, why wouldn’t Eli just tell me right away. It would make me hate Darian even more, and that was what Eli was trying to do, right? Keep me away from Darian?Thinking about it all didn’t help the fact that two men in my life who were important to me had betrayed me. Didn’t they realize how hard it was for me to trust anyone?I walked past the gallery of Grandma and saw Mom there talking to Grandma Lily, and I just burst into tears and ran inside."What the fuck happened?" Mom asked, but I didn’t want to talk; I just wanted a hug.Thankfully, mom picked up on that pretty quickly, and she held me until I stopped crying. Grandma Lily brought me a glass of water, and we all
Elora’s povI went from feeling numb and exhausted to being hyper-focused and filled with adrenaline. My heart was beating so fast, and I started sweating. There was a pit inside my stomach telling me something was wrong. Hearing Eli say I was his scared me.Thankfully, I had spent years in fear, and most of my life I had been forced to lie. The best lies always had some truth to them. So I put on my fake smile and stared at Eli. "Why didn’t you ever say anything?""You were too focused on Darian. I was just waiting for the right moment," Eli explained."I have been so sad all week because of our fight. I even spoke to Darian after we fought, and he confirmed what you said. He lied, saying you blackmailed him. As if you would ever stoop so low."Eli chuckled. "If I did, it would serve him right. And it’s not like he doesn’t have enough money."Okay, it was clear that Darian hadn’t lied about Eli blackmailing him. He didn’t deny it at all.Think, Elora. Think. What did Dad say? When you
Darian’s pov"Thank you for coming," I said to the Smith family.The parents smiled at me, while Eli looked as if he wasn’t impressed. I didn’t really know the guy because we ran in different circles, but I wanted to make sure everyone who moved to the Iron River pack would behave in a way that fit with their vision. Our pack was more old-fashioned, and I needed to know for sure that my employees wouldn’t cause any problems. We were the guests of Alpha Asher and Luna Leia and in no way would I disrespect them.I explained to the Smiths what the Iron River pack was like and what was expected of them, and they all seemed fine with the idea of moving."As you all know, my father and Alpha Asher had an unfortunate relationship, and I am trying to break that cycle."Susan smiled at me, "I heard you apologized to the Omari girls.""To all the girls, actually, and there were a lot.""Eli will attend the same high school as the young Omari girl, Elora. Eli just received his schedule, and she w
Elora’s pov"…and she why did she get into the car with Eli anyway?" Aeryn whispered.Maybe I should just keep my eyes shut. I had no idea how long I had been asleep for, but I really didn’t have the energy to have this conversation right now. Didn’t she realize I already knew it was my own fault?"You can’t fucking blame her for what that bastard did. He was her friend for a long fucking time." Mom replied."I warned her, though."Mom sighed, "I don’t think Elora was in the right fucking mind space to say no to Eli at the time.""What the fuck does that mean?" Aeryn replied. Aeryn had always been like a mother to me, but now she had to be my sister, and I think it was hard for her to let mom parent me sometimes."I think Elora might have gotten more from me than my good looks." Mom joked. "I think she might have been depressed for a while, but she was masking it. But all this fucked-up business with Eli and Darian pushed her over the edge.""But she was fine. She’s here; she’s happy."