“You never wanted this power, so that makes you perfect to wield it. You want to serve your people rather than to fuel your own desires. You’re noble.” She smiles, pleased. I continue, “You choose to see the good in people, and you trust easily. I love those things about you, but it has caused you p
KaneI’m having lunch with my mother at the gazebo. She insists that we spend more time together. Now that I’m about to become a father, she wants to make sure I’m ready for the responsibility as if I have not been taking care of an entire kingdom for over a century. I don’t tell her this and just s
“What better statement is there to make than giving my son a shifter name because he is part of that world? He’ll be of both worlds, the first half-shifter to become king of Crimson Peak.”She grimaces. “I see your point, darling. But must we name him Connor?”“What’s wrong with Connor?”“It doesn’t
There’s something I’ve always wanted to ask my mother, but I’ve been too scared in the past to voice it out loud. Things are different now, and I want to know.“Why did you stay with Bernard for all those years?” I ask. “He was unfaithful and cruel. He only cared about himself and his own ambitions
LolaI knock on the door of Willow’s room before entering. She is never in the library anymore, so I have to come visit her. She used to have a bedroom by the library until Rainer decided these rooms would be better. Her new rooms are larger and more comfortable so I guess that’s why Willow never go
I wrinkle my nose. “Ugly?”“When they come out, babies are kind of squished,” she tells me. “Being born is hard work.”That makes sense to me. I know where babies come from. Emory explained it to me last year when the stork story was becoming less and less believable. I’ve never even seen a stork at
“I like you better naked,” he says. “You’re the one that’s distracting.”“Because I’m the size of the moon and hard to miss. I practically have my own gravitational force at this point.”He laughs. “You’re not big. You’re pregnant.”“I’m still big. Does it matter why?”He pushes the fabric of my shi
KaneEmory sits up, her face scrunched up in discomfort. I’m about to ask her if she’s okay before she lets out a pained scream. I lean up, placing a hand on her back to comfort her. She’s breathing quicker, her green eyes wide in realization.“The baby is coming.”I nearly jump out of my skin. Fear
Fractured memories of the night I nearly drank myself to death careen to the forefront of my mind. There was a woman. I don’t remember her face or her name. I was so far gone with drink and self-loathing that I gave in to whatever kind of attention and stimulations she had to offer. It was consensua
ColeThe letter came in the dead of night, rain-soaked and smeared, but I’d know her handwriting anywhere, in any condition. She’d written that she needed to see me, urgently, that it couldn’t wait, and she couldn’t explain why, not in a letter, not at the risk of what she needed to tell me going pu
EmeldaIt’s a quiet night. A long, silent walk from the castle. I needed this quiet, this stillness in the late summer air. Ravenfell comes into view beyond the trees, twinkling in the darkness. I smile, shaking my head as I look down at my shoes. I can still feel the weight of the twins in my arms
MichaelI haven’t been to Scarlet Thunder in… years. I didn’t realize how long it’s been until I pulled up to the back of the castle, somewhat startled by how small it looks compared to my memories from my childhood. Not that it's a small castle, but I'm much bigger now. I step out of my car, my fac
Faye“Oh, Faye, this is beautiful,” Emory says as she walks around the wide room on the second floor of the newly constructed manor. She runs her fingers over the pale blue and pink floral wallpaper and white trim, her jade eyes sparkling as she takes in the lace curtains and soft cream carpet. “I l
EmeldaIn the week since the twins were born, I’ve been busy with the final touches on my cottage. I spent days this past spring digging in the front garden, planting herbs and vegetables, and fixing the front path. I hired a group of shifters to replace the roof and update the inside, installing ne
Emelda“Thank you,” I say, hurrying at a near run as a maid takes my cloak. The castle is buzzing with nervous energy but remains quiet with even the maids tiptoeing around, trying not to make a sound. I’d remained in Ravenfell for the birth. I spent all night and most of this morning at Alma’s hou
FayeSomething’s wrong. Something has to be wrong. “You’re doing great. Keep pushing, Faye. You’ve got this,” Alma says, her face glistening with sweat and determination while I roar in pain. Michael clutches my hand, his other hand bracing my inner thigh as I bear down with all the strength I hav
Michael“It could be hours–or a day,” Alma says quietly as she arranges her tonics on a table just outside the bedroom where Faye’s finally getting some rest. “It’s been hours already,” I tell her, motioning toward the window in my suite in the castle where moonlight drifts through the panes, casti