Almost time! The Vampire King will choose his bride and our girl Claire is glammed up and GORGEOUS! Thanks for reading! Feel free to share with your family and friends!
More guests arrived and more glasses piled up on their table. The Taylors and Millers were throwing back tequila shots and bottles of wine like it was their job. Laughter was abundant as they mingled with each other and the other guests. Claire nervously drummed her French-tipped nails on her glass as she bit her bottom lip and tapped her feet. She enjoyed the banter that was coming from their table, but she needed to step away to work away some of the uneasiness that was settling in the pit of her stomach. Walking around the edge of the crowd, a middle-aged woman smiled sweetly at Claire. “Hello, child. Glorious evening, isn’t it?” Claire smiled back and walked to her side. “Yes, it is. Hi, I’m Claire Taylor.” She held out her hand to the woman as she introduced herself as well.“Hello Claire. I’m Priestess Ramona. Council leader of the witches and warlocks. And I am very excited to meet you in person. Your reputation precedes you, young Claire.” Her gaze trickled down to Claire’s
“Now that we have introduced all the ladies, it is my pleasure to announce that the Vampire King is ready to make his bridal selection. Ladies, I wish you all the best.” The short werewolf announced into the microphone. He motioned to stage left for the Vampire King to appear and when he did, Claire’s breathing stopped.Mal stepped onto the stage, looking just as intimidating and sexy as ever, as his stoic face never once glanced at Claire.She felt her chest collapse in on itself.This is why he’s been so despondent these last few days. He’s the FUCKING VAMPIRE KING.Claire closed her eyes as he walked past her to shake hands with the werewolf. “Thank you. And thank you to every one of these ladies on this stage and their families. I know this isn’t the best of circumstances, but I appreciate it, nonetheless.” Mal stepped away from the microphone as the werewolf took back control.“Now, Malachy. Please choose your bride.”Claire kept her eyes shut, refusing to believe this was happeni
Mal turned his back to her as his new fiance glided up to him, slipping her arms around his waist. Claire didn't want to see this, and Steph ran up to her, bringing her out of her sulking mood.“Hey hun. What do you say we go for a walk? Some clean air will do you a lot of good.”Claire nodded her head as they walked along the path leading to the dormitories.The silence between them didn't feel awkward or forced. Neither of them needed to say a word. After a few minutes, they sat on a bench facing a small pond that Claire didn’t know was there. They were far enough away that they could hear the music playing, but couldn’t make out the words to the songs.“So...how long have you been sleeping with Malachy?” Steph has always been straight and to the point.Claire closed her eyes to compose herself. “We haven’t slept together...at least we haven’t had sex…” She leaned her head on her big sister’s shoulder. “I’m still just trying to wrap my head around what exactly happened. Things were l
Xavier motioned for Jack to stand. A father stood up, looked at his daughter, beaming with pride. “Sweetheart. The Council is giving you an amazing opportunity. You can stay with us. Me, your brother, and sister.” Jack’s hand found hers and squeezed. “To help train future Guardians.. Given that you are human, we will have to take extra precautions to keep you safe and out of harm’s way. You’ll never be out in the field. Or...” Jack’s eyes welled with tears. Priestess Ramona stood up, “Or sweet child. You can continue to live as a human, among other humans. But you will no longer be a part of the Mythical community. You’ll give up all that you have known, everything you love. To be a normal human. Without fear of rogues. Without anyone here, including your family.” She gingerly lifted Claire’s face as the tears fell.“So, if I choose to be a normal human, whatever that means, I won’t be able to be with or see my family again?” Her eyes met the leader of the lone dragon, who had a gr
Don’t be a damsel in distress. *PUNCH* Don’t let them see you cry. *PUNCH* Stick to your guns. *KICK* Fuck Malachy and that bitch, Mirabella. * PUNCH *PUNCH *PUNCH Fuck everyone! *KICK *KICK *KICK *KICK *KICK* Claire’s thrusted her knee into the punching bag over and over and over, holding on to it as she made contact. Her mind still racing since her conversation with Mal. She thought the tears would never end, but here she was beating the shit out of a punching bag, stalling until she had to deliver her decision to The Council. Assholes. A few people stepped into the gym to workout, but one look from Claire sent them running. No one dared to enter the room while she was there. A few of the omega wolves were staring through a window when a tall shadow enveloped them. “Ahem. You boys should probably run away now.” They scurried off down the hall without looking back at the vampire, who scared them. Zach stepped into the gym in awe of his baby sister. “You know, it helps to have
Mal couldn’t believe it. She was going to leave them, leave him.“I will no longer train to be a Guardian. I choose to have a normal human life, away from the Mythical community.” Her words replayed in his head as his mouth fell open. The small crowd of Mythicals were whispering about themselves, as confusion spanned the room. Claire looked confident in her decision as she glanced at each of her family and friends. Her eyes beaming with love.“We, the Council, accept…” Council Nathanial spoke, as Jack stood up, effectively interrupting the acceptance.“Wait one minute, Council. If Claire is choosing to leave our community, then I will leave with her. As her father, it is my duty to protect her and I will not let her go out into the world without me.” He beamed with pride as he looked down at his daughter. “And I will go with them as well.” Marian walked behind the father-daughter duo, placing her arms around their chairs. Jack smiled as he grabbed her hand, kissing the back of it,
“Quinn, huh?” Claire threw her pillow at Sean since they hid in her room. She needed to be away from all the judging eyes and everyone needing to give their two cents about her decision. She’d had enough of The Council and their ultimatums.“Yeah. I felt it hit the other night while we were all hanging out. I never thought it would happen, but it did. She’s it for me. She’s my mate.” A huge smile spread across his lips and it was contagious, causing Claire to smile as she looked at this massive wolf turn into a lovesick puppy while talking about Quinn. “You are both incredibly lucky to have found one another...so when are you going to ask her out?” Claire asked.“That’s a bit complicated.” A knock at the door brought their conversation to a halt. They both looked at each other, then the door before Sean stepped up to answer the door. His shoulders squared as he opened it to a deep breathing Malachy.A growl escaped through clenched teeth as he addressed their guest. “You have some ba
The cries were unbearable. The entire house was in an uproar because for the umpteenth time that weekend, the Lockwood’s latest additions, Jillian and Julian, were crying in their cribs. Claire managed to get one asleep, but then the other would cry, waking the other twin up. She was about to give up hope when she put both babies together in the same crib. Five minutes later, both were fast asleep, cuddling one another.She softly closed the nursery door and turned to meet the thankful eyes of Marian’s sister and the Luna of the Lockwood Pack, Jordyn.“How did you get both of them asleep? We’ve been trying for weeks!” she asked, impressed.Claire shrugged her shoulders, “When you felt bad when you were little and your mom wasn’t around, who did you turn to? I always think of my siblings, Steph and Zach. So why wouldn’t the babies?” Claire placed a hand on the Luna’s shoulders, directing her down the hall. “Come on now. You asked for some help with the babies, so I’m here to help. Go r