It was everywhere; no matter where Lily turned, blood was everywhere. It oozed from the walls; it flooded the floor, threatening to drown her. Lily ran down the hallway, trying to escape the wave of blood that chased her only to reach a dead-end. She begged and pleaded, hitting her fists against the wall. There had to be an escape!
“Why should you escape it, when I didn’t get that chance,” a rough voice demanded, and she turned to see Fluffy or Kyle, which was his real name, standing there with the gaping stab wound in his chest. “I was only trying to help you and look what I got for it!” he shouted at her.
“I was only doing what the doc told me so I could put food on the table for my children,” another rough voice called out to her and she turned to see the human who she killed accidentally by tearing out his throat. &
Lily returned to the bed and though the house was relatively quiet, she was being slammed with a variety of sounds. She could hear mummers of people talking throughout the house though she didn’t know what they were saying. Lily heard their heartbeats, like rhythmic beating drums that never stopped. She heard water dripping in the bathroom and running through the pipes. Lily heard a radio in the kitchen and a television in the living room.Then there were the smells that flooded her nose and brain. She smelled the paint on her walls. The pain was the same as when she moved in, but the smell stank as if the paint were new. Lily smelled the laundry soap and fabric softener that Sandy used to wash her sheets. She could smell Lacy’s fading scent. Lily could smell the dusty smell of her aged old books and the posters that clung to the wall. She could smell everything!
The next day, Andrew insisted she come down to his office. Lily stood in front of her door nervously. I can do this. Lily opened the door and the smells and sounds washed over her like a thunderous tidal wave. She heard Sandy cooking dinner in the kitchen, the faucet dripping in the bathroom, the water flowing through the pipes in and around the house, and Andrew and others talking in his office.The same went for the smells; the house, Sandy’s cooking, the water, dust, and everything else around her wafted up to her and threatened her sanity. At first Lily wanted to panic, but she forced herself to remain calm. James said there was no way to shut them out, so with a deep calming breath, Lily let them all in. Surprise washed over her as she stood in front of the office door. The intensity of the smells and sounds seemed to dim in force. Well, at least that’s a little of good news, she thought a
“Let me look at you,” Andrew asked and gently pushed her chin up so he could look at her directly in the eye. He pushed up her lip and the sharp intake of breath confirmed what she already feared. “My God, what has he done?” Andrew said, and it took all she had to keep from breaking down right then and there. She didn’t want to cry in front of Tony and James.“What’s wrong, Dad?” Tony asked as Andrew pulled her into a tight hug.“I’m so sorry Lily, you have no idea how sorry I am,” Andrew told her, ignoring Tony’s question for the moment. “You can go back to your room if you like,” he told her. She nodded, wiping a tear away from her cheek. She closed the office door.“Dad, what’s wrong?” Lily could hear Tony ask as
James, Tony, and Chris were in the front yard playing some football to help blow off steam, Tony and Chris were against James. They extended the invite to Greg, but the smaller werewolf scoffed and made some snide comment about having better things to do. James smiled as he watched Tony and Chris before him. He knew Chris had the ball, but Tony was trying to distract him. He pretended to go after Tony while Chris raced to his right, just like James wanted.With a growl of satisfaction, he did a spin and quickly changed directions and slammed Chris to the ground before the other werewolf knew what was happening. Chris groaned as James helped him up. “Damn Tony, I think we need maybe two or three enforcers with us to make this fair. You're wicked fast, James,” Chris said with a crooked smile, which James returned.“I’m just that good,&rdqu
James froze, unsure of what to do. He’d been around upset women before, but never in his life had they seen him as a source of comfort. He wrapped his arms around her in what he hoped was a comforting gesture. Honestly, he’d never felt more uncomfortable and so awkward in his life. As she continued to soak his shirt with her tears, he’d give anything for her to yell at him again. James knew how to handle that.“No one is going to kill you, Lily,” he told her, and she shook her head side to side but said nothing. “I’m sure you’ll be able to control it, and faster than I did. When I changed, I was a hormone-crazed teen. So I not only had to the beast to deal with but all the problems that being the typical teenage boy has as well,” he told her, trying to snap her out of this sobbing mess she’d become.Lily continued to cry and his words didn’t have the effect he
James kissed Lily’s inner thigh when she’d come down from her peak, once more smiling as she shivered in response. He trailed, kissed up her abdomen, up her stomach, through the valley of her breasts until he was face to face with her. She moaned his name, kissing him and resting her hands on his chest. He moved the kiss to her cheek and along her jawline until he reached the tender spot under her ear.James grazed the sensitive skin with his teeth, rewarding him with another lusty moan from her. He grabbed her wrists with his hands and pinned them above her head as he kissed and nipped his way down her neck. With his other hand, he parted her legs, placing his body between them. He couldn’t wait any longer; James needed to be inside her and the beast couldn’t agree more. He sucked lightly on the skin on her neck as he made love to her.Lily tried to free hands
What the hell was he going to do now? The alpha would demand an explanation. When he thought of one idea, he discarded it; the alpha would never buy it. He thought of another, then discarded it too. After several minutes of repeating or discarding ideas, he decided to just go with his first idea, to blame his disappearance on the beast. James lost control when he shifted into his monstrous beast so it was plausible and his best shot.With a sigh of a condemned man, he walked into the house. As expected, Andrew stood there, looking pissed. “James, where have you been?” Andrew demanded when James entered the living room.“Sorry Alpha,” he stated, trying to not look as nervous as he felt. “Last night I couldn’t pick out Lily’s scent very well since it’s different now,” he lied, and the alpha nodded. “So I shifted, but the beast decided he rather do his thing,” James finished.Andrew’s stern face turned softer. “The beast, huh?” he asked with a smile, and James nodded. “Seriously, that wa
Lily grabbed her shoe and stomped back to her room. She swore when she dealt with Xavier she was going to pump James with so much silver that people would think he was the silver surfer. She looked in the mirror of her bedroom once more, viewing the horrendous mark upon her skin.“No way in hell,” she demanded, then adjusted her t-shirt, making sure it wasn’t visible; she didn’t need someone to see it and think the wrong thing. After an attempt to hide the mark, she put on a sweater to be safer and walked downstairs. Her mother pulled her into a hug when she walked into the kitchen and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Good morning to you too Sandy, what was that for?” She asked, and the older woman smiled.“I am just happy for you,” she replied and Lily looked at her, confused, as she sat down at the table.
The room was huge, twice if not three times larger than her room in Andrew’s house. The bed was the showstopper, though; she couldn’t help but smile at the thought of sleeping with the most comfortable king size bed she had ever felt while James got stuck with his little hard lumpy hotel room bed. She snuggled into the bed even more with a content sigh; life at that moment was good.It was late morning when Lily had gotten up, showered, and dressed back into her ratty t-shirt and jeans, but feeling like a new person, she had the best night’s sleep in years! She sat on the bed, crossed legged, and dialed Greg’s number.“Lily, how are things?” Greg asked her once he picked up.“Actually good Greg, it’s amazing what a good night’s sleep can do for a person,” s
“Now that we’re all introduced, won’t you please follow me,” The Queen offered, walking down a large hallway. Everyone followed Queen Hazar into a smaller room, larger than any room Andrew had in his house, though.There were bookcases and statues lining the walls with old paintings on the walls. Plush sofas and chairs littered the room with an enormous fireplace that housed an equally large fire on the wall in front of them. Large rugs lay on the floor with intricate designs that almost made Lily regret stepping on them.The snooty boy from earlier rushed up with a tray of extravagant crystal wine glasses filled with a variety of liquids. Everyone took a glass, and the queen turned to Lily. “Do you drink Lily?” She asked and indicated to the glass was full of blood. She wondered how the queen knew her name since it seemed ev
Lily drummed her fingers against the door of the car. They had been driving for an hour and she was bored. Bored and frustrated, she could be doing something so much more important than going to see some referee organization for the supernatural. Dorin turned to the left down a wide little street that went into the woods and after driving ten more minutes, Lily tensed as they come to a large black gate that crossed the street with four bulky men.Dorin got out of the car, speaking to one of them, looking perfectly friendly. She also noticed the dirty looks the men threw her way. She leaned against the headrest and frowned. “My list of fans just keeps growing,” she thought bitterly. The urge to hit something was growing.Dorin returned to the car, and they drove past the gate and she shot the men on her side with nasty looks. She huffed, crossing her
“You can’t be suggesting what I think you are suggesting, James,” Nick said. “I’ve known her my whole life and I know she would do anything for that boy of hers, anything!”“Yes, that is what I am worried about; a woman loses her mate and nearly her son. If I was her, I would do anything to protect him, anything and everything possible,” He continued and Nick gave him a hard look.“She wouldn’t,” Nick started, but looked towards the closed door with doubt written all over his face.“Two years ago, she lost her mate. Now Xavier kidnapped her, and she is hesitant to enter the forest where we are sure he is! We have explained that he is under significant risk of being turned into a hybrid and she is arguing to wait until the morning to start the se
“If I lose it like all other hybrids, then the vampires are here to take me out,” Lily explained with a matter-of-fact tone and Nick eyed her with obvious surprise. Nick gave the vampires a polite but cool greeting.“This is Derek, Mike, Chase, and Bonnie. All of them have their children hostage,” Nick stated, then introduced Lily and James to his group. As usual, they all took a step back when they heard James’ names and asked if he was the James Lacrosse.“It’s not fair,” Lily demanded. “How come you get the ‘The James Lacrosse’ treatment and I only get the dirty hybrid? I’m so much cooler than you,” she complained, her hands on her hips.“Because I’ve been around longer, and I’m more badass than you are,” he repl
James wasn’t sure how long they had stood there holding onto each other, waiting for their racing heartbeats to slow. He nuzzled into Lily’s neck and breathed in her scent, letting it wash over him. This woman and how she made him feel were truly astounding. He thought last time was good, but this had been so much better. “James, let me get up,” she told him, attempting to shrug his arms off of her, but he only pulled her closer.He smiled as she growled with obvious frustration and attempted to pry off his arms. In this little bathroom, there was no Xavier, no vampires, no hybrid business, just them, and he wasn’t ready to let go of that yet. He kissed her neck, ignoring her. “Seriously, James, we have more important things to deal with than your libido,” she snapped at him and he groaned in complaint.“No one wi
One of his hands snuck under her shirt while the other wrapped around her waist. When the kiss ended, Lily felt lightheaded and breathless. James kissed along her jaw until reaching her ear, where he nipped the soft skin of her ear. She bit her lip, trying to suppress a moan that threatened to escape. The last thing he needed was more encouragement, she thought as James slowly trailed searing kisses down her neck.“James,” she said breathlessly, intending to say something more, but she forgot what she was going to say. He growled against her neck, making her shiver.“I love the way you say my name,” he told her huskily as he pushed up her shirt, removing it. He tossed it aside and continued to lay ardent kisses where he left off. James nipped the bite mark on her shoulder and she gasped at the immense pleasure it caused. Her body quickly heated, and the beast h
The alpha gave her a pointed look, and Lily sighed. “Okay, okay.” She felt glad to talk to someone about it, even if it was Alpha Nosey. “Soon after I changed to this, the local vampire king said if I made any mistakes and lost control, he would issue my extermination, which obviously had me feeling like crap. James showed up in my moment of weakness, saying just the things I needed to hear and, well, one thing led to another,” she explained.“He thinks it meant something more than what it was; a bite mark doesn’t make me his mate no matter what he says. Especially when, in all honestly, if any man showed up saying those things, I would have done the same,” she finished, feeling a little slutty.“Actually, bite mark is the mark of a mate,” Nick told her.“I
Nick started to answer James, but Lily cut him off. She was going to extract some payback.“He found me in the woods,” Lily told him with a nasty smile and gave James a pointed look, making James growl even louder. “It was really fun. He amazed me by the things he could do to me,” she shot, noticing Nick was giving her a confused look.“Stay away from her, she’s mine!” James growled at Nick, who started growling back at him.“Are you sure because she told me she didn’t have a mate,” Nick growled back and James started towards him.“Oh God, this is so easy it’s not even any fun,” Lily complained as she stepped between the two. “You seriously need to learn how to detect sarcasm and learn what play on words is James,” she told James as she rolled her eyes.