~Stuart~I didn’t expect to walk in here and see Kimberly gone. Yes, I rejected her, but she was still my fated mate, and we stayed attached for more than two decades. We may not have lived together and created a family, but we took the time to get to know each other. Kimberly and I would meet up sometimes just to talk. We would discuss our families, our hurts, our states of happiness, and anything we felt we could share with each other. I was probably more intimate with Kimberly than I was with Nikki once we found out we were mates—just something else to be deeply apologetic for.I don’t know how long I sat here, holding Kimberly’s body. My heart hurt when I set eyes on her, and I just wanted to hold her a bit before her body is taken away. I let Kimberly go and stand up. I look down and see remnants of blood on my clothes, but I don’t care. I look around the room, but nothing stands out to me besides the open door.I hate that Kimberly had to die alone and at such a young age. She
~Imogene~I look at my phone again and let out an exasperated sigh. I absolutely HATE waiting on people. I feel like all things should be immediate when dealing with me. Let’s face facts: I’m a super important woman and don’t have time to wait for others to drag their feet. I would tell him to go fuck himself if I didn’t need these items. I could always send him a magical bomb…..I always love seeing those explode. I need to strengthen my spell and get it to cast wider, and I can’t do that without the ingredients. As it is, I snuck off packlands early this morning. My ceremony is later today, and I need the ingredients to sit for a while if I want to be able to cast the spell tonight.A car pulls up, and I start to tap my foot. The car door opens, and he walks out. Always with a hoodie on and the hood on his head; I swear I get so tired of this cloak-and-dagger shit. “What the fuck took you so long?” He doesn’t come close but tosses the bag, which lands a few feet from me.“Here’s you
All eyes land on me, and I stand my ground in the middle of the aisle. Paul steps forward, and a growl erupts from his lips. Knowing what he’s about to do, my heart flutters, but I won’t back down. “How dare you intervene! Warriors!” I stand and wait. I can see movement in my peripheral vision, but everyone isn’t coming for me. Some of the warriors are taking steps back, so they are surrounding the event. I see Lynn step out in front of the stage in a fighting stance. There are warriors who look extremely confused standing on stage. Imogene waves her hand, and two come at me. They approach me on each side, and I know they plan to grab me. I remember what Stuart taught me, and I don’t move, waiting for them to make a move first. They reach for me at the same time, and I quickly hit the ground, sweeping a leg out to my right, causing the warrior to hit the floor. I roll to my knees and face the warrior on my left. I maneuver, so I’m on my toes and motion for him to come forward. He ma
~Nikki~I can’t believe how much fun I just had. I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed myself so thoroughly. I laughed and danced until I couldn’t anymore. I never actually considered what life could be like if I got away from Stuart. Now I don’t have to think about it, I can live it, and it’s good.A warm hand touches my knee, sending butterflies to my stomach. I really need to get laid if a simple touch is enough to get me going. “Are you okay?” I nod. “We’re here.” I look around and realized that we are, indeed, back home. I swear the trip from the airport was quicker than ever before.The car door opens for me, and a hand waits. I grab the hand, and the driver helps me out of the car. Paul follows behind me and walks me to the door. “I had so much fun this weekend. Thank you for making it a good time.” I look at Paul, his smile warming my heart.“No, thank you. You helped me remember what fun was.” Paul leans in and kisses me on my forehead.“I will see you later.” He turns and
~Nikki~I bounce in the bed, making me wonder if I’m back on the plane. The journey to the wedding was bumpy at best. “MOM!” I feel an arm around me, and the comfort is wonderful. I pop an eye open and look at my daughter. She’s so beautiful; love and happiness agree with her.I owe her so much in the way of an apology. I feel I could have done more to stand up for her, but I was scared. Stuart could always be a more than opposing figure and could be abusive if he deemed it necessary. I let my fear take over, and that caused me to not be there for my daughter like I should have been.I trail my eyes down my daughter’s body until I see the baby bump. My eyes start to mist while I reach out and touch her belly. My baby is having a baby, and I’m beyond excited. I can’t wait to be a grandmother. Tia moves my hand around her belly until I feel movement. I look up at Tia, and she has a massive smile on her face. “Baby missed its grandma.” I laugh and wipe my eyes.“No….no, not grandma. I do
~Nikki~I tossed and turned all night in anticipation. I feel like I did when I was in high school and had a crush on a guy. This is ridiculous because I’m a grown-ass woman, and I shouldn’t be crushing on my former Alpha, my daughter’s father-through-mate. I should be ashamed and disgusted at my actions, but I just can’t seem to get there.I swear you are acting like a hussy!Who, me? Yes, you! Why are you encouraging things?Look here, human, I have nothing to do with your desires! You make your own choices; I just so happen to agree with this choice. Aluma is right; of course, I just want someone to blame. I don’t know what’s come over me, but I think I really like Paul.I take extra care in getting dressed today. I want to make sure I look good. I put on a dark blue Wonder Woman scrub top and dark blue bottoms. I like having the fun scrub tops, and there were many times they appealed to my patients, making my day easier. I’ve let my hair grow out, so it’s now in a bob instead of
~Nikki~To say I was scared shitless is an understatement. I was so busy talking to myself that I didn’t realize Paul had walked up on me in the clinic. Suddenly my mouth goes dry as I stare at him. His jeans are tight enough that I can make out his muscles, and his v-neck is stretched across his body with his arms crossed. I move my tongue along my lips, watching his eyes watch that action. This can’t be real…..he can’t really be into me. I’ve let my mind create magnificent delusions. “I….I’m sure there are many other things you could be doing.” Paul drops his arms and saunters up to me, a smirk on his face. He stands behind me, and I feel his breath on my neck.“I’m a retired Alpha, so I have a lot of free time. That being said, who would pass up the chance to spend time with a beautiful woman? To add to that, you’re a doctor, so I get free medical instruction. It’s a win/win for me.” I swallow but immediately wish I hadn’t. That just made my mouth even drier. Paul brushes against m
I hate to pull myself away from Nikki; I swear I feel an actual pull to her, which is crazy. The only way I’d feel a pull to someone is if they were my fated mate, and Nikki isn’t that. I ignored my feelings and the pull to leave her. My son is waiting for me, and I can’t keep him waiting. I head into the packhouse, greeting pack members as I go. I always wanted to have a pack that respected me, and I was able to accomplish that. I love the fact that my pack members have always found it easy to talk to or come to me when they need to. I will never forgive myself for allowing the treatment that Tia went through, though. She always says it isn’t my fault, but I feel if I had been more diligent, I would have seen what was going on. I had a feeling things were off, but I allowed Stuart to push me off the path of realization, and there's no excuse for that. The office door is open, so I walk right in; Landon is sitting at his desk. He looks up from his paperwork, and a smile breaks on hi