~Kimberly~The commotion I heard made me come out and see what was going on. I noticed both my sons going to the packhouse, and I wanted to run to greet them. I’m so happy to see Lincoln in one piece. I stopped to take in the scene, and I want to recoil. I have a terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. Something is gnawing at me, and I don’t like it. There are so many pack members out here, attracted to the loudness like me. Paul is out here along with my sons, and that terrifies me. I have a feeling that something is going to be said that isn’t going to go well for anyone. “No one needs to hear anything else, Stuart. You have ruined her life long enough.” I’d never seen Nikki stand up to Stuart, and it’s an interesting sight.“No, Nikki. Little Miss Luna has asked me a question. Who am I to ignore her?” Stuart turns to Tia, who hasn’t so much as flinched this entire time. “You took away my happy ending.” No, please, no. Please don’t tell me that he’s going to say this out loud.
~Landon~No one moves; it seems that no one is breathing. I don’t think anyone expected Tia to issue a challenge, but here we are. Neither Lincoln nor I feel good about this; our inherent nature is to protect our mate at all times and all costs. This is something that she needs to do herself, even though we don’t like it.Stuart throws his head back and laughs. He starts to grip his stomach, and he falls forward, laughing. There are a few snickers around us, but Tia doesn’t move. She stands, waiting for his answer. I, personally, want to rip his head off. The laughing is a clear sign of disrespect, and I don’t like my Luna being disrespected. Stuart stands up straight and wipes tears from his eyes. “You’re serious, aren’t you?” He steps toward Tia, looking down at her. “You get some mates and get a mark, and all of a sudden, you have a backbone.” Stuart sighs. “Okay, little girl. If you want everyone to watch you get your ass handed to you, so be it.” Stuart steps back and gets into
~Lincoln~I hang up the phone, rubbing my temples. This is starting to be beyond stressful. “Was it her again?” I look at Landon and roll my eyes. He already knows the answer to that question. Lilacs and sandalwood hit my nose with a hint of orange, and the tension in my body starts to ease. I lift my head and see my mate walking toward me. She comes behind me and wraps her arms around my shoulders, kissing the back of my head. I will never get tired of the way she makes me feel. “Why so stressed?” I sigh, turning in my chair and pulling her onto my lap.“Another call……” Tia sighs and places her forehead on mine. “She’s been gone for months now, and she hasn’t stopped reaching out. Have you two thought about talking to her?” She has been asking this a lot lately, and it’s a tricky question to answer. She is my mother and the former Luna of the pack, but everything she’s done is enough never to acknowledge her again. “Honestly, love, I’m not interested, and I may never be.” “I’m not
~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