Doriane watched from her chair as Levi cleared all the plates from the table. It looked like she barely touched the eggs and bacon, but in reality she felt full.
Levi had urged her to eat more, but she was so alienated from eating that it felt like more of a chore. The teas and flavored water Oliver had her drinking instead of real food had her stomach being a stranger to such delicious food.
She was honestly still full of Laurence's pot pie last night.
"I'm sorry, but I have to do some work today in my office. Is there something you like to do?"
Doriane was still adjusting to the sight of Levi washing the dishes and placing them in the dishwasher that she almost missed what he said.
"That's fine," she responded, her soft voice barely above the sound of the running water. "I'll find something."<
Levi paced outside Doriane's door restlessly.His mind was foregoing any logic that said to calm down and stop wearing out the carpet just outside his mate's room.It was torture not sleeping with her in his arms.His feelings for her have only gotten stronger and stronger since he met her.His first night was uncomfortable but bearable.Now it felt like he would go crazy if he went another night without her.Right now, all he wanted was for her to be in his arms.It was taking all his physical self-control not to barge in that room and hold her.His wolf was roaring at him, desperate to take his mate.Logically, he knew he had a reason he couldn't do that, but right now all his reasoning was falling out of his mind.There was a knock on his front door and his wolf let out a snarl on instinct.The door is open, Ronan.He heard the door open and his heightened hearing locked on the sounds.He could decipher
Hayley drove for what felt like hours. The whole time, Doriane fought the sinking feeling in her stomach and an ache in her chest started to grow.She felt pathetic, feeling desperately attached to a man she barely knew. Least of all the most intimidating man she has ever seen in her entire life."I need to gas up. Are you alright if we pause and stretch for a minute? We don't have too much further to go."Doriane was shocked at her words.Were they still not out of his territory? They had been driving forever!Hayley pulled into a gas station and Doriane jumped out, stretching her legs out while Hayley went to work filling the car up."Are we still not out of Levi's territory?"Hayley pulled the gas cap from her car and pressed the gas p
Levi could feel his own tense body start to relax and melt into his mate.He was relieved Doriane let him hold her. He has been going crazy all night.When Levi finally started getting control over his wolf again and he let him shift back, the first thing he did was race to his mate.When he realized his mate's scent led out of his pack, he finally understood why his wolf was so distraught last night. But when he was then informed that his mate had a panic attack, he almost lost his mind.The hour drive it usually took to get here took him twenty minutes.Levi heard Doriane sniffle and run her finger under her nose before she pulled her face away from his chest. “How did you know where I was?” She asked. Her voice was timid and throaty from her crying.Doriane was star
Doriane watched carefully, her eyes trained on the brothers in the room.Something had changed in Doriane. She could feel the wariness fade as she started to make bolder decisions.After seeing that she could freely speak without being lashed out at, she now felt much more comfortable asking questions and speaking.Though it was mainly only to Levi.Maybe it was because of her and Levi's tender moment in the motel this morning, but she as starting to feel more comfortable.Doriane spoke more words to Levi that one day than she did at Oliver's for a month.Even when she was young, she was cautious to draw attention to herself, afraid of her father's uncontrollable reaction to noise.Levi rolled his eyes at Laurence again, telling him
“We need to complete the surgery on your ankle soon,” Dr. Ackerman stated while setting his clipboard on the counter in the small exam room. Doriane shifted uncomfortably on the table, accidentally crunching the paper under her weight. She looked surprised by the sound before looking down and remembered what she was sitting on.
“You remembered your swimsuit, right?” Levi asked as he turned on the small side-street leading to the cabin. Doriane nodded eagerly. “Yes.” “Good. We don’t have much time before dinner, but I can show you the lake and the canoe if you want.”
Doriane tugged at the shorts resting just above mid-thigh and tried to stretch them further down to cover more of her scarred skin. The swimsuit covered her stomach and her shorts covered more of her legs than the clothing she had been forced to wear in the past, but she still felt like she had much too little clothes on. She would hate the revealing clothing she was forced to wear at Oliver’s. When she lived with her parents, they didn’t give her anything nice, but she was at least allowed to wear clothes that covered her. With the revealing clothes, her scars were painfully obvious. She hated looking at the puckered skin that ruined the body. She felt incredibly exposed and vulnerable with the marks on display. Levi’s bright smile appeared before her. His bare feet carried him on the sand as he made his way over to Doriane’s chair. He approached her, his eyes sticking to hers, and he stretched his hand out. She felt her pulse quicken, this time in anticipation. She had noticed t
Levi tightened his arms around Doriane as if she would disappear. He wanted this moment to last forever. He wanted to always cherish the feel of her against him, unafraid and willing. He wanted to brand the way her lips felt against his in his mind forever. His lips fell against hers once more, unable to withstand the temptation. They were soft and unsure as if testing him once again. Levi knew he got carried away last time and held himself back to keep their kiss gentle and chaste. Doriane responded to him and pressed against him again as if wanting more. The familiar incorrigible wildness rose in him again, his wolf pushing to take over their moment. He had to stop now before he couldn’t. Reluctantly, Levi released her lips and took a small step back. He held her motionless between his arms and took some deep breaths, reeling back in his beast who wanted to go much farther than she was ready for. “Levi?” Doriane’s voice was uneasy and confused. Goodness, she must be thinking h
Thank you so much for reading "Worth Fighting For"! Doriane's and Levi's story continues on, but the focus shifts from Doriane and Levi's relationship to Landon and Brooklyn's relationship. Here is a little preview for those of you wanting more!Almost ten years ago, Landon watched his mate be killed right before his eyes. It changed him. After being hard and controlling for years, he has finally learned how to deal with the fact that she was gone. Forever. That is until he goes undercover into Washington. Peter and Oliver Arroyo have a connection to their dad's business in Washington and after they almost killed Doriane and Levi, Landon wants revenge.Brooklyn Eversteen almost died ten years ago. She vividly remembers the beckoning golden eyes that saved her, but she never saw him again. While she barely escaped with her life, her mother was not so lucky and she was instantly swamped with de
Doriane couldn't hold back the smile that crawled on her face at the sight of their home. The small cabin looked just like she last saw it. The large windows overlooked the living room, but this time the curtains were drawn, blocking the inside from view.It felt good to be back.“Stay here,” Levi commanded as he jumped out of the truck.
The persistent beeping seemed to coax Doriane from her sleep. She felt something heavy on her lap, but could also tell she was covered with more than one blanket. She wasn’t sure where she was, but it sure was loud. The beeping continued and Doriane’s eyes fluttered open. The li
“Levi!” Laurence’s frantic voice carried through the night, alerting Levi of his hustled presence. Landon thanked the EMT’s working on Levi’s burns as Laurence sprinted to them, clearly out of breath. “They found her. They found Doriane.”
Levi felt his heart was going to pop out of his chest.He gripped his mate with all the strength he had, which was admittedly not much. His back was blistering with pain as he felt the after-effect of the blast on his body. He was grateful his wolf was focused on healing him, but it would take at least an hour for the pain to start to subside. Instead, Levi turned his attention to his mate. D
Loud shouts and banging downstairs knocked Doriane out of her silent panic. She could hear loud voices under her feet yelling at each other as the floorboards vibrated from the ruckus. Doriane closed her eyes and silently wished
Levi jumped out of the truck before Landon even had the vehicle in park. He quickly rounded to the bed of the truck and lifted the bottom, seeing the guns laying underneath.The brothers grew up in the woods, doing anything and everything you could learn to love in the great outdoors.
“Get up,” one of the guards demanded, barging into the room. Doriane jumped as his boisterous announcement caused fear to spike through her. She hadn’t seen her usual guards, Patrick and Anthony, and wondered why Oliver was using different men now. She sat straight in her chair as he came closer, his hand enclosing around her upper arm. She grimaced as he forgot about her zip ties and yanked her flesh hard against the plastic res
Levi saw his cabin in the distance again and shifted back, retracting from his wolf body. His limbs felt thoroughly exhausted and his shaking legs carried him to the entrance of his house. It felt good to run his animal raw. Although fear and uncertainty still coursed through his veins, he felt a little more in control with his wolf so exhausted.