A week has gone by since I got married. Jay stayed at my parents’ house so they could work on the finer details of their promise. He stayed in the guest bedroom, though I don’t think he was happy about that. The upset look he gave me when I said I wasn’t comfortable sharing a bed with him right away told me he wasn’t happy. He said nothing on the matter, despite that. Would that change when we lived at his place? I wasn’t sure. I still couldn’t figure out his personality.
I guess I would find out just who he really is, now that he’s taking me back to this resort he owns. Anxiety fills my heart, but I keep calm. He is talkative though, I’ll give him that. I don’t know if I could survive if he was as quiet as my dad is.
“You’ll love the openness of the place, you can really get back to nature there,” Jay is once more gushing about his home. I can’t say I’m excited to see it. Although we live in a vast estate with a large outside area for Princess and for our leisure, we don’t exactly live in a place one would call ‘natural’. It’s also near the big cities, which is how I like it.
Still, I guess I shouldn’t judge Jay’s home before actually seeing it. Maybe Princess will like it? I plan to bring her here, though Jay said it might not be the safest for her to be there. I don’t see why it wouldn’t be safe! It’s not like we have bears or anything large that would want to eat her. Right?
As Jay turns the car to pull off the motorway, I spot a sign that reads ‘Marshall Resort’. We must be close now. Though instead of what I thought might be sand and sea, turns into trees, which only increases into a vast forest. I glance at Jay, then back at the rows of trees passing us by. He’s a serial killer like in the books! That has to be it! He’s going to murder me for insurance or something!
“Oh,” Jay breathes out beside me. “I forgot to mention my family is substantial. So take your time getting to know everyone. They’ve been excited to meet you,” he adds, almost giddy in his seat.
“They know about me?” I ask hesitantly. I’m not sure if I believe him just yet. This whole isolation from the real world has me worried. I look over at him. He doesn’t look dangerous, just excited. Maybe I’m wrong? Or he’s a talented actor!
“Well, of course, I’ve been looking for you for a long time. You were destined to be mine,” Jay says proudly. His smile is as wide as his face.
I can’t say I share his enthusiasm, though. Destined to be his? So I’m just property to him! Someone that he can buy and sell on a whim! I can’t say I’m surprised, but I am angry. I had hoped this man had seen me somewhere and just fell in love with me at first sight. How childish could I have been?
“Mmm,” I mumble my reply. I can’t exactly argue with my husband while still in the car with him, but I hope my lack of a reply will hit at my now even poorer mood.
I’m not so lucky. Blissfully unaware of my sour mood, Jay continues to gush about his home and family. How he is their leader or something or another. I admit I’ve since stopped paying attention. Much like my mother, Jay just blabs on and on and on!
“Gwen? Gwen!” Jay’s voice pulls my focus back towards him as he looks at me with concern.
I blink at him in a dazed state. “Huh?”
Jay sighs and then repeats his question, “did you want to meet the others first, or get settled into your new home?”
Looking from him to where we are now, I bite my lower lip. “Get settled in?” I suggest, but honestly, I don’t really know what I should do. I’m anxious about this whole place, the people, Jay… we’re in an open area. The houses here are big enough, but the one Jay has stopped outside is the largest of them all!
I’m glad they at least look a bit more modern than I thought they would be, but that doesn’t subtract from the fact that we’re out in the middle of nowhere!
“Alright, I’ll let the others know,” Jay says, nodding his head in understanding. “It would be nice to spend time alone with you, outside of the car,” he then adds, opening his door and making his way around to my side. At least he has the correct manners to open my door. Though as I step out, he suddenly swoops me up into his arms. I can’t help but let out a surprised yelp and cling to his neck as if my life depended on it.
“T-that surprised me,” I manage to whisper.
Chuckling lowly, Jay murmurs, “I couldn’t do it after the wedding, since we didn’t return home and your parents made everything feel awkward.” He leads me to the largest of the homes and then leans his face near mine and whispers, “welcome home, dear.”
I can’t stop my cheeks from flushing as I feel his breath tickling my neck. “W-welcome home…” I stammer. I’m not sure if that’s what I’m supposed to say, and all I get in return is a chuckle from my husband.
As he moves me into his home, I notice that the place is more like a hotel than a home! Though it isn’t a hotel. There are still people here, but aside from stolen glances at me, they seem to automatically know that I want to be alone right now. I don’t know how, but I’m glad they’re giving me the space.
“Some of my best people live in this place with me. I’m guessing you’ve never lived like this before, so things will be new for you,” Jay utters as he leads me up the stairs and to where his area of the place is. “Our kitchen is to the right, study to the left, then our bedroom is at the far end. We have our own private bathroom, so you won’t need to share the packhouses public one.”
“Packhouse?” I question with surprise, but before I let Jay explain, I blurt out, “we can’t share a bed yet!”
“Why not?” Jay questions as he pauses at the end of the hallway and to where his bedroom was. He seems bewildered by my statement.
I can feel my face burn hotter, but I can’t think of a good excuse. At home, I used my parents as an excuse for why I wasn’t comfortable, but this is going to be my home. I have to get used to this place, eventually.
“I just… I…” I stammer, trying to think of something. Anything to use as an excuse.
Jay tilts his head to one side. “Your parents aren’t here, and no one will bother us up here. They know better than that,” he assures me, opening the door with his foot before leading me inside. “We can bond without fear of anyone getting in our way. Promise.”
Bond? Is that what he calls the acts two lovers are expected to do? Or is this about us getting to know one another better? I pray to God that this is the latter because I am absolutely NOT ready to do that!
I hated being right about certain things, and the whole ‘bonding’ thing was indeed the thing I feared most! He was looking at me expectantly for an explanation as to why I wasn’t willing to bond with him now, after making him wait before. I was nervous about giving him my answer. Part of me felt the truth was best, but I wasn’t sure how he would take it. Would he get angry at me? Be understanding? Abusive? It scared me, thinking he wasn’t as nice as he seemed before.“I just… we don’t know one another much yet,” I whispered. My throat felt dry, and I wished I hadn’t said what I just said. I closed my eyes, waiting for him to get angry or anything. He never did. Rather, he offered me a confused look of his own. “W-what?” I asked nervously.“Don’t you feel it?” He asked. I didn’t understand what he was talking about. Feel what, exactly.I looked
Trying to remember everyone’s names and faces in Jay’s resort has been far trickier than I expected. I hadn’t realised how large the place was until he finally decided that me holding myself away just would not be acceptable. I begrudgingly gave in to his pleading, meeting and greeting a few of his selected friends to start me off with.I could barely remember any of them, but none of them was his direct family, I noticed. Were Jay’s parents not alive anymore? Or did they live outside of their community? He said everyone here was family, but not all of them were blood-related to him personally. However, he assured me that any of them would defend my life should I need it. I did not know what he meant by that, but I figured he meant from any wild animals out here.The key person I should request was a man by the name of Darnell. He was older, bulky and had a big fuzzy beard. Despite being older, he looked ready to snap a ne
The hotel room was as delightful as I ever could have imagined. It almost felt like I had come back home to the lifestyle I was accustomed to. Not that Jay’s place wasn’t grand, but compared to the full life I had, it was like I had taken ten steps back. How he had so many funds was beyond me. Maybe he lived a more simple life so that he could afford to buy a wife. The only issue was having to share a bed with the man I held no care for. Though that was a worry for later on. Right now, he was following me around like a little duckling as I shopped. I didn’t have money of my own, so it was only natural I spent his money. I wasn’t going to at first; as I had no intention of being in his debt like my parents were, but when he had clarified that his money was mine and there was no catch, I figured why not make life at his place more comfortable? I tried to keep to things he could easily carry, but the number of clothes was piling up. Not once did he argue or deny me my s
As I expected this time of day, few people were in the park outside of joggers and the dog walkers. It was still warm enough that I wouldn’t need my coat, and seeing as I hadn’t picked it up when I stormed out of the hotel room, that was a good thing. I wasn’t sure how long I should give Jay before I would crawl back to him, but I wanted to make him worry about his ‘lost investment’ for at least a bit.I couldn’t stop the slight sigh that escaped my lips as I slowly travelled down the path. Why had I been giving him such a hard time again? I had thought it was just so that I could have a reason to divorce him, but now I was feeling upset about not being cherished by him at all. Had I caught feelings for him?“Ugh, no way,” I muttered to myself and shook my head swiftly. There was not a chance in hell that I had any feelings for such a man! He was too pathetic and sickly sweet.Passing by a sm
The sound of growling and fighting startled me after I had resigned to my fate. I was crying in the branches of the tree and hadn’t noticed the arrival of yet another, larger wolf. That was until I heard yelping come from below me. Looking down from my spot, I wondered if this new wolf would be the one to finish me off and if it would be a swift or slow death. What I didn’t understand was why the wolf was fighting the others. Wasn’t it part of the same pack?I watched in shock and horror as the larger of the wolves fought the small group of wolves off. It seemed to take forever, but finally, it was the only one remaining. I wasn’t sure if this was a good thing or a bad thing. On one hand, this wolf looked stronger, faster and likely had the jumping ability to get me from where I was sitting. On the other hand, there was now only one wolf.I wasn’t sure if I could outrun it, but maybe I could di
After Jay has turned back into his human-self and gotten dressed again, we both get back to our hotel room. I stay silent the rest of the way, as I am far too tired and just want to warm up again. I’m sure when I wake up after a good night’s rest, everything will turn out to just be some weird dream and I won’t remember any of it. Or that’s my plan, anyway.Jay keeps me warm with his jacket, even after we get into our hotel room. He also runs a nice hot bath for me, all the while babbling on and on about packs and roles within them. I don’t understand half of it, unfortunately. All I can do is nod my head slowly to show I am listening. Though I’m not following along at all. There’s just too much to take in. As soon as he has finished drawing my bath, he rubs at his neck sheepishly. He can probably tell I’m too tired and confused to let all this information sink in.“Sorry,” he mumbles at
The next morning, I woke up in a slight daze. It’s a little too warm and uncomfortable. It isn’t until I am pulled closer towards a warm body that I realise Jay is clinging to me from behind. I find my face burning hotter, but I can’t wiggle free without waking him up. I glance back over my shoulder and gaze at what I can see of my sleeping husband. Surprise washes over me. That he is so comfortable being this close to me while asleep is not anything I am used to experiencing. It’s almost like he cherishes me somehow. I’m not sure what to make of this closeness between us. Part of me wants to get out of his hold, but another part of me thinks it feels nice to be held this way. Even my parents have not held me in such an affectionate way. I decided to allow Jay to sleep like this a little longer. He looks so peaceful and happy in his sleep, so disturbing him now would be such a shame. I’m not sure ho
“So, how did your honeymoon go afterwards?” Darnell questioned with a big grin on his face while we walked through the resort grounds. Jay and I had returned this morning, and it almost felt like he had known something had happened before he had even been told. I couldn’t figure it out. It didn’t matter in the long run, but I was curious about how he seemed to know.I offered Darnell a smile and then asked, “before or after those crazy wolves showed up? Or should I say werewolves? Either way, crazy things!”Chuckling, Darnell nodded. “Yeah, that happens more often than I’d like. We get into fights often with other packs. I suppose we will have to keep you out of our scuffles, as they can get really bloody at times,” he murmured.I blink up at Darnell and then nod slowly. “I didn’t know being a werewolf would be dangerous. Why do they attack others?&rdq