By the time I emerged from my bedroom, both Duke and Atlas had left. Even though it was the middle of the day, exhaustion was beginning to creep up on me. I blamed it on my sudden disappearance, and the fact that I had lost nearly two days in the span of half an hour. The bout of exhaustion could've also been caused by the horrifying creature that had chased me far from the Fae realm. Either way, my heavy eyelids were begging for a break and I was more than happy to oblige.After letting Tyra and Dustin know about Liam's immediate visit, I grabbed a quick snack and headed back upstairs. While I knew Liam visiting would add more tension to the situation, I couldn't help but hope Nicki would tag along with him. Kris had been busy learning the duties of Beta from his Dad, but I still hoped he would tag along as well. I chuckled to myself as I imagined Liam trying to refuse her. Nicki would blow a gasket if she found out Liam ran off to Atlas's pack without her. Dustin seemed ela

It was then my legs allowed me to move, but instead of walking deeper into the forest like I planned, I stepped into Atlas's backyard. I figured it was the least I could do to give him a good chase, to lead him in circles for half the night before finally retiring back to bed, but my legs had other plans. I hoped the lingering darkness would shield the horrendous blush that stained my face.Atlas was down the stairs before I could blink, standing in front of me with those unwavering crystal-clear eyes of his. I couldn't name another time I had seen those eyes, had seen eyes so blue and so light. They were completely unique to him, an oddity that no one else seemed to possess."Eavesdropping doesn't seem like your style." Atlas smirked, his full lips lifting at the corners."It's not, and I wasn't eavesdropping." I found my voice, and nearly growled at the lack of hostility in it. My head knew how I felt about Atlas, but my heart seemed slow on the update. "It's

"Good morning, kitten." Atlas spoke from where he stood across the room. Leaning against the wall with his muscular arms crossed, Atlas stared at me with those unwavering crystal eyes. "Now, would you like to tell me what the hell happened to you?"I had just a few seconds to decide if I wanted to say anything. I wasn't exactly sure what happened to me. All I knew was I was being haunted by memories I had somehow forgotten. None of it made sense. Not the memories, nor the snippets of information I learned from them.I ran my eyes over Atlas's form, and noticed the dark circles that lined his eyes. His hair was a mess, platinum blonde strands sticking up around his head. His clothes were crumpled and messy. Judging from the light pouring in through the window, I had missed another day of training. Atlas's scent, thick and alluring, lingered in every corner of the room. I stiffened on sight as I realized whose bed, I had slept in. Atlas had brought me inside his house, p

"You smell good, kitten." Atlas murmured, "Maybe you should shower here more often."“Please, I’m perfectly happy with my own shampoo and conditioner.” I scoffed, rolling my eyes at him.“Mm, I don’t know. Theres something appealing about having you smell like me.” Atlas chuckled, against my ear.I whipped around to face him and gasped when his rough fingers grabbed the hem of my skirt. I had felt the rough pads of his fingers scrape against my thigh. Judging from the heat in Atlas’s eyes, he had noticed the same thing.“Nice skirt.” He said huskily, giving the hem a gentle tug before letting go. “Looks like my money was well spent.”My heart thundered in my chest and I felt my face heat from his words. As Liam and Dustin narrowed their eyes in Atlas's direction, I managed to step off to the side. I sent Atlas an exasperated glare of my own, though my face had yet to cool down.

Dad lifted my shaking, sobbing form into his arms and hugged me closely. His grip never slackened, even when we stepped back through the portal and into the human realm. The sun was vacant from the sky, leaving behind the moon. Hours had passed since we walked through the portal, that much was clear. What I couldn't understand, was how the portal had stayed open for so long and how the three men who took me seemed to create one on command.I was back inside the house, watching as the child version of myself eavesdropped on a conversation between Mom and Dad. They were sitting in the master bathroom. Dad sat on the edge of the tub; his shirt removed as Mom fretted over the shoulder wound he had. I could make out each jagged cut from the creature's teeth. Dad's skin was pale and clammy, his knuckles white as Mom cleaned out the wound."I don't know what kind of creature it was. I've never seen anything like it." Dad groaned, wincing in pain as Mom dabbed a wet cloth agai