AVERY POV
Julian didn't want me. How stupid could I be to have thought so and even went ahead to ask him what we were? I never expected him to utter such a word, but he had. I was back inside the bathroom for the second time, staring at myself in the mirror. After the declaration from Julian, he ushered me out of the office, saying he needed to be somewhere. He hadn't even glanced at me, and he had left! Pulling out a tissue towel from a box near the sink, I blew my nose on it, staring at my coworker beside me as she gagged. "Disgusting," she wrinkled her nose. I had never been the most ladylike. Perhaps it was one of the reasons Julian only saw me as a tool for his pleasure. He had never seen me as a Luna material. As the tears subsided and my composure returned, I walked out of the bathroom and into the office, hoping I wouldn't encounter any unpleasantness for the second time. But I had never been the goddess favourite, so my request definitely fell on deaf ears. "Do you all know that girl who's been working in the same place as you? Well, I need to tell you a story, a true one at that," Sophia said as soon as she noticed me. Her voice, which I believed was deliberately loud, caused me to wince. I thought she left. "There's this girl called Avery Wells, who approached my brother while she was in college. Isn't that right, Anna?" Anna nodded, jumping out of her seat. Anna was a blonde with slate-grey eyes, a head shorter than I was, and had a distinct mole on her face. She sat opposite me. I had known her for three years, and might I add that I had helped her in the Saint Clair industries. Seeing Anna three years ago had reminded me of myself: poor, orphaned, and looking out of place, I had taken a liking to her. But it seemed she had joined Sophia. She walked towards the said woman and stood beside her. "Right," Anna replied finally. I didn't stop walking until I got to my seat. Sophia cleared her throat and continued, "A nasty college student who deliberately seduced my brother into her bed. She slept with him so that she was going to be his personal secretary and has been going behind you all ever since." A collective gasp rang out through the office, and silence followed soon after. My hands clenched and unclenched. The urge to stand to my feet and punch Sophia's face until it drew blood filled me. But I restrained myself. Not because I wanted to do so, but because the eyes that were currently drilling holes through me, at the snap of Sophia's finger, could break my bones. Biting my lower lip as Sophia continued, my gaze locked on the blank screen of my monitor. "You might be wondering who the slut that had been going behind you all back is when it's a known fact that relationship is forbidden in the work environment." I heard the amusement in Sophia's voice as well as the clanking of her heels as she stepped toward my desk. "Yes, it is the same Avery Wells, and she's been acting all so innocent, but she's anything but that." She placed her hand on mine and leaned into me. "I am going to destroy you." I stared at her; the malicious intent in her eyes was evident. I withdrew my hand from her and returned my gaze to the blank monitor. I didn't do any of the things she had said. She was spreading a rumor about me forcing Julian into bed, yet he was the one who had seduced me first. I didn't know when it was a crime to love someone, but right now, I wish I hadn't. A wince escaped me as I felt a pang at my side. "Everyone," Sophia clapped her hands and tried to gain their attention once more while I tried to ignore the pain that was now spreading throughout my stomach area. It didn't look like a normal pain. Regular pain shouldn't be this intense. Standing from my chair, I started to walk towards the entrance, but Sophia intercepted me. "It's not time for your break," she said. "Excuse me," I murmured. "No, we pay you your dues. You're meant to work until break..." "It's break time, ma'am," Leslie politely interrupted Sophia, who looked like she'd strangle her for speaking. "Thank you," I mouthed, and Leslie shrugged. "Be back in ten minutes; anything other than that, you're fired..." I tuned out Sophia's voice. Of course, she was right about them paying me for my job, but she wasn't my employer. Julian was, and he was the one who had the right to fire me, except I leave on my own accord. I arrived at the clinic in ten minutes. It was a ten-minute drive from Saint Claire Industries. I could walk the distance, but due to my condition, I doubted it was something I could manage. "Miss Wells," Doctor James said, a bright smile adorning her rounded face. She was a woman in her mid-fifties, with salt and pepper hair and dark brown eyes. She had been my doctor for as long as I could remember. She was a human and that kind of doctor who knew about the supernatural world and was cool with it. She helped people of any species whenever she could and kept her mouth shut. It was the reason I had come to her the first time I found out about my condition. After running a few tests on me, I sat in her office, waiting for the result. Doctor James returned, and she peered at me through her glasses, sitting on her straight nose. "Have you been overworking yourself?" she asked me, and I shook my head, then nodded again. I gaze at her with a sheepish smile, "I might have been doing one or two late-night work." "I know it's more than that. You're emotionally stressed. I don't know what's going on in your life at the moment, but it would be best if you push out most of the negative energy." It wasn't as easy as she was making it, but it was attainable, so I nodded. "Thank you," I said. "Otherwise, the baby is doing fine. Just do away with some stress, and you'll be fine," she added. I thanked her again and bid her goodbye. Getting to the entrance, I halted and squinted my eyes as I noticed Julian. He wasn't alone. He was with Emily. A wheelchair was brought towards them, and Emily was placed in it while Julian pushed her towards the entrance. Was she here because of the coffee burn? And he had come with her? As they approached the entrance, I rushed to the side of a potted flower, hiding myself, even though it was a terrible idea as they could easily see me if they glanced at my side. It was a better choice than standing and trying to force a conversation. "It hurts, Julian, it hurts," Emily sobbed. "It's okay, it's okay," Julian whispered, caressing her hair. Bile rose up in my throat as I watched him fuss over her, and I pushed it back down, wincing as I felt the acidic taste in my mouth. I clasped my chest as my heart throbbed with a dull, persistent ache. I was pregnant and in pain. He should be fussing over me this instant, but all the affection was directed to her. When both left, I walked towards my car, stepped into it, and pulled out my phone. Staring at it for a few seconds, my mind reeled to the baby—the innocent child I was brought into this world and a part of both of us. I couldn't hide it forever. There was no need to when I could tell him this instant. Just maybe, maybe if I told him about the baby, he would want me and took back all the things he had said to me earlier. Breathing out, I clicked on Julian's number and typed, "I'm pregnant; we need to talk." I hit the send button without thinking twice and stepped out of my car again. There was a private room in the hospital for discussion, so I strode towards there. I stayed in the room for a brief second, and I smiled as the door opened. However, the smile vanished from my face as Emily stepped in instead of Julian.CHAPTER 4: AVERY POVI blinked several times to ensure it was really Emily who had stepped into the room. She flashed me a broad smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, and she closed the door behind her.How did she get here? I couldn't help but wonder. "What are you doing here?" I asked her."I wonder whose baby that is," Emily replied instead, ignoring my question.Had Julian shown her the message and asked her to come instead of him? I clutched my phone tightly, staring as she sauntered towards me."You see, Julian and I are getting married soon," Emily paused. She was closer to me, so close that I could smell her flowery perfume. She flipped her brown hair from her shoulder and sighed dramatically while waving her hand in the air.I caught a glimpse of the princess cut ring on her middle finger."Yes, we are going to have the grandest wedding and mate ceremony of the century." She gushed as if reading my thoughts. "I have the blessings of his parents already, and you know, the
CHAPTER 5: AVERY POV"How are you feeling?" Grace asked as I came awake.Grace had been my best friend since high school. I had known her the longest, and she was the person I said most of the things to, even when I had been afraid to confide in Leslie sometimes.I blinked several times, looking around me. I was in my room and now lying on the bed.I wasn't in my office clothes anymore; instead, I was in my undies. Grace must have changed me out of it."Grace," I whispered. She was the last person I was expecting to see. I had locked the door; how did she get in?"I have a key, remember?" she said, frowning at me. "Are you certain you're fine? Perhaps we should see a doctor...""No, I am fine, and I remember," I said, wincing as I tried to sit up. The pain in my lower back was still evident, but it wasn't as intense as before.I gazed at my thigh and then at the floor, where I had seen blood pooling around my feet. It looked squeaky clean, as if nothing had happened."I cleaned the fl
AVERY POV At age twenty-four, I never thought I'd be jobless, depressed, and roaming the most notorious town in London—Blackthorn, which earned the moniker the Devil's Playground due to its dark history. Perhaps, most of all, what happened in my life was my fault. However, I was sure of one thing: I never asked to be an orphan. I never knew who my parents were, where they lived, or how I was born. That was the sad reality of my life, but I had never dwelled on that ever since I learned how to navigate my way in Aurora Orphanage for good boys and girls to avoid getting bullied. My eyes lit up as I saw the light from the distance and the outline of a building that could only be a pub. Straining my ears, I picked up several sounds, and the most prominent was that of the music playing in the background and clicking of glasses. My legs were killing me. I didn't know how long I had been walking. I didn't take the car along with me because why should I? It belonged to Julian and his comp
JULIAN POVI was just leaving for home when I received her call.My heart had skipped a beat, and all sorts of thoughts had run through it.One, she was in danger.Two, she was being held hostage, and three, she was lost.I didn't dwell on the thoughts too long as I did the only thing my head could think of. Track her number to know her location, and I arrived in front of the most notorious bar that was known on this side of the country. The Bleeding Rose Bar.The town was known for illegal activities, such as drug dealing, trading of all sorts of weapons, and other illicit transactions. Not only that, the bar itself was a frequent sighting of werewolves and other supernatural creatures.Blackthorn had become a haven for outcasts and renegades from various supernatural factions. Here, they find refuge from persecution, forming alliances based on mutual need and a shared distrust of authority.The rogues especially. They roamed freely in this part of the town as though they owned it, c
JULIAN POVI woke up with a fucking Hard on. And that was all Avery's doing.She turned and twisted, her arms flung towards me carelessly while her legs were wrapped around me, trapping me and making my dick hardened even more."Hmm, Mr Burritos," she whispered, then burst out into a peal of laughter."Mr Burittos," I couldn't resist the urge to grunt. My eyes narrowed at her.She had mentioned the name again. Was the person offering her a burrito even in her dream for her to keep calling him?As far as I could tell, one of the things she didn't enjoy eating was a burrito, yet she had mentioned it more than she had eaten it.Or maybe the burrito was in the form of something else.A dick, perhaps?No. I shook my head.Avery sighed, "You smell so good," she whispered.Then her lips puckered, brushing them against my jawline."Shit," I murmured.My hand snaked around her waist, pulling her into me. I had resisted the urge and temptation not to fuck her last night. Due to her condition, i
AVERY POV: The sound of laughter filtered through the air, and I chanced a sideways glance. Julian was chuckling at something the brunette who had strut into the office earlier as though she owned it said. His eyes never left her face gorgeous face. The corner of his lips creased, and I sucked in a deep breath as a stinging sensation pricked at my eyes.Why couldn't he feel the same way about me in the office? Was I any different from her?Maybe I was at of his league.The brunette was drop-dead gorgeous and looked like someone out of a swimsuit Magazine; her long hair had loose curls at the end, and her features were so soft, so womanly, and could attract any man who glanced at her.Unlike me, in my drab brown suit and the tight bun, I always put my waist-length blonde hair in.She moved in close, whispering in his ear. He didn't even flinch, his gaze still locked on hers as if she was the only woman that existed to him.The office was designed in a way that you could see all the t
Chapter 2: AVERY POVI am Julian's true mate. Emily's words resonated in my head, and I stared at her extended hand longer than I should have wanted to before looking at her face.I had never been slapped so hard until now. Even when Sophia was yelling at me, it seemed like nothing compared to what I was hearing right now."I've heard a lot about you, Avery, and how resourceful you can be as Julian's secretary; I hope we get along," A bright smile adorned her face.I said nothing because I had nothing to say to her. I didn't know where she had heard about me from, and I doubted it was anything good if it was Sophia who was feeding the information to her."I hope we'll get the opportunity to be able to have a discussion next time," Emily stated."I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you," I muttered, walking away from her.Emily didn't look like she had heard what I said as she smiled broadly. Then she began walking away from me.Her declaration still lingered in my head, but for all I