I lay in bed and stare up at the ceiling, still feeling the trace of his kiss on my skin. After our short moment in the kitchen we headed upstairs and I convinced him to let me sleep in one of the guest rooms, knowing that if I was in a bed smothered in his scent I would not be able to sleep. Though I am cozy under the covers my eyes will not shut. It is simple; I cannot fall asleep. Over the hours I have sifted through different causes: I'm still hungry, I don't feel good, I miss Kendra, I'm worried about my pack, I'm nervous about meeting Eric's Dad, and even that Olivia's acts have me worried.
I have tried it all: pacing my breaths, counting sheep, taking deep breaths, progressive muscle relaxation, visualizing a peaceful place, yet no matter what I do one factor stays glued in my mind; the fact that my mate is sleeping in the bedroom beside me and I cannot get to him. Obviously, I ca
Slowly, I lift up my face from the pillow beneath it. I blink, close my eyes, and blink again. Rays of sunlight shine through the windows and blind me. I reluctantly sit up and rub my knuckles onto my eyes. Looking around the bedroom, I find myself alone, so I instantly wonder where Eric is.I slide out of bed and peek into the bathroom, but it too is empty. Raising an eyebrow, I check the guest room I was supposed to sleep in— then all the others. After that my feet carry me downstairs and random noises grab my attention, sounds that are coming from the kitchen. "Eric?" I call out as I make my way towards them, wanting to unmask the creator. "Eric is that you?"Instead of seeing Eric, an older woman turns around and smiles. "Hello, good morning, I'm Marina, the housekeeper. You must be Isabella; it is so wonderful to meet you."
Sitting in the center of the living room, I look around the walls at the family pictures and smile. I especially enjoy the picture of Eric when he was a toddler. There are no pictures of him as a child at the pack house. "They're in here," I hear Evangeline's voice from further in the house.I glance to Eric, who is standing off to the side, seeming rather uncomfortable. His gaze is glued to a random spot on the wall."Sebastian, this is Isabella." Turning to the hallway, I see Evangeline standing beside the man from the pictures. He looks like an older, different version of Eric.Immediately I stand up and reach my hand out. He shakes it. "Hello, it's nice to meet you finally."He smiles in a fatherly way. "Yes, of course, I was wond
I lay sleeplessly in bed, staring at the ceiling while not being able to take my mind off of my sister. I wonder if she is still awake, or if she has found the ability to live without me. It has only been a few days, which makes me sound dramatic, but I cannot help but hope she misses me still. What if earlier she only got upset for a bit and now she is perfectly fine, perfectly asleep in her purple and blue bed. I cannot sleep not knowing how she is feeling; we used to tell each other everything.My eyes roll over to the clock. It is one o'clock in the morning.Silently groaning, in an attempt to not wake up Eric, I turn away from the pillow wall and sigh. I have to see her.Hesitantly, I slip out from underneath the bedding, and my toes brush against the cool, wood floor. Sitting up,
"You were trying to hurt me, weren't you?"Olivia begins to sob. "I'm not this type of person, and I don't do things like this."Leaning back against a near tree, I take a deep breath in an attempt to collect my thoughts. As I am doing so, I notice Olivia struggling to her feet and swiping the hairs from her face. "I'm sorry," she mutters as she limps towards me, "but I need him. Eric was all I had, heisall I have. I've been trying to get him to see that we don't have to be mates to be together, but then you show up, and he forgets I exist. You have what I want, and I'm desperate."Confused, I stand up straight. "What are you talking about?"She wipes the stray tears from her cheeks. "I want to fight for him."
Slipping into the bedroom, I sneak over to my side of the bed once I spot Eric still asleep. The pillow wall has been torn down, as his arm is laying across the ruins. Sighing, I climb on the bed and start to reconstruct the divider, but Eric grabs onto me and surprisingly pulls me over to him, holding me snugly against his body. With my eyes wide open, I make no sudden movements.I lay frozen in his arms, and soon enough I realized that he is thankfully sleeping despite what just happened. My mouth is hanging open, and my limbs do not know what to do. His scent invades my nose, causing me to relax on instinct.My eyes begin to drift closed even though I am mentally fighting to keep them open. Darkness consumes me, and I have never felt more comfortable in my life as if the bed has suddenly transformed into a cloud on a breezy day.
My eyes wave open and closed, as they are still sticky from my nap. Rubbing my knuckles into them, I sit up and tame my hair with my hands. Wondering the time, my eyes turn to the clock, I have been asleep for four hours. I wonder if Caroline is still here.I slowly climb out of bed and wander down the hallway until I hear chattering. My ears perk up, and I zip down the staircase and into the kitchen.Marina and Caroline are both in the room, Caroline eating of course. "Look who's up," she lightly cheers and pulls out the stool beside her for my to sit. Marina smiles and places a plate in front of me."I supposed you told him the truth?" She questions, knowing the answer."Yes, I did. I find I rather difficult to tell fibs to Eric as
"Yeah." Caroline scoots closer to me. "You kinda did." Eric sighs and runs a hand through his hair, then looks to me. "You're alright?" "Alright?She'sthe one that just tackledhimto the ground," Caroline dramatically motions to me, though I am right beside her. "You literally charged at him like a bull." I shrug. "I just got infuriated, really quickly. He deserved it." "Hell yeah he did," she chuckles. "Alright," Eric grabs our attention. "Besides attacking Landon, did you two need anything?""Isabella just asked me to show her
Walking up to Caroline and Olivia's house, the two of us get inside as I try to remove the pass situation from my memory. Did he romantically lift my chin up to embarrass me in front of the pack, because that is sure how I feel. I cannot deny that at first, my heart did beat hard enough that I could hear the pounding in my ears, but it was not a serious act. Eric was only messing with me. I never pictured my future being filled with the perfect mate and perfect family, I have never been that type of girl, the girl who strolls through her life where everything falls perfectly into place. That dream ended when a guard came knocking on our door, telling us that daddy had died. I still remember my mother's intense sobbing and cries as if it happened yesterday. That night I held onto Kendra for dear life."You okay?" Caroline as