Aurora's POVIt's dark now, and the day passed with pretty much nothing going on. Which is both a relief and a surprise, because I really thought that the creepy stalker guy would try to give it his all today and terrorize me.But thankfully, it's over now. I'm just about to finish cleaning up the kitchen so I can go to bed and forget about this day. Anyway, Mom and Margot seem to want to come back tomorrow.I turn off the lights in the dining room, washing my hands in the sink as I declare myself done. I'm also about to turn off the lights in the living room when suddenly, there's a knock on the front door.My first thought is that it's the stalker. I already have my phone ready to dial for an emergency, but as I look through the peephole, I see that it's just a middle-aged man wearing a dark purple robe and what looks like a fancy suit underneath. He looks like some sort of businessman about to go to bed, and for some reason he just doesn't strike me as the stalker, so I decide to o
Mason's POVI toss and turn on the bed, not able to sleep despite my creeping exhaustion. I keep closing my eyes and concentrating on it, hoping sleep would come and take away all the weird thoughts in my head, but it doesn't.For some strange reason, all I can think about is Aurora. I can't get the image of her face out of my head. I don't know what kind of hold she has on me, but right now it feels almost extra strong.I turn around again, and this time, Margot groans beside me. She stares at me through narrowed eyes, and I can feel exasperation even in the dim light. "What's going on with you? Why can't you sleep?"I wish I knew, but I don't. I just feel restless for some reason. But of course, I just tell her, "It's nothing.""Are you sure?" she asks. "Because I can send someone to get you something to drink so you can relax--""Margot, I said it's nothing." My anger is flaring. "Just let me be and let's sleep, okay? There's no need to make a huge fuss out of this.""Jeez, why do
Mason's POVI let go of Uncle Benjamin immediately. He collapses on the floor, coughing and gagging as he grabs his neck. Panic rises in my throat like bile, but at the same time, I know that I have to remain calm for this."What the hell are you thinking?" Uncle Benjamin croaks as he straightens up.His eyes are bloodshot, and I can clearly see the marks of my hands around his neck. He stays away from me, and I think that might have been the best idea he ever had for the past day or so. I let him get away, but only because the pain in my chest is getting more and more intense.Aurora is experiencing this too, I realize. It's probably not physical, but it feels... Extreme. She's hurting badly.I get out of the house again, getting into my car to head to the Everleys and tell them that I heard Aurora might be in trouble. I don't know if any of them knows about the fact that she's also my mate, but it's worth the risk. I have to let them know that she's in trouble and we need to save he
Aurora's POVI feel like I'm floating. I'm weightless, just shifting around the endless darkness like a kite without a string. I don't feel my body. Nothing physical, really. Just a vast expanse of black that gives way to nothing and no one.It feels peaceful. It feels like that moment before you fall deep asleep, that period of darkness that will only become a colorful dream later on. I know that I should be somewhere else. I have a vague memory of needing to get away from something, but the nothingness is so comforting that I just make no effort to get out of it.Memories start to come back. I remember Beta Benjamin telling me to leave to spare everyone the scandal, and I remember wandering into a forest only to meet a scary figure in the dark....Am I dead now?If this is death, then what people say is not true at all. This feels like genuine tranquility, and nothing like the suffering they all tell me.I prepare to get lost in this forever if it is indeed death, but then I feel a
Aurora’s POVA pair of cool blue eyes pierce through the darkness, so bright that I flinch when they meet my gaze. I stagger back, my feet getting caught in a protruding root. I fall back, and that’s when the wolf emerges.It’s sleek white fur glows in the dark, but it’s spattered with so much blood that I can only see spots of it. The smell of copper fills the air, getting stronger as it draws closer to me, baring its teeth. Hunger is emanating off it. Starvation.But how come I can’t bring myself to look away?“Wake up,” I tell myself. I know this is just a dream, but now it’s getting painfully real and I want to get out of here. “Wake up, Aurora….”But I don’t stir. Not even a little. The white wolf just stares at me, its gaze way too intelligent. Too predatory.It’s going to attack, I thought. But no. Instead it starts to shift into an image of a naked man, glorious under the moonlight, all muscle and smooth skin. I trace my gaze up to his face, but before I can make out his featu
Aurora’s POVNo. This can’t be. Maybe I’m just being an idiot. Surely I can’t tell who’s my mate just from his scent?“Good evening, everyone,” the man says, and his voice adds yet another layer of desire in my body. “I’m Mason Chase, the—”“We know you!” Dad beams just when Mom comes out of the kitchen with my cake.He gets up to shake his hand, and Mom just plops down my cake on the table without really caring just to greet this guy Mason. I try my best to smile, but the emotions whirling in my chest just won’t permit me to process anything but the pressing desire in the pit of my stomach. As they clamor over him, laughing and joking, I find myself taking note of everything about him.His hair is brown, but not mousy. It’s this sleek chestnut color that shines under the lights. His eyes are hazel, almost green but not quite. He has a sweet smile, the kind that reaches his eyes. He looks kind and gentle and just everything that my abrasive sister isn’t.Suddenly, I feel a wave of jea
Aurora’s POVA rush of cold encloses my body. Suddenly my hand is too slack for the phone, but I don’t drop it. All the frustration from getting stalked and having the same mate as my sister finally catches up to me, and I find myself throwing the phone across the room.The sound of it clattering against the wall makes the conversation stop in the dining hall. My mom calls out, “Are you okay, sweetie?”“Yeah.” I can’t even feel my lips moving. “I just need some air.”With that, I rush out into the backyard and sit alone in the gazebo. In the distance, I can see a bunch of cars making their way to the driveway. I panic for a while, but then I see that it’s just the cars of Margot’s friends. They seem to be coming over for my birthday.Trust Margot to make my day about her and turn it into her party.Soon enough, the house gets filled with people. My parents seem to be happy, though. Why wouldn’t they? I have always been the outcast, and I have no friends to come over.I just wait in si
Aurora's POVMason starts to shake me, his eyes burning with an emotion that's way too close to hate for me to stay comfortable. I pry myself off of him, taking a couple of steps back. But all the distance I try to put between us is just erased by him still advancing towards me.The mate pull is indeed still there. It's making me feel almost giddy with our closeness even though I know that he's angry right now.I just close my eyes when he gets close enough, when his face is just inches from mine. It's either a kiss or a scream, and I don't think I'm prepared for either....But nothing comes. Instead, I hear the familiar click clack of high heels on the stones set in the garden. I open my eyes and I find that Mason is already walking away from me, towards a familiar figure in the distance.It's Margot, coming in to check on us."Is everything okay?" she asks Mason, but her eyes are on me. "Rory? What is happening?""Nothing," is all I can say.Mason is the one who decides to speak. "I