Aurora's POVA gasp rattles my body as I emerge from the dream and open my eyes. I make a blind swipe to get the sheets around me, but then I notice that my blanket has fallen off the bed.A cold gust of wind blows inside, and I stop. I remember closing the window the night before. I even locked it.But now it's wide open, busted down as though someone pushed it open when I was sleeping. It's still a little dark outside, and the open air makes me feel bare....Until I realize that I really am bare right now.I look down at my body and I realize that I'm completely naked, from my head down to my toes. The silk pajamas that I wore from the night before are now strewn on the floor, discarded. Even my socks have been taken off.My heart starts to beat fast. What does this mean?"What happened?" I ask Vega. "Did something happen last night? Did somebody come in?"She comes into attention, but I can already feel her confusion before she even says, "I don't know. I didn't feel anything wrong
Aurora's POV"This can't keep happening to me," I whisper to myself, dropping the box right on the floor.The emotions that start to spill in my chest are things that I don't think I understand anymore. Anger, embarrassment, anxiety, and fear. Who is this man and what does he want from me? How the hell does he manage to keep sending me things without me detecting him?It's all just so frustrating now. My mind gets clouded with all of it in one go, and I find myself just kicking the box until it tumbles down the stairs.I'm about to turn around and just forget about it, but then I notice that it opened completely, spilling its contents. Inside it is another set of lingerie, this time leathery black, the kind that dominant women wear.My face heats up. I don't want anyone thinking that I engage in activities like that. I especially don't want my mom to think that I bought this for myself.I run down the stairs and pick up the box, stuffing the lingerie back inside it with frantic shaky
Aurora's POVI stagger back from Mason, my chest clenched with fear. Margot marches up to me and drags me away from him as though I'm not already moving away. I see Mason's eyes widen when it looks like she's going to push me, but he just steps away as Margot starts to rage."What the fuck?" she says again, staring at me as though I just started to sprout corn out of my ears. "What are you doing slapping the Alpha Heir like that? He's my boyfriend! What the hell is happening here?"She turns to Mason for an answer, and annoyingly enough, he says, "I have no clue."She faces me again. "You know that could be considered treason right?"I know that very well. Hurting the Alpha or his Heir or his Luna would result to banishment. It's an absurd way to flex your powers, but maybe that is just my opinion and nobody else actually minds. Margot certainly doesn't seem to mind, considering that she would be under the same protection if she married Mason someday.Either way, it's very annoying to
Mason's POVI stare at Aurora, my whole body fuming with anger.How dare she act like nothing is wrong? How dare she just stand there as though she wasn't just flirting with someone else?My curiosity is burning. I want to know who the hell she's talking to, but I also know that it's none of my business. I just told her that I want the mate bond to be gone, but why do I feel like I still need to remind her that it's there and she should respect it?Meanwhile, Aurora is staring at me as though I just slapped her. "I know you want it to end. I want it too, so don't act like I never wanted it to end. I agreed from the very start.""I heard you," I hiss at her, angry that she's acting like that was nothing. "I know you were talking to some other man and you're saying you won't let go of me."She rolls her eyes to the high heavens and her exasperation makes me even more pissed off. "It was a creep I'm trying to get rid of. I don't plan to keep either of you in my life, so get over it."Wit
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