CarolinaI left Lyse with Dylan (he looked too much like his mother to be anyone else), and followed Ryker up two flights of stairs to Arvand’s office, if it was still in the same place it had been years ago.Ryker knocked twice to signal our arrival.“Enter”, the deep voice from the other side answered. No, commanded. Ever the King.He held the door open for me as I entered, looking at Arvand, a mixture of happiness at seeing him well and sadness at the memory of Mara.“You may wait outside, Ryker. Please close the door.”, He said with a small nod.Ryker bowed in return. “Of course, Your HIghness.”The moment the door was closed, Arvand came around the corner of his desk to envelope me in a tight hug.“Oh, Arvand! It’s so good to see you again.”, I began.He let me go and proceeded to gesture for me to join him in the armchairs on the visitor side of his office.“It’s wonderful to see you as well, Carolina. It’s been far too long.”“It has. And I’m sorry. After Mara, I just… didn’t k
AnnalyseI followed Chase to the kitchen, marveling at the sheer size of this place. It was massive to me.He introduced me to the kitchen staff quickly before shooing them away, but not before I noticed their slight bows.“Why are they acting like that around you?”, I asked, suspicious that he might not be filling me in on something.“Like what?”, he asked, those sharp green eyes all innocence.“Well, it looked like they were trying to bow or curtsey or something.”The corners of his eyes crinkled in a smile.“They were just goofing around, Lyse.”, he said. He opened the refrigerator, taking out what looked like leftovers.“Hungry?”, he asked with raised eyebrows.“Starving,”, I answered, my stomach rumbling.He glanced up with a chuckle. “I’d say so.”“Hey! I couldn’t eat earlier. I’ve had a lot on my mind.”, I crossed my arms over my chest as I huffed at him.“Oh, really? Everything ok?”“Yeah. There’s just been a lot going on lately. My parents haven’t let me out to do anything e
I pulled away from him as though I had been burned, missing his warmth the second we were apart.I turned and looked into the face of a gorgeous woman. Mahogany hair and deep blue eyes staring daggers at me.I looked at her with open curiosity as she sauntered around the countertop and stepped in between Chase and I to wrap her arms around his neck and pull his mouth to hers in what looked to be a scorching kiss.“Long time, no see. I missed you.” , she said with a smirk and glare in my direction.Chase looked like a deer caught in headlights. A pissed off deer.“Well, uh. I’m going to find my mom and get settled for the night.”, I said, turning to go. “Thanks for the talk.”“Lyse, wait a sec.”, he began.“No, Chase. We’ll talk more at some point, I’m sure.”, I said, steeling myself against tears. How could I be so stupid? Just like with Jace. I’m a total idiot when it comes to guys. I really hope the goddess knows what she’s doing, mating me to a Lycan Prince because right now, I did
ChaseFuck.I grabbed Harper by the arms and all but shoved her away from me. She sighed, a glint in her eyes, “I like it rough, Chase.”, she said with a smirk as she walked back to me, trying once again to circle her arms around my neck.“Stay. The fuck. Away from me.”, I growled, my control slipping and my aura coming through just enough to have her pausing.“Chase? Come on! I was only playing.”, she said, though the look in her eyes said otherwise.“Don’t EVER touch me again. You are not my mate. You dare to address me by the name that only those closest to me have permission to use?”, I boomed at her. My anger growing greater at the pain I could feel my mate feeling through the bond.“But, she called you Chase. I heard her.”, Harper complained, sounding every bit like the snarky bitch she is.“You are not her. From now on, you are to bow and address me as Your Royal Highness or Royal Highness Wyndmoor. Understood?”, I growled, making it known that this was an order, not a polite
ChaseI headed inside after picking a blue lotus for my girl. Mom had them planted, telling me one day that I might need them. Boy was she right.I headed to my floor and Lyse’s rooms. I knocked and waited. No answer. ‘I hear water, Chase.’, Havoc said. ‘And more than that, I can hear her crying.’, he continued, sounding and feeling agitated.I tried the knob. Locked.‘You have to make this right. That she-bitch ruined everything. We were making progress with her.’, he said, rage coming through at Harper and her nerve.I looked at the flower in my hand and then I reached into my pocket, my hand closing around the key to her rooms. It was actually the key to both of our suites as well as the locked adjoining door between the two.I went to my room and unlocked that door, slipping in and leaving the flower on her pillow, yearning to go to her, only feet away.I could picture her body under the surface of the water, almost instantly hard at the thought of kissing away her hurt and maki
CarolinaI headed back to Arvand’s office, anger and uncertainty pulsing through every fiber of me.Lycans, unmated males specifically, had somewhat of a reputation among the ladies. If Dylan was just going to yank my baby girl’s heart around and then tear it into pieces with other girls while he strung her along, he had another thing coming.I knocked, waiting for an answer.“Come in, Carolina.”, Arvand answered.“Arvand. We have to talk.”, I started.“I already know what happened.”, he answered, taking the wind right out of my sails. Of course he knew.“I won’t stand by and watch her heart be destroyed. He’d better fix it.”, I demanded, my momma wolf coming out in full force.“He linked me. They’re going for a run tonight, alone. Hopefully their wolves can communicate better than they can on their own.”, he said.“What about this other girl? Who is she and what kind of girl does what she did?”“What about her? She’s nothing to Dylan.”, he began.“But-”, I interrupted.“Let me finish
ChaseShe stopped just as we were heading out the door. “Hang on a sec. I just have to do something real quick.”, she said.“Everything ok?”, I asked.“Yeah. Everything’s fine.”, she said as she headed toward her rooms.I stood by the back door waiting for her when I smelled the sickly sweet odor of flowers. I turned around to find Harper standing there, just a little too close for my liking.“What?”, I demanded, annoyed at yet another interruption.“Listen, I realize I may have been a little…overbearing earlier.”, she began.I scoffed, a scowl in her direction earning me the satisfaction of seeing her shrink back, if only for a second. I could feel Havoc peeking through in anger.“What do you want, Harper?”, I asked, my patience growing shorter the longer she was in my presence.“I was just going to say sorry to your little friend, Chase.”I looked at her, pushing my aura out, just a little.“I mean, Your Royal Highness.”, she corrected herself, though it sounded as though she was fo
ChaseHavoc was hot on her trail through the forest, knowing she was headed to the flower field when a scent came through on the breeze, almost as though something had run past.The scent of sulfur and death, just like by the lake.I linked my guards telling them to hurry to the fields.I watched just beyond the line of trees, close to her but out of sight.Out of nowhere, she began to run my way, fear and determination coming through the bond. As I watched, a wolf blacker than the night appeared, its blood red eyes on my mate as it tried to run her down.Havoc used his strength to propel us over her and land between them.No way in hell was anything getting close to her. She is mine.Havoc snarled, baring his fangs as he charged toward the wolf. Out of the blue, it was like he vaporized, nothing left but black smoke and that acrid odor.We ran back to the palace under my personal guard, the rest searching for the intruder.As the adrenaline wore off, I noticed Lyse’s wolf starting to