Kamari's Point of View
I could see him following me on the sides of the road. See his wolf weave in and out of the tree line. It was tragic to watch but gave me a small sense of comfort. Safety. Zayan refused to take no for an answer and I was starting to get that into my head.
Gripping my steering wheel, I settled on rather going to the park than to my house. It was in the town not too far from us, meaning only humans. No one would know about the exiled heir. Or even care that two people were there. But I needed to talk to Zayan again. If we were to do this, there had to be boundaries.
I slipped my car into a parking not far from a few benches. At this time of the night, no one was around to see the wolf slide out of the woods on the other side. Or see that very same wolf turn into a human. At least Zayan had brought some clothes along.
"You know harassing me won't get me to sign up for your cause any faster," I said and leaned against the bonnet of my car. By the time he got halfway through the park, he was already dressed. Which spared me a whole lot of embarrassment.
"I know but I love keeping you on your toes, little one," Zayan replied with a purr. I rolled my eyes at him as he finally stood in front of me.
His hair was plastered to his scalp from sweat. The trek was a decent distance and even the fittest werewolves would have suffered a bit. But other than his sweat-drenched hair, nothing seemed off about him.
"I thought about what you said. Would you honestly buy me out just to get me on board with your plans? I mean, Arik will most likely hike up his usual asking price for me." Not that I thought the Alpha cared enough about his rejected mate to do so but he seemed to like being in control. He also seemed to enjoy torturing me with Eris from time to time.
Zayan flashed that brilliant smile of his and approached me. Inched his way forward until he was looming over me. It took every ounce of restraint to keep myself from shying back. To rather match him in his stance. I could see his amusement glow in his eyes.
"He has to name his price. It is criminal to keep such a beautiful woman like yourself hostage." There it was again, his effortless charm. Butterflies ate the insides of my stomach.
Placing a hand on his chest, I noticed his eyes darkening. Becoming primal. Instead of flirting some more, I lightly pushed him. The darkness in his eyes vanished and was replaced by a cruel smile. "If we are going to be working together on this, you have to stop with the compliments and invading my space. We keep this professional." There was a slight tremble in my voice. A bit of my tone betrayed my frayed nerves.
He had an air around him that both intrigued and scared the living hell out of me.
"But where is the fun in that?" He whispered and leaned forward. I was forced to look straight up at him now. Clasped my hands on the bonnet to keep myself upright. He was close. Too close. I was sure he could hear my heart screaming at me to run. "I need to teach you how to seduce him, after all. Call it practical learning. Doing with your hands." He placed a hand on my hip and the other on the car. I swallowed.
"There- There is no- There is no need to do that." I stammered out the sentence. Zayan smirked when he noticed my flustered words. Dragged his index finger across my cheek, never breaking eye contact. It was more than intense. It was almost invasive. Sexual to the core.
"But there is. You see, I would hate for Arik to spoil your first experience. You need someone with better capabilities to make you melt for the first time."
Words lodged and dissolved in my throat. Became leaden in my stomach. The most primal part of my being screamed to take him up on the offer. To bed him here and now. But I couldn't. It was already asking a lot of myself to sleep with Arik just to get revenge.
"I- I- Who says that it would be my first time?" Lying was the only way I could get out of this.
Zayan chuckled and luckily shrank back into his own bubble. I could breathe again.
There was a spark in his eyes when he looked at me. One that I wanted to answer with a chuckle of my own. "It is written all over you. The way your hips clench. Your eyes become doe-like. Even your breath goes ragged. Admit it, sunshine, you are a virgin." He said it so casually.
"If you knew, then why ask me to sleep with him? Why do you think I have it in me to give my virginity to someone who has rejected me? Cast me aside like some old dinged-up toy?"
"Because I can see something else inside of you that, clearly, no one else can. You aren't some lamb to the slaughter, Kamari. You are something much more. I know you can handle this."
Doubt filled my chest. Alongside a feeling I hadn't felt in a long while. Acceptance. Someone who refused to change me into something I wasn't but appreciated me for who I was. Zayan was going to prove difficult to forget once all of this was done.
"Sugar coating and plying me with compliments isn't going to get you anywhere..." I paused and smiled up at the exiled heir. Noted the slight crookedness of his lips. Maybe they were stuck in a permanent smirk. Who knew? "I will help you with this. In short, I am in."
Zayan's smile grew wider. His teeth sparkled in the overhead street lamp. Without my permission, he moved in and crushed me to his chest. Breathed into my hair. There was something extremely vulnerable about him at that moment. Fragile. Small. But when he pulled away, he was back to being himself.
"Then it is settled. Have your father go to Arik and ask how much it will cost to relieve you of your station. Only your dad can do it, seeing as an omega has no right to an audience with an Alpha. Let me know and I will send Nolan with the payment." He was rambling a mile a minute. Started pacing and pouting whilst in thought.
"No. I never agreed to that part of the deal. I can't allow you to buy me out. That only makes me indebted to you!" I said, panic taking over my voice. It would simply then be a change of ownership and not becoming a person, as it should be.
Zayan stopped pacing and looked at me. His eyebrows scrunched together. "I thought that's what you wanted in return for helping me."
"No. I want to help you because I can. Because you need someone to help you and I am the only one in the right position to do so. Not because I want you to free me."
"So you would rather take a cut of the money then?" It was an honest question. Almost an offer on his part. I shook my head in return and smiled softly. "Then why help me?" His eyebrows were still knitted together.
"Because I feel like I can finally make a difference in someone else's life. As well as ruin someone who had hurt me deeply."
"That is a shitty reason but I will take it. Along with paying to get you free. If you are cleaning houses and babysitting all the time, when will you have time to plot? To scheme and connive with me? Besides, no man wants to sleep with someone covered in dirt."
I knew he meant it as a joke but it stung a bit. Raising my hand to my face, I sniffed it once. Dust and cleaning products. Those were the only smells I got. Not the jasmine and magnolia perfume I put on this morning or even the coffee I had spilled on myself this afternoon.
Maybe Zayan was right.
"And how will I tell my dad where the money came from?"
Zayan only replied with a smile.
Kamari's Point of View"Do you trust him?" My dad had asked me this several times already. Kept hammering on the fact that I didn't know Zayan. But my dad knew his father from before he was exiled. Knew him to be a good enough Alpha that cared greatly for his people.But my dad wanted me to make up my own mind about Zayan. Just because he grew up with the old Alpha, didn't mean Zayan was to be trusted."Yes. I do. And even if I didn't, what is the worst that could happen to me if he paid for my release? I leave this place and never look back? Sign me up then." I replied and slammed the door shut behind me.The sun was barely out behind the mountains. The world was still asleep and silent. But I had to be at work and my dad wanted to get this conversation with Arik over and done with. My dad only shrugged and squinted in my direction. Stopped a good few feet in front of the pack house. He looked older in this light. More worn out. The days of being stuck here had started to show. He w
Kamari's Point of View'Meet me at the park.' The text was short and sweet. Nearly made me trip over stones as I rushed to my car. But I wanted to go. Zayan would know what it meant. I needed to vent. To scream.Arik wanted to keep me here just because he could. Because he felt entitled to me even after rejecting me. It was a slap to my face. Something I would never forget."Where are you going?" Arik called from behind me. It was still early. I still had a full day of cleaning ahead of me. For the first time since being branded as an omega, I was outright defying him. To hell with whatever consequence would follow."I am leaving for the day!" I screamed back and fumbled with my keys. There was a ping on my phone but I didn't dare look down. Didn't dare give the Alpha another moment to catch up. "I didn't dismiss you! You still belong to me!" Arik screamed back. I could hear his footsteps on the gravel behind me. Hear him approaching at an alarming rate. My keys refused to correct th
Zayan's Point of ViewShe reminded me of myself. There was another level to her personality. Entrenched inside her soul. For some, it would have been too deep to try and find. But I adored a challenge and Kamari seemed like the toughest one yet. Kamari wasn't gone for long before Nolan showed up. Before my heart started aching slightly. It was the same cramp I felt whenever Eris would leave, only subtler. Stranger. I couldn't figure out whether I hated the feeling or missed it."How much?" I asked when my friend approached. His eyebrows were set into a firm line. "Zayan, are you sure you want to go through with this? Kamari looked like a mess earlier. I don't think she will be able to stomach any of it." Nolan said and stood in front of me. His dark brown hair was tossed in every direction. He had run here, some of it on foot, from the looks of it.Steeling my jaw, I looked him square in the eyes. Made it clear that there was no turning back now. Whatever happened, Kamari would deal
Kamari's Point of View'It is a new day. A new start. Just keep your head down. Take in a deep breath. You got this. You can do this.'The mantra repeated itself in my mind. Over and over again like a broken record. Each word gained more emphasis than the first. As if I could beat it into me. Make my body believe it to be true.I stood in front of the pack house, glaring up at it as if it would swallow me whole. My dad had tried his best to fix what I had broken. Tried to reason with Arik. But there was no getting around this. I had to get back to work, whether I liked it or not.Zayan had promised to pay whatever Arik demanded. Although I knew the price was extremely steep. Never before had someone bought their freedom for 500 thousand dollars. It just highlighted what Arik had said.He wouldn't make it easy for me to leave. Or even fucking bearable. "Kamari!" Eris screamed from inside the house. I clenched my jaw. Ground my teeth against each other. 'Another day. Brand new. We can
Kamari's Point of View"So when are we getting married? I never even asked you how many children you want to have. Or where you wanted to live." I blabbered. Nolan was driving me home in my beat-up Fiesta. Glanced at me from the corner of his eye.This was my lame attempt at breaking the tension in the car. At getting him to smile. But I felt the way he looked. Torn up. Chewed up. Spat back out.Luckily for me, Nolan decided to try and cut the tension as well. He smiled and tilted his head away from me. "I think about a year-long proposal will do. I want one kid and that is it. Doesn't matter if it is a boy or a girl. Fuck the gender stereotypes that only a boy can carry on the family name. As for living..." He seemed to think of an answer. His gaze softened when he looked at me again. Small smile on his lips. "Wherever you are." He mumbled.I blinked. Blinked again. He seemed sincere. As if he would move with me wherever I went. It was a sweet sentiment but one I didn't share. Nolan
Kamari's Point of ViewWhenever tragedy struck, my dad always tried to compensate for it. When I had just gotten kicked out by my mother, he bought me a large stuffed horse that I still had. That I still cuddled. When his parents passed away in an accident at thirteen, I got a new phone.Not that he ever compensated his love with gifts. Sometimes I just thought he might have a hard time with his own emotions and that he couldn't help me fix my own. I understood that to a certain degree.He always tried his best. Made me who I was today. Now my mother wanted to sweep me away and take all the glory for herself. Although I doubted that was the entire story. From how ragged he had looked when we entered the house, she must have proposed something else as well.At least this time around, my dad had no time to buy me anything. All he could do was bake us some bread, bagels, and muffins. Which I was grateful for. Which I adored.Nolan had suggested a movie night in, with the three of us buil
Zayan's Point of ViewI couldn't get hold of her. Text messages weren't going through. My calls went to voicemail. It tightened my chest to the point where I couldn't sleep anymore. Made me toss and turn the entire night long.Something was wrong. Horrendously wrong and I needed to be there for her. Comfort her. But showing up at her house in the middle of the night would be a bad move. It would show her that something was growing inside my chest...When I had no business feeling any sort of way toward her.Finally, the sun broke over the horizon and I jumped out of bed. The last few hours were spent in silence. Contemplation. Mainly contemplation about whether I had to allow these feelings to grow or not. So far it was a no from my brain. We could be friends. Best of friends. I would be her silent and watching guardian whilst she moved away and fell in love with someone else. Now that was one fucking hard pill to swallow."You are up early this morning." My father bemoaned from the
Kamari's Point of ViewGuilt washed over me the minute I realized the position I was in with Nolan. I heard Zayan enter. Heard his sharp intake of breath. It was an instantaneous feeling. One I couldn't fully place at first.I owed Zayan nothing but the money he had paid to get me free. That didn't entail a relationship. Although, I felt shame deep down. It was odd. Something I had no business feeling. But there it was and here I was.Pretending to sleep was the best outcome. Or so I had thought until my father ratted me out."Can't you leave a girl to her vices?" I grumbled lowly and sat up. Lucky for me, Nolan had moved away. Zayan was still staring between Nolan and me. It was heart-wrenching, to see that amount of concern on his face. The conflicting emotions toying just behind his eyes. "A girl needs to get up and make some coffee because it doesn't look like these two bumbling idiots will do it anytime soon." My dad replied, his voice still drenched in sleep. I groaned inward