Izzy’s pov
Why did he look at me that way? It was making me feel all kinds of things, and once again, I felt like I was stuck in some romantic novel or movie. I had never had someone look at me the way Orion did. As if I were the most beautiful person in the world.I had seen my dad look at my mother that way, but I was pretty sure there was no way Jordan would ever look at me the way Orion was looking right now.My eyes went down, and I took a few more bites of my food. While I enjoyed the company, it was hard to keep lying to these people. I barely knew them, but they invited me over to dinner and had been nothing but nice to me. I could never tell them anything important about my life. It would either put them in danger or make them think I was insane.Humans didn’t know about werewolves, and for good reason. They would try to hunt us, or worse. We had healing powers, we could shift, and our communities were completely different from the way humans lived. They had a president, congressmen and women, and a mayor, and we had an alpha, a beta, and a gamma. They didn’t have mates or duties like we did. But if humans knew about us, they’d try to use us or experiment on us. I had seen enough movies to know humans' first instinct was to either kill the unknown or use it.If I was going to have to hide from Jordan, I would have to get used to living among humans, knowing that even if I found someone to share my life with, I wouldn’t be able to tell him the truth. It was probably better to be alone anyway.But what was I thinking about right now? Planning an imaginary future because one very handsome man looked at me for a few minutes? Instead, I should focus on getting that job and making enough money to move somewhere even more secluded. Or maybe a busy city would be safer? I wish I knew anything about living on my own or trying to escape a very angry future mate.In movies, they dye and cut their hair and get a fake passport, but I didn’t even have a passport, only a driver’s license that was hidden in my backpack. And I love my hair too much to dye it. Maybe I could finally get that haircut I wanted, though.“You’re a thinker too, aren’t you? I can see the cogs working inside your beautiful head.” Erin said.I faked a smile; this was the longest I hadn’t been busy studying or going to stupid classes my parents wanted me to go to. I always dreamed about having a day off, but this day had been miserable. I spent the whole day reliving the last moments I had with Jordan and Finn.I didn’t expect to be thrown into a social gathering so soon, and I hadn’t prepared myself properly for what I could or couldn’t tell them. I needed a game plan.“I guess I am.” I replied, “but I’m mostly just tired.”Erin looked at the bruises on my neck but didn’t say anything about them, which I appreciated. “I can imagine you being tired. Did it take long for you to get here?”“It did.” I replied, being as vague as possible.“Well, tomorrow, when you finish eating breakfast, Orion can take you to meet my ex-husband, and we’ll see if we can get you a job. That’s one less thing to worry that pretty little head of yours about.”That was the second time she called me beautiful, and it felt strange. I mean, werewolves did have superior genes to humans, so we were perceived as more beautiful than the average person, but I had been told I was ugly and worthless for years. The only people who called me beautiful were my parents, but they were forced to say that I was their child. But Ezra called me pretty before, too.It didn’t matter anyway. I had decided long ago that it didn’t matter what I looked like; it was what was inside that mattered most. Yet a tiny part of me loved hearing it. Perhaps because the last time I saw Jordan, he made me feel disgusting and powerless.I shuddered thinking about him, and Orion’s eyes found mine again, “are you cold?”I shook my head, but before I knew it, Orion stood up and handed me a hoodie from the back of the room. It smelled like him, and I was tempted to stick my nose on the sleeve to inhale the scent further. He smelled like books. It was crazy, but he did. It was my favorite scent in the world, and it reminded me of every time I got to open a new book and find a new way to escape from my life for a while.I wasn’t cold at all, but I kept the hoodie on until dinner was finished. I started taking it off, but Orion shook his head, “it’s fine; you can give it back another time.”“Thank you. I’ll see you tomorrow, then?”“See you tomorrow, Izzy.” Orion replied, giving me one of the most beautiful smiles I had ever seen.Shit, this crush would be the death of me. I hadn’t even known this man for twenty-four hours, yet he made my knees weak by merely looking at me, and the way my name sounded coming out of his mouth was just perfect.Erin and Ezra seemed to talk amongst themselves, and they giggled, which earned them a glare from Orion. For a second, I felt this familiar feeling that I got whenever our Alpha or Jordan got angry. This feeling of an aura slipping out, letting people know they meant business. Erin and Ezra seem to feel it, too, because they stopped laughing and began talking to Orion in sign language.I really needed to learn this language. It almost felt like I was stuck at home again, where everyone was mindlinking each other, and I sat there not knowing what they were talking about. But it wasn’t just that I felt excluded; it looked beautiful, and it could be useful to have a way to communicate that didn’t require a voice.Like my own secret language with someone like Orion.I almost laughed at my own thoughts. Someone... Like I could get a guy like Orion anyway and have a happy ever after. I needed to make sure I was safe and not drag people into my problems. I walked to my room, brushed my teeth, and took off my bra. I sat down on the bed, thinking about my plan.Step one will be to earn some money, and then I think my safest choice would be to go as far away as possible. Maybe Europe? But that would require a passport. Okay, so leaving the country is out of the question, so I just needed to find a place where it would be difficult to find me. Werewolves wouldn’t be able to track me in a big city, I think? Goddess, I should have read more mystery and spy books instead of Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte.I laid down on the bed, wearing nothing but Orion’s hoody and my underwear, inhaling his scent. His scent was calming, and I closed my eyes, hoping to get a good night’s sleep.Unfortunately, not even Orion’s scent was enough. I dreamt about Jordan marking me forcefully, and the whole pack was laughing while my blood dripped down his mouth. I looked down and saw the blood from my neck flow down on my torn-up wedding dress.I screamed out when I suddenly felt hands on my shoulders. I opened my eyes, bowing my head in defeat. “Please, Jordan. I’m sorry I left! Please show mercy.”A low growl came from the man in front of me, who was slowly touching my arms up and down. “It’s Orion. You were screaming, and I was worried you were in trouble. No one will hurt you here; they’ll have to go through me.”I looked up to see Orion’s hazel eyes look at me with concern. “It was just a nightmare, Izzy.”I breathed a sigh of relief, “it was just a nightmare.” I repeated the phrase, trying to calm myself.“Who’s Jordan?”I shook my head, not wanting to talk about him.“He’s the one who hurt you, isn’t he?” Orion said, touching my neck softly where the bruise was. His fingers brushed over the bruise and over the area where Jordan marked me in my dream.I almost moaned; the area was so sensitive, and Orion’s touch felt so good. Goddess, what was wrong with me?“Yes, but I don’t want to talk about it. Please, I’m fine. Like you said, it was just a nightmare.” I said, looking at the clock, that showed 3.43. Shit, it was hours before breakfast would start. I used to love waking up at 3 and realizing I still had a few hours to sleep, but I really didn’t want to sleep right now.Orion let go of my arms and nodded, “okay. But if you need anything, just let me know. I’m in room 20; just call. I’ll see you in a few hours.”He looked me up and down and smirked before turning around and walking out of my room.I looked down to see that I had fallen asleep in his hoodie and had kicked the blanket off. It looked like I was sleeping in nothing but his hoody because it covered my underwear. I looked like a freaking pathetic loser. Who does that? Go sleep in a hoodie someone borrowed you?Orion’s povI couldn’t sleep. I felt drawn to Izzy in a way I had never felt before. Part of me felt like she needed my protection. From a very young age, I was always very aware of who needed protection. I did everything I could to protect my foster brothers and sisters, but even before that time, I would try to befriend kids who were bullied. Mom used to say I had a kind heart, but would she still think that if she knew what I had done?Another part of me just wanted to be close to her, which was crazy. I didn’t even know her. I should just stay away. It would be safer for Izzy if I kept my distance.I started walking around the motel, hoping to tire myself out. When I walked past Izzy’s room, I heard her scream. My instinct took over, and I used the master key Erin had given me. I used it when I needed to fix something inside one of the rooms or if one of the guests didn’t want to leave and I had to force them out. It had only happened once, though.I ran in, seeing Izzy trashing a
Izzy’s povThe interview went well. Luke needed someone to help during the morning and lunch rush, but I would be free after lunch was over. This would give me some time to figure out the next part of my plan. He didn’t even need my ID; he was planning to pay me under the table. At first, I didn’t realize what that was, but it meant he was going to pay me in cash and without a contract.This meant there was no paper trail to lead to me and no need to give an ID, but it was illegal. Normally I would have never done anything illegal, but did I really have a choice here? This was a safe way to earn money, and as soon as I made enough, I could find a legal job somewhere far away.While it was funny that he was named Luke and had a dinner, because of the similarities to Gilmore Girls, it didn’t mean I could trust Luke. I did trust Orion, even without having any reason to. He was there when I had a nightmare, and he only tried to help me. At no point during that night did I think he would d
Orion’s pov Maybe it was for the better. This whole thing with Izzy was crazy anyway. What was I thinking? I barely knew the girl, and I had already told her more than I had told most. I wanted to be there for her, for her to feel safe with me, but how could she? I didn’t even feel safe around myself, always worrying what would happen if I lost control again. If the sick part of my brain would take over. It made me nervous that since Izzy arrived here, I had growled and even thought I heard his voice again. I could feel him gnawing at the back of my head more than ever. I should just keep my distance. So that’s what I did. For the next two weeks, Izzy worked five days a week at the diner, so it was easy to avoid her in the mornings and afternoons. But at dinner, I was often forced to sit at the same table as Izzy. I let Erin talk to Izzy and only replied when a question was directed at me. I hated this, but it was better for Izzy if I left her alone. Izzy was off on Sunday, and I h
Izzy’s povOrion left soon after, and I felt all giddy thinking about the kiss. He liked me! And he wanted to go on a date with me. I knew Orion was avoiding me, and I thought it was because of the way I spoke to him. I had tried talking to him during dinner, but Erin was always there, and even when asked a direct question, Orion barely spoke.I wanted to go back to how it was those first two days. It was silly, I know, because I barely knew Orion. But he was someone who made me feel safe, and for some reason, I felt like I knew him my whole life. Without actually knowing anything about him. I laughed to myself; it was crazy to fall for someone like Orion. One, I barely knew him, and what I did know were reasons not to date him. I mean, it’s a pretty red flag hearing someone spent time in prison for beating up his foster father. And then the mental hospital? What would it mean to have a relationship with someone who has been mentally unstable in the past? He clearly still had moments w
Izzy’s pov"That customer, Tom, can be a bit handsy, but he tips very well." Luke said, pointing to an older gentleman sitting at one of the tables by himself.I wasn’t sure if he was telling me to warn me or just to accept it because of the tip. After working here for a few weeks, it was obvious that Luke ran his business very differently from Erin's.Erin’s motel staff was like her family; she was kind to everyone and really showed that she cared. But Luke ran a business, and although he wasn’t a bad guy, he didn’t really care how any of his staff were doing. He wasn’t asking if you had a good day, like Erin did every time a cleaning lady or someone from the kitchen came over.While I wasn’t exactly looking forward to handling this customer, I decided to suck it up and do my job. In thirty minutes, Orion would be picking me up from work, and we’d go on a date.A date!Although I knew it couldn’t last, that didn’t make me less nervous and excited. Goddess, I had fallen for this man qu
Orion’s povThis date has been perfect so far. So perfect that we lost track of time and missed the movie. Izzy suggested watching a movie in her room, and despite the obvious temptation it would be for me, I said yes.I wanted to touch Izzy all the time, wanting to kiss her and more, but we were going slow. Mind over matter, right? She went through a lot, and I was pretty sure she was still a virgin, so rushing things was a bad idea.We packed up the blanket and cutlery, and I drove us back to the motel. My hand was resting on Izzy’s leg, making circles with my fingers. For a moment, Izzy looked sad, and I quickly moved my hand."Are you okay?""He did that too…. He put his hand on my leg while we were driving. But when you do it, it feels so different. I am trying not to think about that day, but my mind keeps going back to it." Izzy replied, fidgeting with her hands."I know you’ve said you don’t want to talk about it, but maybe you should. Not necessarily with me, but with someone.
Izzy’s povI woke up, not remembering when I fell asleep. It must have been halfway through the movie. Despite liking the movie, Orion’s scent and his arms around me made me a bit too relaxed.Orion! His arms were still around me. He fell asleep here!I turned my head and saw Orion look so peaceful. I can’t imagine anyone being scared of this man. He looked so cute, and he even snorted a little. Goddess, he was adorable. How lucky was I to have someone like him like me?Or unlucky, since I couldn’t keep him. I laughed to myself. Keep him. As if he were a stuffed animal that I could keep in my bed forever."You have such a beautiful smile; I wouldn’t mind waking up to that every day." Orion said, stretching his arms before taking me in his arms and giving me a tight hug."Goodmorning, Orion." I said, hugging him back and feeling slightly embarrassed to feel his morning erection during the hug. That man was big."Goodmorning, beautiful." Orion replied, kissing me on the neck. It must hav
V Izzy’s pov "So, I will do some strength training with you. to get you stronger, but I think taking a few lessons in self defense would be great." Orion explained. "You've never been taught to fight?" I was kind of surprised since in our pack, every man was taught to fight, even the omega males. Women got some training, but not enough, in my opinion. Orion chuckled, "well, that cost money, and Richard didn't want to spend any money on us. I always used my height and strength to frighten people, and the rest was just instinct. But maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to get some training too." "But you don’t want people to start saying stuff about you?" I asked, knowing what people would say if they knew he was learning to fight. "Exactually." Orion replied, but got right back to focusing on me. "So, I was thinking something like Judo or Jujitsu, because it’s mostly self-defense and you learn to get out of grips and how to use someone’s weight against them. It will give you some time to c