-Willow-I was so confused why Cain left me on the dance floor, and I quickly went to a secluded corner where Nick and Henry found me, cornering me on both sides as if to protect me. The sight made me smile, and I shook my head a bit.“Let me guess, while I did not hear Carter and Cain tell you not to take your eyes off me, they did, didn't they?” I teased.“Something like that,” Nick admitted, giving me a small smile, and I returned it, but then we were all distracted as the king placed himself on the small stage further away, getting everyone’s attention.I wasn’t surprised speeches were being held tonight, but it was still so early, so I was intrigued to know what the king was about to say.“Is it a welcome speech?” I mused out loud, seeing the two beta’s shrug.“Everyone,” the king called, the room quieting down and turning to the king, who gave them all a charming smile. When he did that, I saw so much of Carter in him that it was a wonder I hadn’t noticed the true similarities b
-Cain- I was surprised by how little I hated talking to Weston. After the initial anger disappeared, we had a calmer conversation with each other. We mostly discussed the business around the wolf community, but I noticed he had a few questions about Willow and me and how we were doing, as if he genuinely cared. I tried not to say too much. He might have helped with the rumors, but I wasn’t going to allow him to close that fast. I still didn’t trust him, and I was unsure if I ever would, but I owed him at least a small conversation; that was his demand for getting on the stage. However, after about 20 minutes, I decided to conclude the conversation and go find my mate. Weston didn’t even complain, which annoyed me because I would rather he felt insulted by it. He simply said he would love to have a conversation with her as well, but if he thought I was going to let him get that close to my mate so fast, he was mistaken. I pointed this out to him, but he just smiled and shrugged, tellin
-Willow- Cain had been extra touchy and attentive after we had been together at the party, but we couldn’t stay this way forever. We had returned after a little while, mingling once again, and the happy mood Cain was in seemed to make people take extra notice of him. He drew people in instead of keeping them at a distance. However, he was not particularly interested in talking too much with them. He kept touching me and kissing me, keeping me warm, and when we were on our way home, Cain and I were in the backseats with me on his lap as he kept whispering filthy things in my ear. "Cain!" I giggled, and he slipped his hand into my dress again, right at the split between my breasts. I pushed his hand away, giving him a scolding look, but he couldn’t stop touching me, telling me what he was going to do to me once we were home. “You two are making me sick,” Carter called from the front seat. “Sorry!” I called out. “Don’t tell him sorry. We are the ones who will be vomiting when he fin
-Willow-“You don’t owe me anything,” Weston said as I handed him both a wet cloth and a cup of coffee.“He shouldn’t have punched you,” I whispered.Weston wiped the blood from his face and shook his head, but his lip was already healing. Carter had told me he would go look for Cain, but I knew he would need some time.“How did you know Cain used to be calmer?” I asked him.“My mate kept me updated, and even though I couldn’t see them, I made sure to keep track,” he informed me.“Jeremy kept you away?”“No, he told me I could see them if I wanted to, but it was too hard, which is why I stayed away. When they began growing up, I could feel the words on my tongue—words I knew they would understand as they grew older. But it would have ruined everything,” he revealed.“So instead of causing chaos, you… stayed away?” I asked in disbelief, and he sipped the coffee, nodding.“I did.”“Wow…” I whispered.“I truly do not wish you any harm. I just want to have a relationship with my sons again
-Cain- A storm was brewing outside, lightning piercing the sky and turning everything into the look of a horror movie, but only when it grew dark and too dangerous to be outside did I return back to my pack house. The whole house had gone to sleep. I could hear my bare feet tapping over the floor as I made my way to the bedroom. I opened the door a little, seeing Willow sleeping inside, and curled up on the bed. The sight of her always calmed me, but I hated that I had scared her a little today. I knew she had never truly seen my angry side or the things I could do, and I didn’t want her to. It was not a pretty side, therefore, I didn’t know if I should be close to her tonight. I wasn’t sure if she wanted me to, but then Willow began stirring, our bond waking her and alerting her that something was wrong. She blinked her eyes open, then turned on the lamp beside the bed. “Cain?” she whispered. I didn’t say anything but remained in the doorway. She looked at me with a sad expression,
-Willow- “Just a tiny bit,” I insisted, holding up the toast with some jam on it to Carter. He shook his head and instead poured more whisky into his coffee mug, which was no longer 90 percent coffee and 10 percent alcohol. Now it was the other way around. “Come on, Carter, that’s not breakfast,” I pointed out and pressed the toast to his lips, but he turned his head and sipped his alcoholic coffee instead. “It’s better than breakfast,” he stated. “We both know that is a lie. Look at you!” I said that and gestured to him. “Have you slept?” “No.” “And you’re not eating either. It’s not good,” I told him. “I am eating,” he said, holding up his mug. “That’s not food.” “It’s my hangover cure.” “How? It’s making you drunk.” “So I don’t get hungover,” he countered, smiling smugly. I rolled my eyes, then pressed the toast to his lips again. “Eat!” “Woman!” he scolded, grabbing my wrist and pushing the toast away. “I am not a baby!” “Then why do you act as one?" He looked anno
-Cain-Willow walked almost like a robot into the dining room, so quiet as we joined the others. I felt slightly overwhelmed too, but it was clear my mate was processing. “So how did it go?” Weston asked as we joined them at the table again. “Fuck, I wish I was allowed to drink right now,” Willow groaned and chose the seat beside Carter this time and took his mug, smelling the alcohol because she couldn’t drink it. “You think you can get drunk on the smell?” Carter and Weston looked confused at Willow as I sat down in my former seat. Weston turned to me, looking concerned, but then I held up the ultrasound to him, and his eyes grew big. “Twins,” he said. “Let me see,” Carter told him, and he snatched the ultrasound. “Ooooh.” “Sometimes it is in the genes,” Weston teased. “You will have your hands full,” Carter chuckled, waving the ultrasound around. “Why do you think I am smelling your mug?” Willow asked, making us chuckle. “Oh yes, just laugh because none of you will push not
-Willow-I was home by myself, Cain having taken Carter out for a drive as he kept spiraling into a dark hole. I really hoped that Weston was right and that everything was going to be solved, because I hated seeing Carter like this. Only two days had passed since we were at the palace, and he was just getting worse. I even contemplate calling Eva and having a chat about it. She always seemed to know what to do in such a situation, but as I had the phone in my hand, coming down the staircase, the doorbell rang. I walked over to the door and was surprised to once again find Weston on the other side. “Hello, Willow,” he greeted. “Weston, Carter, and Cain aren’t here right now.” “That’s good. It’s you I wanted to talk to,” he told me. “Um, okay. Come inside.” I invited him in, and we found a quiet place to talk in a small living room. We had some snacks and tea beside us, but Weston touched none of it. He appeared almost nervous as he sat in front of me, rubbing his hands together. A