Chapter 12: Follow thy Heart Mikalya’s P.O.V “My name is Kashmira Shaw and I’m from the DawnFrost pack in Jammu.” It was later afternoon, after we had returned to our hotel room with Kashmira and her son and helped dress her wound that she had gotten while trying to cross a fence this morning. The wound wasn’t infected and her healing had already kicked in, so she should be fine in a few hours. We had ordered room service and had our lunch together and it was only after she realized that we weren’t out to hurt her that Kashmira finally decided to tell us about herself. Now, we all sat on our bed in a circle and sipped on some karak chai (strong tea) as she breastfed her baby, whose name we learned was Kushal. She had gotten rid of the clothes she was wearing earlier, since they were torn and dirty, and now she had one of Ruksaar’s ghagras on and her face was uncovered. Now that I could look at her face properly, I could tell that she was very young, too young to be carrying a bab

Chapter 14: Getting to know you Abhay’s P.O.V I stood in the middle of the market place, admiring a couple who stood in front of a colorful bangle shop. The man wore a white tunic with loose fitting white cotton trousers and a rainbow coloured turban on his head while the woman was wearing a bright yellow and red ghagra choli. Her dupatta was hanging off of her head and that’s how I knew she was unmarried. The man was courting her and he was buying her a set of yellow and green bangles to go with her ghagra. Taking my camera out of my bag silently, I turned the flash off and took a few quick snaps of the couple as the man placed the bangles into his girlfriend’s awaiting hands and she accepted them with a delighted smile. Surrounded by a backdrop of so many colours, they looked magnificent. “Shouldn’t you be asking permission before you take someone’s picture?” I nearly jumped out of my skin at that half-whispered question by my ear and my camera slipped out of my hands. I yelped

Chapter 16: Realization Mikalya’s P.O.V “Where did you get this?” I asked Abhay as I took a sip of the alcohol and felt the sting right down to my stomach. Damn, this was potent! “Some locals were sipping on it and I got interested.” Abhay shrugged his bare broad shoulders, his eyes a bit unfocused as he looked at the fire burning in front of us. “I was pretty sure I got riffed off but that’s alright, I guess.” Yup. He was hammered. But I found out that it was a good thing. His speech was continuous and he was no longer stuttering nervously in front of me. Alcohol gave him the confidence to push past my Alpha strength. I’d lived almost a hundred years, seen and experienced several lovers, but there was just something about Abhay that I couldn’t shake. He was adorable yet masculine; nervous yet brave and shy yet forward. He was a mix of contrasting characters I’d never experienced before and yet, they all seem to come together very nicely. Was I feeling this way because he was my

Chapter 18: A Stolen MomentAbhay’s P.O.VI got to the hotel where Mikalya was staying, earlier than expected because I wanted her to see me as someone who was serious and intentional about our relationship, and not some player who just wanted to be with her for her beauty alone.Already, I could feel my heart rate spiking up with every minute that passed which just told me that she was close by. I couldn’t explain it, but there was this special connection I felt with Mikalya that I hadn't felt with anyone in my entire life.And just then…I heard it…the sound of her footsteps as she descended the stairs down to the lobby.My hands instinctively went to my camera that I had strapped to my neck just in case. And now, I knew that it was the best choice I ever made.How was it that every colour she wore made her look even more gorgeous?Yesterday afternoon, it had been blue. Then last night, it had been black. And now, she was wearing a red ghagra-choli with a white dupatta and I felt lik

Chapter 20: Possessive of YouMikalya’s P.O.V“Wow, this place is bigger than I expected it to be.” I looked around in wonder.My words echoed through the ruins and I suddenly had a thought that I most definitely didn’t want to share with Abhay.Since this place was used by young lovers to ‘frolic’ was the echo one of the main reasons they came here? So they could listen to their moans echo through the ruins as they made sweet love in the shadows of this palace.But despite the naughty thought, I was enjoying the place very much. The tall ornate pillars suggested that this was carved from a single stone, and the designs, or whatever was left of it, was made by skillful hands that loved their craft.The sun filtered in through the numerous cracks on the ceiling and the huge chunks that had collapsed a long time ago. Despite the dangerous appearance to the place, it still looked sturdy and peaceful.We walked in deeper and deeper, looking at all the places that once held relics and deco