Once we ascended the stairs, I felt the first flicker of awkwardness occur that whole night. “Um,” I said, hesitating in front of my bedroom doors. I had never invited him into my bedroom before. He looked at me with the same expression I was probably displaying; tentativeness. “I guess I will see you in the morning?” he asked, his eyes scanning me for an answer. Suddenly, I felt like we were two school kids on the porch after a first date. A grin spread my face apart at the sheer foolishness of it—he had just been inside of me, and we were technically married. “Yes, I will see you in the morning,” I teased, stepping over my threshold as he shot me a puzzled look, “because you will be lying next to me.” He laughed, walking in after me with more confidence in his stance. “Got to respect my lady.” We dressed for bed. He had allowed me to wear the robe back to the palace, and to cover his own self, he wrapped my dirty dress around h

I was going to join Theo for sleep, but my anger was so wrathful, I would never find it. Instead, I stormed downstairs to where Clement told me I’d always be able to find him if he was in the estate. The library. I walked into the grand library in my nightgown and slippers. It was one of my favorite spots; it was a universe of old and new novels, all color coded and stacked in shelves that towered up to the vaulted ceiling. I walked through the endless galleries and ventured through the ancient seating area, not finding a trace of him. So I waited. I sat down in one of the loveseats. To make the waiting process more enjoyable, I plucked a book from the pharmaceuticals section. None of it involved witchery, for the only ones that nursed that kind of information came from my cottage, so it slightly bored me. I felt each minute pass by as I sat in the early morning sun accompanied by the sound of the ticking grandfather clock. Angry tears rimmed my

I did not have time for this. I took the paper from my son’s hand and shredded it into a million pieces, watching it float to the ground. “No littering, mommy!” Theo reprimanded, echoing one of my lessons to him. “Who gave this to you, Theo?” I asked in a voice that suggested the seriousness of the situation, but in a way that wouldn’t scare him. He looked at the sky to contemplate for a second. “Uhh,” he said, shifting back and forth on his feet. “A worker?” “A servant?” I questioned, raising my eyebrows. “A man with a necktie?” “Yes!” he answered, proud of himself for remembering. “A man with a necktie. A servant.” He sounded out the word slowly. Aldrich and I always had the worst timing. I took his hand and brought him back inside, feeling like the weight that was lifted from my shoulders was back on. Now I had two stresses to worry about. My brain instantly scrambled over what I should do. I could not bother Aldrich

Alan shot a glare at me before looking back at Danika. He spoke to her the most gently I’ve witnessed; I had never heard his voice lower to such a soft octave. “You’re in the infirmary, Danika,” he said soothingly, then cracked a humorous grin, “looks like the tables have turned.” “What?” she demanded before her gaze flickered around the room, at the white blanket cloaked around her, and then at our worried faces. Alan’s kindness must have been the most startling aspect of it all. “We…” I hesitated, then decided not to sugarcoat it. She could handle it. “We found you unconscious in the woods. You’re not hurt, but you were out of it.” I watched for her reaction, chewing my inner lip. “You said the last thing you were doing was talking to Clement?” Alan interrogated, staring at her like a concerned parent that was trying to learn all the details of their child’s accident. “Yes,” she said, looking at him with fogged over eyes, “I found him in the l

The sex was explosive. It was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in my existence. We crashed into each other like a wreck, kissing violently and aggressively, like we hated each other again. I tugged at his hair and he gripped at my waist, his tongue dominating my mouth. I scratched down the back of his neck all the way down his spine underneath his shirt. He ripped off my clothes, as if he was angry I even put them on, and I was gasping for breath as I became vividly aware of the deadly weapons next to my head as he fucked me. We were not making love this time; we were avenging. I ravaged him, and he ravaged me, like a physical fight without the violence. Sometimes he took charge and other times I demanded dominance, and because of the sheer animalistic nature of it all, I felt my wolf nearly transitioning out of my human form. He was growling in my ear, biting on my neck and my collarbones. I was doing the same to him, except harder, even drawing some blood along