Trigger Warning: Child Abuse & Physical AbuseI cannot seem to control my pacing; my feet take me to the heated kettle and back before I recall the chamomile tea bag that I meant to place on the teacup before the water reaches its boiling point.What is one supposed to do when the wife of the man they are supposed to be with shows up by their door with their child to beg that they leave their marriage alone?In my case, I asked them to come in, and now I intend to serve them tea—or stall with tea while I hide in the makeshift kitchen section of my hotel room.Luckily enough, the child has fallen asleep, but I am still petrified—I am the sinner here, right?"You don't have to pretend to be hospitable."A familiar voice jolts me.It’s Vivian; she is leaning by the wall near the door."The least I can do is make you a cup of tea."I respond almost immediately, rather before I can take in the miserable way her mascara runs on her face."Right! I certainly would enjoy a cup of tea from a w

"Reject you?” Dominic repeats, his head turning sharply away from me as if I had slapped him. “Reject you." He utters once again, this time with a slow nod as he takes a step towards me. The air around him feels cold. Perhaps that is why I find it easy to step back from him. But as if terrible with cues, he covers the distance I introduce with too much ease. My hand reaches the railing in case I were to tumble down the stairs, but he grabs my waist, pulls me toward the wall and boxes me in with both of his hands. "Are you serious or simply trying to piss me off?" His question comes off as a slow hiss that chills me. It feels a little foolhardy to answer him right away, considering the potency of his anger that makes even his eyes burn intensely, so I swallow. “I asked you a question, Katherine.” I am the one who should be furious; he caused a scene in my home and made me insecure in my space! Yet…I can no longer taste the fury that caused me to storm outside; all I feel is ho

'Westerfield, 10th Avenue.'My hand caresses the paper left on my coffee table for the nth time.My plan had been to return with security to kick Vivian out, but she and her 'child' were gone by the time the team and I came back; the only thing left had been the note with an address and the smell of piss on one of the couches—a couch that I will need to replace before I check out.Perhaps I should have opted for an apartment.I need a shower, desperately.My centre is moist, and my gown smells of cinnamon and whisky, but the most unfortunate thing about the night, other than the pee-smelling room, is that my heat has settled.My heat settling means that I can think more clearly and feel more deeply. Emphasis on the ‘feel’ because I just had sex with a married man whose wife was on her knees pleading in my apartment not too long before.I never thought I could detest my reflection in the mirror more than I already do.I cannot believe that I have become a version of Elaine, perhaps a t

My legs feel as if they are laden with lead; I cannot bring myself to move towards the men.Each breath I take feels painful against my tightened chest, or perhaps it is the clog in my throat that makes it difficult to breathe, or maybe my body is shutting down, maybe it’s had enough, maybe-A wave of nausea washes over me before dizziness takes charge.What if it was a warning shot? What if-The men drag her limp body from the ground as if mocking my hopeful naivety.“Where are you going!”Vivian’s hand grips against mine, making me realise that I was unconsciously moving towards the scene.“If you go there, he will kill me.”Her panicked face makes me feel better, honestly.She has gotten what she wished for; I do not know if I can be with him—no, I know. I can't be with someone who resembles my father. I cannot be with someone who can harm another that I adore; I cannot be with someone who has the capacity to turn me into a monster because, for the life of me, I cannot quite figure

Dominic J. LewisSimon's body fit in the black body bag with ease—with too much ease, given the amount of information he died holding. He shouldn’t have killed him before ‘Ian’ gave him Ruby’s dossier."Boss."He turned to his right-hand man, Ian and took the file offered titled 'Ruby Mallory Clive'.“Did you find anything new?”“No, unfortunately, all reports on her stopped after she married the Alpha of Dermot.”Dominic nearly tossed the folders against the man.“And is there anything on the Alpha?”“No. All reports were sealed after their marriage.”Sealed?An irritated sigh left his lips before he turned to Ian.“What does that mean? Are they royals?”“From what I can piece, no. they do not have ties to the throne, but they do have allies in high places.”Fuck.He groaned again; his mate was proving more dangerous by the minute.A person with her background would never accept him as he was; for him to get a chance to steal her fully from her Alpha, he needed to be an actual charmi