Novels by Delight J

LESSIE I jolted upright with a strangled gasp, my chest heaving as if I’d just surfaced from drowning. Sweat plastered my hair to my forehead, and my heart thrashed against my ribs like it wanted to claw its way out. For a moment I couldn’t tell what was real and what wasn’t the fire, the blast, the screams that still echoed in my ears. But the smell of cedar and smoke pulled me back into the present.Dante.I was in his place again.The sheets tangled around me were heavy, thick, and far too soft to belong anywhere near my cramped dorm room. The air smelled like him and I wanted to scream because why was it always him? Why did I always wake up in his world and never in my own?My gaze darted around the room, drinking in the dark wooden walls polished until they gleamed, the sprawling shelves stacked with leather-bound books, the iron chandelier dripping soft amber light across the ceiling. And he was there sitting in a deep chair near the bed, a book balanced on his knee, his l

LESSIE When my eyes fluttered open, I knew immediately I wasn’t in my dorm.The bed beneath me was too soft, the sheets too luxurious, and the air filled with a scent that wasn’t mine. I shifted, sinking deeper into the warmth, my senses instantly overwhelmed by cedar, smoke, and something achingly familiar. My pulse skipped when I realized what it was.Dante.I stiffened, the memory of the night before clawing back into me, pain, shifting, fur, claws, the unbearable sound of my own bones snapping. And then Dante. His arms around me. His eyes refused to let me go. My chest rose and fell rapidly as I pushed myself upright, clinging to the blanket draped over me.This room…It was magnificent. The walls were painted in a deep shade of charcoal, smooth and seamless, as though the very color itself breathed mystery. Long, elegant drapes of midnight blue framed the tall arched windows, sunlight spilling through like golden blades. A grand bookshelf stretched across one wall, filled

LESSIEThe moment my hand touched the cold brass of the door handle, the world betrayed me.It didn’t happen slowly. It didn’t even give me a warning. Pain exploded inside me with a bone-snapping violence that nearly tore my soul out of my body. My knees buckled, my nails dug into the wood, and a guttural scream ripped from my throat before I even realized it was me screaming.“Lessie!” Ethan’s voice cut through the haze, sharp and panicked. He was at my side in seconds, his hands hovering over me like he didn’t know where to touch first.“Wh...what’s happening to me?!” I shrieked, my voice strangled as fire licked my veins. My chest heaved like I was being drowned from the inside. Every bone cracked, every nerve burned. My very skin betrayed me, crawling and tearing apart as if it wanted to escape me.Ethan’s face had gone pale, his mouth opening and closing like a fish grasping for air. “You’re...Lessie, y-you’re..” he stuttered, his eyes wide, filled with both awe and terror.

PROFESSOR CROSSBefore Dante could say anything, my eyes landed on the boy beside Lessie, my nose sniffled but it was different. Of course, he was supernatural like us but he smelled different. I had smelled it before, during my childhood in the Pack, when the witches came to trade with our healers. But his scent was different, darker.Dante stood frozen, his gaze shifted from Lessie and locked on Ethan. Though he looked harmless with his soft curls and gentle looks, I could tell what he was.A witch."Stay away from him," Dante yanked Lessie to his side in a swift move. But Lessie moves back to stand in front of Ethan."Why? Why should I listen to you?" Her voice was firm and defiant. "Because I said so. He's dangerous, you can't be around him.""Really?" She shrugged, followed with a scoff. "Well, this person just saved my life, the same life that was put in jeopardy because of your unknown interest in me." She took a step back, her eyes locked with Dante's. "Let's keep this pro

LESSIEThe campus library felt different after dark.I have been here dozens of times during the day, researching papers and hiding from Sandra's endless stream of sorority friends. But tonight, everything felt different. The towering shelves and shadows of the shelves seemed to move on their own, making every nerve in my body scream danger.I should have stayed back in my dorm after hearing about the attack. Some girl was mauled by what campus security was calling "a large dog", though the whisper of the rumour suggested something far more scary and sinister. But Professor Ravencrest's assignment was a must, I couldn't afford not doing it.The question: Research the historical significance of lunar cycles in European folklore. Pay particular attention to transformation myths. Due for submission tomorrow, my heart ran. I knew deep within me that it wasn't just a question, he wanted to know if I was lying about my parents being anthropologists.The mythology section occupied the li

PROFESSOR DANTEShe smelled like wild roses and home.I gripped my desk so hard the wood creaked as I watched Lessie disappear down the hallway.At thirty-two and the Alpha of Shadow Ridge Pack, I had never lost control like that, not especially for a human. I have never felt my wolf claw so desperately at me, begging to be freed.Mate! Mate!! Mate!!!My wolf kept repeating that each time my eyes met with hers during the lecture. But how is that possible? She was human, just a twenty year old human who was my student. How could I, an Alpha, be mated to a mere human? Everything that should have made my wolf turn away in disgust, instead drew him closer.But more confusing than being my mate, the scent underneath her human scent confused me more. It was a scent I recognised, something that made my teeth ache and my hands shake.Everything about Lessie was impossible. There was no way she could have been my mate, talk more about being a Moonborn. I have heard the stories. Every wolf