Nova
I felt his hardness pressed up against me after I told him I didn’t have the money yet, and a hit to my nose caused my glasses to crack and fly from my face. He’s going to punish me right here in a back alley, and there wasn’t a thing I could do about it, half-blind and in mile-high heels.
I slammed my eyes shut, knowing what would come next and hoped it would be over quickly so I could get back inside the bar and continue my shift. This is humiliating. I fucking hate this. As tears stream down my face, I wonder what I’ve ever done wrong to deserve everything that has been handed to me.
A sudden growl snaps me out of my haze of self-pity, and the scent of smokey bergamot and mint causes me to perk up. I feel a splash of warm liquid on my back, and when I turn around, a sense of terror overtakes me but quickly dissipates when I see his familiar face.
As bad as my eyesight is, I will never forget his scent.
“Nikolai?” I whisper incredulously, my heart hammering at the sight of my mate. He’s still as handsome as the first time I saw him, but something feels different. “Why… why are you-”
Without another word or looking my way, he turns around and walks away from me. The anger is palpable in his scent and nearly causes me to fall at his feet in submission, but I pull down my skirt and run after him, grabbing him by his forearm.
“Nikolai-!”
The words shrivel up in my mouth when he looks up at me with angry, silver eyes. He turns and looks at the scattered parts of Will to the side, then lets out a growl.
“How can you allow yourself to be reduced to this?” he snarls, then looks at me again. The look in his eyes made my heart drop with shame. “I’m passing through the area, only to find my mate bent over in an alley.”
I trip over my words, feeling the need to explain myself but getting nowhere. “That’s not… That isn’t-”
He scoffs. “What, it isn’t what it looks like? Cut the crap, Nova; anyone walking through that fucking door could see what was happening.” He says, ripping his hand out of my grasp and crossing his arms over his chest.
Anger, mixed with shame, bubbles in my chest when he says this. “What’s it to you, anyway?” I sob, not wanting to appear weak in front of my mate but failing. “You have some nerve to say that to me after ignoring me for four fucking years, Nikolai!” I spit out, then shake my head and turn away from him.
Stupid me felt a little happy seeing my mate here, thinking he had been willingly protecting me.
“Who was he?” Nikolai suddenly says, causing me to stop in my steps.
I breathe out a sigh and feel my shoulders sag. “He was my boyfriend and a pack warrior under Alpha Cain.”
“FUCK!” I hear him cry out, and when I turn around, I see him pull out his cell phone and put it to his ear. “Kai-” he starts, then launches into a completely different language. Was that Russian? German?
Not knowing what else to do, I continue my walk towards the scattered parts of Will. /“Alpha,”/ I call Alpha Cain over the link, my headache starting since he’s not close by.
/“Nova, this is unexpected. Is everything okay?”/ He asks, and I let out a sigh. I hardly ever call him for anything over the link, so this must be odd to him.
“Not yet,” Nikolai suddenly says, holding up a hand but continuing to talk over the phone. Wait, how the fuck did he know I was speaking to my Alpha?
“Okay,” Nikolai says, kills the call, then puts the phone to his ear again. “Alpha Cain,” he says, and my eyes widen. “Yes, there has been an unfortunate… incident.”
As he says this, he pins me with a blue-eyed stare, and when I catch his scent, I immediately feel a sense of calm coming over me. I know that he’s probably scenting me so I can calm down, but right now, all I feel is myself drowning in this delicious smokey bergamot.
“Yes, I’m positive, but I do think Nova would be the best person to speak to about it. Yes, I understand; thank you.” I catch the tail end of the conversation before he pockets the cell phone again.
He stares at me for a moment, then starts. “Your Alpha knows about this,” he says, but as he does, I hear Alpha Cain over the mind link telling me that I should close up the bar and that he and I need to have a long talk. Yeah, I think that long conversation is long overdue.
“Thank you. I’ll be going, then.” I nod, then turn around and walk away from him again; Nikolai may be here, but that doesn’t mean that I have to accept him again. I’ve waited long enough; it’s time for me to move on. So I cross my arms against my shivering body and walk towards the concrete steps leading into the bar.
“Nova,” I hear him call my name as I reach the back door and nearly whine at the sound of his voice.
I turn around and raise an eyebrow at him as if to tell him to continue. He looks at a loss for words, and I can hear his heart beating as sporadic as mine. “Yes, Nikolai?” I ask, sounding like a lovesick puppy.
He maintains eye contact with me for a few seconds before shaking his head. “Keep safe,” is all he says before walking off and leaving me alone yet again. Gee, what exactly did I expect?
How long am I going to keep this up? Why can’t I just reject him and get it over with? It’s not like I want kids anyway. I’m sure this will benefit the both of us since he clearly doesn’t want me at all.
When I walk inside, Estie takes one look at me and tells me to go home and that she will close up. I nod, feeling thankful to at least have one understanding friend on my side and make my way to my apartment.
I step inside my sanctuary, yet as I breathe out a pent up sigh, a sob escapes my throat, and I slide to the floor. To say that I am strung out and lost is putting it lightly; I’m a fucking mess. Nikolai killed Will right in front of me and tore him into three different pieces as he had me bent over in the alley.
All this, and my so-called mate didn’t even ask me if I was okay. I’m sure he saw my bloody nose and bruised cheek. Does he honestly not care that much for me? We hadn’t seen one another for over four years, and the only thing he did was insult me. Fuck him.
I sniff and wipe my tears away, the sudden thought of being alone hits me hard, and I am not sure if I should be happy or terrified. Will took my mind off the thought of Nikolai, but he also abused me profusely. Am I truly free now? Can I live my life as I please?
No. Not until I take care of one last thing.
“I, Nova Lorelei, reject you-”
“Sure you wanna do that right now?” In the dark, a hoarse, angry voice gets my attention, and my heart drops. How was he here already?
Kai Nearly fourteen years of the Convergence, with every year being as successful as the previous one. Our packs have lived in harmony for this long, with no wars or antagonising from smaller packs; everything was peaceful. However, as I look down at the RSVP in my hand, I am not sure if it is anger or fear coursing through my veins. After fourteen years of replying NO, the European Five have finally decided to join the Convergence. I have been sending invitations out of courtesy and expected a negative response, but the fact that all of them responded yes has a cold sweat running down my back. I hope it is simply nerves and that, once again, my feelings aren’t right. “What are you thinking of so intently?” The voice of Caterina cuts through the haze of my thoughts. I look up from my desk. I am almost sure that the older she gets, the more beautiful she becomes, and I find myself falling for her all over again on a daily basis. I smile as she walks over to me, wearing a tiny blac
Konstantin I look up at the mansion I used to call home and sigh. After another two years, I have returned empty-handed and with no news. Kaia is still missing, with no word and no sound even in Europe. I know I should simply let it go, that perhaps the fucking witch killed my only daughter the minute she took her, but I cannot give up hope. Not when I promised to bring her back home. She has turned eighteen now, the same age as Kai’s eldest, and I’m not sure what to think. Years spent without her parents and in the grip of a witch who has undoubtedly twisted her mind. I don’t know what to expect anymore; in fact, I don’t know what more to do. The front door opens, and the only one who hasn’t given up on me rushes out to meet me. Her eyes glisten with unshed tears, and I hear her sobbing against my chest. “No more, Kon, please…we need to stop this,” she says, then peers up at me with a heartbroken expression. “You need to come home now.” I shake my head. “I still didn’t find her-”
NikolaiI knew as soon as I set my eyes on Nova that she would change the entire trajectory of my life - and I wasn’t wrong. Not only has she changed my life for the better, but she’s added more colour to it. And I don’t mean the whirlwind that is my son, Sage.Every aspect of our lives changed drastically when we discovered that Nova’s womb had been healed and that she was pregnant with our firstborn. Her pregnancy was not an easy one, so after Sage’s birth, we decided to keep it to one child only.Yet as I watch her sleep with one hand on her swollen belly, I wonder where the hell that decision went.“Time to wake up, little Rogue,” I try to coax her awake, but she swats my hand away. “Nooo…” she complains, covering her head with a pillow. “I barely slept last night.”“Bullshit, you went to bed at seven and kept me awake by imitating a chainsaw all damn night. The one who really deserves sleep is me!” I say, ripping the pillow from her face and watching as her face reddens.“That’
DimitriI watch the sun set over Paris and sigh, knowing this would be our final night here. Arya’s paintings and art have become world-renowned, and in that, we haven’t been able to focus much on ourselves. The last few years have been a whirlwind, so much so that we haven’t been able to focus on ourselves or starting a family together. Sure, everyone back home understands, and so do I, but I can’t help but feel a sliver of disappointment at where our lives have led us.I want a family with my mate; I want us to settle down and get our lives together. However, I can’t force this on Arya. But I know that I will need to speak with her about this soon. Even as my wolf knots her each time we make love, nothing has come of it. Is it my fault? Is my body too weak?A head leans against my back. “Hey, Mitya,” came the voice of my angel, alluring as usual. I turn around to face her, about to offer her a fake smile, when I see the tears in her eyes and her bottom lip trembling. “Arya, what-”
AryaWe couldn’t do much after Kai’s revelation last night. So now we’re all standing in the Hall of the Five, welcoming guests as if nothing is wrong. So far, I’ve met Alpha Bastien and his two mates, his sister, the beautiful Alpha Azura, Alpha Ryker and his Beta Ruin and Lilith’s half-brother, Alpha Fenriz, unfortunately without his Luna Marina.They all seemed lovely, but Caterina has asked me to not let my guard down, especially after what Kai told us yesterday. Ah, I suppose I should start calling him Alpha Kai from now on, hey?I look around the beautifully decorated hall and smile, knowing the other ladies’ hard work has paid off wonderfully. With its glass ceiling so the moonlight may shine through, the red and black drapes and candles adding to the colour scheme, Autumn flower arrangements and the marble floor with the Five’s symbol delicately embedded in gold.“Everything okay on this side?” Dimitri asks as he walks toward me. He’s looking quite dashing in a custom-made Tom
Arya/“Hey, Arya, are you up yet?”//“Come on, please tell us you’re awake already! It’s noon!”/My eyes flutter open to the voices booming in my head, and I groan, trying to drown them out with a pillow to my head.“Argh, go away!” I exclaim while holding the pillow to my face. “I wanna sleep! Leave me alone!”I hear Dimitri chuckling next to me, and then he pulls the pillow from my head while I can do nothing but protest. “I think the women want your attention, Princess,” he says, shaking his head.“But I’m exhausteeeed!” I pout, folding my arms. “How can they expect me to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed after spending my wedding night with a Volkov?”He laughs again, then gets up and straddles me with a mischievous look in his eyes. I can’t help but peek up at him and run my hands down his perfectly chiselled body.“Hmm,” I say appreciatively, and he rolls his eyes.“Get your ass out of bed, Princess; we have a long day ahead of us,” He says, then plants a kiss on my forehead and