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Chapter 33
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A Time for Strength Chapter 34
Lenora’s POV 3 MONTHS LATER “Hey, Lenora.” Ashley’s voice rings in my mind. “Hey, what’s up?” “Just checking to see if you are still on the phone.” “Nope. Signing invoices.” “Good.” She says as she opens the door. Carly is behind her holding a plate of cupcakes. There are lit candles on each one. “Happy birthday tooooooo yooouuuu….” They sing with shit-eating grins on their faces. “Oh, you bitches.” I roll my eyes. Ashley grabs my chair and rolls it to the sitting area with me still in it, as my best friends continue to serenade me. They sit on the floor, watching me expectantly when they finish. “Make a wiiiiiiiish, neeerrrd.” Ashley says in her sing-song voice. “I wish something to go right. Just one thing, because a couple hours to relax would be sublime.” I close my eyes and blow out the candles. I leave my eyes closed for a moment. What if I open them and the world goes to shit? It wouldn’t surprise me, actually. “Is it your birthday too, Justice?” “No. Time was d
A Time for Strength Chapter 35
“How the fuck did Snell get on pack territory?!” My anger bubbles over. “No one called out an alert?! We have protocols for a reason!” “Luna, we removed three sections of broken fencing. His wolf ran through before we replaced the last piece.” A landscaper bows. “We alerted guards, but he had a mile head start on them.” “We didn’t know who it was, Luna. We thought it was just another rogue.” The guard steps forward. “That’s why we only sent a small team. If we thought he was important, we would have called for a lockdown.” “Well, guess what? He was important. So lock it the fuck down!” I point to the ground, unable to contain my rage. “NOW! Quit standing around! GO!” All the work to keep this pack safe goes to shit because a guard doesn’t think it’s important to follow procedures? Seriously. What’s next? The guard’s eyes haze over as the medical team arrives. I go to the medics to explain what I saw while they examine Clash. I stroke his face and murmur reassuring words as they p
A Time for Strength Chapter 36
“Hi Milo, can I help you with something?” I step around and lean on the desk in front of him. 'I just saw Ashley in the hall. She mentioned you updated your Friday schedule.” “Oh yeah. She’s taking tonight’s shift so you and I can spend time together.” I feel my cheeks flush. “Well thennnn, I was wondering if I could take you on a date? Like, a real one. In town. Not the dining room with hundreds of our pack mates. Rogue activity is basically non-existent. So, you know, it’s safe.” “I guess that’s true.” “You better say yes,” Justice hisses at me. “Pizza and a movie? Casual. I mean, if you want.” Milo’s face is beat red. He’s embarrassed? He’s certainly flustered. “Um, sure.” I look down at my desk. Ashley scribbled a little heart on the blotter paper with an L+M in the middle. This could really work, right? He is my mate, after all. Ashley and Marco are right. I need to at least give him a chance. “I… I’d like that.” “Sick.” He mumbles under his breath, then gives me a lopsid
A Time for Strength Chapter 37
“I’ve never been here before.” I look around the quaint pizza shop. The walls have movie posters from the seventies and eighties with two arcade machines in the back. I vaguely recognize the music playing. It’s upbeat and inviting. “This place has the best wings. They are killer hot, but delicious.” He pulls my chair out and waits for me to sit before he sits across from me. “Better than Mrs. Miller’s? Because her homemade wing sauce is preeeetty sick.” I raise an eyebrow at him. "Ahhh… I see what you did there. Hilarious. Alright, we’ll get an order. You’ll see.” He puts his finger up and flags down a waitress. The human girl looks like she’s about my age. “Milo! Where have you been, hon?” She bounces up to us happily. “Hey, Rita.” He gives her a warm smile. “How have you been?” I bite the corner of my lip and swallow back the jealousy Justice is trying to overwhelm me with. “She’s not a threat, Justice.” “I don’t like it.” She warns. “He’s our mate.” I lace my fingers and w
A Time for Strength Chapter 38
My eyes snap open, startled by the backfire of a passing car. Milo’s eyes turn black and Ghost pulls me to the ground, completely covering me with a deep growl. “My gun?” Milo hulks over me. He pats his body down with one hand while he holds me with the other. “They took my gun.” “What? Milo, your gun is in the armory.” I press against him. “It was just a car backfiring. Come on, let me up.” “They took my knife. Shit. They took my fucking knife.” He becomes more panicked. “Hold on, Bronx. They took my knife, too. I’ve got you.” “What knife are you talking about?” I feel confused. “Bronx? No. Wait, Milo!” “There’s a foxhole twenty yards to the west. We’ll be safe there.” He secures his arm around me, hooking his thumb in my armpit. “Hang in there, bro.” Foxhole? Oh shit. I ignored all the signs that there could be a problem. The fidgeting, the distracted blank stare, being startled by a glass on the table. “Milo, I’m Lenora, not Bronx. There’s no foxhole, Babe. We’re downtown.”
A Time for Strength Chapter 39
Justice’s POV“Ghost, are you okay, my darling?” I didn’t intend to barrel into him, but I had to stop him, not just corral him to pack territory as Lenora requested.“You’re my mate?” Ghost takes a step back. He seems confused. I hope he didn’t hit his head in the collision.“Yes. I’m Justice.” I lower my head and step closer. “I’m your mate. Did I hurt you?”“No. I was… I got disoriented trying to protect Milo.” He looks at me through his handsome dark gray eyes. His expression changes from perplexed and guarded to one of perception. He accepts my display of submission by resting his chin between my ears for a moment, then lies down in front of me. “You’re beautiful. And you’re different too? Older? I can sense it.”“Is Milo listening? This conversation needs to be between the two of us.”“No, I forced him back to safeguard him from thinking we were in danger.” He lowers his head. “War broke us. We’re still figuring out how to live now that we’re home. The doctor is trying to help u
A Time for Strength Chapter 40
Lenora’s POV When Justice and Ghost got home, Milo was still disoriented. He tried to fight Bronx and Reggie. Thank the Goddess they were able to subdue him with no one getting hurt. When Milo was finally lucid, he begged to come home. Staying in the hospital wing seemed like a fate worse than death. The doctors left the decision up to me. I couldn’t bear the thought of my mate being confined to the hospital wing again. Yeah, he still has nightmares, but I’ve always been able to talk him through that. What happened downtown was because of a specific trigger. Ghost was trying to protect Milo. Justice calmed her wolf mate down and convince him to come home, just like Doctor Stanton said. A nurse came to our apartment. Milo tried to protest taking the pill, but she explained the other option was a night in the hospital wing. They compromised and gave him half a pill to help him sleep. She left the other half to give him if he needed it. I tiptoe into the bathroom, leaving the door op
A Time for Strength Chapter 41
I swallow hard when I notice how close Milo's mouth is to mine. “I-I should get to bed, Milo. I have to be up early. I wasn’t able to get morning drills planned.” “Maybe when you wake up, it’ll be done for you.” He lets his lips brush against the corner of my mouth. “Like magic.” “Milo…” His lips trace over my cheek while he breathes in my scent, sending shivers up my spine. What was I going to say? Does it matter? “Are you scared of me, Lenora?” His hands caress my hips with fingers that feel like feathers. “I’m not scared of anything.” When did I wrap my legs around him? “What if I tell you I get a little… bitey when I get excited?” Milo nuzzles my cheek and chomps his sharp teeth. His voice is deeper and scratchy, and his fingers have razor-like claws against my hips. “Would that scare you?” “Ghost, if you try to mark me, we’re going to have a problem.” I whisper in his ear. “You don’t want me to mark you?” “Not until our marriage ceremony.” I lean back and gaze into his d
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