LOGINAbby’s POV Before I could figure out who it was, the scent of dark woods and cedar drifted into my nose.My entire body prickled as the familiar scent surrounded me.Hayden.Carla whimpered inside me, instantly sensing Rey nearby.Derek pulled away from the hug, completely unaware of the presence lurking nearby.I slowly turned toward the direction of the scent, but there was no one in sight. Still, I knew he was somewhere nearby.Maybe he thought he could stay hidden. But there was no hiding his scent from his mate.“What is it?” Derek asked, following my gaze.I smiled and rubbed my arms. “Nothing.”He nodded, his gaze settling back on me.Then he spoke again.“I'll be leaving for Australia tomorrow. I have some pack duties waiting for me.”“Oh.” I nodded. “No problem.”He didn't say anything else.His arm slipped around my shoulders. “Come on. Enough standing out here in the sun.”With that, we walked back inside the house together, only to be met with beautiful chaos.The twins w
Abby’s POV “She's upstairs. Still sleeping,” Maggie replied.Relief washed over me. But Maggie's expression still didn't sit right with me. “Then… what happened?” I pressed.She explained that Asher had woken up nearly an hour ago and had practically driven her crazy, insisting he wanted to come looking for me.I couldn't help but chuckle as I looked at my little joy giver, who now stood there looking far too innocent to have caused so much trouble.“Sweetie.” I ruffled his hair. “I told you I was going out last night, remember? I promised I'd be back before you woke up.”He folded his tiny arms and pouted.“You break promise.”“You're right.” I nodded. “I broke my promise. I'm so sorry, sweetheart. Mommy's really sorry, huh. Will you forgive me?”Instead of answering, he looked past me at Hayden.“You like my Mommy?”I blinked, caught off guard by the sudden question. Then I remembered. This wasn't the first time. Either he or Amy had asked Hayden the same thing before.“Very, very
Abby's POV The night passed in a silent but peaceful moment. Hayden barely let me go. Even in his sleep, his arms remained wrapped around me, like some part of him was afraid I would disappear the moment he loosened his hold.Every time I somehow drifted away from him in my sleep, I'd unconsciously feel his arms pulling me right back against his warm chest.I didn't mind.In fact...I loved it.But when I finally woke up, the space beside me was empty.My heart jumped a second thinking everything had been a dream.But his scent still lingering on my skin and the sheets reassured me.It wasn't a dream.I got out of bed.“Hayden?” I checked the bathroom, but he wasn’t there, so I decided to go downstairs.I heard his cough from the kitchen and I headed there only to be met with a shock.Smoke everywhere.“What the hell?!”My eyes landed on the burnt pieces scattered across the counter.Was that supposed to be pancakes?I looked back at him.His hair was messy, sweat covered his forehe
Abby’s POV I barely had time to gasp before strong arms wrapped around my waist and yanked me back to the surface.The next thing I knew, I was coughing against Hayden's shoulder as he lifted me onto the poolside.“Are you okay?” His blue eyes searched mine frantically.I blinked, still trying to catch my breath.“My... phone.”For a second, I expected him to scold me for jumping into the pool when I couldn't even swim.Instead, he turned and dove back into the water.A few moments later, he resurfaced with my phone in his hand.“It's useless now.” He held it up, water dripping from it. “Better to get another one.”My mood dropped instantly.“I'll lose some important things on that phone.”“I think what you should be concerned about right now is yourself.” His gaze moved over me briefly before he looked away. “You'll catch a cold if you don't get out of those wet clothes.”My brain finally caught up.I looked down at myself.The fabric of my clothes had become almost transparent, the
Abby’s POV Just as the maid had told me, I found Hayden shirtless by the pool, looking lost in thought.For a moment, all my anger vanished.I simply stood there watching him, looking so harmless and almost cute that I almost forgot I'd come here to give him a piece of my mind.Then he suddenly stood, as though he'd just remembered something important.He turned.My arms were already crossed, my glare fixed on him.His blue eyes met mine.The dumbfounded look that crossed his face was so satisfying that I almost smiled.Almost.He stared at me for a few seconds before my name finally slipped from his lips, sounding almost like a plea.“Abby…”“I'd been standing there for over two minutes. If it had been an enemy, you wouldn't have noticed?” I shot back. “You'd be finished.”His face softened.“No one could get past my security easily.”I gave him a look. But I didn't bother asking why he'd told the security to let me in whenever I came.“Even at that.” I shrugged. “Aren’t Alphas supp
Abby’s POV I stood there watching Hayden leave after telling Father he wasn't staying tonight.I couldn't help the pang of disappointment, or maybe pain… or whatever it was I felt at that moment, knowing he wouldn't be here.He hadn't even bothered to ask what I thought before making the decision.He'd followed me here. He'd promised to keep my children safe…Of course they were safe. I knew that.But I couldn't just explain why the thought of spending the night here without him suddenly bothered me so much.I hated admitting it, but it was what it was.Maggie was saying something beside me, but I wasn't listening anymore.My feet were already carrying me toward the entrance. I wanted to confront him, but before I could make it outside, his car was already pulling away.Something tightened in my throat, and I quickly blinked away the tears threatening my eyes.“Oh, Abby. Get hold of yourself,” I muttered quickly, surprised by my own reaction.When I got back inside, Father walked up
Abby’s POVI woke with a sharp gasp, only for panic to slam into me.My hands were tied behind the chair. My ankles too. Thick rope bit into my skin. I tried to scream, but a gag muffled the sound, reducing it to a broken whimper.The place reeked of dust and decay. Cobwebs clung to the walls, thic
Abby’s POVRuby glanced at me, clearly not interested in what Alex was saying over the phone. I wasn’t either, especially now that he mentioned Hayden. They might be trying to manipulate Ruby just to get to me.“Hello, Ruby? Are you still there?” Alex’s voice came again.Ruby took the phone from me
Alex's POV“Hayden… don’t do anything stupid!”I blocked his path, but my strength was no match for his. He shoved me aside and stormed out.By the time I scrambled to my feet, he was already gone.I ran after him, but his car was already pulling out of the hotel driveway by the time I burst outsid
Abby’s POV “Abby… Nathan is an old, loyal pack member,” Alex said, shaking his head. “He can’t…”“I overheard them,” I cut in. “Nathan and Valentina. Talking about my pregnancy being Hayden’s. They’re working together.”Alex stiffened.“When I went to Nathan’s office, I saw the evidence,” I contin







