LOGINAUTHOR'S POVMarco's eyes went to the floor and then he bent to pick it up. The pink dildo sat in his open palm. "Oh," he eyed it with a slight smile and then he looked at Ezra. "I didn't know you were into this kind of thing."Ezra gulped, his ears had turned red due to embarrassment. He crossed the room and grabbed it from Marco's open palm. He quickly stuffed it back into the bag and zipped it off. "This is a misunderstanding. Cole must have put it in my bag on purpose."Marco's eyes twitched in amusement. "Cole? Hmm, I like your friend." "It doesn't matter. You also came in without knocking. Where are your manners?" Ezra asked, tactfully redirecting the conversation and Marco just went ahead with it. "Yeah, about that...I am sorry. It won't happen again. I wanted to give you this." He held out the blanket that was over his arm. "The nights get cold here so I thought you might need it." Ezra took it and nodded. "Thank you." "I think that will be all. Please,
EZRA'S POVThe first thing I noticed was that the border crossing had no gate at all. There was no check point, guard post or even an architecture of control that announced where one territory ended and another began. There was simply just a road that changed quality beneath the wheel. The air got warmer.Marco was driving with one hand on the wheel and the other massaging his head. He had been quiet for a while after sensing that I wasn't interested in conversation. He had purposely chosen to drive us rather than board a plane because he wanted me to see the 'beauty' that Valden had. "The outer districts first." He finally spoke for the first time in a while. "Then the centre. You'll understand the difference when you see it." He added boastful I looked out the window. Truly, the outer district of Valden Kingdom had a specific quality that I couldn't stop looking at. The buildings were lower than Caldenmoor's, more spread out, designed around open space rather than vertically
EZRA'S POV "You've gotten very good with words, Ezra." Caius joined and then Riven, and suddenly all four of them were there on my screen. "I learned from the best I guess." I giggled. Their presence did something in my chest. It made my mark warm, the bond settling into a fuller register. The comfort was something that I needed right at this point. I looked at all of them and felt guilty about what I was planning. I ought to carry them along. I remembered how mad they were the last time I kept the stalker issue away from them and now I was doing it again. I just couldn't help myself. "I missed you, Ezra." Riven confessed and kissed me through the air. "I missed you too...all of you." I answered. "I think I should come over again." Riven said and my eyes widened. Cole and I made eye contact quickly before I faced them back on the screen. "Yeah...I was just talking about that. Don't come for a few more days. Cole and I won't be around all the time so..."
EZRA'S POVCole didn't move from the doorway. He was still standing there with his arms at his sides. He appeared as if he was still trying to process the information I had given him. "You're not kidding?" He said after a while of silence. "No." He stepped back and let me in. He closed the door after me and turned around. He walked to and from the spot with one hand covering his mouth and another on his waist. "Okay, first of all, you have to tell me everything that happened on that visit." I didn't hold back anything. I explained my fears and also about Vera. I also mentioned how she still doubted Caelen. With each revealing sentence I made, Cole was confused. His expression switched from apprehension to surprise to many other emotions. When I finished, he sat on the couch and looked at the ceiling for a moment. "It's too similar to ignore." I said. "I know how it sounds. I don't know if it could be what I am thinking but..." I sighed and slumped next to him. "Th
EZRA'S POV "Do you have a picture of Vlyn?" I asked. "I don't have any on my phone. I misplaced it but I should have some back at the pack house but it is likely to be a drawing. Vlyn was never a big fan of taking pictures. She preferred to have herself drawn instead." She smiled faintly as if relishing her memories. "Anytime you come to Valden, I will find it and show you. Then you can get to know her place as well." She assured me. I bit my lips, thinking about what seemed to be a tempting offer for me. If I never had a chance to go to Valden, this was a perfect opportunity for me to do so. "Right now, I could have made a mistake blurting out that she was your mother. It is not a strange thing that two people can have similar features and not be related at all. So forgive me if my words did increase your emotions in a negative way." She stared at me intensely and I gulped. The thoughts of finding something as close as this in finding my mother made my belly turn.
EZRA'S POVI left for the location Marco had sent me with the help of a map but on getting there, the place had no houses at all. Just shops. I was a bit confused and was about to dial his number again when he pulled up in his car and wound down the window. "Come in." Oh.I blinked for a few seconds, letting the realisation of what was happening to settle on me before I managed to take a step forward. I opened the door and entered. "This place doesn't look like your house."He smiled, "Yeah. About that...I know you said you didn't want me to pick you up but my place is a bit complicated and I just felt it was better I did it this way."I sighed gently and turned my face away. For a moment, I felt like he tricked me. Throughout the journey, I never glanced at him or said a word. I knew Marco still had feelings about me but I never saw him that way and I would never. Seeing as some things wouldn't let us depart from each other fully, I just needed to learn how to manage myself
DORIAN'S POV. The black ice had no business being as beautiful as it was. That was the only thought I didn't say out loud because it was the kind of observation that served no practical purpose. Draven Stadium, a place that we've owned for more than two years, was the perfect place for us to prac
EZRA'S POV The footage had been running for about what? Forty minutes before I realized I was yet to blink. I reached up quickly and pressed two fingers against my right eye, just to confirm if I could still blink. I didn't want things going wrong when I was this close to my goals.Luckily for me,
EZRA'S POVFOUR MONTHS LATER"Ezra! Ezra, that pass in the third, bro, where did that even come from?""Just saw the opening," I shrugged. "Just saw the opening?" Cole repeated, throwing his arm around my neck and nearly taking me off balance. "Listen to this guy. Just saw the opening. You made Pe
DORIAN'S POV"The Harlow acquisition closes Friday," Caelan said, not looking up from his desk. "I need you in the Geneva office by Thursday morning at the latest.""I'll be there Wednesday night." I flipped to the next page of the report in my hand. "The Aldren contract is the bigger issue right n







