Hey readers, Do let me know about your feedback in the comments. It'll help me understand how the story is going so far. Love you all <3 Author Hami
Ember’s POV:His hand lunged upward and clutched around my upper arm. His eyes were wide with madness and crazy rage. It was evident that rage had consumed him whole.His grip around my arm tightened. Searing pain rippled through my arm but he kept exerting force. The more pain I felt, the more content he seemed to be.I glanced down and saw his knuckles turning white whereas my arm was reddening.I looked back up into his scalding eyes. Jaw set tight, when he opened his mouth, his voice was dripping with hot venom, “I, Nicholus Dicaprio, the King of the North, refuse to accept your rejection, Ember Valdez.”I didn’t want to appear weak in front of him but I couldn’t take it anymore. At last, a whimper escaped my lips as the pain became unbearable.All of a sudden, the black of his eyes was replaced by a golden glow. Soon, they started to glow brightly. His wolf had surfaced as a result of my whimper. No matter the situation, the wolves can’t see their mate suffering.Slowly, his hold
Ember's POV: My heart was pounding erratically in my ribcage as I waited for his answer. His gaze was fixated on me and he was breathing through his nose. He opened his mouth twice to say something but he couldn't utter any word. After another little pause, he opened his mouth again and blurted out, "I want us to claim each other and complete the mate bond between us." Suddenly, a chuckle escaped my throat as soon as his words hit my ear. Laughing, I shook my head, "Are you even hearing yourself? Just how absurd your words are." I then stopped laughing and crossed my arms over my chest, "By the way, if I remember right, just a moment ago you made it pretty clear that making me your queen and Luna of your precious pack was nothing more than a disgrace for you. And now you are asking me to accept our mate bond? Are you out of your wits or is it me who's going crazy and hearing all sorts of things?" He answered in frustration, "Yes, it's true that I hate you, your father, and everyt
Ember’s POV:I mulled over his words again. Another thing besides ruthlessness, Alpha Nicholus was well-known for one other trait; that he was the man of his word. If he was promising me all those things then he’d never go against his words.And when I imagined it, it all felt like a beautiful dream. My heartbeat became irregular as it dawned on me that it could be a perfect escape from my chaotic life.I could just accept his proposal and leave with him to the cold lands covered with snow. I pictured us together, in front of a cozy fireplace, wrapped around each other’s arms, sharing a hot cup of coffee and mumbling about all the nonsense things.My heart started pounding in my chest and Aria pleaded with me, “Please, just say yes. We can just go to the North and build a beautiful life with our mate.”It all seemed too good to be true. Wasn’t that what girls craved for? The sense of security and peace? A man who could protect them from anything evil?But then, it was the moment of tr
Ember's POV: The next morning, I woke up sharp at 5 am to the blaring of alarm. And as soon as my eyes opened, my mind went back to the events of the last night and the conversation I had with my mate.A shudder ran down my spine as I recalled his words, 'I'll be back, Little Princess.' It was a promise. The one he was going to fulfill at any cost. I was still engrossed in the flashbacks of the last night when I heard a light knock on the door. I groaned inwardly as the door slid open and Ms. Tacy stepped inside with her little minions just like every morning. Making her way over to me, Ms. Tacy chirped, "Good Morning. How are you feeling today?" I mumbled under my breath, "As low as someone can feel." She leaned closer, "What? Did you say something?" Plastering a huge smile on my face, I croaked, "I said that I'm feeling as fresh as a daisy." Straightening up, she smiled brightly, "Perfect. Let's get ready for the day then." She tiptoed toward the bathroom to get a bath ready f
Ember's POV:Slowly, I turned around and faced my father, "Who is he?" That's all I asked because that was all I needed to know.He assessed me with evaluating eyes. I knew he was looking for my reaction to how I was going to perceive this new piece of information."Arnold Pierce," he uttered with a hint of finality.Keeping my face void of any reaction, I nodded, "The alpha of the DarkFur Pack.""He is perfect in every aspect," he informed me.I knew the meaning behind those words. By 'perfect', he meant that Alpha Arnold had a reputation good enough to be a part of our royal family but also foolish enough to serve as a puppet for my father."The engagement is next week. It'll be just a short ceremony for the sake of formality with..." he started blabbering.Not being able to take any more of his bullshit, I cut him off, "I'll be there."Before he could say anything in return, I was already making my way toward the exit.-----------That night when Sophie and I resigned to my private
Ember's POV:The next morning when I woke up, I found myself drenched in sweat. I tried to heave myself up but all of a sudden, I felt like my skull was splitting in half with the severe headache.I closed my eyes and stayed on the bed for a bit longer. Reaching to the back of my mind, I called my wolf, "Aria? What's happening to us? Are you okay?"All I knew was that something was wrong with me but I had no fucking clue whether it was related to me being a witch or was my wolf under threat? But it was bad. I could sense that.When a long minute passed and I got no response from Aria, I tried again, "Aria, where are..."I was interrupted as my bedroom doors flew open and Ms. Tacy tiptoed inside. As soon as her eyes landed on me, she gasped and rushed in my direction, "What happened? You don't seem okay to me."Assessing me with worried eyes, she pressed the back of her hand against my forehead and screeched, "You have a fever. Wait here, I'll alert the medical...""I'm fine," I blurted
Ember's POV:I peeked my eyes open and the first thing I saw was the white ceiling. A second later, Sophie’s cute little nostrils came into view as she leaned over me, “Oh, you are awake finally.”Worry was written all over her face as she inquired, “What happened?”I groaned while sitting up. I still had a lingering headache. Rubbing my forehead, I answered her question, “I don’t know what the fuck happened to me but I've been feeling so weak like I have no stamina or energy left in me.”Her forehead wrinkled, “That has never happened to you before.”I leaned my head against the headboard and sighed tiredly, “And that’s why I am so astonished.”The earlier events replayed in my mind. I shook my head and huffed out, “It’s a shame to faint like that in front of everyone, and that too after just two damn punches.”Suddenly, I noticed an IV catheter attached to the back of my hand. My gaze traveled up the tube and I saw an IV drip hanging there. Drop by drop, some clear liquid was drippi
Ember’s POV:Her first reaction, to my words was astonishment. Her second reaction was deep frowning, “What? How does that even make any sense?”I gripped my hair and pinched my eyes closed, “I don’t know. I just…I just thought that she was upset with me and showing tantrums that I didn’t have time for and…”“Wait wait wait…” Sophie cut me off mid-sentence and looked at me with utter confusion, “Now what do you mean by that?”Opening my eyes, I looked at her, “Mean what?”She waved her hand in the air, “Why would Aria be upset with you in the first place?” She paused and then continued, “I mean, you have always dominated her, and she had surrendered to you then what could have been the reason for her to be upset?”I opened my mouth, “I…umm…” and then clamped it shut. How could I tell her the reason? I didn’t want to confess to a single soul who my mate was.What could be more disgraceful for a future Queen than having a mate from the enemies, right? And that too the ruthless King of t
Ember's POV: When my mind processed everything and I came back to my senses, the first instinct was to comfort him but I resisted the urge to go after him. He was very angry and I didn't want to add fuel to his rage. Deciding to give him some time to cool off, I took off the bathrobe and changed into PJs. With slouched shoulders and a foul mood, I walked into the bedroom and flopped onto the bed. After such a hectic day, sleep kicked in the moment my body touched the mattress. The spot beside me was cold and empty. I missed his presence. I missed how he'd either spoon me or hug me. I missed sleeping to the sound of his heartbeat beside me. I forced my eyes open and decided to wait for him. I kept glancing at the clock. It struck 12, then 1, and then 2 before my already tired body couldn't take it anymore. With the thought of waking up in his arms, I finally drifted off to sleep. The next morning, I woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside the window. As soon as my eyes open
Ember's POV: After showering, I tied the bathrobe around myself and tiptoed toward the closet room. I was going through my PJs when the hair on the back of my neck stood taller. That always happened when he was nearby. Would my body ever get used to his proximity? He was lingering at the doorway, waiting for me to acknowledge his presence and when I didn't, he let out a deep sigh, "For how long are you going to keep ignoring me?" Not making any attempt to answer him, I kept sifting through the clothes in the almirah, pretending to be busy deciding what to wear. All of a sudden, a chill ran down my spine as he came up beside me, too near that I could feel his hot breath on my cold skin as he said tightly, "I am talking to you, Ember." Yanking the random PJ set out, I snapped sharply, "And can't you see I'm not interested in talking to you?" Slamming the almirah door shut, I jerked around. Without bothering to cast him a glance, I just walked around him. But I had just taken a ste
Ember's POV: During the entire ride, I kept my face toward the window, staring at the night lights as the car sped on the road. I could feel his unwavering stare boring holes in my back but I did nothing to acknowledge his presence. Apparently, the silent treatment was just not sitting right with him because he finally ended up opening our mindlink, "Are you okay?" I kept my face fixated on the window, too angry to answer him. How dare he behave like that? Carrying me over his shoulder as if I was some stubborn kid? And that too in front of everyone? Ridiculous! He waited for a few minutes and when I still didn't answer, he tried again, this some more gently, "Will you let me see your wounds? I need to make sure they're healing properly. I don't want them to catch any infection." Again, he was met with only silence. Was he not going to talk about how inappropriately he behaved or how rudely he talked to me? Maybe I was exaggerating but considering I'd never imagined him talking t
Ember's POV: The world seemed to slow down around me but at the same time, everything felt to be happening in the fast motion, way too quick to process properly. In my peripheral vision, I saw a guard lunging forward but before he could even reach us, another rebel gripped him by the throat and yanked him away. I choked as the blood gushed out of my throat. With trembling hands, I managed to grip his wrist and tried to wriggle myself out of his death-like grip. But all my efforts were in vain. He was strong. Way too strong for me to take down. I tried to use my hypnotizing power on him but because of my weakening strength and loss of consciousness, I was unable to muster up the magic. Blood rushed to my ears and soon, all I could hear was a loud ringing and nothing else. Tears welled up in my eyes and my vision blurred. My eyes were fixated on the demonic, creepy smile stretched over his face as he relished in my misery. But the very next moment, I frowned slightly as I saw his
Ember's POV:My mind was too shocked to register the sudden turn of events. I and Darius jerked our heads toward each other at the same moment and the next thing I heard was his ear-piercing scream, "Protect the Queen!"All of a sudden, someone gripped my wrist in a death-like grip. My gaze shot down to see fingers clasping around my wrist. I was just about to lift my gaze when my head whirled toward the door as the loud banging erupted in the air before someone yelled from the other side, "Open the damn door, Samuel." Someone else screamed, "How dare you invite the daughter of the enemy into your pack house? Are you declaring a war against us?"Samuel turned to his wife. He was no longer looking like a sweet old man I had a great time chatting with earlier. Instead, he looked every bit of a deadly warrior as he commanded Luna, "Take Queen and the girls to the safety bunkers. You must protect her at every cost, Carolina."The hold around my wrist instantly tightened before suddenly ya
Ember's POV:Darius stayed by my side as we took a quick tour of the packhouse before settling in the living room. After a few minutes of talking about random things, a maid strolled inside with a rolling tray laden with a kettle, cups, and all sorts of desserts.“Aw, Carolina, you didn’t have to do so much. Only tea would have been enough,” I said with awe.She shook her head, “You requested us not to arrange for the lunch. Even though we wanted to but we decided to respect your request. So, please enjoy the tea.”Pouring the tea in the cup, the maid placed it on the table in front of me before picking a plate, “What desserts you want me to serve you, Your Highness?”Sliding forward, I grabbed the plate from her hand and smiled up at her, “It’s okay, dear. I’ll serve myself.”She went still for a moment before finally straightening up, “Sure, Your Highness.”My mouth watered as I greedily eyed all the pastries, donuts, custard pies, and fruit tarts. I was about to pick the chocolate
Ember’s POV:As soon as I stepped out of the castle, I came to a sudden halt while gasping aloud.With wide eyes and a shocking voice, I screeched, “What the hell is happening here?” while pointing at dozens of black SUVs parked outside with almost half of the North army standing guard beside them, ready to hop in at their Alpha’s command.Nicholus raised his eyebrow as if there was nothing ridiculous going on, “I only agreed to this plan of yours because you agreed to go with high security, remember?”I sucked in a sharp breath, “I definitely didn’t think you were talking about this ‘high security,’” I groaned while waving my hand toward the guards.Nicholus took a deep breath and twisted his neck, “You refused to take me along with you. If I’m not going, then they’d all go instead.”I rubbed the back of my neck, already tired of discussing the matter for infinite times, and gritted out through clenched teeth, “In case you forgot, let me remind you again of the purpose of my visit. I
Ember's POV: The next morning, I woke up with Nicholus's arm wrapped around me. As I tried to wriggle out of his hold, he squirmed in his sleep and tightened his hold, "Mmhmm, where are you going?" I glanced over my shoulder at his adorable, groggy eyes he was squinting at me with. "I have to go," I replied. He groaned, unhappy with the answer, "No, don't go anywhere. Just stay here and give me morning cuddles."At that, I burst out laughing loudly, "People would call me crazy if I'd ever tell them that the ruthless alpha of the North just said those cheesy words to me."Moving his hand to my bottom, he spanked my ass playfully, "You naughty, little princess, why would you tell anyone about what happens in our bedroom?"I giggled under my breath, "Good thing that the room is soundproof or otherwise I wouldn't need to 'tell' them about what exactly happens in our bedroom."Snuggling closer, he licked my earlobe and whispered roughly, "Yeah, because your loud screams and hot moans wou
Ember's POV:Knowing that I had a long day ahead, I hit the bed earlier than usual. I just wanted to restore my energy to appear fresh and energetic while making my first public appearance.But despite everything from lighting the candles with soothing aromas to drinking the herbal tea, I was unable to find sleep. Hours passed and I still found myself tossing and turning on the bed as restlessness zinged inside me.There was a ball of nervousness inflating inside my belly as I thought about tomorrow. Even though after careful consideration, we've shortlisted the smallest and most welcoming pack for our first visit I just couldn't help thinking about the worst outcome.I was snapped out of my thoughts when I heard the door creaking open. I glanced over my shoulder to find Nicholus closing the door behind him.As he turned around, a slight frown appeared between his brows, "Why are you still up? Is everything okay?" I caught a hint of worry in his voice as his eyes roamed over all over