Willow
I could smell the savory scent of the roast cooking in the oven, making my stomach protest loudly and reminding me that I had consumed little since yesterday morning, like I needed the prompt. Hopefully, I would be able to secret away some scraps after I had cleaned up the dinner party occurring later this evening.
Zeke watched on with disdain as I struggled to lift the bucket of vegetables onto the counter, an action that should have been beyond easy for a werewolf like me.
Sadly, my life had not been easy here in the Southern Province, notwithstanding my initial high hopes.
Zeke's daily abuse, combined with my near starvation and tremendous workload, had left me weak and unable to defend myself.
Even so, somehow in the face of the weight loss caused by meager rations, my generous hips and bust line had managed to linger.
Hell, I couldn’t even heal myself properly anymore, but that might’ve been a side effect of being prevented from shifting on a regular basis. My wolf had started to dwindle slowly, but it was getting to the point that I could barely sense her presence at times.
I flinched when Zeke sauntered closer and shrunk away from his imposing demeanor before I could stop myself.
Regrettably, he chose that moment to slink up behind me and grab my ass, a common gesture for him. I jerked away, and the unexpected action caused me to lose my precarious balance on the bucket as a result.
The vegetables went tumbling towards the floor as I unsuccessfully tried to abscond from out of his arm range.
Zeke's left hand snaked out and clamped down on my wrist like a vise, no doubt leaving another mark that would take hours to heal in the process.
I didn’t even see his right hand coming until it was too late. He smashed his large palm into the side of my face with a bruising force, causing me to skid back a step from the pure power of the blow.
It took me a minute to get my bearings as he continued berating me all the while, and I tasted the familiar coppery trace of blood as I swallowed with a grimace.
"You stupid bitch! Look what you’ve done now. Dinner had better be done before they arrive, and I don’t want to see your ugly face again until they’re gone!"
He bit out the last part with a disgusted look on his face before stomping out of the room without sparing me a backward glance, but I wasn’t about to protest.
I dropped to the floor, picking up the scattered carrots and potatoes as Zeke stormed out. I didn’t bother responding to him anymore, knowing it only served to increase his ire and my suffering in the long run.
As I gathered the fallen vegetables and began to wash, peel, and prepare them, I endeavored to shake off the pain and lingering disgust caused by Zeke's unwanted touch.
I thanked Luna for the millionth time that groping was the worst of it in that regard.
Zeke may treat me deplorably and lash out whenever the mood struck, but he had never crossed that line. I was not sure what stopped him. But I was grateful for whatever it was, and I did not intend to question it too thoroughly, not about to look a gift horse in the mouth.
I lost myself in the task of preparing the dining room and finishing dinner, one of the chores that I would probably have enjoyed if Zeke had not forced me to cook for him and all the other unmated warriors practically every day that I had been stuck in this purgatory.
Right as I was setting the last dish on the table, I was startled out of my daze by the noisy knocking that echoed from the direction of the front door.
Thump, thump, thump!
I knew I would catch hell for it later if Zeke deemed even one thing below his impossibly high standards, not that he would get off his lazy ass to do anything himself.
Gazing around the spacious room in response, I triple checked that every detail was up to par before I departed.
The large rectangular table was eye-catching, taking center stage under a beautiful crystal chandelier that brought out the rich tones in the mahogany-colored surface. It seemed to make the silver utensils sparkle more than they had even after I’d polished them earlier.
The wonderful aroma of the feast I had prepared bathed the air, making me think about the buttery potatoes and the piquant...
Thump, thump, thump!
Another round of loud pounding on the door sent me dashing off to my room, though calling it a room was being generous, before the visiting alphas caught a glimpse of me, and I had to deal with Zeke again.
At length, I let out a deep breath that I didn’t realize I had been holding as I leaned against the shut door of my domain. It was not much to speak of, but it was mine.
The storage room came equipped with a ratty old, twin-sized mattress on the floor that took up most of the space, and a wooden shelf that held my precious few belongings. I was relieved when I noticed them resting exactly where I had placed them last. At least Zeke had left my space alone today.
I sank down onto the mattress as I allowed my gaze to rove over the rest of the sparse room. I recollected back to the day that I had first opened my eyes after the attack. Everything had been so different then.
Zeke had been warm and welcoming, in stark contrast to what I now knew his temperament was genuinely like.
He had apologized that his warriors were unable to prevent harm from befalling me, but he had also hastened to assure me that I would be perfectly safe and well taken care of here in the South.
It seemed like I had finally made it to the promised safe haven after all of the heartbreak and strife that I had been forced to endure with only my wolf for company throughout my grueling journey.
What a joke. If only I had known what alone truly meant then.
Willow Two Years Earlier... Sure, everything was great at first. I awoke in a spacious room with a soft, fluffy bed cushioning my body. I could feel that my injuries had mostly healed, and I noticed that I was clean, wearing some sort of nightgown. It was concerning that someone had touched me while I was incapacitated, but I guessed I was thankful for the clothes and comfy bed. Yet, I became more alarmed when it became clear the garment that I was provided with was sheer, lacy, and did not leave much to the imagination. I attempted to take stock of my surroundings, but I summarily concluded that the room was unnaturally dark before much time had elapsed. Even my wolf’s superior eyesight had been unable to discern anything in the blackness. I was interrupted by someone opening the door. The light at their back provided a silhouette that casted their face in shadows, but it was obvious by the bulky shape that this newcomer was male. Shrinking back into the covers and clenching a p
Willow Still Two Years Earlier… When I awoke an undefined amount of time later, I gazed around the room to ensure I was alone before doing anything else, noticing as I did so that I could now see the details of the room without the aid of Zeke’s remote to turn up the lights. Sighing in relief, I sagged back into the fluffy pillows and sank down further into the velvety covers. Even so, I popped right back up just as swiftly as I realized why I had awoken in the first place. I really had to pee! My eyes darted around the room, looking for a door that might lead to a bathroom, scrambling out of bed when I noticed two doorways on my right. I tried the one closest to me, but I was disappointed to find a walk-in closet instead of the restroom that I desperately needed at this point. I speed walked towards the other door, praying it was the bathroom and rushing in at the first glimpse that I caught of a tub. Yes! I took care of business and then permitted myself to look around the room
Willow Still Two Years Earlier… Zeke’s face soured as his grip on me constricted infinitesimally more. I tried not to show my discomfort, but it became impossible as he proceeded to recklessly grope my curves with abandon. I shoved against him with the little force that I still possessed and successfully managed to continue resisting his advances, at least for the time being. I prayed that he would not try to take my innocence anyway. I did not know how well I would fare against him, but I knew I sure as hell was not going to just roll over and give up either. He snarled directly in my face before saying, "You can let me make you feel good and take care of you or you won't like what happens next. The choice is yours." My mind raced as his words filtered through, but I stammered out, "B... But you are supposed to provide shelter to those fleeing the other provinces. The town elders said I would be safe here! You cannot do this! You are not my mate. I do not want you." Zeke releas
Jax I ran my fingers through my hair, a common gesture for me when I was stressed, as I thumped my knuckles against the sturdy wooden door. I was feeling antsy all of a sudden. I had been traveling over the last month to meet with Asher, Alpha of the Eastern Province, and Reese, Alpha of the Western Province. After we had finally driven the bears from our lands, we took some time to assess the overall damage caused to our people by the war before making our next move. Most of the homesteads could and would be rebuilt and were already in the process, but our warriors seemed to have one overarching need throughout all of our territories: mates. Our men were looking to rebuild their lives after the devastating losses we suffered early on during the war. We simply were not prepared for the onslaught of the bears' full force attack that soon. We thought we had time to get our loved ones to safety and gather our troops. We were wrong. We lost a lot of good wolves during that time, my par
Jax I paused for a moment at the door, noticing the tantalizing scent again, but the feeling continued to exacerbate so I shuffled out the door after the other two males, completely ignoring any comment Zeke may have made in protest. The scent faded the further I walked from the house, and I had this odd urge to go back, like I had forgotten something. I pushed the feeling away and caught up with the other two. We continued walking down the path in silence for a while, me savoring my brownie while Asher shot me a pleading look, knowing Zeke would be able to hear us with his sensitive ears. Finally, Reese broke the silence once we were far enough away not to be overheard. "So, you want to tell us what all of that was about? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I agree with that everything you said, but you kind of rushed out of there. In fact, it looked like something was bothering you all night." Reese stated. We continued talking as we walked down the rough-hewn path towards our dwellings
Willow I was startled awake by Zeke slamming open the door. I moved as far away from the raging alpha as possible, feeling very disoriented by the stark difference between my reality and my dream. I was having one of the best dreams I could recall ever having in my life. I tried to hold on to the feeling as long as possible or to remember even some small shred of my happiness, but the details were slipping away as the seconds ticked by. Zeke stomped into the room, kicking my shelf into the wall in his anger. Crack! The shelf splintered and pieces went flying. I had already curled up into a ball when Zeke pushed his way into the room, but I ducked my head down just in time. A large chunk of wood hit the wall right where my head had just been. Zeke yelled, "This is your fault. What am I supposed to do now?" As he continued stomping around the room, muttering under his breath. I remained cowered against the wall, knowing nothing I said or did would help. I did not even know what h
Jax I awoke slowly, hearing the sounds of the forest surrounding me. I rolled over in bed, noticing the sun was just beginning to shine through the slits in the fabric of the curtains. The sight did not surprise me. It did not matter where I was or how late I had stayed up the night before, I always rose with the sun. Some days, I wished I could sleep in just a little longer, but today was not one of those days. I must admit, we were shocked when Zeke informed us, we would not be staying in the pack house, as tradition demanded for visiting alphas. He rushed to assure us that he had acquired us private dwellings so that we could relax and conduct any business we may need while we stayed in the South. He said he thought we would prefer it this way after the turmoil of the war. We questioned his choice, but I knew I was grateful for it last night after my first experience meeting the guy. Even so, I did enjoy the sound of nature all around me while waking up, and it was nice not spe
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