Aphrodite I sighed contentedly as I admired the soft glow of the moon from my open window, its milky rays spilling across the windowsill, and the steady rhythm of Asher's heartbeat lulled me towards sleep.He held me so close, his fingers drawing lazy circles on my back as I stared ahead, deep in thought.“You're curious, aren't you? I know you have so many questions. I can feel it through our bond,” he murmured. I blinked slowly, clearing the haze of my thoughts, and looked up at him with my chin resting on his broad chest. He stared down at me, waiting for my response.“Yes. I'm curious how you found out I was a Devil Wolf and about the low possibility of me having children,” I murmured. He hummed, swallowing as he held me closer.“I suspected for a while," he began softly, "but I only found out when Sophia poisoned your necklace.” I gasped in realisation of his words; that must be why the poison didn't do as much damage as it did to Hilda.He paused, brushing a strand of hair away
Aphrodite I sat by my windowsill, staring into the mysterious woods that remained undisturbed by the ills of this world. The tree branches swayed gently in the wind, which caressed my cheeks.I sighed in contentment as I inhaled the sweet morning air, the rays of sunshine casting a warm glow over my fingers resting on the rim of the window.I jumped in surprise when droplets of water fell over my skin and gasped, turning back to see a wet Asher smiling down at me. He had a white towel wrapped around his waist while his dark hair dripped water over his hard chest as he hovered over me.I squealed when he shook his head again, droplets from his hair spraying across my face.“Asher,” I whined playfully, and he chuckled, leaning down and pulling my body flush against his.“You're going to get me wet,” I complained, and he smirked down at me mischievously.“Am I? Can I see for myself?” He rumbled in a deep baritone that sent heat travelling down south instantly, and I gasped.“Not here,”
Asher I narrowed my eyes at him, but his gaze was fixed on my mate, staring at her with a condescending air. It made my blood boil with anger, but I held back from lashing out. I bit down on my tongue so hard that I tasted blood and clenched my fists until they turned white.“She’s not a bitch, Father. She’s my mate. Show some respect,” I growled, my eyes flashing with anger.Father's gaze flicked to our joined hands, his expression hardening at the sight of my mother's ring on Aphrodite's finger.“Respect? You threw away a perfectly good alliance for her,” he sneered, taking a slow drag from his cigar.“What you did yesterday has cost us an important alliance, and the only way you would marry this woman is over my dead body,” he seethed, and I scoffed.“Look at her. She was your matchmaker, and now she's your mate,” he chuckled dryly, his eyes devoid of mirth.“I don't smell her rank. Are you sure she's not just a conniving bitch using you for your power?” He snapped, his eyes zeroi
Aphrodite: The past week with Asher has been spent in ignorant bliss. Despite the threat looming over my head, it took a while to come to terms with the fact that I literally had a bounty on my head. Asher's presence and support helped me momentarily forget about it. I dropped the book I'd been staring at absent-mindedly and walked into the open bathroom. Asher glanced at me when I walked in and smiled before looking back in the mirror, proceeding to drag a razor down his jawline, which was covered with shaving foam. “Let me,” I mumbled, taking the blade from his hand. He conceded, his hand snaking around my waist and pulling me flush against his chest. I stood on my tiptoes and planted a kiss on his lips before reaching up and gently dragging the razor across his jawline. I rinsed it under the running tap and repeated the process. “I have to go into work today,” I murmured, watching his reflection as his brows furrowed in concern. “So soon?” he asked, and I chuckled, nodding slo
Aphrodite I finished up my work for the day and walked out of my office, shutting the door behind me before heading down the corridor to Lara's office. I found her arranging the open files sprawled haphazardly on her desk. She smiled when she saw me walk in, and I returned it with a wave.“Are you ready?” I asked, leaning against the door frame with a raised brow.“Yep,” she replied, stacking the last file in its place in the cabinet. She picked up her handbag and rounded her desk, and I walked out with Lara in tow. I nodded at the security on my way out, and we headed to our parked car.“We should drop by the mall on the way; there's something I want to get,” she said. I arched my brow at her but mumbled an "okay" before pulling out of the driveway.I glanced at my side mirror, noting the tinted SUV filled with pack warriors trailing behind us for security. I rolled my eyes and looked away, but said nothing. Even though I wasn't comfortable with the entourage, I understood it was fo
Aphrodite The second I walked into Asher's office, I jumped straight into his arms, clutching onto him like a lifeline as I tried to calm down and process my thoughts. He sensed my distress and held me tighter without question, his hands running up and down my back in a soothing motion as he whispered sweet nothings into my ear.I pulled away when I'd calmed down, and he caressed my cheeks, his arms tightening around my waist as I straddled his lap.“What's wrong, my love?” He murmured gently, his eyes filled with warmth as they searched mine. I exhaled a shaky breath.“I met someone tonight,” I whispered, and his brows scrunched up in confusion.“Who did you meet?” he echoed, and I braced myself for his reaction. Even though I'd told Asher all about my past, he still hated the thought of what the human I’d loved did to me.“It was Elijah,” I said, and he stilled at my words. I clutched the material of his shirt, waiting for his reaction.“How and where did you meet him?” he asked a
Aphrodite Ronan strode confidently into the party like he owned the fucking place, a condescending smile stretching tightly across his lips. He approached our table without a word, pulled out a chair, and sat down, arching a brow as his gaze swept across the table to mine before locking onto Asher's gaze.“Isn't it funny that I had to hear the news of my son's mating ritual from a different source?” He chuckled dryly, picking up an empty wine glass and uncorking the wine bottle in front of him to pour himself a drink.“Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't feel the need to inform you of every single thing I decide to do, Father,” Asher responded, his tone dripping with sarcasm. Ronan scoffed, taking a leisurely sip of his wine before turning to me, his hardened gaze locking with mine.“I don't know what it is about her that you find appealing enough to want to taint our bloodline,” he seethed. Asher almost stood, but I placed a hand over his thigh under the table, calming him down—if only a little
Aphrodite“You're late,” I spoke in a bored tone. He chuckled, pushing back the dark strands of hair that fell over his forehead with his fingers.“I’m so sorry for keeping everyone waiting. I got stuck in traffic,” he replied, walking over to the table and pulling out a seat for himself. I snickered, looking away from him and down at the documents spread out in front of me on the table.I paused when that weird scent wafted into my nostrils. There it was again, and this time I was sure it was from Elijah, but the problem was why it smelled familiar and why I couldn't remember it. I blinked, clearing my head to focus on the task at hand.“Now that we're all here, let's get right into it,” I said, quickly handing out the questionnaires Brielle had insisted I distribute to the candidates.The rest of the meeting went by at a snail's pace until Brielle finally narrowed her choices down to Beta Conor and, unsurprisingly, Elijah. For some reason, she was completely besotted with him. I cou
Aphrodite “Why the fuck isn't she waking up? Do something!” A familiar deep voice growled, his tone suggesting irritation.“I—I’ve done everything I can, Your Highness,” a shaky voice responded quickly, clearly unnerved by Asher’s fury. “It’s up to her now. She’s fighting, but it may take some time. Her body is making a remarkable recovery,” he added nervously under Asher’s intense aura.“That’s not good enough. I need her to wake up now,” he snapped, his voice filled with desperation as the tension radiated off him in waves. “I understand, Your Highness,” the doctor replied cautiously, “but these things can’t be rushed. Her vitals are stabilising, which is a positive sign. We just need to give her time.”“Time? She doesn’t have time! If anything happens to her or our baby…” His voice cracked, the anger giving way to fear. I sighed softly, fighting to pry my eyes open. The effort felt monumental, but eventually I managed to crack them open, only to wince when the bright white light
Aphrodite It had been a few days since I found Brielle's severed finger in my jewellery box, and the news of her kidnapping had spread like wildfire throughout the werewolf world.No matter how hard I tried to reach Elijah over the past few days, I failed. I was scared and confused, praying that Brielle was still alive.Brielle was like the super star of the werewolf world, so when I started receiving death threats at the office, I wasn’t too shocked. It got to the point where Lara and I could no longer show up at work because there was always an angry mob waiting for us. Somehow, they had found out that I had matched her with the psychopath responsible for her kidnapping—Elijah.The revelation caused a massive uproar in the werewolf community, leading to a campaign calling for the cancellation of my matchmaking app. I was devastated by the news, breaking down in tears as I was transported back to the day we received that lawsuit.The last straw was when I received a call from Briell
Aphrodite "Turn right to get to your destination." The GPS announced my arrival.I frowned at the sound of my car's GPS navigation pulling up to a stop in front of a narrow dirt road that led deeper into the dense trees.The road was almost invisible, a barely-there path cutting through the woods, and it was getting dark fast. I didn’t have much time before Asher would start calling, so I had to do this now. Pushing aside my unease, I turned onto the dirt road and drove up the hill at a cautious pace.I tried to convince myself that Elijah was just a puny human—there was nothing to be afraid of, but the quick palpitations of my heart told a different story.“You have arrived at your destination,” the GPS declared. I pulled into a small clearing where a quaint little cabin sat in the centre, surrounded by trees. The isolation was unsettling. I turned off the car, silenced the GPS, and stepped out, shutting the door behind me with a quiet click.“Hello?” I called out, spinning slowly t
AsherI walked back into the meeting room, only to find Aphrodite so deep in thought that she didn’t even notice my presence.“Hey, love,” I called gently, but she seemed too lost in her own world to hear me. I stepped closer and placed a soft hand on her shoulder. She jolted at the contact, her eyes snapping up to meet mine.“You scared me,” she breathed out, clutching her chest as she exhaled slowly. Concerned, I pulled back the chair beside her and sat down, facing her directly.“What has you so distracted that you didn’t hear me come in?” I asked softly, searching her face for any sign of what might be troubling her. She shook her head and forced a smile, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes.“It’s nothing,” she replied, but I wasn’t convinced. Something in her tone, in the way she avoided my gaze, told me it was far from nothing.“Are you sure?” I pressed, my voice gentle but firm. She nodded, her smile still forced.“It’s nothing, I promise,” she repeated, reaching for her purse b
Aphrodite Mom returned home hours later, grinning from ear to ear when she saw how Asher was glued to my side, fussing over the smallest things. I thought his constant fussing might irritate me, but instead, I found myself secretly loving it. Call me crazy, but getting attention from my mate felt like a drug I couldn't get enough of.When we broke the news of my pregnancy to Mom, she was both shocked and overjoyed. She was absolutely thrilled to be a grandmother, and it warmed my heart. She wouldn’t stop bragging about how the herbs she had given me worked wonders, even though, in truth, they had nothing to do with my miracle baby. Everything felt perfect, and I wished it could stay that way.We spent the night at Mom’s place and drove back to the pack the next morning. We decided to keep my pregnancy a secret, informing only a select few.Asher refused to tell Ronan the news, but I felt he deserved to know, even if he was a douchebag. It took a lot of convincing on my part before A
AsherI pulled into my mother-in-law's driveway and parked before killing the engine. I took a deep, nervous breath as I stared at the empty front porch. My fingers unconsciously tapped on the steering wheel as I tried to muster the courage I needed.After giving myself a brief pep talk, I reached over to the passenger seat and grabbed the enormous bouquet of red roses I had George prepare, along with a basket of chocolates.Shutting the car door behind me, I made my way up the steps to the front door. I still hadn’t figured out a perfect explanation that would make her forgive me. Maybe the truth would be enough, wouldn’t it?I raised my fist to knock, but the door suddenly swung open, revealing Mrs. Johnson. Her eyes widened in surprise at finding me on her doorstep, but they quickly narrowed when she noticed the flowers and chocolates in my hands."Hello, Mrs. Johnson." I started with a tight smile on my lips, but she rolled her eyes and promptly shut the door in my face. I blinked
AsherI met George halfway to the edge of the pack territory, where, as expected, more than a dozen warriors were patrolling the perimeter."My King," George bowed as he approached, and I gave a curt nod in acknowledgement."What am I looking at?" I asked, scanning the clearing but seeing nothing out of the ordinary."This way," he directed, leading me towards the boundary between my territory and the unclaimed lands. As we neared a large oak tree in the middle of the clearing, the stench of rotting flesh hit me full force, nearly choking me on my breath.I scrunched my nose but remained silent as we approached the tree. There, pinned to the bark with an arrow, was the head of a wolf. The nauseating stench confirmed it had been dead for some time, but what truly caught my attention was that this was no ordinary wolf. It was a Devil Wolf, and this only solidified my suspicions about the experiments being conducted on them.I stepped forward and removed a small note that was attached to
Aphrodite I rushed up the stairs in excitement, eager to break the good news to Asher. I imagined how ecstatic he would be to hear he was soon going to be a father, and that thought alone propelled me forward.I swung our bedroom door open, fully expecting him to be there, but I was met with a cold, empty room. My excitement instantly dampened, and I shut the door slowly behind me, staring at the untouched bed in the centre of the room.I walked towards the nightstand and checked the time. It read 10:47 PM, which meant he would be back soon. With an excited grin on my face, I climbed into the bed, leaning my back against the headboard as I stared at the door, patiently waiting for his return.Minutes turned into an hour, and the excitement slowly turned into a deep yearning. The room felt unbearably empty without him. I needed him beside me to share in this incredible moment and to feel his arms around me, reassuring me that everything was real and wonderful.I blinked back the haze
Aphrodite I sighed the moment Asher walked out the door, leaving me alone. I emerged from the closet just as Lara entered the bedroom, softly closing the door behind her. She beamed when our eyes met, but I could only muster a faint smile in return.I slumped down on the edge of the bed with a deep groan. The bed dipped as Lara joined me, her smile fading when she saw the forlorn look in my eyes.She rubbed my shoulder soothingly without saying a word, silently encouraging me to open up to her.“He just left, Lara, and I understand he had to go, but why does it still hurt so much?” I murmured, tears blurring my vision. The pain of his absence cut deeper than I wanted to admit because he should be with me instead of going to work, but maybe I was being too dramatic crying about it.“Oh, honey,” Lara cooed, her voice soft and full of empathy. “You have every right to feel this way. He's your mate, and he should be here with you right now.”I sighed, wiping away the tear that had slippe