ARI“New girl, you are paired up with Zade. He is the best at getting you up to par with things.”Amazing. The one person who wanted me gone is now going to teach me how to punch. Maybe that isn't such a bad idea, then maybe I can punch him like I want to so much.I wait for him to say no or complain but he doesn’t. He only clenches his jaw and walks off to the back of the class. Mimi is nowhere to be seen, probably left when I was busy hitting the jerk with handballs.Olivia doesn’t say anything, as she squares up with another student, but still watching me. I don’t miss the way her throat bobs up and down as I follow Zade.They always say it's not good to show your enemy your weakness, because then the chances of you being exploited get significantly high. These two have made my life a living hell, to choose to be a saint is to ask to be a doormat.Do as the Romans do, they said.“are you going to take the whole day?” zade’s annoyed voice grates on my nerves as I finally reach where
ZADE“there you are.”I walk in the greenhouse to the girl laying on her back watching the butterflies, surrounded by the flowers.“How did you find me?” livie asks, her voice quiet, her attention on the butterflies flying above her face.“Isn't this the place you come to when you need to be alone?” I stand above her, looking down at her.Her dark hair is splayed on the ground, her eyes a little red at the corners."then you know I need to be alone right now.”I take the stool nearby and sit on it next to her. “why did you leave?”Her hand outstretches, a butterfly sitting on her finger. “I didn’t wish to see you and your mate flirting right on my face.”“that's not how it was.”She exhales. “I want to be alone, I am not in the mood for you right now.”“I know you, if I leave right now, you wont want to see me for a week.”“then you don’t know me at all.”The silence stretches between us. “I keep messing up,” I exhale, looking up at the greenhouse. “I am sorry livie”She sits up, wipi
ZADEMy lips take in her lower plump one, sucking it into my mouth. She moans in my mouth when I sweep my tongue in her mouth, draw her closer, hand around her waist.Why is it … so dry? Why is there no passion I feel, no excitement nor spark between us?I pull away, eyes lowered as Livie breathes hard in front of me.“Wow.” Her breathy whisper tells me she enjoyed it. She doesn’t know how I feel or what I am thinking. “I missed that.”I cannot lie.I look at her round face, which is so beautiful in an aristocratic way, with full curly hair, and red lips from the kiss. She is beautiful and sexy. and yet …I rush her hair off her face, cradling her face. She looks happy, those eyes are hopeful, before she closes them and leans into my touch, her face pressing into my palm before she kisses it, hands clutching my wrist.“I brought you something.”Her brown eyes open and she smiles. “what is it?”Why is it this way?“you have to come with me to find out?” I stand up and offer her a hand.
OLIVIA“I want to be with you tonight.”He doesn’t seem to be breathing, frozen in place. A bitter taste fills my mouth and I ready myself for the excuse that's about to come.I have known for a while now that my boyfriend doesn’t desire me anymore. He doesn’t touch me nor look at me the same way he used to look at me. At least back then, he pretended to care enough and be present enough to make me believe.He pretended enough with me and I was content with it, as long as I held onto the illusion of a happy couple, as long as we pretended that we were both happy with each other, then everything was perfect.When was the last time things were seamless and smooth and it didn't feel like we were characters just saying designated lines?“livie.” His sigh tells me everything. I nod, the burger feeling like metal sitting in my stomach. Turning my back to him, I sigh as I look around the rooftop.This damned place.It was where we escaped together, where we were just two kids in love. We had
ZADEAs I watch the orange flame, I flick the lighter in and off.I can hear her. She is fast asleep.I push off the door and make my way toward the room I am meant to be in.I don’t have to knock, the door slightly ajar. I push it open, eyes adjusting to the slightly dark room and there she is.Standing at the front of the room, wearing nothing but lingerie that accentuates her body, looking like a sinful wet dream.“you came.”I odnt bother removing my leather jacket, stiding ovet to her. her gasp arouses something in me that akes me curl my hand around her neck and push her agsint the wall.Fear and … hesitation flashes in her eyes as I tighten my fingers around her throat.“Zade,” she tries to claw my hand away but it's useless.I don’t wait for her to utter another word, swallowing it in my mouth as I take her puckered lips in my mouth. I am not gentle, as I unclench my fingers, and I give her a bruising kiss.My teeth clang into hers. I can feel she is trying to keep up but she
ZADE“I don’t plan on being cute with you tonight.”My hand slowly caresses her skin, from her ankl,e to her thigh, traveling up her leg, watching fascination how she trembles and goosebumps leave in my wake, the higher I go.I kneel on the bed, slowly hovering above her, my elbow beside her head as I glide my palm softly on her skin, reaching her waist, to her ribcage, going up … feeling the swell of her breast, as I go further up until I reach her neck.I finally look at her face, her eyes hooded, her lashes fluttering as she looks up at me. I blink and I don’t see Livie but…Ari as she looks up at me, those smoldering eyes looking up at me.My breath hitches, freezing in place. I blink again and it's back to Livie, who is looking at me with desire, her hand going up from my chest, to my neck and finally to my jaw.“Baby?”What's going on?I lower my head towards her and kiss her softly, my lips pressing on hers, not going in, just feeling her plush soft lips on me.But it feels dif
ARII wake up in a gasp, my whole body feeling so sore and achy.Startled, I touch between my legs, and a blush creeps up my neck to my ears. My sleeping shorts are soaked.“uuurgh,” I groan, burying my face in my palms. What was that dream? Is that why I feel like I ran a marathon?I have never had such a dream before, let alone think of something like that. I mean I have always been curious but I thought I was asexual since none of the boys or girls I have met ever aroused such emotions from me.But that dream … why did it feel like it happened in real-time? And worst of all, it had to be with that stupid boy?!“This is so fucked up,” I groan as I push the covers off me and run to the bathroom. It is embarrassing enough that I am still tingling down there, worse than the moment he comes into my mind I want to feel as I felt in my dreams.Ahh, this is driving me insane!I set the water to ice cold as I strip and toss the wet shots and the tank top into the dryer before stepping into
ARII don’t want to leave the confines of my room.“This is THE gala. How can you think of not attending?” mimi I holding the gowns that Mother sent over for this birthday party I am supposed to attend tonight.“it's too last minute, I am not ready to mingle with the legacies.” She might have told me days ago but I have been avoiding everyone and the world.“believe it or not, you are a legacy too, missing this would be fatal. Like declaring a war or something.”I gape at Mimi. “are you serious?”“no,” she pushes her glasses up. “but missing the birthday party of your grandfather,” she raises her finger up when I narrow my eyes. “step-grandfather, that would mean that you are cutting yourself off the social group.”“I don’t see how that is a bad thing. The more you talk, the more enticing it gets that I miss it and just stay in bed watching Netflix.”“it's bad because this man is powerful and might bring problems to your father-in-law which leads to your mother. You said that you alwa
ARI“I shouldn’t have this conversation while I am seeing two of you, but I need to let it off my chest, otherwise I will not say anything. You need to understand that one day I will be gone and you won’t ever see me.“Maybe I won’t have said something and you will think that everything is fine between us but it’s not. So this is me telling you that one day, I will leave you because me and you, we won’t end up together.“I can’t be with you. I can’t be with anyone. Mother is safe now and all I have left is one year to get done with school then I can do what I want the most. But then you … you have plans. You are set.“I certainly didn’t see this coming, you being my mate and all. But that shouldn’t confuse me or you that I will stay and continue doing life as if it’s perfect. It’s not perfect. I am not perfect, and it’s okay. I like it this way because t
ARINow I am his mate, then I will be his crowned wife, then I will be told to perform this and that for him, for the pack, for the kingdom.None of that for me. All will be stripped of who I am, what is mine, and be dressed in what is his. Be in servitude for the rest of my life, and for what? Love? I don’t believe in love.I never grew up in love long enough to believe in it, long enough to let it impact me in a way that, by believing, if I stay by Zade’s side, all will be okay. I am jaded, messy, and broken.He got mated to a disaster, and he knows it. He doesn’t even know what he wants for himself, but he has the privilege of that being thought for him.I might have misjudged him in the past as this cruel, mindless prince that is spoiled and such, but I wasn’t far off.But despite it all, I know that I have no future with zade. I can’t tell him that though, and it hurts somewhere I my chest to think I will h
ARII nod, exhaling softly. “I see.”“I didn't mean to hurt you. I just needed you to understand that some things are serious. Worldly things are impactful.”That makes me want to laugh, but I can't find the strength to. “I guess I wouldn’t know.”“Come on, why are you bringing that up? I thought we were talking about the beautiful views and the oncoming summer.”“You keep forgetting that I am not a child, Zade. You treat me like I am porcelain that can break any second if left unattended, and think that I don’t have brains.”“It's not like that. I want to protect you.”“Patronize me. I don’t even know why I am surprised. You are just an asshole, an alpha asshole who thinks that they know better and the rest are just his minions who couldn’t think for themselves.”God, this is why I hate packs. Being patronized, led like sheep, told to do this and that, not allowed to think on your own, especially if you are a female wolf, mated to a goddamn prince of the goddamn kingdom.I am not eve
ARII never wanted to believe in knights.Having someone there for you to take your needs seriously and follow them through … that’s something that I never thought could happen for me. Yet here I am.Zade asked me to be with him this summer, to take a break with him, and all I wanted to do was be away from what I had come to know. I needed to escape my reality for as long as I could, and when I told him that as long as he took me somewhere far, I would have fun, then yes.So now I am watching the ocean. The wind is ruffling my short hair, the salty, cool breeze caressing my skin, and the sound of the waves, the calming subliminal noise of the ocean, is making my heart start feeling peaceful.He took it seriously. I wanted to get away, and he took me to a beautiful island that I didn’t know existed. It's so beautiful. Palm trees, mountains, ocean, green everywhere, it looks like it's out of a fairy land.I don’t know how he does it. How he manages to catch me off guard and floor me aga
ARIZade is letting me take what I need from him, this time letting me have my way on my terms.It has been that way from the very beginning, but tonight, it's like he wants me to take care of myself using him and, in a way, take care of himself too, by using him.So when I guide him and press him on my opening, we both freeze, breathing heavily before I urge him with a pull of his hips to push inside me.And heavens, it feels delicious. The stretch, the feeling of him opening me up as my walls accommodate him until he is fully seated inside me …I contract, squeezing him, feeling the girth inside me and I want to swallow more of him, suck him in and keep him there … it’s a heady, good feeling.“Why won't you love me?” The hoarse whisper makes me open my eyes just as Zade looks at me. He is …crying?“What?” I ask, eyes wide.“Why did you say you can't love me?”“Because,” I shift, and we both groan. His hips jerk in response, and he starts moving slowly. He has forgotten about the que
ARIWhen the body is exposed to extreme cold, at some point, it stops supplying the less important parts with blood in order to save the vital organs.It has been quite similar to me. I have spent most of my life just functioning, and apparently it has been necessary for my body to cut off supplies to some of the things anyone my age would deem normal to have.There hasn’t been a case where I could feel anything other than flight and flight. But eventually, here I am.My body is thawing, slowly coming to life, and it feels so good.Zade’s tongue is slicking inside my mouth, seeking and touching every crevice inside. His body is pressed to mine to keep me up, one thigh pressed between my legs, one hand grabbing my butt, hips flushed.I am weak at my knees. I want him, I can feel him, and I am floating. I know I am kissing him, but I am also falling and falling, feeling safe that he will catch me.It’s a dam that has been let loose.He is mine. I shouldn’t feel this way. I should feel g
ZADE“But then it will be another, then another… if you can be swayed so easily, then is it even worth it?”“I wasn’t swayed easily. You and I know that there is more to us than a bond between mates.”“Hard to believe that when all that connects us is that.”“Our parents do connect us, too. Do you think we wouldn’t have crossed paths if we hadn’t been mates?”“We could have, but you would be intent on killing me or destroying my life like you did at the beginning.”“That’s true. But you can just chalk up my feelings and invalidate them, simplify them to one variable.”“It’s the only thing that is making sense. I mean, here I am, sitting in your love sanctuary, surrounded by your memories with her, and yet you are telling me it's me you want. What about her? Why was it so easy for you to just leave her?”“If you hadn't shown up, I already knew it would rather be her that I pretended with, cosplayed my inner wishful thinking even though it wasn’t true.”I close my eyes briefly before lo
ZADEThere is something dark, alluring, and compelling about Ari Silvers that I have never been able to fully comprehend.Her beauty and magnetism are not the traditional kind. It's raw, demands that you see her, revere her, and ache to be close to her, so you can bathe in it.She is beautiful in the traditional sense as well, but then you look again. And again, and again. You are drawn in, wanting, needing, desiring, and even wanting to corrupt.She is pure, she is dark, she is innocent, but also twisted. She is all that you wish you could hold and covet to yourself, but you cannot. For it is not to be held by others and coveted, stolen, but to be looked at, worshiped, and if you are good, to be bathed in.But never yours.She is sitting on the rooftop.I followed the feeling of our bond, and I am surprised, a little unsure why she would be here. This is where she fell, almost to her death after all.Her knees are pressed against her chest as she looks at the far distance, lost in wh
ZADEI stop behind one balding man, I think he is here because he is a legacy. Not the official family but still as important. I can see the sweat trickling down his neck into the stiff, tight suit he is wearing.If I wasn’t so sure before, now standing behind him as he reeks of fear … it's solid. My hand goes through his back, and I touch the organ that’s beating and warm in my palm.Gasps echo around, but no one says a word, as they look at me with horrified expressions, save for my father, of course.“This man,” I turn to Jude, “you missed this man.” My fingers close around the beating organ and pull my hand back. The body shakes, twitching before his head thumps on the table like a log. The scent of blood permeates the air, thickening it with the tension and fear pulsing in the room.I walk over to Jude and let the organ fall on his file, and he looks at it, eyes wide. I am sure he isn't breathing. After all, I just killed a legacy, and he has a lot of mess to clean up.And also,