ZADEIt's still the same.At least on the outside. The same black gates are opening, leading to the long, wide driveway.The same house that’s adorned with fountains, statues, and the all seasons blooming flowers.It’s the same butler, who bows at me when I get out of my car and opens the door for me, and steps inside the foyer.This is where it all stops being familiar … untouched. It’s almost as if keeping the outside familiar will make it seem like nothing has changed overall.I slide my hands into my pockets, wondering if I should remain at the foyer and wait to be greeted or walk in, but that will mean differently.“You’re here!” she is wearing a big smile, hands open as if to hug me. “Come in, come in. this is your home don’t stand there like a guest.” She attempts humor, but it's all lost on me.“Thank you for inviting me.” My tone is cool as I let her lead me to the living area, where I see them.Father and daughter, talking as they share a drink. It looks casual. They look …
ZADE“Ari insisted on not having a party. I wanted everyone to celebrate you and your bonding. I know it must have been stressful and confusing at first.”“Mom, stop asking him so many questions.” Ari looks at me apologetically.“Mary is right, we would have loved if we had a big party. After all, not every day two powerful beings come into union like this,” Father adds as we all sit at the dining table, the servers starting to bring us the starters.“It's nothing, it was over in five minutes. I didn’t want a spectacle anyway. It's just bonding, nothing to make a big deal out of it.” Ari puts a napkin on her lap before glancing at me.They are all comfortable with each other. They are a family, and I feel like an outsider even if we are all seated here, connected one way or another.“You are not just anybody, and it's not just any bonding. He is the future king alpha, and you are a female alpha, the daughter to my mate. I think that deserved the biggest party of the century.”Everyone
ZADE“When will you stop acting like a petulant child?”“I don’t know, father, when I feel like you have had enough torture and guilt over what you did.”I don’t see the punch coming, feeling it rattling my entire brain. He has never hit me before. We fight and break things, but he has never hit me before.“You can do all that you want to me,” he grabs me by the collar, pulling me up, “but hurt Mary, an innocent woman, and lashing out at her? That’s where you cross the line, son.”I push myself away from him, readjusting my blazer. “You can drop the act, no one is in here to judge you. I know the real you.”“And what is that?”“That you are a cold, heartless man who will never love anyone or put anyone above yourself, always for the seat and power you hold. Always for the seat and power you have.”He shakes his head, walking by the window, looking calm, but I would be a fool to let my guard down. There is a reason he is the most feared man.“Is that what you think?”“Think?” I adjust
ARII am grappling in the dark. Ever since my mother got mated to the king alpha, I waited and kept watch for the other shoe to drop. Years of running and hiding, never settling, and always on the road have turned me into someone who doesn’t believe in happy endings.Why did he agree to let us in his territory so fast? Why did he mate my mother so fast, then take us into his beautiful home?As I sat in that mansion—too big and grand—I felt like I would stain it. He assured us that we would be safe with him and that all the bad people looking for us would be dealt with.That we had a home now and we could rest because he is in our lives now.I don’t believe in knights, I don’t even believe in saviours overall.But then I saw her. She looked so tired, worn out, and in need of a break. I saw how she leaned into him, sighing as if she was resting for the first time in years.How could I ever take that away from her?It has been just the two of us, and it hasn’t been the best. She has tri
ARIDo I continue living a lie, or do I take a chance at this new life?I can't quit it, If I do, the one person I want them to be happy won't. If I show everyone just how lost, just how confused I am, they won't hesitate to tear me apart.So here I am, lost, still fumbling in the dark. Feeling all these things and wondering if they are my feelings or not.Tonight has been a perfect example of what my life entails. A show. Performance.I think Zade saw through that.A part of me hates how much I see myself, even if it's just a small part of myself in him. The only difference is that he has so much anger toward his father, hates my mother for receiving something that he feels she shouldn’t, something that she doesn’t deserve.And hates me for taking his place.It should be his mother and his father. It shouldn’t be my mother and I, happy and being a loving family. I can understand where he is coming from.And I hate that. I hate that I can relate in some way, even if he is hurting me.
ARIIt's safe to say winter is my favourite time of the year.“I hate when we do this every year.” Mimi is shaking next to me, bundled up in so many layers I can't help the chuckle that slips out.“Are you that cold?”“I can feel it in my bones. I don't understand why you are wearing that.” by that she means a hoodie and that’s it.I could be naked and in the snow for days and not feel a thing.Yes, we are very warm by nature, but only to some degree. Some wolves prefer warmer weather, and others are much at home deep in the snow.I was born in the white Alps, where it’s snowing all year round. This place reminds me a little bit of home.We are on a school trip- a trip that will last for a week. So deep in the mountain, where snow is so thick, if you don’t shake it off after two minutes, you will be layered in it.I was expecting some sort of ca
ARI“Only my most trusted people and the ones who need to keep you safe. There is nothing wrong, I assure you. You can be yourself and not worry or fear that you will be in danger.”“But what if they see me as different?”“Then I will deal with them accordingly. You shouldn’t hide yourself to appease a bunch of teenagers who don’t know anything.”“I fear that …” I close my eyes as I bounce on my heels, feeling jittery. “I fear that someone will spot me, and the people who have been after us will know where to come find me.”A beat passes, and Mr. Parker is silent on the other end. “I should have told you this earlier.”“Told me what?”“We found them.”It's my turn now to pause.“What?”“We found the guys who were trailing you. They are taken care of. Your mom knows this
ARIEverything is heightened in this place.Feelings are much heavier, emotions much more prominent.What would I give to not have walked in on Zade and Olivia making out in the hot tub, which is a little secluded from the rest of the hot spring, where others are all in?They are in their cozy world, hands all over each other as they kiss. Olivia’s giggle breaks the spell I am under- a painful spell- and I turn around, opting to avoid that area and continue with my walk around the grounds.I have said that I won't feel anything, I won't even bother thinking about him, and yet here I am. I wish I could be unfeeling and unbothered by anything Zade does.I wish I could entirely blame it on the bond and say that it's making me this way. But a bond only highlights what exists already.The last time we talked, he told me he is lonely. How can someone like him be lonely? That’s impossible.He is surrounded by friends and powerful people at his whim and under his thumb. He has a girlfriend, s
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,
ZADEWe are back to ignoring each other.Or to be more precise, Ari has gone back to hating my guts and ignoring my existence. And when she sees me, when our eyes meet, those first two seconds, time seems to slow down, and it's only us. The world fades away, and it's us, and I usually get this feeling in my chest, this heavy thing that is threatening to drown me, but in a sweet way.It's only us, as if we know something, just the two of us, and then the moment is snapped and broken, and she is back to scowling at me, rolling her eyes.But I know, those few seconds, where it is only us, when time stops and we only see each other, feel each other… that is the truth of us.She told me she wanted devotion and then proceeded to lock herself in the bedroom before she left early in the morning, even though we did spend the night together.I didn’t sleep, not when she was in the next room and I knew she wasn’t asleep either. I listened to her breathing, every turn and twist in the bed.I list
ARI“What's going on inside this little mind?” his voice is so close to me, nose brushing my temple.I should feel something. A tingle, but I am so damn tired. All I want is to sleep, forget that I exist for a few hours before I start going back to my life. I can't escape it anymore, now can I?“Nothing,” I sigh. “I am just a little sleepy.”Is he expecting more from me tonight?I wish I had the girls with me. They would allow me to be in your space. Maybe I should call them, text them, but I don't have my phone. I remember crashing it in the hotel suite before I walked out into the traffic.Maybe I am not as okay as I think. But getting a grip is important.If I am going to avenge and face the people who ruined me to begin with, I can't let go of the reality. I need to be focused and work hard to make sure they don’t destroy me before I destroy them.I know I am not going to come out of it. The plans I made to go study law as further studies, get out of the pack and live my life as a
ARIMy life is a mess.It’s a fucked life, painful, dry, bland, void of colour.I am ugly too, rotting slowly inside, underserving of anything good because that’s just what is set in stone for me.Despite it all, despite feeling all of that, as Zade looks at me like I mean something, like I matter … I can't help but want to be under that gaze for a longer time.He is looking at me how he used to look at Olivia, like he might love me, like I mean something. He wants to know if I am okay, taking care of me, a gentle, caring touch on my cold, withering soul.I don’t deserve it, and yet.I yearn for it. Crave it. I can't not shudder under it.“Do you want me to ask you?”Yes. I want him to ask me. I want him to push for me to tell him what's going on in my head. For him to fight for me. I am selfish like that. Mother didn’t say anything untrue, because here I am, asking and taking what doesn’t belong to me.I came into this life, took Olivia’s man under fate’s guidance, and yes. It hurt.
ARII don’t think I have ever truly let myself think deeply about Zade, who is becoming, and his birthright. I am not one to attach my identity to the boy I am seeing or crushing on, and in this case, the boy I am mated to.But it's still heavy. I find it … sexy that he is already so mature, powerful too, and it's only going to get even better.Yes, I think I am crushing on Zade, and I can't control choking on my water once that fully hits me.“Are you okay?” he asks me as he rushes to my side, rubbing my back.“Yeah,” I wheeze out. “Guess I am a little surprised.”“Why?” he chuckles as he gets back to cooking.“The first thing someone sees when they see you is how spoiled you are.” That’s not true.The first thing I saw and felt when I first laid my eyes on him was just how magnetic and powerful he was. Yes, you could tell from miles away that he is wealthy, but it wasn’t the kind I got from the rest of the students.No, his was the quiet, generational wealth that just didn’t come fr