“What do we do now?” Lola asked. neither had spoken a word since Lola’s confession. Jax fell back like he’d been pushed, he stared blankly at her face as if trying to figure out if he’d heard her correctly. She shook her head and tried to compose herself. They needed a plan for how to move forward, maybe a divorce, but she needed to keep a clear head as they continued.“I don’t know.” He said in a raspy tone and turned his body to face the lake.Jax put his hands in the pockets of his jeans and drew a deep breath- on the exhale his body visibly relaxed and he hung his head. “We should get a divorce. You’ll be free to be with whomever you want,” Jax’s head snapped to the side in a flash and he glared at her for the statement.It was as though her words were completely misguided though that was the path they were on. If he didn't love her any longer then they shouldn't be together, at least that was the course of thought that Lola walked- Jax seemed somewhere completely different.“W
The morning sun shone in through the window and woke Lola up from her light sleep. The day would bring warmth and crowded streets as people soaked up these rare rays of sunshine.Early winter cold wouldn't stop them as they layered on the clothing to stay outside for as long as possible.Lola groaned, the pain of knowing where she had to head off to in just under an hour had her questioning whether she should get out of bed at all.She and Lavina are supposed to meet at Mayor Clan's house to help plan for the Winter Whimsy- company she'd rather avoid and plans she couldn’t care less about, it wasn’t shaping up to be a good day after an awful night.She rolled out of bed, dragged herself to the closet, and got dressed.The Omegas whose job it was to look after the mansion had fixed the guest room in under a day. They had put in new closets, as well as other amenities, to make it more homey for her. As if they’d somehow gotten orders from high up as if they knew she wouldn't be spendin
The inside of the Mayor's house was nothing compared to the Blackwood mansion. It wasn't half as lavish and the size was perhaps a third of the mansion on the hill.However, it was clear that it had been passed down through generations ever since the first settlers of Wild Cliff. Portraits of the previous owners of the estate hung on the walls to remind every guest of the bloodline that lived there.They were guided through the long hall and gathered in the living room to start planning the Winter Whimsy.Already there was another University student, Justin O’hare. Lola stared bewildered at his shrunken presence on the couch.“His parents must’ve dragged him here,” she whispered to Melissa who nodded agreeably.“Girls, come and sit!” Mrs. Clan called and waved her bronzed hand delicately in the air.They all took a seat around the glass table in between two beige four-person couches.Mrs. Clan walked out and returned with a tray of cups, sugar, and cream, and a teakettle.It was all ve
They stood around the painting depicting a small cottage with a family outside in the front yard. Two children were painted playing on the grass and a woman holding a rake while a man shook hands with another.“Do you think she has a connection to Freja? If so, what does it mean?” Melissa asked quietly.The smell of whiskey on her warm breath hit Lola and provoked her gag reflexes. She stepped to the side and created enough distance between her and Melissa to where her breath was neutralized by the air between them. Melissa, embarrassed and tipsy, pinched her lips shut and covered her mouth subtly with her hand. “I don’t know but what if she does? What if she knew more than she let on when we were there? She did seem intrigued by you,” Lola said. They thought back to the pendant that occasionally hung around Melissa’s neck. The gaudy stone in the middle of swirling metal wires tied around the silver which protected the core. They heard loud breaths and the smell of whiskey filled
Justin O’Hare, the golden boy of Wild Cliff, football quarterback and party prince of the small town. After graduating high school many thought he would leave, go to college elsewhere or perhaps just drive his car through the country but just like he had his whole life he shocked everyone when he stayed put and attended Lilac University.The parties continued, the unhinged drinking and flirting. The sex, the on-and-off relationships with any girl he deemed was worthy to spend a night in his bed and yet he somehow kept up his grades and was top in his class as a psych major. They lay on the grass and looked up at the sky. Melissa shook the bottle over her open mouth and the last drops slid down the glass and wetted her lips. Her tongue played over her lips to catch the drops and she savored that last taste of something historical.Lola chuckled as she looked at the ominous clouds that were forming above them. “I can't believe we’re adopting Justin O’Hares’s conflict solution,”Melis
“If Jax saw you cuddling up to Justin like that…”“I wasn't cuddling him and it wasn't Jax that he saw in the woods!” Lola hissed. She licked her lips and looked across the restaurant where Justin was sitting at the bar.“It doesn't matter if it wasn't Jax, it was one of his wolves and that wolf will tuck his tail and run back to his Alpha to spew the information,” Melissa warned.“Even so it wouldn't matter to him, he made it abundantly clear where we stand.” She continued. They stood by the divider about to walk up the wooden stairs. Justin had ordered for them and was waiting for the drinks. He’d already thrown back two shots after what he saw outside and was staring mindlessly at the wall while waiting for the girls. After he saw the wolf he refused to stay outside and hurried to the restaurant, pushing the girls in front of him even though they knew that there wasn't any imminent danger- but Justin didn’t know that and they would have to come up with a good excuse for why he sa
The music got louder and the bartender smiled from ear to ear as Lola and Melissa threw back their fifth shot.He turned to his colleague and whispered, “I'm betting the girls will throw one more back and then throw up,” “What about O’hare?” The other said. “Nah he can hold his liquor, I'll give him three more shots before he picks a fight though,” he grinned and they shook hands, locking in the bet. Lola drank from the straw in her daiquiri and Melissa gulped down the last of her gin and tonic.Justin dragged a hand through his hair, flicking the waves back and downing another shot before grabbing his whiskey-filled glass and swirling it around.The smell of booze circled the air and their jackets swayed over the chairs when they moved around.Lola leaned over the bar and laughed as she grabbed a cherry and tossed it in the air. Her lips parted and the cherry landed softly on her tongue as her lips closed around it- the stem poked out between her lips and Justin’s cologne wafted t
PROLOGUE5 years earlier.Lola: 16 years old.The ground was painted red. The blood ran in a stream down the cracks and into the river. Little red clouds formed under the water, and she stared with tear-filled eyes at the bodies from which the blood was escaping. Her hands held the lives she had just taken, and her mind held the sounds of their screams. Their eyes were still wide open as they stared at their faith, she who had ended them all, she who nobody could escape.With shaky hands, she pulled their bodies to the river and placed them down. The last one was particularly difficult to let go of, her hands refusing to open as she held him under the water. The life had drained from his eyes, his heart had stopped beating, and his body hadn’t moved for minutes. Yet, she couldn’t part from him.Closing her eyes and filling her lungs with air, her fingers slowly spread. She watched as her father went with the stream.*Chapter 1.“Lola!”Lola turned her heavy head to look at Melissa, fin