âDaisy, we need to talk about this,â Victor said. âLetâs go outside and walk in the garden.I didnât want to talk about it. My mind was trying to process what was happening, and it wasnât handling it well.Leaping to my feet, I shook my head. âPlease, Victor, not now. I need to be alone.âAlexâs face grew hard again. âLeave her alone, for now, Victor. âThis is a difficult time for her and me.âI ran from the room and rushed upstairs, where I hid in the library. Looking around the space where I spent much of my time, I wondered if Olivia would love this room full of old books like I do.I sat down and hugged one of the throw pillows scattered on the couch while I cried until my nose was clogged and my eyes felt scratchy.While I was wiping my eyes, Benson knocked on the door before popping his head inside. âAre you alright, Miss Wilson?ââIâm not Miss Wilson, Benson.â Fresh tears ran down my face as I said the words. âYou should call me Daisy for however long Iâll be here.âAlex said I
The night went by too quickly, and it was time for me to leave the best and most loving home Iâve ever had.Except for the overnight bag, my belongings had been taken to my new home on Third Avenue in the city. Jennifer and some of the other maids had unpacked my things there last night. The apartment was ready for me.After going downstairs with the overnight bag, I found Alex in the living room. He was silently crying.My tears began to flow, too, as I went to him and sat down.He took my hand and raised it to his lips. âIt doesnât matter if we are connected by blood or not, sweetheart. You will always be my daughter. I want you to continue using my last name and stay in touch.âI nodded. âYou have been so good to me.ââI will continue to be there for you for as long as possible,â he vowed.His arms went around me, and we held each other tightly. âI love you, Daisy, he said.âAnd I love you, Alex,â I said. âThank you for making my life better. I donât regret a moment I spent here wi
My heart pounded, and my legs felt rubbery as I leaned against my oak front door and waited to open it for Victor.I wanted to see him. I missed him and needed the way he made me feel like I could do anything. But I knew his being here had to be the end of our relationship.No, it wasnât a relationship. It was only an arrangement, similar to a business deal.If I were Alexâs daughter, our deal would have worked out well for him. Now that we knew I wasnât, I felt guilty for the time he wasted with me. All of his efforts, like teaching me how to dance and how to be a CEO, had been a waste of his time.But I enjoyed pretending to be his fiancĂ©e until things got carried away, and I ended up caring about him more than I should.I will remember our one incredible kiss for the rest of my life. There was something about Victor that just the touch of his hand made me tingle.There was a knock on the door. He was here, and I knew what I had to do. A fake engagement with a counterfeit heiress wo
âI am not leaving here until we talk,â Victor declared. âYou are not being reasonable. It isnât like you.âI looked at him defiantly. He was making it more difficult for me to do the right thing. âHow do you know? Maybe my real family are unreasonable people.âHe ran a hand over his hair and made an exasperated sound.âDespite not knowing your parentage, I know you well,â he argued. âIâm not leaving until we sit down and talk about it like I wanted to when Alex first told us about Olivia.ââI donât see the point,â I said. âTalking wonât change anything. Alex wants to give what you have always wanted to Albertaâs husband. And once again, I am not Alberta.ââDaisy, I donât know what will happen to the leadership position,â Victor said. âIâm not worried about it right now. You shouldnât be either.ââI donât believe you,â I said. âIt is all you have wanted for years. Itâs why you made the agreement with me in the first place. If you were willing to be engaged to a girl you didnât know to
Okay, Daisy, you win,â Victor said, and I heard him walk out the door.I closed it behind him and ran to my bedroom. Collapsing onto my new bed, I began to sob. I punched the pillows a few times and soon felt drained.I was finally happy living with Alex in his mansion. I had a father, friends in the servants, and two handsome male friends.Why did everything have to be taken away from me?âSelf-pity isnât any better than someone else pitying you,â I told myself and swung my legs off the mattress to sit on the edge of the bed. âMany people would love to have what you do.âBesides, Victor would have married somebody else one day. What did it matter if it was Olivia?I stood and went to the double glass doors that led onto my new balcony. Pushing one side open, I stepped outside.I closed my eyes as the sunâs rays touched my face. I was outside, but being outside in the city was an entirely different experience from being outside in the country.The sounds of traffic and some machinery
It seemed like Olivia had taken my place in every way. All the Alphas who used to try to be my friend now flocked to her.She was petite and pretty, with curly brown hair reaching the middle of her back. Her brownish-green eyes were perfect ovals, and she moved gracefully, like a ballerina.The way she touched Williamâs arm when they spoke told me she was attracted to him. He seemed flattered by her attention, and I saw them chatting in the hallways later in the day.The rest of my Friday was as dismal as the first half of the day. Besides losing my seat next to William and all my friends to Olivia, some of the Alpha kids resumed their attempts to torment me.However, I wasnât the shy, geeky girl of the past. Their efforts to humiliate me didnât always work out well for them.At lunch, as I sat at an empty table near a gaggle of popular girls, one asked me how it felt to go from riches to rags. Another called me a homeless nobody.âWow, you girls are getting your gossip from a lame so
âDaisy, you look too much like your mother for it to be a coincidence,â William said. âMy parents say you are the spitting image of Joanna Wilson. Everyone who has ever seen her or has been inside Alexâs ballroom can see it.ââAlex said my maid must have molded my looks, so I resembled Joanna in the portrait.ââNo way!â William exclaimed. âI remember you before you began wearing contacts and makeup. You have your motherâs eyes, and the shape of your face is exactly like hers.âI didnât know what to say.âYour bright green eye color is rare,â he pointed out. âThey are the exact shade as Joannaâs, while Oliviaâs are hazel green.ââThatâs true, but it wasn't hard evidence.ââIâve been talking to Olivia to draw more information from her for my investigation,â William said. âThere are several more reasons why my parents and I think she's an imposter.âI was stunned. William and his parents think Olivia is an imposter! How many other Alphas thought this, too?I reminded myself it didnât mea
I rode the bus to school the next morning with the same happy smile on my face. William had given me hope of regaining my life and home. It was a fantastic feeling.Plus, it would clear my name.Too many of my fellow students think I am the imposter. Having people think I was the type of person who would scam Alex made me angry.It was hard seeing Olivia surrounded by many of the same Alphas who had befriended me while hearing them say horrible things about me that werenât true.I didnât intend to speak to Olivia. And I donât think she wanted to talk to me. Each time I saw her that morning, outside the school and again in werewolf history, she looked the other way and ignored me.Maybe she felt guilty about what her impersonation was doing to me. I didnât speak to her because I was afraid Iâd ask her something to make her suspect somebody was looking into her sudden appearance in Alexâs life.If she was a scammer, It was best to leave the investigation to William. If she knew someone
I woke to the enticing scent of dark roast coffee. I stretched and realized I had slept more than I thought I would that previous night. The smell of coffee grew stronger, and I felt steam on my nose.Opening my eyes, I saw Amy standing over me, waving a mug under my nose. âWakey wakey,â she crooned. âItâs your wedding day. Victor expects to see you at the chapel in two hours.âI reached for the mug and took a sip. The coffee was laced with dark chocolate almond milk and a touch of steamed heavy cream.âMmm, thanks, Amy. Itâs just the way I like it,â I said. âThis is such a treat.â I stretched again and took another sip.âEnjoy it, but donât dawdle in bed,â Amy put her makeup bag on the nightstand. âYou need to get in the shower and wash your hair. Anna will be here to help us soon.âAfter waiting for this day to come for so long, I was both ecstatic and a little nervous that something would go wrong.âIs it really going to happen?â I asked my best friend. âAm I really going to be his
Kayla kept her word. The estate that we named Juniper Acres because of the dozens of Juniper trees on the grounds became ours a few days after my talk with her.I liked the small trees. They had a pleasant, fresh, and woodsy scent, and the blue/ green berries were pretty and had many uses.Besides making arrangements for our wedding, Victor and I spent the last three weeks getting our mansion ready for us to move in. It was a labor of love, knowing it was all ours.We painted some of the rooms in different colors that we preferred. I especially liked the shade of yellow that we painted our breakfast room.Like Alexâs mansion, our breakfast room had many windows facing east for plenty of natural sunlight. We would enjoy our mornings together, enjoying our first cup of coffee in the room.The living room now had comfy, overstuffed furniture in light blue and walnut. The carpets and drapes were neutral colors that set off the polished wooden floors.It was an inviting room. I looked forw
Victor called the realtor while I stood beside him with my fingers crossed. There had to be a way to fix the snag, whatever it was. The estate was perfect for us. We couldnât lose it.I heard the realtorâs voice when she answered his call. âVictor, Iâm sorry for giving you bad news.ââWhatâs the problem?â Victor asked. His voice was calm, but I saw the tension on his face.âThe current owners of the Juniper Lane estate are two granddaughters of previous deceased owners. One of the young women refuses to sell to Miss Wilson.âPuzzled, Victor and I looked at each other.âWhy?â Victor asked.âShe claims Miss Wilson did something to cause her problems in the past,â the realtor responded. âI canât change her mind. She refuses to sign the papers to finalize the sale.âDoes she know the size of the offer we made?â Victor asked as I searched my memory for the identity of the granddaughter.But I couldnât think of who I had angered that much. I shrugged at Victor and did a palms up.âWho is sh
âIâm sorry,â I said and knelt down to pick up the pieces of broken glass.âThatâs alright, Miss Wilson,â Benson said. âThomas will take care of the mess.â He motioned to a footman. âLet me get you another glass of tea.ââAre you okay, Daisy?â Cassidy asked. âWe shouldnât have shocked you with the news in front of guests.âI shook my head and tried to smile. âNo, Iâm fine. I was just surprised. Congratulations. Iâm happy for both of you.â But was I? I had been an only child since Alex found me.Even though I knew Alex would continue to love me, my only experience with having a sibling wasnât a positive one. Andrea enjoyed making my life miserable.So, I wasnât sure how I felt about having a half-sister or brother. However, I was sure Alex and Cassidy wouldnât treat me like the Smiths, and Iâm optimistic the baby wouldnât be like Andrea.But what would change in my life?âAre you sure, sweetheart?â Alex asked. He looked concerned, and even though I had been shocked, I didnât want to spo
Victorâs POVDaisy was terrified. I could tell she was afraid her stutter would return. If she was scared enough, it could happen. She needed my love and support.I stepped forward to kiss her cheek and whispered in her ear, âNo matter what, I love you. But you can do this. Iâm right here with you. Pick one person in the crowd and talk to them.âDaisy gave me a weak smile, and I saw her take a deep, trembling breath. She looked out at the crowd of strange faces, and I knew the instant she saw someone she recognized.It was Amy, standing with Justin, William, and Penny among the sea of reporters. They must have heard about the press conference and come to support us. They were true friends.I sensed Daisy was relaxing, and she began to speak.âWhen I was seventeen, I worked in a restaurant owned by my best friendâs father. While waiting on customers and bussing tables, I dreamed of going to college and getting my law degree.âI wanted to use that degree to help the werewolf classes who
Victor and I freshened up while trying to think about what we wanted to say. Then we went back downstairs and watched the reporters and news anchors arrive outside the mansion.âThere are so many,â I said. âIâve never seen this many reporters at once before.ââThey are coming from other cities to be here,â Shane said. âYour and Victorâs vision for the future is big news. There are rumors that Victor is going to quit the leadership, and youâre moving away from Denhurst.âFindlay snorted. âI heard that rumor, along with several crazier ones. I think the people need to be reassured of your good intentions for everyone.ââI can understand that,â Victor said. âHow about you, Daisy?âAll I could do was nod. I understood, but I was growing nervous about going out there in front of such a large crowd of reporters and photographers. There were so many. It was like a sea of people forming over the vast front lawn.My hands began to tremble when the estate staff began moving the temporary stage
I cried all the way back to the mansion. Amy remained silent, patting my arm occasionally and handing me tissues when I needed them.She pulled into the driveway and to the front entrance before she spoke.âIt looks like Alex has company,â she said. âWhoâs limos are they?âI punched the seat. âThat one is Lanaâs, and the one pulling in next to us is Lily Jamesâs. The nerve of that pushy woman. She followed us!ââBut look, Daisy,â Amy pointed toward the front doors. âVictor is here.âI wiped my eyes and saw Victor coming toward me. He opened the car door and took me into his arms.âDonât cry, sweetheart,â he crooned. âGisele called and told me what happened. So I had Findlay call everyone here for a quick meeting to set them all straight.âI stopped crying and nodded even though I wasnât sure it would help.âThis nonsense will stop now,â Victor took my hand and helped me from the car.We waited for Amy to put the baby in the stroller before going inside.I looked around the foyer, unab
Victorâs mouth opened, but no words came out at first. Then he shook off his surprise.âAre you serious?â he asked.âYes, Iâve been thinking about it for weeks,â I replied.Why did Victor look so shocked? During the few times we had spoken about kids, he said he wanted a family.Tears stung my eyes, and I turned away from him. âMaybe I shouldnât have brought it up.âVictor gently turned me around. âI know youâve been upset since Amy had the baby, but I didnât know it was because you want one too.ââWhen I first held Brendre, I felt such a rush of love that it was all I could think about for days,â I explained. âI never thought much of babies before. I think it's because my adoptive parents rejected me when they had their own baby.ââThat makes sense.â Victor took my hand and started walking down the beach again. âAnyone would feel that way.ââHolding Amyâs baby made me realize I very much want to be a mother,â I said. âAnd I donât want to wait a long time to start our family.ââWhat a
Daisyâs POVI couldn't believe Victor was leaving. Couldnât he stay with me at the beach house for just one day?An emptiness in the pit of my stomach started when he turned to leave. It grew after he went out the door. Through our bond, I felt his painful, churning emotions and wondered if he was finished with me.I couldnât lose him! Iâd return to Denhurst this minute and marry him in any ceremony his mother wanted. The only thing that really mattered about my wedding was Victor must be the groom.I had to stop him from leaving. I needed to know what was on his mind and in his heart.Running out the door after him, I saw him climb into his car and start the engine.âNo!â I cried as I jumped in front of the Lamborghini. âDonât leave me, Victor. I love you!âThe Lamborghiniâs engine stopped, and Victor leaped out of the driverâs seat. He hurried to my side.âWhy wonât you stay with me?â I asked.âI thought you wanted to be here alone,â Victor replied. His body was trembling with emoti