SallyWhat would Ashton say if he knew his evil brother was helping me with my shopping errands and holding his daughter in his arms?I silently push the empty stroller forward and glance up at Ryan. He feels so much taller than me now that I’m in flip-flops, and my heart races when I hear him talking to Gwyneth.“You want this elephant?” he asks her. When Gwyneth wrinkles her nose at the stuffed toy, he takes her to another shelf. “How about a wolf then? Would you like a stuffed animal that looks like a wolf?”Gwyneth laughs and Ryan kisses her forehead before picking down the toy. He is so gentle with her, something which hasn’t gone unnoticed. I swear every single lady in the store has stopped in their tracks more than once to check him out. I can’t say I blame them. My ovaries hurt from watching him with Gwyneth, tending to her like a perfect father figure. His smile, breaking now and then to reveal a dimple on his right cheek, only adds to his charm. He stows the stuffed wolf i
SallyWhen I come home with Gwyneth, Ashton is preparing dinner in the kitchen. It’s odd seeing him prepare food from scratch, but it’s not the strangest thing that has happened. Ever since Gwyneth was born, he has been trying to be more family-oriented.It’s actually admirable. I still hate what he forced me to do a year ago, but I like that he is trying to be the father Gwyneth deserves. Therefore, I will bottle up my resentment and encourage him to keep trying.“What’s for dinner?” I ask as I set down Gwyneth in the baby playground designed for werewolves. There are lots of toys she can chew on, and she immediately gets to work.“Pasta,” Ashton tosses me a look over his shoulder. “It will be just you and I. Blair is at a friend’s house.”I almost choke and wonder if I heard him correctly. “Y-you want me to eat by the table...with you?” It feels like it’s been years since Ashton treated me like an actual person, so color me surprised.“Yeah?” It almost looks like he is blushing, but
Sally“I’m going to get straight to the point, Sally,” Evelyn says and sets down her coffee cup on the table. “There will come a day when Ashton realizes that he is still in love with you, and eventually, he will leave Blair. For you.”Her words rattle me and awaken this sudden anger that I can’t quite explain. I guess it’s because I get the feeling Evelyn thinks this news will make me happy. But they don’t. Ashton threw me away as if I were nothing. He rejected me and got rid of our child, and for what? To be with a woman who neglects him and their child?“Why are you telling me this?” I ask her calmly, even though I’m far from calm on the inside.Evelyn widens her eyes to stare at me and had she not been wearing so much makeup, I would probably see her blushing. Her reaction baffles me. I’ve always liked Evelyn and considered her smart, so I find it so shocking that she doesn’t seem to understand my anger.“I...I don’t understand,” she says. “I thought this would make you happy?”“H
SallyAfter my little chat with Evelyn, I’m storming up the stairs to my room. My head is spinning, and my emotions are all over the place: hurt, confused, and burning. I need to calm the fuck down, and there are only two things that can help me right now: a bottle of strong tequila combined with an old episode of Grey’s Anatomy playing on my TV.I speed up my pace but stop in my tracks when the bathroom door swings out in front of me. Ashton comes out of the room, newly showered, with only a dark blue towel wrapped around his narrow waist.He stands there, his wet hair sticking to his forehead while droplets of water trail down his well-sculpted chest. My heart instantly begins to race as memories of our past flood back despite my best efforts to keep them at bay.“Sally,” he says quietly. There’s a different kind of weight to the way he says my name this time around. It carries a sense of familiarity, longing, and perhaps regret.I swallow hard, shaping my face into a reassuring smi
SallyPainful tears run down my face as Ashton’s confession plays on repeat inside my head: “I’m still in love with you, Sally.”I thought hearing those words would make me happy, but instead, all I feel is sadness.How could he say those words so easily and expect me to take him back? After everything he put me through?! I also don’t believe he was ever in love with me. Because if he loved me, then why did he leave me? How could he let such horrible things happen to me?TAP TAP TAPDespite my sadness, I turn around to glare over my shoulder at Ryan. He is standing on my balcony, and I roll my eyes. Can’t a girl be miserable in peace?!“Go away, Ryan,” I say and pick up another tissue to blow my nose with. There is a little pile in front of me. Disgusting, I know, but I’m too lazy to fetch the bin.“But you’re sad...” I can hear the pout in Ryan’s voice, and I almost crumble. Almost. “How could I just leave you?”“I don’t want you to see me like this.” I’m not lying. My eyes are puff
SallyThe next morning, I wake up in an empty bed. There is no sign of Ryan, but I’m not sad about that. He must have decided to leave before the guard shift, and instead of compelling the new guards, I guess he just went home.KNOCK KNOCKI look at my door with an arched eyebrow. “Yes?”“It’s me,” Ashton says, sounding awkward. An image of him staring down at the floor crosses my mind. “I was wondering if you...if you wanted to come and train with the young werewolves this morning?”I turn to stone. Out of all the things he could say to me, this isn’t what I expected. I’m the pack’s Omega, and I can’t shape-shift. Therefore, I’ve never been allowed to train with the other wolves. Ashton’s father himself said it would be a waste of time to let me practice combat. So why is Ashton giving me the option now? Does he think this will somehow win me over?Regardless of what my ex-mate is up to, I’m not about to turn down his offer. Even if I can’t shape-shift, I might be able to pick up on
SallyIt’s dark when Lara and I arrive at Eric’s house, and I’m actually shocked at how many people there are. But I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised. The Claw pack controls a massive territory, so these parties are one of the only ways for everyone to get together outside of training.“Are you excited?” Lara asks.I give her a shy smile. “I actually am.”I don’t tell her this is my first time being invited to a party. I’m sure she can already guess since I’m not exactly popular as the pack’s weak, little Omega.“I don’t know what we should do first!” Lara looks around excitedly. “What do you wanna do?”I’m as lost as she is. The air is filled with the smell of hot dogs grilling, music is blaring from hidden speakers, and the occasional splash from people jumping into the massive swimming pool hits my ears.“Ooh, I have an idea,” Lara grins. “We should find some guys to flirt with so that they will team up with us for the chicken fight tournament later.”“The chicken fight tournamen
SallyI find myself humming a tune softly to myself. “Well... I must admit, I have quite the fondness for ice cream, especially when there’s a whole year’s supply at stake,” I try to lighten the mood with a joke, but it falls flat even to my own ears. Ashton responds with a casual shrug, a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.“Well then, it looks like we can’t afford to lose,” he remarks.As I glance up at him, a wave of nervousness washes over me. It’s almost ridiculous how strongly it affects me. I mentally scold myself and wish I could physically smack some sense into myself, maybe with a baseball bat to the face. My heart really needs to calm down—Ashton is my ex, for crying out loud.“Let’s go this way,” I say, taking the lead towards the pool.Ashton snickers quietly behind me, likely because he’s been here countless times before. He doesn’t comment on that, though, and silently follows my lead. I can feel his gaze fixed on my back, and I wonder if he is trying t