Patrick turned his head and glanced down at Hank, who was on one knee. Patrick asked, "I told you to look up things from three years ago. Hank, do you still think no one knows about it?"
Patrick used his finger to tap the report on the desk and narrowed his eyes angrily. "I think they were onto you the second you made a move. See? The proof here is perfect." Patrick thought, 'There's one thing that baffles me. Why did Grandpa make such a decision three years ago? I'm so confused. What happened three years ago did bother me. But it was related to the whole pack, and Grandpa didn't need to kill a member of the pack and frame Gloria from the Silver Spring Pack no matter what.' "You may leave." Patrick raised his arm and gestured for Hank to leave. Hank wanted to say something, but the second he looked up, he met Patrick's gaze. "Hank, I know what you are thinking, but this has become more than schemes between women." "Then what about MPatrick threw her onto the bed. Before Gloria could sit up, the bed sank in beside her. She looked up. Patrick was sitting on the edge of the bed, and one of his hands was lifting her left leg. Gloria's face suddenly turned pale. She couldn't help but look toward the door. There were so many people at the door. Did he want to have sex in front of everyone? With such a possibility in mind, Gloria's face turned sullen. She stretched out her leg to kick Patrick. Then, Patrick tightened his grip on her ankle. He turned his head and glanced at her with a warning in his eyes. Gloria's heart skipped a beat. She gritted her teeth and suppressed the urge to kick him. Patrick held her ankle with his slender fingers and slowly lifted her foot. This action made Gloria feel embarrassed. She bit her lower lip, and her face blanched. 'Patrick, if you want to humiliate me, there's nothing I can do!' Gloria was desperate. At thi
"Miss Carter!" Samantha wanted to shove the dress into Gloria's hands. Gloria found the dress revolting, and she waved her hands in the air involuntarily. Then something unexpected happened. While struggling, Gloria pushed Samantha too hard and made her fall to the ground. Everyone quieted down instantly. Gloria opened her mouth and wanted to apologize. She didn't mean to. She just didn't want the dress. She felt bad and asked, "Are you OK?" She walked over and offered her hand, trying to help Samantha up from the ground. Samantha didn't fall hard, but she landed on the ground in an embarrassing way. Two buttons of her shirt fell off, revealing half of her fair bosom. Samantha looked down at her neckline and pulled a long face. "Miss Carter! This is too much!" She screamed and stood up. Unfortunately, she stood up too hastily, so her shirt split further. Everyone was stunned, including Gloria. Samantha, i
"No, not Miss Carter. She is Luna of the Black Thorn Pack," said Patrick. The makeup artist was confused. "What?" "She is my mate." Patrick glanced at the makeup artist. "What do you think you should call her?" The makeup artist's face paled, and sweat immediately appeared on her forehead. Her delicate makeup was ruined by sweat. Damon, who was behind the crowd, suddenly raised his head. He stared blankly at the couple not far from him. In the next moment, he lowered his head, but he no longer concealed the hatred and sadness in his eyes. Before leaving, Patrick turned to Damon and said, "Damon, I hope you haven't forgotten what I told you in the study." As soon as Patrick spoke, Damon's shoulders shook. "You've been around me for a long time. We grew up together and my grandfather treated you like his grandson. He didn't have the heart to let you go to the border. Each member of the Black Thorn Pack is precious. My grandfather aske
Damon's eyes widened. He looked at the phone and couldn't believe that Ellison had just hung up like that. He thought, 'How could Ellison just hang up on me?' Damon grabbed something nearby and smashed it madly and cursed, "Ellison, if you hadn't intervened, my sister Gabrielle wouldn't have died!" He thought, 'And now Ellison wants to push it all away? I will never allow it! Also, if those rogues really come back to Gabbs, it's only a matter of time before Alpha Patrick finds them. What will happen to Gabrielle's reputation once the truth is laid bare?' Damon clenched the phone in his hand, trembling in anger. He took a deep breath to calm himself, and then he called Alex to tell him the whole story in a flustered voice. Alex kept silent for a while. Then he said, "I'll find those rogues. At the same time, I want you to do one more thing for me." "Anything," Damon said without hesitation. Over the phone, Alex g
Sean and Stewart were stunned at the same time, and they looked at each other, thinking the same thing, 'No way! Did Lucas, the notorious playboy of the Sea Moon Pack, fall in love with Gloria?' Such a thought came to their minds almost simultaneously, and they saw the same wonder and confusion in each other's eyes. Lucas' question made Gloria's heart beat fast. For a second, she suspected that she had heard him wrong. The moment Lucas asked Gloria the question, he was shocked as well. He thought, 'Why did I ask her that question?' He had to admit something even if he didn't want to. The question that he blurted out was the one he was curious about the most. Lucas was smart. When he realized what he was thinking, he was determined to accept everything. He tidied up his clothes and then asked Gloria, "You used to fix me something to eat every night. Is there any other reason other than money?" This time, he was not as hasty as earlie
When Derrick took out the cigarette case, he took out a lighter as well. Gloria grabbed both the cigarette and the lighter. Derrick was stunned. "What are you doing?" Gloria dodged him, lit the cigarette, took a puff of smoke, and exhaled a white mist. Then she looked at him and said, "Mr. Fisher, see? What do you really know about me? You don't even know that I smoke, and you just assume that the woman standing in front of you is not a gold digger?" Gloria glanced at the panic-stricken Derrick mockingly, her expression was magnified in the white smoke. Right now, the expression on Gloria's face made her look like a gold digger who despised a poor boy. "Go away," Gloria's eyes turned cold, and she deliberately said with disdain. She flicked the ash off, but her movement was very rusty, and she almost dropped the cigarette butt. Yet at this moment, Derrick's attention was on Gloria's face. Derrick never expected to see such a
Patrick carried Gloria out of the car as she asked. Gloria shouted, "I won't get off! Let me go!" Being on Patrick's shoulder, she grabbed the car door and kept struggling. In a panic, she failed to care whether or not she had kicked Patrick. "Not getting off? You said you wanted to get off, right?" Patrick teased. Gloria choked. Then, she mocked, "Before I was sent to the werewolf prison, didn't you say that I wasn't your mate? You even rejected me!" "That was a mistake. I am correcting it now." Patrick's handsome face looked serious. "Patrick," Gloria smiled, "I am also correcting my mistakes." Patrick's eyes turned cold. He ignored her refusal as if he had not heard her words. Instead, he declared, "From now on, you are my mate, and you'll be the mother of our children, and become the Luna of the Black Thorn Pack." "You should have done this a long time ago." Leo cheered. About Gloria, Leo often had different though
A black Bentley drove on a boulevard and stopped at the iron gate of the villa of the Alpha of the Black Thorn Pack. Patrick got out of the car first and then bent down to carry Gloria out. Gloria looked blank and did not respond to him. Damon came out to welcome Patrick. "Alpha Patrick, you're back." As soon as he finished his words, he saw Gloria in Patrick's arms and wrapped in Patrick's suit jacket. Damon's eyes turned sharp as he could sense Patrick's smell mixed with Gloria's. His lips moved, but in the end, he did not say anything and bent slightly to welcome Patrick back. "Alpha Patrick, I'll help take Miss Carter upstairs." Damon did not want Gloria to stay in Patrick's arms. Patrick took a big step aside to avoid Damon and then continued walking forward. He said coldly, "It's getting late. Beta Damon, go rest." Damon didn't give up and said, "It doesn't matter." "Beta Damon, you don't need to worry about such
Cline released Luana with a hint of despair, staggering back a step.His bloodshot eyes locked onto hers as he asked, "Never at all?"Luana's lashes fluttered, her composure unwavering as she shook her head again.The smile on Cline's lips deepened with bitterness. "What about these, then?"He pulled out a letter he'd carried always, holding it before her. His voice cracked, his eyes red as he repeated, "What do these mean?"Luana's gaze fell on the perfectly preserved letter, and her expression froze—a chord struck deep within.She wondered when exactly she'd lost all hope in him.Her thoughts drifted back to that night when he held her close, their intimacy shattered by his cold words, "Don't delude yourself into thinking I'll love you."She'd felt like ice, realizing she was nothing to him but a vessel for his emotions. Yet now...Luana slowly lifted her eyes to Cline, his composure completely undone.Whe
Luana fought with all her might, her slender hands clawing at Cline's arms.Her nails bit through his skin, drawing blood, yet he held on relentlessly."Cline!" Luana roared in fury, finally dropping her Dorothy act and staring him down as Luana.Hearing his name from her lips, Cline's eyes reddened further. "You finally admit it..."Luana sneered. "So what if I do?"Cline froze, his bloodshot eyes slowly meeting hers.Her face was an icy mask, devoid of emotion, filled only with contempt.This cold Luana left him at a loss.As he opened his mouth to speak, Luana turned her head, her calm eyes reflecting Cline's pale face."Did you really mean it when you said you loved me?""Yes..." Cline's heart leaped at the chance to connect, and he nodded eagerly, about to confess a decade-old truth.But Luana cut him off, her voice ice-cold, "If you loved me, why wouldn't you wait until our contract ended before break
"Does it hurt?" Luana silently asked herself.Once, she had known pain—excruciating, soul-crushing agony that had left her curled on a cold floor, voiceless and desperate.It had been a pain that stripped away all hope in this man before her, eroding her very will to live. It had been so severe that even in her final moments, when she'd longed for a glimpse of him, he'd refused even a phone call.That pain was no mere physical wound. It was a despair that seeped into her very being.It was after enduring such torment that she had finally seen Cline for what he truly was—a man utterly ruthless toward her.Yet now, here he was, holding her and asking if she hurt. The irony was bitter, almost laughable.With a cold, expressionless face, she said, "The five minutes are up. Let me go."But Cline, who had finally held the person he'd obsessed over, had no intention of releasing her so easily.He held her tight and said, "
Cline held tight to her arm, as if he'd never let go unless Luana gave him a chance to speak.Luana, brows furrowed, sighed and relented, "Five minutes, right here."Cline's cold gaze shifted to Dorian, who shot him a glare before turning to Luana."Five minutes, then home," Dorian warned.Luana nodded meekly, "Okay."Only after Dorian strode into the villa did Luana turn to Cline, her voice cool and impatient."Well?"In Dorian's presence, Luana had been the picture of obedience, just as she used to be with him.Now, though, Cline saw a change in her—calm, distant, and edged with impatience.This new version of Luana only deepened the ache in his chest.He longed to reach out, to brush his fingers against her face, but as his hand rose, she flinched violently, stepping back as if struck.Luana stared at Cline's right hand, her pupils suddenly clouded with fear, as if the ghosts of past trauma had res
Luana nodded in agreement and turned toward the stairs.But after just two steps, she froze, her fingers brushing the banister.Slowly, she turned back, her voice hesitant. "Clarissa, I came back as Dorothy... What about Gehrmann?"Clarissa had guessed that Luana had returned as her sister Dorothy the moment she heard Dorian call her by that name.Clarissa's smile was warm, reassuring. "I won't say a word to him or Cline. Your secret's safe."Relief flickered in Luana's eyes. "Thank you," she whispered, the word soft as a feather.As Luana walked away, Clarissa watched her retreating figure, worry knotting her brow."Is this luck or a curse?" she thought, "Leaving Cline only to be trapped by Dorian."At the car, Luana opened the passenger door and slid in."Home at ten seems early," she ventured, her tone tentative.Dorian glanced over, his indifference palpable. "Make it eight, then."Luana's lips twitched
Clarissa watched Luana's fingers tighten around the phone until her knuckles whitened. "When I first saw those messages flooding in, I tried luring him out myself—posed as you, planned to bring the cops. But instead of catching a creep, I got..."She trailed off, the memory of the man in the café still prickling her nerves.A man as cold and heartless as Cline—why would he cling to memories of Luana like this?"Anyway," she shrugged, "he never showed. Guess some ghosts stay buried."Luana's voice was a whisper. "These things... they should've been my fight. Not yours."Clarissa cut her off, "If it were me in this mess, you'd do the same. So quit with the thanks already."Luana nodded meekly, her lashes drooping as she glanced back at the phone screen.The mystery gnawed at her—Mr. Night's messages reeked of obsession, yet he hid in plain sight. Why?She couldn't fathom it, and frankly, didn't care
"I had no choice but to pull a dumb move—I seduced Gehrmann and took Naomi's spot as his bedwarmer," Clarissa said flatly, her voice echoing off the brick walls."I thought I could use him to get back at Cline. Turns out I was dumber than a bag of hammers—Gehrmann wouldn't lift a finger against Cline for any woman." She kicked at a pebble, watching it skitter into the shadows. "By the time I figured that out, he wouldn't let me walk away."Clarissa shifted her weight, catching Luana's profile in the dim light."But don't you worry, Luana. I ain't falling for Gehrmann's charm. This world's got exactly one good man left—Albion. And he's six feet under."So, I won't be that girl anymore—the one who pours her heart out for every little kindness, even when it's not worth it."Mentioning Albion again made Luana's eyes dim as if the light behind them had been switched off.She lowered her lashes, hiding the sorrow pooling th
Third Person's POVLuana tightly embraced Clarissa, hoping to alleviate her pain.Clarissa, however, patted her back with a smile and said, "It's alright. After finding out the truth, I was devastated for a while, but then I pulled myself together. I installed surveillance cameras and recorded every moment of their infidelity, which I sent to my lawyer."I won the lawsuit, but I couldn't get the house back. I could only recover the mortgage payments, the money I spent on him, and compensation for emotional distress..."However, what I didn't expect was that someone would expose Albert's bigamy online, ruining his reputation. His company fired him, and no other major firms would hire him. As far as I know, his current salary isn't even enough to cover the mortgage. Plus, his mother has cancer, which is why he keeps begging at my door."Clarissa's voice turned cold as she continued, "He thinks I'm still the naive woman I once was, that if he kneels a
Clarissa took a deep breath, opened the bedside table, and took out a marriage certificate, handing it to Luana."You two weren't entirely meant to miss each other. At least he kept his promise from when you were young and married you."Seeing the marriage certificate, Luana's eyes welled up.She reached out and slowly unfolded it...Name: LuanaName: AlbionBeside them was a composite photo of the two, dressed in white shirts, with a red background, their faces beaming with happiness.When Luana was eighteen, she had asked Albion, "When are you going to marry me?"Albion, engrossed in a book at the time, looked up and playfully tapped her nose with his pen, saying, "When I'm capable of giving you happiness."Luana pouted, dissatisfied, "But when will that be?"Albion held up his book and replied, "After I've mastered all this knowledge and become someone worthy, then I'll marry you."Luana rested her chin