My skin is sticky with sweat and the smell of sex permeates the room. I slide off the bed and start searching the floor for my clothes while the man behind me, a warrior from our pack, stands and begins walking towards the bathroom. “You can let yourself out.” He utters without so much as a glance over his shoulder. The bathroom door slams shut, and I hear the spray from the shower turn on. I’m a little irked that he didn’t even bother to thank me for helping him relieve his stress, but not all of them do. I know what I’m getting myself into when I come home with a guy like this. He’s a bit of a slob too, so it takes me a minute to find my clothes. My dress is in the corner, and it has a small tear in it, but at least it’s still wearable. I quickly pull the dress over my head and glance at myself in a mirror as I comb my fingers through my long chestnut brown hair. Swiping my fingers under my golden-brown eyes to remove some of the black smudges from my eye makeup. It’s alwa

The clock on my nightstand shows that it’s already 4:43 PM and I need to leave soon if I don’t want to be late. Brent will be meeting me at Grand Teton National Park which is about a 40-minute drive from my house. We wanted to meet somewhere beautiful so that when we see each other, and the mate bond snaps into place we have a beautiful setting to add to the memory and the stories we’ll tell our children and grandchildren. After one more quick glance in the mirror to confirm that I look okay. I slip on my brown ballet flats grab my purse and keys and head out the door. I opted for the flats instead of heels because I need to be able to easily walk the trails in the park to get to the spot where we agreed to meet. It’s getting warm out and the mountain breeze feels so good, but today I’m driving with the windows up and the A/C running on a low setting. I don’t want to risk messing up my hair. Everything about this moment needs to be perfect. Admittedly, I tend to speed when I dr

Poor Jill was heart-broken again. She spent so much time and effort getting herself ready for the Blue Moon Ball and she still didn’t find her mate. I did my best to comfort her, but I think she really just needed some time to grieve and cry. Being her shoulder to cry on was my main priority after the ball, but she kept insisting that I go and enjoy myself with Brent, that she would be fine. I wasn’t convinced, but Brent kept pushing for me to give her some space, so he and I went away for a long weekend trip to Portland Oregon. When we returned Jill seemed to be in a better place emotionally, so I didn’t press her for information or ask for details. She also agreed to go with Brent and I on a trip to Vegas. We spent a week lounging around a pool, going to shows, and gambling a bit as well. It was so fun, and Brent was very understanding about not being too affectionate in front of Jill. I didn’t want her to feel like the third wheel on our trip. The summer was filled with tr

“It’s more…” That was the moment the pressure became too much and the cracks in my heart couldn’t take it anymore. I shattered into a thousand pieces. I wanted to run, I wanted to scream, I wanted to bury myself in my bed and never get up again. Brent reached for me with sad eyes, but I stepped back again. This time I turned and ran back to the dorms. Hopefully everyone will be out since it’s the middle of the day on Sunday. I didn’t really want to be seen like this. Everything I thought I knew about Brent and our relationship; I was now viewing through a different lens. He had slept around before we dated. How did I not know that? He cheated on me with Amanda. I should have been more suspicious of her from the start. I should have paid closer attention to how Brent responded to her. I’m sure there were signs and hints that I missed. I wonder how many people knew these things about him that I didn’t. Did they all assume that I just didn’t care, or were you they laughing

The drive back to the training complex took longer than I would have liked. While Trevor was resting his hand on my thigh and rubbing his thumb up and down, I had a few minutes for my shifter healing to start working through the alcohol I had consumed. By the time we arrived, my buzz was significantly less, and the fog from my lust was wearing down slightly. My confidence wavered and I started thinking of a way to back out of this without completely embarrassing myself or offending Trevor. It’s not his fault that I said yes and then had doubts. We pulled in close to the building where the guys bunk and my heart started racing. I hadn’t come up with a good enough excuse yet and I’m running out of time. While I sat there in a panic, Trevor came around and opened the door for me. He was being such a gentleman. Taking his hand as I climbed out of the car, our eyes suddenly locked. As soon as I was standing, he wrapped both arms around my waist and pulled me in close. “Don’t be n