MATTHAN "Well, your threats are practically useless now. Maybe you'll finally put some effort if you want a relationship with Eloise instead of relying on cheap tricks." My wolf mocked the second the door slammed shut and as much as I hated to admit it, it was right. Eloise was completely done with the singular threat I had up my sleeve. But it stung nonetheless. Because I knew there was no effort I could put in to get what I wanted with Eloise. She had explicitly told me. She was afraid of a relationship with me. I was a werewolf. As much as Eloise tried to deny her heritage, I couldn't. I was a Beta. There was no changing that. Eloise Carter however didn't do werewolves because her father's depravity had warped her perception of what a healthy relationship with her kind was like. I fitted in my keys in the ignition and slowly backed up before putting it into drive and backing out of the driveway. I was beginning to realize how empty my threat had been. I could not see myself exposin

ELOISE "Good night Matthan," I managed a whisper before shutting the door behind me. What happened next was unsightly and I hoped to God that my mom was not around the corner, waiting to hear how the date went. I sank against the door and cried. I didn't know why he had to make everything so much harder than it needed to be. It wasn’t like it was going to get any better if I just kept avoiding him. At least, I hoped that it wouldn't. But who was I kidding? Matthan was hurt. I had broken the truce. A reprieve I had not quite agreed to but a truce nonetheless.I wiped away the tears from my face and took a deep breath. I couldn't keep doing this. I genuinely wanted to get better but maybe destiny hadn't placed that character development in my books. I thought about it long and hard. Would I ever get better or was I just another lost cause? Perhaps my birth father had damaged me beyond repair."You are wrong Eloise. Judas did not damage us. But you will never get better if you don't try

ELOISEI woke up to the noise of people arguing. Or maybe arguing wasn't right; it was more like an angry and aggressive shouting match. The voices were muffled through the walls of my room, but I could still hear them.“How did she get exposed?” A male voice shouted. It was my father and I knew the man to be a man of few words. If he was pissed, it had to be something unforgivable. "Eloise is still a child! She's not ready for this sort of meeting. She still has nightmares and now you want to open all those wounds that have barely healed?”"I know but it is not like I have a choice. She is in potential danger and she deserves to know. We've kept up this act of fragile little human for far too long. She is no weakling. Now, where is she?"The other voice sounded familiar. It sounded like a man. From the baritone laced in his voice, I could tell he was old but I could not shake the feeling that I had heard the voice somewhere. But that was not the only thing that caught my attention. T

ELOISEI could hardly believe that I was doing it. Coming out clean. "I don't have a choice," I told Fergus."He's threatening you?"Well, that part was not wrong but I wished that was truly all there was to it. However, that was not the case and someone deserved to know. Now more than ever. The bond between Matthan and I was not something I had intended to hide from my parents but I had believed it would scare them. The concept of mates and werewolves seemed all too complicated but now, that wedge was gone. They knew it all. No point hiding it now."Matthan is my mate," I confessed. It was no easier saying the words aloud than it had been thinking them.I expected some negative reaction; maybe an overreacting gasp but that did not happen. Instead, they simply nodded solemnly as if they already knew."That would explain why the Beta is acting irrationally." Fergus surmised. "Love can make us do crazy things. I assume he is doing this because you want nothing to do with him?"I nodded.

ELOISEI don't think I've ever had a lucid dream. Dreams to Eloise Carter were a rare experience. Nightmares and terrors of the night were more of my forte but being completely aware of my actions in a dream was new to me. A wise person once said by embracing your subconscious, you gained a different way of seeing and experiencing. An expanded doorway that explored hidden vices of oneself. I had half expected tonight to be riddled with horrible replays of that unfortunate night but there I was having a heart to heart with Matthan. He looked real. He looked flesh and bone but I knew this was a dream. Since it was nothing but a dream, I didn't hold back. I said every word that lingered at the back of my mind. Things I didn't think I had the guts to say in front of Matthan Gardenia when I finally woke up from this moment. Once I said it all, I left it all. I figured the only way to end the dream was to walk back through the door I had used to come in. I closed my eyes walking through, hal