MALIKStalking was bad. Stalking Elizabeth was a horrible idea, but I was out of options. Something happened between Waylen and her. I didn’t know what; I probably would never know, but I couldn’t stop thinking about my mate, her safety, and our future.Guaranteed, I felt a little better knowing she cooped up at her best friend’s place, not her house like she had done for the whole of last week, but I couldn’t stop myself from driving to this old stadium every morning, sunglasses over my eyes, baseball cap over my scalp to disguise myself as I watched her and her best friend jog around the field. They did this two days ago, yesterday, and today. Fumi was on black tights and a tank top. Elizabeth too. The driver would arrive to pick them up in twenty minutes, and I would follow behind to be sure they got home in one piece. I didn’t trust Kane’s silence.Why did Elizabeth stop going to work? She spent th

Malik was a gentleman. The epitome of perfection. When I told him I had nothing to wear, a big fucking lie, by the way, I didn’t expect him to offer to take me shopping for a dress. Lana said I could pick whatever I wanted, so I grabbed a pair of shoes and jewelry to match the dress. I didn’t know if those two were an item, but I wouldn’t overthink it. I refused to act on my jealousy like I refused to climb on his lap in the car and beg him to let me ride him like a horse.He made me feel things. Things only Waylen had come close to making me feel. Things I thought only Waylen was supposed to make me feel.What did that make me? In Waylen’s words, that made me a whore. I kicked memories of him out of my mind. My ‘supposed’ betrayal was not a reason for him to slut shame me. I would assume that was a thing with males given what happened at the stadium last week, but Malik was proving my theory about men wrong. He was a gentleman.

WAYLEN I hissed in annoyance as my phone rang for the second time. Beth. How dare she fucking call me? I wanted nothing to do with her anymore. Maybe I did. But I was too pissed to think clearly. Malik Otis Sterling? Of all people, she went on a date with that murderer? Even compared me to him?My phone pinged. I was ready to toss it across the wall, but the message on my screen stopped me. It was from Evelyn. I opened the text, and my blood ran cold. Evelyn: I think there’s someone in our house.Evelyn: I’m scaredI gave Beth’s younger sister my number so she could call me if she wanted anything and maybe use her to keep an eye on Beth. But this sounded like an emergency. I dialed her number, but she didn’t pick up. Beth’s was next. It was unreachable. Len roared. My fingers tingled as my claws extended. I was out of the room in a flash. I didn’t have the location of their hou

Malik saw me naked and didn’t react. I closed my legs, annoyed at him and myself. Waylen would have acted differently, kissed me before taking me against that sink. Why was I upset when I always complained about his roughness? Because I wanted what he gave, even if I didn’t like how he took them. But my attraction to Malik made little or no sense to me. I liked him, alright. From our dates and chats over the month, I knew he was a cool person. Still, after everything that had happened tonight, my body should have shut down. I shouldn’t be horny or this tense.The sound of pouring water kept me awake. I rested my head against the headboard, my eyes so heavy I could barely see. My feelings were a mess. Right now, I was so wet I was certain I had soaked Malik’s towel. I wanted Malik to hold me. But I wanted to stay away. When someone helps you, you offer your gratitude and leave, not picture yourself in bed with them. Still, I couldn’t

I exited the car before I did something silly. It was Monday, a few minutes past six in the evening, and I didn’t expect Waylen to be here. The building was empty except for the guard at the door. He let me in without so much as a fuss. Waylen mustn’t have told them he fired me. Or that I quit, whatever.My footsteps pounded loudly against the floor. In the silence, every sound seemed louder than it actually was. I arrived at my floor without a mishap, opened my door and tiptoed inside. My desk was as I last left it because I thought I would be coming back. The door to Waylen’s office was also closed. I wondered if he was in or had already left. Either way, I didn’t check to satisfy my curiosity. But my guess was on him being away. Typical him would have come out to haunt me. Or maybe he was finally listening to me and staying away. I found an empty box and emptied the valuable contents of my drawers into it. They weren’t much. The c