Veronica
The first day that Ryker, my brother’s best friend, came into my awareness has been emblazoned in my mind over the years, no matter how hard I have attempted to scrub his existence from my memory. I was seven when he first whirled into my perfect little world, and I had instantly been drawn to his magnetic presence.
My older brother Jax had originally been leery of the young wolf that was wreaking havoc in the middle of town with his bedraggled appearance and aggressive actions aimed at the pair of elders that had tried, and spectacularly failed, to corral him into one of the local businesses and out of the public’s view.
My eyes had locked with his reddish-brown colored orbs for a single second during all of the chaos, and suddenly the midnight black wolf was shifting into a wild looking kid with tousled chin-length hair and the same russet-colored irises as the lupine that had disappeared with his transformation.
I was riveted by the mere sight of him, but I also could not recall meeting him in the area recently.
Even so, not much could have torn me away from the tumultuous scene unfolding before me, but Jax had tried his damnedest to whisk me away from the ensuing fray anyway.
I could not explain the strange fascination I had with the newcomer at the time, but I knew it had only grown since the first day that he had blown into town like a tornado with a troubled past nipping at his heels at only twelve.
There are a lot of things about him that have remained a mystery throughout our association: what happened between the time that Jax interceded and our father arrived, what drove him to our territory in the first place in the half-crazed state that he had been in, and why he had left without a word the next morning after we had finally come together so wondrously, years after our initial introduction and our forbidden tango had begun.
I had gotten used to disappointment as far as Ryker was concerned but taking a trip down memory lane still hurt, nonetheless.
I am not certain what happened after Jax got involved and my father subsequently appeared out of nowhere. I had lost eye contact for a few minutes while retreating to a safer place to watch. It was Jax’s sole condition, but I berated myself for refusing to stand my ground regardless.
It seemed someone closer to the kid's age had helped settle his nerves because he was no longer lashing out, and the elders had thankfully backed off when it became obvious that their approach was not working.
Somehow, my brother was able to do what neither of the elders had succeeded in accomplishing before, but by the time I had turned to witness the incredible sight, I regrettably realized that I had missed the entire encounter, and my father had reached the deescalating situation by that point, further exacerbating my displeasure.
However, he had handled the uncommon incident with a calm and authoritative demeanor, ordering the bystanders to disperse, myself included unfortunately, while he took stock of the scenario.
Jax I could defy, but not my father. I loitered a moment longer, watching amazed as the last spectators scattered with my father’s deep command, but then again, even at my early age I could clearly see the respect that he elicited from others.
I expected Jax to join me, but I was dissatisfied instead when I saw my father usher him inside the small grocery store that stood nearby.
I had stayed as still as a statue up on my perch as the elders filed in behind them and my father rotated to follow, but I scurried home without delay after the stern look that he shot my way before ducking inside the building after the others.
No one had told me what happened before or after the spectacle in the center of town, but my father returned home later that evening with Jax and the child, who had struck a chord within me, in tow.
I was then formally introduced to Ryker but was given no additional information. He had persisted on the periphery, just out of reach ever since that day.
Jax and him had been inseparable since the day our fates had intertwined with each other’s, but I was rarely welcome within the same vicinity as the boys.
As I matured with the passing of time, my beginning captivation with Ryker morphed into an array of different emotions including adoration, all-consuming passion, annoyance, and resentment to name a few.
My brother had always looked after me before Ryker’s advent, but he frequently complained about me tailing them wherever they went afterward, earning me the maddening nickname Shadow.
Whatever pull that had snared me that first day only seemed to have grown with the more time that I spent in his proximity. There was nothing sexual about it early on, simply the intrigue of his remarkable entrance, but as the time passed my level of attachment fervently grew alongside it.
Ryker watched me grow up from the pudgy, snot faced little girl into the slim figure of a young woman. He had defended me as fiercely as Jax from the beginning, but as I neared adulthood and the age that I could find my mate, I had found myself questioning more than once during that time period whether he might have been my forever.
I observed as his glances lingered longer when my brother’s attention was diverted elsewhere, but he had never crossed that infuriating line, presumably due to my age and the complications my overprotective sibling provided.
Despite the outwardly insurmountable obstacles, everything changed when the bears invaded and slaughtered my parents in cold blood. Jax had ordered Ryker to deliver me to safety in the South while he stayed behind to regroup with the others and mount a counterattack.
Thank Luna, the seriousness of the situation had allowed Ryker to push past the boundaries preventing him from working through his own issues concerning his enigmatic past then.
He had never told anyone what had happened to my knowledge, what had incited him into his half-mad flight across the country to begin with.
No one pushed him, and he appeared to adapt fine without the added pressure to confront his demons, though I knew I was not the only one who had attempted over the years to coax him into addressing the trauma that he had no doubt experienced.
Yet, bits and pieces had slipped over time, and I had managed to put together clues from what I noticed around me.
I knew that Ryker’s home was previously in the South, but something had spurred his wolf to take the reins, driving him halfway across the country before he had transformed back into his human shape again here in the North.
He had avoided the Southern Territory like the plague in the past, but the war changed a lot of things. My universe was shattered with the death of my parents, and Jax was thrust into the role of alpha prematurely.
I was an emotional wreck the whole journey to the South. Most of that distressing trip has since been blacked out from my mind, but every second of its culmination has been carved in searing detail into the deepest recesses of my brain.
To this day, I do not know who made the first move that night, but it set my life on a course that I never expected it to go down.
Veronica I leapt a solid foot into the air, my heart pounding a thousand beats a minute at the quiet snick of the door as Marigold entered the room behind me and water sloshed down the front of me, bringing my mind flying back to the present. “I’m sorry! I did not mean to startle you.” She apologized in her soft-spoken voice while I dried my now sopping shirt with the dish towel. I took a moment to collect myself before responding, “No, you’re fine. I was lost in reminiscing and did not hear you come in.” “Hmm, maybe about a certain someone? You know you are going to have to tell him when he gets here right?” She casually tossed the last part over her slim shoulder as she walked to the pantry and returned a moment later with the broom and dustpan. She gave me a knowing glance before she started s
Veronica I tramped up the path that led to the door of the pack house, pausing to admire the vibrant flowers in the last of the dying light. I had always enjoyed the beautiful image the few times that I had been invited here formerly, but I hadn't known until just recently that Willow had been the one behind the gorgeous gardening. I raised my fist, poised to knock on the door as I reached the end of the line, but it swung inward before my knuckles had a chance to connect with the rough wood, which I knew had only recently been replaced. Asher stood on the other side with his own duffel bag slung carelessly over his left shoulder. “I have perfect timing it appears. Lead the way.” I chortled, stepping back to let him stride out in front of me. Rather than reply, Asher elected to pull the door shut
Ryker I was aware of Ronnie’s arrival long before I could hear the first traces of the purring engine on the incoming vehicle. My wolf’s mournful howl boomed out in my head in response to our mate’s propinquity while I forced myself to remain standing within the doorway, not wanting to seem too eager by waiting in the driveway. The deafening sound penetrated through the unease that had suffused my being until all I could see was a reel of the most painful flashes of my life playing on repeat while I remained frozen in place. Returning to the South was the last thing that I wanted, but I also knew that it was long past time that I cleaned out the skeletons in my closet. Each new day added to the burden that I had been carrying my whole life, but it had become almost unbearable since that fateful morning after when I had first comprehended the full extent of the bond that I still share wit
Ryker I groggily rubbed the sleep out of my eyes as I padded down the stairs and tiptoed through the silent living room into the bright light of the rising sun shining in from the east like a beacon into the spacious room. The rich scent of coffee had lured me out of bed, but as I entered the room, the fragrance which had submersed my dreams washed over me like a cleansing rain, bringing a sense of peace with it that had been absent in my life for so long. The familiar aroma of clean linen and lavender assaulted my nostrils, superseding the smell that had driven me here to begin with. I squinted my eyes open more fully as her personal perfume overtook my senses, searching every corner of the space before me for my mate. My bleary eyes connected with her brilliant green orbs, and I felt a jolt of electricity shoot through me as
Veronica Once it became clear that I was not going to escape the room without having some sort of conversation, I backed up, putting some distance between me and the wall of muscle currently blocking my retreat. Sandalwood and peppermint wafted into my awareness with the breeze created by my movement, invading my air supply with a fresh dose of the intoxicating fragrance and leaving my wolf balanced precariously close to the edge. I had not made time to shift since arriving, and the prospect was not looking promising for the immediate future unfortunately. Jax would never allow me to go off on my own with the recent attack that had occurred, and I could guess who he would suggest as a guard if I dared to broach the topic. I contemplated sneaking off for a transitory moment but, in the end, discarded the idea as my pragmatic s
Veronica My level of apprehension grew exponentially with each second ticking by as Ryker marched us onwards to the waiting vehicle, lugging both his bag and mine without so much as breaking a sweat as we left the clinic. He hadn’t uttered a single syllable to me since our mild spat this morning, but the phrase “If looks could kill, I’d be dead right now” had persevered in intermittently sprouting up in my mind with the level of the intensity that I had seen burning behind his carefully cultivated façade when others were nearby. I kept waiting for him to shatter the silence as we trudged on, but it never happened. He did not look fuming per se, but something was clearly weighing heavy on his mind, making me squirm as the endless possibilities rocketed through my brain. I had all but resolved on crawling into the backseat for a nice, long nap the entire trip home when my plans were
Ryker I felt like the suspense might truly kill me as I waited on the edge of my seat for Ronnie’s feedback about giving our relationship a real shot. I kept one eye on the road ahead of us and one on my anxious mate beside me while trying not to rip the steering wheel in half with my death grip. My wolf perked up at the perceptible changes in her physiology while she cautiously considered my words. His constant clawing to break free of my skin ticked up a notch in response to her elevated heart rate and labored breathing. Thank Luna, I had gone for a prolonged jog last night with Asher, patrolling the border as a precaution and in preparation for the torturous day that I had successfully predicted today would be. Ronnie’s delectable aroma bathed the air surrounding me, making it tough to concentrate on anything but my increas
Ryker Veronica and I have a daughter together. I am a father. My wolf was oddly silent while I sifted through the competing stimuli going off in my brain at lightning speed. There had not been any mistaking the brilliant green orbs, identical to her mother’s, which had gazed up curiously into my own before the little girl had been shepherded away in a flash. How the hell did I miss this enormous facet of Ronnie’s life? I was shell-shocked as my eyes caught on the mirror image staring back at me from where my mate was standing a meager two feet away. Ronnie started in an uncertain tone, “There might have been something that I needed to tell you…” She let her sentence trail off while she pivoted her attention to the sandy ground in front