Quinn I swore I sensed Troy’s approach several seconds before he knocked on my door. I even looked up in anticipation, waiting for it to happen. As he did yesterday morning, he didn’t wait for an invitation before he entered. “You’re awake,” he overstated the obvious. I’d been awake for at least half an hour now. My foot was alive with agony again, and after the blissful release from pain last night, I wanted to cry when I woke to the familiar throbbing, burning sensation. It had been getting increasingly worse as time went on. It was almost as bad as the night my mother repeatedly drove the breadknife into my foot. I purposefully pushed the memory away and focused on my breathing, trying to distract myself from the pain. I gritted my teeth. I wouldn’t lose my shit in front of Troy again. “Good morning,” I said. “The healer is here,” he announced as if it was no big deal at all. “She wants to meet you before she starts to prepare for the healing.” I sighed and tried to hold on t
Quinn Me and my big mouth. I did it again. I pushed Troy’s buttons simply because I could. I used to do the same thing to my mother. It was almost as if I got some kind of sick enjoyment from pissing her off. The slap Troy gave me didn’t hurt that much. It was the warning that I shouldn’t push him any further that closed my mouth for me. Troy deposited me on a sun lounger next to the pool and stripped off his t-shirt. I should really be quiet and not say anything, but if I were going to stay here, I needed to know what I was in for so I could prepare myself. “Do you…beat women?” I asked, my voice shaky. Troy bundled his t-shirt into a little ball and threw it on the lounger. “Beat? No.” “You hit me.” He laughed humourlessly. “I smacked you on the ass.” “To…silence me or to hurt me?” “Christ Almighty,” he murmured. “Neither…to stop you from squirming out of my arms. I was about to drop you down the stairs. If I truly wanted to hurt you, you would be on the floor bleeding.” My
Troy As I dove into the pool, a voice I hadn’t heard in many years spoke inside my head. “Troy.” My insides contracted, and I inhaled sharply, almost fucking drowning myself in the process. I was over three-hundred-years old. I was one of the strongest Lycans ever created, and whenever my father spoke to me, I instantly turned into a frightened, lost little pup. “What do you want?” I asked when I came up for air. I felt Quinn’s eyes on me as I turned around and swam back to the other end of the pool. “I hear you found your fated mate. The one from the prophecy.” Well, he was bound to find out sooner or later. I was rather hoping for later though. “Who told you?” “It doesn’t matter.” I didn’t say anything. It was pointless. My fear now was for Quinn. My father understood the prophecy, understood what I was, and he knew what finding her meant for him. The only way he could stop me was if Quinn died or I didn’t mark her. “What are you going to do about it?” he asked. “I don’t k
Troy I walked into my mansion, embracing the peace that settled over me as soon as I did. Coming from the Lakelands, nature calmed me, and I tried to bring as much nature as I could into my home. Water wolves liked to be near water all the time, as desert wolves craved the dry, warm climate, and forest wolves the woods. Glover waited for me in the foyer to inform me that Serenity was already upstairs with Quinn. “How long have they been busy?” I asked. “About ten minutes now, Sir.” When we moved to the human world, we discarded all wolf terms that could identify us, including the use of our Goddess’s name. I quickly learned that if we didn’t think like humans, we’d slip up and expose ourselves, as Serenity exposed us to Quinn this morning when she called us by our formal titles. Glover wrinkled his nose when he took my jacket. “I think you should have enough time for a quick shower,” he commented cheekily. “That bad, huh?” “It’s…noticeable.” They never tell you, before you star
Quinn There wasn’t a time in my life when I didn’t feel pain. Maybe before I could form any concrete memories, before my mother went crazy, and before I started dancing, before I went to school and realised how different I was, and before my mother destroyed my future. I honestly couldn't remember. For the first time in my life, I was completely at ease and I felt no pain. It was weird, and I didn’t know what to do with it. All I’d ever known was chaos and fear. Peace was not something I understood or could embrace easily. And I wasn't just at peace. I felt safe. Protected. I cried most of the day. I cried for my parents, then I cried for my brothers, and finally I cried for myself. By the time Serenity came to my room, I was borderline hysterical, and she was pissed. She wished all sorts of curses upon Troy. It wasn’t until she explained to me that my state of mind would make healing me more difficult that I understood why she was so angry. She gave me something to drink, and wi
Quinn “Oh darling,” the stylist said when he took my messy hair in his hands. “Who did this to you?” Unsure what to say, I looked at Sebastian’s reflection in the large mirror against the wall. “My sister’s been unwell,” he lied without blinking. “She was in hospital for quite some time. She came back last week.” “I didn’t know you had a sister,” the stylist said. “Well, she’s not my sister yet,” Sebastian replied smoothly. “But as soon as my brother finally makes an honourable woman out of her, she will be.” I glanced at the ring on my left finger. Troy gave it to me this morning before we left. A solitaire diamond set in rose gold. It was simple, but elegant. I liked it. “It was my mother’s,” he explained when he slipped it on my finger. "I guess it's yours now." “So…I’m just supposed to tell people we’re engaged. Four days after you met me?” “No one will ask. Those that know I bought you at the auction won’t say anything.” Along with Sebastian, they concocted the story about
Troy “Your fiancée?” Quinn asked when Caroline left. “Is that what I am?” “Hm,” I grunted. “That is what humans call it, right?” “I guess, but…I don’t remember you asking me to marry you.” I smiled at her and ran my eyes over her calm face. I expected her to break down, but so far she handled everything remarkably well. Better than I thought she would. “To us, the day we mark our mate is our wedding day, and our union our marriage. We do make it legal in the human world too. Do you want to do that?’ “Yes,” she said, her voice filled with venom, “and invite Caroline to the wedding.” I laughed, turned her around and steered her in the direction of the bathroom. “Do you need any help?” “You know, I once washed my hair with rainwater I collected in a bucket.” I winced at how matter-of-fact her voice was when she told me. “I think I can manage a shower.” I lifted her luscious new locks off her shoulders, and ran my fingers through the silky strands. The haircut and manicure was Seba
Quinn We were stuck in the club for several hours, and I was ready to claw my way out of my own skin with irritation. Everywhere I looked, there was Caroline. Like a poltergeist haunting my every step. “Can we go home yet?” I asked and sipped my third glass of wine. I was a little tipsy, and unlike Troy, I couldn't relax. I glared at the blonde as she walked past our table for the hundredth time. I wanted to pluck her eyes out of her skull and serve it up to her for breakfast. "No," Troy said, his deep voice pulling my attention back to him. He dipped his finger into the whiskey, and listlessly dragged his wet digit along the rim of the glass. The expensive crystal hummed a high-pitched tune that matched my mood. “Lawson’s crew surrounded the club.” “Can’t your men just pick us up in the parking structure under the club?” “No,” Troy answered and glanced around at the people that kept staring at us. “There are bound to be some of Lawson's men in the parking lot.” “So the rule of