Willow
Still Two Years Earlier…
When I awoke an undefined amount of time later, I gazed around the room to ensure I was alone before doing anything else, noticing as I did so that I could now see the details of the room without the aid of Zeke’s remote to turn up the lights.
Sighing in relief, I sagged back into the fluffy pillows and sank down further into the velvety covers. Even so, I popped right back up just as swiftly as I realized why I had awoken in the first place. I really had to pee!
My eyes darted around the room, looking for a door that might lead to a bathroom, scrambling out of bed when I noticed two doorways on my right. I tried the one closest to me, but I was disappointed to find a walk-in closet instead of the restroom that I desperately needed at this point.
I speed walked towards the other door, praying it was the bathroom and rushing in at the first glimpse that I caught of a tub. Yes!
I took care of business and then permitted myself to look around the room now that I could concentrate on something other than my bodily functions.
During my inspection, I discerned a large walk-in shower with double waterfall faucets and a massive bathtub, which I had noticed on my mad dash to the toilet.
It looked even more impressive now that I took the time to admire it. I seriously considered stripping down and taking a nice, hot bubble bath right then. Luna knew I could use it after everything I had been through.
Be that as it may, I was still uneasy about my environment and unsure about Zeke's intentions. Leading me to only one conclusion, I needed to see if there was a way out of here, just in case. I glanced around to see if there were any windows in the bathroom as the thought flew into my mind.
Seeing none, I knew I had no choice but to go back out into the room.
I hesitated before following through with my plan, eventually electing to take a shower first due to the feeling of revulsion persisting from Zeke's hands on me prior.
Turning on the shower and ambling over to the door, I proceeded to lock it before I stripped out of the officious "nightgown" and stepped under the streaming water without further delay. The hot water gradually soothed muscles I didn’t realize were tense.
I stood under the water for several long minutes until I looked around, searching for something to wash myself with. I was pleasantly surprised to find several options. I smelled all of them, opting to stick with my favorite.
While lathering up my hair with the honey-scented shampoo, I continued to fret over what was coming all the while. As the water washed away the last remnants of soap from my hair and body, I reminded myself to stay strong and remain true to myself.
My father taught me to take care of myself. The water continued rushing over me as I stared at the tiled walls. I needed to get out, but the hot water was intoxicating.
Finally, I managed to pull myself away from my temporary escape. I wrung my hair out and wrapped it in a towel before drying the rest of my body off with another thick, cottony towel and looking around for something better to cover myself with.
No way was I putting that thing back on. I was a bigger girl, and I was not even comfortable seeing that much of my own skin on display, much less allowing some strange male to stare at me.
Not that I was fat; I had curves for days and maybe a little extra to hold on to, but my body was not something that I was overly confident in.
Noticing that there were no signs of a robe or any other real clothes, I finished drying my hair and hanging the towel that I had used back up, and then started for the bedroom, ensuring that the second towel was still wrapped tightly around my body before I did so.
On the way out the door, I paused as my eyes caught on my reflection in the huge mirror positioned by the exit.
Though I struggled with accepting my body type, I did have long, thick hair that reached past my waist which I loved. My dark hair, that so closely resembled my mother's, made me sad and tears began filling my chocolate-colored eyes, eyes that reminded me so much of my father's.
I still had not fully processed their deaths, but now was not the time. I pushed back the tears and, reluctantly, unlocked the bathroom door before making my way back into the room.
I looked around to ensure I was still alone and to look for a possible escape route. I was not surprised to find no windows. The unnatural darkness that was present before I had fallen asleep was my first clue. I gave up on that avenue of thinking for right now and strolled towards the closet to take a closer look for something to wear.
Upon first inspection, I did not see anything of use. My heart sank as I frantically continued looking around, but I felt my pulse spike a moment later as I located the bag stashed at the back of the tiny room.
I searched the contents, consisting of a couple form fitting dresses and matching pairs of skimpy underwear. This is what Zeke considered appropriate for my new lifestyle?
I was starting to get nervous about this entire situation, but I could not change the fact that I had to put something on.
These clothes were not what I would typically wear, but it was a lot better than the barely-there nightclothes that I was wearing or the towel. I guess beggars couldn’t be choosers, but I wished for my own clothes regardless.
I donned the officious garb and walked back into the bedroom, pulling my hair over my shoulder. I stopped short when I noticed Zeke sitting on the bed. How did I not hear him come in?
"Oh good, you found your clothes. Though you probably should have waited to put them on," Zeke casually informed me, his voice sounding amused.
I could feel my pulse skyrocket as I took in his words and position, lounging on my bed.
"Wh... Wh… What do you mean?"
Why did I keep stammering? His eyes burned as I felt them run over my body. I attempted to use my hair as a shield, but it was only so helpful. I glanced at Zeke and then towards the door.
There was something different about him this time. I was not sure what, but I sensed that it would not bode well for me.
He sauntered up to my cowering figure. His large hands grabbed my hips and pushed me against the wall while he leaned forward, pressing himself against me.
He caged me in against the wall, leaving me little space to breathe, and, to my horror, I felt something rigid stabbing into my lower stomach.
His weight felt suffocating against me, and I squirmed, trying to move away from him. He ignored my struggles and leaned in even closer, whispering, "I mean, that they will be on the floor shortly."
He angled his head down and began kissing my neck. I had never been in this situation before, growing up fairly sheltered. Hell, I had never even kissed a guy before, but I knew with absolute certainty that I did not want this man touching me!
I felt disgust roll down my spine as I felt him push his hardness insistently against me a few times. I tried pushing him back with what little strength I had left, gritting out, "No! I do not want that! Stop!"
Why did I still feel so weak? I should be feeling better by now.
One of Zeke's hands crept around towards my ass, while the other reached up, grabbing a handful of my breast. He pushed me harder against the wall and continued grinding against me.
Moving in closer to kiss me, Zeke soothed, "Come on baby, I will make you feel real good. I am going to take care of you." He continued groping me and grinding his erection into me as he spoke.
"No! Stop!" I shouted, turning my head and continuing to try to push him off me.
Zeke stopped then, pulling back with an incredulous look on his face, "Are you telling me no?"
His tone was shocked, as if no one had ever dared turn him down before. He continued, his voice turning nasty, "Think carefully before you answer. I am the one charged with ensuring your needs are cared for here."
His grip tightened until it was near painful, and the implicit threat was excruciatingly obvious. Either I could let him do what he wanted, or my life here would not be pleasant. I ran through my options, glancing at the door again.
Yet, once I was paying attention, I realized that I could hear other people somewhere in the house. No way they did not hear my shouts if I could hear them. That meant I was on my own. Escape was out, at least for now, not that I had anywhere else to go anyway.
I steeled myself to remain strong. No man was going to take that from me. I was saving myself for my mate. I did not care what he did to me. I resolved myself to endure until I found a better opportunity.
I somehow found the courage to look him in the eye, asserting, "I'm telling you no. You are not my mate."
Willow Still Two Years Earlier… Zeke’s face soured as his grip on me constricted infinitesimally more. I tried not to show my discomfort, but it became impossible as he proceeded to recklessly grope my curves with abandon. I shoved against him with the little force that I still possessed and successfully managed to continue resisting his advances, at least for the time being. I prayed that he would not try to take my innocence anyway. I did not know how well I would fare against him, but I knew I sure as hell was not going to just roll over and give up either. He snarled directly in my face before saying, "You can let me make you feel good and take care of you or you won't like what happens next. The choice is yours." My mind raced as his words filtered through, but I stammered out, "B... But you are supposed to provide shelter to those fleeing the other provinces. The town elders said I would be safe here! You cannot do this! You are not my mate. I do not want you." Zeke releas
Jax I ran my fingers through my hair, a common gesture for me when I was stressed, as I thumped my knuckles against the sturdy wooden door. I was feeling antsy all of a sudden. I had been traveling over the last month to meet with Asher, Alpha of the Eastern Province, and Reese, Alpha of the Western Province. After we had finally driven the bears from our lands, we took some time to assess the overall damage caused to our people by the war before making our next move. Most of the homesteads could and would be rebuilt and were already in the process, but our warriors seemed to have one overarching need throughout all of our territories: mates. Our men were looking to rebuild their lives after the devastating losses we suffered early on during the war. We simply were not prepared for the onslaught of the bears' full force attack that soon. We thought we had time to get our loved ones to safety and gather our troops. We were wrong. We lost a lot of good wolves during that time, my par
Jax I paused for a moment at the door, noticing the tantalizing scent again, but the feeling continued to exacerbate so I shuffled out the door after the other two males, completely ignoring any comment Zeke may have made in protest. The scent faded the further I walked from the house, and I had this odd urge to go back, like I had forgotten something. I pushed the feeling away and caught up with the other two. We continued walking down the path in silence for a while, me savoring my brownie while Asher shot me a pleading look, knowing Zeke would be able to hear us with his sensitive ears. Finally, Reese broke the silence once we were far enough away not to be overheard. "So, you want to tell us what all of that was about? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I agree with that everything you said, but you kind of rushed out of there. In fact, it looked like something was bothering you all night." Reese stated. We continued talking as we walked down the rough-hewn path towards our dwellings
Willow I was startled awake by Zeke slamming open the door. I moved as far away from the raging alpha as possible, feeling very disoriented by the stark difference between my reality and my dream. I was having one of the best dreams I could recall ever having in my life. I tried to hold on to the feeling as long as possible or to remember even some small shred of my happiness, but the details were slipping away as the seconds ticked by. Zeke stomped into the room, kicking my shelf into the wall in his anger. Crack! The shelf splintered and pieces went flying. I had already curled up into a ball when Zeke pushed his way into the room, but I ducked my head down just in time. A large chunk of wood hit the wall right where my head had just been. Zeke yelled, "This is your fault. What am I supposed to do now?" As he continued stomping around the room, muttering under his breath. I remained cowered against the wall, knowing nothing I said or did would help. I did not even know what h
Jax I awoke slowly, hearing the sounds of the forest surrounding me. I rolled over in bed, noticing the sun was just beginning to shine through the slits in the fabric of the curtains. The sight did not surprise me. It did not matter where I was or how late I had stayed up the night before, I always rose with the sun. Some days, I wished I could sleep in just a little longer, but today was not one of those days. I must admit, we were shocked when Zeke informed us, we would not be staying in the pack house, as tradition demanded for visiting alphas. He rushed to assure us that he had acquired us private dwellings so that we could relax and conduct any business we may need while we stayed in the South. He said he thought we would prefer it this way after the turmoil of the war. We questioned his choice, but I knew I was grateful for it last night after my first experience meeting the guy. Even so, I did enjoy the sound of nature all around me while waking up, and it was nice not spe
Hi readers, I will be uploading more content soon, but, as you may have noticed, I am in the process of making a few changes to my book so it is able to be marketed better. I have made a few changes to the title and description of the book, and I know the cover no longer matches the title of the book. Please be patient, and I will be uploading something even better in its place sometime during the near future. In the meantime, please enjoy the new content I have added over the past couple days. Thank you for your patience as I embark on this new adventure of novel writing and remember to keep checking back for new updates!
Jax We were not waiting long before Zeke appeared to lead us down the hall towards the dining hall again, his annoying voice droned on. I tuned him out as I surreptitiously glanced around, looking for any traces of the girl. There were none. The faint hint of honeysuckle and vanilla seemed to be getting stronger the further we walked into the house, but it still remained elusive, until it disappeared again completely. I took a swift look around the room when we entered, doing a double take when I noticed my sister staring out the window, seemingly lost in thought. "Ronnie!" I called out, striding towards her. She turned, instantly running into my open arms once she recognized me. With tears running down her face, she pulled back to say, "Jax! I cannot believe you are finally here. I have missed you so much!" She continued hugging me for a few more minutes while everyone else took their seats. I held on tightly, not wanting to let her go, but of course, Zeke's obnoxious voice had to
Willow I was awoken from my peaceful slumber once more by the sound of the door slamming open. I scrambled up, pressing myself against the far wall and curled up in a ball, not that it helped much in this tiny closet. I felt like I had only been asleep for mere moments, but that did not matter to Zeke. Zeke barreled in, already yelling obscenities at me. "Get your lazy ass up. You do not have time to be lying around." He grabbed my still sore arm roughly, hauling me out the door and down the hallway, towards the dining room. He continued berating me as we went, "Clean this mess up first, and then go clean yourself up. You look like a fucking slob. You had better be clean before I get back. We have some business to take care of before that asshole's sister shows up to help you with the planning for the ball." He finished with a leering look. I was so used to tuning out Zeke's voice that I almost missed his words as I stumbled forward into the dining room. A ball. Wait, help me wit