Working 14 straight hours at a restaurant was hard enough, but to do so while my daughter was sick, threatened to pull my heart out. On top of worrying about the overflowing orders, my daughter's fever, I had to avoid the wandering hands of my boss. “Just a minute, Piper,” he said, sliding up b

My gaze was fixed to the television screen as I tried to soak in every possible detail of my ex-boyfriend. In the three years since I’d seen him last, Nicholas had matured, filling out his previously lanky teenage figure. Skinny arms had widened with muscle. His broad torso tapered into a narrow w

It had been three days since Boss made his proposition: either I sleep with him or I get fired. I needed one more day’s pay to cover Elva’s most recent bill. Once I had that, I could resign and hopefully find something else. Boss trailed his eyes down the length of my body. Staring openly at my

One of the soldiers dragged Boss out into the dining room. He was whimpering, begging them to let him go. “I didn’t know. How would I have known?” In the center of the dining room, the soldier dropped his hold on Boss and he crumpled onto the floor. My attention flicked up to the television sc

Nicholas held Elva safe and secure in his arms as he stood to his full height. Elva buried her face into the corner of his neck and shoulder. He gently patted her back. He glanced down at Elva, his gaze so tender that it made my heart clench. “There, there,” he whispered. “You are safe now.” “

“How long did you wait, Piper? A week? Two? It couldn’t have been long.” He sounds like he's jealous. Or was that an illusion? He doesn't care about me and is just mad at me. Maybe the latter is more logical. His dark eyes burned into me, leaving my heart in scorched tatters. Never in a thousa

Stay? They wanted me to stay? I stared up at the royal family for a long moment, unsure. I didn’t fit the standards for the selection at all. I didn’t come from a noble background. I didn’t have a wolf. I already had a child. How could I possibly participate? But, whatever my doubts, I could

He explained that each of us would have a private room and be attended by two maids. Next, Nathan brought us to a large staircase that separated the east and west wings. In the west wing, he pointed us to the elaborate, gem-embossed doors of the royal family. The King’s door was the largest, with

Holding Elva, I walked further into my assigned room, bringing the man into focus. It wasn’t Nicholas, but his brother. “Julian.” I knew Julian from my days at the Royal Academy, though we hadn’t been friends. Since Julian and Nicholas were arch-enemies, and I was Nicholas’s girlfriend, I avoi

But Julian would know, because he was there. In another life, being near Nicholas would have given me enough reason to want to stay. But he’d made his feelings about me clear. And I had other priorities. My gaze slid to Elva, playing with her dolls at the foot of the bed. “I don’t want to pl