Ch. 46..50: The Luna and her Quadruplet Pups Chapter 46-50
The Luna And Her Quadruplet Pups Chapter 46
Truly crying now, Riley nodded. “Okay.” As Eve retreated, searching the apartment for her phone and cackling to herself over crushing a small child’s feelings, Riley couldn’t help but think she and her brothers couldn’t have planned this better if they’d tried. Riley wasn’t as talented with technology as Ryder, but she knew how to send a text message easily enough. Quickly copying every contact in Eve’s address book, . she sent the voice memo off with a rush of triumph.
The next part of the plan took on new meaning with Eve’s parting advice. Riley had always planned on returning home once her task was complete. She, Paisley and the boys would get to enjoy some quality time together and could relax knowing they were all safe. However once her conversation with Eve was received by Ethan, Jane, Petra, and all the various contacts Eve used to leverage her position in the pack, when Ethan came home to find Paisley missing he’d naturally assume the little girl had run away at Eve’s instruction.
If they played this right, they wouldn’t even get in trouble with their parents for spiriting Paisley away because Eve would take all the blame. As she ran down the block to their new apartment, eager to share her success with her siblings, Riley could only think one thing: it was perfect.
Ethan
“Foxgloves, sir.” The lead investigator says grimly, “they’re the flowers digitalis comes from, and Eve has a whole plot of them in her greenhouse.”
We’re sitting in my office about halfway through the workday, when the stress of everything I’ve let fall by the wayside in the midst of my constant family emergencies is slowly piling on top of me, but I still can’t give priority to anything else.
“You’re certain?” I question, wondering how it’s possible that my judgment could possibly be so poor. If this is all true, if Eve has been behind these murder attempts, then I’ve trusted a monster for years, even over my own mate. Some Alpha you are. I think sourly, fooled by a damsel batting her eyelashes. You don’t deserve to lead anyone.
“Easy, Alpha.” The investigator cautions, “I can see where you’ re headed and I’m telling you now it won’t help anything. This is about more than instinct or judgment, if she’s responsible, she’s got more than cunning on her side.” He sighs heavily, as if he feels silly for suggesting his next words, but can’t ignore their validity. “These poisons are not known to common men, this reeks of witchcraft.”
“Witchcraft?” I scoff, “What is this, a fairy story?”
“I’m simply telling you that the blame does not belong solely on your shoulders, sir.” The investigator amends,
“It does, whether there is some magical component to this or not, I’m the one who missed the warning signs. I’m the one who let it happen.” I correct him.
Before he can respond, my phone buzzes, and I look down to see a voice memo from Eve. At first I ignore it, certain it’s just another cloying attempt to win me over, but after a few minutes pass, more than a dozen people have sent me the same message and I let my curiosity take hold. Baffled, I press play and the sound of Eve’s voice floats up to my ears. Only this time, it’s not the saccharine tone she normally uses to try and seduce me. It’s unvarnished, unmasked and completely
horrid, and it’s clear she’s talking to my daughter.
Little by little the investigator and I lean forward in our chairs, listing with rapt attention and growing disgust as the woman ! once considered a friend tells my four year old to disappear rather than continuing to ruin my life.
“Where did you get this?” The investigator asks.
“She sent it to me herself, and then a dozen others did too.” | explain, completely nonplussed.
“I don’t think so.” He answered, “I have a feeling your pup had a hand in this.”
“But she’s only a little girl.” I argue,”she wouldn’t know how to do something like this.”
“Well it makes more sense than Eve outing herself publicly.” The investigator counters.
Suddenly I realize he’s exactly right, and as soon as Even realizes what Paisley has done, my daughter will be in even greater danger than before, “I have to get home – Now.”
Jane
There’s an old shifter saying, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” However, as I listen to the recording of Eve abusing my youngest child, I decide that generations of my ancestors have gotten it wrong. As a woman I would have been infuriated to hear such horrible things. But as a mother? Let’s just say hell hath no fury like a mother scorned.
I rush to Ethan’s Penthouse the moment I get done listening to the message, only to find Ethan already there shouting at Eve in a fury like I’ve never seen before. She’s cowering on the ground at his feet, tears streaming from her eyes while Petra looks on in horror.
“You will never, never, set foot in this house again!” He thunders, “How dare you speak to my daughter that way, how’ dare you say those horrible things!”
“Please Ethan, she tricked me, she was trying to make it seem like I’m the bad guy, but-”
“She’s four years old!” Ethan explodes, “If she can trick a fully grown adult into saying things they don’t mean then you’re an absolute imbecile.” His hands are shaking, and for one delirious moment I think he might strike her. “And I can’t imagine any trick she could possibly play to justify such wretched things even if she did outsmart you. She didn’t do anything but ask you why you were so cruel and you treated her like she was vermin. How long have you been speaking to her that way, how many other abominable ideas have you put in her head?”
Part of me loves seeing Ethan lay into Eve this way, but part of me is also afraid of what he might do when he’s lost his temper so completely. Personally I wouldn’t mind ripping Eve limb from limb, but I know if Ethan truly loses control and harms her, he’ll regret it for the rest of his life. He may be ruthless, but he also has a very strict code of honor. Stepping up behind him, I latch onto his arm, leaning my body against him so he can feel my warmth. “Easy Ethan.” I breathe, “Don’t let her get the best of you.”
His powerful hand covers mine, clutching my slender fingers so tightly I fear they might break. His ragged, shallow breaths slow slightly and he leans into my touch. Every place our bodies touch I feel like I’m on fire, but there’s no denying it’s what’s right. I feel him coming back down to earth a little more with every moment that passes. Very gently squeezing his hand, I murmur, “you’re hurting me Ethan. Not so tight.”
He instantly softens his hold, and I feel some of the balance return to the room, until of course Eve looks up at me with undiluted rage blazing in her eyes. She jabs an accusatory finger in my direction, keening, “This is you! This is all your fault! You b!tch!”
“You leave her out of this!” Ethan roars, tucking me under his arm.
“She’s never done a single thing to that child-”
“Except abandon her!” Eve reminds him fiercely, her crazed expression making her seem truly insane. “she threw her out the second she saw she was a runt, like a baby with the bath water!”
“How dare you!” Now it isn’t Ethan’s temper we have to worry about, it’s mine, I’m lunging towards Eve, claws and fangs extended, when Ethan catches me around the waist and pulls me back.
“Woah there.” He soothes, wrestling my struggling limbs into submission by locking my arms to my sides and holding me tight. “Remember your own advice, Janey.”
“Let me bite her.” I demand, thrashing violently against his hold. “Let me scratch her despicable little eyes out!”
Ethan purrs, the low vibrations in his chest sending shivers down my spine, “All in good time, baby.” He promises. “But we need information from her first.”
“What kind of information?” | hiss, still struggling even though it’s useless. Deep down inside of me my omega is positively quivering with the pleasure of being overpowered by him, and suddenly I feel very twisted. What kind of mother gets distracted from defending her child by a few muscles and a deep voice? How can so much heat be pooling in my core when we’re in the middle of such dire straits? I swear, no other Alpha has ever had this effect on me. If I didn’t know any better I’d think we were fated mates, not chosen spouses with a very grim history.
Instead of an answer, silence greets my ears, and a feeling of dread ties my insides into knots. For the first time I realize cannot hear my pup. I cannot smell her either. Her smell is here, but only a trace, not the strong scent of a wolf who is present in the same moment. I was so taken aback by the dramatic scene when I arrived that I failed to realize the first thing that should have happened, was my daughter running to greet me.
“Ethan?” I breathe shakily, “Where’s Paisley?”
“It serves you right you dumb bitch.” Eve cackles, “I hope she gets kidnapped. I hope -”
“Shut your f*****g mouth before I shut it for you!” Ethan commands, turning me gently towards him.
I know then, when I see the pained expression on his face, complete with red eyes and a jaw clenched so tightly it’s twitching. All my worst fears are being realized in that very moment, still I try to cling onto my anger, it was so much more preferable to this fear.
“Please don’t.” | beg, knowing he’s about to tell me something even worse than the horrible recording that brought me to his doorstep. “Please don’t say it.”
“I’m so sorry, Janey.” Ethan professes, pulling me into the protective sphere of his arms. “Paisley is missing.” He admits, sounding more broken than I’ve ever heard him. “Eve told her to disappear, so she did.”
The Luna And Her Quadruplet Pups Chapter 47
Jane
It takes a moment for Ethan’s words to sink in, especially with him holding me so tenderly. I want to surrender to the comforting warmth, however when his announcement does sink in, I quickly untangle myself from his embrace and look up at him in horror.
“Missing? But you said…” I stutter helplessly, searching for any kind of logic in this madness. “You said Frank wouldn’t take his eyes off her.”
Ethan frowns deeply, gesturing for the guard in question to remove Eve from the room. As the mewling woman is dragged out, my ex explains, “He was making her lunch – the cameras in the lobby show her running out on her own.”
The room is positively spinning. I can’t even begin to process this after everything we’ve already been through lately. My mind whirrs, trying to sort out a plan of action. I need to find Paisley as soon as possible, I need to make sure she’s safe, but my anger is getting the better of me. More than all my fear
and despair, I’m completely outraged that this happened right under Ethan’s nose. “How could you! She was supposed to be safe with you!”
He reaches for me again, looking as if he thinks I can simply be cuddled into submission. “Janey, please -”
“No! Don’t touch me!” I snap, jerking away from him. “Don’t talk to me – just leave me alone.”
Pushing him away, I spin for the door and storm out, deciding to search for my pup without the Alpha’s help. What Eve did was unforgivable, but as usual Ethan seems to have a blind spot where she’s concerned.
The idea that he could suspect her of attempting to murder our child, but chose to allow her to roam free while law enforcement built a case, rather than simply locking her up before she could hurt anyone else is preposterous. Sure, it might not be legal per se, but I’d rather keep Paisley safe and have that bitch cash in some of her bad karma than risk something like this happening.
Steam billows from my ears as I wait for the penthouse elevator, but unfortunately it’s too slow. Ethan catches up to me before the silver car arrives, then halts me before I can make a break for the staircase. “Hold on a second.” He growis, catching my arm. “Don’t you dare stand there and I act like I’m not devastated by this. Paisley has been my entire world for the last four years.”
His ferocious tone draws my gaze up, and the pain on his countenance staggers me. “I’m the one who’s been there every day, watching her grow. I’m the one who’s rocked her to sleep and kissed her boo-boos and agonized through every last medical procedure.”
As if I haven’t been suffering wishing I was there to do all those things, I think bitterly. As if I haven’t sacrificed. If it wasn’t for Ethan, I wouldn’t have been forced to separate my family. I wouldn’t have missed my daughter’s first words, first steps and everything that came before and after. His pain may be real, but so is mine. “And you’re the one who left her with that psychopath and a clearly negligent bodyguard!” | accuse fiercely.
“Has it occurred to you that the recording we heard is one soundbite from what has probably been years of abuse?” Hot tears flood my eyes. “That has been happening right under your nose, Ethan. The responsibility is sure as hell on Eve’s shoulders – but it’s also on yours.” .
“You think I don’t know that?!” Ethan explodes, his voice breaking. “Do you think I will ever – ever – forgive myself for not seeing it?”
“Good.” I nod coldly, stepping into the elevator when it finally arrives, “Because you deserve to carry that with you, Ethan. That and everything else you’ve done or let happen because of that snake. For your sake and Paisley’s, I only hope she’s too young for this to have done too much damage.”
The doors close before Ethan can answer, but I don’t think I’ll even forget the anguished expression on his face. He looked as if he’d been kicked in the stomach at least a dozen times: breathless, ill and aching all at once.
I don’t regret a word.
All of my instincts are urging me to begin searching for Paisley immediately, but some unknown force tells me to stop at home first. My apartment is so close by that it won’t cost me any time, and I think it will help me to see my other pups. I’ ve become so paranoid with all the attempts against Paisley that even though I have no reason to fear for her siblings, the mother in me simply can’t help it.
I pause outside the door to try and get myself under control, but all hope for composure disappears when I hear four little voices inside instead of three. I rush into the apartment, surprised and confused when I see all four of my children together.
My babysitter is standing in the kitchen looking very confused, and before the kids realize I’m there, I sidle over to her. All the rage and fear that had been pulsing through my veins a moment ago has disappeared completely, leaving me feeling somewhat dizzy. “Sadie, what on earth is going on?” || ask the college-aged nanny.
“Well, about a half hour ago Riley turned up at the front door, saying that she was sorry she’d left but she was back now.” Sadie answers shakily, “at the time the boys were in their room, so I assumed she snuck out. But then I went to take them a snack and…” She gestures helplessly at the kids, as if the sight of them was explanation enough.
“Riley turned up?” I clarify, “or Paisley?”
“No, it was definitely Riley.” Sadie confirms, taking a deep breath. “Jane, I think they switched places.”
Suddenly I realize that Riley had seemed awfully tame the last couple of days, not so altered that I would have suspected she was her sister instead, but certainly more mellow than usual.
Stumbling into the living room where my pups are playfully wrestling, making the most adorable little growling noises as they roll around together, I say, “Kids?”
Four little heads pop up in surprise, followed quickly by four sets of feet pitter pattering across the floor. “Mommy!”
Ryder, Parker and Riley fall into my arms in their usual pattern, my little girl sandwiched between her brothers. Only Paisley hangs back, looking unsure of herself. Before I can invite her into the embrace, Riley reaches blindly behind,herself, latching onto her sister’s arm and dragging her in.
Kissing them each in turn, I study their guilty faces. “Okay, who wants to tell me what’s going on?”
Ryder and Parker start to back away as if they plan on letting their sisters explain their scheme, but I stop them with a single stern look. “Uh-uh, you two stay.”
Though Riley and the boys look abashed but unafraid, sweet Paisley is glancing up at me with wide eyes, clearly unsure what to expect on her first occasion getting in trouble with me. “Are you mad?”
“I’m extremely glad you’re all right.” I tell her, offering an extra snuggle, “But you all scared the Alpha and I half to death, and I expect you to be honest with me about what’s happened here over the last few days.”
“Paisley an’ I switched places at da arcade.” Riley tells me, tucking her proverbial tail between her legs and staring at the floor. “We were ‘fraid Eve would try to do someting to her.”
“You mean to tell me it’s you on that recording, Riley?” | ask, horrified that my children considered switching one child for another as being somehow safer, especially when Riley’s more outgoing personality might have provoked Eve into doing something rash.
She nods, confessing, “we knew she was bad.”
“But sneaky.” Ryder adds, “we had to catch her.”
“Okay,” I breathe, trying to wrap my brain around this dilemma. “This is what’s going to happen. We are all going to take Paisley home to her father, and we’re going to do it together because we need to have a little chat about safety, honesty, and communication.”
“I have to go back to live with Eve?” Paisley asks me sadly.
“No angel,” I promise, petting her soft cheek. “Trust me, Even isn’t going to be living there any more after today. The way she treated you was absolutely unacceptable, and no one ever deserves to be bullied like that. It is absolutely not your fault and it never should have happened.
I need all of you to promise me that if anyone ever talks to you that way or tries to hurt you, you will tell me or another grown up you trust. If you’re worried you’re in danger, you have to tell an adult, please, please don’t try to handle it on your own.”
I think some of my words sink in, and I’m sure after Ethan and I drill them into their little heads half a dozen more times, they’ll stick. However at the moment, the pups are exchanging meaningful glances and making zero effort to move towards the door.
“What?” | ask, “Is there something else you need to tell me?”
The quadruplets seem to silently nominate Parker, who looks me dead in the eye and announces, “Mommy, we should all live t’gether. We know Paisley’s our sister, and we know Ethan s our Daddy.”
The Luna And Her Quadruplet Pups Chapter 48
Jane
I think I’m having a stroke.
My kids really are too smart for their own goods. Not only did they figure out my deepest darkest secret, but they’ve clearly been scheming behind my back. I’m used to Ryder and Parker trying to switch places on me, but I never dreamed it would happen before I ever told the girls they were related. Honestly, most four year olds are still just trying to master tying their shoes, mine are masterminding intricate plots and fooling fully grown adults along the way.
My heart is beating so quickly and so loudly that I can’t even hear myself think. “What?” I utter inanely, needing Parker to repeat his words just to make sure I didn’t imagine it. When he does I sink onto the couch in defeat, staring at their hopeful faces in complete shock. “How long have you known?”
“Since the restraunt.” Riley answers happily.
“….” I squeak helplessly. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Why didn’ you tell us ’bout Paisley?” Ryder asks, and though there’s not an ounce of accusation in his voice, to me it feels like an interrogation.
“An’ why did you leave me with Daddy?” Paisley asks, her green eyes wide and vulnerable, “Didn’ you want me?”
“Of course I wanted you!” I exclaim, snatching her into my lap and squeezing her so tightly she yelps. Softening my grip amend, “I’m sorry angel. Leaving you was the hardest thing I’ ve ever had to do in my entire life. You can’t possibly understand now, but one day when you have pups of your own you’ll see. If I’d had any other choice, I never would have let you out of my sight. You were so sick that I couldn’t afford to keep you, but your Daddy could. If I hadn’t left you with him, you would have died.”
The other pups climb onto the sofa on either side of us, their young faces full of questions, “but why did you leave Daddy a’ tall?” Parker asks, “Why didn’ he know ’bout us?”
Unraveling my arms from Paisley only long enough to wrap them around the others, I try to find the words to explain. “Listen, your Daddy is an amazing Father.” Except for leaving my baby with a crazy woman, I think bitterly. “He loves Paisley more than anything, and I’m sure he would love you too, but our relationship wasn’t good. I know you get tired of hearing that you’ll understand when you’re older, but adult relationships are very complicated. We’d already divorced when I found out I was carrying you, and I was very unhappy when we were together. I thought if he knew about you he’d force me to stay.”
“But didn’ you love each other?” Riley questions with a frown.
“Yes baby.” I sigh, “But love doesn’t solve everything, and sometimes the people we hurt the worst are the ones we love the most. It can make you do crazy things. Your Daddy and I were happy when we were younger, but then something bad happened and… well things were just never the same.”
“But if you love each other you can get though ‘nything.” Paisley tells me dreamily. “I want to be with you and Daddy – together!”
“So do we!” The others agree in unison.
“I’m so sorry kids, that just isn’t going to happen.” | announce firmly.
All four pups seem to deflate, and the next thing I know they’ re scrambling off of my lap, stealing their warmth and sweet smells and lining up in front of me. They link their little arms, forming a united front against me and scrunching their adorable faces into identical glares. “Well we don’ wanna be seprated.” Riley declares.
“That’s right.” Ryder agrees. “We’re staying t’gether!”
The worst part of this entire ordeal is that I don’t want them to be separated any more than they do. I’ve been planning to take Paisley back from Ethan from the moment I gave her up, but I haven’t figured out how to do it yet, especially now that I know how attached they are.
It’s truly tempting to think about simply not taking her back, fleeing with her here and now and never looking back. After all this is the opportunity I’ve been waiting for and I’m angry enough with Ethan that I’m tempted to keep Paisley with me both out of spite and for her safety, but I also remember the look on his face.
“Okay kids, just give Mommy a minute.” Closing myself into my bedroom, I head out onto the terrace and hurriedly dial Linda.
She answers after only a few rings. “Hey lady!”
“Hey,” I breathe, trying to catch my breath. “I have a problem.”
“What’s up?” Linda asks, immediately on alert.
“So…” | gulp, trying to figure out how to relate this strange turn of events, “the kids figured out Paisley is their sister. She and Riley switched places, then Riley tricked Eve into bullying her on tape and ran away. Basically, Ethan thinks Paisley is missing, but she’s actually sitting in my living room with the others and they’re begging me not to take her back.”
A pregnant pause meets my ears. “Are you serious?” Linda finally replies, her question clearly rhetorical. “I swear Janey, l’ m beginning to think your kids are mischief prodigies.”
“What am I going to do?” I ask her desperately. “They’re . refusing to be separated, and I don’t want to take her back either. I’m still furious with Ethan for endangering her and she belongs with me anyway. I mean is it completely crazy to consider taking her now?”
There’s another big pause as if Linda is trying to decide whether or not I’m serious, but when I don’t say more she cries, “Yes it’s completely crazy!” She exclaims, “Jane, that would be actual kidnapping. As far as the law is concerned, Jane Blackwell died years ago, and Ethan has a DNA test attesting that she isn’t your daughter.
You can’t admit she’s yours without also admitting the crimes you committed to stay in hiding all this time. If they caught you, and trust me, Ethan would never stop searching for her and you would be caught, you’d be arrested and lose all four of the pups.”
Her words dashed my hope to pieces. “You’re right.” I agree morosely, “I know you’re right. It’s just… you should see them all together, this is everything I’ve been dreaming of for four years.”
“I know honey, but you have to take her back.” She tells me gently. “It was different before he knew you were still alive. Now that he’s figured it out, the only way you’re going to be able to get her back is if you fight him head on.”
“How am I supposed to do that when you just said that I’ll be arrested?” I m0an.
“If you kidnap her. If you take him to court you can make a case that you left out of fear for your own safety and the children belong with you.” Linda reasons.
“No court is going to take an Alpha’s children from him, no matter how valid my argument. I’ll be seen as a liar from the start and be deemed completely unreliable.” I remind her.
“Then you’re going to have to convince him to let her go on his own.” Linda suggests, “unless of course you’re willing to give him another chance. That’s why I’ve been pushing you to reconsider being with him all this time, Jane.”
“I know,” I admit, “This is all so much more complicated than it was supposed to be. I shouldn’t ever have come here.”
“Don’t say that.” Linda scolds, “you saved lives by exposing Eve. You got to meet Paisley, you being here might have saved her life. Yes things are more complicated now, but you’ Il figure it out, you always do.”
“Thank you.” I murmur, making my decision. “Okay, I’ll take her home, and starting tomorrow I’ll begin working on how to get her back for good. I just hope the pups understand.”
Linda laughs in my ear. “Sweetie, they’re four, of course they’ re not going to understand.”
“Yeah, yeah.” | huff, emitting a begrudging laugh.
“Have fun with the quadruple tantrum!” She says in a sing
song voice.
“Bye Linda.” I state pointedly, hanging up the phone.
Sure enough, ten minutes later I’m carting a wailing Paisley out the door while her siblings throw themselves on the ground, crying and beating the floor with their fists and feet while the babysitter looks on helplessly. “I’m sorry.” I tell her sheepishly, “I promise I’ll give you a big tip when I come home.”
Thankfully Sadie only smiles and shrugs, “Don’t worry about it, some of the kids I nanny do this at least once a day. Yours really are very good.”
It’s hard to believe her when the sound of their fits follow me all the way down the stairs, but by the time we reach the street Paisley has stopped fighting and is simply crying pitifully into my neck, tugging at my heartstrings painfully. “I’ m so sorry, my love. “I promise we’ll be together one day, it just can’t happen yet.”
She only hiccups and continues to sob. All I can do is rub her back, k**s her hair, and prepare myself to face Ethan. This isn’t going to be fun.
The Luna And Her Quadruplet Pups Chapter 49
Ethan
“Ethan please!” Eve wails, still huddled on the floor and sobbing like an actress in a soap opera.
If I’d been angry before, my fight with Jane had pushed me completely over the edge. Her words cut me incredibly deep, mostly because I know they were true. This was all my fault.
Yes, Eve is clearly an unforgivably cruel, borderline heartless woman, but I’m the one who let her stick around even after | knew what she was. The law enforcement officers had agreed it was for the best, but now I can see only to clearly that what was best for their case and what was best for my child were two very different things.
“Stop your sniveling this instant.” I command, my booming voice echoing around the room. “I want you out of my house within the half hour, anything that’s still here after that is going to be thrown out on the street.”
“No!” She keens, “You can’t, you don’t understand. I don’t have anywhere else to go!”
“Then you should have thought of that before you abused my pup!” I bark.
“I didn’t! I never touched her!” Eve exclaims, “and she provoked me into saying those things.”
“She’s a toddler!” I snap, “if she can trick you then you deserve to be tricked. And no amount of provocation could ever forgive saying such horrible horrible things. You might not
have physically harmed her but I swear to the Goddess, Eve. If you do not get out of this house I will have you charged with emotional abuse.”
“Please,” she begs again, “I’ll do anything to make it up to you, just say the word.”
Clenching my jaw, I squat down to her level, letting my wolf glow through my eyes and relishing her tremble of fear. “Do you have any idea where she might have gone?”
She sniffles hesitantly, “If I tell you will you let me stay?”
A savage snarl bursts from my chest, and it actually takes serious effort not to let my wolf take over completely. “I’ll tell you what, if you know something and you don’t tell me it won’t matter whether or not you have a place to live or not – because you will no longer be breathing!”
She flinches, rolling onto her back to expose her belly despite being in human form, and clenching her eyes shut as if in pain. “I don’t!” She sobs, “I swear I don’t know anything.”
“Then get out of my sight!” I thunder, taking true relish in watching her scramble to get away from me.
Rising to my feet again, I begin to pace, trying and failing to catch my breath. I catch sight of my mother out of the corner of my eye. Her arms are wrapped around her body, and she’s frowning deeply. “Do you have a problem with the way that was handled? I question, more roughly than I intended.
“No.” She whispers, looking truly devastated. “I still can’t believe this happened. I always thought Eve loved Paisley.”
“Yes, well she’s a very good actress.” | grouse, turning my attention to Frank. The bodyguard is standing by the door with his hat in his hand, the normally stoic man looking very grave indeed. “If you want to fire me sir, I’ll understand.”
“If we don’t find her, you will be.” I rumble, barely able to stand the idea of Paisley never coming home. She’s so small, and still so fragile. Anything could happen to her in a city of this size. Law enforcement is already scouring the streets trying to find her, and they advised me to stay at the house in case there was any news – like Paisley coming home or Goddess forbid, a ransom call.
“I can’t stand just waiting here.” I admit, scrubbing a hand over my face. “Think – where would she go?”
“She’s too little to get anywhere on her own.” My mother laments, “I mean even if she wanted to go somewhere specific, it’s not like she can call a cab or buy a metro card.”
The more I think about it, the clearer it becomes that there may not be one place she would try to find, but there’s
certainly one person she would seek out. “She’ll be looking for Jane.” I murmur, trying to put myself in my daughter’s shoes, she’d only ever met Jane out in the city, she wouldn’t know how to get to Linda’s apartment or even Jane’s new one.
“She might try to get to one of the places where they’ve met, the hospital or the park.” I reason.
“I’ll go to the hospital, and Frank can go to the park or anywhere else she’s seen her.” My mother offers, “You should still stay here though.” I open my mouth to object, but she raises her hands defensively. “You need to make sure Eve actually leaves, and somebody does need to be here if she comes back.”
“Fine.” I force the words out through clenched teeth.
Eve leaves shortly after Mom and Frank depart, slinking out the door with a suitcase and her tail tucked between her legs. As soon as she’s gone I pace into Eve’s room, realizing there is one advantage to staying behind. With the house to myself, I’m finally free to vent my rage the way I so desperately need. Roaring like a wounded animal, I throw my arms out and swipe everything from her dresser, then move on to tearing down bookshelves and overturning the room’s heavy furniture until the entire space is in complete disarray.
With my office laid completely to waste, I feel slightly better, but no amount of destruction can heal the gaping hole in my heart. Just as I’m exiting the room and beginning to contemplate tearing my office apart too, I hear a knock on the door.
Scenting the air, I immediately recognize Jane’s scent, and with her – “Paisley!”
“What happened?” I ask Jane a little while later, after Paisley and I have both stopped crying and my pup is now napping safely in her bed. “How did you find her?”
“That isn’t important.” She evades smoothly, “just that she’s safely home.”
“I thought she might be looking for you.” I admit, “Did she find you?”
“Ethan just let it go.” Jane encourages, brushing off my
questions and moving towards the door.
“Why won’t you tell me?” | ask, following her. “What are you trying to hide.”
“I’m not trying to hide anything.” Jane replies stiffly, “I simply don’t have any interest in staying here and talking to you.”
“Jane, I’m sorry about what happened.” I sigh, the honest words wrenching my insides, “I thought I was doing the right thing.”
She turns back, eyeing me narrowly. “For who?”
“For all of us.” | grind out. “I had no idea this was happening. I never would have let Eve stay here if I had.”
“Meaning you were so wrapped up in yourself that you didn’t notice someone hurting your child, you never taught her how she should expect to be treated or to tell you when someone crossed a line.”
“I’m sorry I’m not a perfect parent, like you.” I remark, clenching my hands into fists, “I’m trying to figure all this out as I go, I didn’t even know I was a father until she was placed in my arms.”
“That’s no excuse!” Jane mutters, “all parents are just figuring it out, but they don’t all make mistakes like this. And that has nothing to do with perfection.
“Well forgive me if being a single father to a pup with as many medical problems as Paisley has distracted me from other dangers. If you’d ever been here in the past, you might understand what that’s like.”
Jane looks like she’s biting back a sharp retort. I’m not sure what she wanted to say originally, but she settles on, “Why on earth would I have ever been here in the past?”
“You know why!” | growl. Her fair skin is becoming flushed with color, whether in anger or discomfort I’m not sure. “You wouldn’t be this upset if Paisley was just another pup! Tell me, are you attacking me this way because you actually blame me for what happened, or because you feel guilty about leaving her in the first place?”
“I’m not-” she begins angrily, undoubtedly preparing to offer up another lie.
“Just admit it, Jane!” | explode, advancing on her. My wolf is clawing to get out again, but this time for very different reasons than with Eve. “Stop lying, stop all the games, just admit that you’re her mother. Admit that you were my wife!”
“Fine!” She bursts, her voice louder than I can ever remember her raising it in the past. “It’s me! There is no Elise Carrington. I intercepted your DNA test and switched out the samples so you’d get a false negative. Paisley’s mine and I was your wife – but I’m not anymore, and I never will be again!”
The Luna And Her Quadruplet Pups Chapter 50
Jane
I slap my hand over my mouth, shocked and horrified that Ethan tricked me into admitting the truth. He’s staring at me with an expression of pure triumph, his wolf glowing in his eyes as he heaves in ragged breaths of air. Shaking my head, I begin to back away. “I didn’t – that isn’t…” | stutter, trying to think of any excuse for my admission.
Ethan is already after me, prowling forward with predatory grace and baring his fangs, “Oh no, Baby. Don’t even think about it.” He lashes out and catches my wrist, his huge hand dwarfing my small limb as he drags my body against his. “There are some things you can’t take back.”
The next thing I know his mouth slams into mine, claiming my l!ps in a ruthless k!ss and holding me flush to his ch3st. His hand slides into the long tresses of my hair as he growls possessively against my l!ps. His skillful moves overpower every shred of logic in my mind. I never even stood a chance. I’m melting against him out of instinct, immediately giving in to his dominance and wrapping my arms around his neck.
My l!ps part beneath his, inviting his tongue inside and m0aning as he devours me whole. My entire body is on fire – how does he keep managing to do this to me? I think desperately. His free hand is sliding along my ribcage, and I arch my back, encouraging him to touch my bre*asts. I haven’t been with a man since we divorced, and I never found any pleasure with Ethan when I was simply his slave. Being touched this way after so long has me completely out of control, like a v!rgin discovering the joys of the flesh for the very first time.
The worst part is that he knows my body like the back of his hand. Ethan’s the one who taught me about pleasure, he’s the one who showed me how to make myself cl!max, who introduced me to this world. He works me over ruthlessly, as if no time has passed at all and we’re still just a pair of lvst crazed newlyweds.
He overwhelms me much too easily, and my omega re flexes send pulsing, wet heat straight to my core. Ethan nibbles his way down my neck after taking his fill plundering my mouth, laving his tongue over his mark as his thumb toys with my budding n!pple. He pauses only long enough to breathe in the scent of my arousal, purring with satisfaction as he begins undoing the buttons of my shirt.
Eagerly pushing his own shirt up and over his head, I rove my hands over his muscular ch3st, n!pping his powerful shoulder and shuddering at the feel of his hard body against my soft curves. I don’t know when it happened, but at some point he must have lifted me, because my back is against the door and my legs are wrapped tightly around his wa!st. My skirt is bunched up around my h!ps, and I can feel his, massive, hard member pressing against my s*x through our clothes.
Unable to help myself, I begin rocking against him, bolts of electricity traveling from my swollen cl!t to that special spot deep inside me. Ethan’s expert fingers continue to torment my bre*ast, and when his mouth lowers to svck my, now bare, n!pple into his mouth, I can only throw my head back and cry out.
He purrs as he continues to k!ss, nibble and l!ck my int!mate flesh, sending delicious vibrations over my skin. “Oh Goddess” m0an helplessly feeling myself already dangerously close to orga*sm despite the fact that we’ve done nothing beyond some heavy petting.
Chuckling darkly, Ethan slides his hand between my legs, delving it into my p*nties and nimbly stroking my soaked cleft. I’m so wet that his large fingers slip effortlessly through my folds, his thumb massaging my cl!t as his other digits tease my entrance. I raise my h!ps in invitation, trying to pull him inside of me, needing to be filled.
K!ssing his way back up my ch3st, pausing only to leave the soft spot behind my ear, Ethan claims my mouth again. I whimper into his k!ss, growing more and more needy with every moment that passes. “What is it, Janey?” He asks me in a voice like gravel. “What do you need?”
“Please,” I whine shamelessly, thrusting my center towards his fingers.
“Well since you asked so nicely.” He growls, thrusting two fingers inside me so suddenly it steals my breath. That’s all it takes. A single thrust sends me spiraling over the edge, white sparks dancing behind my eyes as he swallows my rapturous cry.
Ethan continues plying my oversensitized flesh as I ride out the waves of ecstacy, tenderly bringing me down as I try to catch my breath. Pressing my face into his neck, I clamp my eyes shut and disappear into his comforting embrace, barely noticing when he extracts his hand from my p*nties and reverently l!cks his fingers clean. “Every bit as delicious as you always were.” He rumbles in my ear, making me tremble with an aftershock of pleasure.
Ethan carefully rights my clothing and helps me return my feet to the floor, sending a flood of confusion through me. What? I think dazedly, That was it?
He’s k!ssing me again before I can voice my thoughts, but its not like before. These k!sses are not hurried and harsh, but long, languorous and all consuming. “Why did you do it?” He asks after a moment, resting his forehead against mine. “Why did you leave?”
I’m still in such a daze that it takes a moment for his words to sink in, but when they do they land hard. “Are you serious?” I gasp, blinking up at him as reason slowly returns to my mind. “Why did I leave?”
“Yes.” He confirms, his dark eyes blazing, “you were my entire world, it destroyed me when you left.”
“You made me your s*x slave Ethan! You turned me into an object that existed only to satisfy your own desires!” I ex claim, slipping out of his grasp, “You rubbed your affair with Eve right under my nose, you made me live under the same roof as your mistress!”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Ethan snaps, “I never had an affair with Eve, I’ve never so much as k!ssed her.”
“Ethan she would tell me about it all the time!” I shout, “I had to listen to every story detail of your s*x life all the while you used me like some worthless omega concubine!”
“I have never laid a hand on Eve.” Ethan repeats firmly, “if she said otherwise she was lying.”
“And the rest?” I hiss, “do you deny treating me like absolute garbage?”
“That was the lightest sentence you could have hoped for after what happened!” Ethan proclaims fiercely, “You didn’t give me any other choice, Jane! I took your status because otherwise Eve and my mother would have pressed charges and had you thrown in jail.”
“You were the Alpha!” I cry in disbelief, “you could have prevented that from happening without degrading me that way.”
“Not without losing my reputation and respect!” Ethan combats, “My entire reign is based on strength and justice, if I’ d overruled the law to protect you I would have been accused of corruption and opened myself up to challenges.”
“So you chose your status over my dignity.” I summarize coldly. “Good to know – very honorable, Ethan.”
“It hurt me as much as it hurt you, Jane,” Ethan states gruffly.
“Ha!” I mock laugh, “you have no idea what it’s like to be demeaned that way, Ethan. To have the person you love most in the world treat you like the lowest, dirtiest kind of trash.”
“Don’t forget you earned your punishment, Janey.” He growls, “You never once apologized for what you did.”
“And I never will!” I snarl, the second half of my thought becoming trapped in my throat, because I didn’t do it!
Glowering at me, Ethan watches me for a long moment before exhaling sharply, “Fine. Let’s just put the past in the past.” He steps toward me, and every muscle in my body goes stiff, freezing him in place. “I want a fresh start. Now that this is all out in the open -”
“You’re dreaming.” I interrupt. “This isn’t a fresh start and you’re not going to get one.”
“Please be reasonable Jane.” He pleads, “if not for me than for the pups. This isn’t just about us anymore.”
.: “You’re right.” I agree with him. “Which is why it’s more important than ever that I stand up to you.”
“What are you talking about? He demands, suspicion furrowing his brow.
“I will never be a slave again, and I refuse to leave Paisley to be raised by a man who sees woman as nothing more than s*x toys.” I announce, surprising us both. “I want full custody of my daughter. She belongs with me!”