by Maia Starr
Ginny could only pray that Zander would make it out alive, though there was little reason for her to believe he wouldn’t pull through. As Ginny finally climbed a dirt bank, zigzagging between the first trees she spotted, shots rang out, ripping through tree trunks and sailing past Ginny’s ears, deafening her hearing for a short while. Many of the men were forced to tear their attention away from Ginny as the three wolves danced and destroyed everything around them. Ginny thought she’d be sorry for the men who got caught up in Zander’s battle, but she realized as she sprinted into the misty woods that she had no pity for men who would abduct her children.
At first, Ginny panicked as she couldn’t spot Danny in the forest, though the sounds of Oliver’s muffled screaming kept her in the general direction. Just as Ginny’s heart was about to burst from sheer adrenaline, movement in front of her snapped her back to reality. Jogging into a dense thicket, Danny swore as Oliver managed to ungag himself, spitting out the cloth onto the wet forest floor.
“Mommy!” he called, closing his eyes and wailing like Ginny had never heard him before. “Mommy! I’m here! Where are you?”
Just as he wailed for Ginny, Danny struck him on the back of the head. “Quiet!”
But it was too late as Ginny saw red and rushed forward, catching Danny by surprise and hurtling herself into them both. All three collapsed to the ground, with Danny rolling away as Ginny reached for Oliver, quickly unbinding her son’s ropes. As she did, Danny yelled out and leaped over to stamp on her wrist, causing Ginny to cry out in pain as her wrist inflamed under Danny’s boot. He released her, only to lock his arms around Ginny’s neck moments later as she shuffled to her knees, crushing her windpipes.
Oliver cried out once again as Ginny struggled to breathe, an empty, deflating sensation taking hold of her throat as she clawed at Danny’s buff, sweaty arms.
“You know you really do disgust me!” Danny said through gritted teeth as he tried to maintain his hold on Ginny, her vision beginning to cloud and form dots of light at the corners of her eyes. “All you had to do was remain obedient! And silent! You’re to blame for this whole mess, and now you and your precious children are paying for it. No, because they were never yours in the first place!” Leaning in once more as Ginny’s limbs trembled, losing their strength, Danny whispered one last bit. “I promised you that I wouldn’t go easy on you if you continued to fight me. How does it feel to lose your life for someone else’s child?”
At this point Ginny had stopped listening to Danny, his words muddling and going into her ear as a jumble of sounds. She could feel her life slip away, and yet when she thought of everything she’d gone through, of the days she spent with Zander, of the smiles that grew on Oliver’s and Grace’s faces during the weeks they had spent on Silverwood Island, she knew she wouldn't let everything end like this. No, she wouldn’t let it end like this.
With a moment of pure, clear thought, Ginny found the strength to pull up two fingers and jab them at Danny’s eyes. He must not have expected her to have one last move, because she felt her fingers touch squishy eyeballs moments later. Danny screamed out, letting his grip on Ginny fade as she rolled forward, sucking in air as she rose to her feet. Hesitation be damned, for Ginny rushed forward once more, feeling the earth quake beneath her feet, and she kicked out at Danny, nailing him in the stomach and flinging him backward.
Then a mighty roar filled the air, and as Ginny looked over her shoulder, she witnessed Zander, bull rushing forward, mouth agape, his fur wet, slick with dark red blood, leap over her head once again and land just a few feet from Danny. Trying scramble away, Danny froze as Zander howled viciously at him, padding forward and placing a paw on Danny’s stomach. Growling, Zander peered back at Ginny, awaiting the final verdict. Shocked that Zander was even there, Ginny found herself speechless as Oliver waddled over to her, his tears still flowing. Clutching Oliver to her waist, Ginny glared at Danny.
To his credit, he didn’t beg for his life, and so Ginny opened her mouth to give Zander the right of way to end her ex-husband’s life...but then she paused and glanced down at Oliver. Watching her beautiful baby boy cling to her like a lost puppy, Ginny’s heart fluttered, and when she turned back to Zander, she found her voice resolute.
“Let him go,” she said, stunning both of the men before her. Zander hissed at her, but Ginny simply shook her head. “He’ll pay for a lifetime once we report him to the police. His plan didn’t work, and as much as I hate him for it...we aren’t murderers. Let him suffer in prison later.”
Groaning, Zander lifted his paw from Danny, who scrambled to his feet and sprinted off into the forest, not daring to glance back at Ginny or Zander. His cries of shock showed that even Danny could know fear.
Shifting back into his human form, Zander scrambled over to Ginny, cupping her cheeks in her mouth and planting his rough lips upon hers. The taste of his lips sent Ginny into overdrive, though when she remembered Oliver still clutching onto her leg, she quickly pushed Zander away, trying to shield Oliver away from Zander’s nakedness. “Why are you here? Don’t tell me...”
“Yep!” Zander said with a grin. “Those two wolves are down, as are most of the men. Lucky for me, some of Flint’s packs heard us and came rushing over, allowing me to chase after you. Actually, here come a few of them now...”
Glancing over her shoulder, Ginny’s heart nearly stopped as three more massively sized wolves loped out from the trees, panting and scrutinizing both Ginny and Zander. After Zander’s nod of thanks, the three wolves grunted and loped back the way they came.
As her mind settled, the reality of that afternoon’s events finally dawned on her completely. Looking down again at her son, tears began to well in her eyes as she knelt and embraced Oliver, her voice quivering as Oliver cried into her shoulder. She held him for as long as she needed to, just until she remembered the smack Danny had given him, and she released Oliver to check his head, fingering his head of curly blonde head, searching for any kind of welt left behind. “Are you okay? Did Daddy hurt you? Where? Did he hit you more than once? How do you feel?”
Blinking up at her, Oliver wiped at the bubbling tears in his eyelids. “He hit me...but I feel better now...though my head hurts.”
Laughing out of pure relief, Ginny embraced her son once more, feeling his tiny frame against hers, cherishing every second of their hug.
A gentle hand touched her shoulder, and Ginny looked up to find Zander smiling sweetly down at them. “I’d say this reunion would be even better back at the cottage. Grace is surely missing her brother.”
At the sound of his sister’s name, Oliver blinked up at Zander, nodding and forming the beginnings of a beautiful smile at the corners of his cracked lips. Ginny, nodding as well, eager to get back to daughter, stood and clutched Oliver’s hand, pulling him along as Zander shifter into his wolf form. Surprisingly, Oliver didn’t show any major sign of fear around Zander, instead simply staring at him as they both climbed back up onto his back, giggling as his small hands ran over.
Zander’s fur. Instead of sprinting this time, Zander eased into a short trot, making sure that his riders wouldn’t accidentally be thrown from their seats on his back.
Finally, Ginny thought, this nightmare is finally over. Coming to Silverwood Island had been the best decision she had ever made.↡¶
Chapter Twenty
Ginny
The ferry ride back to Silverwood Island from the mainland was probably the most peaceful experience Ginny had ever experienced. Not only was the beautiful sun shining and reflecting off the water’s surface, warming the smile she wore as she sat watching the waves crash into each other, but the winds were cool and refreshing as well, blowing by gently.
Ginny breathed in the winds as they passed, the cool air opening her throat, tucking locks of her platinum blonde hair behind her ear to prevent herself from chewing on her own hair. There was a brevity to the air as the ferry honked its horn to signal its incoming to the Silverwood Island port as if t
he whole day were all about a single idea...the idea that she had full custody over the children, without having Danny interfere with her or her children’s lives anymore.
Ginny couldn’t stop herself from gleefully tapping the bumpy ferry floor with her high heels as she stared down at the paperwork in front of her. Never before had a stack of paper appeared so appealing to her.
Only hours prior, Ginny had appeared at the next court hearing date to put the nail in the coffin over this case finally, and low and behold, she did exactly that. Even before Ginny’s whole fiasco with fleeing Danny’s home with the kids, the judge had begun to look Ginny’s way for full custody. She couldn’t have believed how quickly the judge passed the sentence when he heard about Danny Krisher’s actions. After the day she and Zander had kicked her ex-husband’s ass while simultaneously saving her son, Danny and the few of his men that had escaped the wolves of Silverwood Island had been caught by police, every single one of them ending up behind bars for their actions. The news had made Ginny excited beyond belief, but she was dismayed to hear about all the other counts that he had been charged with.
Kidnapping, arms smuggling, human trafficking...the list went on and on. It was so long that Ginny was amazed that a single person could have such a background, especially since she had gone and married him for a while. The more parts of her life she finalized and moved on from, the more questions were left in her wake. Though, she supposed that life would always be throwing more questions at her, and barely any answers. She’d have to find those herself.
Once the ferry horned one final time and the boat rocketed to a stop, Ginny rose and walked to the front where she practically pranced down the wooden ramp. To say there was a skip in Ginny’s step was a huge understatement. As all eyes turned to her as she hurried past the small crowd of people offloading from the ferry, she smiled so beautiful others began to giggle and whisper.
“Something good must have happened to that one,” an older woman whispered to her husband.
“Maybe she met a hot guy,” a younger woman said to her friend behind their hands.
Sort of! Ginny wanted to yell. To be honest, they weren’t too far from the truth. Now that the kids in were her guardianship completely, Ginny was free to pursue another partner without the distraction of Danny. That partner being none other than Zander.
Already she’d seen the twins grow attached to Zander in the weeks since the hush-hush incident with Danny. More and more both Oliver and Grace grew friendly, bolder in the way they would approach him whether he was in human or wolf form. Not only were the kids beginning to love Zander, but the opposite was true as well. Zander had begun an amazing new relationship with them both, every day becoming more like the father the two needed to have from the very beginning. Every time one had a nightmare about Danny tormenting them, Zander would instantly rush to their side before their eyelids even fluttered open.
Zander truly was the most miraculous part of her life now; without him, shutting Danny down wouldn’t have been possible, and maybe right now...no, Ginny stopped herself right there. She didn’t want to think about how her life would be right now if Zander hadn’t claimed her as his mate. Why would she try to imagine it, anyway? Danny had been locked up for life, so there was no chance that he could ever come back to haunt them.
As Ginny reached the road beside the docks, she waited as a line of trucks and cars rumbled on past. As she waited, however, a pretty woman jogged up to the other side of the road, waving at Ginny. Smiling, she recognized Callie immediately, with her infectious smile affecting Ginny even from across the street. Once the cars passed, Ginny rushed over to meet with Callie, unable to contain her excitement as she held up one of the documents she received from the judge.
“I have full custody!” Ginny nearly shouted.
“Wow, that’s amazing!” Callie said, throwing her arms around Ginny. Releasing her friend, Callie grabbed Ginny’s wrist and led her into the forest. “Come on; I’m sure everyone back home would want to hear this as soon as possible.”
Nodding, Ginny giggled as they broke out into a jog, vanishing into the woodland of Silverwood Island.
It took about twenty or so minutes to reach Ginny’s cottage, but time flew for Ginny, and it only felt like a few minutes had passed since being picked up by Callie at the docks.
“Can you imagine how Zander is going to react?” Callie said. “I mean, we all knew it was coming, but to finally have it come true is just awe-inspiring!”
Blushing bright red, Ginny tucked more of her hair behind her ear. “Aw, thanks, Callie. I honestly don’t know what I would have done without you and Ash either. Like seriously, thank you guys so much.”
Just as Ginny finished her thought, the duo breached the edge of the woodland and stalked onto the sandy, grassy land that sloped up to her cottage on the hill overlooking the sea. As they walked towards the cottage, Ginny stared out at the sea, unable to keep herself from tearing up. But those tears dried up as soon as she heard her name called.
“Mommy!” Oliver and Grace called as they raced down the hill to greet her. Eager to hold her children, Ginny raced forward, meeting them halfway and falling back as their collective weight crashed into her. Landing on the grass, she chuckled as Oliver and Grace climbed all over her, tickling her and bringing the tears back to drip down her cheek, which only tickled her more.
“Alright, alright, guys,” a gruff voice said as Ginny wiped the joyful tears from her face. Her vision was slightly cloudy, especially as the sun overhead bore right into her, but she made out the manly figure of Zander anyway. Throwing down a hand, he leaned in, blocking the sunlight and giving her a better look at the heart-wrenching smile that had grabbed her a month ago. With the sounds of the sea off to the side, and Zander’s strong grip swinging Ginny up to her feet, Ginny found herself lost in his steely blue eyes, seeing nothing but Zander before her. “So, how’d it go?” he asked, his voice rattling her chest and creating a tingling in her thighs.
Before answering him, she clapped her hands around his cheeks and pulled him in for the most passionate kiss of her life. Slow and sweet, taking their time as Ginny’s hair flapped in the wind, and Zander’s hands pulled her in closer. When Ginny finally released Zander, he stared at her with big eyes, his grin growing from ear to ear.
“Well, I think that gives away the answer,” he said, letting his hands drop to her waist.
“Well, congratulations!” Ash said, popping up next to them. “I think you two need some time alone to celebrate, huh? Callie and I could take the kids down to the beach while you two...you know...scamper off to the cottage?”
Both Ginny and Zander glanced at Ash with knowing looks, causing the others to laugh. Oliver and Grace simply stared in confusion.
“That’s alright with me,” Zander said, his hands tightening on her waist. “What better way is there to celebrate, right?”
“Alright then!” Callie interjected. “Come on, Grace, Oliver, want to go play on the beach?”
“Yeah!” both shouted, throwing up their arms as they raced down the hill. Callie immediately ran after them, leaving Ash to throw up a thumbs up.
“Just give us the signal well the celebrating is over, yeah? Even we don’t have as much energy as those two little balls of fun,” Ash said, jogging after the trio that had left.
“Well, that was easy,” Ginny said, turning back to Zander.
“Maybe it’s time you show me all you’ve learned about carnal desire, eh?” Zander cooed, reaching down to lift Ginny in his arms. At first, she gasped at the sensation of being carried, but then she gazed at him, biting her nail.
“Well then, my Prince Charming,” Ginny said. “Lead the way!”
With Zander’s hot, frantic breath washing over her chest and neck, Ginny’s thighs began to tremble even more as they threw open the front door and stalked down to Ginny’s bedroom. They didn’t bother to shut the front door, as neither could think of anything other than tasting each other’s skin,
sipping from their sweet nectar. Ginny couldn’t wait to let Zander indulge in her body, and for her to get lost in his. Already, she began to unbutton his shirt, though she didn’t get the chance to finish as Zander threw her to the bed.
Chuckling, Ginny spread her legs, watching as Zander slowly, erotically pulled off his shirt, revealing the glistening abs underneath. He was like a Greek statue, so sculpted and perfect that Ginny even still couldn’t believe he was all hers.
He jumped on her moments later, clawing at her clothes and ripping some of them at the seams.
“Hey!” Ginny squealed.
Entangled in his body, Ginny squirmed as he continued to strip her to her fair, soft skin. He leaned in to her ear, his hot breath brushing every nerve, her body shivering as he talked. “You’re gonna have to forgive me. The wolf is a little restless today...I can’t help myself.” Growling, Zander bit at her panties with his teeth and wrenched them down her legs. “Hopefully I won’t eat you up...that sure would be a shame.”
Fumbling with his belt buckle, Ginny began to pant just like Zander, her chest thumping to the beat of his touch, each finger he traced along her stomach an entirely different sensation. It was almost too much; Ginny thought her heart would burst long before any lovemaking occurred.
And yet, while her rhythm beat faster and faster, Zander became gentler with his approach, treating her body as if it were diamond or pure gold. Soon enough, Zander’s privates were unleashed, and Ginny moaned from the smell of him. Wasting no time, Zander pressed into her, causing Ginny to tremble and quiver as her legs stiffened in the air, the feeling of Zander sending her over the edge.