THEO
I see Bel prepare herself to teleport whilst I’m mid-sentence. Her eyes close and her body relaxes slightly.
I am not letting her disappear on me.
“Don’t you dare!” I yell, as I grab a hold of her, hoping to distract her enough to make her hear me out. Her eyes open as I’m kneeling before her and I quickly plead my case.
“He’s wrong, Bel. How could you think I would do that to you? You are my true mate. You were made for me. I couldn’t love anyone else, no matter what. You have my heart and it’s not going anywhere. It belongs to you. Do you hear me?” I ask as I let my hands cup her face and roam around to her hair.
“But I felt your regret and guilt.”
“Being an empath, you should know not to jump to conclusions about what people’s emotions mean. I was feeling those things because I was planning on asking you if we could help Selena out, give her a roof for a while. I felt bad for even thinking about putting you in that situation,” I explain.
“Oh,” she says clearly embarrassed. “I thought—”
I don’t give her a chance to finish her sentence. I take her mouth in a searing kiss, full of my passion for her. She relaxes into the kiss, I lay her back on the bed.
“What about everyone downstairs? They’ll want to celebrate with you,” she says as our mouths part.
“We can all celebrate together, tomorrow.” I pause to peck her pretty pink lips. “Tonight, I’m celebrating with my mate,” I say, before showing her exactly how I plan to celebrate.
FOREVER YOUNG AND BEAUTIFUL
MOUNT ROXBY SERIES: BOOK TWO
Forever Young and Beautiful
Copyright © 2015 Aimie Jennison
Cover design by: Sloan Johnson at Sloan J Designs
Formatted by: Aimie Jennison
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, including electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Aimie Jennison is in no way affiliated with any brands, songs, musicians or artists mentioned in this book.
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DEDICATION
To anyone who feels like the black sheep of the family.
This is for you.
PROLOGUE
RUBY - SIX MONTHS EARLIER
Considering I’m only seventeen-years-old, I’ve seen some unspeakable things in my life. You’d probably put it down to having an alpha werewolf for a brother, but you’d be wrong. Humans can be monsters too.
Waking up with a hand making its way up my thigh is nothing new. Sadly enough, I’ve become accustomed to my mum’s boyfriend of the day, or week—if they last that long, trying it on over the years. They always give up attempting to get their sexual appetites fulfilled by my mother, she constantly passes out before they get down to the nitty-gritty. Instead, they prefer to come into my room when I’m asleep and try their luck with me. I guess sleepy is better than comatose. It’s not something a seventeen-year-old should have to deal with, but it’s been my life for so long now. Just me and my mother. The only reprieve I get is when I spend my holidays with my brothers and their pack.
It takes me a minute or two before I’m fully awake enough to register what’s happening. Terry’s hand is at the apex of my thighs when I throw my arms out and shove him off the bed and onto the floor. I won’t let him take me, her last boyfriend caught me when I had no fight in me. The memory of the smirk he gave me when he realised he’d taken my virginity spurs on the fight in me today. I’ll never allow a man to take from me without permission again.
“Get off me, you perv,” I yell, not caring whether I wake Mum up or not.
He hits the floor with a grunt, before pulling himself up and coming at me again, the look on his face turns my stomach.
“Come on, sugar. I’ve seen the way you’ve been watching me when you don’t think anyone is looking.”
“I swear, you touch me again and I’ll break your nose.” I form a fist to show him how serious my threat is, but he laughs and keeps coming. My brothers have both taught me how to look after myself over the years. Living with a werewolf pack can be dangerous, if you don’t know how to handle yourself in a fight. Werewolves are short-tempered creatures, so altercations are always breaking out when you’re surrounded by them. In saying that, I’ve never had to use my fighting skills against a werewolf opponent. It’s always the humans.
His hand reaches out to touch my breast and I throw a punch without a second thought. I don’t know whether Terry was more surprised that I threw the punch, or that it had actually connected, causing blood to pour from his now broken nose. Forgetting my breast, he cups his hands around his nose and glances up at me; the surprise in his eyes suddenly changing to fury.
“You little bitch,” he screams, as he doubles his efforts to get to me. Just as his body wrestles me to the bed, the bedroom door bangs open and my mother storms in.
“What the fuck is going on in here?”
I pause under Terry, taken by surprise that she can even get a full sentence out, let alone see straight, knowing the amount of drugs she’s injected into her veins only a short while ago. Seeming just as surprised at my mother’s appearance, Terry loosens his grip on me and I quickly take advantage, pushing him away enough to scoot out from under him.
“He was trying to rape me,” I say, as I work my way over to my mum. “Just like all your previous loser boyfriends.”
“I was not raping you. You were trying to seduce me.” Terry sounds astonished that I would even suggest such a thing.
“You were in my bedroom. You were on top of me. And you have a busted nose, how can you say I was seducing you?” I glance at Mum to make sure she doesn’t believe the shit he’s spewing, only to find her giving me a glare that says she believes every word he’s said. “Mum, you don’t believe this bullshit? Surely you can see through it, even if you’re still high,” I plead.
She walks towards me, and I relax thinking she’s going to pull me into her embrace. I don’t notice the fist by her side until it’s too late to block it. I stumble back with the force of her uppercut to my cheek bone. It starts to throb almost immediately. “Mum…?” I whisper, too astonished by her actions to even finish my question.
“Come on Terry baby, let’s get you cleaned up,” she says, dismissing me as she guides him out of the room.
I drop to sit on the bed, unable to process that my mother just took that sleaze ball’s word over mine. If it weren’t for the throbbing pain in my face, I’d think it was all just a dream. The knowledge that she hit me spurs me into action. I can’t live like this anymore. I dash around the room filling my backpack with anything I can’t bear to leave behind, knowing full well she’ll sell anything I do leave.
Once I’m packed, I stare at my closed door and wonder how I’m going to leave without another confrontation. I turn and seeing the window, I decide it’s the best way to avoid my mother and Terry. Once I have the window open and push out the fly screen, I throw my backpack to the ground and climb over the sill, feeling somewhat grateful for being in a single story house.
Picking up my backpack and throwing it over my shoulder, I slowly creep around the house practically holding my breath as I pass the kitchen. I know they’re in there, I can hear
them. Listening to the noises, I discern she’s giving him what he tried to get from me. My anger at my mother doubles as I walk away from the house, knowing they’re too preoccupied to hear me leave.
I make it to the end of the street before I realise that although I know where I’m planning on going, I have no idea how I’m going to get there. My brother, Theo’s house, is my safe haven. I might be surrounded by dangerous werewolves there, but at least I’ll be protected. No one would ever hurt me, not intentionally. Just as I’m passing the bus stop a bus pulls up to let someone off, I jump on board.
I stay on the bus until it reaches its last stop, which luckily, happens to be a short walk from a roadside café and petrol station. The café is a frequent stop for truckies since it’s situated nicely on one of the main highways across the country.
As I walk into the café, I take note of three trucks parked outside. The drivers are all in the café. Two guys are sitting on the main bench that runs the length of one wall, with a good space between the two of them. There’s a woman paying for fuel at the counter, if it weren’t for her steel-toe cap boots and high visibility vest, I wouldn’t have guessed she was the third truck driver.
“Thanks, Vera, I’ll see you in a couple of days when I come back up,” she announces, as she walks away from the counter. If she’ll be coming back up, that means she’s going south. If I don’t pluck up the courage to ask her for a lift, I’ll miss the chance altogether. The other drivers could be heading north.
“Excuse me,” I call out nervously.
She pauses in the doorway, sucking in a sharp breath and wincing as she glances at me, reminding me that my face must be bruised up pretty good by now. “Jesus, have you been in the ring with Tyson?”
Her joke eases my nerves and I can only assume that was her aim. “Yeah, something like that,” I answer, before asking what I called out to her for in the first place. “Is there any chance I can grab a lift? I’m heading to Mount Roxby, if you are going anywhere near there?” I hope she’ll take pity on me.
Her smile answers me before her words do. “I drive right past Mount Roxby, I’m happy to have a bit of company for a change. I’m Jules,” she says, offering her hand.
“Ruby,” I reply, taking her hand.
* * *
We’d made good time. Only three hours have passed as Jules pulls to the side of the road just at the entry into Theo’s driveway. She insisted on dropping me off at the drive and if her truck were smaller, she would have dropped me at the door, but the trees are too close to the edge of his driveway.
Opening the cab door, I grab my bag off the cab bed behind the two seats. “Thanks, Jules. You really did save me tonight.”
“You’ve been great company, and you have my number so you can always call if you ever find yourself in a similar situation. Don’t just jump in anyone’s cab, that’s a dangerous game to be playing.”
“I don’t plan on being stuck in that situation again, but I promise I’ll call if I am,” I reassure her, jumping from the cab.
My feet hit the gravel with a thud, forcing a cloud of dust to rise around my feet, visible only because of the truck’s headlights.
The walk up the drive takes me a good ten minutes. Theo has a large acreage of land surrounding his house. He doesn’t want prying neighbours when he has a pack of werewolves coming and going; which is pretty understandable. When I reach the door, I straighten my backpack and push the little button that is the doorbell.
I see the silhouette of two people approach, but they don’t open it immediately. When the door finally opens, the sight of my big brother with his caring green eyes before me causes the floodgates to open. I can’t hold back the sobs as I pounce into his arms and call him the pet name I’ve always used. “Ted.”
One
AN UNEXPECTED ARRIVAL
RUBY
I’m humming to myself as I make my way down the stairs with the dirty sheets from Chloe’s bed. It took two months for Theo to persuade her that since the Controller was dead, she was safe in her own home. I think she was just lonely and enjoyed the company here, but no one seems to care what I think.
I’m not one of them so my opinion doesn’t matter.
Getting my criminology degree online via Open Universities Australia isn’t good enough for Theo. He thinks I need to be working, too. And since I can’t find a job in town that will allow me to have a bodyguard following me around, he decided to employ me as a cleaner.
In my own home.
I prefer waitressing to cleaning. Back home I worked in a little café, working all the hours I could, mainly to stay clear of Mum and her boyfriends. She knows how to pick an arsehole—then again she doesn’t exactly deserve any better. I enjoyed it, though, chatting with the regular customers and sometimes even flirting with them. It’s not like I can flirt with the couple of pack members I find cute, Theo would kill them if they so much as breathed in my direction.
Just as I’m about to turn into the laundry, there’s a knock on the front door. Throwing the dirty sheets in the laundry, I quickly turn and run for the door, wondering why Theo hadn’t unlocked it this morning. No one knocks unless the door is locked, and when it’s locked, they will turn the handle until it breaks. Damn werewolf strength.
I yank it open, surprised to find that it’s not locked. “What’s with the knock—” The words die on my lips when I find myself face to face with my mother.
“Have you got a hug for your mum?” she asks. I glance behind her for any sign of her boyfriend. “Terry isn’t here, I left him,” she says, wiggling a suitcase in her right hand.
Oh God, no.
“Don’t just stand there gawking, give me a hug and let me in.” I can tell she’s annoyed now, even though she’s clearly trying to hide it behind a playful tone.
I relax, feeling the heat that only comes off a werewolf’s body, as one steps up behind me. “Is everything…” It sounds like Theo is surprised to see Mum, too. Gently reaching out, Theo pushes me aside as he steps forward in one smooth movement. “What the hell are you doing here, Mum?”
She drops her suitcase and her eyes well up as she takes my brother in. “Theo?” Reaching out, she strokes a shaky finger down his cheek. “It’s really you?” she asks, before bursting into tears.
Theo glances at me looking as disturbed as I feel. I shrug my shoulders. I really have no idea what’s gotten into her. In a resigned gesture, he pulls Mum into his arms and inside the house.
Picking up the suitcase, I close the door and follow them into the lounge. Placing the case on the floor behind the L-shaped sofa, I head into the kitchen and flick the switch on the kettle. We’re all going to need a cup of tea to get through whatever conversation is coming. We’d probably rather something stronger, but with Mum being an alcoholic and nasty when she’s drunk, it’s not a good idea to crank out the good stuff.
By the time I make it to the coffee table with three cups of tea, Theo has Mum comfy on the sofa opposite him. She’s wiping at her cheeks with a handful of tissues.
“Thanks,” she says, as she reaches out taking one of the cups and bringing it to her lips for a quick sip.
Finding my voice, I speak up as I take a seat next to Theo. “What the hell are you doing here, Mum? Do you not remember that you hit me last time we were in the same room together?”
I haven’t taken my eyes off her the whole time. I wouldn’t believe it if I didn’t notice the wounded look appear across her face as clear as day. She’s not putting it on either, it seems completely genuine.
“It’s something I’ll never forget or forgive myself for. It’s no excuse, but I was high and when I came to realise what I’d done…it was too late. You’d already left. I needed to get straight. I haven’t touched a drop since that night, and I’ve seen a therapist daily.”
Seeing a therapist daily? Yet here she is out of reach of her therapist? She’ll have a drink again before this day is out. That’s how she works. Beg for forgiveness and then fall b
ack in the bottle again, or even worse—the needle. It’s a vicious circle and I’ve had enough of it. That’s why I came to Theo’s.
I can’t believe she followed me. I stand up ready to leave because I cannot bear to be near this woman.
“Wait, let me finish explaining everything. If you still want nothing to do with me when I’m done, then I’ll walk out the door and you’ll never have to see me again. I promise.”
I glance down at Theo, hoping I’ll see something in his face to give me the courage to stick to my guns and leave. Tugging on my hand, he gestures for me to sit back down next to him.
“Give her a chance. I’ll throw her out myself if she goes back on her promise to leave. Okay?”
I sit with a sigh. “Fine, you’ve got five minutes.”
“Thank you,” she says, reaching out to grab my hand.
Evading her hand, I grab my tea and bring it up to take a sip. The thought of being all loving and holding Mother’s hand, makes my skin crawl, and in return that makes me feel sick to the stomach because a daughter should love her mother. A daughter should want that kind of affection from her mother. What a fucked up mess we are.
“Speaking things through with my therapist has helped me see more clearly where my issues stem from. You’re father had his faults, but I loved him dearly. Unfortunately, he always put the pack before me. I was only a human, I wasn’t strong enough for him. He never really wanted me as a mate, but when I fell pregnant with Theo and carried him to term, he felt the need to claim me as his mate. He put up with me because I could give him children, and hopefully they carried the werewolf gene. You should understand something about that Theo. You never did take Selena as your mate, did you?”
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