#Way back when I already wrote a little thing for X Drake and how transforming into a beast could be an extreme form of growing pains

[draconxs]

Zoans already have a hard enough time getting accustomed to their new forms especially for the very first time using it. I can only imagine Kai.do who was well into his adult years by the time he even got his fruit felt awkward balancing a massive serpentine body on much smaller limbs.

He probably lost his footing a few times in the early days not yet knowing how to fly (He got a hand of that pretty quickly as opposed to lumbering on land). And withstanding the heat and power of his own flame was another challenge in it of itself.

Oh, to be a fly on the wall to witness that even if he'd probably burn all witnesses to ash.

[angelasscribbles]

Bad Romance Epilogue 5: Riley

Series: Bad Romance

Fandom: The Royal Romance

Pairings for series: Riley x Liam, Liam x Max, Riley x Max, Riley x Drake, Riley x Rashad

Paring this chapter: Riley x all of them, these are her recollections of all four relationships.

Rating: MA

Warnings for this chapter: Language, adult themes

Word Count: 3,795

Special thanks to @21-wishes for pre reading and discussing with me!

A/N: This clocks in at roughly four times longer than the previous four epilogues, which is fair, because they each had their recollections about their relationship with her, but she has her recollections about her relationships with all four of them.

Part of me is really sad because with this final epilogue, the series truly comes to an end. It's bittersweet for me. I'm going to miss this series and these characters.

On the other hand, total word count, with all 36 chapters, five epilogues and two one-shots (so far) comes to 108,643. That's a lot of words. That's a book. I wrote, and finished, a book. While I can't publish or make money on it because it's fan fiction, still....I wrote a book. In four months. That gives me a deep sense of satisfaction, and the confidence to go back to working on my original book.

I know not everyone is a fan of this version of Riley, but I kind of love her. So I hope everyone is kind. What started off as a toxic mess somehow, inexplicably, evolved and transformed into something functional and meaningful. At least to me. I hope at least a few of you have enjoyed reading this as much as I've enjoyed writing it.

My other stuff: Master List.

It started off selfishly on my part. All of it. But can you really blame me? I mean come on, hot rich guy offers to fly me to Europe on a private jet where his family will foot the bill for everything for the foreseeable future and my only job is to buy fancy clothes, on their dime, attend balls and hang out and flirt with the other hot rich guy that I’d already fucked anyway? Are you really going to tell me you wouldn't have done it? It sure beat the holy hell out of waiting tables.

Did I start sleeping with Maxwell Beaumont because I felt like I owed him something? No. I did it because I wanted to. Because that's what I do, whatever the hell I want. Always have. Because you see, the world is a shitty place, my little corner of it was no exception. Everybody else I’d ever known did whatever the fuck they wanted without regard to how it affected others, how it affected me. Why should I be any different? Life is too short.

Like I said, Max was hot, and a good way to kill the time during the social season. I knew I was technically there to win the heart, and the hand, of a prince. But let's be honest, what were the odds he was ever going to want me? No one ever had, not my parents, not the first boy I fell in love with, nobody. I didn't see the likelihood that an actual real life bona fide fucking prince was going to, regardless of what had happened between us in New York. So why the hell not sleep with Max?

But Liam pursued me relentlessly, even though he shouldn't have, even though he wasn't supposed to, even though he was told not to. He was supposed to be giving all the women equal time and an equal chance, but he didn't, not even close. Oh, I mean he did publicly in front of the court but behind the scenes? Not so much. So, I started sleeping with him too. Why not? Two hot rich guys all over me? I didn't see the problem. There was no problem, at least not until I went and fell in love. I blame Liam.

He was charming and appropriately funny in every setting. But when we were alone? He was charming in an entirely different way, sweet, vulnerable, solicitous and hysterically funny in a completely inappropriate way. But the thing that really drew me in was that he listened to me. No, I don't think you understand. I mean he really, actually, actively listened to me.

Look, I've never lacked for male attention, not since puberty anyway. I'm used to men throwing themselves at me, crashing their ships on my rocks as it were. They competed with each other; they did ridiculous things to try and impress me. But what they didn't do was take the time to get to know me. The real me. Because that's not what they cared about. I knew what they cared about. It only took me one heartbreak to decide that I wasn't about that life.

One of the few pieces of wisdom my mother did manage to impart to me at an early age was that in any given relationship there's always one person that loves more than the other, and they are the one that inevitably gets hurt. So, my mission in life had been simple. Always be the one who cares less, always leave first, don't get hurt again. Simple. Until it wasn't.

Liam listened to me, as if my ideas and thoughts actually mattered. Like I was fucking important or something. Like I had an actual brain in my head, like I was more than just my looks. Pretty intoxicating stuff if you ask me.

I know it sounds like a humble brag, but I don’t see the point of false modesty, I know I'm an attractive woman, more attractive than most. And it may sound like a stupid thing to complain about, but being smoking hot isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Can I fuck pretty much whoever I want? Yeah. Can I get stupid men to give me just about whatever I want in the pursuit of that? Again, yeah. And that’s all well and good unless you want more than fun and games. When you’re built like I am, you never really know if someone wants you for you or for the physical aspect that they see, that is pleasing to the eye and to the touch. Liam had a fairly similar problem between the money and the crown, something we actually connected on and commiserated about.

When I was in high school, I was a smart kid. Smart and pretty aren't supposed to go together. After high school a lot of the athletic guys told me they had crushes on me, but they never asked me out because they thought I was too smart for them, and I would have rejected them. The boys I met in my advanced AP classes and debate club had similar stories. They developed crushes, but thought I was too pretty and would have rejected them. Meanwhile I didn't date much in high school. Until I met a boy from a different high school, but he broke my heart.

Then I hit college and discovered the very real power I wielded over men. And it didn't take me long at all to figure out how to use that to my advantage. Men were pigs, they would use a woman for what they wanted and discard her. Why shouldn't I do the same? It got me the things I wanted in life, and a little bit of vengeance on behalf of my whole gender, so why the hell not?

Then Liam Rys came along and changed every damn thing. He treated me like a real person, he listened to my hopes and dreams, he shared his own childhood heartaches and fears with me, and he looked at me like I was the only woman in the world. I decided he was different, that opening up his heart to me meant something, that I had finally found something real. And I fell right the fuck in love with him. He held my beating heart in the palm of his hand.

So, you can imagine how gutted I was when it appeared that it had all been an elaborate lie and he was just like all the others, only worse because I had believed him, trusted him, let myself fall in love with him. I broke my own rules, I did the thing I wasn't supposed to do.

I had only myself to blame. I should never have let my guard down. So, in way of self-care, I fell back into Max's arms, and his bed. And Drake's.

If there's one thing I learned in college it’s that the best way to get over one man is to get under another. So that's what I did. And listen, I had always had a philosophy: piss me off a little and I was definitely going to sleep with one of your friends. Piss me off a lot and it was going to be your cousin, brother or best friend. I like to twist the knife where it hurts the most. But even so, that's not really why I started with Drake, though it was a definite fringe benefit.

Watching Liam squirm, watching the low-key fury that he could do nothing about with every brush of my lips across Drake’s, with ever loving caress I gave him, was just the cherry on top of my sundae. It was much less than what he deserved for tricking me into thinking he was different, for making me love him then breaking my heart.

But if Liam owns my heart, then Drake owns my body. That’s not as shallow as it sounds. The way my body responds to his is out of my control and always has been. Being close to him without touching is an actual, physical struggle. A hard one. There has always been some kind of magnetism pulling us together. I know exactly where he’s at in a room without even looking. I can literally feel him. It’s crazy. It’s insane. It’s fucking amazing. That energy, that pull his body has on mine is what keeps me anchored in this realm of existence, I’m sure of it.

Drake Walker is attached to me by some kind of cosmic decree that I have never been able to figure out. He killed Tariq over me and damn near killed the king of Auvernal and started a war. He only thinks about me, ever, he doesn’t even consider consequences to himself when he undertakes these things. That’s why I have to do it for him. I can’t let him destroy himself protecting me. After Tariq’s death, I realized that the system wasn’t going to do its job, that no one had his back, that no one was going to protect him! No one but me. That was when I started amassing political power. It was all for him.

If he was going to do stupid shit to protect me, then I was going to do smart shit to protect him. I was going to do whatever I had to do. Even marrying the man that shattered my heart.

Did I mention that I’m just two classes shy of a master’s degree in political science? People often dismiss me because, again, smart and pretty aren’t supposed to go together, but in truth, I was probably wildly more qualified for the job of queen than most of the snobby bitches that looked down on me. While they were learning how to sip tea and play piano, I was learning how governments work, and how wars happen, or get avoided. I knew how the game was played. Add in my ability to manipulate people, especially men, and it was time to get serious about that queen thing.

Though Liam and I found our way back to each other eventually, at the time, I was still furious with him, and my only focus was Drake, but I decided to stop fighting the engagement. If Liam wanted me to be queen, I’d be queen, and I’d use that power to help Drake. But I wasn’t by God doing it on Liam’s fucking terms. So, I set some events in motion that gave me leverage to amend the contract, and I made damn sure the new version protected Drake and Max.

Then I set out to get Drake out of the mess he was in because of me. I secured the best lawyer Cordonia had to offer and I made sure Liam pulled the correct strings behind the scenes. I campaigned on his behalf, I lined up character witnesses, I had a conversation with Tariq’s brother, I made sure Drake was exonerated, that was all me.  

Ironic that, later on, Drake would question if my love for him was real or if I only wanted him as a cog in my political power structure. Really fucking ironic considering the whole damn thing had been constructed for his benefit. He really is stupid sometimes.

And through all of that, after Liam had broken my heart in two, and when Drake was fighting against me, making it harder for me to help him, Max was there. Max was just always fucking there!

There was literally nothing I could say, nothing I could do that pushed him away. And trust me, I tried. I know that sounds horrible. Max is the sweetest, most genuine, most giving, loving person I know. But that’s what I had thought about Liam, and he’d broken my heart. So, I pushed Max away. I used him for sex, I used him for comfort, I used him as my fallback position. And he let me. But more than that, he offered nothing but support, he just kept being there, and it felt good when I was with him. I don’t just mean in a sexual way.

Slowly I started to realize that the chaos boiling inside me was somehow muted when he was there. And he was always there. He never failed me. He never disappointed me. He never left. He never hurt me, and he refused to let me push him away.

I once referred to him as my emotional support boyfriend and that isn’t far from the truth. Max balances me. He calms my rages and soothes my rough edges. The turbulent waters in my mind churn less when he’s around, the raging infernos in my heart cool in his presence. He tames me. He fucking tames me, and I don’t even know how or why. He does it just by existing. If I need Drake to anchor my body in this plane of existence, I need Max to keep my soul tethered to it. I’m certain, that without him, I would have spontaneously combusted a long time ago.

And only after I let myself fall in love not once more, but twice more, with both Drake and Max, only then did I realize that staying engaged to Liam, staying in his orbit, interacting with him on a regular basis had let him bury himself under my skin again. Burrow his way back into my heart.

Oh, who am I kidding? He never left. I tried so hard to push him out of my heart. I couldn’t.

Liam was the first man to love me properly. To show me what that meant, what that felt like and I think somewhere deep down inside, I knew it wasn’t over. That it would never, could never, be over. My heart recognized his, like they beat in the same rhythm or something. Somehow, I don’t think I would have been capable of loving anyone else, ever, if Liam hadn’t breached my protective walls in the first place. It’s like he possessed some kind of secret code. He was the one that broke my heart open and once I started to let myself actually feel, well, the rest is history. Literally.

How was I supposed to choose between them? I wanted, no I needed them all. I still do. I always will.

You might think it’s not possible to truly love more than one person at a time. You would be wrong. It’s not that I love less. My love is not somehow divided between them, it’s not a finite supply, dwindling with each person that holds a piece of it. I used to believe there was something wrong with me because conventional wisdom says there is. But if anything, what I’ve discovered is that I love more!

I have always felt things more deeply than others. I learned as a child that I couldn’t watch the news. Long after my mother had clicked the TV off and moved on with her life, I’d be crying in a corner over the story about the murdered child or car collision that took out a family of five. It’s why I had to shut those parts of myself off after my first heartbreak. I swear I feel everything so much more! Everything.  

I’ve always known that my sex drive in largely in overdrive, but once I had children, I discovered that so is my mothering instinct. I kept my babies attached to my body for the first three years of their lives, at least. It’s like all my feelings are intensified compared to normal people, and if I’ve ever loved someone in my life, that doesn’t go away for me.

I know I’m a lot. But the over-the-top reactions, the rages, the jealousy, the going to any lengths for those I love, it’s all part of the same basic malfunction. But despite outside appearances, despite judgements from people who think that only sexual fidelity equals real love, the upside to being with me is that I love deeply, fiercely, truly. I’m loyal in every way that matters. I would kill for someone I love. I sort of have.

So, like I said, I blame Liam. He was the codebreaker that opened up my heart in the first place, then left it vulnerable. Of course, my newly opened, bleeding, battered heart was going to fall for Max, who nurtured and shielded it. Of course, I was going to be drawn back to Drake who commanded my whole body to his side just by existing, who literally killed a man defending me. Of course, my fractured, trying to mend, longing for good feelings again heart was going to fall for him, from the moment I climbed on the back of his bike in Fydelia.

Where Max was the gentle healing and slow, steady pace that I needed in the immediate aftermath of heartbreak, Drake was electric jolt that I needed to get back to the business of living.

If it’s true that I would have never fallen for Max, or Drake, if Liam hadn’t cracked my heart open in the first place, it’s also true that I would have never been able to forgive and love Liam again if Max and Drake hadn’t patched up the shattered remains of said heart. They all played a part, and they all earned a place in my life. I fell in love with each of them, separately, differently, uniquely.

So no, I was not giving up any of them.

You would think the public would have noticed something, especially when three of our five children looked nothing like Liam but if anyone noticed, no one mentioned it.

I’m sure that’s partly because my enemies had a habit of bad luck befalling them. Tariq Lambros is dead, Fredrick Monsommer is dead, to name just two. Barthelemy Beaumont had once threatened to take my child from me. Taking the throne was secondary in my mind. No one threatens my children. No one. Barthelemy was the father of a man Liam and I both love dearly and deeply, and he still had an unfortunate accident, courtesy of Drake, before he could put his plan into action. At some point, people did learn that it wasn’t wise to cross me.

But the main reason, I think, is that once the Cordonian people got it into their heads that I had somehow helped Drake get away with murdering the slimy degenerate that had killed his sister, they decided that I could do no wrong. I may or may not have helped spur those rumors on. Add to that the incentives that I’ve spearheaded over the years that help the actual people and not just the nobility and I am above approach in their eyes. In short, I’m bulletproof. The public and the press fucking love me.

It’s not like any rumors could stick to me anyway. Not with the stellar legal representation I employ. Which brings me to Rashad.

He’s a shark, legally speaking. What Drake is to my physical safety, Rashad is to my legal safety. He’s what they mean when they say release the hounds. He’s that damn good at his job. The best. I would retain his legal services no matter what. But he’s more than that to me.

He’s an attractive man. Just ask the Cordonian Star, they’ve named him most eligible bachelor eight times. But the thing that makes him stand out, arguably the sexiest thing about him, is his superior intellect. We can sit up all night discussing politics, religion, law, technology, history, the topics are endless really. He keeps up with me mentally and that’s no easy feat. When I read about a new scientific advancement, he’s the first person I think of, the one I want to share it with. I save those discoveries for him, and our time together is an outpouring of thoughts and feelings we’ve both been keeping in reserve for each other. Our time together is always too short.

He is a stunningly beautiful man, but that alone wouldn’t have kept me coming back all this time. The deep friendship we’ve built over the years is something I truly cherish. I trust him. I respect him. I like him.

Do I love him? Yes, I suppose I do, a bit. There is a piece of my heart that’s his and his alone.

Maybe the exact whirlwind that occurred after the coronation was what was needed for things to happen the way they did. It was the perfect storm of heartbreak, tragedy, and self-discovery and only those that got sucked into the vortex were able to enter, to find a place in my heart. Because once everything calmed down, once Liam and I mended things, it was like a lock clicked in place. Everyone inside was in, and anyone outside, was out. The die was cast.

I’ve been with other people over the years, men and women alike, but never as anything more than casual sex and almost always in the context of one of my already established relationships. Be that Max and I playing around with a man we picked up at a nightclub or me bringing another woman along occasionally to play with Drake. But loving anyone else? Can’t imagine it. Not like that.

Hana, Leo, Liv, I love my friends, but you know, it’s not the same.

So, I don’t regret anything that happened, because it brought me all of them. And it brought Liam and Max together as well, which has been an unexpected and thrilling dynamic that wouldn’t have happened otherwise.

Max has jokingly dubbed me the Teflon Queen, because nothing seems to stick to me. I have practically flaunted my relationships under the courts’ nose, one of my children looks exactly like Drake, one of them looks exactly like a Beaumont and no one says a word. My enemies have all come to bitter ends, but Drake has never been investigated for any allegations again. Having elevated him to head of the Queen’s Guard, everything he does is a matter of national security. I have made him untouchable. And the rumors that do swirl about his role in my life and his dedication to me, and Liam’s acceptance of it, encouragement of it even, only serve to strengthen and solidify my position.

Liam, Drake and I together are a dangerous force to be reckoned with. Undefeatable. With Max as the steadying, encouraging, comforting support behind us, the three of us are an unstoppable team, steam rolling over any and all obstacles. A powerful and formidable triumvirate, protecting each other and those we love, leading Cordonia into a better and brighter future.

It’s good to be queen.

[foreveralwaysanauthor]

As previously warned, I have a huge number of questions for the fanfic author ask thing. So, here we go: 4, 5, 6, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 20, 21, 24, 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 33, 36, 37 and then, if that wasn’t already enough, and there is anything you want to answer that I haven’t already asked, then pick one of your choosing to answer as well! 💕

Holy crap you weren’t kidding! lol this is gonna be so much fun!

4: What made you start writing fanfiction?

My 3rd grade teacher, Mr. Gula, gave me a challenge to write out my own ending to my favorite movie or TV show. As I was never really one to back down from a challenge, I went home and wrote out my own story about the first Transformers movie and another one about what I would do if I had been in HIgh School Musical. Yeah... needless to say, I was the Hermione of my grade.

5: Favorite pairing?

I know I don’t write for them, but my top is probably either Dee Dee and Frankie from the Beach Blanket Bingo, Bikini Beach, and Muscle Beach type movies or Seaweed and Penn from Hairspray. Something about those types of romance are sort of sweet to me. Guess I’m just an old soul. I also adore Cory and Topanga form Boy Meets World, but I’m mostly here for the older romances.

6: Least favorite pairing?

I’ll probably get flack for all of my answer, but I’m a little bit opinionated about this lol. The way Ginny and Harry’s relationship in the films was, was just confusing and so not what I had expected from them. The books gave them so much more than the movies ever did. The books were way better. Another case I don’t like was Bella and Edward/Renesmee and Jacob from Twilight. I think the other relationships in Twilight were better (Jasper and Alice are so sweet!) and Stephanie Meyer just kinda tossed Bella and Edward and Renesmee and Jacob together in the hope it would work and it just didn’t.

12: What’s the weirdest fic you’ve ever written?

I can’t believe I’m admitting to this.... I used to write full stories about One Direction. I had a full Niall x OC story I posted on a 1D Imagines group on Facebook that got almost 2,000 likes. It was silly, but, my word, it was almost as long as Broken Record. It spanned over the month of October 2014 and I can’t believe it ot the attention it did. It wasn’t all that good, but I guess it was good enough for people to like it, so that’s alright by me lol

13: Weirdest fic you’ve ever read?

I don’t believe it’s on fanfiction anymore, but I remember the basic info on it. It was Make a Wish by FireBladePrime. It was pretty much a girl made a wish on a shooting star and it made her favorite toys come to life as full size humans. I believe she ended up falling in love with one, but I’m pretty sure it just ended up being something that she came up with in her head when she was in a coma due to a car accident. Definitely a weird one, but it was pretty well written as far as memory serves.

14: Do the people in your life know you write fic? How do they feel about it?

Well, quite a bit of my family knows, actually. It started with just my parents, but my dad was always wanting to show off whatever his baby princess did (I was his only biological child, my older siblings were from my mom’s ex-husband). Dad shared with his siblings, mom shared with her siblings and my grandfather. My nieces and nephews know as well, but I believe that’s it. As far as I know, they are all very supportive and have no problem with it. My neice, Lorali, and nephews, Erek and Drake, have read all of my Teen Beach fics and quote things from them daily just to see if I’ll react, but they mostly just like reading them or having me read to them. They’re very loving and supportive of my writing.

15: Favorite fandom to write for?

I don’t know if I could pick one! I love Teen Beach so much, but I also have a certain affinity for writing small oneshots or “x Reader” style stories for Avengers and Harry Potter which can be found here and here. I do share the Harry Potter page with my sister, but she handles reblogging things to our page. Anyway, those would probably be my top fandoms!

17: What is the harshest criticism you’ve ever gotten on a fic?

Holy crap. Okay, I may or may not have repressed this for a long time, but I have more than one that I can’t decide between. The other one was from a girl in my class who stole my writing notebook and read my writing. Fuck you, Ashley She gave it back to me later that day with marker scribbles all over my writing. She said that I was horrible. The next day, I stole the makeup bag she had brought from her mother’s bathroom and buried it on the playground.

I was a good child that believed in getting even. Nobody found out about that btw.

Anyway, the first real criticism I had on a fic was someone who said, “You have no talent and you shouldn’t be writing. It all sucks and you’ll never go anywhere as an author.” I had actually written this down and, when I felt it no longer mattered to me, I burned it. It took me a couple of years to come to the realization that their opinion didn’t matter to me.

 20: What’s your biggest struggle when it comes to writing fic?

Having time to sit down and write, probably. I usually have great ideas, but, in order to write them out and have them come out alright, I would need to sit down and feel it all come together while I write. I need time that I just don’t have most of the time.

21: Your biggest strength?

When I sit down to write, it all just flies out of me. Once i start, I don’t stop until my idea is all out into either m notebook or my computer. I can have a simple idea that somehow spirals into an eight page chunk that I never thought was possible. I like to think of that as my biggest writing strength.

24: What’s your process?

Write out the “backbone plot” (The stuff that has to happen, no matter what)

Decide on characters. Figure out appearance, personality and basic traits. (Sorta like a sim, I guess)

Bounce ideas with whoever will listen/listen to music (Gain ideas and write them in a small notebook)

Wait for inspiration and time to line up accordingly.

Write as much as I can.

Go back into that later on and edit what needs to be there and delete what isn’t necessary.

Publish!

I hope that’s what this means, at least.

25: Of all the fics you’ve written, which is your favorite?

Most definitely Broken Record and Creating a Rift. It was one of my first published stories and I just adore them.

26: Which of your fics is your least favorite?

I don’t even know how to find it anymore, but it was called Life’s a Rollercoaster. It was a Transformers fic that I had written when I was 11. Never finished it bc I lost the login stuff and it, now that I remember it, sucked hard.

27: What’s your most popular fic? Do you think the popularity is warranted, or is there another fic that you think deserves it more?

Any of them really! I love that Broken Record has had almost 10,000 reads, but I don’t believe it. As I go back over it, I wonder how on earth it gained popularity in the first place, but I couldn’t be happier that it did!

29: Which of your fics was the hardest to write?

My book. Probably the Christmas one, tbh. I only feel the pull to write it around the holidays and that kinda sucks lol

30: Favorite fic writers?

You better know you’re number one, girlie! For those who don’t know, Eleanor here is one of my closest internet friends and she’s practically family to me at this point!

As for other authors, I love Ulurnaga’s Primary Mechanisms story (Transformers). I know she hasn’t updated it since 2014, but it was so good that she could’ve left it at multiple parts and it would’ve been fine. I think it has abot 118 chapters to it. I have a few favorites from AutobotGuy710 who does a lot of Transformers stories basing around adoption (helps for my references and also a better understanding of what goes on a bit in adoptions/foster care). On Tumblr, I have a few faves, but not a ton. I like imagine-and-marvel and potterlyimagines fics a lot, but that’s about it at the moment as I haven’t sat down to read fics in a little while.

31: Do you write just for fun, or would you ever consider pursuing writing?

A bit of both, actually. I mostly enjoy writing my fics as a bit of an escape from reality. I enjoy being able to place myself in a world that doesn’t exist and sort of play around a bit. However, I do actually write as a job. I was working for my county newspaper for a while and that spiraled into me writing my first book, Feather Picked. I am currently writing one of the sequels to Feather Picked which takes the focus from my original main character, Melody, and moves it to her best friend, Roxy. I am planning on publishing a total of at least 5 books, the first four being the chronological 4 that take place over the course of a full year, each taking one season. The last one will be a look into the future, hopefully.

My first book can be found here!

33: Fanfiction pet peeves?

Goodness gracious. As someone who loves English classes, when people don’t place paragraphs correctly or spell simple words correctly, it reeeeeeally grinds my nerves. I will still sit through a story if it’s a well plotted story, but, come on people, at least do proper paragraphing!!!

Also, when people spell “definitely” as “defiantly”...... uuuuuuuuggggghhhhhhhhh

36: Which charachter(s) would you never write for?

For this one, I don’t really have much to say.

Probably characters from shows like soap operas or shows that never seem to end. If I can’t grasp the character’s backstory or personality after watching it because it never stops changing whenever it benefits the story or what the writers have planned, I refuse to write for them. 

Mary Sue types like Bella Swan who are merely the damsel in distress  and are only there to play out the author’s wish to be put in some type of scenario where everyone fawns over them constantly (can be applied to male characters as well).

37: Which character is your favorite to write for?

Out of already made characters: Butchy, Lela, Cheech, Evie, Ben, Harry Hook, Bucky Barnes, Draco Malfoy, Luna Lovegood.

Out of my OCs: Mick, Malina, Roxy Madden, Candi DiMaggio

Since you said I could pick one if I wanted, I’m going to pick #40.

40: Imagine yourself 10 years in the future; do you think you’ll still be writing fic?

I think I will be, yes. I don’t think my ideas for movies and books will ever stop. Especially knowing what I have planned after Creating A Rift is done. But... that’s a story for another time, lol

[krsnlove]

Special Delivery

A/N: 1. This was a prompt requested by the tumblr bff @alj4890. 

2. This also fits the March Choices Community thing for 29: HONEST by @mariamulroney. 

2. It was only supposed to be a drabble and then it got to be 13 PAGES. Ridiculous. You’ll see when you read it. I probably should’ve stopped it earlier. But again, wrote myself in a corner Lol

3. But I’m glad I did because this was one thing I always wondered about Drake and Olivia. While I adore them to death, one cannot ignore that they come from very different backgrounds. I couldn’t imagine the transition being easy on either of them. I thought this fic highlighted an important argument they would have, on more than one occasion. 

Pairing: Drake x Olivia, Maxwell x Amanda [OC]

Rating: Fluffy Angst

Tagging: @alj4890 @carabeth @darley1101 @thecordoniandiaries @toglidethroughlife @vickypoochoices @cocomaxley @lodberg @hopefulmoonobject @i-choose-liam

She’s going to kill him.

The question was which one, she wasn’t sure yet. But one of them was going to pay for putting her through this.

Storming through the grounds of her childhood home, Olivia Nevrakis-Walker, was not in the mood to be reminded of the addition to her name. Not today anyway. Other days she involuntarily announced it to the world.

But today is not one of those days.

She cuts through the spacious dining room to get to the study, where her phone has been charging for the last ten minutes. Pity technology hasn’t invented a device with never-ending battery power. She despised having to put her life on hold because these damned machines couldn’t keep up with her.

The butler is suddenly in the doorway, clearing his throat to announce his arrival, Olivia acknowledges his presence by holding one finger up to silence him while studying the handheld screen intently. Her anger grows with each passing second as she reads the newest developments of the predicament she was finding herself in.

Looks like she was going to have to murder both of them. Too bad, she thought to herself. She has rather enjoyed having a ruggedly sexy, albeit slightly annoying, man by her side.

Oh well. All good things had to come to an end anyway. No use crying over it.

“You were going to say?,” she looked expectantly to her butler who stood attentively at the doorway.

“The uh, guests have arrived.”

Olivia narrowed her eyes past the butler, and let out a sigh as she pressed her lips into a thin line. “Show them to the dungeons then.”

“Dungeons?”

“I believe you refer to it as the cellar.”

Her words bring a small smile to the butler’s face as he bows his head before leaving the room. 

“Just wait Walker. I’m going to get you,” she said out loud to no one, “I’ll get you. And your little friend.”

“Are you sure?,” the concern in Amanda’s voice is evident, asking Drake for the umpteenth time.

“You’ve asked him a thousand times, babe. He said it’s fine. Right Drake?,” Maxwell’s question is directed at the object of Olivia’s threats. Well, one of them anyway. Maxwell didn’t know he was being threatened.

“If you keep asking me I’m going to say no and then what are you going to do?,” Drake asked with annoyance.

Amanda bit her bottom lip in a contemplative manner and glanced at the black and white Bernese Mountain dog named, Duke and a brown and white Border Collie named, Sir-Barks-Alot. Their heads lean to the side with a curious stare at her, eyes begging to be told to hop into the car for a family outing.

“I just haven’t heard from Olivia is all. I want to be sure. I’ve only been dealing with you,” she stared with accusing eyes at her childhood friend, realization finally dawning on her. “Please, please, please tell me you told her?”. Drake says nothing as he leans back on the two hind legs of the chair, arms folded, and suddenly interested in the decorum of Amanda and Maxwell’s home.

“You guys have to tell me who your decorator is cause this,” he waves his hand in the air before placing it on his cheek, “is beautiful. Just beautiful.”

“Drake you did tell ‘Liv that you agreed to dogsit Duke and Sir-Barks-Alot this weekend... right?!,” Amanda ignores his feeble attempts at dodging her question.

“I’ve been telling ‘Liv that blackout curtains could really liven up the castle but--,”.

“Drake.”

“She never listens to me. Says I don’t know anything about decorum,” his puts his hands up in a mocking manner.

“Drake.”

“I’ll show her decorum,” he muttered as he stared at the four legged animals, “Won’t we boys?,” they shifted their attention to him with their tails moving in a frenzy as if they were in on a secret with Drake. A broad smile crosses his face as he stands up and makes his way to the dogs, giving them each a generous rousing on their canine heads.

“All right you two. Get out of here. We’ll see you guys Monday,” Drake begins to usher her and an all too willing Maxwell who was pulling along two pieces of luggage. Amanda eyed her husband and friend suspiciously, noticing the wink Maxwell gives Drake before moving outside the door.

That’s when it all made sense.

The ‘spontaneous’ last minute trip Maxwell wanted to take her on. The fact that she hasn’t seen Olivia in over a week. Her phone mysteriously disappearing for a week before magically resurfacing just a few hours ago.

They planned all this. The two had actually thought they could keep her and Olivia in the dark. Men, she thought to herself as she shook her head.

Without missing a beat, Amanda kneels before Duke and Sir-Barks-Alot giving each one her undivided attention as she bids them farewell, with Maxwell following suit before they both climb into the waiting car. They wave good-bye to Drake as the car speeds off the Nevrakis grounds.

“Who are you texting?,” Maxwell asks her, slowly leaning over to her side. She can’t see his eyes attempting to read the words on her screen, but she can feel them. Quickly moving away from him so as to obscure his prying eyes, she taps out the rest of her message before hitting the send button.

“You, my dear husband, have no idea what you’ve just done.”

“What?”

She turns to face him with a sweet smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “I know what you two are doing. Keeping me and Olivia away from each other.”

His mouth fell slightly open before closing it. She can see him clear his throat before he spoke. “We weren’t...keeping you two...apart..?” Amanda couldn’t tell if he was asking her or telling her. Either way. He and that menacing friend of theirs wasn’t going to get away with anything.

“Olivia isn’t one to be messed with,” she simply said. Maxwell relaxed a bit at her words, waving his hand in the air as if to dismiss her statement. He’s had a lot of experience with Olivia and knew to just steer clear of her when she was in one of her moods. “And neither am I,” Amanda suddenly added.

Maxwell sat straight up, the laugh that almost escaped his mouth seconds ago was now gone. “I wasn’t...we weren’t….messing with you…?” Again, unsure if he was asking or telling her. Maxwell has seen Amanda make good on her ‘promises’. She seemed to confuse the words ‘threat’ and ‘promise’ but that was a different argument for another time.  

Amanda suddenly moves to straddle him, rendering Maxwell useless, at the sudden turn of events. Her hands on his shoulders, she presses a kiss to his lips. Then another kiss on his cheek. Making a trail from his mouth to her ear, Maxwell isn’t sure if he should be scared or excited, but he doesn’t move. He can’t move. Not when her lips are on him like this.

She stops at his ear, placing one final kiss on his earlobe before he feels the warmth of her breath in his ear. “We’ll see, my sweet husband.” And with that she removes herself from her position and resumes her place in the seat next to him.

“Oh! We’re already here,” she cheerfully announced as the car pulls up to their private plane. As if she wasn’t the angel of death seconds ago. “This is going to be so fun!,” Amanda said with a smile that both excited and terrified Maxwell.

Drake’s laugh at Duke and Sir-Barks-Alot was heard throughout the Nevrakis estate. Even Olivia heard it. She tried hard not to but how could she ignore that infectious, deep yet maddening laughter of his? She knew of his love for animals. And he knew of her love for animals...from afar. Maybe love was a bit strong. For the past few weeks he had brought up the idea of adopting a dog but she had immediately turned it down. Who did she look like? Penelope? No, she bitterly thought. And as far as she knew, dogs did not have a place in a Nevrakis home. Nevrakis-Walker home, she corrected herself.

But was it his home, she asked herself. A question that would gnaw at her here and there. Although her conscious has been relentless with concern over him being comfortable in her childhood home. A small part of her knew that Drake needed to feel like this place was, is, his refuge. Would a pet really make that a reality for him? She shook her head as if to dismiss the thought entirely. It didn’t excuse him from volunteering their home for those dogs. Their home and her help.

After running around the vast estate, while leaving a trail of destruction, Drake settled down with the two dogs on the cold floor of the cellar. They look at him expectantly before he realizes their water bowls are empty.

“I guess you guys need some water huh?”

Sir-Barks-Alot, living up to his name, let out a hearty bark in reply. “I’ll be right back you two,” and with that Drake left his guests alone in the cellar.

With a couple bottles of water in hand, Drake made his way back to his weekend visitors. Any other person would’ve asked the butler to bring some water down, he thought to himself. But he knew he never would. Or couldn’t was more like it. His legs weren’t broken. It wasn’t as if he had transformed into one of those useless nobles of the court who couldn’t walk a few steps without whining for the aide of the hired help.

Life had drastically changed. He knew it would once he and Olivia announced their engagement. Maybe not this much he thought grimly. Moving into the Nevrakis Castle had been an uphill war with her but in the end he knew Olivia could not leave her home. But he knew could. And he did. Olivia 1, Drake 0. But he won the battle on his old place being their home away from home when they needed to be close to the royal palace. Olivia 1, Drake 1. His taste for whiskey gradually changed to the red wine they would drink every night after dinner. Olivia 2, Drake 1.

Even his denim shirts were disappearing. He didn’t know how, especially since moving them into a locked wardrobe with the sole key being in his posession, but he was sure his wife had something to do with the fact he has about two left. He briefly stares down at the hideous light salmon polo he grudgingly pulled on earlier that morning. Olivia 3, Drake 1. The competitor in him couldn’t allow this to go on anymore. Today, he thought to himself with an arrogant smirk, he was going to tie up the score. Specifically, Sir-Barks-Alot and Duke would be anyway. 

Olivia knew she shouldn’t allow them to do this but to hell with it, she thought. If Drake Walker thought he could pull a fast one over her then he had another thing coming.

“Duuuuuukeeeeee!”

The side of Olivia’s mouth turned up into a devious smile as she heard the faint voice of Drake’s summoning. She can hear the small distinction of panic in his voice too. Lovely, she thought. She did have the Nevrakis blood running through her veins after all.

“Sir-Barks-Alooooot!”

She listened to his heavy footsteps nearing her study. Impatient and angry, she said to herself. Olivia could tell the mood he was in by the sound of his footsteps. Quick and light, excited. Slow and deliberate, pensive. “You,” his words came out in a low growl which made the moment so much better. She looked up and saw his face menacingly staring at her. Putting on her best smile she saved only for the cameras, she greeted him.

“Me.”

“Where are they ‘Liv?”

“They?”

“You know who I’m talking about.”

“Let’s see. I know the butler was just here. The maids should be done dusting the living area. They’re probably moving towards the --”.

“The dogs ‘Liv. Where are the dogs!?,” he asked impatiently. His hands still holding unto the abandoned leashes he found in the cellar a few minutes ago.

Sitting back in her chair and folding her arms, she tilts her head to the side and gives him a curious look. “Dogs?”

“Don’t pretend like you don’t know about them.”

“I assure you Drake. I have no idea what you’re referring to. You wouldn’t knowingly bring dogs into our home--”.

“Olivia.”

“--When I already told you that I’m deathly allergic to them and --”.

“Cut the crap Olivia. You’re not allergic to dogs. I’m not an idiot.”

Her eyes widen with surprise for a moment. She wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of letting him know he was right. But it was too late. He already noticed her face flinch at his accusation.

“Why? Why would you need to lie about that?,” he let out a sigh as he leaned his back against the doorframe, arms folded. She tore her eyes away from him, not wanting to admit her guilt.

“Dogs do not have a place in my home,” she said. Still unable to meet his eyes. She waited for him to say something, anything, but only silence followed.

“‘My home,” he finally spoke. The words cut her and she immediately noticed her mistake. “Funny. I gave up my home to make this,” he motioned his hand into the air, “our home.”

“Drake--”.

“What do you want from me Olivia?,” he spoke in a low voice.

“I don’t want any-”, she began to speak but he cut her off.

“All I wanted was something in your home to be mine.”

“What are you talking about?!,” her words coming out more of an accusation than a question. “This is your home. Everything here is yours. You can’t be this upset, arguing over a dog?,” she asked incredulously. He let out a sarcastic chuckle as he shook his head.

“No!,” his voice rising, “We’re arguing about me uprooting my life and-,” he cut himself off before saying something he knew he would come to regret. After several seconds, he spoke again in a low, controlled voice. “Just tell me where the dogs are Olivia.”

“If you think you’re going to bully me into-,” this time she is the one who is speechless as Drake rushes towards her in three long strides until he is standing in front of her, staring down into her jade colored eyes.  She found it both thrilling and...intimidating? Odd, she thought to herself.

“The dogs, Olivia.”

He refuses to move requiring her to push the desk chair back before she is able to stand from her seat. When she turns to him, his face is incredibly close to hers, as if daring her to say something. “I’ll tell you where the dogs are,” she said cooly. He cocked a brow and looked at her expectantly. She is barely able to hide the smile that comes to her at his facial expression.

“What’s the catch?,” he asked. He’s wasn’t an idiot. He could see she would ask something of him before revealing the dogs location. To his surprise she went to the door of the study and closed it.

“Please,” she gestures her hand to the two seat furniture on the other side of the room. She waits for him to take a seat before filling the other next to him. They haven’t done this. Not yet anyway. Maybe it was past due but something in her subconscious mind wouldn’t let her forget the words he had practically yelled just a few minutes ago. ‘Uprooting my life’, that’s what he had said. Those words were still ringing in her ears. She had to be careful about approaching this though. It was a sensitive topic after all. That much she knew.

“Uprooting your life,” she blurted out. Damn it.

“What?”

She cleared her throat, “You said something about uprooting your life. What did you mean by that?”

His head went back as if he was trapped in a tedious conversation. She couldn’t see it but she knew he was rolling his eyes too. “Nothing Olivia,” he said simply. She tried not to grunt in reply. She hated not being in the know of certain things. The Court. The estate. Other noblemen’s incredibly dull lives. It gave her pertinent information she required should the need arise when others decisions inadvertently affected her life. But Drake. It was different with him. While she knew she was in love with him she wasn’t foolish enough to think she knew everything about him. His feelings, his thoughts, they ran deep. And the need to know just how deep increased day by day.

“‘Liv?”.

“Hm?,” suddenly remembering he was still there. “Oh sorry. Lost in thought.” Drake nodded his head in understanding. Olivia was speechless, for once others might say. He’s your husband you idiot, she was practically yelling at herself inside. Yet, she wasn’t sure how to get him to open up to her. It wasn’t as if she was well-versed at being someone’s confidante, thank goodness. But once again this man, made her want to be more for him. Not just his wife. Not just his confidante. But the need to be his best friend. Well one of them she thought as images of Liam and that dolt Maxwell flash through her mind.

“Can you just tell me where they are? They haven’t had anything to drink yet. I’d like to --”.

“Do you regret this?,” she suddenly asked.

“Regret what?,” she noticed a hurt look in his eyes. “This?,” he gestured between the two of them with his finger. She nodded her head, fearful of speaking in case nothing came out. Or worse, a cry.

“Wha-Olivia, no. Of course not. How..why would you think that?,” the hurt in his eyes was now accompanied with concern. At least he was worried she thought. Olivia shrugged her shoulders and stared at her hands fidgeting in her lap. A Nevrakis. Fidgety? The irony wasn’t lost on her.

“You have given up a lot to be with me,” she said in a surprisingly even tone. It was true. Sometimes it didn’t seem fair, she thought as a picture of his modest empty home came into mind. The past few months flash through her mind as she remembers everything he’s had to give up. It seemed to make sense he would have to sacrifice more being that she was a Duchess and all. But she felt...guilty? At being born in this kind of life. It wasn’t her fault, they both knew that, but the battle between married life and courtly obligations wasn’t always fair.

“I knew what I would be agreeing to when I wanted to marry you--,”. He saw in his peripheral view, Olivia trying to discreetly wipe at her eyes. “What’s wrong?!,” he moved his hand to wipe the tears that wet her cheeks.

Was she actually crying, she angrily asked herself. Olivia shook her head with such intensity it felt as if her head would roll right off her shoulders. “Nothing! Nothing!,” was all she could say as Drake fussed over her. He leaned over the furniture and grabbed a box of tissues sitting on the nearby table before pulling a couple out and handing it to her. His strong hands rubbing her back before pulling her into his embrace.

“I don’t,” he began, his voice shaky. Olivia’s own breath seemed to stop, unsure of what he was going to say. Even Drake was hesitant because he never finished his sentence. It was as if silence suddenly became his first language. Olivia quietly sat with him for a few more minutes. Drake was perched up against the arm of the furniture with her leaning against him while his arm draped over her shoulders holding her close, when her patience finally wavered. She moved out of his hold and stared at him in disbelief.

“If you can’t even admit that Walker,” she said angrily, “what are we doing? I never asked you to give up anything. I was perfectly fine with having more than one main residence but you insisted on moving here. You’re more than welcome to go back to your own home!” He looked at her, just looked at her. She had half the mind to slap that look off his face. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “What are we doing? Maybe we were kidding ourselves when we thought this could work,” she let out a small laugh.

“Do you want me to move out?,” he asked quietly, catching her off-guard. Did he really just ask that? Her heart, contrary to popular belief she did have one, felt like it would fall out of her chest at any moment.

“If you want to move out, I won’t stop you,” she managed to say. She wasn’t going to hold him here like some hostage. If he wanted to leave then he should. The future, regrettably, played before her eyes and she could actually feel the heartache of not being with the man who had somehow stolen her heart. It’d be hard but she would overcome it. Eventually, as she always has.

“You didn’t answer my question,” she looked at him with an annoyed expression when he spoke again. “Do you want me to move out?,” this time he looked into her eyes and Olivia could feel her heart and soul slowly breaking at the vulnerability in his eyes.

“If you want to--,”.

“No!,” his voice rising, “Tell me now Olivia. Do you want me out or not?!”

For as long as she can remember Olivia only cried when she was either one: sad, even if it was in private. And two: when she was angry. Not just angry but livid. For the life of her she could not understand of all the accompanying ways to show it, shedding tears was hers. Yet here she was, the later being the reason why tears flowed freely from her eyes.

“I just told you. If you want to go, leave already!,” her voice slightly louder than his and she made sure to devoid it with any kind of emotion. It was petty. But again, she is a Nevrakis.

“I’ll go if you want me out,” his words coming out precise and calm. The urge to want to cause him bodily harm was increasing. She didn’t know why he wouldn’t just admit to wanting to leave. She would understand, as painful as it would be, but if anyone could it would be her. The Court life was not an easy one and certainly not for everyone.

“Olivia-,” he started again but she couldn’t deny how much it hurt to hear the pain in his voice.

She forced herself to look at him and to her surprise, she noticed his wet eyes. “Are you...crying?,” she couldn’t help it. Because Drake Walker, as long as she could remember, did not cry. It was as if he was created and tears were simply left out. One thing she always envied him of. He looked at her, visibly annoyed, and shook his head. She eyed him suspiciously. “You can tell me you know,” as if witnessing him shed tears would be the biggest secret of the century.

“I’m not crying. You know I don’t cry,” he said in a harsh tone. She gave him a curt nod and said nothing. For awhile they sat in an awkward but an oddly peaceful silence. It inadvertently gave her the opportunity to calm down, to reflect on the things she said while upset. That feeling was back in the pit of her stomach making her feel a bit nauseous. She hated it. Or maybe she just needed to something to settle her stomach. It had been a long day. She woke up that morning with a full schedule but that was all thrown out the window when Amanda had notified her about their dogs staying the weekend. She hadn’t really minded and she planned to have some fun with Drake but somewhere along the way her plans were thwarted. Now here they were forced to confront an issue that had been gnawing at her for some time.

“Olivia?”

“Yes,” she answered softly.

“You still haven’t answered my question,” his tone light and hesitant. She looked back at him before moving her gaze elsewhere, anywhere but him. She let out a sigh, trying to remain in the peaceful state she was currently in. Or trying to be in.

“Drake, I don’t want you to move out but if you’re unhappy here I’m not going to-,” her words are cut off when he suddenly reaches over and pulls her into an urgent kiss. And just like that her worries seem to dissipate as his lips brush over hers in an attentive manner. He pulls back and lightly rests his forehead on hers.

“You are my home ‘Liv and I’m happy as long as I’m with you,” he whispered. Her reputation as a member of the court was not a quiet one, far from it actually, but this man seemed to know what to say to leave her without words. Olivia still was unsure if it was a good thing.

She cleared her throat, trying not to show how much his words affected her. “But...the dogs. You said you...” she hesitated a moment. It seemed foolish to keep dragging this out when obviously they were making up. But she had to get it out in the open. Living a life without him would hurt but not as much as having him stay here, unhappy. She knew all too well what that was like and wouldn’t wish that on anyone. Especially Drake.

She pressed on, “You said you uprooted your life to be with me.” Olivia forced herself to focus on him this time. He froze at her words and broke eye contact with her.

“I uprooted my life for something...different. This,” he motions to the room, “all this is still taking some time to getting used to. Sometimes…,” he pauses for a moment and reaches over for her hand, “it doesn’t feel real.” Olivia doesn’t say anything as she listens attentively. “All my life I was in the background and I thrived in that position. I was okay with being labeled as Liam’s charity project, a way for him to connect with the citizens by having a best friend who didn’t have a royal bone in his body.” She gives him a weak smile knowing exactly what he was referring to. “But now…,” Olivia gives his hand a gentle squeeze as if it gave him strength to go on, “I’m not in the background. Everything I do is scrutinized! What I wear, where I live, what I read..’Liv, I can’t even read The New York Times without some damned local paper calling me a traitor to Cordonia!?”

Olivia knew he was pouring out the frustrations he’s had bottled up for awhile but she couldn’t help it. She laughed. And not just a ha-ha. No. It came out more like HAHA with a snort. She laughed so much that Drake shot her a scowl before removing his hand from her grip. “No! I’m sorry!,” she cried as she tried to reach for his hand again but failed. Drake’s arms were folded tightly against his chest as he sat there, stone faced, while she let out the last of her giggles. “Walkerrr,” she taunted before it finally subsided. He didn’t acknowledge her and refused to look her way. “I’m sorry. That was rude of me to laugh like that when all you wanted to do was complain about your life.” She knew how to get a reaction out of him because as soon as she accused him of being a whiner, he turned to face her.

“Complain!?-,” he said in an offended voice before she pounced on him.

“Walker, you just cried to me about not being able to read a newspaper!,” she said as she moved to straddle him.

“One, I was not crying,” he said with a frown still on his face but a touch of humor to his tone. She arched an eyebrow at his words, still unsure ,because she could swear on her life that there was a dried tear streak on his cheek. “Two, The New York Times is not just a newspaper. Shows how much you know about anything,” this time a small smile had appeared on his lips as he rested his hands on her hips.

“Can I tell you something?,” she asked as she looked down at him. He nodded his head in reply as she reaches down to move his hair out of his eyes before moving her hand to his cheek, the feeling of his light stubble always made him more real for her. “You’re not the first to feel this way. This life can be a bit much,” her hands move to rest on his chest, “but it helps to have a good support system. How do you think Liam made it all this time? He had Leo and despite his father’s misguided actions, Liam had him as well. Even Maxwell and Bertrand had each other.”

“Who did you have?,” he asked suddenly. His hands moved to cover hers and he could see a small hint of sorrow in her eyes. She gave a nervous chuckle, averting her gaze from his dark brown eyes not wanting him to see just how broken she was. He reaches up and moves her chin to face him.

“You have me now ‘Liv,” he said tenderly, “and I have you,” he added as his thumb caressed her cheek.

She looks up to the ceiling praying for gravity to do its job and her inner eye sockets would somehow swallow up the tears threatening to spill. “Now who’s crying?,” he teased. She swatted his arm before standing to her feet allowing Drake to stand as well.

“I should’ve told you about the dogs ‘Liv. You’re right and--,”

“Oh my--..the dogs!?,” Olivia’s eyes widen with terror as she rushes out of the study door with Drake right on her heels.

He follows her to their bedroom and Olivia barges into the over-sized room.

The scene before him couldn’t have been more perfect, Drake thought with amusement. Somehow Duke and Sir-Barks-Alot were covered in mud and were given a free pass in his shared bedroom with Olivia. The bed itself was covered in mud with pillows shredded to pieces. Feathers were still falling from the ceiling. Clothes lay torn to pieces on the floor as if they had a tug of war battle with them. Drake noticed several pairs of Olivia’s favorite shoes covered with drool and chewed up. The dogs lazily sprawled out on their bed signaling their work was done.

“What were you thinking?,” Drake asked trying to stifle the laugh that came to him.

“I was trying to teach you a lesson about trying to-,” just then Duke thought it was the perfect moment to shake off any remaining specks of mud on his coat, causing Olivia to shriek in horror. Drake’s laugh is heard throughout the room as he moves behind her to shield himself from the mess.

“Stop! Sit! Don’t!,” she yells out but her commands fall on deaf ears as the Bernese Mountain dog lets out a yawn and falls back onto the bed, unbothered. Suddenly she feels Drake’s arms grab her waist from behind before settling his chin in the crane of her neck.

“You have a way with dogs you know that?”

She elbows him in his stomach and he lets out a stifled groan in response and she feels his grip tighten. Good, she thought to herself allowing herself a small victory. Maybe, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to have a dog around the place, she reflected. They wouldn’t be allowed in their bedroom of course. This was an exception.

“Damn,” she heard Drake whisper breaking her out of her thoughts. He motioned his head to a fresh pile of brown swirls on the floor that looked an awful lot like—-  

“Nope. I absolutely refuse to touch that!,” her eyes bulge at the sight of the unwelcomed gift left on their bedroom floor. She breaks out of his hold as she leaves the room hollering for the butler or maid.

“Way to go boys,” Drake tells the two dogs still laying in bed. He smiles to himself as Olivia’s panicked voice about the smell of their bedroom fill his ears.

This is home.

Wherever Olivia would be...

[indescribablechoices]

4 & 22 for liam x mc!

4. Dropping hints so he’ll giveyou his jacket and 22. Sleep on a trampoline withblankets and pillows

Featuring my MC Alicia Harper (now Alicia Rys), set about a year after the wedding as she, Liam and the others celebrate her birthday.

“Have you had a good day, my darling?”

Alicia turned to smile at Liam as they wandered through thegrounds of her duchy, hand in hand, the sun already setting, the sky turningfrom purple to a soft violet as the evening began to creep in.

“It was the best birthday I could have asked for,” sheadmitted. Today marked her twenty sixth birthday. They had celebrated byspending the day at her Valtoria estate surrounded by her friends, and herrecently found family.

She had never had much in the way of family, growing up witha mother who had to work all of the time, and a father who only visited a fewtimes a year to try and weasel more money out of her mother. It turned out herfather had another family; a wife and two children. She had only spoken to himonce since she left for New York at the age of eighteen. Once was the day hearrived in Cordonia on the week of her wedding, having seen her picture in thepaper, promising that he wanted to be there for her, but showing his truecolours when he asked her for a loan. She gave him the money he asked for inexchange for him never stepping foot in Cordonia again. She wasn’t sure whetherto be surprised at how quickly he took the offer. But after he had left, andshe had happily married her wonderful Liam, ready to start a new life together,she was contacted by her half-brother; James. He wrote her an email insistingthat he never knew she existed and wanted to get to know her. They hadexchanged emails, then a few phone calls over the following weeks and months,learning about her brother and his own family, before eventually she invitedhim to visit.

They had hit it off the moment he arrived at the airport,hugging her as though he had known her all of his life. He introduced her tohis husband Leon and their two daughters Vanessa and Jordin, and within a fewshort hours, Alicia felt like part of the family; the two girls already callingher Auntie Alicia and James calling her his sister despite only sharing afather and only knowing each other a few short months.

They were part of her birthday celebrations, easily gettingalong with Liam and the rest of her friends. Maxwell and James got on like ahouse on fire, dancing together when her party guests let loose when the stringquartet packed away and the DJ took over. Drake found a new friend in Leon,glad to have someone to drink with quietly whilst everyone else ‘danced like abunch of idiots’ and talk about manly things like cooking outdoors and sports.Vanessa and Jordin immediately took a shine to Hana when she helped find themdresses so that they could look like proper princesses at the party, asking ifshe would make them dresses to wear to school to make all of the other girlsjealous.

“I have seen you happy on many occasions, my love,” Liamsaid, “But tonight, you practically glowed.”

She hummed to herself, “I know I’ve always said that I founda family in you, and Drake, and Hana, and Maxwell, but… I can’t explain howamazing it had been to finally have James and his family in my life. It’s allI’ve ever wanted.”

“You deserve every happiness this world can give you,” hesmiled as he leaned down to kiss her lips.

She kissed him back, shimmying into his embrace a littleclose, “This world could stand to be warmer.”

He laughed as he wrapped his arm around her as they continuedto walk, “This is what happens when you don’t listen to me about cold Cordoniannights, my queen.”

“I listened, I just didn’t think a jacket would benecessary,” she admitted, “And I didn’t plan on walking in the gardens tonight.I had hoped to be tucked up in bed with my handsome husband to keep me warm bynow.”

He gripped her hip a little tighter, “Soon, my love. But Ihave a surprise for you that I couldn’t put indoors.”

She smirked a little, “If you’ve put a hedge maze in myduchy gardens, I will not be responsible for how quickly I drag you in thereand ravish you.”

“And you seem to think I’mthe one with an outdoor kink.”

“Oh, youdefinitely started it,” she grinned, “I can’t remember the last time you tookme into a maze and I didn’t have to stumble out ten minutes later adjusting myskirt back into the right place.”

He snorted, “Okay, you make a fair point. But don’t worryabout your skirt right now; it’s not a hedge maze.”

“Well…” she purposefully tucked herself in closer to hisbody, “I wouldn’t be this cold if you didn’t insist on dragging me out here.”

He rolled his eyes to himself as he stepped out of herembrace momentarily to shrug his suit jacket off, draping it around hershoulders. He knew his wife too well. He knew exactly what she was hinting atthe moment she mentioned it was cold, and as much as he liked to tease her; hewould deny this woman nothing. He would give her every stitch of clothing fromhis back if she asked… Which she no doubt would be asked for later, but thatwould be an entirely different scenario.

She smiled to herself as she cuddled into the warmth of hisjacket, bringing the lapel to her nose to inhale her husband’s familiar smell. Shewrapped it around herself then tucked herself back into Liam’s side as theyfound their way into the next section of the gardens.

Before, it had been a relatively plain piece of land, markedonly by a few trees and plants, but it had been completely transformed sincetheir last visit. There were now a number of seats and tables, all made fromfinely crafted wood, a swing hanging from the largest trees to match theirfavourite swing in the maze in the royal gardens, a summer house, a slide, aset of monkey bars, and a large trampoline, all lit by hanging fairy lights.

She couldn’t hold in her gasp and Liam led her in further,turning to look at her, “Do you like it?”

She glanced around, trying to take it all in with a growingsmile on her shocked face, “I love it, but I don’t understand, I…”

“Before your brother arrived, you told me about the apartmentyou and your mother lived it. You told me how you always wished you had agarden to play in as a child, how you wished you had brothers and sisters toshare it with. So I wanted you to have this place, somewhere you and I can comewith our children one day. Somewhere where they can just be children.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him as tearsof happiness welled up in her eyes, “I love you so much, Liam.”

“There’s a little something else,” he said, taking hold ofher hand and leading her closer to the trampoline where she sat that there werepiles of pillows and blankets piled up. He helped her clamber up, and theycuddled into the comfortable nest he had created, looking up at the sky, as thestars started to come out, “I remember you mentioned that one of your favouritememories as a kid was having a camp out at your friend’s house and all sleepingon her trampoline. You shared all of your secrets and wishes and you saw ashooting star.”

Lifting his arm to point up, she realised that there werehundreds of objects shooting across the sky, lighting it up brilliantly.

“Liam,” she whispered, “This is beautiful.”

“I couldn’t believe it when I found out that there was goingto be a meteor shower tonight. It seemed too perfect,” he admitted, then turnedto glance at her, “Is this all okay? It’s not too much?” he asked, sounding alittle unsure, despite her reaction.

“It’s so wonderful. I can’t tell you how much this all meansto me. Not just that you did this, but the fact that you remembered thoselittle things I said… And most importantly, because this little haven you’vemade is not just for me; it’s for our family,” she said, taking hold of hishand and pressing it to her stomach, “We’re going to be able to share thisplace with our children sooner than you think.”

His eyebrows rose as he took in what she’d just said, mouthgaping as tears of his own began to shine in his eyes, “Are you…?”

She nodded, unable to control her smile, “Yes, I’m pregnant.”

He beamed, rolling over onto his side to pull her into ahard kiss, tears freely falling down both their faces as she kissed him back.

“I love you,” he whispered, kissing her cheek, “I love you,”he moved to her ear, “I love you,” his mouth grazed over her neck, repeatingthe phrase over and over again as he slid down her body until he reached her abdomenwhere he pressed a tender kiss over the material of her dress, “And I love you somuch already. I can’t wait to meet you.”

He moved back up to wrap his arms around her, both of them lookingup as the meteor shower still lit up the sky above their heads. It didn’t take long for them both to fall asleep in the other’s embrace, Liam’s hand lovingly cupping her still flat stomach, an indescribable amount of love bursting in both of their chests.