Enchanted By My Alphas – Violet Dawn

Every time she plays a good word, she lights up, and I make sure to celebrate obnoxiously. Every time Calder plays something, I accuse him of cheating, which makes her laugh. And I’m shameless about finding reasons to touch her—leaning over to see her letters, our shoulders pressing together. Guiding her hand to place a tile. Celebrating our points with high-fives that linger. Calder watches with amusement and something else—approval, maybe. Like he’s glad I’m here making her laugh while the storm rages outside.

“Your turn,” I tell Evie, and she studies her tiles with that little furrow between her brows that makes me want to kiss it smooth. “I can’t—I don’t have anything good.” She shows me her letters: a bunch of vowels and one sad consonant. “Sure you do.” I lean closer, my chin nearly on her shoulder. “See? If you use Calder’s ‘R’ right there, you can play ‘ARE’ for—” I calculate quickly.

“Six points. Not bad for a terrible hand.” “That’s all?” She sounds disappointed. “Sometimes you get dealt bad letters, flower girl. Can’t win every round.” I squeeze her knee over the blanket. “But watch this. My turn’s gonna be amazing.” I play “QUIXOTIC” using all seven of my letters and hitting a triple word score. “Show-off,” Calder mutters. “It’s called strategy.” I grin at Evie. “See? Patience pays off.

Unlike some people who rush into playing the first word they see.” “I don’t rush,” she protests. “You absolutely rush. Cute when you do it, though.” She throws a tile at me. I catch it and hand it back with a wink. We play three more games—Evie and I win one, Calder wins two—and by the time we’re done, the storm outside is even worse and Evie’s completely relaxed.

Her scent has gone from nervous to content, and she’s leaning into me without seeming to realize it. “I should make dinner,” Calder says, standing and stretching. “Any requests?” “Something impressive,” I call after him. “We have a guest to wow.” When he disappears into the kitchen, Evie turns to me. “You didn’t have to come over. I’m sure you have better things to do than play board games.” “Are you kidding? This is exactly where I want to be.”

I shift to face her properly. “Besides, can’t let Calder have all the fun. Someone needs to keep things interesting.” “Interesting?” There’s something in her tone. Curious. Maybe hopeful. “Yeah. Interesting.” I brush a strand of hair from her face, letting my fingers linger against her cheek. “He’s steady. Patient. All the things you need.

I stand in the doorway with my last box balanced on one hip, taking in the honey-gold afternoon light that spills through wavy glass windows. The wooden floors creak under my boots—a friendly sound, welcoming rather than warning. Everything smells like old pine and winter cold and possibility. Home. Or at least, it could be. I set the box down beside three others and peel off my coat, draping it over a chair that came with the furnished rental.

The furniture is mismatched but charming: a faded floral armchair, a kitchen table with uneven legs, shelves that look hand-carved. Nothing like the pristine, coordinated perfection my mother insisted on. My chest tightens at the thought, so I push it away and focus on unpacking instead. The first box yields my candle-making supplies—beeswax sheets, cotton wicks, small amber jars. I line them up on the kitchen counter, my fingers already itching to blend scents again.

Lavender and honey. Rosemary and sea salt. Creating something that soothes without asking for anything in return. The second box is herbs: bundles of dried sage, jars of chamomile and lemon balm, a small mortar and pestle wrapped in kitchen towels. I arrange them on the windowsill above the sink where morning light will find them. A tiny indoor garden, portable and mine. The third box makes my throat catch. I lift out the moss-green knitted blanket first, the one my grandmother made before she passed.

Then the chipped teacup painted with forget-me- nots. A wooden bird, no bigger than my thumb, that I found at a market three years ago. Small things. Soft things. Things that never demanded I be anyone other than who I am. I’m draping the blanket over the back of the armchair when someone knocks. My pulse skitters—too fast, too anxious—and I take a breath before opening the door. The woman on my porch is round and rosy-cheeked, bundled in a wool coat dusted with snowflakes.

She’s holding a basket covered with a red gingham cloth, and her smile is so genuinely warm that I feel my shoulders drop half an inch. “You must be Evie!” She doesn’t wait for confirmation, just beams at me like we’re old friends. “I’m Stella Willowby. I run the bakery down on Maple Street—The Sweet Hollow. Saw your car and thought you might need a little welcome.”

She thrusts the basket into my hands before I can respond. It’s heavier than expected, and the scent of cinnamon and brown sugar makes my mouth water. “Oh—thank you, that’s so kind, but you didn’t have to—” “Nonsense.” Stella waves a hand, already peering past me into the cottage.

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

Book Information

• Unique ID: d4dacde1fb288232
• File Extension: .pdf
• File Size: 1,736,361 bytes (1.656 MB)
• Title: –
• Author: Unknown
• Pages: 217
• Language: English (en)

Reading & Word Statistics

• Estimated Reading Time: 314.62 minutes
• Total Words: 62,924
• Total Characters: 360,305
• Average Words per Page: 289.97
• Average Characters per Page: 1660.39

Most Frequent Words

i’m (520), like (366), want (271), it’s (255), pack (231), feel (225), something (224), you’re (219), beck (218), she’s (213), know (206), don’t (201), calder (191), now (190), that’s (190), back (186), kade (172), he’s (171), need (168), one (168), says (167), orion (167), we’re (159), let (156), way (154), voice (152), make (147), evie (141), hands (136), scent (135), hand (133), can’t (127), makes (126), eyes (123), time (115), everything (113), still (113), even (113), i’ve (110), every (107), four (107), enough (103), alphas (100), going (100), against (100), myself (99), right (97), around (97), mine (94), stop (94), omega (93), already (90), see (90), doesn’t (89), good (89), body (87), exactly (86), say (83), chest (82), take (82), making (82), sure (81), calder’s (81), first (77), someone (77), safe (77), heat (76), much (73), alpha (73), get (72), three (72), close (71), different (71), come (70), space (70), maybe (70), i’ll (68), warm (67), trying (66), without (65), there’s (65), home (64), look (64), keep (64), alone (64), chapter (63), never (63), face (63), together (63), away (62), yes (62), tell (62), help (62), think (62), ready (62), between (60), small (59), things (59), okay (59), work (58).

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