Kraken the Whip

Penny’s life just flipped. She’s been fired without cause, found by her stalker, and had to engage a lawyer. And her day is about to get worse. Penny thought life was good until her ex-boyfriend comes into her office with his current girlfriend—her boss—on his arm. When the new girlfriend leaves them alone for a minute, he attacks with alarming brutality, but Penny is the one who loses her job. After a few weeks, she gets a lawyer, who tells her she can call anytime. So, when she survives an attack by her ex, she calls him, and he meets her at the hospital. Jax is an alpha with extras, and his situation is similar to Penny’s. He has one appendage that she is aware of—his five-year-old daughter. Over the course of a week, Penny has to go from nothing to being offered a pack-style living arrangement with Jax, his daughter, and another alpha who also has an aquatic adaptation. If she says no, they will still help but not give up, and if she says yes, she can throw a five-year-old’s birthday party. It’s no contest. The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Kraken the Whip Copyright © 2023 by Viola Grace ISBN: 978-1-990635-26-7 ©Cover art by Angela Waters All rights reserved. With the exception of review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the express permission of the publisher. Published by Viola Grace Look for me online at violagrace.com. Kraken the Whip Betas in Waiting Book 12 By Viola Grace Chapter One Penny staggered into her tiny house and shoved the door closed. She spoke to no one. “Well, this day was made entirely of suck.” She walked to the couch, curled up, and cried. How could one day go so very wrong? Penny jolted at a loud noise and realized it was her stomach. It had woken her up. She shoved a dinner in the microwave, turned on the television, and got her laptop out. She had lost her job because of an assault and jealousy, and those weren’t emotions you could work with. Time to look for a new job. School secretary jobs weren’t thick on the ground, and she had just paid off her student loans, so her savings would only last three months or so. There was no time like the present. She got a soda, started looking for ads, and found a few that could start in a few days. She would get back on her feet fast. That was just what she did. In a matter of seconds, she had applied for five jobs that wouldn’t be concerned with her previous workplace. Penny looked at the marks on her arms. Getting a job that didn’t mind tattoos was tricky as well. She had managed at the school with long-sleeved blouses. Her phone rang, and she answered it. “Hey, bro.” “What’s wrong, Penny? You are all over the map emotionally?” She groaned. “I don’t want to say.” “Spill.” “Fine. Remember Alwin?” “The douchebag? Yeah.” “Well, he showed up at work today.” “Yeah?” She heard him cracking his knuckles on the other side of the country. “To pick up his new girlfriend. The vice principal.” “Shit.” “I know, right? Well, I told her he was there, she said it would be five minutes, and he grabbed me and pushed me against the wall. He started kissing me, and I pushed him away, but he tore my sleeve. I was almost crying, but then I felt a hard slap on my cheek. The vice principal lost her shit and accused me of sleeping with him. She knew he had a side piece and was appalled that it was there at the school. So, you can guess what happened next.” “Fired.” “Yup. The VP is the principal’s daughter, so I didn’t stick around for her to hit the other side of my face. Alwin was laughing his ass off.” She sighed. “I am gonna miss that job. I liked the little faces in the morning.” She and her brother chatted for a few more minutes, and he offered to look for jobs for her in the childcare field. She accepted, even if it meant moving cities. She got up, tidied up, and went to bed. Tomorrow, she had to start her life all over again. Three weeks later, she had three part-time jobs that came close to giving her an equivalent payday to what her school job had. She collected plates and brought trays to folks at the gloriously costly party to which she had been given the address. Running into Artemis had been fun, but seeing Antonio, Dell, and Andrea was distracting. There was a high-pitched squeal, and an Andrea-shaped missile struck her. “Shit! Hi, Andrea.” She smiled at Penny. “You are here! That’s great. Come hug Dell.” “I can’t, punkin. I have to get back to work.” Andrea frowned. “I thought you worked for a school.” “I did. I got fired because of my ex. He caused a scene, and the school let me go.” She skipped the details. “Oh. That’s too bad. The guys have been saying they need you to do some more work in motion capture.” “Oh, honey. I can’t. I work seven days a week.” Her boss cleared his throat, and she tried to get Andrea off. The omega stuck fast. Her boss walked up to her. “Well, since you are socializing, give me your tray, and your last cheque will be in the mail tomorrow, Penny.” Andrea finally relaxed and stepped back. “Did I do that?” Penny drew in a deep breath. “Fucking hell.” Dell wandered over with a smile. “Hey, Penny. How are you doing?” “Pretty good five minutes ago. Now I am fucked.” She stripped off her