That conversation with my mother happened five years ago. My father’s infidelity killed her slowly over three years. In the end, I believe my father took another mate. My mother had been getting weaker and weaker, but that last day, her scream of pain was something I will never forget.
It was my sixteenth birthday. My mother had taken the day off to celebrate with me. So many of my birthdays had been ruined by my father, but this one ended up being the worst.
The day had started out amazing. We’d gone to a local river, hiking through the forest. Mom wasn’t able to shift any more, her wolf had become too weak over the years, but we still made the most of our time.
It was while we were having dinner, in the evening, the time when parties and events would have occurred in the pack, that it happened. At first, mother stopped, food midway to her mouth. She had such a strange look on her face, but then it happened. She grabbed her neck where her mating mark was and screamed. I ran to her and held her, used to her ‘episodes’ by now. But this time, it was more than she could survive.
She died in my arms, leaving me alone in the world at sixteen.
If it wasn’t for Benny, I don’t know what would have happened to me. I probably would have ended up in the human foster care system. But, I had already started working at the diner, covering for my mother. Mom had told Benny that she had cancer. It’s not something that werewolves get, given their healing power, but Benny didn’t know my mom was a wolf, so it worked.
So, he let me work in her place when she was “sick” and when she passed, he covered for me, letting me continue working for him and making sure that I finished school.
He retired from cooking a few months ago, but he still comes in every day, keeping an eye on me and the diner.
I’m always careful when the buses come through. Lots of transient people hit on me thinking they can have an easy one-night stand or a ‘quickie’ with me. Benny makes sure that I stay safe, but I’m always careful when the bus people, as I call them, come in to eat during their layover.
Several days before my 18th birthday, a giant of a man came in, reminding me of the warriors in my old pack. It wasn't so much that he was tall, I'm fairly tall for a woman at 5'11", but he was broad and muscular. He stared at me when he first came in, then disappeared before he ordered food. It was bizarre and I was concerned that he might be a werewolf, but he was a bus person, so who knows.
On my 18th birthday, I wake up, having no intention of celebrating. My birthdays have become something not worth remembering. I didn’t get my wolf, my father banished me and my mother died. Who wants to celebrate a day where these awful things happen? The only positive is that I am officially an adult by human standards and no one can force me to leave now.
However, all my plans go out the window when I’m in the shower and I hear her.
‘Oh Grace, you’ve been through so much waiting for me. I’m sorry it took so long.’
“Who is that?” I say, looking past the shower curtain to see the bathroom is empty.
‘It’s me Grace, your wolf. My name is Maia.’
“I don’t have a wolf. I’m too old to get my wolf.” I say out loud.
‘No, I’ve always been a part of you, but I had to wait before I awakened.’
‘Wait for what?’ I ask in my head. If it’s not my wolf, I won’t get a response.
‘I had to wait for the Guardian spirit that was meant to be ours. His life was longer than it was meant to be. The Moon Goddess granted the wish of another Guardian and spared his life. I’ve been waiting to awaken until I received my Guardian spirit.’
‘So, you’re real? You’re my wolf?’
‘Yes Grace. You won’t ever be alone again. I will always be with you.’
I hadn’t realized just how lonely I felt until now, causing tears to run down my cheeks.
‘Maia. It’s good to finally meet you.’
‘It’s good to meet you too Grace.’
At work, I told Benny that I needed the evening off. When he asked, I told him it was my birthday and I hadn’t planned to celebrate, but I changed my mind. He grabbed me a cupcake and told me to go enjoy my evening.
That night, I went into the forest surrounding the small town. When Maia confirmed that we were alone, I stripped off my clothes and let her begin the first shift. It was agonizing. Usually, the human form shifts at age 10 when the body isn’t fully developed. My first shift being at 18 and without any family or a mate to assist made it excruciating.
After hours of my bones slowly breaking and rearranging, I lay panting on the forest floor. Maia pushes forward and picks us up off the ground. We’re wobbly, not being used to being on four paws.
I’m mesmerized by everything. Suddenly, I can hear things in the forest that were quiet before. I can smell the river where my mom and I hiked on my birthday two years ago. I can hear and smell the small animals of the forest, foraging for food or moving around in their little dens for the evening. My eyesight is sharper and where I couldn’t see in the dark before, now everything is clear.
Maia takes off at a run and I let her have control. Her yip of excitement causing me to be excited for her. We run until we smell a stronger scent of the forest. ‘It’s a pack. We should be careful to stay off their pack lands.’ Maia tells me.
We turn and run in another direction, until we come to another pack territory several miles away. Again we turn, being careful not to cross into the pack's lands and continue our run. When we get to the river, Maia slows to a walk. She takes us to the edge of the river and looks into the water. My wolf is mostly black, with colors of light and dark brown intermixed giving her fur an exotic look that I’ve never seen on another wolf.
‘You’re beautiful Maia.’
After running all night, we head back, and I’m able to get some sleep before going to work the next day.
………..
It's been over a week since Maia showed up and I’ve settled into a new routine. I go to work, during the day and at night I let Maia run. Now that I have her, I’ve begun thinking about what I should be doing. She says that as a Guardian, we have a purpose, but she either doesn’t know what it is, or she’s not telling me.
I’m enjoying my enhanced senses. Everything is new. I’ve learned that the cook has a crush on me and has since he started here. I learned that Benny tells everyone my mother made him my guardian before her death, and that’s why no one ever bothered me. I learned that humans have a rather boring smell, but werewolves smell great, like the forest.
Maia and I skirt along the pack lines at night, taking in the scents. I can tell she misses being a part of a pack, but I have no intentions of going back to my father’s pack and she agrees, knowing everything that my mother and I endured.
So, it’s a bit startling when I hear the doorbell chime one evening, as I’m getting close to getting off work. The first scent to hit my nose is the forest. It’s the first werewolf that has come in since I got Maia. I’m not sure how to react. Should I be nervous, or will it be fine. I don’t know if I smell like a rogue to other wolves. Since I didn’t get my wolf when I was 10, I wasn’t technically banished from a pack like a normal wolf. It’s different when a human is banished.
Maia jumps up in my head. ‘Maia, is everything okay?’ I ask her.
‘I need to see him.’ She says. So I brace myself and walk out of the kitchen.
As soon as I do, I smell it, sandlewood and cedar. It smells like the forest, and home and something sensual and mouthwatering all at once.
I turn to look around the room, wanting to know who the person is that smells so good and that’s when I see him. It’s the man from over a week ago and he’s looking right at me.
Maia pushes forward. “Mate.” She says quietly.
I huge smile spreads across his face. “Mate.” He repeats.
The irony of this situation is not lost on me, proving that the Moon Goddess does, indeed, have a sense of humor. I kidnapped a Guardian nearly a year ago to forcibly take her as my mate. She ended up being underage, so me trying to mark her didn’t work.While I’ve seen the error of my ways and realize what I did was a terrible thing, here I am, looking into the eyes of my mate, who is also a Guardian.She walks over to me, eyeing me cautiously. “What can I get you to drink?” She asks me.“I’d like a water, your name and what time you get off work. I think we have some things to discuss, don’t you?”“Water. Coming right up.” Before she can turn away from me, I grab her hand. “And your name?”I hear someone standing up behind me. She looks past me. “It’s okay, Benny.”She turns back to me. “My name is Grace and I don’t think we have anything to talk about. Are you going to leave before you order food, or should I really bring your water this time?”Okay, the sass is turning me on. Well
“This is me.” I tell him when we arrive at my apartment. Maia really could have given me the head’s up about being this guy’s Guardian. I don’t know exactly what that means, but Maia is adamant that we are now bound to him. This man who is practically old enough to be my father but is actually my mate. It’s not that he’s unattractive. He has a dark and broody look to him, dark skin, dark hair, and dark eyes. Even through his clothes, I can tell that he’s ripped. His broad shoulders and chest look like solid muscle. His legs are the size of tree trunks, and I can see the muscle cutting lines through his jeans like they are molded to him. But it doesn’t matter. I know how toxic the mate bond is. I lived it, watching my father mistreat my mother, then slowly watching her die. I refuse to put myself in that position. “Thanks for walking me home. Good talk.” I step up to open my door when he takes my hand. “We’re not done yet. We still have a lot to talk about.” “I’m done talking. I ga
I’m pleasantly surprised when Grace pushes forward and kisses me. I don’t waste any time taking what she is offering. It becomes apparent to me quickly that she is inexperienced, but her tentative exploration only excites me more.When she pushes away from me, I can see that her wolf and the mate bond overwhelmed her. I’m fine with that. Louis keeps pushing me to mark her and make her ours. But I made that mistake before, trying to push someone into a mate bond they didn’t want. I refuse to do it again.It was one of the first questions that Rik asked me when I called him last night, if I had forced the mate bond on Grace. After letting him know that she’s my fated mate and no, I have not yet marked her, he and I both agreed that this situation is not ideal. Her being a young, Alpha female who is also a Guardian, alone in the world, puts her at risk. I also told him that there is something going on with her past and I plan to find out what it is. I let him know that she may not be as
When Eli tells me he’s spent most of his life without parents, I’m shocked. I wasn’t expecting that. “What happened to them?” I ask. If I’m telling my story, he should tell his too. “My mother died giving birth to me.” He stops, his jaw tightening. “And your father?” I ask quietly. I can tell that this won’t be as simple as his mother’s death. The muscle in his jaw twitches before he answers. “The short version is my father challenged our Alpha heir to a duel after he caused the death of my older brother, the future Beta. The Alpha forbade it, but his son agreed. My father in his grief, killed the Alpha heir, the only child of our Alpha.” He stops and takes a sip of his tea before looking back up at me. “The Alpha forced me to watch as he beheaded my father, blamed him for the death of my brother and the Alpha heir, called him a traitor, then he banished me. I was 12, so I understand your mother’s concern about not surviving alone at that age. I almost died as well.” I swallow ha
I hadn’t intended to tell Grace my history, or at least not yet, but it seems to have opened her up. Maybe our similar stories will help her see that I’m not all bad and can possibly be trusted, if not as her mate, maybe as her friend. I’m thrilled that she asks me to run with her. I would have anyway, since I need to protect her, especially with the nearby packs. I didn’t like how close to their boundaries she ran last night. It puts her at too much risk. All they have to do is see her eyes to know what she is. Only Guardians have golden eyes. Louis is beside himself in his happiness playing with Maia. She’s definitely all in with the mate bond. He’s enjoying the chase, periodically nipping at her heels when we smell them. I hadn’t realized how close we’d gotten to the pack’s border, but there are three standing at the border, almost as if they are waiting for Maia to show up, and they probably are. If this is her pattern, they would have picked up her scent and would be waiting to
It’s exhausting constantly running, riding on bus after bus. We haven’t had a decent meal or shower in a week. Benny called the day after we left and let me know two ‘shady looking men’ were in the diner asking about a young woman.When Eli finally feels like we can stop overnight, we get a hotel room. At first, I was concerned about only having one room, but I’m too tired to argue. When we get to our room, I see that there are two beds.“Get a shower. I’ll be back in a bit.”“Where are you going?” I ask him.“I’m going to look around and make sure we aren’t being followed and then I’m going to get us something decent to eat. Do not open the door for anyone.”He comes over taking my face in his hands and kisses my forehead. He pulls back and looks in my eyes. “You’ll be safe. I won’t be gone long.”After he leaves, I grab my things and head to the bathroom. I turn on the water, letting it get warm before stripping off my clothes and getting under the stream of hot water. I lift my fac
I hate that I don’t have the money to support Grace. It’s really bothering me. I realize I’ve spent my life on the run and that I’ve been in one of Liam’s cells for the last six months, but it doesn’t sit right not being able to take care of our mate. What’s worse, she and her mother seem to have stockpiled money over the last six years since they ran from Grace’s father. How can Louis and I prove that we are worthy mates if I can’t even afford a bus ticket and a place to stay for longer than a week? I’m laying in the dark, staring at the ceiling and contemplating what I will need to do once I have her safely within the borders of Rik’s or Liam’s territories when I hear her voice. “Are you awake?” She whispers. I was pretty sure she hadn’t fallen asleep. Her breathing hadn’t changed to that deep breathing a person gets when the drift off to dreamland. I sit up on my elbow and look over at her bed. Whether she did it intentionally or not, she put herself in the bed farthest from the
I was serious last night when I asked Eli to mark me rather than let some stranger mark me. Better the devil you know, right? At least I hope so. I may not believe in the mate bond, but I have a better chance with someone who might actually care about me than with someone who only wants me for the strength I can bring to their pack, someone who will treat me like a commodity and a breeding machine. I know I’m a Guardian, and I’m supposed to be this strong wolf that all the Alphas want, but I’m terrified. I don’t know how to fight. Up until a couple weeks ago, I thought I was a human. A human that was doing everything I could just to survive, much less learn how to fight or defend myself. So, as much as I hate this feeling of dependence, I’m thankful that Eli is here with me. He makes me feel safe, or at least safer than I would feel if I was running alone. I wasn’t expecting to get any sleep last night, but after laying on his chest, smelling his intoxicating scent and listening to t