Chapter 9

_Anya’s POV_

I walked slowly to the door. My heart was beating faster for no reason that I could explain. Maybe it was because I was still shaken by the dream. Maybe it was because I knew he was standing on the other side of the door.

I placed my hand on the handle and opened it.

The moment the door opened, I found myself standing face to face with Alpha Jacob.

For one second, neither of us spoke.

Then suddenly, I felt it.

A sharp pull inside my chest. It was not pain. It was something else. Something warm and strong that seemed to wrap around my heart and pull me toward him.

My breath caught.

Inside my head, Maya suddenly shouted, Mate. Mate. Mate.

The word echoed loudly in my mind and made my whole body go still.

I stared at him.

He was already looking at me and he was smiling slightly, but when he saw the strange expression on my face, his smile faded and his brows pulled together in concern.

“Are you alright?” he asked gently. “You look a little pale.”

“I… I am fine,” I said quickly but my voice sounded strange even to my own ears.

Inside my head, Maya was almost excited. Yes, it is him. He is our second chance mate. The Moon Goddess has blessed us, Anya. We are so lucky.

Was this what lucky felt like? My heart was beating so fast that I could feel it in my throat. My hands felt warm and my chest felt tight in a strange way.

I looked at Jacob again and this time I really looked at him.

He was very handsome. I had noticed it before but now it felt different. His blonde hair fell slightly over his forehead and his blue eyes were very clear and very focused on me. His shoulders were wide and he filled the doorway so easily that I suddenly felt small standing in front of him.

I noticed the way his lips moved when he spoke and for one shocking moment, a strange thought entered my mind. I wondered what it would feel like if he kissed me.

The thought came so suddenly that I almost stepped back in shock.

What is wrong with me? I thought.

But Maya only laughed softly inside my mind. That is the mate bond.

I swallowed and looked at him again. “I… I think I can feel it now,” I said quietly.

“Feel what?” he asked.

“The mate bond,” I said softly. “I think… I think I can feel the bond between us now.”

For a moment, he looked very pleased. “That is good. I am glad that you can feel it now. It will make things easier for both of us. The mate bond will bring us closer.”

Closer.

The word made my stomach flip in a way I did not understand.

He stepped back slightly and gestured down the hallway. “Come. Dinner is ready.”

I followed him quietly.

The dining room was large but warm. The lights were soft and the table was already set with food. But I noticed something immediately.

There were only two plates on the table.

I stopped walking. “Where is everyone?” I asked.

“My mother is not here,” he said as he pulled a chair for me. “She went to visit her sister. My aunt is very sick and my mother wanted to see her. I should have gone with her but I decided to stay here and take care of the pack.”

“Oh,” I said softly as I sat down.

“So tonight,” he continued as he sat across from me, “it is just the two of us.”

Just the two of us.

For some reason, that made me very nervous.

We started eating and for a few minutes, we ate quietly. But I could feel his eyes on me sometimes and every time I looked up, he was already looking at me.

It made my face feel warm.

Why am I feeling like this? I asked Maya.

Because he is our mate, she answered simply.

I tried to focus on my food but I kept noticing small things about him. The way he held his fork. The way his sleeves were rolled up slightly and I could see the muscles in his forearms. The way his lips moved when he spoke and when he ate.

I could not stop thinking about what it would feel like if he leaned across the table and kissed me. The image was so clear that I nearly dropped my fork.

I quickly looked down at my plate, my face burning.

He noticed. A small smile appeared on his lips. “Are you alright?” he asked. “You look very distracted tonight.”

“I am fine,” I said quickly. “I am just tired.”

He leaned back slightly and studied me for a moment. There was something playful in his eyes now. “Tell me something. In your former pack, did you train? Did you go to the training grounds often?”

I shook my head slowly. “No. I did not train.”

“Why not?”

I looked down at my hands. “Because I was not allowed to. My role in the house was only to cook, clean and do chores. I did not have time to train and no one thought it was important for me to learn.”

His expression changed. He did not look amused anymore. “They did not allow you to train?” he asked slowly.

“No, I was only a servant there. Nothing more.”

He was quiet for a few seconds and then he nodded slowly as if he had made a decision.

“Then I will train you."

I looked up in surprise. “You?”

“Yes,” he said calmly. “From now on, you will train with me.”

I stared at him. “But I do not know how to fight. I do not know how to use weapons. I do not know anything about training.”

“That is exactly why you need to learn. The Fireblood pack has many warriors and many soldiers but we also have many enemies. I do not want to take any chances when it comes to your safety. You need to be able to defend yourself in any situation.”

His words made something warm move in my chest.

He wants to protect us, Maya said softly.

I nodded slowly. “Then… I will learn. But I think I should start with the basics. I am a complete beginner.”

He smiled slightly. “Do not worry. You will not have much difficulty. Your wolf is a white wolf. White wolves are strong and rare. They have special abilities. You will learn faster than others.”

I froze.

My fork stopped in the air.

“How do you know that my wolf is white?” I asked slowly.

For the first time, he looked slightly surprised. But then he leaned back calmly and said, “My wolf, Storm, showed me an image of our mate before we met. I saw a white wolf. I saw you.”

Inside my head, I turned to Maya quickly. Is that true? Did you show his wolf what you look like?

Maya was quiet for a moment. I do not remember doing that. But maybe I did. Wolves can communicate in ways humans do not understand.

I looked back at Jacob slowly. “Your wolf’s name is Storm?”

“Yes,” he said.

I turned to Maya again. What does Storm look like?

She was quiet for a few seconds and then she answered softly. He is completely black. His fur is black like night. I can feel his strength even from here. He is very strong. He will protect us well.

I felt something warm move inside my chest again when she said that. I looked at Jacob and suddenly a thought came into my mind.

Maybe he is testing me. Maybe he wants to see if I am strong enough to become his Luna. Maybe that is why he wants to train me.

I straightened slightly in my chair. If he was testing me, then I had to do my best. I could not be weak. I could not disappoint him.

“I will work hard,” I said quietly. “I will learn everything properly.”

He watched me for a moment and then he smiled again but this time his smile was softer.

“I believe you will,” he said.

His voice was gentle and the way he was looking at me made my heart beat faster again.

We finished dinner slowly but the whole time, I could feel something changing between us. The mate bond was growing stronger and stronger and every time he looked at me, my heart would jump.

I did not know what the future was going to bring, but for the first time, I felt a small sense of hope.

My life was changing fast, and this time, I did not want to be weak anymore. I did not want to be the girl who could only cry and endure everything silently.

If I was going to stay in the Fireblood pack, then I had to become stronger. I had to learn how to fight, how to defend myself and how to survive in this new world.

Jacob said that he would train me and I decided that I would do my best. I would work hard and I would not complain.

I wanted to prove to him that bringing me here was not a mistake.

I wanted to prove that I was not weak.

And maybe one day, when he looked at me, he would not see a broken girl that he had rescued.

He would see his Luna.