Unexpected

I awoke to the chirping of the birds outside my window. It was very early in the morning, and it not surprising that the birds are up too.

I turned my head towards their lovely chirping sounds. The windows were never opened, due to reasons I may never understand. I wondered why it stayed open today.

"Good morning pumpkin." Aiden's voice called out from across the room.

I was startled a bit. I turned towards the source of his voice, cautiously pulling the duvet over my body as I caught sight of him. He disengaged himself from the chair near the fire, looking extremely stiff and haggard.

He sat at the edge of the bed, smoothening the bed covers before him. He looked extremely tired, with dark circles under his eyes..

"Uhh.. are you alright?" I asked, a bit concerned.

He reached out to rub my foot through the sheets. I could see he wanted comfortable. My wolf could sense that. Wolves liked to touch each other when they needed comfort.

"You don't look like yourself. What's going on?"

He used his hand to massage his temples. "Didn't get enough sleep last night. I am fine."

"Why didn't you sleep?"

"There were few rogues in our territory. I had to chase them away." He replied, his eyes on my chest hungrily.

"Oh my, I hope they didn't hurt anyone."

"Not much. One of the trackers was badly injured. But he's fine now, he's receiving treatment." He replied.

My wolf was urging me to comfort him, despite my hard heartedness, I still felt pity for him. I quickly scanned his body for any injury. There was nothing there left for a few scars. Perhaps I'd have the chance to ask about them someday.

"Well, I'm very tired, and would like to catch some sleep." He said, bringing my hand to his lips, kissing it lightly.

He stood up to walk away.

"Hold on." I called, as Aiden turned to go to God knows where.

"Yes pumpkin?" He asked, turning back to face me.

"S... so where are you going now?" I stuttered.

"To sleep ofcourse, I'm very tired." He replied.

"This is your bedroom isn't it?" I asked, thinking about what happened suddenly gone wrong with me.

"Yes, I believe so." He answered, looking a bit surprised.

"Where else are you going to sleep then?" I asked, raising a brow.

"Never mind that. I just didn't want to be a bother, as you might want to go back to sleep." He said, looking at me inquisitively.

"You're not bothering me." I mumbled. The bed was wide enough for both of us.

"You can sleep here." I forced a smile.

He blinked an unhealthy amount of times, before walking over to the other side of the bed. I watched him cautiously, as he unbuckled his belt.

"When I said you could sleep here, I'm sure I didn't make myself clear. You can sleep here because I can see how extremely tired you are. If you're thinking about anything else in your mind, I'm sorry to burst your bubble because it's not going to happen." I said, my cheek glowing pink in embarrassment.

"If you say so." He groaned in exasperation, falling back heavily on the mattress.

"I'm sorry." I whispered as I watched him lay against the pillow. He twisted his stiff back, mumbling to himself as he tried to get the most comfortable spot. Honestly, the main reason I asked him to sleep next to me was because he looked vulnerable, and I couldn't help but feel sympathy for him.

I laid back on my pillow, turning my face to the other side. After a few minutes of silence I called out.

"Aiden?"

"Yes?" Came a sleepy reply.

"Can I lay close to you?" I whispered.

Aiden didn't wait for me to move closer. I felt him move quickly behind me, his strong arm cradling my waist as his other arm touched my hair, running his fingers in-between the strands.

I felt the wet touch of his lips against the back of my neck.

"Aiden, don't." I warned him, moving away a little.

"So sorry pumpkin. You know I can't resist you." He murmured from behind me.

"I guess you need to try." I warned, pulling his arm tighter around my waist. I could hear his breathing slow down, as he drifted off to sleep.

I could feel my wolf settle down to rest alongside him. He was deeply asleep, and I loved the feeling of his breath softly touching my neck. My wolf purred softly; she was content.

******************

I could not find enough sleep after Aiden had fallen asleep. Untangling myself slowly from his arms, I took a quick shower and slowly crept out of the room. The guards stationed outside looked startled, then bowed to me. I smiled, and went closer to them.

"Uhhh your Alpha is fast asleep. Please make sure that no one goes in to disturb him. Could you please point me the dining room? I think I've forgotten the way to it."

"Sure Luna. Just go down the stairs, down the hallway, and it's the third door at your right." They directed me to the dinning room.

The kitchen was extremely huge! Back at home, this type of kitchens were meant for ceremonial food preparations. I could remember Ava say that there was a kitchen for pack members to gather and eat food sometimes. If this was it, then Aiden has done an extremely good job. Food was served at regular hours in the dining hall I had sat in during my welcome dinner. A couple of younglings jogged by into the kitchen and eyed me curiously. From the sound of their conversation, they were going out for their daily training. I could hear one of them whisper to the other that I was beautiful, and I chuckled inwardly.

"Oh my goodness ! Luna what are you doing here?" Ava said Alexa looked at me, mouth agape .

" I was hungry, and looking for something to eat." I waved at them.

"You could have asked for it, and we'd bring it straight to you. It's not appropriate for you to be seen in the kitchen." Ava managed to say.

"Ava, I wanted to be here. Aiden is fast asleep, as I was very bored. Can't I just join you guys?"

"That's fine Luna. You can stay with us." She said reluctantly.

I grinned and proceeded to fill my plate with some coconut rice . I was very hungry.

I sat down on a huge dining table, while the other wolves in the room kept looking at me.

"Judging from the looks of everyone, I'm guessing they want to know more about you, Luna." Alexa grunted.

"It won't get easier, unless you've properly finished the mating process. " She said, eyeing my unmarked neck.

"Why hasn't he marked you yet?" She asked cautiously.

I almost choked on my chicken wings at her question.

"We're not rushing things. We're still getting to know each other." I explained.

Alexa stared at me for some time. "Well, what can I say? I'm glad he has finally found you."

After breakfast, they took me to the pack's gym. It was quiet, but some wolves were at the corner lifting weights.

They stopped what they were doing, and started staring at me .

"And who do we have here." A sneering voice said from the corner.

Camille, bound in her pink gym bra and black shorts, she oozed of power. She was beautiful with all curves and muscles in the right places. She was one of Aiden's beta.

She bowed, her eyes still fixed on me. "Such an honor to finally see you outside the alpha's quarters, Luna. My name is Camille." She added mockingly.

"Oh uhh , hi Camille. I am Blair." I answered as politely as I could. She didn't like me, everyone could see it. I could feel Ava and Alexa growl under their breaths.

"You've both introduced yourselves to each other, let's now proceed to the other areas Luna." Ava said quickly.

"And why? She's not one of us yet is she? Luna or not, she cannot step into these premises Unmarked." Camille blurted out.

I could Barely contain my anger now. I could feel my claws dig deep into my palms. Camille or whatever she called herself, had no right to question me, their Alpha's mate.

Rage and jealousy filled my entire body. She was looking for a challenge, and my wolf was ready for one.

"Alright then, Camille. I am ready for your challenge." I said amidst shocked whispers.