Sparks

I had no idea what a mate was. But the moment he said the little word, something within me roared to life.

“What’s a mate?” I ask, doing my best to not look directly at the god sitting next to me with his shirt off.

 I could feel myself swaying forward, like two halves of a magnet. Mason remained still allowing me to come as near to him as I wanted. He made no comment or move to push me away. “As in a friend?”

“No,” he chuckles, “As in husband and wife.”

I still for a moment, before rocking back as I far as I reasonably could. “Your what now?”

“It’s not as bad as it sounds. There is a lot that you need to learn about our kind. I guess it’s something I take for granted. I was brought up in it, so it is the norm for me. But I guess I can understand why your feel a bit shocked by it all.” I couldn’t help but notice the endearing blush that had crept over his neck and cheeks whilst he rambled. “Werewolves are given a mate. The one person that is meant to complete them and make them whole. When we find that person we mate for life. There is no other for us.”

“So…” I begin, “You can’t choose who you want to love?”

“No. But that doesn’t matter because our mates are our perfect companion.”

“But what if you fall in love with someone else before you find your mate?”

“I guess then you have to make a choice?” He seemed confused for a moment before answering.

“So, you can make a choice?”

“Well yes… but why would you want to when your mate is in front of you.”

“I don’t know. A little thing called free will?” I was beginning to feel irritated.

“We have free will Sienna. Its just that goddess pairs us with the person who is exactly what we are looking for and need in our life.”

“Sounds to me like your goddess is a bit of a dictator.” I cringe as I realise the words that have just come out of my mouth.

“Oh really?” Mason laughs.

I shrug in response, not really knowing where to go from there.

Mason seems to assess me for a long while. And despite my every attempt to look everywhere except at him, I could feel exactly where his eyes were wondering. Each time he moved, every time he breathed, it was like my body was attuned to everything about him. And the idea of being so in tune to a complete stranger was enough to make me blush profusely.

“Come on, let get you home and cleaned up.” His words were quite.

“By home I take it you mean back to the orphanage?” I ask, a small part of my heart dropping at the thought of having to go our separate ways.

“No.” He responded casually. “Back to our home.” He said the words as if they were the most normal thing in the world. And, so quietly that if it wasn’t for the fact, everything around me had stilled at his statement, he added “Where you belong.”

Mason fell quiet next to me. And too confused from the day’s events, I couldn’t muster the energy to strike up a conversation either. My head was spinning. And my body felt fragile, as if I had been repeatedly hit by a bus.

In my silence, my thoughts drifted to the moment that my bones started breaking, over and over, and the pain that came with it. I hadn’t realised that I was trembling until a set of strong arms wrapped themselves around me and I was lifted up into the arms of Mason. He held he against him tightly, cooing in my ear that everything was going to be OK.

I couldn’t help but chuckle through the tears pooling in my eyes.

How could he be so sure?

“I don’t want to be a werewolf.” I mumble into his shoulder weakly. “I thought that knowing that no one wanted me, that I was alone and unloved in this world was the worst pain I would ever have to encounter in life. But I was wrong.”

“Shh, Sienna. You are wanted, and in time you will come to realise that you are loved. And as for the pain of your first shift, most werewolves are brought up to be prepared for that pain. I am sorry that you were never told what to expect. But the next time you shift, it will not be so bad, I promise…”

He couldn’t finish his promise. Because I had pushed myself out from his embrace, my back pressed against the cool glass of the passenger door.

“There will not be a next time.” I said with conviction, my pointing finger stabbing the air between us as I spoke. “Ever!” I add, as if to drive the point home.

He had stopped the SUV outside of a large white house, which was more reminiscent of a mansion than a bachelors pad. It rose up behind him like something out of a story book.

“This is your house?” I ask, any thoughts of chastising him had simply dropped away. “Are you rich or something?”

Mason laughed next to me. Not a deep hearty laugh of someone who meant it, but a nervous chuckle of someone who wasn’t sure what would come out next.

“This is my parents house. But yes, one day it will be mine.” He paused, his eyes wondering my face as if trying to work something out. “Ours, hopefully.” He finished.