Jayson moved away from me as fast as he could like I had suddenly come down with some kind of contagious disease.
I swallowed down the hurt I felt at his action. I'd thought I had some time before things started to change between us.
Apparently, I'd been wrong.
Mrs Smith walked in, looking at me like I was the annoying gum stuck under her shoe. Deciding she had seen enough of me, she focused her attention on her only son.
"You look good, darling," She complimented, wearing a warm smile on her face.
"Thanks mother," Jayson replied warmly. I felt a little envious as I watched her fuss over Jayson 's jacket, asking if he was comfortable with it.
I had never known what a mother's love felt like. While Mrs. Smith might not be so fond of me, I had to admit she was a wonderful mother to both her children.
And she was a wonderful Luna to the rest of the pack as well.
"I don't know how the pack members would take their new Alpha spending so much time with a woman behind closed doors." She reprimanded. "A woman who was neither mated to him nor his mate."
I should be used to her condescending words by now, but only the goddess knew I wasn't. I didn't know why I longed for this woman's love and affection.
She had shown me time and again how far fetched my dreams were.
"Mother..." Jayson started, before trailing off. There was nothing he could say to change her opinion of me that he hadn't already said. She disliked me because she thought I wasn't worth his kindness. Not when to her, I was a bad influence, getting him in a lot of trouble and fights.
She wasn't wrong though. Jayson just couldn't bear the thought of someone disrespecting me. It was why I tried to keep him away from the complication that was my life as much as possible.
"Don't start now, Jayson ." Mrs Smith stated, brushing invisible dirt off his jacket. "It's good you're finally ready to take your place as Alpha of the pack. Maybe then you would be too occupied to be fooling around with someone who would never be worthy enough to be your mate."
I felt as though I'd been slapped.
"Mother!" Jayson scolded, moving away from her whilst staring at her in shock.
I stared at her in shock as well, but only because it was the first time she was openly insulting me in front of him.
"You're raising your voice, Jayson !" Mrs Smith half yelled. "You're raising your voice at me, all because of her!"
"I should probably go." I said softly, before turning and walking out of the room. I didn't want Jayson to have a fight with his mother because of me.
I walked downstairs, moving my way past the crowd, pausing occasionally to admire the portraits of Jayson on the walls. It was a bittersweet moment for me. I was so proud of him and the man he was becoming, but a part of me still wanted him all to myself.
I, of course, knew that if I truly did love him, I would let him go. It was just as well that he had no idea of my feelings for him.
And he never would.
The tears came then.
***
The party was in full swing hours later, music blasting through the speakers as people made small talk. A group of teen werewolves talked and laughed loudly at one end of the room, while the adults chatted softly at the other.
"I just knew you would be all by yourself," A voice said from behind me.
I turned from my place on a barstool to look at one of my closest female friends who also happened to be Jayson 's younger sister.
"Done being a party butterfly?" I asked Pamella, taking a sip of my drink.
She rolled her big eyes at me, asking the bartender for a cold drink. "For now, anyways. My mom might call me to make a few more introductions."
I laughed at the annoyed expression on her face. Favi, as almost everyone called her, hated it when her mother felt the need to introduce her to almost everyone at almost all the elaborate parties they threw.
I tucked a stray strand of my hair, discreetly scanning the makeshift dance floor for Jayson . "Lemme guess, she's introducing you as the new Beta female of the pack."
"Exactly!" Favi retorted in agreement. "Wait, how did you know that?"
I shrugged my shoulders, fixing my gaze back on her when I realized Jayson wasn't in the room. "It sounds like her."
Pamella nodded in agreement, her eyes moving around the room. "I don't see Belinda anywhere."
"Right here!" My second closest shewolf called, taking a seat between Favi and myself. "No offense Favi, but I seriously think your mom may be after my life."
I barely stopped myself from rolling my eyes. It was purely Belinda to exaggerate. I pushed my drink to her so she could have a sip. "She introduced you to everyone too?"
"Yeah," Belinda confirmed, shaking her head. "Makes me a little scared for what might happen on the actual inauguration ceremony."
Although Jayson was turning twenty-five today and was going to take over the pack from his father, he would officially become the Alpha a week after his birthday. A new werewolf council would be selected as well.
Pamella and her mate, Josh were going to be the new Betas of the pack and Belinda and Luke the new Gammas. There would be a new pack doctor, healer, seer, and lead warrior. The former members of the council would then become the new Elders of the pack.
"I might have to come up with some excuse to miss it," Favi stated. "I'm being very serious on that." There was no way Mrs Smith wouldn't know she was faking.
The conversation moved on to what they would wear for their inauguration ceremony and the preparations the pack was coming up with.
"You're going to be there right?" Belinda asked, even though we all knew the question she was asking was if my step mother would let me attend. I had worked so hard to be able to be here for Jayson 's birthday party.
"Of course." I replied with a level of confidence I didn't completely feel. I just knew I would do whatever it took to be there.
Much later, the party came to an end. I said my goodbyes to Favi and Belinda before walking around the house looking for Jayson .
"He took his wolf out on a run." Luke imformed me when he noticed me searching everywhere for him.
I could feel my heart beat harshly against my rib cage. "Is everything okay?" I questioned, aware that Jayson wouldn't just do something like that on a day like this.
"I'm not sure." He answered bluntly and then walked away. That was all the sign I needed from him. Something had definitely upset Jayson , I thought as I made my way home.
But what in the moon goddess's name could it have been?
As I moved through the Pack House, cleaning and tidying each room, I carefully avoided the part that belonged to Patricia. Memories of our previous agreement, her harsh words, and the pain she inflicted upon me were still fresh in my mind. I couldn't bear to revisit that space, even if it meant leaving it unkempt.But as I finished attending to the other rooms, I couldn't ignore the fact that Weston's room still awaited my attention. With a sigh, I pushed open the door, stepping into a realm that held both familiarity and trepidation.As I surveyed the room, my gaze swept across the neatly made bed, the scattered books on the desk, and the worn-out pair of shoes by the door. I couldn't help but wonder what secrets this room held, what hidden fragments of Weston's life resided within its walls.Lost in my thoughts, I failed to notice the sound of the running water from the adjacent bathroom until it abruptly ceased. A jolt of surprise coursed through me as Weston emerged, his tall figu
I entered the living room, my steps hesitant, sensing an atmosphere thick with tension. I had a bad feeling about this, but I still entered, knowing that turning back would get me nowhere. There, standing with an armored expression, was my stepmother, her eyes narrowed with anger. Fear pricked at my skin as I wondered what transgression had led her to summon me in such a manner. It had to be something bad, or perhaps something that didn't even make sense. She’d always find a reason to be angry at me anyway. "Alondra," she hissed through clenched teeth, "how could you be so careless? Leaving the door open during the night, inviting danger into our home! Are you trying to get all of us killed? Is that your plan?" I stared at her trying to figure out what she was talking about. I could feel the anger emerging from her body. The way she stared at me was with pure disdain and anger. Slowly, her words struck me like a blow, and I immediately felt a pang of guilt gnawing at my conscience.
The rays of the Sun penetrated through my curtains indicating that morning had come. When I opened the door and entered I had a tray of breakfast in my hands hoping that my stepmother wouldn't hear me from downstairs. she was asleep on the couch possibly because she had fallen asleep meeting her sweaters or something that she barely ever did before.The Wounded man still slept on my bed. I on the other hand had arranged for some blankets on the floor where I slept watching over him and nursing him back to health. as injuries had been pretty serious and a couple of times through the night I had what about taking him down to the Park Hospital. but at the end of it I realise that I would be in much bigger trouble than how I had started. I will be asked the endless questions about why a stranger who was not even a member of the park was in my bedroom and why I was messing him back to health. but no one was going to understand that this very strange I held a grave secrets. on that secret w
As we worked together I couldn't help but feel that this was going to be great. My relationship with Weston was perfect now. I couldn't wait to meet him in the garden again, but I wasn't going to tell Patricia about it. Even though I trusted her, it was still a risk that I wasn't willing to take. they also was not ready to expose our relationship to anyone else and I was going to respect that.“So how are you feeling so far?’’ I asked curiously. She stayed up at me with a smile before continuing.‘ nostalgic. quite okay. I was rather nervous about the pregnancy at first but I'm going to be okay. I figure that the nervousness doesn't really help me. and the stress is not really good for the baby.’’ “ I agree, Patricia. We should take a lot of time to rest and also do it well. Your mother also demanded that I keep the pregnancy a secret," I began, my voice tinged with caution. "I want you to understand that I intend to do that. I respect your privacy, and as your friend..."But before
"Alondra!" Patricia's voice echoed through the hallway, causing me to freeze in my tracks. Flashbacks of our previous encounter rent my mind, the hurtful words she had said to me and how she answered them without a hint of hesitation. I no longer considered her my friend. a friend could not see the things that she did feel stop it had felt as if she had been holding them back for a very long time. why would she think that I wanted her mate question mark and why would he think that all I do is try and seduce the men of the packhouse? She was no different from my step sisters and my stepmother. she had made my fears come true.I turned slowly to face her, my heart pounding within my chest. Trish was a royal, no matter how much he did what you said I couldn't just dismiss her. it would have greater repercussions. Patricia stood a few feet away, her eyes filled with sadness. Did this have anything to do with the conversation I had just had with her mother a couple of minutes ago? I braced
The doors of the pack mansion swung open, revealing the interior that always seemed to be teeming with secrets.Even though I had worked in a pack house all my life, his head in the hole had something secret. It was like the Pack House itself and its own secrets. Something that not even the servants or the pack members could know. As I stepped inside, a wave of nerves washed over me. I had been summoned by Mrs. Pierce, the mother of Alpha Weston, and the ever-watchful queen of our pack. The woman who sings hated me for no reason and who had tried beyond reasonable doubt to keep me away from the alpha. What did she want from me this time? I was nervous and scared. because whenever I was summoned by the queen of the don't mean something good. she wasn't just trying to catch up with me. She would want me to do something or demand that I did something out of character. I wish I could just run and abandon his responsibilities homestead but everyday is a chance that I get to stay with Westo