I had managed to unpack all my belongings and change before Jaxon and his mate arrived. I opened the door to my room to find a small brunette grinning at me as she stood beside an oversized blonde male. I knew it was the beta and his mate, but his size was terrifying.
“Hannah! I’m so excited that you’re finally here! I can’t tell you how happy I am that Tristan has found our luna!” The woman squealed, pulling me into a hug.
“Cam, let her go bef
My hands shook violently as I pulled on my clothes in the pack changing room. I wanted to run back to the safety of my room in the orphanage, but I knew that wasn’t possible. Cam watched me, the concern on her face plain to see. I felt guilty for screaming my fear into the minds of the entire pack, though Cam assured me that they understood. I was new to the area and had been threatened by a wolf I didn’t know. More than that, I was hurt that my mate had not come when my fear had been broadcast to the entire pack. I understood logically that he was keeping his distance until I was of age, but even I knew that a mate’s primary drive was to protect their other half. I didn’t need extensive knowledge of my species or experience as a pack member to know that.&nbs
“Hannah!” Cam called to me across the dining room. I waved her over and she sat down beside me. “So, Alpha Tristan’s birthday is tomorrow. I know you haven’t spent much time with him, but I thought you would like to go shopping for his party with me.” “Oh, um, I don’t really have any money Cam. I don’t have a job yet. Barb offered me a position at the orphanage once I turn eighteen, but I’m not really sure if that’s still on the table since I’ve found a mate.”&nb
Court was boring. Tristan had said I wasn’t required to be there, but the pack lawyers had recommended it. Appearing in person, rather than just sending lawyers would make me look like I had my shit together for the judge. We spent most of the day waiting outside of the courtroom for our docket number to be called. Once it was our turn, things moved rather quickly. The judge swore me in, I attested that I had a place to stay and was able to support myself. It helped that they didn’t question where I got my money. I didn’t think it would look to good to tell them it all belonged to my mate. The judge looked over a few documents the pack lawyers had submitted, and my emanci
I found myself in Tristan’s office for the second time in as many days. This time the Luna of the Silver Moon pack was there as well. She had called Tristan and requested an urgent meeting after I had left his office the night before. She made it clear that I needed to be present the moment she arrived. Now I sat quietly with Cam, Jaxon, and Tristan, waiting for her to speak. “Alpha Tristan.” She started. “There are some things that you need to know about Hannah.” “Like how your mate lied about your pack trying for her emancipated minor status?” Tristan interjected.
Tristan, much to my surprise, had agreed to let me keep my plans with Toby, on the condition that one of the pack warriors escorted me. Judencia, for her part, had enough forethought to bring multiple vials of the nasty liquid meant to mask our scents. Taylor, the pack warrior Tristan assigned to escort me, and I had quickly downed them and pocketed the extras in case we needed them. We weren’t clear on how long they would last, but since both of us were wolves, we would be able to scent the moment we needed to take another round. I couldn’t contain my excitement as Taylor pulled into the parking lot of Toby’s apartment complex. I had decided to pass Taylor off as my long-lost cousin. I knew Toby had been curious ever since I had used family as the reason I wasn
Taylor had made excuses and whisked me back to the pack house as soon as I had stepped out of the bathroom. He had been silent for the duration of the drive, but I could tell whoever had been at Toby’s door had unnerved him. It took all of my self-control to keep from badgering him into giving me answers. When we finally pulled up to the pack house an hour later, I was surprised to see Tristan pacing out front anxiously. I had barely closed to car door before he had me in his arms, his nose pressed into my shoulder. I could tell he was trying to breath in my scent, most likely in the hopes of calming himself, but my scent was still hidden by the liquid I had drank earlier
I was reading Hannah’s text as the last of the guests left the party. She had texted saying she was suddenly feeling sick and was going home, I suspected it had more to do with Tristan than her actually being sick. I made nice with the guy for her sake, but I still didn’t trust him. Taylor had stayed behind to help with clean up and I caught sight of his firm ass, wrapped like a Christmas gift in his pants as he bent over to pick up trash from the ground. I turned away quickly to conceal my blushing face. “What are you thinking about?” Taylor breathed into my ear as he wrapped his arms around me.
Heat ripped through my body as the car raced down the highway. I had kicked off my heels and turned the ac on full blast in an attempt to soothe the fire coursing through my body. It hadn’t worked. I was panting, fighting against the urge to strip my dress off in the confined space of the car. Tristan, for his part, looked as distressed as one who wasn’t experiencing it could. His nostrils flared and his knuckles were white from gripping the steering wheel. Somehow, he had managed to cut the hour drive in half. Jax jumped out of the backseat before the car had even stopped. By the time Tristan had put it in park, Jax had raced to my door and scooped me up in his arms, hol