JASMINE I was relieved when Jack and Tyler approached me. Tyler asked, “Why don’t you sit with us for lunch today? I’ve been here with you for two days and barely spoken with you.” I agreed and the two of them went up to buy lunch while I saved a table and waited for them to return. They came back and sat across from me. Blake followed right after them and sat down next to me. Jack and Tyler both looked at him. Finally, Tyler asked, “Is Blake your boyfriend, Jasmine?” “No,” I replied, feeling insecure and weird having to answer in front of Blake. “He’s just a friend.” “Good-looking friend.” Jack winked. “I used to have the biggest crush on him growing up.” “I don’t blame you.” Tyler chuckled. “I’m almost jealous of Jasmine for being the sister.” I looked at Blake and he kept a straight face, not saying anything. “He’s grumpy sometimes.” Jack snickered. “Actually, most of the time.” “I can see that. I could work with that. Sulky yet sexy.” Tyler laughed. “Lots of passionate, ang
JASMINEThe following Wednesday, I finally returned to work. I walked in at 7:30, ready to position myself for the morning rush. Before I could station myself to begin making drinks, Valerie pulled me in for a hug, taking me aback. There was a line of customers to serve, so she quickly let me go so I could do my job.Once the café was empty, she came over and said, "Are you okay, Jasmine? I heard everything that happened. I've been worried. You haven't responded to any of my texts.""I haven't been replying to anyone's texts," I replied."Why not?""It's just too much right now. I don't really want to talk about it." She nodded and moved to the back. I grabbed the spray bottle and a rag so I could clean up the café. At least I made it to work. That was progress. I just had to make it until 4 and then I could go back to my bed until Saturday.I returned to behind the register after I finished cleaning, ringing i
BLAKE On Friday afternoon, Luke, my father, Alpha Antoine, and his mate, Luna Marie, were positioned around my desk as we all looked toward the conference phone. I clenched and unclenched my fists, and my mouth was dry with anticipation. I grabbed for my water bottle to take a sip as Luke cleared his throat and dialed his father’s number. “Hello? Dad?” Luke called into the phone as soon as we connected. “Hi, Luke. Who else is there?” “We have Alpha Blake, Alpha James, Alpha Antoine, and Luna Marie.” “Ok, good. I have some unfortunate news to share." He paused for a moment and everyone in the room looked around at each other. "Thank you for calling me back immediately. My men have spotted a mass movement from Alpha Édouard’s pack. At this point, I would advise everyone to take position. I think it’s clear that they’ve decided to proceed with the attack, and they’re definitely heading in your direction.” Alpha Antoine chimed in, “I am looking at my phone and I’m receiving the same
BLAKE Alpha Antoine’s and my troops appeared, sprinting to congregate. Suddenly darts began raining on us. They were fighting dirty. It was also completely reckless. Part of the reason werewolves didn’t use weapons was the risk for friendly fire was too high. Unless you were close enough to someone to smell the pack they were from, it was close to impossible to differentiate between friend and enemy, with the coloring of a wolf’s fur almost never being indicative of the pack they were from. Before I could fully process the situation, sharp flashes of pain pulsed through my body, one after another. My pack members were falling. Fucking cowards couldn’t even fight us the right way. I took the lead, and several darts hit my body. Luckily, I had spent years building a tolerance and was fine. We all moved forward, and finally the cowards showed themselves, running toward us. They must have run out of darts. We all bolted toward them, attacking as we could. I quickly plunged my claws into
BLAKE A huge white wolf approached us, his teeth bared, in a fighting position. And I knew it was over. Neither Luke nor I could fight anymore. I was helpless and naked, immobile against the freezing, wet snow, sure it was stained red from the cuts all over my body. The white wolf stood over me and I realized I knew that scent. I figured out where I had smelled the scent of the mystery pack before. The wolf standing over me was Alexander Adalwolf, a man I had gone to Grey Wolf University with—a man whose life I had saved. He was the alpha of the Pine Forest Pack in Ontario. I looked up at him, wondering if he would take my life. That was when he shifted into his human form. “Wulfric?” I nodded. “Fuck, man, I didn’t realize this was your pack. You look like shit.” His eyes darted upward, in a mindlink, then he shifted back into his wolf form. Another wolf came sprinting over—a female one. And that was when I realized that the scent of the wolf that was able to survive in cold water
BLAKE I woke up in a hospital bed, not knowing what day or time it was, with an IV in my arm. I could feel that my ribs were still healing, but the burning from the wolfsbane had finally subsided. After some time, Dr. Davis came in. He was the other doctor who worked at the clinic with my mom. “Ah, Alpha, you’re awake. How are you feeling?” “Better,” I replied, looking at him. “Glad to hear it. We took some of your blood and you had at least five times the lethal amount of wolfsbane in your bloodstream. That was likely after you had already metabolized some already. To be quite honest, I am baffled that you’re still alive.” “High tolerance.” I smirked. “Glad to see that we still have our alpha with us. Other than that, it seems you just need time to heal at this point.” Upon hearing what he said, a sickness came over me. “Where’s my mom?” I asked. He looked at me sadly. “Due to the circumstances, she’s taking a leave of absence until she’s ready to return to work. She’s been in
JASMINE On Friday evening, a funeral service was held at the temple for all the fallen warriors from the battle. My parents and I arrived to pews overflowing with pack members dressed in black. It was so full that we had to take a seat near the back. I instantly spotted Blake up front, dressed in a suit and seated with his mom, Luke and his family, and Lucy. The stage was filled with flowers and framed portraits of all the lost warriors. I noted one of the former alpha in the center. The service was at least three hours long as the priest led us through different chants and meditations. Then each warrior’s family members went up to the podium to give eulogies. At the end, the priest called Blake up to speak. I felt my heart catch at the sight of him. He pulled out a paper, which he planted onto the podium, and began speaking. “Good evening, Midnight Maple Pack. Thank you for joining me, my family, and the families of the recently fallen warriors as we honor their lives tonight. As y
JASMINE Blake’s scent entered my nose. I turned to see him sitting down next to me. “Hey,” he said. “Hey,” I replied, looking at him. “Nice speech.” “Thanks.” “Sorry again about your dad,” I said, feeling emotional, touching his leg. “Thanks.” He looked down at his hands. “I see you recovered finally.” “Yeah, I’ve been meaning to text you, but I got caught up in pack duty stuff. I had to visit all the families of the fallen warriors and meet with the priest. It’s honestly been a lot.” He sighed. We sat silently together for a bit and then he spoke again. “Do you want to do something tonight?” “Like what?” “Just hang out. I’ve missed you. I’d like to spend some time with you.” “You know how my parents are.” “One second,” he said, getting up and walking toward my parents. I stood up, shocked by him approaching them so suddenly. I watched as he shook my father’s hand and spoke with him. After about a minute, he returned. “You’re a free woman. Let’s go!” “What did you say to h