I wake up to this delicious scent. It reminds me of my mother's cinnamon rolls fresh out of the oven. I leave my bedroom and walk downstairs without even looking at my hair or my pajamas. The smell is divine so I follow it in a daze. As I enter the kitchen I see Dante in there and oh my goodness, it is cinnamon rolls! He even made bacon to go with them. Then, just as I get ready to attack the cinnamon goodness, another scent hits me. It went along with the cinnamon rolls so well that at first I did not notice it. It has a slight vanilla and cinnamon swirl smell, kind of similar to a snickerdoodle cookie. As soon as I register this scent, I look up at Dante with my eyes wide. The smell is coming from him! This is absolutely amazing!Not being able to control myself, I leap at him. He catches me, chuckling. "I warned you that you are my mate. I can't believe it took you this long to notice.""Is that why you smell so amazing?" I ask nuzzling into him like I was in my wol

After taking a brief nap, I decide it might finally be time to brave the rest of the house. I did not wait impatiently for my birthday just to hide in my room after finally finding my mate after all. Heading to the kitchen I find more cinnamon rolls still on the counter so I grab one and head towards Dante's office. Before I can even knock I hear him yell, "Laina, come on in."I walk in to the sight of him sitting at the desk, sorting through some papers. As I sit down across the desk from him, he looks up. "I am sorry if we scared you. I just did not want you not knowing what you will be getting into. I am in no hurry to complete the ritual though so please, do not worry about it. Everything is up to you. Right now, I am looking for my favorite cookie recipes though. Which kind would you like to make?" He asks.I had forgotten about making cookies but the thought makes me grin back, "Any. I loved cookies. Chocolate chip, peanut butter, monster, and sugar cookies. My f

Waking up after the best night's sleep I can remember, I notice that the bed is empty next to me. Reaching over, I notice a note laying on his pillow. It simply says thank you for the great night's sleep and that he will be back at lunch after a meeting. Stretching, I notice a cart sitting at the end of the bed. Walking over to it, I lift up the metal lid to find an array of chopped fruits, bagels and some bacon. Grabbing a piece of bacon, I walk into my room to get dressed. After I have some proper clothes on, I go back to my breakfast. This is the closest thing to healthy I have eaten since I got here and my stomach begins to growl a happy thank you. Once my food is consumed, I decide to walk to Scarlett's house and see if she is free to hang out for a while. Luckily, Dante has a map by the door of everyone's residences so I have no problems finding out where she lives. It is only about a block away and the walk feels nice. I have not actually done anything alone sinc

Dinner is going to be something new again. Dante said that he wants to make me a steak dinner with baked potatoes. He asked how I like my steak and at my blank look he just chuckled and said he would make it the right way then. Now, I am trying to decide how I would like my hair done if I were to go and get a haircut. I cannot imagine short hair but maybe I should go that far? Time for a whole new me. I am sick of being the girl that does not belong and that lived in the woods. It is time to find who I am. Maybe shorter is better. Not short short like I saw some of the women wearing. Maybe just shoulder length or so. There is one that I saw at the pack dinner the other night that I liked. It was shorter in the back and longer in the front. I look into the mirror in the bathroom and I do not fully recognize myself. I have little ears that my mother used to call fairy ears, a nose to match but nice, full lips. My hair is the same red of my cardinal and reaches almost all

For the first time, I wake up with plans for the day. That has not happened as long as I can remember. Sure, I have had things that I want to do but I have not made plans for the day before. These plans are with a friend too at that. I can't remember ever having a friend before either. These are entirely new grounds that I am trying to circumvent. Not sure how excited I should be, but I do know that I am excited, and nervous. Very nervous actually. A new haircut seems really daunting considering it is something as silly as having having something cut that will grow back. Still, it is slightly nervewracking to be taking on something like this only a week after leaving behind a life of solitude.Dante and I eat a light breakfast together and talk about some of the pack members. He tells me a bit about the one that is pregnant and how her mate tragically died not long ago, meaning that the fact that I picked out a present for her means more than it might have for any other pack