Roger is concerned when Lia arrives late to training. She looks upset, and he does not like it. "What's wrong?" He asks. "You are never late to training."He has already sent the rest of them off on their warm-up run. "I know…you won't believe what just happened." She goes on to tell him what happened with George and how James and Gunnar stepped in. Roger is less than happy about the whole thing. "It just doesn't make sense to me, or Nova. Like, Nova agrees, he's our mate, but…I don't even know him, and his sister hates me. James seemed unsettled by it.""Tell that beta kid you barely know him and that you want to go slow. As James said, if he can't accept that, then let us know. He doesn't get to force you into anything just because you are mates.""Thanks, Roger." She hugs him."You know we will always be here to help. Cam, James, all of us," Roger assures her. "Now, why don't you catch up to the others and see how

At the edge of the woods, Lia ducks behind a tree. She carefully takes her bracelet off and tucks it in her pocket. Then she quickly removes her clothes and shifts before anyone could possibly see her. Nova was nowhere near the largest wolf in the pack. She was more lean and agile than most, but her white coat gave her an almost glow during a full moon. George quickly shifted. Axel was a large grey wolf. Much larger than Nova was. He seemed to be made of pure muscle. Axel nipped at the slightly darker tips of her ears and tail. Nova returned the gesture before taking off in a full sprint into the woods. Once she put enough distance between them to make him actually work for it, she slowed to a more acceptable pace. “That’s a dangerous game, Nova,” Lia caution her. “He wants a game, I gave him one,” Nova counters. “And we’ve already pushed their limits by asking for what we did,” Lia reminds her. A loud howl came from the woods. A mate’s call. Nova answers but keeps h

She knocked on the Delta office door before peeking in. “Come on in, Dahlia,” Gamma Beckett Harwell says to her. He waves her in from where he was leaning against the desk, looking at James’ computer screen. “We were just finishing up, Petal,” James assures her. “Then we can get dinner.” “Sure,” she tries not to blush as she drops down into one of the chairs in front of the desk. He hasn’t used that nickname in years. It was one that her dad gave her, and it had stuck. Briar had been their dad’s little flower, and Dahlia was his little petal. James, and by extension Gunnar, had picked it up along the way. She had insisted she was too old for such a childish nickname years ago. But honestly, she missed it. “Do what you need to, sirs.”Beckett chuckles. “You weren’t kidding, James. She is so much like Daphne it is surreal.”Lia stares at him. Most people didn’t openly talk about her parents much anymore, especially around her. To hear her mother’s name mentioned so casually felt stra

"What?" Lia gapes as she stares at the pack Gamma and her brother."No, I'm not leaving. James is hurt because of me. I have training and-""It's only a few days," Gamma Beckett says. "A long weekend. You'll miss one or two days of school and training. And this was James' idea.""He…" she pales slightly. "He's sending me away? Is this punishment?" Nash is quick to shut down that line of thinking. "Absolutely not," Nash puts a hand on her shoulder. "James can barely send you to your room. Gunnar doesn't let him.""But-""He wants you to have a fair chance to clear your head outside the range of your incomplete mating bond," Beckett tells her. "Somewhere you will be safe and able to sort out how you feel.""Oh…" she sighs. "George and Axel are not going to like that." James was putting himself in the crosshairs so she could get some space to think."George and Axel mauled the pack delta in the delta's own suite. He lost a say in this when he tried to rip someone's leg off," Nash practi

"Let's go for a run, like old times," Briar suggests. "When have I ever said no to that?" Lia grins."Probably never," Riley replies."Exactly," Lia says. At the same time her sister says, "Right!""You two go have fun, I'll get stuff for dinner and see you guys tonight."The afternoon is spent exploring the reserve. Both in and out of shifted forms. Nova enjoys the change of scenery while Lia does the one thing James asked her to do. Think about her relationship with George outside the mate bond. She tells her sister about everything. And Briar does her best to offer advice. Briar was the only sibling with a mate. So her perspective on the matter was important to Lia."The bond can be overwhelming in the beginning, I do remember that." Briar chuckles. "But I can see why Uncle James is so concerned. Your mate should love you and respect you, Lia. I'm not saying he has to worship the ground you walk on or put you up.on a pedestal. But he should repeat your autonomy and your wishes. R