Until Dawn

Chapter 11

Dawn stood next to Roman with her arms folded. Last night he had told her she was his mate and this morning they were both pretending like nothing happened. The air was so thick between them you could cut it with a knife.

Dawn wasn’t surprised by the news. She even slept in his room last night, although nothing happened. That was fun explaining to the boys and Adriana why she was walking out of Roman’s room in the morning. All they did was giggle and run down the stairs, whispering something to each other.

While they were laying there last night Dawn had to admit to herself that in the back of her mind there was something special about Roman. She wasn’t a shifter but could feel a small connection. His scent, the way he smiled, his hands on her, and the way his kiss gave her a sense of familiarity. He felt like home.

She glanced up at him and saw the worry in his eyes. The volunteer wolves were gathering in Roman’s backyard. All of them looked strong but the readable emotion on their face was hopelessness. They were only here because Roman was Alpha and ordered them to.

“Why are there only five females?” asked Dawn.

Roman’s trance was broken as he looked down at Dawn. His eyes lit up as he studied her face. She wasn’t sure if he could get used to someone liking her so much. It was almost overwhelming.

“Females don’t normally fight unless necessary. These five are our feisty ones.”

“Good,” she said, smiling at the women who were trying to look brave.

Roman turned so he was facing Dawn. “You know you don’t have to do this.”

“Shut up,” she said, waving her hand. “We’re required to be trained if we work for the government. I can help.”

“Okay,” he frowned, deciding the fight wasn’t worth it.

Dawn let out a gasp which had Roman on high alert. He looked around and quickly spotted what she was looking at. Rachel was walking towards them with a large chocolate wolf at her side. She had her hand on his neck and was stroking its fur.

“What the hell Rachel?” asked Dawn.

“Oh,” she said, letting out a giggle, “This is Ivan. Isn’t he beautiful?”

Ivan let out a growl that almost made him sound irritated.

“I mean rugged and handsome!”

He let out a throaty purr, rubbing his face against her leg. Rachel reached down and scratched him behind the ear, giggling again when he wagged his bushy tail.

“How long have you known?” asked Dawn.

“About two weeks,” she shrugged, acting like it was no big deal. “I walked in on James injecting himself with something. Turns out it was a hormone replacement. At least that’s what he told me. Well I guess he got embarrassed and I thought he was going to attack me. Ivan came downstairs in wolf form and saved me.”