Under The Skin

C h a p t e r F i v e

© Amber Kalkes 2015

Song: "Road To Joy" By Bright Eyes

C h a p t e r F i v e >

The air is cold and the sun has barely risen as Poppy runs down the curving trails around her pack lands. Hudson had taken her out here shortly after her first shift and Poppy has never turned back. At first she would just walk, not thinking herself much of a runner but soon Poppy's urge to be free even when stuck in her human form was too much. Now she runs just about every morning and it's been a great a tool at soothing her restless wolf as any of her other tricks.

She doesn't know why her wolf is that way. Colton thinks it means she's meant to have a high rank. To Poppy though, that doesn't make much sense. Rae wasn't this aggressive from what she remembers and she's Alpha female. She's also pretty sure she's not mated to an Alpha. If she were she would have met him already.

The fact she hasn't found a mate hasn't helped her social standing in the pack either. She's twenty-one, young by most standards but in this world she's practically an old maid. Most of the pack has taken this as yet another sign of her otherness and she can see their point. Four years are participating in the run and she hasn't even had a hint of a soul mate?

Of course, she thinks bitterly, if she were a guy no one would think anything of it. She'd just be assured that her mate is still growing, maturing until she was able to help him get to where he needs to be. Poppy laughs out loud at that even thinking about it. She doesn't need anyone helping her to get where she needs to go. She's fine being single and living a life unhindered.

Besides, if and when her mate does come she doesn't want to feel tied down. If anything she wants a relationship like Rae and Colton's. One of complete understanding and respect for each other and if she has to wait another decade to have that, she's fine with that. It's all about quality for her and why shouldn't it be? She'll be stuck with the poor guy for the rest of her life. She might as well make it worth both their whiles, right?

Taking a turn around the rock formation everyone calls 'old man', Poppy runs up the hill and off the trail. This is her place to be alone and think without the watching eyes of others. Poppy found this spot just last year and its been her place ever since. No one comes here, considering it too much of a hassle to get to or too deep in the woods. That's why she likes it though, because of its isolation.

Sitting on the flat rock on the top of the hill she looks over the clearing and feels a wide smile come across her face. The sun is barely over the horizon and this is the moment she came here for. Gold, orange, purple and pink clouds paint the overhead sky and remind her of one of Cassidy's paintings. She got the painting when Cassidy was ten and just starting to get into art. It's just a watercolor mess of colors but that's why Poppy liked it so much. Kind of like a beautifully crafted chaos.

The thought of Cassidy brings the less charitable thought of Connor. She's not mad at him. It's not like he can help who he's mated to but he didn't handle it very well. She's not okay with the fact he tried to kiss her when he knew he was mated to her sister. Fortunately she has enough sense to realize that was a part of the confusion they were sharing. Sure, they like...or liked each other but that didn't mean they could just ignore fate...could it?

Poppy shoots the idea down before she can even let it fully develop as a possibility. Connor isn't her mate, she reminds herself, and he belongs to Cassidy. No matter how much she may have wanted Connor to be that for her, he just isn't. She doesn't feel what she should feel when around her mate. No tingles. No instant connection. No longing. Not even any strong sexual feelings towards him. She just wants to kiss him but for some reason her fantasies don't go past that.