Committed To Duty

Chapter Six

Ever’s POV

I yawned and stretched my hands over my head. My alarm clock started beeping and woke me up at 6am, which was super early. But it was okay. I could use all the extra time to go for a short jog. I quickly washed up, and changed into a sports bra and shorts. I left a note on the kitchen counter, saying that I had gone for a jog around the estate. I’m sure Cam would freak when he woke up and couldn’t find me. I tucked my phone into my pocket in case someone called me and opened the door. It was pretty cloudy outside; it probably might rain.

I started my jog around the estate. It was quiet too. Not many people were up this early. Which was a good thing, because I didn’t like crowded places. My stiff muscles relaxed almost immediately. I didn’t stretch after training, because I was so tired. Speaking of training, I realised that I remembered smelling Jaxon’s scent just before I fell asleep. I shook my head. Probably hallucinating his scent. But who wouldn’t? It smelled of danger and wilderness, and made me want to bury my face in the crook of his neck. But I couldn’t, for now. I had to protect our cover, and complete the mission. And without the approval to interact with my mate for now, I couldn’t possibly expose ourselves yet.

I was just turning at a corner when I caught sight of a figure waving and jogging towards me. I squinted. It was probably a he, ‘cause of his broad shoulders and muscular arms. Oh shit. Don’t tell me it’s Jaxon? I gave the air around me a quick sniff. Nope, not him. It was human. I squinted some more, and realised it was Diego. I smiled, more in relief, and waved back. We jogged towards each other. I realised that he wasn’t wearing a shirt, and I ran my eyes over his abs. He looked strong, and even though he was human, that didn’t mean I would miss an opportunity to devour some eye candy.

He smiled as I fell into step beside him while he waited for me. “Hey, Ever. Why are you up so early?” He was pretty nice for a hunter, but he didn’t know I was his prey. I smiled. Thank goodness I had remembered to take the pills this morning. I’d be dead meat if I hadn’t. “My alarm was one hour earlier, and I got bored waiting for the guys to wake up. You?” He stiffened a bit, and I realised he was probably doing hunter stuff with the others. “Uh, not really anything. Just felt like taking a break.” Something must have happened, because his face was now scowling.

I didn’t probe him; it would probably make me suspicious. I just smiled, and patted his arm. “All of us have those days. Want to jog with me?” He smiled a genuine smile, and nodded. We jogged in a comfortable silence around the estate, one of us breaking the silence by asking a question. We stopped after around 15 minutes of jogging at the same spot where we met. “Thanks for accompanying me Diego. I had a good time.” I smiled at him. I really did. He grinned down at me. “Me too. Um, hey Ever?” I was about to jog away when he called me. “Yeah?” I looked at him questioningly. What could he possibly want? He scratched the back of his head. “Um, do you want to go out sometime? Like for lunch or something?” He was asking me out? Aww! But this was pretty rare. Most hunters didn't take an interest in me, they just said I was hot. I grinned at his embarrassment, but I dodged his question. "I'll think about it." His smile vanished, but I could see his relief when he realised I didn't totally reject his offer. He waved and said he’d see me later at school before jogging off.

I started to jog back too. It was already 7, and Cam would probably notice I was gone. I had just started jogging when I came to a halt. Oh shit. I sniffed the air again. The husky smell, that made me want to jump into his arms. Oh shit, shit. Not now! Please, God, please don’t let it be- “Hey, Ever.” I exhaled. I seriously couldn’t avoid this. I turned around slowly, and came face to face with Jaxon, his hazel eyes dark as they looked into mine.

Jaxon’s POV

I could barely control myself and my wolf when I saw her touching that guy. I couldn’t even bring myself to mention his name. I was just walking through, when I saw her jogging with him. Then they stopped, and talked a while, and for the whole time I clenched my fists, trying not to follow my wolf’s demands to go right over there and throw the guy away from Ever like a trash bag. I didn’t know why my wolf was so protective of her, and he was confused too. But when I heard him ask her to ‘go out’ together, and her accepting, I was snarling. I’m sure my eyes were spitting fire, and my wolf was clawing to get out. I took deep breaths, and gritted my teeth, trying to keep my wolf inside.

I watched, fists still clenched, as the asshole jogged away from Ever. I exhaled, and walked towards Ever. She must have sensed me, because she stiffened when I was quite close to her. “Hey, Ever.” I called her, and she turned around. Her silky black hair was tied up, and I had the urge to reach out and feel her soft skin underneath my fingers. I looked into her sparkling blue eyes instead , which blinked back at me, her mouth slightly open and she was panting a bit from her jog. All I wanted to do right then was kiss her, and hold her in my arms. But I knew she’d be mad at me, so I held back. (which took a lot of effort) Did she know how freaking gorgeous she was?

“Jaxon? Are you okay?” Oops, I was staring at her for too long. I shook my head and forced a smile. “Yeah I’m fine. What are you doing up so early?” She shrugged. “I felt like going for a run. You?” I scratched the back of my neck, trying to think of an answer. “No real reason. I guess I wanted fresh air.” She smiled, and I was slightly dazzled, but I shook myself. “All of us have those moments.” For a moment, we just stood there smiling at each other. Okay, this might be a good time to ask her.

“Hey, Ever. What were you doing with that guy?” I asked her, and her smile immediately vanished. She crossed her arms over her chest. “That’s none of your business. We just met halfway, and he was jogging too, so he decided to follow me.” I felt my lips curl over my teeth. Follow, eh? How ironic. “You can’t go out with him, Ever. He’s dangerous.” She scowled at me. “I can do whatever I want to, Jaxon. Besides, he’s nice to me and I just want to get to know him!” I stepped forward, but she didn’t move, glaring up at me. “You. Cannot. Go. Out. With. Him.” I growled, and I felt her stiffen. “I. Can. And besides, I’m not yours!” She snapped back, and I stiffened. She wasn’t mine? Of course she was!

“You ARE mine. Who the fuck told you that!?” I snarled, and I saw her shiver a bit, but I didn’t care. “Uh, the slut? And I am NOT yours!” She snarled back, and I paused a while. Wait. Whitney told her that? “She is NOT mine, and I am NOT hers! Don’t listen to anything that bitch says.” I narrowed my eyes. I was going to kill Whitney later. The slut was such a freaking liar! Ever met my eyes daringly. “Oh yeah? Prove it.” Prove it? I took a few steps closer to her, and I definitely felt her shiver. I looked into her ice blue eyes. “I’ll prove it to you.” And I lowered my head and kissed her.