Author's note: picture of Abigail Johnson.
Dinner at the Johnsons was interesting. Mei Johnson was a Japanese woman while Raymond Johnson was an African American man. Their daughter, Abby, was a perfect mix of them. They have been with Nick since the beginning. They knew everything and everyone in the pack. The conversation was informative. I learned all about the pack history, but not why Nick was and wasn't the Alpha.
After dinner, the parents chatted with Nick while I did Abby. She was a painter but worked at the local bookstore.
"Do you like to read?" She asked.
"I love to read," I said. "I'll have to come see you at the bookstore."
"It's a bit out of the way so you'll be needing a car," she said.
"I just got my license a month ago but my car is still in Washington. I guess I will have to wait for Nick's car to be delivered," I said.
Ja- l mean Nick can get you a new car. You just have to go to the dealership and they'll hook you up," she said. "Trust me, Nick can afford it."
"What can I afford?" Nick said, coming into the kitchen.
"A new car for Addy," she said. "She needs one to get around."
"That's a great idea. We'll get you one tomorrow," he said.
"You don't have to. I can just use yours," I said.
"I need my car, sugar. It's not a problem getting you your own. You can use it to visit Shadow Moon whenever you want," he said.
"I hadn't even thought about that. I'm still trying to get accustomed to your pack," I said.
"You'll get there. We have time. The only thing is you can't have people from Shadow Moon or Blue Moon coming here. We don't allow outsiders. That's why it's important that you meet with the pack members," he said.
"If you haven't noticed, we're pretty well hidden," Abby said. "People don't come this way anymore."
"That took a lot of work. No one may enter unless they are invited by a pack member," Nick said. "But we don't want that unless they wish to join."
"Okay. I understand," I said.
"After you get your car, you can visit me at the bookstore. I do work tomorrow morning," she said.
"We better get going," Nick said.
Abigail and I exchanged numbers before I left.
"Thank you for the lovely dinner," I said.
"Don't be strangers," Mei Johnson said.
"Goodnight," I called.
We made our way back home hand in hand. It was a beautiful night so we took our time. I was seeing Nick in a whole new light. The way his pack members looked up to him was surprising. It shouldn't be since he is their leader. I was just used to him being my waiter.
Aiden was sitting on his front porch. We waved at him. He was sitting in a porch swing that looked fun to sit in.
"Can we go over there," I asked. "I want to check out that porch swing."
"If you want a porch swing, I will get you one. We can build a gazebo or something," he said.
"I just want to check it out," I said.
He reluctantly steered us over to Aiden's house. He was gently swinging.
"May I join you," I asked.
"Have at it," he said.
He stood up from the swing and let me try it out alone. I patted the seat next to me for Nick to join me which he did.
"So do you live here alone," I asked.
"Yes I do," Aiden said.
"You haven't found your mate yet?" I asked.
"No I haven't, not that I've looked very hard," he said.
"Aiden here is a bit of a playboy," Nick said.
"I'm not. I just haven't found the right girl," he said.
"How old are you?" I asked.
"I just turned eighteen," he said.
"Me too. It feels like forever ago though. Where are your parents?" I asked.
"Back home in Wisconsin I suppose. They didn't believe in Nick and didn't want to join," he said.
"That's an odd way to state that," I said. "What do you mean they didn't believe in him?"
"They don't believe in what our pack is doing," he said.
"What exactly is your pack doing?" I asked.
"I think that's enough of this discussion," Nick said. "That's something I'll tell you. All in good time."
"You make it sound like it's something bad," I said.
"It's not anything bad, just not conventional. I'm going to tell you everything. I just need you to give me some time. I know you and you're not ready to hear this yet," he said.
*****
I woke up the next morning ready to conquer the day. We were going to get a car then ride into town to visit Abigail's bookstore. She already text me the address in case I had to drive myself.
Nick was in the kitchen cooking waffles. I love waffles. They smelled divine. I sat down at the kitchen island waiting to be served. Nick gave me a cup of coffee just the way I like it.
After breakfast, we went to the car dealership. Aiden gave us a ride and then hung out with me while Nick picked out some options.
"Have you ever been to Shadow Moon?" I asked Aiden.
"Yes. I was staying at Blue Moon over the summer and went to visit there a couple of times," he said.
"That's strange. I spent my summer there and I don't remember seeing you," I said.
"That is strange. I would have remembered you." He said. "The only girls I remember are the twins and the triplets."
That's so weird. I was there when the triplets arrived," I said. "How could we have missed each other?"
He looked just as confused as I felt. I had an uncontrollable urge to touch him. I stepped closer to him and he didn't move back. Right as I was reaching my hand out to touch him, Nick came back.
"There's three options for you," he said. "Two cars and an SUV."
"I think I'll go with the SUV," I said.
"It's a white Range Rover by Land Rover," he said. "Good choice for this terrain."
I took it for a test drive and loved it. Nick paid for the vehicle and we said our goodbyes to Aiden. He guided me to the bookstore.
Abigail came out to check out my new car. She reached into her pocket and threw a handful of coins into my car. "For luck,'' she said.
We all went to the store. I made my way over to the romance section. I love the stories about romance especially if they had to deal with the paranormal or supernatural side of things. I love to see what humans write about us.
I found about five books I wanted to check out. Nick purchased them for me.
"I guess I have to get you a card so you don't have to rely on me to buy things or I could give you spending money," he said. "Either way. Whatever you want."
"Definitely a card so you don't have to keep giving me money," I said.
"Done," he said.
I met three new pack members in the store, Jocelyn, Garrett and Johnny. The latter planned a barbecue the following day to introduce me to all the young people. All in all there were about forty of them. It was a very small pack.
There must have been two hundred and fifty people but they were growing every day. Today, a family of four joined. The kids were quite small, still in diapers. I went over with Nick to greet them. They are a nice family, Roger and Felicia Mallory. They were young and I could see myself becoming friends with them.
After leaving there, we went home and I read one of my new books. When I was done, I could hear Nick on the phone. I was going to listen in when I decided to call my father back.
I pressed the button to call him. He answered on the first ring.
"Addison, I was just about to call you," he said.
"Great minds, Dad. What did you want?" I asked.
"I wanted to talk to you about your mother. She doesn't want to talk about it but said that I could tell you," he said.
"You mean about what the Moon God did?" I asked.
"Yes. You may think it was a small thing but it cut your mother deeply. He weakened our bond and had your mother doubting us. He was in her head twenty four seven talking, making her feel things and touching her like I can do," he said.
"You mean sexually? He could do what you do?" I asked.
"Yes sexually and yes he could astral travel. That and more. We never discovered the extent of his powers. His name is Jace for the Moon. I hope you never come across him," he said. "While it's true he thought he was her mate, no one has the right to touch someone without permission. Your mother's secret shame is that she liked it. He threatened my life and you kids. You before you were born."
"This is a lot to process. Do you think other people can do what you do?" I asked.
"No. It was a special power from the Moon Goddess. I haven't come across anyone else who can do that," he said.
I debated telling him about Nick but it felt like a betrayal. Nick wasn't Jace. He wasn't the Moon God. He couldn't be. Maybe he was just blessed too.
"We found his lair. It was in the mountainside, a short way from Shadow Moon. They were trying to expose our world to the humans. He had a few followers but most were killed in the battle. I think they carried on when he left," he said.
"Dad, I have to go. Tell mom I said thank you and I will talk to you later," I said.
"Okay. I love you Addy," he said.
"I love you too, Dad," I said.
I decided to take a chance and see if my suspicions were true. I walked to his office and called, "Jace."
"Yeah," he answered without looking up.
I sucked in a breath and ran. He must have realized his mistake because he came after me. I grabbed the car keys but he caught me before I made it out of the door.
"Please. Let me explain," he begged.
"Just let me go. I know who you are and what you did to my mother," I said. "You threatened me before I was born!"
"Please. Let me tell you how it happened and then you can leave. I won't try to stop you," he said. "Come. Sit down."
Against my better judgment, I went to the living room and took a seat. He sat down next to me and I moved away as far as I could.
"I'll start by saying I am not human and as such I had a difficult time relating to humans. Even werewolves were a foreign concept. I learned some tips and tricks from books but perhaps I read the wrong ones. By the time I made it to your mother I already had a bunch of bad habits. After I failed with her, I decided to live the life of a human. That's when Nick entered the picture. He was going to die as a baby so I slipped in. My mother hid away my true self so even I didn't know who I was. Nick's mother was a follower which is how I knew all these people. I met you and fell in love with you as Nick. It wasn't until this past summer when I got a call from my mother that things changed. She brought out my true self and here we are," he said.
"That was a shortened version. You completely skipped the part where you molested my mom and destroyed her bond with my father," I said.
"I thought she was my mate and him an imposter, but I did not weaken their bond. I can't do that. We had a separate bond that was stronger. By the end of that fiasco, your mother taught me how to know my mate. She taught me a lot, but it wasn't until Nick that I truly learned my lesson. I didn't force you into anything. Even after I knew who I was, I didn't change."
"Please Nick or should I say Jace? I just need some time to think. I need time away from you so I have a clear head. Let me go to Shadow Moon," I said.
"I'm afraid you'll go and never come back," he said.
"You're going to have to take that chance," I said.
There was a knock on the door and Ezra entered. "I'll be taking my sister right now. You're not playing your mind games with her."
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"He's been erasing your memories," he said.
"Only the ones that confuse you," Jace said.
"You had no right to play with my mind. Give them back," I said.
"No. We can discuss it if you return," he said.
"Like hell. All of the memories were about Aiden. You thought he might have been your mate," Ezra said.
"But I'm her mate. Someone is trying to confuse her," Jace said.
"Give them back and let her decide. Give them back to Aiden too," Ezra said. "If you want her to believe you then you have to trust her."
He came over to me and touched my head. When I asked if that was everything, he nodded. Then we went to Aiden's house. After he got his memories back he took a long hard look at me.
"Come with me to Shadow Moon," I said.
"No. My place is here. I may not like what he did but I can see why. You're gorgeous and anyone would be lucky to have you, but you are not my mate," Aiden said.
"Why do you say that? Because he says so," I asked.
"I said nothing of the sort, but it's true. He is not your mate," Jace says.
"Okay, Jace. Since you're determined to ruin my life, I give up. I'm leaving. Come on Ezra," I said.
"You can call me Nick. Take the Rover, it's your car after all," he said.
"Don't mock me," I said.
"I'm not mocking you. I'll give you some time then I will come after you. Don't bother trying to hide. The mate bond will tell me exactly where you are," he said.
"Are you threatening me?" I ask.
"That is definitely a promise," he said, then blew me a kiss.
I took a chance and kissed Aiden. It was a desperate kiss, no tongue but full of passion. Sparks flew. I opened my mouth and he stuck his tongue in. I pulled away to see Jace looking furious. I was afraid for Aiden.
"Can you take that away from me,'' Aiden said.
"Gladly," Jace said through gritted teeth.
I spun on my heels and walked away. I hopped into the Range Rover and followed Ezra out of there. I looked in my rearview mirror to see Jace and Aiden wearing similar looks of sorrow. I made eye contact with Aiden and he winked.
It wasn't a long drive to Shadow Moon. I took a room on the second floor. I had nothing to wear but I still had Jace's credit card. He was going to buy me a wardrobe.
I had to get used to using that name. Nick was just a dream. A dream I can never get back. The man I love is a figment of my imagination. That night I cried myself to sleep. Erza came and cuddled with me. My sleep, when it came, was dreamless.