I lifted my gaze from my plate, the chicken wing in my fingers falling onto it with a light tapping sound. Raking my eyes over her face, just to make sure it was truly her to speak, it did not surprise me to find that she was pretty. Now I could look at her without feeling rude, since she spoke to me, I noted her dimple chin and slender nose. Her brows were arched and well styled, her lashes long and kissed with make-up.
"Are you talking to me?" I questioned.
She blinked, a small smile gracing her lips. "Of course. You're new here, right?"
Swallowing, I nodded, shifting my weight. "I am..."
"Well, I'm Piper, thought I'd formally introduce myself." She grinned, holding out her hand to me.
I eyed it curiously, but joined mine to hers and gave it a gentle shake. Her hands were slender and soft, a warmth coming from her that rivalled the water behind me.
"I'm Ailia." I nodded, dropping my hand.
"I hate to state the obvious here, but you are a human, right?" She cocked her head.
Was she genuinely being this... nice and talkative?
"I am." I nodded again, feeling like a flag in a breeze.
Someone jostled me, causing me to stumble from the impact. My eyes flew to see the female giving me a grimace, but Piper caught on, taking my elbow and pulling me around to stand beside her. She grinned at me, one or two inches taller than me. Pulling me a little closer, she breathed deeply, letting out a content sigh as she exhaled.
"You smell like a wolf?"
I frowned, casting a glance at Asra to see a male by the barbeques had pulled him away.
"I had a blood transfusion." Glancing down at my torso, I gestured lazily with my hand. "I got badly injured."
She gasped when she saw the scarring I gestured too. "Oh you poor thing, those hunts are so brutal. You look a lot better now."
I saw Mya still standing where I was previously and she gave me a confused look to which I shrugged at. She scanned the female beside me with scrutiny before looking towards her Alpha. Only then did she shrug and wave goodbye, leaving me with Piper.
"I feel better." I smiled tightly.
"I bet! You're a wonderful swimmer, too. I saw you go under for a long time. I bet that helped your leg heal up."
My lips quirked in amusement. "It feels good. I enjoy swimming."
"Me too!" She grinned, shaking her shoulders. "Oh, Ailia, we have to talk."
"We do?"
She giggled. "Yes, I'd love to get to know the new pack member."
I was about to point out the various other members, such as Olivia, but decided against it. Maybe she had already met her when I was in a weird drug-induced coma? But she wasn't here when I woke so...
"Tell me something about yourself?"
"There isn't a lot to tell." I shrugged, looking back to my cooling dinner. "I was found and brought here from my village."
She noticed my obvious attention to my food and let out a small snort. With a delicate grace, her pink painted sharp nails picked up my chicken wing and eyed it curiously.
"You know, you should try the burgers. They are so good." She chuckled.
It took aback me when she pulled my chicken wing apart, raising half of the meat to my face. She pushed it against my lips, giving me a grin of encouragement. This was something Everett often tried to do to Olive over dinner. Eve claimed it was to show care to another, but also could be seen as flirtatious, and so it shocked me when this stranger was keen to share.
My eyes roamed freely with shock, locking onto the intense gaze of my mate behind Piper's back. He locked his dark blue eyes on me, the cooking tongs in his hand paused mid-way to pick up a burger. He was keen to get on my bad side, keen to bring me down... So, with a smirk of bubbling adrenaline, I parted my lips.
His eyes narrowed as Piper pushed the chicken past my lips, her finger grazing my mouth as it left. He was rigid, tense as he glowered at me. Shifting uncomfortably, he was about to come over to us when Piper giggled. I snapped my attention back to her, to see her giving me a keen smirk.
"I think you'll settle in here very well." She chimed, eating the other half.
"Thanks." I smiled, blushing. "Do... Do you usually live here?"
She cocked her head, and I blabbered to continue.
"I saw you arrive yesterday, so I just wondered."
Her eyes widened with realisation, a small giggle escaping her lips. "Oh, you saw that. But no, I am not from this pack. I'm from another Continental pack, though, across the ocean."
"Oh really? What's it called?" I wondered.
I could do some research later, perhaps.
"My pack is the Ardour pack. My father is the Alpha."
I hesitated before giving into my curiosity. "And you and Alpha Asra are..."
Her lips twitched slightly, the corners of her eyes grimacing for a moment. That was curious. I wonder why that triggered a reaction?
"We're intended." She stated unemotionally.
"Intended?"
"Oh, humans. So much to learn." She sighed dramatically, changing the subject. "We will have to hang out, so I can teach you more and we can get to know each other."
I hesitated at her eagerness, but took the moment to appraise her. Despite her natural beauty, I didn't find her as a threat. If she and Asra were "intended" then it had to mean there was something there, and if he cared for her, all the better. I didn't want to be here anyway...
"Okay, that sounds good." I nodded, picking up another piece of the chicken wing.
She beamed, her white perfect teeth taking me by surprise. "Oh, thank you. I can't wait to get to know you better. There's just something about you. It draws me in."
Wasn't the first time I had heard that...
I must've voiced that out loud, because she laughed.
"Oh, you are funny too. It's a breath of fresh air from this pack. They're all so serious and dated."
"They are?" I wondered.
"Well, half of them. The elder wolves are stuck in the past. A lot of things could do with updating, morals especially."
"Yeah, I think I know what you mean." I nodded, thinking about a certain nurse.
Someone suddenly shouted at her, and she turned to give them a broad grin, her hair shining as she spun around.
"One second!"
Looking back at me, she stepped forward to embrace me. My free hand wrapped around her back with surprise as both of hers cupped my sides.
"Come find me tomorrow morning?" She questioned once she pulled away.
"Sure..."
"Oh, that's silly of me. You can't smell me!" She giggled. "I will be down for breakfast. I love weekend breakfasts."
I lowered my hand, giving her a hopefully encouraging smile. "Okay, I'll see you then."
With a final breath-taking grin, she spun away to stride over to the woman that shouted for her. I stood there gobsmacked for a moment, my brain lagging in processing what just happened. Shaking my head, I picked up another chicken wing as I went, since she ate half of mine...
Making my way around the lake, I felt eyes burning into the back of my head. I don't know how I knew someone was watching, usually putting it down to paranoia, but this time it was intense. Raising my eyes from where I was walking, I looked over my shoulder, connecting my gaze with the Alpha straight away.
Asra's eyes were still blazing with restraint as he stared emotionlessly into my eyes. The corner of my mouth twitched as I ran my eyes along his tight t-shirt before flicking them back up to his face. A slither of frustration marred the crease in his brow and my lips pulled into a full-blown grin at the accomplishment. It was so easy to get under this man's skin...
Rejecting his presence, I turned my attention back to my destination.
Eve was sitting on a blanket, her dark eyes locked on me, just like the others were. As soon as I reached them, I was flooded with an abundance of questions, most of which I could answer to their satisfaction.
"Damn, that's weird. You becoming friends with your mates thing?" Mya's nose crinkled.
I scoffed, shaking my head. "He isn't my mate."
"The way he looked when you took the chicken from her hand... He was a blaze of fire. If it wasn't for Caleb, holding him back..." She grinned.
I shook my head, dismissing it. "Besides the point... Eve, she said something to me I have heard many times now."
"What's that?" Eve wondered, crossing her arms.
"She said there is something about me that intrigues her, that draws her in. Mya has said the same thing to me before. What is going on? Do I smell good enough to eat? Is Piper going to eat me?" My voice trailed to a whisper.
The others snorted, but Eve gave me a sympathetic smile. "It's not a taste for your human flesh, Ailia. More a taste of your soul."
I blanched, blinking at her. "What?"
She was serious for a second longer before bursting into a fit of giggles. I exhaled heavily, shooting her a glare as I chewed on my corn cob.
"Okay, but seriously..." Eve giggled breathlessly. "I think it's because you are a werewolf's mate. You have a pull that people can't quite understand, so, naturally, we want to know more. We are animals."
I rolled my eyes. "And if the roles are reversed?"
"What do you mean?" She wondered.
"Why do I feel so... warm around some of you?"
She blushed lightly, looking at her sister. It was Mya who answered my question. Eve was too shy to acknowledge my attraction.
"We have, like... an essence. It calls to weaker species. Those stories you said you were told as a kid? Probably true." Mya shrugged. "Wolves in or close to their heat will attract, but otherwise, it's just a way for you to find a suitable mate."
"A suitable mate?" I screeched. "With Piper? With you?"
She laughed. "I'm flattered you think of me that way."
Rolling my eyes, I picked at my food again. "You wish."
She grinned. "What I mean is, wolves who you feel drawn too, are likely to be a good match. Do you feel the same around Alpha?"
I grimaced, trying not to acknowledge the attraction I felt towards him, so instead, I changed the conversation's direction.
"That's not it, it can't be." I shook my head. "I'm human. I don't have werewolf traits."
"Even humans have senses. Perhaps it is what you call your sixth sense. Or just your nature's call. You're drawn to us because we have magic in our bones, and we are drawn to your fragility and innocence."
Sighing, I gave her a small nod. "Okay. So, you're all just freakishly attractive and I have no choice but to lather myself in the attention. Got it."
They all laughed, Olive even chiming in a light-hearted giggle. Mya snorted, her head falling back as she leaned on her shoulders. Her chest heaved with quiet laughter, but she didn't provoke me any further. Eve remained flushed, but held a small smile on her face as she caught my eye.
"How long do you guys usually stay out here?" I wondered once my plate was empty.
"Quite a while. We have a communal swim, just to, you know, try the old wolf's tale. Then we shift and go for a run when the moon rises." Eve explained.
I felt my chest sink with worry. "Shift?"
Eve nodded. "We go for a run until the Alpha decides we have to turn back in."
"What do I do?" I wondered.
"Stay here, go home, or try to keep up." Eliza smirked.
Knowing she was joking, I tutted at her. "Like I could catch up to you."
They laughed again, plunging us into a comfortable silence. The next few hours blurred together as I hung out with them. Occasionally we would dip into the water, the wolves of the group going back for more food every so often. We even tried out a game of chicken, and they put me against Olive since she was human. I was on Mya's shoulders, her hands grasping my lower thigh as we eyed Eliza and Olive.
Eve, the referee, whistled for us to go. With a warrior cry, Mya moved us closer, my hands darting out to push Olive from Eliza's shoulders. It was a tussle of giggles and too much hair to see straight until I was able to push the smaller human from Eliza's shoulders. They both fell backwards, a triumphant cheer coming from both Mya and I.
Her hands released my thighs just as mine raised in the air to acknowledge my win, causing me to lose balance. I had been relying on her strength for holding me to her, so as soon as she let go, so did I. I gasped with surprise as I fell backwards, my body hitting the water instantly.
I embraced the shocking hug of the lake, its warmth seeping into my bones and relaxing my mind and soul. It was a weird kind of healing therapy that I absolutely loved. I never knew water could be so refreshing and welcoming. I wondered if the others felt the same. If they did, they didn't show it, their faces passive as they swam.
Coming up for air, Mya was laughing all of us, including Eve who had been too close to me when I fell and now was soaked in water. I wiped the water from my eyes, grinning at her.
This day was actually super fun. I was glad I came down to enjoy it. Call it a spur of the alpha blood, but the adrenaline and power in my bones was exhilarating. Perhaps I could join them on the run after all?
Snorting to myself, I dismissed that idea. With every passing moment, the sun grew lower into the sky, until it was a mere slither. The air grew chillier, as if in anticipation of what was to come.
Wolves shifting... I do hope they are cuter than the ones I have seen so far.
***********
Howdy partners
Question of the Day:
First impressions of Piper??
Also, shall I post word counts like I did for lost luna? Is that something ppl like to see?
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