Annabell's POV
"Um, so. Anyone want another round at karaoke?" I said awkwardly while giving a grimace. Everyone was looking at me with fear, besides Cole and Jason.
"What was that?" Hailey finally said taking a step towards me. As quick as a flash Brad had Hailey behind his back and was growling. At me.
"Get away from her." He growled. I just raised an eyebrow. Seriously, he does this after he sees me kick an alpha's ass.
"Brad, I would never hurt Hailey, you know." I said slowly. Brad was still breathing heavily.
"Brad, pipe the fuck down!" Hailey yelled as she hit his back. Slowly he let her come out from behind him. Hailey glared at him for a second and then went back to looking back at me like I was a hermaphrodite.
"So. Karaoke anyone?" I tried to say cheerfully and lightly.
WHAT THE FUCK DO I DO! I shouted to Jason and Cole. I saw them jump a little, not expecting that. How do I explain beating a freaking alpha! Most importantly how do I explain there being freaking snow during freaking May in freaking Arizona.
Well for one thing, stop talking about karaoke. Cole joked. This was no laughing matter.
Calm down. It'll be okay. Jason comforted me.
We need to contact the Council. Cole said. I groaned out loud. The Council was so annoying. They were just a bunch of cranky old werewolves that were all men and thought women should be weaker than men. That's why they were sometimes hostile to me. I was a "little girl" to them. A little girl who could kick their sorry asses. Again, Moon Goddess. They need to get a woman on the Council.
Fine. I said. But if they call me "little girl" one more time I will not be responsible for my actions. How stupid are they to piss off the Great Wolf. Stupid old cranky men. I mean you would think that after all the other Great Wolves were woman they would be used to it by now.
"Um, I'm just going to go now." I said awkwardly as I started jogging away. They were still gaping at me and Brooke was just passed out on the floor. Her skirt was way too short. There are some things you just cannot unsee.
I was looking behind my shoulder to see if anyone was going to follow me. When I turned back around I came in contact with a chest. A chest that smelled delicious. A chest that when I touched it made sparks go through my body.
"Nate." I said in a monotone voice.
"Annabell," He said softly. "What happened back there."
"Nothing." I said shrugging. I tried stepping past him but he just grabbed my arm. I frowned at the stupid sparks.
"Annabell, please. Tell me what happened." Nate said desperately. He looked like he was in pain. My wolf whimpered at seeing her mate like this.
I yanked my arm out of his hands and crossed my arms over my chest. "It's called an adrenaline rush. You were pissing me off and I lashed out." I said, then I added through gritted teeth, "I'm sorry."
"Annabell, don't lie to me." Nate said closing his eyes and calming down. "That's not possible. You can't be stronger than me. It's a fact. It's impossible." He said trying to make sense of it.
"Well, when you figure out what happened let me know." I said starting to walk away. Nate grabbed me again.
"Annabell." He said looking into my eyes. His eyes were so blue. They were staring deep into my soul.
Delilah! I shouted making her snap out of her lustful thoughts. She apologized and shrunk back into my mind.
"Nate, it's none of your business." I said shrugging my shoulders.
"Hell yeah it is. You are my mate no matter what you think or say. I heard you talking to Hailey. There is a reason why the Moon Goddess chose us to be together." He said getting a little too close for my liking.
"Their relationship is different than theirs. We don't even have a relationship."
"We could. If you would just give me another chance. I messed up and I have regretted it ever since you left."
"No. You just want me now because I'm not weak anymore." I growled.
"No, I searched for you for months, into years. I was trying to get you back. You seemed to just fall off the face of the freaking planet. Do you know how many times I got a call that someone that looked like you physically was found dead? They were just dumped in a river or ditch. Do you know how scared I was when I would go to identify the body? I would be praying to the Moon Goddess that it wasn't you and I would get another chance." Nate said after a minute.
"You're lying." I said, not know what to say. No he could't feel like this. He couldn't have done that. He was glad when I left. He told me to leave. "You even marked another girl. And out of all the freaking girls in the world it was that bitch!" I yelled.
"That was a pure accident!"
"Oh. You accidentally put your dick in her and bit her neck. Yeah, I don't think so." I said rolling my eyes.
"I didn't touch her at all when you left. You would have felt it." That was true, until then I never felt any pain, well any other pain that my broken heart from when he rejected me. "One night I was so drunk. I don't even remember what happened. All I know is that I woke up to be beside that bitch." He said pleadingly.
"I could still feel you screwing her." I said.
"I'm a guy-" He started.
"I swear if you use the 'I'm a guy and I have needs excuse I will shove a heated curling iron so far up your ass that you will feel it in the back of your throat." That got him to shut up. He probably would have kept talking, but not after what he saw me do to him. "If you don't like her. Why is she still here?"
"She hadn't technically done anything wrong."
"So, you're defending her?" I said with disbelief.
"No! I'm just saying even though I'm alpha I can't go around kicking people out of the pack that I don't like when they haven't done anything."
"So attacking me multiple times in the week that I've been here is doing nothing. Okay then." I said angrily as I turned around and walked away.
"Annabell." He called after me. I was too steamed to reply so I did the mature thing. I gave him the bird.
*******************
"So, what do I do?" I asked Jason as I got back to our room. I went for a quick run to let of steam before I headed back to the pack house. My wolf had needed to be let out. She was anxious, about what happened and about Nate. Had he really been looking for me when I left? My wolf told me yes, but my common sense told me he was lying. "How do I explain any of that!"
"I really don't know." Jason sighed as he walk over to me and hugged me. I almost recoiled at his touch. My wolf wanted something else, someone else. I loosened up and hugged him back. He smelled good, like the air after it had just rained. Clean.
Not as good as Nate though.
"So what should I do." I sighed as I pulled away.
"We need to tell the Council what is going on." Jason finally said not looking happy about it. He hated how the Council treated me. I was one snarky comment away from testing out my skill with fire. Oops, I accidentally set your hair on fire. Sorry.
"I'm going to go find Cole and tell him that I'm probably going to have to go visit them in New York." I said as I left the room. Things were getting way to complicated.
I was deep in thought when I bumped into someone. Not just someone, Luke.
"Hey." I said awkwardly.
"Annabell!" Luke said happily. When I first saw him he looked like a zombie. He had dark bags under his eyes and walked like he was a robot, just on a fixed schedule. Now he looked healthy. The color returned to his skin and his bags were gone. He radiated happiness. Then he turned serious. "I'm sorry for what I did to you." He said ashamed of himself. It was like he was so caught up on me coming back that he didn't realize why I had left in the first place.
"You were right in your letter. I did push the last of my family away. It wasn't your fault. It was my fault. I should have just sucked it up and gone camping with you. If I was there I could have helped them. I could have at least helped Sophie." He whimpered. "I shut you out only because I was upset. Then when I got over it I saw that other people were treating you badly. My ego got the best of me. I wanted to fit in. I wanted to be the future beta that everyone looked up to. I wanted mom and dad to be proud of me. The would be the exact opposite of that if they were here today." By the end of his speech he had tears rolling down his cheeks. I couldn't help it but hug him. He seemed shocked at first but then hugged me back.
"It was not your fault." I said fiercely. He tried to interrupt but I didn't let him. "No one could have predicted that was going to happen. If you were with us you could have gotten hurt, or even killed, too. Then I would truly be alone." I told him as I started to tear up.
"I'm so sorry, Bells." He said, using his old nickname for me.
"I forgive you."
"I love you."
"I love you, too, Lukey." I said using my old nickname for him. I finally had my brother back.
Nate's POV
I sighed as I looked at all the papers in front of me. Annabell didn't believe me that I looked for her. Well if the bills from the private investigators and all the paperwork about her and then the girl found dead wasn't proof I don't know what was. I looked at the first death report I saw after I started looking for her, which was three days after she disappeared.
A girl's body was found in a ditch just south of the Newbury River. She had brown hair, tan skin, 100 pounds and about 5'5. She had no identification on her. She was wearing blue jeans, a plain t-shirt, and a wolf necklace.
I remember my heart had stopped when I read about the wolf necklace. It turned out that was just a coincidence. After so many dead ends I gave up about a year and a half after she left. I always had someone looking for her, but I wasn't so obsessed with her. Because of my actions the pack had started to suffer and I needed to step up and be a better alpha.
I continued to look at the old files when I heard a knock at the door.
"Come in." I said not looking up. In came Cole. I didn't like him. He was too good to be true. My wolf liked him because he helped our mate. "Yes?"
"I would just like to inform you that Annabell will be leaving for a couple days with Jason. The are attending to some personal business in New York City." Cole told me.
New York City? Jason? Alone. Oh hell fucking no.
----------------------------------------------------
Okay next chapter you will meet the Council! Yay! Annoying old people who don't like Annabell being the Great Wolf! What could go wrong? And any new thoughts on Nate? Luke? So any thoughts in general? Leave a comment please!
XOXO
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