"It's too early in the morning, Caitlyn." I groan out, covering my eyes from the bedroom lights and the sunlight.
Caitlyn ignores my protests and continues to jump on my bed. I didn't get any sleep last night, so I'm irritable as hell and want to go back to sleep. If I can't do that—and from Caitlyn's persistence it's probably true—I need a cup of coffee as soon as possible.
"Damn it, fine." I announce. I rip the heavy blankets off of me and get out of bed.
Caitlyn watches me with an amused look on her face. I can feel her heavy gaze on me as I walk from my bathroom—to use the toilet, wash my hands, brush my hair and teeth— and to my closet—to pick some kind of outfit .
I pick out a red knit sweater, gray sweat pants, and wool socks. "Why the hell are you in such a happy mood?" I grit out once I have changed into my outfit. I head over to the end of my bed to put on my boots.
"Oh, you know the usual. I got laid last night from Ryder, and it was really, really good. I mean he does this thing with his fingers that makes me—"
"No! Stop making my ears bleed!" I yell out, purposely interrupting her so I don't hear all the details. And I know Caitlyn would tell me if I allowed her.
Caitlyn giggles. "You need to get laid, Aurora. Have a guy in mind?"
I roll my eyes at how ridiculous she sounds, but my mind flashes to Zeus and what sex with him would be like. My mind goes crazy at imagining positions and where we could—
No, that would never happen, I think. Caitlyn smirks and pats my head.
"See, I already have you thinking about him." She states.
Caitlyn struts out of my bedroom, and I rush after her to tell her a piece of my mind. Even though she did get me to think of Zeus just not being a know-it-all, that doesn't mean she's right. Though, she technically is.
"I don't understand why you're acting like this." I say.
We're walking down the staircase, but Caitlyn stops and turns around to look at me. She gives me a look of disbelief before it changes to something neutral.
"You're mates and there's no action between you guys. It's depressing, really, because the tension can choke anyone who's around." Caitlyn continues down the stairs.
"So what?" I exclaim. "We just have sex and everything will be better for everyone? Does anyone consider the possibility that I may not ever like him or what to have sex with him?"
Caitlyn laughs a boisterous laugh. Head thrown back and eyes closed. "Oh, Aurora, you can never hide from fate. It will always find you. That's something you should consider."
I roll my eyes at how cliché that just sounded. Caitlyn continues to walk without waiting up for me. She swings open the front door and walks down the porch steps. The snow from yesterday hasn't melted an inch and it comes to almost the bottom of my knees. Caitlyn bends down and lifts an arm full of snow into her arms before throwing it in the air. She laughs and encourages me to do the same.
I follow her same movements, and together, we throw snow into the gray skies and allow it to gracefully land in our hair and on our clothes. Caitlyn gets the bright idea of making a snow man. When she says this, I'm reminded that Thanksgiving is around the corner. My heart sinks at the thought of my family.
"C'mon, Aurora! Stop being a lazy ass and help a girl out!" Caitlyn yells as she tries to make the bottom part of the snowman.
A grin grows on my face at how naturally beautiful my best friend looks at the moment. Her cheeks are a rosy pink from the harsh temperature; snow is in her dirty blonde hair, and her complete look of happiness (with the hint of annoyance because of me) shows that she's having a fun time.
I struggle walking in the snow but drop to my knees to help Caitlyn when I get to her. My fingers become numb and red since I don't have any gloves on as I help Caitlyn make her snowman. When the frosty friend is completed, Caitlyn squeals in delight and takes her flannel scarf off to wrap it around the snow man's neck. It's a few inches taller than I am.
My best friend looks at the snow man with a look of satisfaction. "He needs arms, eyes, a nose, and buttons." Caitlyn announces.
"Will do. Think the wolves will get mad that a stranger is on their property?" I joke.
Caitlyn winks my way. "Probably. They may need to torture him. I won't tell Toasty's weakness to them. Will you?"
"You really named the damn snow man Toasty?" I ask, walking to the woods that are beside the training grounds.
Caitlyn bends down to pick up a stick. She closes one eye and moves the stick around before sneering her nose and throwing it over her shoulder. I lift an eyebrow.
"Sorry. I didn't like that stick for Toasty. And yes, I named him Toasty. Pretty punny if I do say so myself."
I roll my eyes at how ridiculous and weird Caitlyn can be. I pick up a few gray pebbles and shove them in my sweat pant's pockets. Caitlyn decides on two sticks for Toasty's arms, and we head back to the faceless snowman.
As I'm pressing in a pebble where one of Toasty's eyes will be, I feel something tug on my sweat pants. I look down, confused, and see a gray, baby wolf biting my pants leg and wagging its tail. I jump in surprise when three more come running my way.
Their weight when jumping on my legs make me tumble down to the snow covered ground. I scream in surprise when they crawl on top of my body and begin licking my face and neck and yipping loudly. Caitlyn begins to laugh, and I turn my head to see she's experiencing the same thing I am.
One baby wolf, that's sitting on my stomach, begins howling and the rest around me howl also. I cover my ears at the sharp sound. They may be tiny but their howls are loud. A different wolf lies on my face, suffocating me with its soft fur.
"What do we have going on here?"
All the wolves freeze and stop howling. The one on my face rolls off but sits down beside my head. I'm still lying in the snow, and I look up, covered by a shadow, and see Zeus standing above me with a stern look and arms crossed over his chest. The wolves on my body move as I stand up.
I become nervous for some unknown reason. "They just appeared. Caitlyn and I were—"
"Oh, Luna and Alpha! We're so sorry!" Someone exclaims.
Turning around, I see a woman rushing towards us with a pile of blankets in her arms. She glares at the baby wolves and demands they shift. Some whimper but every single one, even the ones with Caitlyn, follows the lady's direction. Naked boys and girls now surround me.
Some glance at Zeus as the woman hands them a blanket to wrap around them. Zeus is standing beside me places his hand on my hip.
"You must have distracted them during the training." Zeus explains.
"Me," I ask in surprise. "All Caitlyn and I were doing was talking and making a snow man."
Zeus doesn't smile but his blue eyes hold amusement. He finds this funny, I think. "Pups can get easily distracted."
"Luna, can we help you make a snow man?"
I look down, and a boy with curly blonde hair and bright green eyes has his lower lip puckered out in a pout. He waits for my answer as he tightly holds the blanket around his tiny body.
"Next time, son. Luna Aurora and Beta Caitlyn needs to warm up." Zeus states.
All the children groan as if they're in great agony. The small group follows behind the woman as she walks around the house and back behind it. One looks over their shoulders and subtlety waves goodbye to me. I can't help but grin and wave back.
A sharp gush of wind hits me in the face, and I realize how cold I actually am once they're out of sight. I notice the shivering my body is doing and how drenched my clothes are from the snow. Caitlyn dusts the snow off her body, glancing at me and winking as if Zeus isn't right beside me and watching her.
"Well, I'll just head over to my room and warm up." She states, walking away from us.
I swear, if Zeus wasn't here right now, I would hit Caitlyn so hard, I think. Zeus clears his throat, and I turn to face him.
"Sorry for that. Caitlyn doesn't know how to be subtle."
"I have realized that after she handed me a box of condoms the other day."
"What? She did that?" I exclaim.
Zeus nods his head. "Yeah, they're in my office." He falls silent, and what he just said makes my body freeze in surprise—and not from the cold. He opens his mouth to say something else, but my mind is already spinning.
He's keeping the condoms in his office? Is he expecting to get any action from someone?
For some reason this pisses me off like nothing else. I give Zeus an overly sweet smile and pat his chest before walking away from him.
"Thanks for the info that wasn't needed." I snap over my shoulder while walking up the porch steps.
I ignore his protests and beat him to my bedroom. Right after I lock the bedroom door, Zeus begins to knock on it, saying he is sorry and what not. I scoff and roll my eyes now that I'm in my bathroom.
I strip out of my clothes and then turn on the shower to hot. My fingers, toes, and nose throb in pain as the hot water above me hits my freezing skin. My teeth chatter the whole time I take a shower. When I'm done standing under the waterfall like shower spray, I wrap a towel around my body and struggle to walk out of the steamy bathroom.
I choose some jeans, another sweater, and fuzzy socks to wear for breakfast. I don't know why Caitlyn woke me up so early just to go outside and build a snow man. I'm not surprised that my stomach growls right when I step into the grand dining room.
Zeus, Rebecca, Caitlyn, Ryder, and other people, whom I don't know the names of, are sitting at the long table talking and waiting for breakfast to be served. The seat on Zeus's left side and across from Ryder is of course empty, waiting for my frozen ass checks to sit down.
Despite the heat being on, my whole body still feels like an ice cube. I sit down in what feels like my assigned seat and wordlessly wait for the unknown breakfast. I wonder what Rebecca made this morning. Pancakes with blueberries? French toast? Cheesy scrambled eggs?
"What do you think, Luna?"
I break away from my food obsessed thoughts and look at the man who just addressed me. He's an older black man, with salt-n-pepper black hair, wrinkles, and a bright smile. I'm shocked at how different he looks compared to everyone else I have seen. It seems as if everyone around here is in their prime years, looking fresh and young.
I feel my cheeks warm in embarrassment. "Sorry, Sir. I wasn't paying attention," I pause at the awkward silence. "I was too busy thinking about breakfast."
He grins. "I completely understand, dear. Rebecca can make a killer breakfast. But I was discussing with Zeus about the guarding rounds. For years we've had men and women choose their time, and Zeus was thinking about changing it."
With eyes widened because I didn't even know this existed, I look at Zeus to know if this is true. He glances my way, striking me with his electric blue eyes, and gives me a sharp nod. I'm reminded of his condom comment, and I keep myself from glaring at him. I face the man instead.
I clear my throat. "Well, I guess it depends on what has happened in the past. If nothing is going wrong, then why change?"
The man nods his head in agreement. "We've had Rogue threats every year, and they're getting worse since we now have an unmated Luna—you—and the threat of being kidnapped is great."
I'm bringing more trouble to this pack, I think. A hand squeezes mine, and I instantly know it is Zeus by the strong tingles and rush of heat it causes. I connect my gray eyes with his blue ones.
"Stop worrying. You've been doing that too much." Zeus states. I slide my hand away from his to stop the tingles he always makes my body do.
I want to say something back, but Mallory enters the dining room carrying a filled tray of breakfast foods. My stomach growls as the smell of strong cinnamon and sweet syrup hits my senses. When the expensive plate is placed in front of me, my mouth waters at the French toast that's drenched in syrup.
"Thank you, Mallory." I comment as she sets down Zeus's plate.
Zeus ignores her. I kick his leg to get his attention. Zeus snaps his head up, eyes widened in surprise. I discreetly point at Mallory, trying to get him to say 'thank you'. Zeus rolls his eyes in disbelief.
"Yes, thank you, Mallory." He huffs out.
Zeus then snatches up his fork and digs into his food without another word. I grin in achievement as I also eat my delicious breakfast. As I'm on my third bite, Zeus doesn't look at me as he kicks my leg. I swear, as I was glaring at him, I almost saw him smile.