My heart pounded in my ears as I wove through the almost non- existent road which led to the pack house. The house was in the heart of the Austrian Alp’s and was almost inaccessible to vehicles save for the one path I was driving down. I’d caught a two hour flight to the nearest airport and then bought a second hand car I knew would be able to handle the conditions. Thankfully it was summer so there was no ice or snow to cause a dangerous accident.
My palms became sweaty as I saw dark shapes darting through the trees. Anyone else wouldn’t have seen them but with my training and knowledge of pack workings, I knew that they were patrols. They would have contacted the alpha, Jenna and enforcers telling them that an unknown vehicle was encroaching on their pack land. Ten more minutes and I would be there...
It was exactly the same as last time and I still didn’t know how they’d react- I’d left... again, though this time I had said goodbye. At least this time I hadn’t left it so long- I’d only been gone for three months, though it felt like eternity.
When I’d killed Fahman I was put under review. At the end I had handed in my resignation and given an honourable discharge from the SAS. I’d styed for a week to tie up loose ends which bought me to this moment. The car tires crunched on the gravel driveway as I pulled up but this time I didn’t hesitate to get out. The moment I closed the door I was tackled to the ground and my face was covered in slobber by two massive wolves- Hansel and Ace, my goofy dads.
I laughed and pushed their faces away as I sat up. “Missed me?” They barked as I stood with a huge smile on my face. The front doors were ripped open and I watched as Jenna came sprinting out with Klaus, Hunter, Matthias (my grandfather), Marti (my grandmother), Elliot, the twins, Pierre and a few of the men I’d helped trained following her.
I was tackled by Jenna and then passed around with varied greetings and enthusiastic chatter. I grinned and bared it though because I knew that they were just happy to see me.
“What a beautiful sight to see you alive.” Jenna whispered in my ear, holding me tightly. “We all missed you Eve.”
“I missed you too.” I confessed, taking a step backwards. “All of you.” One person in particular though. I looked around to try to see his face but he wasn’t there.
I turned to Jenna but she just shook her head. “He disappeared the day you left; none of us have seen him since.” I literally felt my hope deflate; he’d left? I guess I couldn’t blame him, I’d left as well, but only because I had to.
He was gone.
“Oh.”
Jenna gave me a sad smile before she swept me inside, my father’s following close behind. “No matter, tonight we’re going to have feat to rival a king’s.”
I rolled my eyes at Jenna but with a smile followed her up to her room where she proceeded to throw dresses at me.
-
The dress Jenna decided on was skin tight, fit me like a glove and moulded to my curves, the neckline ending at the base of my neck with capped sleeves. The pattern on it though was… indescribable. It was black and white, compressed of a multitude of minute shapes and designs that transformed it into a work of art.
I slid into it, wearing a sexy strapless lace bra and matching thong. It zipped up the back which Jenna helped with and then Davy, one of Jenna’s betas did my hair and makeup; they were really going all out for this dinner.
I walked into the hall flanked by Jenna, my fathers and the rest of the high rankers. We took our seats and dinner began. The food was delicious and it was great to catch up with everyone but I was distracted- where had Kade disappeared to?
“So how long are you home for? When do they expect you back?” Elliot asked from a few chairs down.
It caught the attention of many people and they listened for my answer. “I resigned, I’m home for good.”
Jenna raised her glass and grinned. “Well then, welcome back to civilian life, though I’m sure you’ll take to the training grounds like a duck to water.” I held my glass up and we all toasted. Her words were true though- I wouldn’t just sit back, I’d ask to join the warrior ranks and hopefully end up training a few people.
Desert was a decadent chocolate cake but although I love chocolate, I really wasn’t feeling it. “Jen could you save me a really big piece of that for later?” I asked, pointing to the giant cake. “I’m going to my room, I’m dog tired.”
A few people laughed at my unintentional pun but I ignored them. I really was feeling tired. I slipped off the black heels I’d borrowed from Davy and slowly climbed the stairs, ignoring the memories that flooded me as I passed the spot of the… confrontation.
I tried to shake it off as I walked but it had left a hole in my heart and forever changed me- I lost a child and my old life. I reached the top floor and pushed open my door. Almost immediately I was overwhelmed with Kade’s scent; it was everywhere, my bed, my closet, my rug. It smelt like he’d been sleeping in my bed since I left- but if Jenna said that she hadn’t seen him, that must have meant that he snuck in and left before everyone got up. But why?
I shrugged it off and began the fight to unzip Jenna’s dress. It took my at least five minutes and after I threw it over a chair and jumped into the shower.
I’d always love showers- even when I felt like no one in the world cared, I always felt better after a shower. I guess it gave me time to think, let me cry without anyone around, for a period of time nothing really seemed to matter.
But like all things they ended and I jumped out, drying myself before walking through the door into my room to stand in front of my closet. I let the towel drop as I looked through my closet and when I noticed a massive shirt tucked into one of my partially empty drawers, I scooped it up and held it to my nose- it smelt like pine and rain, Kade.
I got dressed and crawled into my bed, burying my face in my pillow, cocooning myself in the warmth of my blankets. I felt an ache in my chest as I drew in a deep breath but I pushed it back and closed my eyes.
-
A feather light touch- that’s what I felt on the side of my face. It jolted me awake but I kept still, my eyes closed, my heart rate and breathing even. I strained my senses and picked up their light breathing, the thumping of their heart in their chest, the scent of pi…
My eyes snapped open and although it was dark, shafts of moonlight shone through my window. A massive figure hovered over me and my first instinct was to break the arm touching me but then I caught his scent again and I smiled.
My hand reached up, running up his bare chest, over his shoulder and across his biceps. I pulled him down on top of me, wrapped my arms around his neck as my legs came up to wrap around his waist and kissed him.
He held most of his weight off me as our lips moved together and as my lungs began to burn, he pulled back, running a finger down my cheek. “You’re really here?” He rasped, sounding completely doubtful. “I’m not dreaming?”
A smile worked its way onto my face as I stared up at him, one hand playing with his black locks, the other reaching around to cup his cheek. “You’re not dreaming, I’m here and I’m not going anywhere.”
He sighed and rolled into my bed beside me. We lay in silence as I stared up at the ceiling with a grin on my face- he was here, next to me.
“I’m sorry I left.” I said, breaking the silence. “I would’ve stayed if I could have but I couldn’t; I had an obligation to see it through, and I did. I don’t know how you feel about me, you don’t talk that much, but I do know that you do care and I just want you to know that I’m not leaving again; I’m sticking with you regardless of whether you want me to." He’d stuck with me even though I’d been pregnant and after the… incident, he was still with me.
I could feel him staring at me so I rolled onto my side to gauge his reaction. Like always his face was pretty blank and I just felt… frustrated. I climbed on top his chest and stared down at his face with a frown. “Say something? Please?”
I searched his face as he lay there and stared up at me. I sat atop him for what felt like forever until I shook my head and sighed, moving to move away. “Who am I kidding? I’m sorry, I shouldn’t force you to talk even when it’s clear that you don’t l-“
“I don’t even remember who I was before the hunters; but they did things, made me do things… things that no person should ever have to do.” He said, his voice cracking as his large hands gripped my hips, immobilising me above him. He paused and it seemed like he was trying to get his thoughts into order, trying to figure out what to say. He took a deep breath and released it as he began to talk again. “And then you came along and you were so sad and strange and strong. I just, I felt… alive again, like myself- whoever that may be.”
His eyes were haunted and although he says that he doesn’t remember anything, I knew that subconsciously he still carried a lot of pain. We all deal with trauma and the pain it brings in different ways and I knew that he was trying to deal with what he’d done and what had been done to him. I looked down at him as a tear slid down my cheek, his grip softening. I leant forward, wrapping my arms around his head as I hugged him to my chest. Sometimes we just needed a hug from the people who cared about us and who we cared for.
I pulled back after a few minutes and slid back onto my mattress, cuddling up to his side as he wrapped an arm round me.
Throughout the night we talked- well I talked and he listened. We kissed, cuddled and as I drifted off to sleep as the first rays of light shone through the window, I felt him press his lips to my forehead.
“I love you too.”
A smile crept onto my face as I sighed and buried my face into his chest. “I know.”