I look up at the grand house, not wanting to blink as I'm afraid it is merely a figment of my crazy imagination.
As I waltz up the steps to the large, red oak door, the door immediately is opened, revealing a young boy with sandy blond hair. His dimples pop out as he smiles. He also has bright blue eyes, as blue as the sky.
I smile at him, and he smiles back. "You must be Uncle Maverick's mate." It's more of a statement rather than a question.
I nod with a wide smile. He appears to be only around six or seven years old. It's funny because he has only spoken one sentence to me, and I already like the kid. I can see his spontaneous personality bursting through as he inches closer towards me.
"My name's Elora, and what is yours?" I crouch down a bit, so I'm at his level.
He blushes, darting his eyes to the ground before looking back up at me. "I'm Duke. I like your name. It's really pretty."
Gosh, this kid already has won my heart. He is the poster perfect child, honestly.
"Oh, thank you. I like your name, too." I keep my voice sweet, which is very unlike me.
Just then Duke's bright smile diminishes as I feel a familiar warm hand placed on the small of my back. I glance up towards Maverick. His gaze is set on Duke passively, and I can see Duke physically cower in fear.
Strange...
"Uncle Maverick ... Elora--" he starts to say but is cut off by his Alpha.
"Duke... that is Luna Elora to you," he says with authority. Duke bows his head in understanding.
"Yes, sorry Uncle Maverick. My daddy is waiting for you," he says quietly, opening the door wider.
I really like this kid. Although--I look up at Maverick for a moment--I'm irritated by how Maverick isn't saying 'thank you' to Duke.
Slipping past Duke, I whisper to him, "thank you, Duke." This causes a smile to spread across his face, warming up my heart.
As we walk into the beautiful house, decorated with a modern cabin theme, I hear voices coming from the large room down the hall. Maverick still has his hand placed on my lower back, in a possessive manner. I take a moment breathe in his delicious scent, a divine autumn scent of apples and cinnamon. One of my favorite smells.
I nudge his side for him to look at me, but he doesn't. He proceeds to push me further down the hall without a glance at me. I can feel the tension radiating off his body, and it only grows as we enter the large room. Inside there are two men and a woman; all are insanely attractive. The woman appears to have the same sandy blonde hair as Duke, indicating a relation between the two.
The one man, who is tall, much like Maverick, has bright, sky blue eyes identical to Duke's, yet he has darker brown hair. While the other man, who is also taller but looks quite a bit shorter than Maverick and the other one, has darker features, his hair is a dark --almost black in color. His eyes are a deep, dark brown, and he's definitely the more attractive one between the two.
Maverick clears his throat, and everyone turns over towards us, bowing their heads at their Alpha.
"I'd like you all to meet my Luna, Elora. Elora, this is my Beta, Vander. His wife, Joy. Their son is Duke who you just met before." I nod and smile at the pair. They both smile warmly at me.
I need to congratulate them on making a child who I actually like.
Maverick, then, gestures over towards the other man in the room. "This is my Gamma, Ian."
I also smile warmly at Ian, while also taking notice in how his dark eyes roam my body briefly before giving me a curt nod. He is definitely unmated, and I feel Maverick slide his arm possessively around my waist, tugging me closer to his side. Ian looks away and towards the papers he is holding in his hand.
Joy is the first to speak up, breaking the awkward tension caused by Maverick and Ian.
"It's so lovely to finally meet you. You are much more beautiful than what Alpha described." Her bubbly personality makes me like her even more. Based upon her stature, she seems a bit older than me. I also can't help but to notice how much her son looks like her. It is incredible, to say the least.
I step forward and envelope her in a hug. "Thank you. It's nice to meet you, Joy." She is stiff at first, but then, gives in and hugs me back.
Maverick's Gamma, or Ian, speaks up next. "Alpha, we've been getting many emails and inquiries about allying with neighboring packs. The Dracs have become a greater threat around the area."
Maverick nods and takes the papers out of Ian's hands forcefully. As he reads them over, Joy rushes over towards me.
"Why don't we let the boys here discuss business and get you situated in your room." Her dainty hand lightly grabs my arm and leads me in the direction of the back door. We exit, and I notice a fairly large house placed further back. A large field separates the pack-house and this other house.
"Wait... why aren't we staying in the pack-house? Isn't that where the Alpha and Luna usually stay?" I question Joy as we begin to walk on a little path, leading up to the cute, dark mahogany home.
She smiles softly. "Well, once Maverick became our Alpha, he requested having the home behind the pack-house, but you are always welcome into the pack-house whenever. Vander, Duke and I have our own section within the house. You're always invited to come visit us!"
If most everyone in this pack is this friendly, than I know I'm going to love it here. Joy literally embodies the whole meaning of her name. I know we will be dear friends. Of course, she could never replace Kaia, but it is nice to have someone to rely on in this pack.
"So, I'm guessing after Maverick's dad stepped down, he became Alpha?"
Joy's smile falters slightly.. "Uh well, our Alpha died and Maverick was our Beta, so he was first in line for the Alpha title. He's not really Alpha blood, but since our Alpha had no offspring, he was next in line."
I furrow my eyebrows. Their Alpha died? That's fishy. "Oh," is all I replied. What else am I supposed to say to that? I'm not quite on the level for her to dish out all the latest gossip of their pack yet.
Once we step into the furnished and cozy home, Joy leads me up to a room--my room according to her--which is 'conveniently' placed across Maverick's bedroom. I'm happy to see I have my own small bathroom, and all my bags are set in the room, waiting for me to unpack.
Joy says 'goodbye' after a few minutes of showing me around.
After she leaves, I make my way into the kitchen to find some snacks. I'm starving.
Once I find some cheddar-flavored chips and apple juice, I make my way back up to my room to finish unpacking. Before approaching my room, I turn and look at Maverick's bedroom door. It is the one room that Joy didn't show me earlier, which I find quite bizarre.
Then again, she could be waiting for Maverick to introduce that room to me...if you know what I mean.
After arguing with myself whether or not to just take a peek, I decide to just open the door.
Well, what's he got to hide? Might as well see how his bedroom looks compared to mine.
As I open the door wider, the first thing I notice is that his bed is exactly the same as mine, except the comforter has a large 'M' on it. I then take in the darker furniture, and how the shades are completely black. The only light in the room is slipping out from the hallway.
I walk further in, setting down my chips and juice on the table near the entrance and begin to open up random drawers. Realizing I'm only finding clothes and office papers, I laugh to myself.
Was I really snooping in my mate's room?
Why am I such a weirdo?
I decide to check his large bookshelf for any good books. After combing through many classic novels and literature, something catches my eye: a gold-binded book nestled up onto the top shelf. Raising myself on my tiptoes, I'm able to snatch the book out of its place causing a couple books to shift.
I turn the book around in my hands. The cover has the same cursive 'M' on it like his comforter. I assume it must be a journal of Maverick's...what else would it be?
Should I really be looking at this?
Eh, why not?!
I flip through the pages to find drawings. Not just any drawings, but drawings of dark and murderous looking things.
What the hell is going through my mate's head?
Just as I'm flipping through the beautifully drawn yet frightening pictures, I come across a letter. A letter addressed to someone named Millie.
Who's Millie?
A/N
Hey y'all!
So sorry about not updating. I've had a LOT of crazy stuff go on. Like hella crazy and yeah, so it's been hard to find time to really write... but anyways, I hope you like this chapter.
Also, what do you think of the new characters? Especially Joy and Duke? Duke was actually inspired by a dear past friend of mine... he was always so charming and lovable, and I feel like this is how Duke's character in the story will be like.
Please Vote and Comment!
Much love <3
~Madelyn Joy