Previously, on Love bite.
Rolling over in my mate's grasp, I look at him. Luka's eyes are closed as if he's asleep, but his face is scrunched up. My mate's still restless. There's something else bothering him. I can feel it, but I can't figure out what it is.
But for now, I drift off to sleep with one last fleeting thought in my mind.
I'm just glad I didn't lose my former Omega.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Now Sophie's P.O.V
Opening the bedroom door softly so not to disturb Luka, I walk up towards the staircase, yawning tiredly
From downstairs, I can hear loud voices muffling together as one, it sounds like this house has come alive, or at the very least, we're having a house party. I let out a tired sounding groan, rub my eyes, and keep going. Nothing could be further from the truth.
At like, I don't know around maybe two o'clock this morning. Luka woke up, just screaming and letting out howls of pain. I tried comforting him and asking him what was the problem, but he wouldn't tell me. I did manage to calm him down enough to sleep around four. Afterward, I just stayed up and watched over him. Which is one of the reasons I'm walking around the house, looking like I'm half dead.
Getting off the final step, I smell and hear the mouthwatering aroma of someone cooking breakfast in the kitchen. I turn my head and spot Greg at the stove. I swear these days; this guy never stops preparing food.
I make my way to him. He looks up from whatever it is he's frying and smiles, he then gives me a bow in greeting.
"Morning Alpha."
"Morning Greg," I then try and stand on my tip toes to see what might be on the menu, but to no avail. "What uh, what are you fixing there?"
Greg looks down, giving the food a nod and replies. "Loaded hash browns."
In response, I give him a sarcastic smile and say. "Oh really, so, that must mean you're cooking for a full house, aren't you Greg?"
"You don't know the half of it, Sophie," he retorts, a bit more firmly then I think he wanted too. "Did you know, Keith has already run to the store twice for me already this morning?"
"No, what happened?"
"Nothing major, these Ruby Stone wolves cleaned you out," Greg then gives me an even bigger smile. "With the amount of food, they've been eating, they make cooking food for you and Luka look like child's play." "No offense."
"None taken," I reply, giving him a kind smile. Looking to my right and my left for a moment before facing him again. "Where's your mate and your future step-daughter?"
"Amanda wanted to keep Victoria home for the morning, just in case you've still got to sort some things out with Alpha Ace."
I give him a nod, "I understand." Yawning again, I turn towards the living room couch. "Well Greg, it's been fun talking to you, but I'm going to go take a seat," I say, turning back to face him slightly.
I start walking away, as I do, however, I let out another yawn. From behind me, I hear Greg call after me in a questioning tone.
I turn and take the few short steps back towards him. "Oh, I forgot Greg, I need a..."
"Large coffee this morning," Greg replies, cutting me off and finishing the rest of my sentence.
"Yeah, how'd you know?" I ask, even though I know it's obvious.
"I hear things, Sophie," he replies, still with a smile on his face. "I'll have it out with your breakfast."
I give him a nod of thanks and start to walk over towards the couch, this time, without any yawn.
As I walk into the main part of the living room, a few Ruby Stone wolves turn their heads in my direction.
"Hey, what's up Alpha Sophie," they all say, seemingly in sync.
Walking over, I'm about ready to sit down when I feel someone about to brush past me, and with it comes a female's voice
"Hey, watch it Shadow, I just got this Ice pack."
Before I can make sense of it, the girl in question brushes past. Her hair is blond, short, and spiky. Her eyes are a rich blue in color, almost unnatural. and to her head, she's pressing a blue ice pack to a large bruise.
I wonder what happened to her?
The girl looks back towards me, her lips shifting into a bit of a smile.
"Nice kick," she says, turning around to face me.
Trying to make sense of this, I give her a confused look. "Uhm, thanks, what do you mean by." I then think back on it.
She's the wolf that tackled me to the ground and bit me in the face, the one I sent flying off me at the start of the battle yesterday.
Well, I guess I now know what happened to her.
"Oh, you mean that kick, I'm so sorry about that."
She gives me a warm forgiving smile. "No worries, you did what you had to do."
"Well still, I didn't hurt you too bad, did I?"
"No, just a few bumps, bruises, and a headache," she says, motioning to the ice pack. "How about you? Did I bite your face too hard?"
I shake my head. "No, not really. It's mostly healed, and you hardly broke the skin."
"Well that's good to hear," the girl holds her free hand out to me. "I'm Cora."
"Alpha Sophie," I reply, shaking her hand.
Cora's smile gets warmer, "I know, it's nice to finally meet you. I mean, we've all seen you in Ace's thoughts, but this is my first time I'm actually meeting you in person."
"I know. I know, it's shocking. I must look horrible."
Cora just shakes her head and replies, "No Alpha Sophie, you look fine. We've all had a rough night."
Before I have time to say anything else, someone walks over and starts to poke at the ice pack. Cora's face contorts, and she suddenly looks like she's a snake getting ready to strike.
"My apologies Alpha Sophie, this is my mate Shadow. He thinks it's funny poking fun at this Ice pack of mine, but frankly, if he doesn't stop, he's going to get it."
Hearing her threat and not taking it seriously, Shadow starts poking at the side of the pack even harder, now making a slight contact sound every time.
I give them both a crooked smile. "I get it, troublesome mates, we've all been there. Trust me, been there, done that." "Hi Shadow, it's nice to meet you."
Shadow turns his head towards me, his finger never stops poking the pack. "Morning Alpha Sophie, good morning," he smiles, his brown skin making his light brown eyes appear golden.
Shadow turns his attention back towards messing with Cora, poking the pack so firmly now that she's starting to sway on her feet a bit. By now, Cora's face looks so annoyed, she looks like she could burst into flames at any second. She then turns towards her mate, her voice full of fury.
"Shadow, I love you, but I'm being serious, if you don't stop poking this thing right now, I'm going to..." Her threat is cut short by shadow, who's now trying to lightly grab the pack from her.
"You're going to do what, Cora, what are you going to do?" Shadow taunts her, sneaking his free hand and arm around back, grabbing her free hand. In one swift motion, he then uses his other hand to grab the ice pack from her, holding it in his palm. "Absolutely nothing."
Cora turns towards her mate, her eyes bursting with rage. "That does it, I'm going to get you," she tells him firmly while cracking her knuckles.
Shadow just smiles wider at her, "You know you'll have to catch me first Cora," he taunts, charging up the stairs a few moments later.
Cora rushes after him, thundering up the stairs soon later.
"Try not to wake up my mate guys!" I yell after them.
Finally, being able to sit down on the couch, I let out a sigh. Leaning my head back something, or someone catches my eye. Elliot's to my left talking to somebody, but to my right, Eden's talking with two people, a man and a woman I don't recognize right off the bat, but I know I've seen them somewhere before. The girl turns her head to look at me from across the couch and smiles at me.
"It's been a long time Sophie, my you sure have grown."
Hearing her voice, it only takes a second, and then, I know who she is, or rather who they both are. This is Beddy, Eden's mother, Ace's Aunt, and Michael Summers's sister in law. The man on the other side of Eden is his father Carder, Ace's uncle. Remembering correctly, the last time I saw them was when I was about two. Holy crow, that would mean, the last time I saw them, Eden was still in Beddy's tummy.
How could I not see it?
"Hi, Debby, nice to finally see you again." "Oh, nice to see you again too Uncle Carder," I finally reply to the both of them.
"The feelings mutual, Sophie," Carder says. "Wow, look at you, an Alpha of your own pack, your mom would've been so proud of you."
I smile at the mention of my mother. Yes, she would've been proud, wouldn't she?
"And not to mention your brothers would be to," Beddy adds in.
Just as I'm about to zone out and think about my brothers as well, I see Eden stand up from his spot and walk over towards me. For a moment, he just stands there and clears his throat.
"I just wanted to thank you Alpha for knocking into my mom and dad, so I wouldn't have to kill them, you saved my parents," he says.
"You were the one who saved your parents by finding them first, I just got your head back in the battle," I reply.
"Well, whoever it was, thank you for helping me."
"That's what Alpha's are for," I tell him with a smile.
Looking up at Eden I notice something I haven't notice before. Eden's face looks a lot like Luka's, I mean yes, his hair's a different color, and his eyes might be a different color and shape, but both their faces are practically identical to one or the other.
What could this mean?
Eden gives me a nod of thanks before walking off to rejoin his parents in conversation. A few seconds later, Greg calls us in for breakfast, leaving me to wonder.
***
Pushing my breakfast around my plate with one hand I yawn and rub my eyes with the other. Between you and me, I don't think the coffee's working for me this morning. Maybe I've become immune.
Taking a sip out of my cup anyways, I begin absent-mindedly putting bites of food into my mouth, hoping not to attract attention.
Let's just say, it wasn't just Luka who kept me up all night. When my mate wasn't keeping me up, it was the cries of Loka and McKinley every half hour or so. This itself wasn't a problem though. The best part of being in a werewolf pack, whenever there're new members of the pack, we all take part, allowing Cody and Heather to get some rest. Even some of the Ruby stone wolves helped out last night.
Zoning out with my thoughts, my mind drifts back to Luka. What has me concerned about all of this, I know there's something else going on with him besides the restlessness, but he won't tell me what it is. We're mates, we're supposed to tell each other everything.
"Sophie."
hearing Greg call out to me I snap out of my own thoughts. I turn around in my chair to face him
"What is it, Greg?"
"Can you do me a favor, can you run these plates of food to Ace and Shelby?" He asks, holding out two plates overflowing with food. "I would ask Elliot to do it but he's eating, Luka's still in bed, and I've got to stand behind the stove to finish cooking breakfast."
Looking around, the only pack member I haven't seen around here this morning is Shelby.
She must still be upstairs with Ace, I figure.
"Sure, I'll take their breakfast up to them if you want me to."
Getting up from my chair, I walk over and take the plates carefully from Greg. He nods to me in thanks before going right back behind the stove.
Starting to walk out of the kitchen, a voice I recognize as Jess calls after me, I turn around to face him.
"And while you're up there Alpha Sophie, can you ask our new Luna when she's going to come down?" He asks. "We really want to meet her."
I nod.
"Yes, I understand." "I'll see what I can do."
Walking up to Ace and Shelby's room, I find the door closed. Balancing one of the plates on my arm, I knock softly, not knowing if anybody's awake yet.
"Come in Sophie", Shelby's voice calls out from inside. "It's open."
"You're going to have to help me on this one Shelby, my hands are kind of full."
By the time Shelby comes to open the door, I've got the plate back in my hand. When Shelby opens the door, her eyes widen, and her mouth waters.
"Morning. I brought you two breakfast, Greg's downstairs cooking, and he couldn't leave the kitchen, so here I am."
"I thought I smelled something amazing, but I couldn't tell if it was breakfast or my mate. I can't tell the difference anymore," she then adds. "Thanks, Sophie."
Taking one of the plates from me, Shelby steps back, allowing me to cross the threshold of the door.
Once the door closes behind us, I turn to face Shelby, my voice slightly concerning
"So, how did your first night go?"
Shelby's face beams with my question like she can't wait to answer it or something.
"Last night was one of the best night sleeps I've ever had," she replies. "I mean usually, I'm up for at least three hours thinking what-ifs, but last night the only sound I could hear was Ace's heartbeat."
Just as I'm about to turn away from Shelby, she puts her free hand on my shoulder.
"Sophie, I get it now," she says, her tone barely audible. "I finally get what you and Luka have been feeling for the past year and a half, I just never thought that finding my other half would feel this good."
"Yes, it is amazing when you find the one person you were meant to spend the rest of your life with," I tell her.
"Look, all I know is, I'm never looking at things the same way again."
"Hey, at least your first night didn't include your mate waking you up because he had a nightmare, I tell her, remembering back at the moment and how frightened Luka was.
Shelby nods. "Yeah, but it was understandable, especially for Luka, given his past."
Taking a moment to check in on Luka, I find that he's the same.
Still so restless.
"Luka, what's wrong with you?" I ask.
Nothing.
Walking into the main part of the room, we find Ace hiding from us with the covers of Shelby's bed pulled over his head, like a kid hiding from a monster in their closet.
The site makes Shelby chuckle and I smile.
"Ace, guess who's here to see you?"
Ace says nothing and doesn't move.
"Come on Ace, I'm not here to kill you. Why don't you uncover your face and come out?" I ask him nicely.
Ace still says nothing and only shakes his head no from under the covers.
"Come on Ace, I swear I won't kill you," I say, almost pleading with him now.
Still, nothing, not even a head shake this time.
Thinking of what to do, I look down at the plate in my hand. That's when an idea comes to me. There's no doubt about it, this is Ace's plate judging by the amount of food on it. I face Shelby. She knows what I'm thinking as soon as I look at her, I know she'll play along with what I have in mind.
We both face the bed.
"It's a good thing you won't come out and see us Ace, I say, using a sarcastic tone. "I guess Shelby's going to just have to eat this plate of scrambled eggs, hash browns, bacon, sausage, and cinnamon toast all by herself"
"That's right Sophie, I will, and it looks pretty tasty too," Shelby chimes in.
With that, I wait to see what happens.
Just a few seconds later, we see movement from under the covers followed by a single voice muffled by the blankets.
"Cinnamon toast, with extra butter?"
"Of course, Ace, Greg still remembers how you like your cinnamon toast in the morning," I reply.
Slowly, ever so slowly. Ace comes out of his hiding spot, his hair is a mess, and he's wearing the same dirty shirt from yesterday. But for what all he's been through, Ace is looking a lot better.
"Got ya" I say with a smile.
Like my mother used to say, the only way to your mate's heart is through his stomach.
Taking Ace's plate from me Shelby sits it softly on the bedside table along with hers.
I walk over to Ace's side of the bed and ask. "Wanted to see how things are going, so, how are you feeling this morning Ace?"
Ace has an unsure look on his face but replies anyways. "I'm still feeling super weak, but other than that I guess I'm alright. At least I'm still alive."
"Well Ace, I'm glad you're alive and that you're mostly feeling alright. In fact, I bet you're not going to mind if I do this." making a fist, I strike his shoulder. Hard. Shelby holds back a human growl. "You idiot, what were you thinking?"
"Ow," Ace says as he grips his shoulder, his face contorting in pain. "I deserved that."
"Sophie," Shelby warns, clenching her fists and gritting her teeth, trying hard to hold back a growl. I turn to face her
"Hey, I said I wouldn't kill him, I didn't say I wouldn't hurt him."
"Shelby apple, it's okay, it didn't hurt me too bad," Ace interjects, calming Shelby.
Her whole-body relaxing, I turn back towards Ace.
"You're Lucky a punch to the shoulder is all I'm going to give you," I say firmly, walking back around to the other side of the bed.
Ace interjects. "Look, Sophie, you know as well as I do, I wasn't in control. I had mate madness, my wolf was going mental, he took control, I had no..."
"I'm not talking about that Ace," I cut him off. "You risked the lives of not only your pack but mine as well. You could've been killed, and worse of all...you could've left Shelby without a mate or vice versa, and that would've been the end of it," I tell him, my tone dropping softly.
"Sophie, looking back on it now. If anything would've happened to Shelby yesterday, I would've never forgiven myself, and for that I'm sorry."
"We'll talk more later," I tell him, turning towards the bedside table. "But for now, Ace, eat your breakfast before it gets too cold, and I am not heating it back up for you if it does."
Shelby smiles at my joke.
***
"So, what were you and Luka planning to do today Sophie?" Shelby asks, finishing her plate.
Ace has already cleaned his.
"Oh, I was going to go to the pack hospital and check up on the wounded, possibly talk to my Aunt."
Shelby looks at me with confusion. "Just you?" she then asks. "You're not taking Luka with you?"
I shake my head, "No, Luka had a pretty rough night, he's resting in our room."
"Woah, I'm Sorry to hear that Sophie," Shelby says her voice sounding sorrow filled.
"I know I'm the last person to ask but is there anything we can do to help?" asks Ace.
"I don't think so, I reply. "He just has to get used to the situation."
"Oh, and speaking of Omega," Ace pipes up changing the subject. "I would like to thank you for saving Asher."
"And Asher is who now?" I ask, giving Ace a confused look.
"The little gray pup you saved yesterday, he's Asher," Ace replies. "My father found Asher in the woods when he was just a few days old. My father took him in and raised him, right up until the day he died," Ace continues. "He's like a little brother to me, or at the most, like a son to me now." "With all that has been going on with me lately, I haven't been spending time with him like I used to."
"I'll check on him when I go to the pack hospital for you, if you want me to," I tell him, reassuringly.
Ace nods. "Thanks, that'll be great Sophie," he then continues, giving me a funny smile.
Uh-oh. Ace Summers has something on his mind, and he's about to let it loose.
"Good thing too. With him being nine years old, there's no telling what that little rascal's getting himself in to."
My eyes nearly pop out of my head.
"Asher's nine? and he's already..." I trail off, unable to finish.
"Yeah, he shifted last full moon," Ace confirms. "It was totally unexpected."
Is it just me or are the pups actually shifting younger and younger? Victoria was eight. Cloe and Asher are both nine. This can only mean one thing, something big is coming. But if that's the case, then what is it?
Trying to set my mind at ease, I face Shelby and change the subject.
"And speaking of going somewhere today, Shelby, maybe it's about time you go downstairs and meet your new pack before they start breaking down y'alls door."
Shelby looks startled. Taken aback, but she keeps her cool about it.
"Oh, I don't know Sophie, I don't think that's such a good idea right now. I mean, I've still got to look after Ace and..."
"Okay Shelby, I'm going to stop you right there for a second," I say, cutting her off. "You said pretty much the same thing to me last night. I could understand it then, but now..." I pause, trying to think of my next words carefully. "Ace is fine, you heard him say it himself. Except for being weak, he's feeling fine. He's not on death's door like he was yesterday." "You can't be a little puppy hiding with your tail tucked between your legs forever."
Looking over towards his mate, Ace reaches out a comforting hand towards her.
"Shelby, it's okay. Go on and meet the pack, they don't bite."
Turning towards him, Shelby gives Ace a surprised look.
"Are you sure?"
"I'm positive." Ace then gives her a very stern look. "And if they do bite, they're going to take it up with me."
Taking Ace's hand gently in her own, Shelby gives him a warm smile.
"Well alright," she replies softly and then leans down and gently kisses ace on the lips sweetly. Breaking apart from him, she adds. "I'll be back, be good while I'm gone."
Ace just shines her a wide teeth-filled smile.
"Ah, Shelby my sweet, I wouldn't dream of acting any other way."
Shelby smiles wider at him.
"I'll see you in a while my love, bye"
Shelby then turns around and walks out of the room, leaving me alone with Ace. He looks towards me.
"Thanks for bringing us breakfast, Sophie. Oh, and tell Greg it was amazing, as always."
"Okay Ace, I will. Now if you excuse me, I'll see you later."
I turn around and follow after Shelby. When I catch up to her, she's only a few feet up the hallway and walking very slowly.
When I come walking up alongside her, she gives me a confused look.
"Sophie what are you doing? Why are you following me?"
I just smile at her and reply. "Seeing my best friend, now a future Luna meeting her new pack for the first time. I'm not missing that for the world, Shelby."
She just gives me a nervous smile.
As we get closer to the staircase, I can fill some emotions bubbling up on the other end of Shelby's connection. It feels like a pressure cooker of emotions like it did on the day she snapped at Cody during training and everything came out.
As we reach the top of the stairs, I can hear Shelby's heart rate pick up, and with that, her emotions bubble over, one more than any other. It's one Shelby knows all too well, it's her fear.
Just as Shelby's about to take her first step down, she stops herself and takes a step back.
"No Sophie, I don't think I can do this. No, no."
I look back towards her. She's no longer the Shelby I saw back in her room with Ace, laughing, smiling, kissing. She's the Shelby I know, withdrawn, shy, lost in the shadows."
I put a hand on her shoulder.
"Oh yes, you can. Remember what we talked about back in your room? You can't be a little puppy hiding with your tail tucked between your legs forever."
"No Sophie, I really can't do this. What if I mess up?"
"And?" I ask her, feeling that there's something more to it than just that.
"What if I mess up, and Ace and the pack decide they want nothing more to do with me," Shelby says, her voice dropping a bit.
"Oh, is that what's bothering you? The fear of rejection" I ask, feeling the fear in her subside a bit.
"Why do you think I've been hiding on this floor for almost twenty-four hours straight, Sophie?"
"Is this you talking, or your mom?"
She says nothing, I decide to change the subject.
"If you think you're scared, take a walk in my shoes for a second. I was fourteen when I had to do this, I was still pretty much a child. You're lucky you're doing this at seventeen," I tell her softly.
"Really Sophie, you were scared?"
"Of course, I was. We all get scared sometimes in our lives, Shelby."
"What did you do?" she asks.
"Well, before I came down these steps, I took in a deep breath and let it out."
"But, what if I...?"
"Mess up? Look, Shelby, the bottom line is, you're going to mess up, but the beauty of it is you'll improve over time. That's how we learn." "Believe me, I've messed up loads of times, but I got back up again," knowing Shelby's not going to say anything, I continue speaking. "And Shelby, you have nothing to worry about Ace rejecting you."
"How do you know?" she finally asks.
"Cause you two were made for each other," I reply, pausing for a second, I again choose my next words. "And don't worry about what the pack thinks, that's their problem. As long as Ace loves you like I know he does, that's all that matters."
"Like how you and Luka were in the beginning."
"Yes exactly. When he first met me, Luka felt like I was the only one who loved him. and for a while, I pretty much was. But after a while, people saw how good he was, and the rest, as they say, is history."
"Do you have any advice for me before I do this?"
I get in real close to her and whisper. "The only piece of fitting advice I can give to you Shelby is, don't be afraid to let your true star shine through."
From the inside of my mind, I can feel Ace's connection connect with the both of ours. It's just like having a three-way conversation.
"Breathe," he says, calmingly to her.
If this is what it's going to be like from now on when our packs communicate with each other, I can't wait to use it more often.
Ace then turns his attention to me.
"Thank you so much for helping her Sophie. I'd do it myself, but I'm stuck in bed for the time being."
"No sweat, now you get some rest."
"Yes Sophie," he replies with a slight huff in his tone.
Shelby then takes a deep breath in and lets it out, she faces me with a nervous but determined smile upon her face.
"Alright, let's go," she says.
Taking her gently by the arm, we begin walking down the stairs together. Shelby's my best friend and she always will be, the least I can do is support her through this scary transition.
With every step we take filling like a mile, Shelby turns towards me and asks. "What if the other Ruby Stone wolves still don't like me, what'll happen then?"
I just reply simply, "Then Ace will probably kill them."
The fear on her connection vanishes.
"You're going to do great," I whisper, leaning in slightly.
Stepping into the living room, I clear my throat and all the heads in the room turns towards us. Shelby shrinks back a bit but keeps walking.
"Guys, can you make a whole for a second please?" I ask.
Within a second, the gathering of Ruby Stone wolves grants my wish and part ways, giving us both a path to the front of the room.
The two rows of heads start perking up, but this time it's not because of me, they can smell Ace's scent on Shelby and they're getting excited.
Getting to the front of the room, we both turn around and face the crowd. I clear my throat, the pack on bated breath.
"Okay everyone, this is Shelby Green. She's Ace's mate and the future Luna of the Ruby Stone pack," before anyone has a chance to respond, I add. "Please understand this is all new to her, so she's a bit shy and scared at the moment.
Stepping back, allowing Shelby to stand on her own, I cross my fingers and hope for the best. I'm still an arm's reach away from her, just in case she needs me.
Shelby looks up, the color in her face brightens a bit.
"Uhm, hi" Shelby peeps nervously, her voice barely audible.
That was a memorable first impression, Shelby.
To our surprise, Jess is the first Ruby Stone wolf to cross the room towards Shelby. He gets to her and stops
I hold my breath, afraid of what may happen, and how Shelby will react.
He looks at her and says, "Luna," bowing his head in respect to her.
I and the rest of the Ruby Stone wolves, as well as some of our own repeat the same actions.
I do it, not because I have to, but rather out of respect for my best friend.
"Luna,' I say, bowing in sync with the others.
Even Luka joins in from the other end of my connection.
When we all look back up, I can see Shelby's blushing like crazy and she's a bit flustered, looking around at us like crazy for a moment.
"I'm Jess Parker, your Head Scout, and it's an honor and a privilege to finally get to meet you, Luna Shelby."
Jess then surprises all of us by giving Shelby a small kiss on the back of her wrist.
"Thank you, it's nice to finally meet you as well," She says nicely, but still a little flustered.
Ace then cuts through the pack connection, his voice booming.
"Watch it, Jess, that's my mate you're kissing on, get your own. She's mine!"
The volume of Ace's voice causes me to take a step back and place my hands over my ears in an attempt to block out the noise.
"Sorry sir," Jess says, apologetically.
"Calm down Ace, it was just a peck, a one-time thing."
"Jess is this going to be a one-time thing?"
"Yes Alpha," Jess replies, breathing out a sigh.
"Okay then, I guess I'll let it slide," Ace says, calming down somewhat.
"Yes, you will," Shelby tells him, she then adds. "Now apologize to Sophie, you scared her half to death when you yelled."
"Sorry I scared you, Sophie, my Alpha tone can get pretty loud when I'm upset, are you okay?"
He sounds like a kid who's just been scolded by his mother.
"It's cool Ace, no harm, no foul," I say back with a smile, bringing my hands down from my ears.
Turning his attention back towards Shelby, his connection beaming with happiness for her.
"You did it, my mate, you're one of us. Welcome to the Ruby Stone Pack."
Shelby's face glows with a bright smile.
"Thanks, Ace, that means the world coming from you."
Ace disconnects the mind link.
Turning our attention back towards the front of the living room, Jess speaks, his voice kind.
"Come on Luna, I'll introduce you to the rest of the pack."
Holding up her hand, Shelby replies, "Hold on just for one moment."
Walking away from Jess, Shelby surprises everyone by walking over towards me, the crowd parts ways for her as she walks.
Shelby stopping in front of me, I bow my head.
She gives me a disapproved look. "Come on Sophie, please don't do this every time I come around you. I've still got to have a few friends who treat me like a normal person."
"Oh, okay. Congrats, you did it."
"Thanks." "Anyways before you go, Sophie, I just wanted to thank you for all those times you believed in me even though most of the time I didn't."
"Well that's what best friends are for, Shelby, they believe in each other," I reply.
Wrapping her arms around my neck in a hug, Shelby leans towards my ear and whispers softly.
"You're the best, best friend a girl like me can ask for Sophie."
"Don't go all mushy on me now Shelby, you were doing so good."
"Ha-ha, very funny Sophie. Oh, before I forget. When you get to the pack hospital, can you ask your ant to stop by later on this evening? Ace wants to get in the tub, and I want her there in case we need help."
"Okay, I will," I reply, breaking apart from her. Looking around at all the pack members, I add. "Now go on, meet the rest of your pack."
Shelby gives me a smile. "Have a great day Sophie, I'll see you later." She then walks off and rejoins Jess, leaving me alone.
Turning towards the couch that Elliot's still sitting on, I call out. "Hey Elliot, you want to head over to the pack hospital to check up on the wounded?"
Knowing Elliot, it will only take a second to get his reply.
"The pack hospital? Sweet, I'm in."
See. Elliot loves going to the pack hospital. as long as he's not the one being treated that is.
==========================================
Yes, I'm finally done with chapter 37. I don't have much to say, other then Shelby's finally Luna of the Ruby Stone Pack, yay. I made the outline for this a bit too long, hints why it took me longer to write than the others.
Last time, what do you guys think is wrong with Luka?
As always to all of our new Emerald Shifters please be sure to keep reading, because we like to watch the numbers go up. Vote, because we love the support. Comment, so that you can give your opinion, and if you find any mistakes, feel free to let us know. Add it to your reading list and library, to stay updated. And share it, to get it out there, Bye guys.
Please be sure to follow the Rose_Wolf_ Author page and like us on FaceBook.