Rosemont was exactly the way Kane had pictured it. Old colonial style houses lined the streets, the lights of the vestibules lit up like street lights, guiding their way through the town. Everywhere was green, from the expanses of grass to the many trees that surrounded the pack. They had a wall, of course, but they were also shrouded by a tree line, making the place seem even more secluded. They passed by many parks, fitted with swings and shiny play equipment and man-made ponds. This place was as old money as they come, like Nora's pack, however, they were only a fraction of the size.
Rosemont was quite a far distance away from the bigger cities, so that made it more secluded in itself. If it wasn't for the rogues, they wouldn't even need a wall, they were so far away from humans. Kane, for one, was very thankful for the wall they were surrounded by. He felt, for the first time in hours, that he could breathe again. He had seen it as they arrived, and it was old, that he could tell, but it didn't look easily defeated. He felt safe behind its walls in a way he hadn't at his own pack, not since he had seen the tears in their chain fence. This was no chain fence, this was a solid wall.
Kane drove them to the centre of the small town, where he could see a house covered in light. If he hadn't assumed the biggest house on the block was the Alpha's, he definitely did now. Outside were a few SUV's parked next to the garden, in the middle of which, a marble wolf sat prominently.
"I had no idea the pack was this fancy," Mason murmured.
"Old money combined with a small pack with few expenses equals rich as hell," Nora told him.
Kane parked next to one of the cars. "Welcome to our home for the next few days," Kane told them.
"Can we live here forever?" Mason mused as he stared up at the house.
"I wouldn't say no to that offer," Nora agreed. She motioned towards the wolf statue. "I wonder who that's supposed to be."
Kane threw a couple of the duffle bags over his shoulder. Nora and Mason walked to the trunk of the car to help but Kane closed it. "I'll come back for the rest of the bags. You two are injured."
"We are fine," Nora told him, reaching for the handle. "A few cuts never held us back."
Kane motioned to Masons head. "A concussion might."
"Doesn't affect my arms," Mason retorted with a small smirk.
Kane made sure to give them the lightest of the bags. It wasn't that he didn't believe they could carry them, but he couldn't handle another injury on his conscience.
They made their way up the steps to the front door, but before they could knock, the door was swung open. A young woman stood in the doorway, a huge smile on her face.
"Welcome to Rosemont!" she greeted them. "I'm so happy that you've finally made it!"
Kane recognised her from her voice as Eve, but he didn't need to hear her voice to know who she was. He could have recognised her from the smile that seemed to cover her face and the bounce to her step. He only had to take a breath to be reminded that she was an Alpha, however, that overwhelming scent filling his nose.
"I'm Kane, we spoke on the phone," Kane said, "It's a pleasure to meet you in person, Alpha Eve."
Eve was stunning, with dark skin shy of any imperfections and deep brown hair that fell in tight curls down her shoulders. She wore a blue sundress which ended at her knees but on her feet were pink fluffy slippers.
Eve flicked her wrist. "Oh, it's just Eve to you! Alpha is a title I'll wear happily when I run this place, but until my father gives up his seat, I'm just Eve." Eve motioned for them to come in. They carefully placed the bags at their feet when they entered the foyer. Eve's eyes examined Nora and Mason. "You must be his mates," she said. Eve then turned to Mason. "You must be the unbonded mate."
"That's me," Mason said with a small smile, "in the flesh."
Eve wrapped him in a hug. "It's a pleasure to meet you," she said. Eve then pulled away and stared into Mason's eyes. "Those are not contacts, are they?" she asked inquisitively.
Mason shook his head. "All real."
"Well it's only the cherry on top that you are a rare wolf as well," Eve commented. "I've read of wolves such as yourself but never met one. I bet your coat is marvellous."
Mason looked at Kane suddenly, fear in his eyes.
Eve seemed to notice the change in mood and quickly backtracked. "I won't harm you dear," she told him with the strength of her Alpha charm behind the words. "I am only interested. While you are here, all three of you are under complete protection. We at Rosemont take our duty as hosts very seriously."
Kane would have been worried if it wasn't for the truth he heard in Eve's words. He knew that she really was just being kind. It seemed that this girl just really didn't have a filter. He liked it, with the way his friends and family had been acting lately, it was refreshing to see Eve always speak her mind. He felt like he could trust her.
"Thank you, you've been very generous," Mason told her. "I didn't mean to insinuate anything."
Eve waved his concerns away. "It's fine, anyway, your Alpha Victor has been a friend of my fathers for many years. We are happy to help," she explained. "Now, you," she turned to Nora, "must be the bonded mate."
"Yes, I'm Nora," she said.
Eve wrapped her in a quick hug. "My darling, I cannot wait to show you around Rosemont. There are many boys who might catch your attention once this mate bond is broken between the two of you!" she said happily.
Nora pulled back from the hug and looked at Eve warily. "That's quite an offer."
Kane couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy flow through the bond. He had to push down the few drops of anger he felt bleed into his veins from the bond. He knew that he had no right to feel such things, he really did want her to find her mate and be happy, but the bond said otherwise and it tried to convince him that this jealousy was warranted. Kane steadied his breath and tried to ignore the bond.
Eve smiled before noticing the bandage that just peaked below Nora's sleeve. "You're injured, my darling, what happened?"
Nora looked to Kane.
"We encountered a little rogue trouble on the way here," he explained. "I'll tell you about it later."
Eve's face dropped. "That's horrible news. You poor things, I better get you upstairs so you can rest before dinner."
"That would be wonderful," Mason agreed.
The three of them grabbed their bags and Eve led them through the house and towards a grand staircase. Kane glanced around the room as they walked, amazed by the grandiosity of it all. He had thought Nora's home had been a mansion, but somehow this place was almost double the size of it.
Eve led them to a door at the top of the stairs. "This one is yours, Nora," she said.
"We are in separate rooms?" she asked.
Eve nodded. "Unless you want to stay with them?"
Nora shook her head quickly. "I will be grateful for a night away from their endless PDA," she said with an eye roll.
"PDA?" Kane asked with wide eyes. "We can't even kiss."
"Still, you two are too lovey-dovey for me," she said with a smirk. Nora opened the door. "Come get me when dinners ready."
Kane watched as she closed the door behind her. Kane knew that she was joking before, but after what happened at breakfast he was glad that she got to have a break from seeing them together. He couldn't imagine how hard it must be to see them sleeping in the same bed at night. He considered getting separate rooms on the way home before remembering that this wouldn't be an issue after tomorrow. He smiled to himself.
"Now," Eve said, "your room is just down here." Eve led them down the hallway to another door. "I'll come get you guys later, get some rest if you can, but feel free to explore the grounds while you're here."
"Thank you," Kane said. "Will the Alpha be joining us for dinner?"
Eve shook her head. "My parents are at an event at the town hall tonight, a meeting about the rogues in the area with our defence team, so it will just be my brother and I at dinner tonight."
"Rogues in the area?" Kane asked. "Has something happened?"
"We had an attempted attack a few days ago, they didn't get past the wall, we have a very good defence team, but everyone's a little on edge," Eve told them. "It might be a good idea to tell my father of the rogue encounter you had when he gets back tonight, it may be the same group."
Kane shared a glance with Mason. "You might be right about that."
"Rest up," Eve told them, "you have a big day tomorrow! I cannot wait!"
"You're coming with us?" Kane asked.
"I'm not, but I'm just excited for you three," Eve told them with a wide smile, "I'm a sucker for a happy ending, you know."
Eve wandered back down the hall. Kane followed Mason into the room. "She's quite a character," he murmured as they walked in.
"She's cool," Mason replied, "I like her."
"Me too."
"This room is incredible," Mason mused.
Kane placed the bags at the foot of the bed and looked around. Before him stood a four poster bed made of dark wood with white curtain flowing over its edges and a white bedspread. In the corner sat a fireplace with a few chairs and at the end of the room was a closed door which Kane assumed to be a bathroom.
"Okay maybe we should stay here forever," Kane told him as his eyes admired the room.
Kane heard Mason move quickly before hearing the door to the bathroom open and close. Kane turned and Mason was gone. "Mason?" he called out. "Are you okay?" Horrible choking sounds came from behind the closed door. "Mason?"
A few seconds later Mason spoke. "You might not want to come in here, but you can."
Kane opened the door. Mason sat on the bathroom floor with his head over the toilet bowl. "Concussion?" he asked.
Mason nodded, still facing the bowl. "Been holding it in since we got here. I feel horrible."
Kane came to sit down next to him and pushed the hair away from his temple to reveal the now darkened bruise under his skin. "That shouldn't have happened," he murmured.
"We shouldn't have been in that forest. I'm sorry I suggested it."
"No, I mean, the bond made me save Nora first. I didn't have a choice. I saw both of you on the ground, both of you being attacked and I couldn't chose who to run to first, I froze. Then the bond took over, and I was running at Nora."
"She needed to be saved too," Mason reminded him gently.
"I don't regret saving her," Kane admitted, "but it kills me that I even had to choose, that in those few moments I was saving her, that you could have been killed and I could have prevented it."
Mason moved so that he was resting his head on Kane's shoulder. "We should take a page from Nora's book and just be grateful we survived. You know that I don't blame you for this," he pointed to his head.
"I'm going to kill those rogues," Kane told him. "If I ever see them again they will pay for what they did to you."
Mason nudged him. "Don't talk like that."
"It's true," Kane told him.
"Don't do that," Mason pled. "I don't want you to ever try to fight them. They are dangerous. You could die."
"They deserve to pay for what they've done, to you, to Nora, to your family."
Mason took a moment to think about that. He turned and faced Kane. "Yes, they do deserve to pay, but I deserve you. After all I've had taken away from me, my pack, my parents, my friends and the life I've known since I was a child. All of that is gone and a future with you is the light at the end of the tunnel," Mason told him. He reached over and cupped his cheek. "I can't lose you, Kane. I won't."
Kane took a deep breath. He hated those rogues. He hated everything they had done to Mason. He hated that they had come too close to killing those he cared for most. He hated everything that they stood for, but the love he had for Mason overpowered that. Looking into Mason's eyes he saw that flash of their future.
"I love you, Mason," he said.
Mason's eyes widened. "I love you too," he said without hesitation.
"You won't lose me," Kane promised him, "no matter what happens tomorrow. You won't ever lose me."
"I wish I could kiss you," Mason told him, staring at his lips.
Kane laughed.
"Why are you laughing?" Mason asked.
"For one," Kane said, "we are sitting on the floor of a bathroom," he motioned around them, "and two, your breath smells like puke."
"But you love me anyway?" Mason asked with a smirk.
"Yes."
"And you would have kissed me anyway, if you could?"
Kane screwed up his nose. "Probably not."
"Rude."
"Rude? Would you kiss me if my breath smelled like puke?"
"Yes."
"You're disgusting, boyfie."
"Oh shut-" Mason started before turning to the toilet bowl and throwing up again.
Kane laughed. "I'll go get you some water," he said and stood up from the tiles.
"This vomit was a reaction to you calling me boyfie, not the concussion!" Mason called out behind him as Kane walked into the bedroom.
"Whatever you say, boyfie!" Kane called out as he left the room.