Cecilia
The rest of the week passed with school and Jackson. There was lots of both. There was also more grumbling from my father and more girly excitement from my mother, but I pretty much ignored those.
Jackson hadn't been kidding when he said he wanted to pick me up from school every day. We picked somewhere different to eat every day as well. We hit a couple fast food restaurants like McDonalds and Wendy's, but we also hit a couple cute little diners in the neighboring towns as well, that Jackson suggested. After dinner, we would go back to my house or the pack house.
The days that we were at the pack house, we were always surrounded by his pack mates. They were really fun and I was having a great time getting to know everyone. Mason was there every time and we were always trading playful insults that had Jackson rolling his eyes. When everyone else was distracted, I'd offer to hook him up with some guys, just to tease him, and he always retaliated by finding some way to embarrass me before Jackson took me to get my car and then home.
The days at my house were spent in the living room with my mom peppering him with questions and my dad glaring at him over the top of his pop can. Needless to say, we only did that once. The pack house was much more enjoyable, and I could kiss Jackson whenever I wanted to when we were there.
The excitement for Friday built with each day. I so badly wanted to know what he had planned for us, but he refused to tell me, no matter how much I begged and pleaded. I couldn't stand the suspense. I loved surprises but the waiting killed me. The only detail that I could get out of him was that I would need my swim suit. That gave me practically nothing!
But, Friday did eventually roll around. I was jittery and excited all day and my friends teased me about for the first few hours, but then ignored it after that. When the bell rang, I practically raced out of my class to my locker. I grabbed my things and joined Taylor, Lisa, Kayla and Aiden in walking out to the parking lot.
"Have you gotten Jackson to tell you where he's taking you yet?" Taylor asked me eagerly. She thought it was awesome that he had prepared a surprise for me, but she also really wanted to know what it was.
I shook my head, letting out an aggravated sigh. "He refuses to budge. Not even puppy dog eyes work." I had tried it. Multiple times. He just refused to look at me, saying no to the ceiling or floor until I stopped.
Lisa snorted. "You should have just told him that you weren't going to kiss him again until he told you."
I raised my eyebrows at her suggestion, but Kayla replied before I could. "Now, Lisa, let's remember that our dear Cecilia loves kissing him just as much as he does her. That would be punishment for her as well." Her voice was teasing and amused.
I rolled my eyes at her, but I knew that she was right. I did love kissing him.
"Plus, a surprise is no fun if she breaks him and makes him reveal it," Taylor reasoned. "The fact that he's got their first date all planned out is the cutest thing ever and I think she should just roll with it."
"Surprises are for pussies," Aiden declared, breaking up the girly moment with his normal abrasive attitude.
Lisa scoffed and Taylor replied, "You just don't have a romantic bone in your body!" at the same time that Kayla punched his arm and said, "Then it's a good thing that Ceci has one of those."
Used to Kayla and Aiden's inappropriate bantering, none of us even batted an eye at her comment, but Aiden did respond to Taylor's. "I'm not interested in romance," he sniffed, like the very idea of it was beneath him.
I laughed. "We know. You're a typical guy, only interested in one thing."
"Girls," Taylor said.
"Boobs," added Kayla.
"Sex," Lisa finished.
Aiden smirked. "Well, while you're making a list, you forgot legs and asses, but yeah, that's about it. However, you seem to have forgotten that Ceci said one thing, not three."
"I think sex just about sums all of it up," Lisa declared. We all nodded in agreement.
"No arguments here," Aiden laughed. "And it's a Friday night, so I'm gonna go get me some!" and with that, he was off, chasing after some blonde girls that were heading towards the café.
We shook our heads at his retreating back and Kayla quickly yelled, "Be safe!" after him. He raised a hand in a wave of acknowledgement, but didn't look back. He was a man on a mission, not to be distracted by us.
"I'm going to go home so that I can get ready," I told the girls. "I'll call you tomorrow and tell you guys all about it."
They yelled their goodbyes as I headed for the car and Kayla yelled the same thing she'd yelled to Aiden as he left. I just snorted at her comment, flipping her off before I sank into the driver's seat. I didn't plan on having sex with Jackson anytime soon. I was content with the heated kisses that he was so good at.
I flew home, my mind racing with excitement. Our surprise date was only an hour away now. I found my baby blue bikini with white polka dots and put it on, pulling a matching cover up sundress over top. I slid my feet into a pair of comfortable flip flops and ran downstairs to my mom.
"Can you braid my hair for me?" I asked her, when I found her sitting in the living room with her crocheting across her lap.
She smiled and nodded, gesturing for me to sit on the floor between her legs. "Do you have a hair tie?" she asked as her fingers began combing through my hair, looking for the right spots to part it.
I pulled one off my wrist and held it above my shoulder for her. She pulled it out of my fingers and I heard it snap onto her wrist before her hands returned to my hair. "Did you get him to tell you where you're going?" she asked.
"No," I replied, stopping myself from shaking my head just in time. "He refused to tell me. Just said that I would need my bathing suit."
"That's so romantic!" she cooed as she started twisting the hair tie around the end of the braid. She patted the sides gently and said, "You're all set."
"Thanks, mom," I told her with a smile, giving her a tight hug before stepping back. Jackson would be here anytime and he wouldn't have to see my dad, either. He was still at work and wouldn't be home for another hour or so after we left.
"You look wonderful, sweetheart," my mom told me, taking hold of my hands. "He's a keeper, that boy," she added thoughtfully. "So sweet and handsome and respectful."
I laughed at her. "And mine, mom."
She laughed with me, releasing my hands and pushing my shoulder playfully. "Don't you worry, I'm very happy with your father, even if he is a stubborn old man."
I laughed again right as we heard a knock on the front door. I waved goodbye and ran to answer it. There was no need for my mom to see him before we left, especially since he was also getting out of seeing my dad tonight as well.
I pulled open the door to see Jackson standing there with a grin on his face. He was wearing a pair of black swim trunks and a blue t-shirt, his hair ruffled. He pulled me in for a kiss before pulling me outside and closing the door. "Are you ready for your surprise?" he asked me.
I nodded quickly, my excitement showing in the quick movement. "Very ready."
He laughed at me as I bounced on the balls of my feet, waiting for him to open my door. He held my hand and helped me in before going around to his side. He started the car and took my hand, driving one handed as he reversed out of my driveway.
"So where are we going?" I asked in a last ditch attempt.
He shook his head. "If I haven't given in to all of your pleadings during the week, what makes you think I will now?"
I shrugged. "I had to at least try."
I was definitely surprised by where we ended up. "The pack house?" I asked in confusion. We'd been here four times during the week.
He shook his head, his smirk holding a bit of mischief. "It's only a stop along the way, Celia," he assured me. "We're leaving the car behind." He pulled the keys out of the ignition, dropping them into the cup holder before exiting the car and coming around to help me out.
My mind was spinning, imagining where we were going if we were leaving the car here. The only explanation I could come up with had me darting my eyes towards the expansive woods surrounding the pack house. Were we going hiking?
He followed my line of vision and just shook his head. "Stay right here, just for a second."
I did as he told me and watched as he walked a little ways into the woods until I couldn't see him anymore. I heard some cracking and popping noises and then he was back. In his wolf form.
His eyes were still a calming hazel, so I knew that he was still in control, not Rafe. Still, seeing him in his wolf form brought back memories of the month he'd been my constant companion.
I smiled as I raced forward and sank down in front of him, running my fingers through his fur. "You're still just as gorgeous as the last time I saw you like this," I murmured, burying my face in his fur.
I was slightly surprised with myself. I didn't expect that I would enjoy his wolf form as much now that I knew that he was a human as well, but I loved it. He nuzzled against me, grumbling in contentment. With a quick motion he dragged his tongue up my face in the wolf equivalent of a kiss.
I squealed and fell back to get away from him. He let out a chortling bark that I assumed was laughter before laying down and motioning with his head for me to get on his back. I raised both eyebrows from my seated position on the ground. He wanted me to ride him?
When I didn't move, he barked and tossed his head again, repeating his wish for me to climb aboard. Sighing, and silently wondering if he could really carry me like a pony, I swung my leg over his back and settled in.
He was much larger than a regular wolf and my weight didn't seem to bother him at all. He lifted himself back up without a problem and swung us around to face the woods. I buried my hands in the fur at his nape and he lowered his head to grab a backpack that I hadn't noticed before starting to run.
We traveled deep into the woods, far enough that I knew that I'd be lost trying to find my way back out again. Good thing I had a werewolf to guide me back later. I climbed off him when we reached his destination and trotted off behind a tree to shift back and dress himself.
When he came back, be had his swim trunks back on and an excited grin on his face. His bare torso left me gaping like a fish as my eyes traveled leisurely down the well-defined muscles of his chest and abdomen. His grin transformed into a smirk as he winked at me. "You like what you see?" he asked.
I blushed beet red, but laughed. "Yeah, I do," I replied, grinning back at him.
He pulled me tightly into his arms. "Me too," he growled, his lips descending on mine.
Heat traveled through my entire body as tingles zoomed along behind it. It was like the already hot day had just climbed twenty degrees as I clung to his shoulders and went along for the ride.
We were both panting when we pulled away and Jackson had a soft expression on his face as he cupped my cheek in one hand. "I'm so glad that I found you, Cecilia," he whispered.
"Me too," I whispered back, leaning into his hand and smiling up at him. The embarrassment of learning that he had pretended to be my dog was entirely worth it.
He smiled back and stepped away, offering me his hand. I took it and he lead me through some bushes, to a beautiful lake, fed by a small waterfall on the left side. The stream went across some rocks and then fell about five feet into the crystal clear lake, continuing away from the lake to the right. The sound was quiet and gurgling. Relaxing.
I was speechless at the sight of the waterfall and could only watch in disbelief as Jackson pulled a soft, checkered blanket from the backpack and spread it out across the grass about six feet away from the bank of the lake. Settling on one side of it, he pulled the backpack a little closer and started pulling out fruit containers and sandwiches.
He looked up at me when he had it all spread out and held out a hand. "Care to join me?" His grin was so charming that I immediately took his hand and sank onto the blanket, forgetting about the beauty in favor of the handsome man in front of me.
I took in the dishes of various fruits and the small platter of sandwiches before looking up at Jackson again. "What? No dessert?" I asked of him.
He smirked. "Actually, Maggie made something quite special for us."
My eyes widened, already guessing what it could be. Maggie had said that she'd make me one sometime. I watched with anticipation as Jackson reached back into the backpack, his arm disappearing to the elbow before returning with a long bowl, covered with an orange lid. He pulled back the lid to reveal...a perfect German chocolate cake!
My mouth watered at the sight. Reaching for the platter, I was disappointed as Jackson pulled it back out of reach. "Ah, ah, ah!" Jackson sang, wagging his finger at me. "You can't have dessert first!"
"Says who?" I pouted, my eyes lingering on the chocolate perfection still held out of my reach in his left hand.
He thought about it for a moment and then, with a cheeky grin, replied, "Mothers everywhere."
I made a show of looking around. "I don't see any mothers around here."
He laughed. "I guess I'll let it slide this time," he answered, finally holding the cake out to me.
I squealed in excitement, reaching for it again. He pulled it out of my reach again and I glared at him. He only smirked in reply before digging out a fork and scooping a bit of cake up on it. I watched it with greedy eyes. Laughter danced in his eyes as he held the fork out to me.
I wanted to laugh at how cliché he was being. He wanted to feed me cake? Who was I to complain, though? I had a sexy, shirtless werewolf trying to feed me. And not just anything, either. He was trying to feed me the best cake there was.
Relenting, I opened my mouth and accepted the bite of cake. He smiled victoriously and scooped up another bite, eating it himself. Apparently, I didn't get to return the favor and feed the cake to him. I thought about complaining, but then he was holding out another bite for me and my mind focused on that instead.
"So what do you do as second in command?" I asked when the cake was almost gone. It looked as if we were going to have to move on to healthier prospects.
He swallowed his cake and held out another bite for me. After I'd taken it, he started to answer my question. "Most of what I do is in tandem with Eli. I help him run the pack, supporting him and helping with training. I go to meetings with him most of the time, although there are times when he's busy and I go in his stead."
"What do you meet with other packs about?" I asked, fascinated by the insight I was getting into pack life. I'd learned some about inside the pack at the party, but I hadn't learned anything about politics between packs.
Jackson just shrugged, taking another bite of the cake and chewing it thoughtfully. "There are a lot of reasons to call meetings. We discuss alliances, rogues, missing pack members. The common meetings are just packs that have alliances keeping up to date and informing each other of any changes the packs may have.
"Most of the time, Eli, Kaden and I will all go, but sometimes if Eli is busy then just Kaden and I will go. They're pretty normal for the most part. We chat, keep up friendly relations, stuff like that."
It all sounded really cool to me. And much more civilized than I would have expected. "How many alliances do you have?" I asked.
"Last bite," he said, holding out a forkful of cake. I smiled as I accepted it and waited for him to answer my question.
"We have alliances with most of the packs bordering our territory. Our territory is pretty large and we have six packs bordering it. We have a couple alliances with packs that are farther away, bordering packs that border us." He smiled as he handed me half a sandwich. "Any more questions?"
I nodded slowly, a question niggling me. I wasn't sure if I should ask, but at the same time I had to know. When Jackson cocked his head to the side, wondering whether I was going to ask or not, I decided to just go for it. "What about Bane's pack?" I asked.
His face hardened, a scowl taking the place of the easy-going smile he'd been sporting up until then. "Drabek's pack is the only pack bordering our territory that we don't have an alliance with," he said. "We haven't since before my grandfather was alpha. We don't agree with the cruel and ruthless behavior towards not only rogues, but their own pack members."
That confused me. After seeing Jackson's pack I had assumed that all packs acted like an extended family of sorts. How could Bane be cruel to his pack members? "What does he do to his pack?" I wondered aloud.
I didn't realize it was possible, but Jackson's face became tighter, angrier. "He overworks his men and makes them do all his dirty work. Whenever a pack has a problem with him, he'll hand over one of his lower members, claiming it was their fault and to punish them as they wish. Worst of all, he mistreats his pack's unmated females. There've been many that have run away because of it, choosing to become rogues instead of staying with his pack."
I cringed. I knew when I saw Bane at the beach that day that he didn't have a decent bone in his body, but this was even worse than I could have imagined. I would have ran too, if I was a werewolf and had an alpha like him.
On top of that, my question had killed Jackson's good mood. He was stewing over Bane's behavior and didn't seem to be enjoying himself anymore. I decided to change the subject and bring some fun back into this date. I wasn't going to let Bane Drabek ruin it.
"So, are we going to go swimming anytime soon?" I asked with a flirty smile.
He grinned back, obviously relieved by the subject change. Standing, he grabbed me around the waist and threw me over his shoulder.
"Jackson!" I squealed as he started walking towards the lake. I was not going through this again! I struggled, kicking my feet and pounding my hands against his back. "You put me down right now!" I ordered him.
I heard and felt his laugh as he continued on, only a couple feet from the lake now. "I don't think so, Cecilia. I like you right where you are!"
"I'm still wearing my dress!" I yelled as he stopped beside the lake.
"It'll dry," he commented as he shifted his grip to toss me in. I decided to be proactive and wrapped my legs around his waist, taking him with me. His eyes widened in shock at my move and I smiled victoriously as we both hit the water. Jackson wrapped his arms around me and pulled me back to the surface with him. I stepped back to toss my dress on the shore before moving back into his arms.
I smiled and he leaned in, taking my lips with his. I pressed myself even closer to him as we stood chest deep in lake water, my chest pressed tightly against his as I kissed him back. When I knew he was all in, I pulled out of his arms and dove underwater, making him chase me if he wanted another kiss.
It was fun while it lasted. He was fast and caught me quickly, but he was laughing, light and happy again and that made me happy too. The tingles and shocks when we touched were even more noticeable now, as neither of us had much for clothes on at the moment. I think we were enjoying those a little too much. I knew I was anyway.
I pulled away from him before it became too much for us and swam towards the shore. I dropped onto the picnic blanket and laid back to let the wind and disappearing sun start drying me off.
Jackson growled in frustration as he followed me out of the water and laid himself down on the blanket beside me. He was obviously enjoying what we had been doing. I giggled as he ran his hand down my side. I pushed it away. "Be a good boy!"
He growled again and rose above me, putting his hands on either side of my head. "I don't want to!" he replied. I smiled and he leaned down to kiss me. At the last moment, I turned my head to the side so that his lips landed on my cheek. I laughed as he growled once more, sounding even more frustrated than the last two.
"What?" he moaned angrily as he rolled off me and onto his back.
I took his hand and smiled reassuringly at him. "Just take it easy. Too fast," I told him.
He sighed, but gave me a small smile as he turned his head to look at me. He reached out a hand and grabbed a bowl of fruit. "Alright. Do you want some strawberries?"
I nodded and he sat the fruit bowls between us so we could share as we relaxed on the blanket. We ate strawberries, grapes, raspberries and peaches, sharing sweet kisses every now and then, but not taking it any further. We were both a little underdressed for a hot and heavy make out session.
I questioned him some more about the pack and his responsibilities, but stayed away from any topics involving Bane, his pack or anything similar. He enjoyed telling me about his pack members and what they we doing and I enjoyed listening to the stories he told me about growing up in the pack and fighting with Eli.
Eventually we ran out of fruit and sandwiches. We laid on the blanket, chatting and watching the sun go down, our hands intertwined. It was perfect. Without realizing it, we fell asleep.
I woke up slowly to the sound of chirping insects. It was dark and I definitely wasn't in my bed. I blinked my eyes open and horror settled in when I realized where I was. I was curled up to Jackson, my head resting on his chest, my arm thrown across his stomach and our legs tangled together. I didn't know what time it was, but the sun was gone and the moon was high.
"Jackson!" I practically screamed.
He woke quickly, jerking upright with a growl as he pushed me behind him and crouched over me protectively as he scanned the woods around us. Finding nothing, he looked back at me with a confused expression. "What's wrong?" he asked me.
"What's wrong?!" I exclaimed. "My curfew is midnight and I'm guessing that it's way past that! Do you know what my parents are going to do to me when I get home?" I asked of him. "Oh, I'm so dead."
His face paled as everything sunk in. The reality that I was most definitely going to be grounded and not be able to see him for a while finally hitting him. Rising, he shifted into his wolf right above me, his swim trunks shredding to pieces. He dropped to his stomach and I climbed on quickly, no time for worries about whether he could carry me back. As soon as my fingers curled into his fur he took off running. We went much faster than we had on the way to the lake, making it back to the pack house in what felt like half the time.
I climbed off him at the pack house and headed for his car while he found some clothes he had stashed and shifted back. I glanced at the clock when we climbed in and groaned dropping my head into my hands. "Oh, they're going to kill me!" I moaned.
Jackson reached over and took one of my hands as he glanced at the clock as well. "It's going to be okay. We're not that late. We'll just explain what happened and hopefully they'll understand."
I shook my head, squeezing his hand tightly. Normally, I wouldn't be so worried about being grounded, but I really didn't want to be separated from Jackson right after our first date. "It's not going to stop them from killing me," I told him. "Any more than five minutes past curfew is punishable by a week's grounding per hour that I'm late." I recited the dictation just as my dad had told it to me back when I turned sixteen.
My statement had both of us glancing again at the dashboard clock. 12:49 am.
"Well, if we make it in eleven minutes, it will only be a week," he said, trying to sound cheerful.
I chuckled a little at his statement. "Then we'd better hurry."
I burst into my house at exactly 12:58 am, out of breath and panting, to find both of my parents sitting in their chairs in the living room. Jackson was close behind me. I'd told him to just go home, but he refused, wanting to help me explain what happened.
"And what time do you call this, young lady?" my dad asked me severely. Even my mom, who'd been so excited for me to go on this date, looked mad.
"I'm really sorry, dad," I told him. "It was an accident. We feel asleep watching the sunset."
He snorted, obviously not believing my story. "That's real likely."
"Please, Sir," Jackson said to my dad. "I took her for a hike in the woods to a lake on my property and we had a picnic. After eating and swimming, we laid down to watch the sunset and dry off and we just fell asleep. It was a complete accident and I promise that it won't happen again."
My dad nodded after listening to the story, but his face was still hard. I knew that no matter what Jackson and I told him, I was still going to be grounded for a week.
"Thank you for coming inside to explain that to me, Jackson," my dad said icily, "but you can go now. I think I need to talk to my daughter alone and then send her to bed. Have a good night."
Jackson didn't look like he wanted to go. I knew that he wanted to find a way out of me being grounded but I knew it wasn't possible. When he looked over at me, I nodded towards the door, encouraging him to go. I didn't want him to make things worse. He wouldn't do it on purpose, but I could see his eyes swirling, Rafe trying to come to the surface from the fear of being separated.
Jackson sighed angrily, but walked to the door. "I had a nice night, Cecilia," he said, his hand on the door knob. "Hopefully we can do this again."
I nodded with a small smile while my dad glared at him angrily, continuing to do so until the door was firmly closed behind him. Then he turned that glare on me.
"Falling asleep?" he asked of me, his voice still skeptical.
"That's what happened, I swear," I promised him.
He huffed and looked down at the ground. "Nothing happened? Absolutely nothing at all?"
"Nothing," I assured him. "Only kissing."
His glare increased, but he seemed relieved that nothing else had happened. "Falling asleep was stupid and irresponsible!" he told me. "You both should have left when you became tired."
I nodded, accepting his anger. "I know, dad, and Jackson and I are both sorry. I didn't notice how tired I was after eating and swimming. It was just so peaceful out there."
He sighed, sounding less angry now. "Well, you know the rules. You're grounded for a week. School and home. That's it."
I nodded, looking down at my feet, feeling pretty miserable. When he said school and home, he meant it. I wasn't even allowed to go grocery shopping or to the library.
"Go on up to bed," my mom said, speaking for the first time. "You've got a long weekend at home coming up."
I nodded, hugging them both.
"I'll be right up," my mom whispered in my ear, before releasing me.
My dad held me tightly when I got to him. "You worried us, Cecilia," he whispered in my ear, only making me feel worse.
"I know, daddy. I'm sorry."
He kissed the top of my head and nodded towards the stairs. I went. I heard them talking as I climbed the stairs, but I didn't slow down to listen. I didn't want to get in any more trouble. I know that Jackson was going to be upset that I was grounded, but knowing him, he'd find a way to see me.
I changed out of my suit and into pajamas, tossing the dirty clothes into my hamper before crawling in bed to wait for my mom. I knew exactly what she wanted and if I went to sleep, she'd only wake me back up again.
I didn't have to wait long. She tiptoed through my door only five minutes later and smiled as she sat on the edge of my bed. "Now that the scolding is out of the way, tell me all about the date!" she demanded.
I chuckled slightly. "It was amazing," I replied. "He took me to his house and had a picnic and everything ready. We hiked to this beautiful little lake with a small waterfall and ate there. We swam a little and then we laid down to watch the sunset and finish the fruit."
"That's so much more romantic than even I was picturing!" my mom giggled.
I rolled my eyes at her behavior but agreed. "It was so relaxing. We talked a lot, but I still can't believe that we fell asleep."
My mom glanced at the door before leaning closer and whispering, "Don't ever tell your dad I told you this, but I understand. It's so much easier to fall asleep when you're relaxed and laying with someone you trust."
I nodded in agreement. "I noticed," I commented drily.
She laughed. "Get some sleep, sweetheart. You're stuck with us for the next week."
I groaned but kissed her cheek. "Love you, mom."
She smoothed my hair. "I love you too."
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