Only one hour was left on our car ride and I realized something and jolted up. Jaxton woke up with me, his arms tightening around me and a snarl left his throat as he looked around frantically for a threat. I shushed him and looked into his eyes that were still looking for any danger to our safety.
“Jaxton?” I asked carefully, “What’s your full name?”
“It’s Jaxton Myles Thatcher.” He pulled me back into him with a sigh. “What’s yours little one?”
“Mine is Adalyn Faye Mason.” I rested my head on his chest ignoring the itchy feeling of the wound healing.
“Faye? Really?” Jaxton chuckled. “Did your parents not get the message of you being a werewolf?”
“Hey! My mom is uh… okay well she is odd, but I like my middle name...It is unique.”
“Tell me more about yourself.”
“Like what teddy bear?”
“What’s your favorite color? What is your favorite movie? Favorite food, favorite season, and what is your favorite TV show?”
“Wow… Thats a lot okay… Dark blue, Get Smart, sushi, fall, and either The Office or M*A*S*H. What about you buppy?”
“Lime green, The Forbidden Kingdom, steak, fall, and The Last Air Bender.”
“Steak really? Wow I didn’t know you were such a cliched wolf. What is your pack like?”
“It’s pretty normal. I told you about the succession stuff for our high ranking wolves. We rarely ever fight other packs, we only do that when they decide we’ve gotten too full of ourselves. My pack has taken down a rogue or two, but they mostly stay away. We have a more peaceful take on things, using our money to buy land we need from the humans or other packs who need some extra cash.
Our warriors are some of the best around and thankfully aren’t needed often. Other than that stuff is normal with some wolves leaving for college. A percentage of all the money pack members earn gets put into a fund to help any members that need it and to buy more land or repair/build homes and other things.”
“So you have an income tax?”
“Uh yeah huh… I never thought of it like that before, but yeah it works well for us,” Jaxton said with a small smile.
“So who am I going to need to know when I get there? Who is the most important to you?”
“Uh… August is our Alpha, he is only 21, he had to take over early when our former alpha passed away. We don’t have a Luna yet, August refuses to participate in the Ring until he has no other options. The gamma of our pack is gonna be the most serious wolf you'll ever meet. He is nice once you get to know him, but it might take awhile for him to warm up to you. His name is Silas and once he likes you, he will be the most loyal friend ever.
My parents died when I was 15 and Duncan was the closest thing I had to family. They died in a car crash during a really bad snow storm… They were coming back from their anniversary.”
“I’m so sorry, Jaxton. I know that doesn’t actually help any, but well I just wish you never had to go through something like that.” Jaxton held me closer to him and sighed his tense body slowly relaxing as he let out a breath.
I rested my head against Jaxton’s shoulder and tried to let myself relax. Meeting Jaxton’s pack members is going to be terrifying, and I would rather do It when my hair wasn’t so greasy.
“Jaxton?” I asked quietly.
“Yes, princess?” Jaxton started rubbing my back.
“Do you think I could meet your pack tomorrow?”
“Oh… Yeah princess that’s fine” I could see his disappointment, my heart dropping in response. “Can I ask why little one?”
“I want to make a good impression on them, and I would like to be able take a shower and get into clean clothes. Ooo and I would love to sleep in a real bed.”
“Of course buttercup. I’d like you to myself a bit more before the others get to you. I know our pack librarian Lola would love to take you shopping.”
“Shopping?” I asked with a cringe.
“What? Do you not like shopping?”
“I don’t know to be honest… I’ve only ever gone when I need things. I haven’t really gone just for fun and to hang out with someone. Hey Jaxton who was that girl that was in the cave?”
Jaxton cringed in response. It seemed like he had been hoping I had forgotten about that. To be honest I had forgotten about it until I started thinking about the females in his pack.
“That was my most recent potential mate, Angela. A month before the Ring started I found her cheating on me with one of the pack warriors Eric. We had only been starting to see each other for about two weeks and I found myself getting disinterested with her when I found them.”
“Okay, I’m sorry that happened to you Jaxton, but why did uh… Seth?” I gave him a questioning glance and he nodded, “Why did he have her volunteer for the Ring? I mean that just isn’t done. How did she even manage that?”
“Seth has always been sweet on Angela, I’m assuming she got picked for the Ring and told her to volunteer so she could have me.”
“That makes sense. What does Seth do in your pack?” I saw the slight frown on Jaxton’s full lips at the words “your pack”, but I ignored it.
“He is one of the cooks for when we have pack gatherings, and the times when other Alphas visit. Other than that he gets paid by humans when he isn’t busy here. He makes stuff for fancy parties the humans like to throw.”
“Is he gonna be punished?”
“For what, princess? Sending her after me? I don’t know if he will be punished per say… he definitely will have to have a word with August and I.”
“Where do you live in your pack? The Alpha, Beta, and Gamma of my pack all live in the pack house. They each have their own floor and the first floor is reserved for the members of the pack who have moved out of their parents house.”
“Silas and I have our own places and August stays in the pack house just in case someone needs him. The driver is gonna drop us off at the gates and one of the guards will drive us to my place.”
“Okay cool...do you have a charger that can fit my phone?” I asked, pulling my samsung out and handing it to him. The phone was completely dead and I needed to tell my family what happened. I needed to tell them I was safe and that Matthias didn’t claim me. That I hadn’t been claimed at all...I wonder how long Jaxton could go without taking me for himself…
“Yeah, actually,” He said looking at my phone his arm still wrapped around me, “I should be able to find one.”
“Cool thank you, teddy bear.” I rested my head back against his shoulder.
“Adalyn?”
“Yes Jaxton?”
“If you had the choice would you go back to your old pack?”
“Yes.” I said without hesitation. I saw the way his face fell and realized what he was actually asking me. “I would like to visit them, but I’m staying with you. I like you, and you’ve been so patient and kind to me.”
“You don’t know the real me though, Adalyn.” Frustration was in his voice and fear started to seep into me. Memories of Matthias started flashing in my mind and I had to resist the urge to whimper and submit.
“I’m damaged goods, I have black outs when I get too angry, every female I have wanted and started courting cheated on me. That does something to you… eventually you start wondering what you did. Not only that, but the most important things in my life died.”
“Jaxton… don’t try to convince me to leave.” I pressed myself closer to him ignoring the fear still gnawing at me. “I am broken too… after everything I went through with Matthias… I had time to figure out what I like and what I want, I also figured out what I don’t like. I don’t like cranberries and I also don’t like being told what to do.”
“I just don’t want us to claim each other and have you regret it… have you regret me…”
“I won’t… actually why don’t you court me Jaxton?”
“You want me to court you? Really? For how long?”
“How about one month… that way we can both decide if we want each other. We can get to know each other by spending time together and living together if that's okay…?”
“Yeah, I’d like that. I have an extra room if you would like to stay in there?”
“Oh… yeah that sounds good.” My shoulders slouched in disappointment, I knew that me not staying in the same room as him would make it easier on the both of us. Somehow though my heart still sank in disappointment, I didn’t like being alone.
“Oh hey look!” Jaxton said excitedly, “We’re here!”
Tadaaa. What do you guys think of their courting plan?