The Change (Fated Series: book1) -
Chapter 2 - Now
Nessa
(Twenty-five years old or seven years after the rejection)
Rover Grove Pack House
Nessa headed into the Pack House to pay her respects to the Alpha and his family. It was the right thing to do. The avoidance policy, she perfected over the years, could only get her so far. Avoid the matter, avoid the pain. It was easy to stay away, but hard to move on.
Closure was well overdue or so she thought at the time. But the closer she got to the main entrance, the jitters made her doubtful.
Could she do it?
Rover Grove would always smell like home. It was her pack up until she moved away for college and now that she was done with all possible degrees, it was time to return.
Crowded, indoor gatherings were challenging for shifters. Their heightened senses became overloaded by the difference scent of each individual overlaid by that of their pack. Shifters often choose to block their olfactory perception instead of risking a migraine. Nessa remembered how difficult it was to concentrate on ignoring nature’s urge to take a deep sniff. But now she missed the effort. It was a reminder of how withdrawn her wolf had become.
Nessa had lived with humans long enough to not miss her heightened senses. She didn’t need to identify her human friends by scent or to be on the lookout for rogues. Humans were simply too noisy for their own good. They also did not rely on their noses for survival. Social cues and words were their weapons. Curiosity ran deep in their veins, but they never looked down at you if you were alone at age twenty-five. Humans were now Nessa’s people as her wolf was so withdrawn she was as close to them as a shifter could get.
But now that she was here, she missed the effort. She missed her superior hearing and sight. She still longed for that big romance she was promised from cradle. The only difference was she knew it wasn’t going to be with her Fated. Taking a chosen mate was like dating in the human world. It was difficult. Messy. Complicated.
All thanks to Brandon, who stood proud by Juliet’s side at the doorway, greeting the arriving guests. His eyes followed her approach and Nessa tried to maintain a blank look. Juliet regarded her with a friendly, yet distant smile. They were no longer the close friends they once were.
Vanessa looked at them and instead of pain for the first time ever, she felt disappointment. She wondered if Brandon ever told Juliet about her. It seemed like a thing they would discuss before jumping into bed with each other. It wasn’t like Brandon didn’t just roll out of bed with Nessa. Juliet had to had known they slept together yet said nothing. They were perfect for each other if that was the case.
“Alpha. Luna,” Nessa greeted them with respectful bow of her head. It was the proper way to greet high ranked werewolves. Her downcast eyes landed on a little boy peeking behind Juliet’s skirt. Nessa smiled at him just as his huge brown eyes, shining bright with puzzlement and mischief, caught hers.
“Vanessa, it’s good to see you again,” Juliet greeted her.
“Welcome home,” Brandon muttered then lifted up the little boy who was trying to catch his attention for some time now. “This little brat is Roland, your future Alpha.”
Nessa eyes widened in surprise, which she hoped could still pass as astonishment. Nessa’s wolf stirred, whimpering as an acknowledgement. Once she moved on her temporary leave to Blackwood, she had cut all contact with anything that might remind her of Rover Grove. In retrospect, Nessa should have expected for them to have children. Yet, the little boy’s existence was another nail piecing her heart. While she was getting over Brandon, Nessa was still stuck in self-pity and jealousy she missed on having a family.
“I am happy for you,” Nessa leveled her voice, plastering a smile on her face. “Congratulations. I didn’t even know you were expecting.”
Juliet’s smile widened and for a quick moment, the genuine understanding reminded Nessa of her long lost friend. A friend who would never steal someone’s Fated.
“You were so busy with school. But now that you are coming back home, we could catch up,” Juliet cheerfully blurred.
“That’ll be nice,” Nessa reluctantly lied.
Their conversation as brief as it was held back the line of werewolves, who patiently awaited their turn to greet the Alpha couple. Nessa tipped her head once again and plastered a smile on her lips before allowing the sea of people to carry her indoors.
One conversation was enough to rattle her resolution and to revive those childhood dreams of love and companionship. Nessa wanted a moment to compose herself or else her buried emotions could spill if anyone tried to start a conversation with her.
Although these were her people, her pack, Vanessa felt like a stranger. Her breathing was rapid, and her heart thundered in her ears. Before someone recognized her, she found seclusion in the dark kitchen.
Oh, boy, did it feel awkward seeing them again after so long. The visit down memory lane was not helpful and she was unprepared to see him with a child. How could he be so happy when there was nothing but emptiness in her soul?
The little boy with warm brown eyes, soft curls and mischievous smile, was a carbon copy of his dad. It was time to move on, to accept the rejection and say one back. Life wasn’t waiting for anyone and Nessa did not want to wake up a decade later still mourning the loss of a mate.
The drinks on the nearby tray made her mouth water. Nessa savored the burn of the fire-liquid travelling down her throat only to collide into a hard, muscular chest. A hand sneaked around her waist to prevent her from falling. Nessa jumped at the touch, and aced her victim.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t see you,” she apologized. Her eyes traveled from the white buttoned up shirt to very well defined shoulders, then landed on a handsome face she did not recognize. His lips curved in a welcoming smile, revealing pearly whites contrasting against his tanned skin. Handsome and hard on all the right places.
“Don’t be,” his voice was strong and rich with seduction that the words meaning did not carry.
His square chin and chiseled cheekbones appealed to her in a way that made her cheeks flush.His smokey green eyes observed her with great curiosity, probably because she was still staring at him awkwardly.
“Right. Play it cool,” Nessa reminded herself.
It has been a long time since she had been among werewolves and their unnaturally well defined bodies. Not that she was complaining at the moment.
Nessa raised an eyebrow at him, wordlessly asking him to end the silence between them for as all the words in the world, she couldn’t figure out what to say.
He responded with a shake of his head then a chuckle.
Nessa wanted to kick him in the chin for being a stubborn mule. Where had chiverary gone? He had clearly noticed her enjoying his figure a little bit too much and without a doubt he was trying to make her sweat under his gaze. It was too bad for him because she actually enjoyed being the sole focus of those evaluating eyes. She felt exposed yet comfortable with him and the longer he eyed her, the more empowered she felt.
She liked how he stood impossibly close to her. Their bodies were pressed against each other, and his hand securely wrapped around her waist. He didn’t pull away from the embrace, and neither did she. In fact, she liked his cologne way too much for her own good. It was ironic how this mountain of muscles, towering over her made her feel small and fragile, yet safe. She tried to guess just how tall he was, as without a doubt without her stilettos she would easily be a head shorter than him if not more. She shook her head, trying to clear it. His proximity was intoxicating. His eyebrows shot up at her gesture, much similar to her silent plea just a couple of minutes ago.
“No, you didn’t just steal my gesture,” Nessa accused him of ignoring her prompt to speak but expected her to follow his. Well, she did speak but she doubted the handsome were in front of her was used to being called out.
As silence settled between them once again, he rewarded her stubbornness with a smile, or so she chose to interpret it. He then slowly removed his hand from her waist, thus releasing her from his embrace. Nessa kept her eyes on his lean frame, noticing he used one hand to steady her, while the other held his drink, which now traveled to his lips. He eyes held her captive as he slowly took a sip from his glass.
Curiosity got the better of her and she questioned him, putting an end to their silence stare-down match.
“So how come you ended up drinking alone in a deserted kitchen?”
Marcus
(Marcus @ Rover Grove Pack House)
Marcus watched the young brunette sneak in the kitchen finding the nearest liquor and emptying its content in one go, all along completely unaware of his presence. Her could hear her fast heartbeat and could only imagine the adrenaline rush she was experiencing.
It was unusual for a werewolf to be this distracted and unaware of someone’s presence. Why was she in the kitchen? His curiosity could not be stopped. When she stepped backwards, and right into his arms, his grin widened. Yet another groupie?
The surprise and shock on her face the moment she turned to face him, quickly morphed into curiosity. Apparently his intimidating figure did not seem to faze her one bit, as she shamelessly gave him a once over. Marcus patiently waited. It only took a couple of seconds on average for werewolves to acknowledge the power radiating from him, recognizing him as an Alpha. The title came together with a penetrating gaze which alone was enough to make ordinary wolves spill their secrets. But not her! That made her entertaining to say the least.
He let his eyes linger on her rounded figure. She definitely had sensual curves, and was not afraid to show them in a subtle, almost classical way. Her curly hair was cascading down her back, the ends of it reaching his hand still wrapped around her waist. Her head slowly lifted up as her eyes slowly trailed up over his chest to his face. She was sizing him up, enjoying his presence.
“Flirty it is then,” he thought.
Her forwardness surprised him. Her question, “So how come you ended up drinking alone in a deserted kitchen?” provoked him to reply sarcastically.
“Through a thing, called a door.”
He admitted to himself he wanted to rattle her, to see her warm brown eyes widen. Usually a snaky reply was all it took to disarm all flirty she-wolves, conveying his message loud and clear - he wasn’t searching for a fling. Marcus expected to see a pout on her face at his harsh words, finding it strangely exhilarating to predict her upcoming tantrum. What he didn’t expect was her chuckle at his reply, as she shook her head as if dismissing him. Her curls gently brushed the skin of his hand. He immediately released her.
“And here I thought, the big bad wolf was hiding from someone,” she jested.
That was unexpected, disrespectful, but yet refreshing. He certainly did not see it coming.
Marcus didn’t even realize when he mumbled, “Avoiding,” correcting her previous assumption. By the time the words passed his lips, she had already stepped out of his embrace, and fumbled with the ice machine on the fridge.
It almost seemed like she was ignoring him, but as soon as she filled her glass with ice, she continued from where they had left off, “Ah, but close enough.”
Her voice was soft, playful at times. She made her way back to the counter, taking a piece of the appetizers proudly displayed on top of it. As she finally remembered he was still there, she instructed him, “Don’t judge!”
He raised his hands in mock surrender, then grabbed a couple of the appetizers, noticing the little bites held no interest until she had tried them. She kept her eyes on him until he finally popped the last one in his mouth.
“Are those good?” She inquired.
The last one was the better tasting, so instead of rushing to answer her, he picked a new one, handing it over to her. Her fingers brushed gently against his as she reached out for the bite in his hand, and without so much as a hesitation popped it in her mouth.
“Yumm,” she moaned, closing her eyes and savoring the taste of the appetizer.
Marcus couldn’t help but raised his eyebrow to her reaction. Was she really that uninhibited?
“What? I love my food. Do you have a problem with it?”
“No, ma’am,” his voice sounded husky even to his own ears. Marcus raised his glass at the feisty she-wolf in a salute.
“Oh, don’t ma’am me now. I’m Nessa.”
He nodded and comfortable silence settled again between them. Nessa’s curiosity got the better of her. Again.
“You are not much of a talker, are you? But just so you know usually when two people meet they tell each other their names. It’s a custom,” Nessa explained to him with a small smile on her face.
Now that was surprising.
She was playfully hinting she expected him to tell her his name. Didn’t she know it by now? Surely the members of the Rover Grove pack were informed of the visiting Alpha. He opened up his senses and took in her scent. She was wearing a scent of strawberries most probably from a shower gel or a shampoo with a hint of a light perfume. He recognized the faint scent of the Rover Grove pack on her, but it was intertwined with that of his own pack. That was an unexpected development. If he did not know any better, he would have concluded the mixture of scents was the result of a mating between the packs. But no male in his right mind would have let her wander off without marking her or keeping her company to such a party. Yet, her shoulders bore no mark.
Puzzling...
He needed to ask his Beta for the recent additions. Until he knew for sure the facts of her situation, it wouldn’t hurt to enjoy her company now, would it?
Her patience ran thin and instead of waiting for his response, she continued with a steady voice, “Oh, fine. Be all smooth and mysterious, Green eyes.”
He wholeheartedly laughed. Nobody had dared to come with a nickname for him in years. At least not to his face. Soon-to-be berserk wolves were rightfully avoided by most, and his Alpha title brought even more gloom and darkness to his reputation.
“I don’t know what to make of you,” he admitted.
“Then go with the flow,” she shrugged.
He nodded. That was exactly what he was doing. Before he knew it, they had finished a whole set of appetizers. She caught up on it as well.
“Oopsie daisy,” she muttered then her fingers quickly rearranged the appetizers from the remaining plates so the absence of the ones they ate was less noticeable. Marcus was about to reach for one more, when she gently swatted his hand away. His eyes immediately landed on hers.
Nobody got away with being disrespectful to him! Hitting him was a death sentence. She must have caught on the murderous glare he was giving her, as she quickly explained, “Don’t pout. We can only eat so much without them noticing.”
As he kept his eyes on her trying to let the insult pass by him, she took a deep breath. He expected it was another tactic to flirt with him as the movement of her breasts certainly made an impression on him. This had to be the moment she felt his Alpha-power and pleaded for forgiveness for swatting his fingers. He could almost feel the tension between them rising.
“Okay, fine. Take that one. But it’s the last one,” her steady voice reached his ears.
Not only did she not apologize, she was talking to him as if he were a pup. He did not pout. He certainly didn’t need her permission to do as he pleased. After all, he took what he wanted. He was about to speak his mind, when she quickly snatched his hand in hers, pushed him through the french doors and on the patio. He was about to protest against her advances, when she snatched the appetizer from his hand and popped it in his mouth. Applaud, he shut his mouth, but her finger lingered slightly pressed onto his lips. Did she just shush him? His anger dissipated, and curiosity and new appreciation of her courage grew. Why did she need to keep him quiet?
His answer came quick enough but it wasn’t from Nessa’s lips. The kitchen door opened, illuminating the entrance before the light switch went on and the hushed chatter of multiple voices carried over to the patio. Nessa must have heard their approach and fed him the last appetizer in order to get rid of the evidence. Marcus was too worked up over her remarks to notice. Surprisingly, during all this, Marcus’ wolf was not even phased by her disrespectful behavior. In fact, it seemed like he enjoyed the puzzling attitude. There was no trace of possessiveness or territorial aggressiveness. She was not a threat, she was entertainment.
She removed her finger from his lips, only to put her hand on his shoulder. His eyes snapped at her manicured fingers held on tight his shoulder, and he had to admit he enjoyed having her lay her hands over his person. In the next instant, her body leaned bending down. He gulped at the proximity and intimacy of the position she was about to assume. Was she going to....
Before he could embarrass himself, he noticed her other hand struggling to take her shoes off, her dress rising up her thighs. It was a weird seduction game, she had going. But Marcus had to admit it was working. His tuxedo was getting tighter in an area very close to her face. He grit his teeth, trying to remain calm and collected until she was done with her shoes.
What was taking her this long?
If Marcus had to knee to help her take that darn stiletto off, she would discover just how worked up he really felt. When finally her struggle was over, he captured her eyes, conveying his message.She needed to explain herself. Nessa nodded her head in the direction of the garden, urging him to move as she requested. When he refused to follow her, firmly standing his ground, she sighed and held both high heels in one hand, taking his hand in her other one, leading him into the garden.
As they were a safe distance away from the pack house, her carefree laughter exploded.
“You should have seen your face,” she giggled, keeping their hands intertwined.
Marcus decided he would not even acknowledge her comment. Whether or not she had seen his expression when she just bent down, was irrelevant. He raised their joint hands, asking, “And now what? We are best buddies?”
“Nah, better, partners in crime,” Nessa smiled at him.
“You realize it was just food?” He couldn’t help but question her.
“Now don’t you turn grumpy pants on me! I didn’t want to be there when they figured out someone ate a whole plate of appetizers,” Nessa explained and when he remained silent, demanding further explanation, she took a deep breath. “It might come as a surprise to you, seeing how dashing you look, but I have issues with my weight. So it would have been beyond embarrassing for me to have to explain we helped ourselves to the appetizers.”
He kept his eyes on her. What was wrong with her weight? She was definitely not skinny, but she was nowhere near to being chubby or overweight. She-wolves sometimes behaved like a totally different species. His wolf dutifully reminded him about the compliment for him in her little tantrum.
“Dashing, huh?” He smirked at her.
“Of course, that’s the only part that you’d hear,” she replied shaking her head then she bumped his shoulder with hers. She was a spitfire and he was strangely attracted to her easy going nature. Maybe not knowing he was an Alpha, was a good thing. He could for once be a regular person, not an Alpha with responsibilities and inevitable death-sentence.
“You’re awfully quiet,” Nessa commented. When his eyes focused on her, she continued, “I’ll take you to the front of the pack house, so you can rejoin the party. Don’t worry, I won’t lead you in a secluded place to try to kill you or try to take advantage of you.”
His booming laughter echoed through the quiet forest. She definitely came up with the most outrageously hilarious comments. Despite her feisty character, she stood no chance against him. Alpha or not, he was a male and he could easily overpower her. On the other hand, letting her take advantage of him didn’t sound bad at all.
“Get your mind out the gutter. I didn’t mean it like that,” she elbowed his side.
“Careful, don’t toy with my heart now,” Marcus jested.
“You should have seen your face on the patio. I was about to burst into laughter and get us caught right there and then,” she giggled again letting his previous remark slide.
“Maybe I wanted to get caught, so that I can save you,” Marcus continued teasing her.
“Oh, how chivalrous of you,” Nessa retorted looking over her shoulder as she led him around the house. She was not paying attention to where she was walking, tugging him behind her. Her bare feet slipped on the leaves, and Marcus quickly pulled her body against his preventing her from falling down. Her frame was flush against his and naturally Marcus wondered what lied beneath her little black dress.
“Your wolf in shining black fur at your service,” Marcus chuckled, looking down at her startled face. She quickly shook off the fear, her hands relaxing their hold on his arms.
“My, my! Someone severely regrets not being caught red-handed,” Nessa retorted.
"Alpha Ned, Alpha Brandon is searching for you," the voice of his third in command Vincent floated through their mind-link, reaching Marcus who reluctantly answered.
“I’ll be there in a few,” Marcus shot back.
“We are a couple of yards to the side of the house,” she told him softly as if she had read his mind. Marcus didn’t know how to feel about her uncanny ability to read him. “Your eyes glazed over when you mind linked. I assumed, you’re needed elsewhere.”
“Yes,” he replied shortly. He would rather much spend time with her than with his host Alpha. “What about you?”
“I am heading home. I had enough excitement for one night.”
“Excitement, huh?” Marcus repeated her words. She rolled her eyes at him as they headed towards the house, approaching it from the east side just as she promised earlier. The closer they got to the pack house, the more serious his mood got. He stopped walking when he felt her hand in the crook of his arm, halting him.
“Em, this is me,” Nessa announced.
“Right. You were going home,” Marcus replied, eyeing the old car which she identified as hers.
“Now, don’t start any fights, and don’t get in trouble without me, okay?” Nessa’s parting words were playful yet showed she cared for him enough to pick up on his darkening mood. He chuckled. For someone who wasn’t using the pack mind link, it was amazing how accurately she could read him.
“Right, I wouldn’t want you to miss all the excitement!” Marcus flirted and before he could change his mind, he bent down and hugged her tightly, “Drive safely, Spitfire.”
She laughed at his nickname for her as she got into the car. Marcus waited for her to start it, and to pull out before he headed back into the pack house. It was about time he attended to his business here. Alpha Marcus “Ned” Edwards was always promptly on time. His tardiness tonight would make everyone anxious about their possible transgressions against him and the punishment he would gladly serve. Nervous werewolves made mistakes. He would have to thank Nessa for the unexpected edge for these negotiations.
Marcus was about to live up to his dark reputation.
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