Chapter 16
drove across town with his mate behind him, her arms wrapped tightly around his waist, he thought about how it had taken every ounce of self control for him not to reach out and run a finger across the markings on Jacquelyn’s shoulders and neck – his markings. It was bad enough that Lilly had noticed the possessiveness in his voice when he asked about them, but his wolf just wouldn’t ease up until he asked Jacqueline about them. Thankfully, he hadn’t made a total fool of himself by touching them or growling in contentment. But the night was still young, and he had ample time to make a fool of himself, so better not count your pups.
Before they got on the motorcycle, Fane asked her if she was ready, and although he meant for the date, he also was pleading with his eyes to understand he needed her to be ready for more. He knew that she was strong mentally and physically, the Moon would not give him a weak mate as he was Alpha, and she would be over the females. But Fane was not so naive to believe that it wouldn’t be a shock to learn werewolves were real, and quite possibly other things that went bump in the night.
“How are you, Jacquelyn? Are you cold?” Fane sent her the question.
“I’m great! This is awesome. I’ve never ridden on a motorcycle before. I can honestly see why you wouldn’t want to drive a car after you’ve been on one of these! Oh, and no I’m not cold,” Jacquelyn answered him, sounding excited.
It pleased him to know he was able to do something to bring her happiness. He could feel her joy pouring off in waves and it was so soothing to his wolf. His mate was happy and that was very important to him.
They reached the restaurant that Fane had decided on. Brian had told him about it when he mentioned he was taking Jacquelyn out. It was a mom and pop diner with a little bit of everything.
“This ok with you?” Fane asked her.
“Yeah, this is great,” Jacquelyn answered.
Fane looked at her for a moment. He couldn’t help it when his eyes lingered on the markings on her shoulders and neck. Those marks told all Canis lupus she was his, his to make happy, his to protect, his to…and to his astonishment he realized she was his to love as well. Even though he didn’t know her very well yet, he knew without a doubt he would love her.
“Fane, is everything alright?” she asked him.
“Yes, Luna. Everything is fine, better than fine, actually,” Fane told her with a smile.
To Fane’s satisfaction, dinner was pleasant, easy. There was no time when he felt the conversation forced or awkward. He smiled over the fact that she didn't refuse dessert like most girls on a first date, and she had absolutely no qualms about taking food off his plate without even asking.
After they ate, Fane took Jacquelyn to a nearby park. He had no plan of telling her anything yet. He'd told his Alpha he would keep quiet until her mom talked to her and he planned to keep his word. But he knew she would ask questions and it was better here where their conversation would not be easily overheard.
“I know you've only been here a few days, but how do you like Coldspring?” Jacquelyn asked.
“Thus far, it seems like a pleasant place to live, not as formal as the life I am used to, or as cold,” Fane told her with a wink.
“No offense, but based on what you wear, your life doesn’t seem all that formal.”
Fane hadn’t thought about how his appearance might look to her. She probably thought he lived in a little hovel of a house with junk out front. She would be surprised to find that his home was actually 7,000 square feet, although it was partly because his father often had members of the Pack stay with them.
“I guess the clothes would lead you to a different conclusion,” Fane responded.
Suddenly he had this intense desire to know her, know anything or everything. “What’s your favorite color? What is your favorite song, book, and movie? What do you like best about being an only child and least?” Fane fired question after question, not really giving her a chance to answer. He was so eager to learn all about his mate, his Luna.
“Step back, take a deep breath, ‘cause any minute now you are going to pass out from lack of oxygen,” she told him. “Well, seeing as I'm super shy this will be hard for me to share, so bear with me.”
Fane rolled his eyes at her sarcasm. Jacquelyn was anything but shy.
“My favorite color depends on the day and today it is green,” she explained.
“Is that why you are wearing green?” Fane asked.
“Yes. I have to admit that I dress very much in accordance with my mood, and the colors I choose reflect that. I know, I’m a conundrum. What can I say? I like to keep things interesting.”
“Favorite song? That changes frequently as well. Right now I would have to say its ‘Accompany Me,’ by Bob Seager. Ask me again next week and it'll be different. Favorite book? Well, you’re probably going to laugh if you know what this book is, but it’s one I have always loved. It’s called ‘Where the Sidewalk Ends’ by Shell Silverstein. It’s a children’s book of outlandish poetry. Ever heard of it?” she asked him.
“No, actually. I have not. Perhaps you will share it with me sometime,” Fane told her.
“I don’t have a copy of it anymore. I lost it along time ago, although, I think Jen took it and just never ‘fessed up,” she explained.
Fane made a note of this is in his head. That was something he could get her, something to show her he cared about what she liked.
“Okay, where were we...oh, my favorite movie. Well, it’s not just one, it’s a series. The ‘Harry Potter’ movies. You’ve heard of them, right?” she asked.
“Yes, I have actually seen them as well. They were good,” he told her.
“As far as being an only child, I don’t know that I've ever really thought about what it would be like to have a sibling. I've always been so close to Jen and Sally it’s like I have sisters.” She shrugged. “What about you? Same questions.”
Without repeating the questions, Fane simply answered them in the order he had asked them. “Any shade of black or grey, ‘Lord of the Rings’, ‘300’, and I don’t like the responsibility that comes with being the only heir in my family.”
He realized that she wouldn’t understand the whole heir reference, but in an effort to be as honest as possible where he could, he told her.
“So, um, I was wondering if you,” Jacquelyn stumbled around her words. It was obvious she was uncomfortable with what she wanted to know. Catching the thought in her mind, he understood she wanted to know if he had a girlfriend in Romania. He was actually a little shocked that she thought he would pursue her if he did have a girlfriend, but he had to remember she did not know him yet.
“No, Luna. I do not have a girlfriend, nor am I recently out of a relationship.” Fane knew the jab about her ex wasn’t necessary, but he couldn’t help it. He loved to see her get riled up and, sure enough, if she had had hackles they would be at attention.
“Why does it bother you so much that I had a boyfriend? I mean, it’s not like I even knew you existed a week ago, not to mention Trent and I aren’t together anymore,” she said firmly.
“I know, Jacquelyn, I’m sorry. I’m not really bothered by it anymore. Well, mostly not bothered by it. I have to admit I don’t like the idea of another male touching you, but as long as I know he won’t be again, I think Trent is safe,” Fane told her honestly.
“So you’re saying that if I dated another guy they wouldn’t be safe?” she asked him in disbelief.
“Do you want to date another guy?” Fane countered.
Fane felt the wall in her mind go up and knew the answer was no, she didn’t want to date anyone else, and he smiled at that, which was not a smart thing to do at that moment.
Jacquelyn stepped forward and put a finger against his chest, poking him with every word. “Don’t dodge my question with a question of your own, you pushy, bossy, Romanian butt head!” She was fuming. Fane imagined that if it were possible there would be smoke rising off that hot tempered red head of hers, and she wasn’t done yet either.
“I can damn well date who I want, when I want. There is nothing you can do or say to change that, so if you want to continue with this…this…thing between us,” she said, flinging her hand back and forth to indicate them both, “then you'd better just back the hell up, buddy!” By the time she was done, she was panting from her little rant.
“I didn’t say you couldn’t date another person, I asked you if you wanted to,” Fane told her. “Is that so hard to answer?”
Jacquelyn glared at him, obviously wanting to hit him with something. He decided to back up just a little. He continued to stare back at her into those deep green eyes, waiting to see if she would admit to him what he already knew.
Jacquelyn looked down as if something could possibly be of interest to her on the ground. In a voice so soft, he would have missed it if not for his wolf hearing, she said, “No, I don’t want anyone else.”
When she looked up at him there were tears in her eyes and his heart broke.
“Meu inimă, why the tears? I did not mean to hurt you. Please tell me what I can do, you are breaking my heart,” Fane told her with agony.
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. He stroked her hair gently and whispered to her in his native language words of comfort and reassurance. Finally, after several moments she began to speak. She didn’t pull away from him, which was good because he wasn’t ready to let her go. He had hurt her. His wolf was not happy and needed the touch of his mate.
“I’m sorry. I’m not usually a blubbering idiot, it’s just that I’m so confused. My emotions for you are so freaking intense and I’ve known you all of three days. I mean, this isn’t a movie where we meet and fall madly in a matter of days, Fane. This is my life!”
“I know, I’m sorry I wasn’t more considerate. Please, love, forgive me. I won’t let my jealousy or pride get in the way of taking your feelings into consideration again,” Fane told her in all sincerity.
Before she could pull away, Fane kissed her lightly on the forehead and took a deep breath, enjoying the way she smelled.
She looked at him oddly and said, “I’m not even going to ask why you just sniffed me.”
“Because you smell wonderful.” Fane was completely unashamed that he had been caught.
They were quiet for a few moments before the questions he had been waiting for her to ask finally came.
“So, are you going to fill me in on why we can share thoughts or why I suddenly have markings on my skin that would fit yours like a puzzle?” Jacquelyn asked him.
“So you noticed that the markings matched?” Fane was surprised.
He had to tell his wolf to chill out because he desperately wanted to preen in front of her, proud that she'd noticed his markings. Good grief, Fane thought to himself. This is ridiculous, wanting to prance in front of my mate and show her I'm worthy of her. Act normal, you hairy baboon, or she’s going to run from you screaming.
“They are unusual markings, climbing up your neck like that, so naturally I noticed them.” She tried to sound nonchalant about it.
“Look, Jacquelyn, I want to tell you. You have no idea how badly I want you to know everything. Your mom needs to talk with you first. She needs to tell you what she knows and then when I explain how I fit into it, it will make more sense to you,” Fane explained, imploring her to accept this.
Fane knew, however, that she would never let it go that easily.
“What does my mom have to do with any of this?” she asked him incredulously.
Just as Fane was about to answer her, a car pulled in next to his motorcycle, which was quite a distance away from where they were sitting on a bench. Fane let his wolf out enough to use his eyes, and saw to his displeasure that it was the wolves that had driven past Jacquelyn’s house the night before.
The four Greys began walking toward them and Fane tried to figure out what his best strategy would be. He and his wolf were in agreement that they did not like their mate in danger, but what could he do? If he attempted to fight them, she would be left unprotected. If they tried to make a run for it, the Greys would easily overtake them because she couldn't run faster than the wilves. He could carry her, but Fane had a feeling that would not go over too well with his Luna.
He would just have to wait and see what they wanted.
“Who are these guys? Do you know them?” Her thoughts were clouded with worry.
“I know very little about them. This is another thing we need to talk about, but we must talk to your mother first,” Fane answered.
Fane never took his gaze off the wolves coming towards him and his mate, but out of the corner of his eye he saw Jacquelyn give him a displeased look, obviously not happy with his answer.
As the wolves approached, Fane couldn’t suppress the low warning growl that escaped from his throat. If he had been in wolf form his hackles would have been standing, tail down, stance wide and low, ready for any sudden movement they might try.
The wolf from the dealership, Steve, spoke first. “My Alpha wants to know why you are still here.”
Fane took a step forward, which caused the wolves to back up a step. None of them could help lowering their heads just a little because Fane was more dominant than them all.
“I hate to break it to you, Beta, but your Alpha has no authority to order me out of a town that he has not made known as his territory. There is no record of this pack existing.”
The Grey looked a little confused by this, which meant either his Alpha didn’t know this, or his Alpha didn’t share this information with his pack.
“Regardless, there is only one of you compared to an entire pack. What do you really think you can do against those odds?” he asked Fane.
Fane glared menacingly at the four Greys; they backed up even more. “You tell your Alpha to back off. There are only so many disregards for Pack Laws that I will concede.” Fane looked each wolf in the eyes and they dropped them instantly. Then, in the same voice his father used to make his wolves obey, Fane told them, “Leave, now.”
When a dominant issued a command like that the submissive could only obey, whether they wanted to or not.
Steve fought the order as he walked away. Before he got in his car, he turned to Fane and said, “Just so you know, pup, she has already been claimed. If you don’t stay away, her true mate is going to challenge you, and rest assured he will tear you apart.”
At that Fane snarled furiously. His eyes began to glow and he felt his canines elongate. The Grey whined and scrambled into his car, his tires squealing as he peeled out.
Fane closed his eyes and took slow deep breaths. Calm yourself, Fane thought. No one is going to take her from you. He sort of chanted this to himself over and over until he and his wolf were somewhat in control. Fane turned to face Jacquelyn and saw confusion, but to his relief there was no fear.
“Ok, you can forget trying to get away with not explaining that little episode of the Twilight Zone. I'm not an idiot, so don’t think I didn’t pick up on the whole animal kingdom reference, the way you just nearly went postal on their hides, or the fact that the 'she' they were talking about was me,” Jacquelyn said, arms crossed, brow furrowed in determination.
Fane walked up to her, towering over her short frame To her credit, after seeing him act like the animal he was, she didn’t take a single step back.
“You’re right, Luna. It’s time to talk, but your mom will start. Let’s go.”
With that, they were on his motorcycle headed back to Jacquelyn’s house.