Before Fane turned away to walk back to the Henrys' house, he looked up at her window. At first Jacque wanted to duck away, embarrassed at being caught watching him…again. Then she figured, What the hey, how often do I get to hanker after hot Romanians?

“I would hope you don’t hanker after any other. Romanian, hot, or otherwise.… Luna, what does that even mean?” Fane sent her his thoughts.

“You’re really going to have to invest in a good dictionary and thesaurus. You know that, right?” Jacque responded.

She watched as he blew her a kiss and couldn’t help thinking how much she would rather have her lips on the receiving end of that kiss instead of his hand. She felt her neck tingle at the thought of his lips, and was telling herself to get a grip when she realized Fane hadn’t told her something. Jacque jerked her window up and leaned out.

“Fane, you conveniently forgot to tell me how I take your blood,” Jacque told him.

“I didn’t forget, I thought that would be obvious, love,” Fane told her. “You get to bite me back.” Fane winked at her, grinned, then turned to walk back to the Henrys'.

“If you don’t want to bite him, I will.”

Jacque turned to see Sally and Jen standing in her doorway. Sally lifted her right hand, which held a coffee mug. “Hot chocolate?” she asked.

“You better believe it,” was all Jacque said.

Chapter 20

Fane was smiling to himself as he walked across the street toward the Henrys' house. He hadn’t forgotten to tell Jacquelyn that she would have to bite him, he had just been waiting for the right moment. He was quickly learning that his Luna was unpredictable. He didn’t know if she would be happy about getting revenge over him biting her, or if the idea of having to bite him hard enough to draw blood would be the shove that pushed her over the edge. To his relief, she didn’t freak out…yet. She simply looked confused. He figured it would sink in in a little while and she would contact him later tonight.

Fane made it into the kitchen and then halfway up the stairs before he ran into Brian. “How was the date?” Brian asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

“It was good. Jacquelyn is a wonderful girl,” Fane answered.

“So you gonna take her out again?”

“I hope so. I didn’t ask her tonight. I didn’t want to come across as obsessive or anything,” Fane told him and chuckled to himself. He knew he was beyond obsessed but, then again, she wasn’t just a girl he liked, she wasn’t just a crush, so honestly he was being pretty reasonable about the whole situation. Yeah, keep telling yourself that, Fane thought.

“Oh, you had a phone call while you were out,” Brian told him.

“A phone call? Was it from my parents?” Fane asked.

“No, it was from Steven, the salesman from the dealership. He asked that you call him back tonight, that it was very important. I wrote his number down and taped it do your door.”

“Ok, thank you,” Fane replied absentmindedly as he continued on up the stairs.

“I’ll see you in the morning,” Brian called to him.

“Yeah, see you,” was all Fane said.

When Fane made it to his bedroom, he saw the note Brian had taped to the door. He pulled it off and pushed the door open, closing it behind him.

For a moment he just stared at the piece of paper, not really sure if he should call his Alpha first. He decided he should call Steve first – then he could tell his father about everything.

He picked up the phone and dialed the number Brian had written on the paper. He listened to it ring four times before someone finally answered.

“Hello,” the voice said.

“I’m calling to speak with Steve, please,” Fane said politely.

“Hold please,” Fane was told. Fane waited for several minutes before another voice came on the line. He was trying hard not to think about all the scenarios that could play out under the circumstances, and unfortunately each was no better than the other.

“Is this the pup from Romania?” a deep voice asked.

“If by pup you mean the Romanian Prince of the Canis lupus, then you are correct,” Fane responded already wanting to growl. “To whom do I have the pleasure of speaking?” Fane asked.

“My name is Lucas Steele. I am the Alpha of the Coldspring pack. I’m calling to find out why you're still in my territory, as you have not been sanctioned to be here. Not only that, but why are staying across the street from the female I have claimed as my own?” Lucas asked, his voice becoming a growl.

Fane’s eyes began to glow; he felt his canines lengthen and had to close his eyes to gain composure. This mutt had dared to claim Jacquelyn as his. If he came near his mate he would rip his throat out. Once he was calm and able to speak he responded. “There is no record of your pack. Therefore, I do not have to seek permission to be here. As for the female you are referring to, unless you can prove that she is indeed your mate, you have no claim on her.”

Fane heard a low growl on the other end of the phone. He waited for Lucas to respond and for a moment thought that the other wolf was no longer there. Then he heard him speak. “Are you trying to say that you can prove she is your mate?” Lucas asked.

“Da (yes),” was all Fane said in response.

Then he heard Lucas say the very thing Fane had been hoping to avoid.

“Then I challenge you for the bonding ceremony. You know how this works, correct? Even if you do, let me refresh your memory. Whether or not she does carry your marks, she is not bonded to you, and I have the right to challenge you for the bonding ceremony. If I win, this of course means you die, and I will take the female as mate. If you win, well, the outcome is obvious,” Lucas explained.

Fane took a deep breath. His Alpha was going to be livid. Jacquelyn was going to be even angrier when she found out she had to go to Romania. This really was not how Fane had expected to start his senior year in high school. Fane had to buy himself some time in order to get Jacquelyn and her mother out of the country, which meant she would have to go without him. He didn’t like that idea, but he would do whatever he could to keep her safe.

“I can do nothing else but accept. However, I have the right to request my Alpha be present at the challenge to ensure a fair fight, and because he is in Romania, it will take two days for him to get here.”

“I know the rules. You may call your Alpha to come and witness. However, during those two days Jacquelyn,” Lucas paused when he heard Fane snap his teeth together and growl, “will be under house arrest, just in case you were planning on trying to smuggle her out while we're waiting for your Alpha. I will have two guards at her house and you will not be permitted to see her during this time.”