As soon as Layla stepped outside of the bedroom, she was at a loss for words. She hadn't been paying attention to every detail while she was inside the bedroom. If she had, she wouldn't have been so shocked by everything that she saw now.
Layla had never seen such luxury in her entire life.
His apartment was larger than her entire cabin had been back home. It was bigger than any of the cabins back home. Layla stared in wonder. It was easily bigger than anything she had ever seen, perhaps four or five times the size of the largest cabin she had seen back home.
The place was decorated like a tastefully chosen palace. Everything was wooden and looked almost carved by hand. There were large windows framed by thick, heavy curtains that were pushed aside, letting light stream into the apartment.
The sofa's and armchairs all looked like they were made of the most luxurious fabric. One wall held a huge fireplace in it.
Even though there was no missing how grand the space was, it wasn't too much. It was in perfect forest hues, just like the bedroom. It perfectly captured the essence of a wolf and the forests that they all came from.
"Hi," the wolf came up to her slowly, careful not to spook her. "I'm Henry, you're in my home."
Layla shook herself out of her trance as she stared at everything around her. she turned to him fully.
"I'm Layla," she answered. "Thank you for yesterday." She didn't want to talk about it at all, but she felt like she should mention it at least. He had probably saved her life. If not, then definitely no small amount of trauma. "And for letting me stay the night."
"It's no problem. Would you like some water?"
Henry offered her a water bottle.
Layla took it gratefully, noticing that it was still sealed. He was clever. She had to give him that.
No matter how heroically he had saved her yesterday, she wasn't going to simply trust him right off the bat. She was not going to be drinking from a cup of water right now.
Layla broke the seal and drank eagerly, careful not to spill. She was acutely aware of the lush carpet she was standing on, which perfectly resembled the forest floor.
Henry spoke again. "If you don't mind me asking, why were you alone in that part of the city? It's extremely dangerous. Why didn't you at least take a packmate or two with you?"
'Because I didn't really have anywhere else to be,' Layla thought. She had no pack here.
That was an insane thing to admit to, even to the wolf that had just saved her. A wolf's strength and protection came from the pack. If she admitted to having none, she admitted to being as weak as he saw her last night.
"I was just exploring," Layla said, shrugging. She tried to answer without giving too much away. "I made a mistake."
Well, anyway," Henry said again, giving her a once-over, "your injuries healed immediately, of course. And they didn't touch you with the silver, so l'm pretty sure you're good to go. But if you'd like, you're welcome to spend the night."
Layla bit on her bottom lip. He didn't assume that she had no place to go, but she wondered if that was the assumption. It wasn't like she had much of a choice anyway. Where else did she have to go?
"Thanks," Layla told him. "I appreciate that." She glanced away from him. She wanted to ask one more thing, but she wasn't entirely sure what she had a right to. She figured that at this point, it didn't matter.
"Do you think I could use your shower, please?" Layla asked him. She wanted to scrub herself clean. Even though nothing had happened last night, she still had a sickly crawling feeling all over her skin that she wanted to wash off.
"Of course, through here," Henry told her as he led her through to the bathroom.
Layla closed the door behind her and locked it. She found the bathroom was just as luxurious as the rest of the place. Layla took in everything around her even as she climbed into the stream of hot water, letting it wash over her.
There were wooden shelves that looked like they were just pieces of tree bark that had been pulled off and stuck into the walls. Plants were covering many surfaces. For a moment, she didn't think she was in a bathroom.
She was back in the forest of her pack.
....
Flashback ...
Silva forest was a flourish of activity. Well, at least, a part of it was-the part that was home to Layla's pack. They were preparing for Layla's Ceremony of Adulthood. It wasa wolf's rite of passage. They were officialy no longer cubs. They were now privy to the more important parts of being part of a pack.
Under her mother's instruction, her packmates had already set up the parameters for the pack-wide hunt that was going to happen soon.
Now, they were all simply decorating all the pieces in between.
The festival would begin with a hunt, which was the fun part. That was probably where it ended, as far as Layla was concerned.
There were parts of the ceremony that she wasn't looking forward to. After the hunt, the kills were inspected. Whichever wolf brought back the most impressive kill had the right to be arranged to mate the Omega that had come of age.
Layla was the Omega who had come of age. Someone who killed the biggest game, and she had no idea who that would be, had the right to claim her. They would first cook and eat the kills.
The next day would be the ceremony.
Her parents were eager for this day. Layla knew having an Omega child was both an amazing blessing, because it was a gift that the moon just did not bestow often, and terrifying responsibility.
They wanted her mated as soon as they could so that she would be safe and have a stable home.
Layla understood her parents' need but didn't want to be rooted down like that just yet.
"Hey, Layla." Layla turned to see Jake coming toward her.
Jake was her parent's favorite to kill the greatest game at the ceremony. they had all but chosen him as her mate. Layla liked Jake, but as her friend or even her younger brother. She knew that she would never have chosen him as her mate.
Jake handed her a small wooden box with a shy smile. Layla, knowing the customs of her people and the rules of a courting gift, took it with a smile. She opened the box to find a small, carved wooden pendant.
Jake was good with wood and a knife, so she knew that he had carved this for her.
Thank you, Jake," Layla told him, putting it around her neck immediately.
She felt a little guilty. She knew what she wanted. She had already decided how she would act for herself going further. She knew that all of his efforts, and that of her pack, would be all for nothing.
End Flashback...
....
Layla shook herself out of her reverie. She was here in Lunavia now, and she knew that she had to plan her next steps more carefully. She couldn't behave the way she had last night. She might just get herself killed.
Layla dressed in the clothes he had given her and left the bathroom. She felt worlds better and ready to start the day again.
Henry was sitting on the sofa when she came out.
She found that he had a plate of food on the table in front of him. Layla's stomach protested at the emptiness. When had she last eaten?
"This is for you," Henry said, pushing the plate toward her.
Layla eagerly sat down at the one end of the sofa and waited. Though she didn't see any plate in front of him, she didn't know what the pack hierarchy in the city was. She could feel something in the air between them. She had no idea what it was, so she didn't want to make any missteps.
"You can go ahead," Henry told her, amused and gesturing to her plate. "I already ate." Layla dug in ravenously, lifting sausage and eggs to her mouth. She tasted venison, and she nearly swooned. As soon as she was done, Henry showed her to a room.
"It locks from the inside," Henry told her, showing her the deadbolt. "Well, goodnight."
"Goodnight," Layla greeted him.
She laid on the bed. His scent was not nearly as strong in this room, but it still permeated everything. She was asleep in moments.