Eric continued walking through the forest for a while, dragging me along. I had no idea where we were going, but I followed silently, as I could tell he was fuming. He soon began to slow down and the rapid movements stopped, making it seem like we were taking a stroll.
I glanced up to see that his eyes had assumed their peaceful ocean colour again. I sighed in relief as I knew it was time we talked about us. I had stopped crying myself. No, in fact, I think my tears dried up the moment he asked his mother if that was all she wanted to say.
I knew he might have just said that to protect me and not because he didn't care about me being handicapped or that I was of no use to his pack as a Luna. But it sure felt good. I winced at the thought.
"I'm sorry." I said silently and saw his shoulder tense, as he stopped walking and turned to me.
Here we go.
"For what?" he asked, but I didn't look up to him. I was satisfied to look anywhere but his eyes.
"For not telling you that I am human?"
He busted into laughter and I looked at him surprised. What could be amusing? How is any of this amusing? I bowed my head in embarrassment. Laughter was not what I expected, but somehow it hurt more than an insult. Was he making fun of me? I held back tears.
"What makes you think that!" he said when he was done laughing.
"Hun?" I looked into his eyes and was immediately trapped in them.
"What on earth made you think that you aren't a werewolf?" He said, looking straight into my eyes, in a way that made my cheeks burn. I looked away again.
"Well.... I can't shift.... and I..."
"Do you think being able to shift is the only thing that makes one a werewolf?"
I frowned at him now, but a teasing smile was still tugging at the corner of his lips.
"If it isn't, then what is?" I asked in a calm and low voice.
He laughed a little and I knew he was enjoying himself. Why he was beats me.
"I don't know, let's see...." he said and began to pull away strands of hair from off my face, then he let his hands fall on my cheek as he gently caressed it. I swallowed nervously as sparks ran through my body from his touch.
He allowed his hands to wander to my neck and then lower until his hands got to that spot in my neck where he was to mark me as his. The moment his hands glided over that spot, I gasped in shock, at the thousand sensations I felt, but he smiled knowingly.
"See? No human would act that way." he whispered before his hands ran up my neck again, pulling me close. I felt his breathe on my face as I caught myself staring at his lips.
Letting his hands slide to the back of my neck, he bent over and kissed me gently.
A thousand sparks exploded in my head and I tried to gasp in shock at this feeling that I had never experienced before, but found myself letting out a moan instead. He stiffened for a second before allowing his other hand to wrap around my waist, pulling me close into a deeper kiss.
I found myself standing on my toes and tucking my hands into his hair, kissing his back. Soon, we broke up for air and he rested his head on my forehead, closing his eyes. I didn't dare to open mine either.
I didn't know what was happening to me. There was a fire coursing through my veins that I couldn't seem to control, my heart was racing at an impossible rate. What was happening to me? I wondered as my breathing began to slow down.
I felt his head leave mine, then his breath in my ears as he whispered.
"I can't wait to make you my wife."
My eyes flew open in shock as I looked up to see the teasing smile on his face before he began to walk away as if he hadn't said a word.
I stared at him, eyes wide with a blushing face as I wondered what that even meant. Why was I blushing? I wondered while staring at his retreating figure.
"You should hurry up." he said, not looking back. I quickly ran to catch up with him. Gathering my gown in the process.
................................................................................
"Why aren't you mad?"
I asked him when we got to the lake.
It was obvious that this was going to be our favourite spot. He was skipping stones into the lake and I had perched on a fallen tree and was watching him, trying to gather my own thoughts on what had happened on our way here and how he seemed so unbothered at the news of my inability to shift.
He turned around and began to walk towards me and I couldn't help but notice how handsome he was.
How did we turn this day into another date? I asked myself mentally as he sat beside me, putting his hands around my shoulders and pulling me to himself. I let him.
"Why do you seem so cool at all this?" I asked again.
"I always knew there was something wrong with your wolf from the first time we met."
I sat upright and looked at him. He knew?
"You knew?" he smiled and pulled me back into his arms.
"Hmmn. My wolf immediately tried to reach out to yours to bond with your wolf but he couldn't. He hinted me immediately that there was something wrong with your wolf. He could sense her, but couldn't reach her, but he didn't know why?"
I sighed, half relieved, half confused. He knew already that I was different and he wasn't bothered by it, but does that solve everything? Does that secure our future?
"Why are you so sure I'm not human?" I asked again.
"Do you want me to show you again?" he asked, amusement in his eyes.
"No!" I answered all too quickly and he laughed, his chest rumbling as he did. I smiled despite myself. I could listen to his laughter all day.
"You perceive my scent, don't you?"
"I do." I answered, wondering why he would even ask that.
"You recognized me just as I did you when we met. I can mind-link you as can others, there is no way you are human." he said and I nodded slowly, realizing I never thought of all these things that made me in every way a werewolf as others were, but then, my wolf, why couldn't I shift into my wolf?
"That doesn't change anything. I can't shift into my wolf. How do I protect our people when there is a war?"
"No mate of mine would stand in the front line of battle to fight with me." he said, his anger evident in his voice. He turned me to face him.
"It is my job to protect you, and that is what I would do."
I stared into his blue eyes and knew he meant every word. He wasn't going to abandon me because I couldn't turn into a wolf, he was going to stay with me.
I hugged him, inhaling his intoxicating scent as he probably did mine.
"What happened?" he asked and I knew what he was asking about. I pulled away and looked at my broken nails, blinking away tears.
"I don't know. I couldn't hear her. I never heard her." I said, glancing at him.
"And when it was my eighteenth birthday, I thought she would appear, I thought I would shift but nothing. I stood there in front of the whole village and...." I choked. My tears now undergoing a free fall, he held my hands and squeezed it.
"Waited and waited and waited. But she never came. I just couldn't shift." I finished looking at him with teary eyes. He carried me into his lap as I wept in the crook of his neck.
"What is wrong with me? What do you think is wrong with me?" I asked with tears.
"I don't know," he said softly, "but we're going to find out, I promise."
"We are going to overcome this together, okay?" he said softly as he went on to whisper inaudible sweet nothing to my ears and my sobbing began to quiet down. When he stopped talking, I raised my head to look up into his and saw his eyes were glazed over.
He was mind linking someone, I guess it's time to go home. I thought to myself, just then he looked at me and smiled.
"Adolphus thinks we should take you on a ride."
I frowned. "Who is Adolphus?"
"My wolf." he said as he set me on my feet, stood up and began to take off his shirt. I cleared my throat nervously as my face began to heat up.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"Taking off my clothes, obviously," he said teasingly as he threw the shirt on the fallen tree we had been sitting on and began to pull down his trousers. I immediately stepped back and turned away from him, covering my eyes with my hands.
I heard his quick laughter, before a few cracks, then I heard a thumping fist against the sand or that was what I thought I heard before I felt something gently nudge my waist. I turned around to stand face to face with a large light brown wolf.
"Aldolphus?" I asked and I got nuzzled in response. I giggled and he stopped to stare at me.
I also stared into his deep blue eyes. I cautiously raised my hand, touching his silk fur first as if trying to see if he doesn't bite, then I held his large head with my two hands, slowly scratching his jaw. He purred under my touch and I smiled slightly before walking close to hug the wolf.
He nuzzled me again just before I heard Eric's voice loud and clear in my head.
"Hop on."
Giggling, I rushed to his side as he bent a little and I climbed on, straddled him and he ran off into the forest.
My heart swelled with joy as I felt the wind in my face, the scent of the forest filling my nose, and my hair flying behind me as if it had a mind of its own, as we ran.