Nia POV
Today was the day of the festival and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous because the butterflies in my stomach only made it more obvious. I shouldn't be feeling this way about meeting Travis there but since I last spoke to him over the phone, it felt like he was being a little more personable than when we first met and I know there's a 14-year age gap between us but I didn't think it mattered since after all, we were just friends.
He was a nice guy and often during work my mind would drift off and start thinking about him. These new feelings were something I didn't know what to make of. On one hand, Travis was just a friend I made in this town, and on the other, I saw him as this handsome man with a gentle yet strong presence that seemed to be very attentive to my needs if I even mentioned something I was having trouble with or needed an opinion on.
The weird thing is since I met him, every night I would hear the same loud wolf howl echoing through the trees. I knew there were all kinds of animals in these woods but wolves were known to stay away from people around here. Having one so close to my home kind of put me on edge, yet another part of me was drawn to it like there was an invisible pull I felt to go out there and find the beast making the loud howls.
I put those thoughts to the back of my mind after being snapped out of my daydream from my phone ringing. I looked at the screen and saw Stacy's name pop up so I answered.
"Hey, how's your outfit plan going? I don't wanna get there and find out we're clashing."
"No way, I made sure I wore the total opposite of what you're wearing. Remember I picked out a blue cashmere sweater with black jeans and new brown leather boots", she replied with a giggle.
"Oh that's great, I'm wearing the black knitted wool sweater dress and matching black boots with the heel to give me a bit of height since I am on the short side", I replied.
"Wish I could wear heels but I got stuck being 5"10 and would look like a red-headed giant among the crowd. Just remember the festival starts at noon, so I'll be by to pick you up at 11:30."
"Sure I'll be ready by then", I said before hanging up.
A couple of hours later she pulled up outside and honked her horn. I grabbed my purse and gave myself one final look in the mirror before leaving out the door to see that it wasn't Stacy's car out front but a red jeep with a man in the driver's seat and Stacy on the passenger side.
I went over and opened the passenger back door only to be greeted with the smell of a woodsy musk and sandalwood scent mixed in with what I could smell was Stacy's expensive rose-scented perfume.
"Hey Nia, I want to introduce you to my boyfriend Jesse who's going to be our chauffeur today", she said with a giggle looking over at him.
"Hi, Nia, it looks like I'm going to be the driver for you two ladies today," Jesse said looking back at me with a striking pair of grey eyes and a pearly white smile.
Based on the way these two acted towards each other, I could tell they were a perfect match and could only hope to find someone that matches me the same way.
Travis POV
Everything was going perfectly, all the booths and activities were set up, and the souvenir stands and shops were fully stocked. The food court area was smelling nice filled with the aroma of authentic Nordic dishes and also some regular foods for people with different tastes. My wolf was also pleased with how our orders were being followed, especially since Nia would be here and I know he has missed her being around us as I have.
"Mate will be pleased with what we have done. She will be happy to see how everyone follows orders to please their Alpha", my beast said with pride and I agreed.
If I want her to be comfortable and feel safe around me, then I must also make sure those around us are following the rules. Since finding my mate, my wolf and I have craved being around her, so for the past 2 weeks, I've been going by her house after my night patrols to howl out to her while also sending out a warning to any invaders who would dare come close to her living space.
I know by now she must be feeling some sort of 'Mate Pull' as we call it. Wolves feel it a lot stronger than their human counterparts but the human will start to feel some sort of longing to be around that particular wolf, even though they don't have a clue of what that feeling is.
Once she gets here, I'll be able to satisfy that need I've been feeling for the past two weeks and hopefully work my way into deepening our bond to the point of making it a serious relationship where I can tell her the truth about what's going on. By that point, the mate bond should be strong enough to where she will fully accept me and her place in my life.
"Alpha I and Jesse are on our way with the Luna, we should be there in 10 minutes", Stacy mind linked me before cutting it off.
Since she's also mated to the pack's lead warrior Jesse, I thought it would only be suitable for them to bring their Luna to the festival and when I get her settled in the pack, I'll make Jesse her bodyguard for when I'm not around.
The only one I'm not looking forward to seeing is Garrett since he only tolerates humans because they make up 80% of our business's customers. He usually avoids human functions like this but strangely today he decided to hang around as if he was waiting for something or someone.
As I walked back to the parking lot, I saw the red keep pull in and park. Words couldn't describe how excited I was to see her again, I just hope she felt the same way about me.