I chatted on the phone with my aunt for an hour or so, about how excited I was to see her, and how worried I was since my french skills were a bit lacking, but she assured me it'll be easier to learn once it's all around me.
She told me about the pack she had joined when she found her mate, that they had their young Alpha take over three years ago, and that he was very compassionate to their members, and that made me very happy for her. She told me of a few of her favorite places to eat and shop, excited about bringing me to see them.
Long after I'd ended the call I stared up at the clouds as they blew by me, with daydreams of day trips to the city of Paris gracing my mind. But all so suddenly the birds singing around me stopped, and the hair on the back of my neck began to stand up. I looked around the meadow and riverbed, glancing through the trees, trying to find the intruder as I yank my clothing back on my body.
"I know you're out there, show yourself!" I yelled out into the woods as I finish covering myself.
Hearing a rustling in the brush I turn towards the sound, waiting for who or whatever was watching me, to come out. The first things I saw were a large black snout and paws before the whole beast stepped into the meadow. I sniffed the air and his scent reached my nose, he smelled like a clear pine forest and it made my mouth water.
"Brandon?" I asked looking into the large wolf's eyes.
The wolf panted happily and moved closer to me before bowing its head slightly. Then, he shifted to his human form and stood before me completely naked. I let out a gasp as I turned around, my face going red with embarrassment, but this just made Brandon laugh.
"You might want to get used to naked bodies Janna were werewolves after all." He stated with a chuckle, "We need to talk, and I thought it should be in person. But you're a hard girl to find."
"I know you're right, but if you want to talk you're going to have to take this and cover up so I can look at you." I took my sweatshirt off and threw it over my shoulder, roughly in his direction.
He tied it around his waist and told me once he was decent, and I turned to look at the young Alpha fated to be my mate. He had a friendly smile on his face and ran a hand through his dirty-blond hair.
"So this situation that we're in..." He started, "You're my mate. But I've never had any interest in you before this, and I've been dating Bethany on and off for three years..."
He trailed off and shifted his weight a bit nervously. His words were obviously the truth, but the pull from the mate bond made them hurt more than I'd like to admit.
"Shocker." I huff sarcastically at him, and he raises an eyebrow at me.
"What is?" He questioned.
"That you looked for me just to reject the bond. Well, go ahead then." I crossed my arms and took a deep breath, preparing for his next words.
"No Janna, I'm not here to reject you, but I don't think I can accept you either." He says and my eyes fly open and meet his light brown ones.
"What?" I snap back, and he rubs the back of his neck.
"I'm really confused Janna, I'm in In love with another woman, but now that you've shifted I can't get you out of my head. It's driving me crazy, I was hoping that us talking would help get things in order." He blurts out, and another flash of heartbreak flows through me.
"That does sound like a problem, but you'll have plenty of time to think about it once I leave for school if you don't decide to reject me before I leave for school," I remark and his jaw dropped in shock.
"Leave? You are leaving my pack?!" He asks angrily, and it's my turn to be shocked.
"Yes, I've been accepted to a school in Paris, I leave in 2 weeks!" I throw back at him, "You have no right to be mad about it, since, as you said, you're in love with another woman!"
He's shocked at my outburst, and he takes a step back from me, he looks around at the trees and takes a deep breath before he responds.
"You can't leave until we figure this out." He commands with his Alpha voice, but I just glare back at him.
"I want to leave and go to school, so I will. I'm not going to stay here, for you, just because you can't decide between your mate or your girlfriend. Honestly Brandon, I never wanted a mate to find my mate within the pack, I want to leave for years now." Hurt flashes through his eyes as he listens to my words.
"You're right." He croaks out, "I need to make a choice, but I'll need some time Janna."
He steps up to me and places a hand on my shoulder, and sparks explode where his hand rests, I let out a small gasp as I look back at him.
"Your eyes are so strangely teal, so beautifully rare..." He trails off, closes his eyes, and leans toward me. I quickly pick up on what he's doing and back away, shaking his arm from my shoulder. He lets out a growl at my actions but stops and shakes his head.
"I need to leave, this didn't go the way I planned. But can I have your phone number, so we can talk again later?" He asks, and I hand him my phone, so he can add his number to it.
When he's finished he hands it back before removing the sweater from his body he hands it to me before shifting back into his large black wolf and dashing off between the trees.