Xander's POV
Xander looked at Artemis who was sitting next to him, sliding her food across her plate and pouting. He thought she looked cute but at the same time it made him wonder what Jayce and her had been talking about before he had interrupted them.
He turned away to look at Jayce who was sitting across from him having a conversation with Tina. While he was smiling at the older female, Xander could see in his eyes that there was something bothering Jayce.
Xander sighed. He had a feeling he knew what the two had spoken about, Artemis only getting like this when she spoke about her parents.
And her vampire blood…
Could it be that Jayce is upset about her being a half-breed? Xander thought. There are some beings that believe half-breeds are a sin…Could he be one of those?
Xander shook his head at the thought. No, it wouldn't be possible. Why would the Goddess allow for the two to become mates if Jayce would hate her very existence?
But then again…
She had mate bonded Artemis to the most unexpected werewolves.
Frustration filled Xander. It had been three days since the they started 'courting' Artemis and so far, Jayce and her had seem to have gotten along just fine. At times the two looked like real lovers, making Xander a little jealous.
It made him wonder if things would ever be the same between him and Artemis, but now. He was worried that everything they had built was going to come crumbling down…
"Xander?" A voice called out his name, bring him back to reality.
He looked over to see that Circe had walked over to the table with a tray in her hands. She looked at him curiously, probably wondering what he was thinking.
"Yeah?"
"Do you want anything to drink? Dad's opening a case and wanting to know if you're going to drink or not." She asked, placing the tray on the table.
"I'm driving-" Xander started.
"You can drink if you want. I've got my license with me so I can drive us home." Artemis suddenly said, looking at Xander.
She seemed to have snapped out of whatever she was in, finally finished playing with her food and actually eating it.
"Alright…" Xander sighed, pulling out the truck keys and handing it to her. "You want anything Jayce?"
"Nah I'm good."
Circe looked over at Tina as Xander was getting up. "Oh yeah…Mom, Aunt Jimara wanted to know if she could put the kids in the guest room. Maria's getting a little tired."
"Sure thing. Maybe get them some extra blankets too." Tina replied. "Also, Xander could you ask Jason to put the trays in the oven? He'll know what I'm talking about."
"Sure." Xander nodded.
"Thanks dear." Tina smiled.
Xander walked back to the house with Circe, him walking to the kitchen where he found Jason leaning against the counter, staring at the oven. Circe meanwhile walked to the sitting room, where Aunt Jimara was probably with the kids.
"Hey Xander, you're drinking?" Jason asked, grabbing a can from the fridge.
"Yip. Artemis is driving us home." Xander answered, taking the beer from Jason. "Oh, and Tina asked me to tell you to put the trays in the oven."
Jason nodded in understanding. "Alright…"
He opened the fridge again and pulled out to baking dishes filled with some brown batter. He quickly placed them in the oven, pulling out another tray with some muffins.
"Tina baking for everyone?" Xander smirked as Jason placed the tray on a cooling rack.
"Yeah…" Jas muttered. "She and Alex were experimenting with some recipes and they landed up making too much food. It's how this whole thing happened. Although, it looked like everyone's going to be taking food home again."
Xander smiled. Tina was known for her love of feeding the younger pack members, always making food with her and Jason's son, Alex.
"So, how's the whole courting thing going?" Jas asked. "I saw Artemis and Jayce were pretty close in the sitting room earlier."
"It's been fine, I guess…" Xander said, taking a sip of his beer. "The two have gotten pretty close over the last few days."
"And you?" Jas stared at him, arms crossed over his chest.
"It's the same…" Xander sighed.
Xander hadn't really made must of a move, not wanting to scare Artemis nor make their relationship awkward. He had been excited upon learning she was into older men, but that excitement died soon with the realization of how it would seem to her to suddenly have romantic feelings for her.
Jason frowned seeming to know what was going on. "You know the whole idea behind the exercise was for you to get romantically involved and learn if you guys were really suited for each other."
"I know…"
"But you're stuck in the past. Forget about the fact you've been a guardian for a second and think of her like a lover. Try to woo her like a normal girl." Jas paused for a second. "Unless you're not seeing her being your lover ever as a possibility."
Xander frowned at the last comment, it being the complete opposite to what he wanted. He wanted to her be his lover more than anything…
"What are you two doing hiding in the kitchen?" A voice called out suddenly.
Xander turned around to see Jimara entering the kitchen, brown eyes dancing with interest. She walked over to the two, quickly grabbing a muffin from the tray.
"Nothing much…" Jason muttered, upon seeing his sister.
"Yeah right. Give me the details."
Jason stared at Xander, his eyes asking Xander what he wanted to do. Xander thought for a second, not sure to involve Jimara or not.
"It's about the mate bond…" Xander finally said.
"You and Artemis not getting along or do we need to take care of the other one." Jimara asked before taking a bite of her muffin.
Jason sighed, covering his face with his hand and Xander took a sip of his beer to stop himself from laughing at her comment. Jimara was always able to lighten up any conversation with her humor.
"No…It's more that I'm not sure how to go about dating Artemis when we have had a different relationship for a long time…" Xander said.
Jimara's eyes suddenly gleamed with excitement, making Xander wonder if it was a good idea to have let her into the conversation.
"Okay I get the jist of it…" She paused for a second. "But I have an idea? Do you trust me?"
Xander nodded his head, the back of his mind wondering if he would come to regret it.