Moving around silently, Tessa ran her fingers around the lines of the bookshelf in her father's office, smiling quietly whenever she came across any book she had read already, those that she found interesting. She stopped when she came across her all time favorite book 'I Belong With Your Brother'
She paused, fishing it out from the shelf. She ran her palm over the book cover and then opened it. She had always found it interesting how an emotion such as love was the driving force of the book and how it messed up their lives and fixed it at the same time. She smiled softly, reading a line from the book.
Tessa paused, sinking into her thoughts for a while before turning to face her father who was seated, engrossed in the pack logs he was going through. "Dad" She called softly.
"Yes dear" The Alpha replied, not batting his eyes away from the logs.
"Is being in love same thing as having a mate?" She asked
"Well...it's not entirely the same thing. You can be in love without a mate. Not all wolves find their mates in their lifetime, so alternatively they make whoever they have a connection with or whoever they're in love with their mates by marking them" He explained naturally, still focused on his logs.
"Well...." She paused, clearing her throat and looking around shyly "How do you know you're in love?" She questioned, feeling a bit embarrassed.
The Alpha looked up at her and smiled softly. "I take it this is about Beta Maynard's son, Derek"
"Hmmm....maybe....it's just....well, he told me he's in love with me...." She paused looking more embarrassed "But...."
"But you don't know if you feel the same way?" Alpha Darius helped her out. He smiled once more, closing the logs on his table. "When you're in love with someone, it isn't that hard to know. All your thoughts will be about them. There wouldn't be uncertainty in your heart, you'll know you want to be with them...."
"I don't think I feel all that" She furrowed her brows
"And it's fine. You might grow to love him back. But one thing you shouldn't do is force a love that isn't there" He adviced
"And what if I don't grow to love him the way he loves me?"
"That is fine also. You're just 16. You will definitely find someone you love, even if that person isn't your divine mate. When you find that person, you'll be certain about your feelings"
"And what if that person doesn't love me or doesn't want to be with me?" She inquired with fear in her voice.
"Well in the world we are in, we all have to fight for what we want. You can't force them to love you but you can fight for the one who does. When you find the one that loves you and who you love also, you fight for that love and hold on to it no matter the forces against you"
"Hmmm" She sighed, staring down at the book.
(Present Day)
Tessa's eyes slowly willed open. Her vision was blurry and she couldn't make out where she was at at first. With every passing second, her vision got better. She exhaled tiredly, shifting her gaze to the other side of the room. Her eyes fell on a familiar back and immediately everything came back to her.
She jolted up, sitting up on the bed. She looked around the room and realized she was in an unfamiliar room that looked like a cabin. She then shifted her eyes back to the person standing by the window with his back to her.
She could tell who he was. He was wearing the exact same thing he wore last time she was taken. But something was different this time, he didn't tie his hair like last time. His snow white hair was hanging freely out, swaying in tone with the gentle breeze.
Tessa's heart skipped a bit when she thought about what that meant. She grabbed the edges of the bed tightly, keeping herself together. She hadn't said a thing and neither has he. He just kept staring out the window. Tessa could tell he wasn't putting on his mask. He had shed the mask and his robe.
"K.... Kieran" She called softly, staring on curiously and nervously.
"I'm glad you're awake" Kreed replied and then slowly turned to face her. Tessa felt her heart almost stop working. The shock on her face was very visible. "You have been out for quite a...." Kreed was cut off as Tessa's arms wrapped around him.
His eyes widened with surprise. She had crossed the room so swiftly and wrapped him in a tight hug. He was frozen to the floor, not knowing what to do in that situation. His hands slowly moved up but then stopped halfway and then he retracted them, keeping them by his sides.
He stared on, waiting for her to get done but instead he heard her sobbing quietly. He was taken aback again. She looked up at him and he saw tears rolling down her cheeks. "Why are you cr...." He was cut off again but this time, by her lips sealing his.
Another wave of surprise over took his expression. He wanted to stop her but he couldn't will himself to. He felt frozen and powerless. The kiss felt as though it had been going on forever. All he did was stare directly into her eyes when she broke the kiss. Her eyes were fixed on his too. They kept staring into each other's eyes with no one uttering a word, sinking into their own world.