"Thank you, Julie. You don't even know how much this means to me" I looked at her through tears. I didn't know what awaited me in a strange place, among these werewolves, but I felt that I would be better with them than with normal people.
"At least I could help you this way" She put her hand on my shoulder and as soon as I calmed down, we started talking about what I needed to take with me and what I should follow when being among her people. We arranged everything before I had to go pick up the children.
In the evening, lying in bed, I wondered whether I would be able to leave Adam and the girls at all.
It probably will be a little easier with my husband knowing that he left me for someone else...but children? I gave birth to them, I took care of them, I raised them and I just have to leave them?...
More tears rolled down my cheeks. Due to today's emotions and tears, I quickly fell asleep only to start having nightmares again. Over the next few days, I slowly packed my things, preparing to leave. All this time I was watching the behavior of my daughters, who knew that I would leave on Saturday. It was a very painful experience seeing them acting extremely normal and not being bothered by the knowledge that we would never see each other again. My heart was in pieces and my body was barely holding itself together.
Finally, the long-awaited day came. Packed and ready to go, I dropped my daughters off at my parents', who lived nearby, before Julie arrived. My parents were very disappointed with my actions. They couldn't understand how I could do such a thing and gave up my family without a fight. Their hurtful words only made me suffer more. No one knew how much I was hurt, going through all this. How much I suffered. My poor body wanted to give up. Let me go. But some part of my mind told me to fight. Fight for myself. I wanted to hold on to this little piece like never before. I sacrificed so much for that family, tried so hard to please everyone... For what?...
"Take care of yourself, mom. We hope you will be happy" The girls hugged me, hitting me with heavy words. With smiles on their faces, they waved to me as I got into the car. My first thought? Get in front of a speeding car and end this suffering... But would it change anything? They don't care anyway... Looking like the figure of a shaking woman, I sat in the passenger seat and stared at my shoes as I waited until we got to the airport. Julie was very concerned about my condition. She placed her hand on my hand several times, reassuring me that everything would be fine. We arrived at the airport without any problems and went to check-in. I remembered my stay there and on the plane vaguely.
When we arrived, a man was waiting for us in front of the airport. He took our luggage and we got into the car and headed towards their house. Gazing at the changing landscape, I heard Julie talking to the man about their pack. She asked how they were and what happened to her. After several dozen minutes of driving along a narrow path in the forest, we reached the border guarded by men. Looking menacing, they looked into the car and nodded, letting us pass. After some time, we saw a large three-story building, built of large wooden logs. My heart started beating faster as I saw Julie get out of the car and smile at me. The man unpacked our luggage and went inside. With a slight hesitation, I stood next to Julie, admiring the beautiful building.
"We arrived. Come on, we need to introduce you" She took my hand and pulled me along. Everything was beautifully and modernly decorated. You could feel the pleasant warmth radiating from the wooden interior. A few people passed us and happily greeted Julie. We climbed the shiny, light brown stairs to the second floor and stood in front of a beautifully decorated door. Julie knocked twice and walked in without hesitation, dragging me with her.
"Come in" A low male voice rang out, belonging to a tall, well-built man with light blond hair and deep blue eyes. Julie immediately rushed at him, hugging him tenderly.
"Hey, little brother! How are you? What about Beckie?" She asked eagerly about him and his partner.
"Hey J. It's okay, although Beckie is complaining that she looks like a whale now" He ruffled his sister's hair, finally turning his attention to me.
"You must be Tess. I'm Alpha Zack. Nice to meet you" He walked up to me and extended his hand to greet me. I returned the greeting slightly nervously, trying not to look at him.
"Thank you for your help. I'll try to live as if I wasn't here" I muttered quietly.
"There won't be a need for that. I have welcomed you into our pack and you can live with us without hiding from everyone else. As soon as you put away your things, you will have dinner with us" He said gently. I swallowed hard at his words, afraid of meeting other people.
"That won't be necessary. I can stay at my place..." I started but quickly stopped, realizing my mistake.
"I insist" His voice sounded commanding when there was a knock on the door.
"Ah, Damon. Good thing you're here" A smile appeared on his face when he saw his friend walking inside. Zack stood next to his desk and gestured to me, introducing us.
"Damon, this is Tess. You will keep an eye on her during her stay with us. Tess he is your guardian. You can ask him anything" A small smile appeared on Alpha's face.
I looked at him and couldn't take my eyes off him. He was as tall as their Alpha but a little more "developed"? His messy raven hair fell slightly over his unearthly green eyes that I could drown in. He had a large scar just below his left eye that stretched all the way to his chin. It made him look more predatory. I looked like a little wimp compared to him. It's true that I almost reached his shoulders, but my brown short hair and dark brown eyes with my unhealthy figure over the last few weeks, were nothing impressive. I quickly looked back at the ground, afraid that I might offend him by staring to long. Suddenly, a strangely reassuring loud growl emerged from his chest. I was very surprised because I felt much better... safer. Is this normal? I looked at Zack and Julie, surprised by his behavior. The Alpha visibly frowned and tried to understand why he did it, and Julie just looked scared. But why? It was a very pleasant sound...
"Take Tess to her house and come back for dinner" He nodded to Damon, looking suspiciously at me. The man grabbed my luggage and left the office without a word. I quickly bowed to Alpha and ran after my guide, fearing that he would soon disappear from my sight. We left the main building and started walking along the path alongside the other smaller houses until we were walking through an empty forest. I set my sights on Damon's well-developed back. He looked like a real warrior. A large, muscular body, a wide back, a seductive scar on his face… Wait…I meant to say dangerous, not seductive. I frowned, not knowing what was happening to me. Apparently I must have been staring at him too hard because another menacing growl came from his chest. I quickly closed my eyes, enjoying the pleasant sound to my ears. Damon stopped for a moment and started walking a little slower.
After a few minutes, we saw two small houses, standing one next to the other. Right after the guardian, I entered one of them and started looking around curiously. Right next to the entrance there was a small living room with a sofa, two armchairs and a small wooden table. That's where Damon left my luggage and waited patiently for me to look around. Moving to the next room, I entered the bedroom. The walls were a light cream color, which I immediately liked. In the corner was a beautifully decorated bed with several blankets and pillows. On the opposite side was a small closet that was definitely able to hold my things. Entering the next door, I saw a white marble bathroom. My jaw dropped at the sight of the modern interior. A beautiful, large bathtub stood in the very center. A large mirror hung above the sink and there was a toilet in the corner. With a slight smile on my face, I passed Damon who was staring at me, heading towards the small, cute-looking kitchen. The cabinets were dark beech with shiny black handles. A small stove was next to the sink and a dish dryer, and right next to it was a refrigerator. What more did I need? In my wildest dreams I would not have expected to receive such a beautiful house to live in.
I'll have to thank Zack for that next time I get a chance.
I happily walked over to Damon, waving to him that we could go back. I didn't necessarily want to leave my new house and go out to dinner with strangers... but an order is an order. I had to adapt. That's what I promised. Walking back, I looked around at the newly discovered path. I should know how to get back to my home if necessary. This time, I didn't even notice that my guardian slowed down and we walked side by side. Reaching the main house, I felt fear and discomfort again. I hesitated for a moment as I stood in front of the entrance. Damon noticed I wasn't moving and, stealing glances to see if anyone was nearby, purred for me. Hearing the soothing sound, I breathed a sigh of relief and followed him upstairs.