The Unwanted Wolf

ADIRA

The pack house was filled with people as we organized everything for the warriors Pack Lyna sent to us. I was running around, making sure all of the spare bedrooms were set up and ready to go for our guests. We didn’t have enough room for everyone to have their own place, so we set up cots for people to share sleeping spaces. With the varied patrol schedule Darian made, it allowed us to put a few extra people in rooms.

I didn’t expect the pack house to be filled so extravagantly this quickly after moving. It was always Mark’s hope to grow the pack into something more, which is why he wanted to make sure the house we bought was big enough to take on new werewolves. It came in handy now with all of the guests provided for us from Reyland.

I hadn’t had a chance to speak to any of the warriors yet, since I was too busy helping Rie and Scythe with all of the preparations. The warriors had already arrived, but we were still busy making sure there were enough beds and food to keep everyone comfortable. It was impressive with how quickly Reyland was able to organize everything. He was always on top of the warrior side of things when I was growing up.

It impressed me so much that it made me want to be a warrior myself, but Reyland never liked the idea of his little girl fighting. It was weird to think about the old days. Even though I knew he wasn’t my father, it still felt like he was. I still wanted to show him what I had managed to do and make him proud, but I had to remind myself that his opinion no longer mattered. He was the one who threw our relationship out the door.

I told Mark I didn’t mind if Reyland was around to help with the warriors. He was extremely skilled and seasoned, and I was sure he could give helpful advice to both Mark and Darian. I didn’t have any intentions of interacting with him directly, though.

Rie and I were organizing one of the rooms for the warriors, trying to figure out how to comfortably fit three beds in the room without making our guests feel like sardines.

“We need more sheets up here,” Rie said as she made one of the beds.

“I think I have more downstairs. I’ll run to go get them,” I said.

I practically skipped down the stairs, wanting to finish our preparations as soon as possible. I knew Mark and Reyland wanted to host a meeting to go over the plans with the warriors in a little more than an hour, and I wanted all of the preparations to be done before then.

The downstairs was filled with people chatting or wandering around, waiting for instructions. It felt like I was at a convention of some sort with the mass amount of people in my own home. It was a little strange being around this many people again, but I enjoyed the feeling. It was lively and loud, and it reminded me of my childhood.

I went to the linen closet, searching for more sheets for the beds. I didn’t see any other sheets in the closet, but I swore I had bought some more. Maybe I left them in the car. I turned to run outside, but I instantly ran into something hard.

“No way. It really is you!”

I took a step back and looked up at the tall figure in front of me. His sandy brown hair was styled more neatly than the last time I saw him, and he had definitely filled out. He was no longer the skinny teenage boy I grew up with.

“Mason,” I gasped, not believing my eyes. “There’s no way that’s you!”

“Addy! It’s been way too long!” Mason wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into a big bear hug that lifted my feet off the ground.

I giggled and smacked his arm when he set me down. I pretended like the smack hurt my hand. “You know I hate being called ‘Addy.’ And are you made out of stone now?”

He chuckled, beaming as brightly as ever. “I’m no longer a boy. I’ve grown into a strong man. You have definitely grown up yourself.” He looked me up and down, making me blush.

I rolled my eyes at him. “Careful. You are trying to flirt with a mated woman.”

Mason laughed again. This time the sound rumbled deeply in his chest. “Gross. You’re like my little sister, Addy. I would never flirt with you. Did I hear you correctly, though? You’re mated?”

I nodded, smiling when I thought about Mark. “Yes, I am in fact mated.”

“I’m going to have to meet the man that finally tamed the girl who never had interest in boys before. I’m not sure I’ll believe it otherwise. Although that stupid smile on your face is telling me you’re quite infatuated with the man.” He gave me a wink to emphasize his point.

I wrinkled my nose at his teasing. “I was just waiting for the right man to come along.”

“Clearly.” Mason’s tone shifted to a more serious note. “You’re happy, right? He’s good to you?”

I bit my l*p, trying to hide the smile forming. “He’s perfect. He loves me and treats me better than I deserve.” Just thinking about Mark made me miss him. With all of the preparations that needed to be done, I had barely seen him today.

“I don’t think that’s possible,” Mason said. “So who is this man, and when do I get to meet him?”

I rolled my eyes at his comment. “Well, I’m pretty sure you’ll meet Mark at the warrior meeting, since I’m assuming that’s the reason you’re here.”

Mason put one hand up. “Wait, Mark as in Alpha Mark?”

I nodded, smiling as he made the connection. His face turned from confused to shocked. His eyes were wide and mouth gaped.

“You are mated to the alpha? Look at you. So what, are you the luna of this pack then?” he asked.

“Not officially, but they are planning the ceremony. I’m not sure when it’s supposed to happen though.”

I had forgotten about the ceremony with all of the planning for Pack Lyna’s help with the warriors. I wondered if Scythe was still planning that among the chaos. I wasn’t about to ask about the ceremony, not with all of the work that needed to be done here. As intimidating as being an official luna was, it was something I was actually looking forward to. It just felt wrong to ask about something like that at a time like this.

“Wow,” Mason mused, running his fingers through his hair. “I always knew you were meant to be a luna. I mean your parents are alpha and luna after all, but it’s a little weird thinking about it. Especially with the way you disappeared so suddenly.”

I felt the shift in the mood, and I wasn’t sure if it was on my end because of the topic we were broaching, or if it was also on Mason’s end.

I laughed nervously, grabbing the back of my neck. “Yeah, it’s a weird thought to me. I didn’t think I’d ever grow up to be a luna. I hated the idea of becoming my mother.”

Mason’s expression softened. “There’s no way you’ll ever become like your mother. You have too big of a heart for that.”

Mason looked down at the ground and shifted back and forth on his feet. There was something simmering below the surface, but I didn’t know if I wanted to ask him about it. There was a time when Mason was my best friend. He was always playing with me when I was a young girl, and he never treated me differently because I was the alpha’s daughter. Other kids shied away from me because they were afraid they’d get in trouble if they did or said the wrong thing. Mason never cared that he was constantly being scolded.

Things were different now. We were no longer kids, and I hadn’t spoken to Mason in years. I wanted to talk to him and see what was on his mind, but I didn’t know what to say or do. I hadn’t even thought about seeing other people I had known in the pack when we invited Pack Lyna’s warriors to stay with us. I was sure to see others I knew.

“I should probably get going. I still have quite a bit to do to make sure the pack house is ready for everyone.” I started to walk away to find the bedsheets we needed.

“Wait.” Mason grabbed my arm, stopping me. “Why didn’t you say goodbye when you left? We were friends, and you just disappeared one day. I waited for you to reach out to me with an explanation, but it never came.”

My heart raced thinking about it. I had wanted to reach out to Mason, but I was afraid of the consequences. I was afraid of him leaving the pack for me or hating me for not fighting to stay. The longer I waited to reach out, the harder it became to do it.

“It’s complicated,” I finally said. “I know that’s probably not the answer you wanted, but now’s not the right time to get in it.”

“Didn’t you miss me?” Mason asked. His eyes were large like a puppy’s, and it broke my heart.

“More than you probably know. I promise I’ll explain it more later, but just know you were one of the best things about the pack house for me.” I held eye contact with Mason to let him know how serious I was. It had been awhile since I thought about him, but right after getting kicked out, I thought about Mason every day.

Mason nodded. “Okay. We’ll talk later. Addy, I’m really glad you are so happy right now.”

I smiled back at him. “Are you happy?”

Mason smiled, but there seemed to be something missing in his eyes. “Mostly. We’ll catch up later. Go do your luna duties.”

I laughed at this. “I’m not the official luna yet.”

“You’ve always been a luna at heart.” Mason winked and then waved goodbye.

I took the opportunity to run to my car before anyone else stopped me. I was sure I had bought more sheets at the store, so I wanted to see if I had left them in the car when I brought the rest of the stuff in. I looked in the backseat, but I didn’t see anything. I checked the trunk next. There were random things in the trunk, so I had to crawl part way in to search around. I shifted things around, shouting when I finally found the bag.

I backed out of the trunk, looking at the items inside. There were several sheets in it. I wasn’t sure if it was enough, but it was a start at least. I stepped back and turned, freezing completely.

Standing in front of me was Jori. His eyes were red and worn and his hair was a little messy. I was surprised to see him at the pack house. Someone should have seen him and given Mark a heads up, but there were also a lot of people coming in and out right now. It would have been easy for Jori to slip past our patrol.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

Jori looked me up and down. “We need to talk.”