Wild at Heart

“I am so glad you called!” Chloe’s voice squealed as she wrapped her arms around me. “I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever!” She squeezed me tighter than I would have liked, but I humored her by allowing it without a fuss. I would be lying if I said I didn’t miss her. Being Luna has flipped my life upside down and I liked being able to feel like having a lunch date with a girlfriend wasn’t going to endanger the pack. “I hope you don’t mind, I invited Natalie along as well.” She smiled sweetly at me, and as much as I wanted it to just be the two of us, I couldn’t be mad at that smile.

“I don’t mind at all.” I said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen her too.” Chase instantly came to my mind and I hoped to the Moon Goddess that she wasn’t going to cry about him being sent back to the East pack where he came from. “How is she?” I asked, wanting the latest gossip on her before she arrived. “You know, with Chase going home and all.”

“She constantly talks about him.” Chloe rolled her eyes. “I hope I never did that to you with Kyle because goodness gracious, it sure does get on my nerves.” I only smiled, knowing full well she did it to me with Kyle. “She says they talk every day on the phone, and they skype when they can, but you know Natalie, she misses the sex.” Chloe slumped into the booth and I followed her as we waited for Natalie.

“How have you and Kyle been since the Mating Ritual?” I asked.

“We’re good.” She said with a nod. “Not like much has changed.” Kyle and Chloe have been living together for about as long as they’ve been dating. Love at first sight. “We’ve recently started trying.” Her face lit up like the full moon in the dead of night. “Kyle just got a promotion at the construction site and we’re feeling as ready as ever.” I couldn’t say I was surprised she was trying to have pups with her true love, but I am surprised it took this long. “It didn’t happen as quickly as I would have thought, but Dr. Stephanie is optimistic.”

“Dr. Stephanie?” I questioned. “Not Dr. Morris?”

“Well she’s so busy.” Chloe shrugged. “Dr. Stephanie has been working all of the OBGYN cases and she was kind enough to check Kyle and I both to make sure we wouldn’t have any complications with conceiving and the whole birth afterwards. You know females have such a hard time carrying males.” I nodded but didn’t offer any input on the conversation. Although my best friend, Chloe had no idea about my miscarriage. It was a well-known fact that werewolves had a harder time giving birth to males than females, but it wasn’t known why. Maybe that was the cause of my miscarriage? Maybe a little boy tried to meet me on the other side of whatever world Octavia let me travel to? “Emma?” I turned to her, not realizing I got lost in my own thoughts.

“Sorry, what?”

“I asked about you and Nick.” She said, not noticing that I got lost rather than just didn’t hear her. “Have you two thought about pups yet?”

“No.” I lied. “We’ve been so busy with everything going on that we haven’t had much time to ourselves.”

“You two didn’t get some alone time this weekend?”

“We weren’t really there for a social call.” Nick and I barely saw each other in the East pack, and when we did, it was never for a romantic occasion.

“He’s so professional all the time.” Chloe took a sip of her drink. “So serious and stern.” She gulped her drink before turning to me. “I don’t mean that in a bad way.”

“I take no offense to that whatsoever.” I took a sip of my own fruity cocktail Chloe ordered us and instantly regretted it. I felt like I was choking on a mango.

“I’m sure he’s very sweet.” She continued like she felt a need to apologize for describing Nick. “You know, around you. I’m just saying in front of the pack, he’s scary.” I was giving my mango drink a second chance as she spoke, and I couldn’t help but snort.

“I’m sorry!” She slapped her hand over her forehead. “I didn’t mean it like that! I just mean, he’s intimidating. He’s the Alpha, he’s big and strong and doesn’t show emotions.” Thankfully, Natalie finally showed up to save Chloe from herself. She slid into the booth next to Chloe and instantly let out a long sigh. “Everything okay?” Chloe asked her.

“Fine.” She said with a shrug. “I just need a drink. A big alcoholic drink.” She waved the waitress over to get her fill.

“Natalie, what’s wrong?” I bit my tongue, wishing Chloe wouldn’t have even asked.

“You just wouldn’t understand, Chloe. You have your mate to go home to every night.” I instantly rolled my eyes. “Mine was forced back to another pack.” She turned to me, accusingly.

“I didn’t force Chase to go home.” I stood my ground. “He left with his pack, and you stayed with yours.” She shook her head and scoffed.

“He didn’t have to go back.” She said. “You made him.”

“Excuse me?” I asked her. “I did not make him go back to his pack.”

“Oh please,” she rolled her eyes at me. “I know you didn’t like him, he told me. So, when I asked Nick if he could stay and he said no, I knew you were behind that.” Nick denied Chase a place in our pack and didn’t tell me about it?” What else has he been hiding from me?

“Oh,” Natalie sat back in her chair with a grin plastered on her face. “You didn’t know.” She stated by the look on her face. “Interesting.”

“Why is that interesting?” Chloe chimed back in.

“Because apparently our Alpha doesn’t give two shits about the Luna’s opinion on pack matters.”

“That is not true.” I spat.

“Then why would he make such a big decision about the pack without consulting you?” Each word was laced with an attitude I wanted to smack out of her.

“Maybe because it wasn’t such a big decision.” I countered. “Our pack signed an alliance with the East pack because we’re looking for warriors, not dead weight to add to the pack.” Her jaw dropped and she was about to lose her mind before Chloe rang back in.

“Why are we looking for warriors?” She asked.

“Haven’t you heard?” Natalie turned to her attitude to Chloe now. “Our pack is on the verge of war.” Chloe gasped and turned to me now.

“You didn’t tell me that!” She seemed offended. I wonder how she would feel if she knew I lied to her about my miscarriage. “Why are we on the verge of war? What’s wrong? Are we going to be safe?”

“Chloe, calm down.” This is why we didn’t talk pack business to civilians. They panicked too easily. How the Hell Natalie found out was a mystery to me, but then again how she found out any of the gossip she always seemed to know about was a mystery. “We are not on the verge of war; we’re preparing ourselves if there happens to ever be one. The alliance is in place as a precaution, we’re going to be fine.” I put my hand over hers, trying to reassure her. “You’re always going to be safe in this pack.”

“Tell that to Derek.” Natalie muttered with another eyeroll.

“Natalie!” Chloe shook her head in disapproval.

“Derek’s death was Derek’s fault.” I locked my eyes with Natalie. She was pushing the wrong buttons today.

“Wrong place wrong time, right?” She asked me. The pack knew nothing of his betrayal. They only knew that he was lost to us in the explosion that killed Emmett and Roland. They knew nothing of Jackson’s return or his death either. We kept it all in the dark.

“What is that supposed to mean, Natalie?” I growled; I was getting seriously tired of her shit.

“Nothing.” She gulped down her drink and slammed the cup on the table before standing up. “Thanks for the drink, ladies.” She walked away without another word.

“I’m so sorry, Emma.” Chloe said with a shake of her head. “I had no idea she was going to act this way.”

“Don’t apologize, it’s not your fault.” I took another sip of my mango drink and almost gagged. Why was I still drinking this?

“She’s just been so weird since she met Chase.” Chloe was rambling on again, but this time I was listening. “She’s been so paranoid about everything everyone does.” She shook her head. “I mean, she’s always been nosy and in everyone’s business, but she’s never jumped to these crazy conclusions before.”

“Crazy conclusions?” I repeated.

“I’m sorry, Emma, I didn’t want to say anything before, but I should have just told you.”

“Told me what?” I asked.

“Natalie has it in her head that Derek’s death wasn’t an accident.” My heart stopped and I tried to control myself. I couldn’t let on to Chloe that I knew more than I said I did. “She has this crazy idea that Nick is covering up his death. The Moon Goddess only knows where she came up with that.” I know exactly where she came up with it. Chase.