It turns out that the trial was to be held the same weekend as the so-called 'ball.' I mean, it saved a trip, honestly, but it meant that I could go with Asra and hopefully worm my way into the meeting. I was a valuable witness, so why couldn't I?

I haven't mentioned my plans to my mate yet, unsure of his reaction.

I had taken part as being a leader back in Evermore. When our engagement was announced, they forced me to attend town meetings. We discussed measly things that held no interest to me; tax, supplies, wolf threats... I think I could speak one full sentence per meeting, Darius unhappy with me trying to actually take a role.

It was all a façade. I was just his accessory to becoming the leader. You couldn't rule the town if you were not married.

But here, in the wolf world, I hoped it would be different.

A few days later, I found myself awake and staring at the ceiling as I lay in bed. Asra was beside me, on his side, as he tried to sleep.

"Will we be visiting Evermore?" I wondered.

He sighed, rolling over to face me. "I am uncertain whether you should come."

I frowned, pulling the duvet taught around my chin. "Why? I grew up there."

"What if there is something bad there? What if him seeing you causes you to fall into his arms again?"

I paused, blinking past the disbelief. Asra was grimacing, seeming genuinely honest in his opinions. Despite that, I could help but guffaw, my laughter ricocheting off the quiet room.

"I would never, ever, never, ever go back to that man." I told him sternly.

Pressing my finger into his nose, his features softened.

He growled. "Good. Because you are mine."

"Correction, I am not all yours."

"Yet." He growled, rolling over, so he was above me. "Not all mine, yet."

"I am nobody's." I crossed my arms defiantly.

"Oh, yeah?" He cocked his head, leaning down so his face was inches from mine. "Are you sure about that, Tulip?"

I licked my lips, staring straight into his eyes. "Sure am."

He smirked, teasingly; mockingly. "Then I suppose I am no use to you."

Asra slid from my body, taking his hard, defined ass with him as he slid back under the covers on his back. His tone was haunting, expecting me to fall into his trap. Little did he know; it didn't bother me.

"Okay! Night!" I chirped, rolling over.

I heard him suck in a harsh breath as I tugged the duvet over my shoulder, snuggling my face into the pillow.

"Wait, what?"

"I said goodnight, Butterscotch. Do you need your ears checking?" I taunted, grinning into my pillow.

He growled at my teasing, but thankfully complied. "Goodnight, Tulip. We will discuss this in the morning. You are lucky I am tired."

I let out a hum of agreement, knowing he was only taunting me further. How can a man be tired, yet so eager to fuck?

"Night." I agreed, closing my eyes.

It was quiet as I drifted into sleep, but it didn't last long. Asra's sharp growl had a small smile gracing my face as he slid his body across the bed. I felt his front press into me, his arm forcing my head from the pillow as he pulled me against him, forcing his legs between mine. Using his thigh as a hip support and his bicep as a neck pillow, I got myself comfortable.

It was warm and soothing when he held me like this. I felt like all of my worries and stress had just left my body. I wasn't sure if it was a magic thing, or just a mate bond thing, but my soul seemed to just melt away until I was nothing but calm, untouched goo.

I sighed, snuggling into his hold as he wrapped himself around me.

I could get used to being untouched goo.

***

You know in the stories and movies where the main characters wake up in each other's embrace? They're content, sleepy, smiling and happy. Right? That's a lie. That is just one big bogus lie that writers of all kinds feed us.

In reality, falling asleep so close to someone is nice at first. But then the sauna kicks in. The heat suffocates you to the point you have to force the man or the duvet away. Here, forcing Asra away was as difficult as picking a lock with no tools. He clung to me like crazy glue; no amount of prying, huffing, or rolling got him away.

I even elbowed him in the ribs a few times, but he just tightened his damn grip! The man slept like an iron rod!

Oh, and don't even get me on the snoring! From a distance, in your own space on the opposing sides of the bed, you are peaceful. You regulate your temperature; you have your own pillow, your own smells and comforts... Instead, I had Asra's lard ass breathing down my ear, or whining in his sleep. Literally like a dog. And then, the dog wakes up with a bone too!

So here I was, suffocating in the summer heat with a two hundred and whatever pound male wrapped around me like a leech. I had no comfort of a duvet, no weapon on my bedside, just a penis digging into my back and a snoring wolf breathing down my neck.

I could not do this for the rest of my life without some kind of sleeping pill.

The thought had me snort, amused at myself, which thankfully woke Asra.

He stirred, tightening his hold on me. I squeaked, digging my fingers into his arm to wake him further.

It seemed to do the trick because he jerked, grumbling. "Tulip..."

"Thank fuck. I thought I was going to melt." I groaned.

He inhaled sharply as he rolled, letting out a small groan of protest as I shoved at him to move faster. Once he was gone, I rolled myself from the bed until I landed on the floor. Taking a dramatic breath of air, I rose to my feet and stretched.

"That was like being locked up in iron chains in a sauna." I groaned, exasperated.

Asra was scowling at me, sitting upright in the bed. "I rather enjoyed it."

A small smirk rose on my lips. "I bet you did."

He huffed, rising from the bed. "Are you showering?"

"You bet I am." I nodded. "I smell like a teenage boy's armpit."

His nose crinkled. "You don't smell that bad."

Rolling my eyes, I grabbed some clothes and entered the bathroom. "I will see you later!"

He tutted and before I could shut the door, his hand dived between the wood and the frame. "What makes you think you are showering alone?"

Glaring at him, my fingers paused their need to trap his hand. "I won the bet; I can shower alone."

"How will you reach your back?" He scowled.

"I will stretch." I shrugged.

"What if you don't stretch that far?" He smirked.

"I will use two loofahs tied together."

"What if that doesn't work? What if it doesn't scratch the itch?"

"I will rub my ass against the wall like a bear." I crossed my arms.

"You are full of it today, aren't you?" He mused.

Catching him off guard, I slammed the door. "Bye!"

His answering growl had me laugh as I locked it, taking my pleasures in getting clean and ready today. I was due to not start work until lunchtime, but once I was in a routine of waking at a certain time, I would not change.

By the time I had left the bedroom and had my breakfast, I figured I had left Asra enough time to himself. It was nearing ten o'clock; he had three hours alone.

Leisurely walking to his office, I debated on knocking. I was the luna, so I had every right to know what was going on. But... respect. As much as I enjoyed winding Asra up this morning, I wanted him to know I was still respectful.

Knocking thrice, I waited until his deep baritone welcomed me in.

"Come in, Ailia."

Grinning, I entered his office, happy to find him alone. "Hello, mate."

His eyes flickered, lips curling into a snarl. "Say that again."

"Hello... mate." I taunted.

He huffed, sitting rigid in his chair. "Keep it up and I shall have you naked over my desk as I fuck you senseless."

"Look forward to it." I smirked.

Asra growled. "If you are here to wind me up some more, I would appreciate it another time."

I laughed, sitting in the chair opposite his desk. Asra eyed my bare legs as I sat, eyes raking in the t-shirt/shorts combo. He was dressed in a simple dark t-shirt today with some type of smooth-looking trousers. He looked good, admittedly.

"No, I am here to ask you something."

"What is it, Tulip?" He sighed, putting down his pen.

"Have you figured it out yet?"

He grimaced. "You're going to have to be more specific."

I scowled. "I thought you could read my mind."

Asra's answering chuckle had a small smile slipping over my lips. "Not exactly."

I hummed, crossing my arms in front of me. "Pretty shitty for a mystical creature."

He rolled his eyes, shifting some paperwork to rest his hands on the desk. "Care to ask me again? My little wind up?"

Giggling, I nodded. "What do you know about my sister?"

"Tulip, it has barely been a morning." He sighed. "I am working on it."

I groaned, my head falling back in anguish. "Disaster."

His lips quirked. "Have you taken some kind of narcotic this morning?"

Huffing, I ignored his comment. "What have you been doing this morning?"

He clicked his tongue, glancing down at the scattered paperwork. "I have been looking over the inventory and employee lists, ready for you to annotate."

My attention peaked, and I leaned forward excitedly. "Oh yeah? Are they done?"

"They sure are. Don't you have to cook today?" He mused, keeping the paper to himself.

I glanced at the clock on the wall. "I still have an hour, so I can get started."

He chuckled, passing the bulk of the paperwork. "Make yourself at home."

"Gladly." I beamed, taking a pen and sliding my chair closer to the edge of his desk.

I pushed some of his things out of the way, placing the paperwork down and getting ready to divulge in my first act of leadership. Before me, lay a list of all inventory in terms of hygiene and clothing supplies. He had also included an extensive list of employees with their personal information. I counted nine double-sided pages, letting a low breath of air pass through my lips.

"This is a lot of people."

"Too much?" He wondered. "I can half it..."

"No!" I snapped, slapping my hand over the page. "It's my job."

He smirked, raising his hands in defence. "Okay, then I will be here, filling out this month's monetary part of things."

I cocked my head. "How much do you make? How do you even make money?"

"You have it in your pack, Tulip." He pointed out, attention grabbed by something on his page.

I glanced down at the mass of pages before filtering through them. I came to one that had a thick yellow headline outlining the income and outcomes. My eyes widened as I trailed my eyes down the pages, taking in the basic incoming and outgoings. By the looks of it, he made most of his money through protection orders and owning buildings. He had a lot of rental income, from both wolves and humans alike. The packs he controlled paid him lots for the land they habituated, even more so for supplies of various crops and supplies.

Asra may as well be running a mafia cartel at this rate.

I continued to read, allowing my mind to dissociate as I concentrated on my task at hand. After I would finish a page, I would check the time to make sure I would not be late. I managed to read the entire booklet and make a few notes on page one in the time I had to spare. As I set the sheets down, a sudden realisation washed over me.

"Hey!" I gasped.

Asra jerked, cursing softly. "Goddess, Ailia."

"I just realised something." I grimaced, pointing my finger at him. "You just played me."

"What?" He frowned.

"What? What do you mean what? You just distracted me with work, so I didn't question you anymore about my sister!" I complained.

He shrugged, guilty. "Okay, I admit it. But I cannot do anything, Tulip. My men are there now, scouting, keeping an eye out, but nobody has sighted a girl of your description."

An unease settled in my stomach. "When did they look?"

"The moment the sun rose."

I exhaled sharply. "They looked around the house, right?"

"It was the first place they looked. Her morning walk, correct?"

The strange feeling in my stomach grew stronger.

Arabella was just like me. She enjoyed nature, leaving the house as the sun rose to catch the first moments of summer sun whilst our mother recovered from her hangover. If she didn't go for that walk, and nobody spotted her at the market...

She...

She wasn't there.