While there is some info on Miranda and Braydon post break up here, there is also a cameo from the She Runs With Wolves crew. If you haven't read it, I'm sorry because it's a bit of a spoiler as this is set after that story is finished, so you'll get an idea on how it turns out :(  I just think Bianca is the perfect person to talk to Braydon.

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Hearing the knock from the front door sent the dogs into a tail wagging, barking frenzy. Pushing through them, Helen ordered them all back from the door before she dared to try and open it and the lone appearance of her daughter wasn’t what she was expecting. Clearly the dogs knew otherwise as they broke their sitting positions, jumping up excitedly to greet their ‘sister’.

“Andy, honey, what are you doing here?” Helen didn’t hide her surprise and using her knee kept the dogs back enough for Miranda to slip inside.

“Um, thought I’d stay here this weekend?” She answered weakly, instantly throwing all her attention to the dogs that begged for it.

“You’re always welcome love, but where’s Braydon?” Looking outside, the taxi pulled out from the driveway with no one getting out.

 The pair of them were usually joined at the hip and after yesterday, she expected them to be nursing a hangover due to their night out. Glancing at her wrist, it was barely on nine. Did Braydon go to work with Don?

Miranda didn’t answer, dreading the onslaught of questions that were bound to follow now. Why had she come here? Well, she knew why. It was out of the city - the furthest she could find somewhere easy to hide without getting on a plane. That thought made her shudder and dumping her overnight bag by the staircase she let the animals guide her to the sofa.

The second she sat down, Milo was giving her a thorough inspection while Razor’s large form jumped up to crush her legs as he flopped down against her. Tracey appeared at the back of the pack, yawning loudly as she had come inside to see what the commotion was about and ignoring Milo, climbed up onto Miranda’s lap – ending his sniffing attack.

“Hey old girl.” Miranda hugged the mutt, fresh tears making the soft patch of fluff on the dogs chest damp. As if sensing her pain, the dog got settled, offering a small lick on Miranda’s cheek.

“Cup of tea?” Helen offered, trying to distinguish Miranda under the mountain of dogs as Rufus joined in the cuddles. Sure they weren’t supposed to be on the sofa, but she was going to let it slide; just this once. Miranda didn’t respond and with a sigh, Helen went into the kitchen and put the kettle on, picking up the phone from the wall and called her husband.

“Hello Helly, what’s up?” Donald greeted casually, the barking from around him just as familiar as his voice.

“Is Braydon with you today?”

“No? He had that do with Andy last night. I’m not expecting him until Monday. Why?”

“Andy is here.” Helen lowered her voice.

“With you? Why?”

“I don’t know. She isn’t right Donald.” The seriousness to her tone got Donald’s attention and moving into his office, closed the door.

“What do you mean she isn’t right?”

“She came in, went onto the sofa and hasn’t moved or said a word since!” Helen babbled, her gut instinct supporting the fact she should be worried.

“And Braydon isn’t there?”

“No.”

“Think something happened between them? What if she didn’t like his makeover?”

The pair gossiped like a pair of old women over coffee, coming up with an assortment of theories as to what was going on and as Miranda tapped her mother on the shoulder, Helen squealed in fright. Taking the phone, Miranda rolled her eyes.

“Dad, I’m fine. Go back to work.” Hanging up, Miranda walked to the fridge and got some water, while Helen looked at her as if she were a zombie. She kind of felt like it. “Braydon ah, got some memories back. We broke up.”

“What?” Helen didn’t believe that for a second. What memories could he have got that made them break up so quickly?

Miranda shrugged. “Yeah, so that’s it. His ah, family, will take care of him now and we decided it would be best to end it.”

“Just like that?” Her disbelief was obvious.

“Please Mum, I don’t need you’re drama with this.” Miranda snapped, “I’m going to bed.”

Helen let Miranda go, resisting the urge to call Braydon herself and get the whole story. They’d been through a lot, surely even if he did get his memories back he wouldn’t just leave them all so abruptly. She’d never seen a more perfect pair and her heart broke for not only her daughter, but Braydon. He was such a sensitive boy, surely he’d be hurting too?

Deciding to busy herself to give Miranda some space, she started to clean the kitchen, then the living room and in the end the bathroom even suffered with her over the top cleaning tendencies. She was still pottering around in the garden by the time Donald got home and the fact she hadn’t seen or heard from Miranda all day had the pair of them heading up to her room cautiously.

Knocking on the door, Donald opened it to find the room still in darkness and the lump to one side of the bed had him slowly going over. Even the dogs held back, not rushing in like they normally would have. “Andy?”

Wet eyelashes clumped together against her cheeks as her eyes were sealed shut. She didn’t stir as he sat on the edge of the bed, her small form curled into a ball as she hugged the blanket close. Frowning, he saw the damp circle on the pale pink pillowcase by her face.

“Andy, sweetheart. It’s time for dinner.” Donald gently pushed back her hair away from her face.

Slowly she stirred, bloodshot eyes staring up at him blankly. “I’m not hungry.”

“You’ve been up here all day. Your Mum is worried.”

He decided to leave out that part about Helen trying to call Braydon for some answers with no luck and Rory, who had no idea what had happened. Neither did Jason when she called him as a last resort, though he did say he saw them arguing at the dinner.

“Just pretend I’m not here. I’ll be down later.” Closing her eyes she rolled over so her back was now facing him – ending the conversation.

Later never happened.

The only time she moved was to go to the bathroom and she now kept her bedroom door locked to stop their constants checks. Miranda couldn’t bring herself to leave the bed. It was warm, familiar and as she went in and out of sleep, she had little intention of facing the world any time soon. It had been her decision to let him go, so she had to deal with the consequences.

It’s what happened in break ups. It hurt, you cried for a bit and maybe watched a sad movie or two before moving on. She’d never been dumped by someone before. It had been a good couple of years since she had a proper relationship and when she had broken up with that guy, it hadn’t felt like this. A few drinks with Abby at a local bar telling her she made the right decision had been all she needed to get over him.

 Saturday night Miranda managed to find her phone and put it on charge. A bunch of texts from Abby, Rory and even Jason came through, but nothing from Braydon. Turning her phone off, she was tempted to throw it out. Instead she left the sanctuary of the bedroom and crept downstairs. The house was dark and silent, not unusual considering it was nearly midnight and grabbing a glass of water, she saw the bottle of white wine in fridge when she put the water jug away.

A wet nose nudged her leg then and looking down Rufus, Miranda patted the dog’s head. “Hey you.”

Sneaking some of the left over roast meat from the plate in front of her, the dog got a treat and in hopes of more, he followed her outside. The air was freezing, and each breath came out in a misty cloud. Going over to the porch swing, Rufus climbed up beside her. Before long, the door slid open and Miranda’s dad appeared.

“Thought I heard something.”

“Hey Dad.”

“How you feeling pumpkin?” Instantly he shivered at the cold.

“I don’t know.”

Sitting beside her, the dog looked away with guilt, knowing he wasn’t meant to be on the furniture. Donald ignored it, putting an arm around his daughter as she let him give her a cuddle. “So you broke up?”

“Yup.”

“Got his memory back then?”

“Yup.” Though Miranda was now the one wishing she was the one with amnesia. Maybe she'd end up waking in a hospital after being a coma or something from the crash and all this, was just a dream. Yeah, she could deal with that.

“No other reason?” He pushed.

“I can’t go into it.” 'Even if I could, you'd think I'm crazy,' she thought.

“Well, if you need to talk, we’re always here for you. How long you planning on hiding here?” Miranda leaned against her dad, thankful he wasn’t like her mum and wouldn’t keep pushing her for more information.

“Dunno. I need to hand in my resignation with Jason, so I’ll have to go back sometime.”

Now that got his attention. “Resignation? Miranda, what is going on?”

“Do you remember Roger Gray? He offered me a place in his company and I accepted. I think it’s for the best.”

Breaking free of Jason made Donald happy, but Miranda had put years of her life into working for him and to walk away now, after finding out she broke up with Braydon worried him. He wasn’t entirely sure if she’d be able move on without regret or that she was doing it for the right reasons. “Are you sure?”

“Positive. I’ve done my time there and well, Jason is Jason. You know? We all need this. Besides I’ll be moving closer to home and that’s bound to keep Mum happy right?”

“As long as you’re not doing it for her and it’s really what you want.”

“It is.” Miranda nodded.

The pair went silent and as the cold began to seep through their clothes, Donald suggested they go inside, but he wasn't quite done. "Tomorrow is another day, I know it's hard now, but it will get easier Andy."

Miranda wasn't so sure and they didn't see her again on Sunday.

 -x-

"Braydon, if you feel this shit, maybe that's a sign you're not supposed to be here."

Chad, ever the voice of reason sat beside Braydon, who stared blankly at the TV. Everyone else had gone to bed and since he wasn't one for conversation right now, it was where Chad was planning on going too. Since Braydon's arrival Friday morning, he'd barely said two words to any of them. He moved like a zombie from one room to another, thinking over every word, every action that had gone on between himself and Miranda. If this was where he was meant to be, why didn't it feel like it?

Looking at Chad, Braydon finally managed to talk. "I don't feel, like shit. I just-" Don't feel. He thought.

"We're going out tomorrow. It's the last day of Fall Fair about an hour from here. You should come with us. It'll be fun. You can get some fresh air, get out this house?" Chad pushed.

"Okay."

"Go to bed then, we're leaving at like nine." 

Braydon nodded, but didn't move and with a groan, Chad went up to his room. Ten minutes later Carolina took his place.

"Did I hear that right, you're coming tomorrow?" She asked hopefully. Without thinking she hugged Braydons arm, leaning against him. If she noticed how tense he was, she didn't let it show.

"Yeah. Fresh air. Get out of the house." Braydon mumbled, pretty much just repeating what Chad had told him.

"The pups have been looking forward to it for ages. We can ever stay for the fireworks!" Carolina enthused.

That got Braydon's attention. Miranda loved fireworks and instantly made a mental note to tell her about it before seconds later, he realised what he'd just done. Once again, the hollow feeling that filled his chest since yesterday morning returned.

"You like fireworks?" She asked, finally getting some kind of reaction from him.

"Yeah." Was all he said.

"Right. Well, let's go to bed. I know the twins will be up early since I promised them they could go on all the rides there!" 

Braydon nodded, and rather than follow her into her own room like she was hoping for, he went into the guest room where his stuff sat untouched from the move. Carolina's stomach fell, he'd only just emerged a couple of hours ago.  Tonight she'd let him keep mourning the human. From tomorrow, she was going to make sure what ever all this was ended.

It was mid-morning when they arrived at the festival, which was already bustling with life. There were other shifters mixed in with the people, and no one paid their pack any attention as they moved with the flow of the crowd. Just as Carolina expected, the twins had the group heading straight to the carnival rides. 

"I'm just going to go find a coffee van." Braydon mumbled, ditching the festivities. Knowing he didn't even drink coffee had Carolina's determination to get him out of his slump flaring up and throwing money at the pups, she gave them their orders and chased after Braydon.

Children ran by full of sugar, waving balloon swords while others wandered the stalls with great interest. Screams from rides near the oval only added to the atmosphere as a folk band played a set at the other end of the closed off street.  It was this direction that Braydon had gone in, and seeing the food van with the roped off section for adults only, he took a seat and ordered a beer. He had seen it enough in movies and on TV. Alcohol is what fixed the problems. You got drunk and then things had a way of working out. No one really noticed him sitting on her own which was fine by his standards.

Except for Carolina who looked at the whole scene like a murder mystery. "What are you doing?"

"Drinking."

"Why?"

Braydon shrugged and with a sigh Carolina took the seat opposite him. "You gonna start smoking and singing the blues next?"

Silence.

"Enough. From what I know about you, you love this kid stuff, so let's go on some rides and eat cotton candy!" She tried to keep upbeat, because she was not going to let him keep sulking.

After getting no where, Carolina ended up grabbing his arm and practically dragged him away from the bar area. She put him on the dodgem cars and had him putting plastic balls into fake clown heads in an attempt to win a prize. The only way Braydon saw himself getting through this was by faking it and so he willing went through a haunted house and threw darts at balloons on a wall.

The more he applied himself, the more Carolina started to relax and meeting up with the twins, Braydon sat on the bench in front of the roller coaster, one ride he wasn't willing to go on, while the rest of them did. It was when Oliver begged to go on it again and they all went to line back up, Braydon caught that floral perfume on the breeze. Fresh donuts, popcorn and the numerous fried food smells were nothing to drown it out and for the first time that weekend, Braydon felt his wolf stirring. 

With the others distracted, Braydon casually got up and keenly scanned the crowd in the direction the smell had come from and seeing the blonde ponytail swinging side to side as the girl went to claim an overstuffed teddy from the prize wall, Braydon keenly went closer. She never turned to face him, and already he knew it wasn't Miranda; this girl just wore the same perfume as humans tended to do.  Groaning he stopped at the next bench, and watched as she went over to a couple of human friends and the group vanished from sight.

Braydon wanted to die and leaning his head over his knees, he wondered if that hot dog he had earlier was about to try and escape his stomach, but that was when he heard them.

"Just don't!" The female voice snapped.

"He looks sad." The male answered.

"So?" Came the response, and if he hadn't been so distracted by them, Braydon wouldn't have heard the next part. "He's a wolf we don't know Connor! God, you're an idiot!"

"Yeah, but, he doesn't look like a threat." Connor whispered.

"Are you okay?"  Looking up, Braydon was greeted with soft brown eyes and a lopsided smile as the guy he guessed was Connor stood in front of him. He wasn't as big as Braydon, and he looked younger than him too, but older than Chad. Glancing over at the red headed girl with him, he was surprised at the death glare being sent his way. What was her problem?

"Fine." Came the croaky response.

The duo exchanged a look before Connor shrugged. "You don't look it."

"What does it matter to you?" Braydon snapped back.

"Hey, he's just being nice!" The girl growled, clearly protective of her companion. "Come on, he said he was fine. The others are waiting!" The girl pulled on Connors arm as Braydon just stared back at him blankly.

Since Connor didn't seem to be leaving any time soon, Braydon was the one to get up to walk away. The sign of retreat didn't even bother his wolf who once again became dormant.

Rejoining his pack, more junk food was purchased and they sat by an arena watching a horse show. While the others talked about their favourite rides, Braydon found himself checking out the crowd and to his annoyance, he saw Connor and the red head with a small group of shifters looking over at him. Ignoring them, he only got more paranoid as they took a seat a few rows back in the stand behind where they were. No one else paid the other pack any attention. This was a very neutral event and the shifter to human ration was pretty equal so the fact they sat so close by wasn't something to think unusual.

"Did you want to go on another ride Bray?" Carolina asked, making Braydon tense as the tone was similar to how you'd speak to a five year old.

"No."

"What about the ferris wheel. We could go over there for a while?" She asked hopefully. There wasn't a ride more romantic than that and maybe some alone time would help.

"I'd rather not."

Chad and Carolina shared a look and with a sigh Braydon caved. "Fine."

Before he knew it, he was standing in line behind an elderly couple waiting to go on the ferris wheel. As soon as they were seated and being taken up into the air, Carolina rambled on about what other things they could that afternoon, pointing out stalls and another ride as they hit the peak of the wheel. Braydon tried to relax, even as going as far as putting his arm over her shoulders. The only way he managed anything was to pretend Miranda was there. Considering the girl with the same perfume was below them in the next carriage, it was easy to do.

Once they got off, it was in the same direction as her that they went. If she stopped at another game, so did they and oblivious to what was going on, Carolina thought she had finally made a break through with him. Yet Braydon only watched the human girl with a hawks focus, flying far enough away as to not draw attention or spook his prey; he didn't want to scare her away.

'It's not her.' His wolf reminded him and that was when Braydon realised the man with her, was a shifter too. How had he missed that?

Carolina left him to go to a petting zoo with the girls, which gave him time to watch the duo. They way she looked at the shifter, was how Miranda had looked at Braydon and the duo were clearly in love and equally as smitten with each other.

Did this human know what her boyfriend was?

They were like a magnet, pulling Braydon in closer until the realisation of what he was doing hit him. Shaking his head, he decided to go find Chad only one pissed off she-wolf blocked his path now. He reconsider as her as being one of the ones with Connor who had sat behind them earlier and that didn't sit well with him. It also didn't help the dominance was radiating from her, just like her anger.

Seeing the threat his own wolf completely woke up, and the pair started a deadly stare down. Almost instantly, humans subconsciously moved around them, while other shifters were curious, but didn't interrupt.

"What do you think you are doing?" The stern voice had Braydon feeling even more defensive and before he could respond, Connor appeared at her side with an equally pissed off male with him.

What Braydon had failed to notice was the rather large baby bump the female who was challenging him had. Seeing it now, startled him and he wasn't quite how to proceed.

"Excuse me?" Braydon growled, eyeing them all off cautiously. The other male stepped closer and Connor was quick to move in front of the duo who were clearly mates. 

"I'm Connor. This is Bianca and Cody." Connor was quick to introduce. Why, Braydon had no idea.

The one called Bianca merely raised an eyebrow, while Cody did a once over that sent a chill up Braydon's spine. He didn't appreciate the attempt at intimidation especially now when he wasn't in the best of moods.

"I asked you a question stranger. What do you think you are doing?" Bianca demanded, ignoring the way the one called Cody tried to hold her back or the way Connor was acting as peacekeeper.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"This whole time you were stalking one of my family. This is your final, and only warning to back off!" Came the threat.

It took Braydon seconds to click on; the shifter with the human. "I wasn't even looking at him. Mind your own business."

"He wasn't the one I was referring to!"

Now Braydon was confused. "The human?"

"The human has a name. Back off stranger and if you even think of doing any harm to her, him or my pack, I will hurt you." The cold edge to her words told Braydon to be cautious. She wasn't going to let this slide easily and her mate was the one Braydon found himself preparing to fight if it came to it as he looked ready to spring into action at any second.

"She is usually nicer than this, but trust me, she is more deadlier than the big guy so keep your attention that way." Connor whispered as he pointed back to Bianca with a smile, clearly catching the stare down now taking place between him and Cody. Braydon realised then he was definitely a peacekeeper, yet sure enough of himself to go into the crossfire. Was he this packs second in command? Clearly those two would have be an alpha couple. He was just too young for Braydon to take seriously.

Cody groaned, "Enough Connor. Why are you here? Did someone tell you about us?"

Talk about being paranoid, Braydon was no longer confused. He was completely lost. "What? No? I-"

"Then what's your problem?" Cody demanded.

"I smelt her perfume." Braydon admitted weakly, dropping his gaze he gave in to their threats and was willing just to back away.

"Her perfume?" Bianca repeated, glancing at Cody who only shrugged.

"Was it your mates? Did she ah, you know, die?" Connor asked sadly, already shifting from joker to sympathizer. His perception on things would have impressed Braydon any other time. Who the hell were these people?

"She wasn't my mate. She is a human."

Braydon couldn't believe what he was saying and looking up, the trio appeared to be having some kind of unspoken conversation that ended with Bianca poking him hard in the chest as they went to leave. "Stay away from her and us. We protect what's ours, even if they're just a human."

The way she said that told Braydon something more was going on and as they left, Carolina reappeared, which didn't give him time to process what just happened. He'd never seen shifters defending a human like that before.

"Hey you! Having fun?" She smiled, her face half painted with pink glitter to match Alicia and Amber's floral design. 

"Um, yeah." Braydon looked to see Bianca looking over at them, one hand resting protectively on her swollen stomach.

'Watch them. I just have a feeling about that pack.' His wolf voiced his opinions and Braydon agreed. 

"Hey Braydon, wanna get your face painted too?" Amber asked hopefully, her shyness around him slowly disappearing.

"No he doesn't. Boys don't do that!" Oliver interrupted, walking over with Chad and the twins.

The youngest face fell and looking at Chad, Braydon nodded as the pair already knew what the other was thinking. "Of course Amber! I think we should all get our face painted."

"Yeah come on." Chad agreed, and Braydon saw how annoyed that made Oliver. That pup was too dominant for his own good and for Chad, the weakest shifter to stand up to him like that, Braydon kept his eye on them now in case Oliver decided to try anything.

Oliver took the twins to go on more rides to avoid getting their face painted, while Chad stuck with Braydon knowing he was safest there.  Even if it ended up with him getting some kind of web design painted onto his check and neck, but Braydon did it too so it wasn't all bad. Once that was over with, Carolina and the girls looked at the homemade jewelry and other stuff females like, making the duo hang back so they didn't have to act interested.

"I saw you with those other shifters. What was that about?" Chad whispered.

"Nothing."

"You're really annoying." He sighed, rolling his eyes.

"So are you." Yet Braydon smiled and grabbing the pup in a head lock, they mucked around before ditching the girls completely to listen to the new band that had just started playing.

What Braydon didn't expect was for Bianca to be beside him in the line to the food van when he went to get them a drink half an hour later.

"Look, I'm sorry if we came off too strong before. This is neutral ground, I don't want any problems."

"I won't cause any." Braydon promised, not wanting to mess with her.

"Connor's right, you look really sad." She pointed out.

"What's with the shifter and the human?" Braydon blurted out and instantly Bianca tensed again.

"They're mates." She watched him closely, not expecting the pain in his eyes or the shock. The only other shifter outside their family pack that found out hadn't reacted like that and well, she had made sure that threat was dealt with, not willing to let their secret out. "You don't seem worried or to care about what I just said?"

"Does she know, what we are?"

"Yes." Bianca admitted, not sure why she was telling him this. Something about Braydon had her feeling comfortable enough to do so. Her wolf agreed, eager to stick around the new shifter.

"But, you aren't suppose to tell people we exist." Braydon stammered.

"We didn't tell her as such, she worked it out on her own and stuck around. So you get why we're protective of her, and him."

"I promise, I won't say a word." Bianca believed him. "But how is that possible? It's not supposed to happen!"

"We don't know. She started working at our local grocery store and Jay was smitten with her. As the months went on, he couldn't stay away until he admitted to us he thought she must be his mate. They've been together six months now, I don't doubt it for a second." The pair got their order, yet instead of going back to their thirsty companions, found some empty seats away from the crowd and sat down.

"Whats the story with you and your human?" She figured there had to be something going on, and call it motherly instincts kicking in, but she felt compelled to talk to him about it.

With that, everything came out starting from the before the plane crash with him living in the wild after his uncle chased him out. Chad had ended up finding them and sat on the ground nearby. It wasn't long after that Connor joined him as Cody took his place beside Bianca, somewhere after the part about moving in with Miranda.

Connor and Chad got talking on their own, only half listening as the more adult shifters talked and Braydon couldn't stop himself. He needed to let everything out, with someone who seemed to understand and that wasn't involved. Once he finished no one said a word. Instead Bianca just hugged him.

"Braydon, you poor lost boy." She finally spoke, and wiping a tear from her eye she laughed before leaning back against her mate. "Sorry. I blame hormones."

Braydon weakly smiled, actually feeling a little better. There was no judgement, instead he felt understood. It was nice and exactly what he needed. Whether it might turn out to be the worse decision of his life was yet to be decided, but he didn't it was going to be. If anything, this could end well. He was sure of it.

"Would you believe me if I said you and I are very alike?" Bianca asked him.

"No." How could he? 

"Guys, how about we go for a walk?" Cody suggested and the duo followed him without a word.

So then Bianca told Braydon her own story, which Braydon found, held more similarities than he would have expected, starting with an event that tragically sent them both into hiding in their wolf forms in the wild. While Bianca's pre-shifting story was different, due to having the alpha life and acceptance he never got from his peers, they both suffered. The reason why they emerged once more was different too.

Braydon left the wild for Miranda, while Bianca had ended up leaving because of what a discovery of chocolate had led her too. She ended up finding herself a new pack, and she also had a purpose. Revenge. Braydon saw Miranda's family as his new pack. They had all accepted, helped and cared for him, much like Cody and his family with Bianca. Now she had a happy ending, living her life without hte hassles on the past she was able to leave behind. Braydon was still lost, with no ending in sight.

"So three years ago you came here, to this exact festival?" Braydon couldn't believe that the content she-wolf before him was capable of acting out the story of revenge he just heard. Sure she was intimidating, but to about her actually kill shifters without mercy, was rather shocking. 

Despite knowing her story, Braydon regretted that gypsy witch not being around now. She could have shown him the future; just a glimpse, a sign of what was to happen. Something Braydon did know, was that Connor had been right. Bianca was the one to watch, not Cody.

"If there was one thing I learned, fate can't be changed. What will be will be." Bianca said softly, holding his hand. It was the most comforting gesture Braydon had ever had.

"Cody isn't your true mate." Braydon couldn't lock down a single clear thought as he tried to make sense of it all. Not only did one of her pack have a  human mate, but she herself went against fate and chose her own.

"No. I don't see it that way though. I believe this life I have now, was always my destiny. I had to fight for it, but I'm where I'm supposed to be!" She smiled and Braydon believed her. "You have lived so long with your wolf as your only guide and you trust it. Right now, you're both scared and confused, still adjusting to the world you left behind. That gut instinct we have will not prove us wrong."

 Braydon wanted to believe that. "Do you think someone can have two mates?"

"Anything is possible. Honestly, I don't think Miranda is a mate, not in the usual sense. I think you, the human you, fell in love and the wolf was willing to trust you on that decision, just like how it was decided it was time for you to leave the forest. Now you have her, your mate, he is just as confused as you are."

Braydon only nodded.

"No one can tell you what to do Braydon. You're not that thirteen year old kid anymore and for Miranda to let you go, I don't think that should have been her decision to make on her own. What do you want? Stop doing what everyone keep telling you to do. Take some time to work out who you are; not what Carolina wants you to be and not who you think you should be for Miranda!" Bianca laughed, "But do what I say, because I'm right!"

Braydon smiled at that, knowing she was. "Is it weird that I'm glad Carolina did drag me out here today?"

"Maybe it's one of those fate things we hear so much about?" Bianca returned his smile. "I'm glad I met you too Braydon."

The pair hugged and it was then Braydon sensed Carolina. Letting Bianca go, his mate glared at Braydon's companion and thinking over what he knew of her now, a flicker of protectiveness appeared for Carolina. She would be way out of her depth with this she-wolf, and Braydon wondered what it would be like fight with her. They both had a good connection with their wolves, their animal instincts more intact that the shifters they were now surrounded with, who were more human than wolf.

"Carolina, this is Bianca." Then Braydon said something that shocked Carolina, "Bianca, this is my mate."

"Nice to meet you." Bianca offered her hand, keeping formal with her interactions and Braydon could literally see the wall going back up as her face hardened. She had been happy for Braydon to know her past, but not another stranger.

"Ah, yeah. " Carolina mumbled, still not believing the introduction Braydon just gave her. "Nice to meet you."

"I better go find Cody." Bianca stood and Carolina stepped back by instinct. Pulling out a pen and scrap of paper, she wrote something down before giving it to Braydon. It was her number. "Anytime you need anything, just call. Good luck."

"What was that?" Carolina asked defensively, not sure why a random she-wolf would be giving her number to Braydon.

"I'll tell you later. Come on, let's go find the others." Braydon actually took Carolina's hand on his own accord and once they'd regrouped, he made an effort because he wanted to.

He owed it to Carolina, to his wolf, and to Miranda for giving him this chance to see if this is where fate wanted him to be. So far, all arrows had been pointing this way, yet meeting Bianca and her family gave him new food for thought, possible allies and a focus that could change everything.