I ended up staying in my wolf form even when we neared the large house that was at the edge of the clearing. Beyond the house was a town, bigger than the one in my pack lands, but not by too much so.

Larger packs were more difficult to protect, and the Alpha family could almost never leave the pack lands.

I could sense Kale walking behind me, but I didn't look at him, I didn't know what to say to him, and I'm not sure I wanted to talk to him at the moment.

It wasn't as if he'd flat out lied to me, but the fact that he hadn't even tried to tell me before escalating our relationship...it hurt. Did he just not trust me or something?

'Benji' the blonde who had lead us here, turned to me then and smiled.

"Alexa wants to meet you, I'll take you to her." She told me and I gave her a puzzled look. This is probably a moment that I would have looked back at Kale to see if it was alright, since he was the Alpha. But I still didn't know if I was mad at him or not, so I resisted the urge to check with him and just looked down in a sort of nod.

"Mind me swiping her for a little, Alpha?" Benji asked looking behind me, confirming my sense that he had been behind me. I didn't look to see his reaction, but she nodded before gesturing me into the house.
It was only when we had gotten in the door, before I shifted back.

"Sorry about the sudden pop up outta nowhere. Did we interrupt something?" Benji asked playfully, but I shook my head.

"Not at all." I offered a smile, but it came out crooked and, well, non-rehearsed.

The blonde laughed a little before clicking her heels as she came to a stop in front of the kitchen.

"Here we are Ma'am." She held out an arm, gesturing into the room. I was a bit startled at the formalities.

"Oh, just call me Aubrey." I told her quickly, it was instinctual and yet foreign all at the same time. That was probably the first time I'd said my own name to someone since introducing myself to Kale.

"And you can call me Benji if you like." She winked at me and then nodded to the kitchen.

"Right! Ok." I said sheepishly, my voice getting quiet out of embarrassment before I entered the kitchen.

It was a very nice kitchen, plenty of space too, and an arch lead to a dinning room that was also fairly spacious, at least that I could tell.

There was a fancy looking oven and another machine I think was a dish washer. I wasn't too familiar with those since I just washed my dishes by hand at home.

But as I looked around the kitchen, my gaze almost instantly landed on the only other person there. She was tall with long black hair, when she turned around I felt stiff, even when she smiled at me. Her presence was one that demanded respect.

"Hello." She said pleasantly and I resisted the urge to fidget. I wasn't used to being talked to, normally people just passed me by and I was the one having to initiate the conversation.

"H-Hi." I waved my hand a little, she apparently liked it, because her smile broadened.

"Well aren't you cute, I can see why my little brother took an interest in you." She hummed before turning back to what she'd been doing.

Little brother? Was she referring to Kale?

Out of curiosity, I took a few steps to the side to see what she was doing.

"Kale said you like hot chocolate." She spoke, making me jump. She turned to me with a mug of something thick looking. It was muddy brown with marshmallows aplenty lightening the texture as the clouds of white melted into it. I pressed my lips together, just looking at it made my eyes dilate.

The woman giggled softly before holding it out.

"Go ahead, I made it for you. It is quite hot though, I didn't know when you'd be arriving." She told me as I approached and gently took it from her.

"Thank you." I said quietly, smiling up at her.

She hummed again, that seemed to be something she liked to do.

"So, how was the trip? Kale told me you lived in a cabin, I doubt you left it very willingly, or were you too in love to consider staying there?" She asked playfully. But I found myself looking down at the hot chocolate mug in my hands.

"I, um...it took some convincing." I murmured. I didn't want to tell her about the arrangement Kale and I had agreed to.

She seemed nice, and also scary, I didn't want to upset her.

"Oh...Oh! How rude! I forgot to introduce myself didn't I?" She exclaimed, making me flinch.

Luckily, I didn't spill any of my drink, which I began to stir with the spoon sticking out of the liquid.

"I'm Alexa Bronwell, Kale's older sister." She held out a hand for me to shake. I reached out tenderly and took her hand.

Her grip was tight, but she didn't crush my hand as she shook it, not entirely anyways.

"I'm sorry, am I making you uncomfortable?" She asked when I pulled my hand away.

"N-Nono, I just...I'm not really used to people...wanting, to talk to me." I shrugged. She hummed again, studying my face. I found myself, pivoting my gaze from her to my drink still almost untouched in my hands. Which at this time, I thought it a good idea to take a sip of, maybe it would break the tension.

The drink was mouth watering even on my tongue and I nearly melted at the taste. Which quickly turned sour at her words.

"Well, you'll have to get used to it if you're planning to become Luna." I spat out the hot chocolate, involuntarily, all over Alexa's front.

She looked just as surprised as I did, covering my mouth I set the mug on the counter.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to-I mean, I wasn't expecting-" The girl belted out a laugh, making me jump again.

"Did you not think you would be made Luna?" She asked, seeming to ignore the brown stain forming on her shirt.

I looked from the stain to her face multiple times.

"W-Well, I, erm.."

"Oh, were you not planning on marrying my brother?" She asked. I was relieved I'd already spat on her, because if I'd been drinking anything then, I'd have choked.

"M-Marry!?" I blurted, my face burning red.

The girl hummed in thought as she watched my reaction.

"So are you just visiting then?" She asked as I leaned on the counter. My head was starting to spin.

"He was planning on marrying me before even telling me he was an Alpha?" I spoke quietly, feeling tears prick at my eyes.

How was he expecting to hide this from me? Or was he just expecting me to be ok with all of this? I was an Omega, it's easier to be someone with nothing, than to be someone with everything including all of the responsibilities and pressure of taking care of an entire pack.

That's like marrying someone who's the head of a huge family when you're an only child! Times Ten!

"He...didn't tell you He was an Alpha?" Alexa asked, she didn't sound too happy about that, but I just sunk to my knees. I was getting very dizzy now, and my tears were only making it worse.

"I..I don't..." My hands tangled themselves in my hair as someone wrapped their arms around me, helping me stumble to my feet.

"Take it easy there Ma'am." It was Benji, she'd entered the kitchen.

"Don't worry, I'll have a talk with my brother ok? We'll sort this out." Alexa told me, giving me a reassuring smile, at least that's what I thought it was.

"Please don't. I just...I just need some time." I told her, letting Benji help me stand until I found strength in my legs.

"Alright then. I assume you don't want to come to the party tomorrow night then?" She asked and I blinked at her blankly, ridding myself of my tears. "It's to welcome my brother home, and to also welcome you, but I can assure you that it'll be understandable if you don't want to go." She told me setting a gentle yet firm hand on my shoulder.

"No it's ok." I don't know what came over me. But I smiled a little.

"I'll go, it'll be ok. I just need some time right now."

Alexa rose a skeptical brow at me, but nodded.

"Alright, but if you start getting overwhelmed at all just let me know." She told me with a nod. I smiled again, this time genuinely.

"Thank you Alexa, can I call you that?" I asked and she snorted.

"Everybody does." She said before Benji offered to take me to my room, the one I would be staying in.

For a second, I worried that it might be the same as Kale's, but nodded regardless. Kale wouldn't do something that forward as to have us share a room, would he?

He didn't, thank goodness, and I was also relieved to see that the room wasn't very big or spectacular or anything. It was simple, a bed, a window, and a closet.

"Sorry if it's a little small." Benji began but I smiled.

"It's perfect, thanks Benji." I told her and she squeezed my shoulder in a side hug.

"Not a problem. Since we don't really have a link, I can't really say to just call me anytime. But if you are having some difficulty, don't hesitate to ask for help from anyone in the house." She smiled at me as I walked over to the bed and sat down, it was soft, but not uncomfortably so.

After I was settled, Benji left me to my own devices.

I looked around before clapping softly. "Alright...what now?" I asked myself before feeling tears in my eyes again.
"Right, processing how much of a jerk this pack's Alpha is." I said in a sarcastically chipper voice.

I'd decided, I was mad, I was really mad at him. But even more than that, I was very, very, hurt.