Dallas's POV
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I knock on the door of my house. I can't reach my key.

A few seconds later, Mum answers. Her face looks healthier than it had yesterday and when she sees me carrying Nicole on my back, she grins.

"I can't reach my key." I explain, indicating at how I have to hold her up. Mum only nods and opens the door wider for me so I can step through.

I head straight for my room.

When I get there, I carefully let go of one leg to pull the covers of my bed back. Turning around so my back is to the bed, I gently lean her back and take off her shoes. Then I slip her under the comforter, pulling it up to her chin. I kiss her forehead, pleased that I was able to do something and then head for the door. I'm hungry. I'm stopped by her grabbing my hand.

Her eyes are still closed, so I keep the belief that she's asleep. "Don't go." She says quietly, her voices raspy from sleep. Without a word, I move back to her, sitting next to her on the bed. My thumb rubs circles on her hand as her grip on my wrist loosens. This time, when I stand to go, she doesn't stop me.

--

Sitting at the counter of the kitchen, I talk with my mum. I haven't had a real conversation with her for awhile. My cereal bowl is almost empty, showing my hunger that has just caught up with me.

My mum and I laugh and talk and laugh and talk. I missed this when I was.... ill.

Her smile makes me happy. I haven't seen her smile this much since before Carter died...

And then my mum falls silent, glancing behind me and then turning around so her back is to me. What?

I almost spew cereal everywhere when I feel Nicole tazor me in my sides. I swallow quickly to avoid choking and whirl around. She grins up at me, her jaw jutted out and her shoulders squared from stubbornness. I glare at her.

Her fierce blue eyes stare back at me with the same intensity. Her lips are curled delicately in that little smirk she does and one eyebrow is perked while the other is pushed in, giving her that come-at-me look. I feel my mum's eyes on us.

"You're gonna get it now." I say darkly, unable to help the amusement laced in my words.

"Can't get what you can't give." She teases and takes off, me roaring behind her.

"NICOLE!" I yell, standing up from my stool and sending it crashing to the ground. Mum giggles beside me, covering her mouth with a hand. She knew Nicole was behind me.

I turn my gaze to her, narrowing my eyes. "You." I say. She points at herself innocently.

"Who?" She looks behind her to see if I was talking about some imaginary person behind her. "Little ol' me?"

I take a step towards her and she crosses her arms. "I am your mother. You can't do anything to me."

And that's when I grow that look in my eyes Mum recognizes. She opens her mouth and is a out to speak when I interrupt her by yelling up the stairs. "Oh, Daaaaaaad!" Mum's eyes widen and she glares at me.

"What do you want?"

"Nicole." I grin and mock bow for her. "Are you going to help?"

"Do I have a choice?" She teases and walks past me to the stairs. She walks up the stairs and I wait for Nicole. She doesn't come. Irritation floods me. I have a feeling treason is involved.

Cautiously walking up the stairs, I peek above the last step. Nothing.

I take another few steps down the hallway, curious and wary.

And then I enter my room. I stand upright, leaning back on my heels in confusion. A frown forms on my face.

And then I'm drowning in pillows.

"Die!" I hear Nicole's voice scream. My mother's repeats the chant. And then they back away cautiously, feathers floating in the air, pillows in hand. I cough, sending a feather flying out of my mouth and glare at my mother.

"Traitor!" I screech, standing up and then keeling over again to cough out the feathers. Next, I race out of my room. "Dad! Mum's being mean!" I yell. Dad appears in the doorway, a towel around his waist. He looks at me cautiously, his silver eyes looking as if they see right through me. His hair is messy and damp from the heat of the shower.

"Hm?" He asks, leaning against the white door.

"They whacked me with pillows!" I screech, coughing for effect and another feather tumbles out of my mouth. His nose scrunches up in disgust.

"What am I supposed to do?"

"Tame Mum! She said she would help me! She completed an act of treachery!" I exclaim. I don't care I sound like a five-year-old. He nods, tilting his head like I do, and walks to my bedroom door. Which was slammed in my face and locked.

"Car? Carly?" He calls through. "Let me in and no harm will come to either of you."

"No!" Comes their response. Dad looks at me and winks.

"I'll break the door, and I know how much you love these doors. I'll break every single one. In the entire house. You know I will." He grins. I can't believe Mum would ever get so worked up abo -

And the door swings open, Mum standing in front of it, Nicole peeking over the edge of my bed at us with wide eyes. I narrow my eyes at her and she ducks her head. I look at Mum as she notices Dad. She tilts her head at him.

"What do you want?" And then he grabs her and runs into their room. She yells.

"On your own, Dallas!" Dad shouts as I look at where they disappeared.

And then I look back at the blue eyes of Nicole, tilting my head slightly and grinning. She shrieks and there seems to be a commotion as she struggles to crawl under the bed.

I calmly walk into my room, close and lock the door, and walk over to the side of my bed that Nicole is on. She stares up at me with wide eyes. "It was your mom's idea!" She tattles, her American accent crystal clear.

"Uh-uh, Sunshine." I grin and sit next to her, her already starting to crawl away. I grab her foot and pull her back, pinning her to the floor with my legs. I tickle her sides, her laugh sounding like a bell; pure and beautiful.

"Stop it, Dal! Stop it! I can't -" she says in between laughs. "I can't - I can't - I can't breathe!" She giggles and then bursts into laughter again.

"Should have thought about that before tazoring me and drowning me in pillows!" I shout to be heard. Finally, I let her go, falling next to her as she gasps for breath. Her eyes are closed and she turns her face to look at me, only an inch away from me.

"I'm gonna get you for that." She says.

"Not ticklish." I grin, causing her to frown.

"Hm... I can think of another way." I narrow my eyes and then she leans forward more so her lips barely brush against mine as she talks. "I won't," each word is like a small electric tingle being sent through me,"let you kiss me for a week." She finishes. She knows. I never told her that Mates practically do anything for the other. And Nicole figured that out. She knows.

I hiss quietly, her grinning and staring at my eyes as I stare at our lips. "I'm serious, Dallas." I close my eyes as she speaks, her lips brushing against mine again. I want her to keep talking. This is unbearable. She tilts her head slightly. "I didn't realize I could have done this and everything would have been easier." Each word makes more sparks flurry through me.

"S-Stop." My voice comes out hoarser than I meant it to. This needs to stop. It's not fair. She's playing a dangerous game and she knows it. "Please..."

"What, Dallas? What is it?" She grins and leans a little closer so our lips are definitely brushing now. But still, it makes me ache. I hiss again. Why can't I just pull away?

"Nicole..." I say quietly, opening my eyes slightly to look at her. "Please..."

"Are you going to tickle me again?" I know I probably will and she knows it, too, but I grunt.

"No...." And then she comes even closer. I give a soft, unhappy sound. "I won't, Nicole. I won't... Please..." I say quietly, willing my lips to barely move rather than form the words completely.

"Yes or no? Make up your mind, Dallas. Please? Or stop?" She grins again, teasing me by pulling away almost completely.

I feel my eyes glaze over, switching from my eyes to my wolf's and then back.

"Nicole...." I say quietly, staring at her. "Please... I need... I need.... Please......" She grins at me and finally leans all the way, pressing her lips firmly against mine. I let out a soft sigh through my nose, slowly reaching up to hold her head. This is unlike any time we have kissed before.

This is real.

I groan quietly and we stay like that for a little bit. And she pulls away. I don't want her to.

No doubt, I've felt the connection between Nicole and I. I've wanted to kiss her for a long time. I've wanted for her to know what we are. I've wanted for her to understand. I've wanted us to be together. But I've never felt this wanting need to kiss her and not stop. This makes me rethink my ability to restrain from Marking her.

I've always been fine with being her best friend. When you think about it, that's really what Mates are. Best friends.

I was satisfied with that. I had amazing self-control that people yearned for. But now, I'm not so sure. And that scares me.

Her kissing me like this awakened the feeling inside me that I guess I was hiding from.

And she sees all this. She knows all this. She's figured it out. I have no idea how. But she did.

Usually, if I kissed her, I would have been the first to pull away and I wouldn't mind. I would blush and I wouldn't push it.

But now, I want to push it. I don't want to stop.

Is this what all Werewolves feel? Or is this because I'm a Pureblood(Alpha's Blood)?

I look at her in the eyes and she sees the deep ache inside me. Through my eyes. She tilts her head. She's seeing the truth. She's seeing something she's never seen in her best friend, in me, before. "It almost hurts, doesn't it?" She asks. I grit my teeth. Maybe this need is from not seeing her for three weeks and almost dying because of it. I'm praying that that's what it is. Because I am using the last of my control. And if it isn't, and this is permanent... I'm in a lot of trouble.

She leans forward again, helping the need slow down as she kisses me. I close my eyes again, thankful for the horrible but amazing swelling in my stomach go down. This need really needs to go away.

When she pulls away again, I don't hesitate to follow her and kiss her again. She blinks in confusion and surprise, but I don't think she minds. And no, that's not me being cocky.

Finally, I pull away.

"I'm- I'm sorry... I just needed... I couldn't.. Control... I wanted... Needed..." I am embarrassed to have let her seen my desperate side. It's humiliating she had to see me like that. "I'm sorry." I force myself to move further away so I don't become more tempted than I already am. It doesn't help when she scoots closer to me.

She looks at me, her eyes void of emotion. I have no idea how she does that.

"I don't mind."

I nod and close my eyes so I don't have to look at hers.

"Why do you restrain yourself?"

"Hm?" I ask. My exhaustion is catching up with me again.

"Why don't you just let go?"

I laugh.

"I would if I could, Nic."

"Why can't you?"

"Because I didn't even know how I felt. And now that I do... It's scary." I open my eyes to look at her and lean up so I'm sitting rather than lying down. She does the same.

"Well. There's going to be something scary once in awhile. But that's why we have each other."

"Nicole, you don't realize what you're asking. You don't understand what being the n - " and then I stop, looking at her. She is the daughter of my Pack's rival Pack's Alpha. She is a Pureblood just like me. She knows exactly how I'm feeling. "You feel it, too, don't you?" She grins. I'm right.

"You were saying. 'Being n.....?'" She asks.

"You are the Alpha's daughter and I am the Alpha's son. Nicole. If we... If we are Mates... Then we can unite the Packs." I tell her. Her eyes grow wide.

"Really? No more feuds?"

"No more."

"We should." She nods and stands, grabbing my hand and pulling me up. "Let's ask your parents about it."

I follow after her as we make our way to my parents' bedroom.

"Mum! Dad!"

But the people who appear are not Mum and Dad.

Mason and Ian.