a/n

ahhh and Sunday is here so soon! hope you guys enjoy this whopping 6,866 word chapter! don't forget to click that little star and let me know allll your thoughts <3

khalesi

ps:

how are you guys liking the insta story hints? is there any other content you'd like to see more of? (aside from TLH guys im trying to finish my babyyy) 

"Do you ever consider taking that boat out far past the horizon?" Gabe asks softly, the thought merely escaping his lips as we lay on the soft sand. The sun has just begun to rest on the horizon, spraying colours over the cool evening sky.

"All the time," I mummer, glancing at Henry a short distance away attaching the smaller boat to its larger companion. He looks so at peace as he ties the ropes, moving about the vessel with such a familiar grace. It's slightly mesmerising to witness.

I notice Gabe's weight shift and feel his penetrating eyes stare straight at me, without an inch of shame. I wonder if he'd look at me the same if he knew of Micah, or if he'd tear his burned gaze away like I was made of poison. "Why don't you?" He asks and it elicits a small laugh from me.

"No," I say, shaking my head. "It wouldn't be possible, even if it was the one thing I wanted in the whole world."

He laughs with me. "What makes you so sure?" The twinkle of amusement in his words are bright and sunny, but they leave me feeling empty.

I formulate the answer in my head for a moment before uttering it. "Well, I guess I've just got college and my family and all these commitments in this city, let alone on land in general. In a way, I'm tied down to this place whether I want to be or not."

He shifts again. "You have your whole life in front of you. We all do, you shouldn't be so short sighted about such a long future."

I focus on the way the sun colours the water in soft hues of rose and orange, aiming to make the sight ease the sting in my chest. "I guess," I reply, resting my head again. "Maybe when I get my license I can drive out of the pack, see another sunset. It'd be a start."

He props himself up onto his elbow, sending me a quizzical stare. "You've never been outside of the pack?" I shake my head no. I haven't and I probably never will. "That's—"

My phone ringing cuts him off and I sit up, fumbling to grab the noisy object from my bag. I flip it from his view, my caution confirmed when Micah's name appears on the phone. It's not six yet, but it is getting close.

"I've gotta take this," I tell him and he nods, laying back down on his towel to enjoy the quiet. I stand up, my phone continuing to ring out and I don't answer it until I'm far enough away from Gabe. "Hello?" I ask, an edge to my tone.

"Athena, it's Micah," he replies, pausing.

"I know." There is a brief silence on the other end of the phone, like after today he doesn't know how to speak to me anymore, like not even the bond can make conversation seamless.

"I was wondering if you needed to be picked up for tonights dinner. I know you don't have transport and it starts soon so I can pick you up or send someone from the pack house to get you," he says formally, composed.

"That's still happening?" I ask, reminding myself to reign in the sass.

"Yes, considering the progress we made today I would say we still need to talk things through." His words hold no room for debate.

"Fine, have someone pick me up from the car park on Sunset Lane in ten minutes," I respond. I don't want to speak to him longer than I have too and if it means getting in a car with a complete stranger then so be it. I don't give him a moment to respond and hang up the call, walking a little closer to Gabe.

"Yeah, Mom, I'll meet you there soon. Okay I love you, bye." I pretend to hang up a second time and Gabe notices this time around, sitting back up.

"You heading off?" I nod, reaching down to scoop up my stuff. I'm wearing an old dress of his moms over my bathers, hair still damp and likely full of sand.

"You need a ride anywhere? I can get back up that hill for the bike quickly if you do," he says but I shake my head.

"It's alright, Dad's going to pick me up. Dinner is calling and I can't pass this one unfortunately," I reply and he nods.

"No, that's all good, now you mention dinner I think Henry and I are going to need to eat something soon. Well, enjoy your dinner, I'll see you at work," he says with a smile and I return the gesture, waving goodbye and turning before stopping myself.

"Uh Gabe?" I say turning around.

"Yeah?" He is in the process of standing up himself.

"I just wanted to say thank you. For today." It feels like my heart is in my throat as I stand in front of him and I don't know why.

He smiles largely, before standing up fully, dusting himself off. "For what?" He asks with a wink and I smile, trying to hide my blush.

I shake my head and turn away, unable to stop myself from smiling the entire way to the car park.

-

"Sorry about this ma'am, I'll have you to the Alpha family quarters as quickly as I can," the driver announces from the front as we stop in front of a large truck delivering food.

"You know what? I can walk from here, I'm guessing it's that big building up ahead?" I ask and he nods.

"That's the one. But I assure you that walking won't be necessary, it would be rude of me to allow it," he says and I shake my head, already undoing my seatbelt.

"No, truly, it's fine. I could use some fresh air anyway," I say, noticing the way he nervously glances in the rearview mirror, like he's on alert that I may try to bolt at any given minute. As if I'd be so stupid to think it'd work. "If you could just let Micah know I'll meet him inside that'd be great," I add with a warm smile, like I'm just too excited to see my mate to wait behind this truck.

"Of course, have a nice evening ma'am."

I exit the car swiftly, inhaling a deep breath as soon as I'm fully out. The gardens in front of me to the house are beautiful, so immaculate and put together it feels like I'm in some sort of botanical museum, showcasing all the most amazing plants on earth.

I walk past it, knowing that stalling to take a stroll through the entirety of the garden wouldn't get me anywhere good, until I reach the end, noticing a cloud of smoke coming from below a large tree positioned directly in front of the house. I'm almost at the house when I catch sight of Gia at the end of the cigarette, casually inhaling as she reads through some sort of comic.

"Those things are deadly you know." I comment and she snaps her attention to me before smiling and taking a long final drag.

"Us wolves can take a couple more hits," she quips before standing up and dropping the butt, stamping it out with her foot.

I glance at Micahs enormous home and then back to her with a confused stare. "What are you doing here? There isn't some surprise function on that I'm unaware of, is there? Nothing worth making a comic out of I hope." She averts her attention, nervously laughing.

"No," she replies. "I just visit from time to time, some family of mine live on grounds. Wanna smoke?" She asks, pulling out another one and lighting it between her teeth before passing me the end.

"In front of the Alpha's house?" I stare at her like she's mad, because she likely is.

"It's a new edge I'm trying out with a comic about power structures within the pack. I figured embodying the disrespect we aren't technically allowed to demonstrate whilst working it would be poetic." So she is mad. She takes a drag for herself and offers me it again. "You should try it, it feels very empowering." My fingers twitch.

"No, she shouldn't." We both turn to see Micah stood a short distance away, closing in quickly. He is dressed casually, a far cry from the suit and tie he sported the last time I visited his home. "I would appreciate it if you wouldn't encourage activities that could harm my mate, Gia," he says, venom lacing his tone.

She rolls her eyes. "My apologies your highness." I am stunned at her bluntness but Micah doesn't seem fazed, like it is totally common.

He inhales the smoke she blows out for a millisecond before looking at me and grabbing the cigarette, squashing it under his shoe. "I wonder what Beta Samuels would think about this," he says in a pointed tone.

"Go right ahead Micah, but Thea here has a heart for trouble, I can tell. It takes one to know one," she says, walking backwards as she does before turning around and strolling off, pulling another smoke from her pocket.

"I'm sorry about that, she's unpredictable," he says, turning to me with an exhausted look covering his face.

"Are you going to tell him?" I ask and he shoots me a confused look.

"What?" He asks, like the threat simply slipped his mind.

"Beta Samuels," I clarify and he shakes his head.

"I think letting him know more about his daughters behaviour might just give the man a heart attack. And probably encourage her further." I had no idea Gia was the daughter of the Beta, a part of the Beta family. "She's acting out on his wishes for her to travel the packs in search of a mate, he thinks it might calm her down but she's only acting out even more. It's probably best for you to avoid her where possible,"

I nearly scoff as I walk alongside him towards the pack house but I fold my arms instead. "She seems fun." Is the only response I offer and he accepts it.

"I was told you skipped school after we talked this morning," he comments casually and I hate how he can just do that, talk so normally about knowing details of my life I never gave him permission to have. It irks me.

"Does it matter that much to you?" I ask, regretting the question as soon as I ask because we both know the answer. Every single tiny thing that I do matters to him, it all somehow revolves around him.

"Well it's not a good look," he replies, clenching his jaw as we walk up the porch. It seems like neither of us want to participate in this dinner tonight, which makes no sense to me whatsoever.

"Neither is yelling at me in a hall full of people but I suppose your appearance is treated differently than mine," I reply with just as much force as he gave me and he lets out a quick frustrated sigh, rolling his eyes.

"Do you want to get into that right now?" He asks and it shuts me up because I don't. I still hadn't even had the conversation with my parents, I didn't have the heart too, as much as it was necessary. "I didn't know what you would want to eat so I figured I'd wait and we could order something up from the pack house kitchens."

"I don't have much of an appetite." I continue to walk behind him as he leads the way through the house, my eyes glancing all over the place. It's such a large home, doors and crevices branching off from each room, the entire place kept in perfect condition, scattered with expensive artworks or rugs or chandeliers. Yet it feels like a home at the same time.

I scan my eyes over the picture frames that line the walls, looking at happy candid photos of kids and the Alpha and Luna. Of ceremonies and birthdays and festivals. I always envisioned the Alpha's home to be some dark dwelling, the lair of a villain and this was anything but.

He leads me into a kitchen where his younger brother stops in his tracks, staring straight at us. He must be only a few years younger that Micah, one hand clutching a laptop as the other holds his apple. "Are you good, Joey?" He asks in a certain way that makes his brother pull his attention from me before staring just at his brother, with raised brows. I know it's teasing but I hate the look he gives, the insinuation of it and from the glare Micah gives him that sends him scurrying off, I can tell he notices that.

He heads straight for the freezer, opening it and removing a frozen pizza before closing the door. "You can take a seat wherever you like, make yourself at home," he says and I look to the stools at the island bench, taking a seat on one as he fishes around the kitchen. Home is the last thing I want this place to become.

I sit in awkward silence as he makes himself food, everything about the situation tense. As far as hosting goes he isn't doing an amazing job. "Did you get up too much on your day off?" He asks it like he doesn't care all that much, like he knows it's his place to say something but I can tell he'd still value an honest answer.

Which I'm not sure he'd love to hear. "We went down to the beach," I say and he looks more closely at my messy, half-dried hair before putting his food in the oven. "We were thinking about hiking up the Devils cliff but I wouldn't have made it here in time if we did."

He whips around to me then, fully focused on the fact that I'm there and each muscle in his body tenses before relaxing. "That area was shut down years ago, it's dangerous," he says solidly and I shrug.

"I'm pretty sure most of the kids at school have jumped from it, let alone hike. Both humans and wolves." And him too, I bet. I can see it in his eyes, in the way he fights himself over what to say that he's done it, all the guys in footballs teams years past have. There's no way the coolest kid in school, the captain, didn't.

"You could seriously injure yourself, falling into the water wrong or getting caught in a bad wave," he says, becoming more sure the further he speaks. "It's not worth the risk." I think back to standing on that cliff, jumping so freely into the ocean with nothing pulling me to or fro.

"Can I please have a glass of water?" I ask, diverting the conversation before it becomes anything else.

He shakes his head, the sliver of pain at me being in potential danger erased from his expression as he nods. "Of course." He reaches into a cabinet and pulls out a tall clear glass before filling it from the tap and passing it to me.

I take a sip, staring at his deep brown eyes, noting the conflict that crosses between them, conflict that unsettles me. "What is it?" I ask, putting the glass down.

His eyes stare straight into mine, like he's been caught in the act of thinking. "I guess if you aren't going to eat I may as well bring it up now," he says, sighing like he knows what will come of it. I can't let the fear that eats away at me go so easily this time, it's not like I can just jump off a cliff and it'll be over. "I assumed you would be aware by now that your parents were successful in finding a lawyer. Someone from out of this pack but a legal representative nonetheless," he says and my gut sinks further.

"I wasn't," I reply. I want to be joyous, to be able to have them be the ones to tell me with hope and some solid information that may actually help me. But I can't as I sit here in front of the guy my case is against.

"I received the call after you'd left school, I considered finding you then to sort it out but it seemed pointless considering the fact my father was the one who told me," he says and I sit in silence, waiting for the bad news to be over despite the fact it just keeps coming. "His lawyers had already prepared a counter move without my knowledge and they served it to them both before I made it back to the pack house."

"Served them with what?" I asked, furrowing my brows.

"I spent the day trying to sort through it but I'm on limited information here and legally, there is only so much I'm even allowed to say to you. But in essence about every single thing they could, enough of a blow to make any sane lawyer advise the case be dropped along with settlement terms. My father has done everything short of charge them, which I gather is what he'd take to next if it means keeping this from becoming public."

"Charge them? You're going to arrest my parents?" I ask, anger already seeping into my words. Arrest them for me?

"No, not yet at least. And not me, my father. I don't have the power to make any decisions like that until I take his title, I can advise him as a son but I have no actual influence over what he ultimately decides. Which hasn't been easy," he says and I shake my head, rage starting to bubble up inside me.

"Oh it hasn't been easy?" I ask, mocking. "How would you feel if I said that my parents were going to arrest yours? Lock them up, away from you and your younger siblings?" I ask and a hard look comes over his face.

"Your parents just made a move to sue the pack, my pack, what is supposed to one day be your pack," he points out, like its insane to think this isn't all justified in some way. "You know it's difficult explaining to him that you won't do anything reckless or stupid and that we both have everything under control when you do something to tell him the diametrical opposite. I've been trying so hard to make this as easy as possible for you, I thought that I was doing pretty well too but you suited up after one slight argument."

I don't like how this conversation is set, in his home, his kitchen, his domain. It's yet another reminder that he holds all the cards here— not me and it makes having an argument difficult. Because this won't be a discussion, not when we both think so strongly on our opposite views.

"Why did you make me come here?" I ask, tears beginning to gather in my eyes, illuminating my disgust. "Why not just let me find this out from my parents? Is it some sick power trip? Or will you be deprived should you not see me in person less than twice a day?" I ask and he scrunches up his own face with disgust, his anger beginning to bubble out through a tight grip on the counter and a clenched jaw.

"Because I wanted to be the one to tell you and in person. I didn't expect you to leave school but I figured you'd gone home and would contact me once you found out anyway." My gut twists and turns and I don't speak, handing him the floor to own up. "Your parents don't really have much of a choice in dropping the lawsuit regarding you," he says, after a struggle with silence like the admission should hold impact.

"I gathered, they'll be left without any options after being served," I reply. But just because there options may be slimmer now I doubt they'll stop the fight. "Look if you're just going to waste my time—"

"No, Athena, you're not understanding me. They can't fight on your behalf, or appoint lawyers on your behalf, legally within this pack or any other pack for that matter. Neither can you. Your parents were served about their actions towards the pack, the only legal document regarding you..." he can't finish his statement, doesn't for long enough that my anxiety snaps.

"What?" I snap. "What does any of that even mean? That I can't hire a lawyer what—"

"Because legally I am responsible for you now. You can't get a lawyer or go to court or do anything that involves signing documents without my signature too, and if you do, it will mean nothing in the eyes of the law or pack," he says, so fast I need to double take. The speed of which he said it hit me in full force, all at once and I let the tears fall, shakily getting off my chair. "It's just until the ceremony is completed, it was something created for Alpha's with human mates, or rather continued from before but it exists and my father reminded them of that."

As if that should make me feel any better. I knew that I was limited by the laws but to have literally no rights over myself. None at all, not even a fighting chance to stand up for myself. What the fuck am I supposed to do? I can't exactly fight my way out of this physically.

"I have to get home," I say, more to myself. "They'll be worried out of their minds oh god," I say, bringing my shaking hand up to my mouth as I let out a sob, slipping further away from myself.

"They were advised you'd be here and home later on. I didn't think it'd actually matter, I never planned to use that in any way but given the nature of you wanting to speak with lawyers I can't do nothing. And it's not because I'm afraid of what you'll find, I know what will be there and it's nothing that would end the bond, which is an existing law for so many reasons. But if it becomes public it is going to set this pack into problems before I even become the Alpha."

I wipe away at the tears on my face, feeling like a complete idiot for standing in front of him crying. "So you knew about this all along and kept it from me?" I ask, nothing but dislike lining my words. "For what? The sake of reputation?"

"I want to be honest, that's what I'm doing right now, its what I've tried to do from the start. And in all honesty I figured you knew more about the laws, about everything that stayed—I thought that's why you rejected me initially. I had no intentions of using it, but how can you expect me to sit around pretending that we can date like normal humans when I'm not one?" His admission packs a punch when put in such a way. But it also draws a deep sort of anger from me, one that stems from the hypocrisy of the situation, like he is trying to rub it in my face now.

"You are justifying taking away my rights because I won't date you the way you want? Are you our of your fucking mind?" My voice raises then and I see the anger he tries to bury clear as day. "I told you on Friday how I felt about those laws, how much it bothered me that you even had access to that authority and your response is to use it anyway? You aren't responsible for shit, I am responsible for me. Why would you even say that? Who do you think you are?"

I stand from my seat and bring my hands to my head, trying and failing to regulate my breathing and stop the tears from leaving my eyes. It's like he wants me to fucking run for the hills.

"I'm your mate. And I am telling you because it is the truth Athena, I don't want to keep that from you. But my hands are tied, I can't allow you to try ruin this bond and I'm not just going to watch and do nothing as you go down a path that is only going to hurt us. I understand your position, and your feelings on the matter, but there is a line. Hiring a lawyer to try and cut ties from the bond and pack crosses that."

"I don't care!" I yell and my blood is boiling so much I want to just smash something. "I don't care about your stupid magical bullshit, I don't give a fuck."

He doesn't understand me at all. If he did, then he'd know that his actions will only serve to make me despise him.

A low growl leaves his lips and it cuts fear into my rage."Don't mock what we have."

If I wasn't so pissed I don't doubt I would've collapsed in a fit of fear right then and there. But I can't let myself become that girl, in the back of my mind I can just hear Gabe telling me not to let my fear decide, because I'd cave into his anger immediately if I did. I won't become someone that cowers at his warnings, not if I can avoid it.

"Nothing about this is magical bullshit, it's very real," he continues, getting more angered saying it from his own mouth before letting out a cynical laugh. "It's like you don't have any clue about what being a mate means, none. I'm in your year at school, I went to all the same mandatory classes on mates that you did, I don't understand how oblivious to it all you are."

Tears continue to stream down my cheeks. "Yeah well they don't teach you in the classes about what it's really like. It's all just lies about how even human mates will fall head over heels for their destined partner and live happily ever after. I barely like you right now, and I certainly didn't fall in love with you the second I caught your eye. This isn't what I want." I grit out, taking a shaky breath as I try to gather my thoughts.

"There are so many mated couples our age that are human and wolf that are happy and in love and accepting. Your self-inflicted misery is what's making our situation so different. You're expecting me to just nod my head and accept everything you ask for within our relationship but some things I can't, sometimes you have to give a little back," he says, the heat of the argument still raging.

"We. Don't. Have. A. Relationship," I spell out and he pushes off the counter, running his hands through his hands to help his frustration stay at bay.

"Okay, our mate-ship, the eternal bond that binds us together, our situation-ship— semantics Athena, whatever you want to call it then fine, we'll run by that. But the point is that it affects us both, just like any other relationship. Just because I'm more open to the bond than you doesn't mean I should hurt myself to get you on board, it's cruel."

"It's not cruel to not want to be with you, it's how I feel," I yell, as if that'll help him get it through his thick skull.

"Because what? I tell you that you can't be with other guys? Because you want to accept some fantasy that it's okay to just go and be with other people?" He says with another bemused laugh. "Newsflash Athena, you can't be with anyone else and neither can I. This is it, this is what you get, legalities don't even matter when it comes to that. You'd find out pretty damn fast that being with men other than me isn't something you want." The glint in his eyes turns near murderous with the mere thought and I think about what he's saying, back to the classes and how they detailed the consequences of infidelity, the physical consequences.

"No, Micah," I say, looking at him like he's fucking nuts. "You think, out of this whole conversation, that my main reason to want to leave this bond is so I can galavant around dating whoever I please? You really think that I am upset because I won't be able to fuck other men?"

He grips the counter so tightly I swear he could break it as he stares at me with a deadly glint. "Don't ever say—"

"Don't ever threaten me," I cut in, my voice dripping with just as much vehemence despite the fact that my bones shake with fear. "You don't get to act like you know better, like you aren't acting on your own choices. I don't want to be with you if this is the person that you are, if you have literally zero regard for my rights, my feelings, my choices. You get all the benefit from these laws and I am expected to just go along with that?" I ask and it does silence him.

His whole body language had shifted the moment I called out his demeanour for that it was. A threat. He can't claim to love me more than the moon and stars and then treat me like some piece of property he can do whatever with until he eventually bites me. It's insane.

"I don't get all the benefit," he says, softer than before. "If that were true, you wouldn't be staring at me right now like you wish I was six feet under. Nothing about this situation benefits me. Do you think that I am able to leave the pack without notifying my father and the authorities of my plans? Do you think that I can go around hiring lawyers against the pack to leave the bond? We have a responsibility to this pack, and that comes at the sacrifice of a normal life."

His words make me step further back, my gut twisting. "If you could change the laws tomorrow, would you?" I ask firmly, sending him a hard stare.

"I can't," he admits with a sigh, his eyes scanning over my features as his mind whirls behind them. "What if we make a deal?"

"I don't want to make a deal with you." The speed at which I reject his proposal is faster than I expected.

"The way this works for me doesn't work for you. I get that I'm never going to understand your position just like you are probably never going to understand mine. But we have to develop to some sort of mutual terms to all of this. I see that this is an important issue, and I'm sorry that I can't change that for you, that it vilifies me the way it does—but maybe we can work around it."

Making deals with someone like him, someone powerful with an agenda isn't a good idea. "I don't..."

His piercing eyes examined me, whirling with thoughts that I didn't know how to read. To him, I was an open book, to me, I couldn't guess the next thing that was going to fly out of his mouth. "I need to go home and speak with my parents," I decide, nodding my head as though that made my profession more serious.

He glowered but wiped the hatred from his face in an instant. "I want us to sort this out and I don't want you hating me even more. We can write out an agreement, go through the terms—" he shuffled to a draw near the kitchen and fished out a large yellow file, slapping it on the table. "I had your lawyer compile the requirements and your new legal position in here. Her details are inside so you can contact her to raise any questions, she's human too and mated herself."

A perfect choice. If anyone was going to advise me on how I'm not going anywhere it would be one of my own kind.

My fingers tentatively grasp the folder and the weight of it in my hands sinks through to my chest with a heavy sigh. "How are we supposed to make an agreement when I can't get my own lawyer. She's working for you, for the pack."

"We can go through the terms now. I have an office upstairs and we can map everything out and see where there is room for negotiation. Getting an exemption through the legal system for something like that would take us years. We've got a better chance going through it ourselves first and seeing if we can figure it out in our own, then maybe I can proposition it to my father. It's worth a shot."

He wants us to try sort out our differences on our own. Which I suppose has been his plan since day dot, and I can understand why. If we figure this out together then I can't be angered over the outcome, without lawyers or family involved it becomes less messy and... maybe it would work for me to. Maybe it is worth a shot and if it fails, if we truly can't see eye to eye then I'll know a little more how my future with him might look.

"Okay." My words come out as a shaky tremor, still carrying the emotion that sits tight in my throat and reddens my eyes.

"Athena! Darling." Both of us snap our attention to the doorway of the kitchen where Micah's mom enters, a brown paper bag full of groceries in hand.

Micah moves quickly around the counter, taking the bag from her with one hand before giving her a brief hug. "You weren't supposed to be back until later this evening. Dad said you had a dinner on," he says, glancing at me before putting the groceries down.

Her smile lessens slightly when she takes a good look at me, clearly still wearing the sadness of our argument. It's something I can't conceal. "No, that was cancelled last minute. I figured you'd both be hanging out and so I brought some snacks, your favourite chocolate. Is everything alright here?" She asks pointedly, giving her son a slightly aggressive stare, like she knows he's fucked up, before she sniffs, her attention narrowing in on the oven. "My goddess, what on Earth are you burning?"

Micah whips around and opens the oven to release a stream of smoke, grabbing the tray with his bare hands and throwing it quickly onto the stove top. I peer to the side of him to get a look at the charred meal, completely blackened.

"Ew, what is that?" Joey enters, giving his mom a similar greeting to the one Micah offered before he jumps up on the counter.

"Don't tease your brother, he was trying to make something nice to eat for his mate— frozen pizza?" She asks in a snap, her brows furrowed. "You couldn't have made our guest something a little nicer? I told you to get the pack house to make you something Micah."

He just looks defeated. "That was my pizza! I got that from the store, mom," his brother complains, a classic teen voice emitting from his mouth.

"Could you guys both just give us some space, please. Athena and I were having a conversation."

"Have you spoken about the hospital fundraiser yet?" She asks her son, either not reading the room or not caring if her presence isn't needed. Maybe she can sense how downhill it is all going and wants to stop it— I don't know.

"Athena's busy on the weekend, mom. Maybe next time," he says and she looks to me to confirm, my shocked face not helping.

"Um yeah, yeah I can't make this one. Sorry," I say, rolling with it. I'll trust Micahs judgement on this one, the word event is enough to put me off.

"That is such a shame, I would've loved for you to be there. I'm sure with a bit more notice next time you'll be able to be there. My son forgets about these events very easily, his father too, if it weren't for me there would be no social life in this pack!" The luna says with a laugh, continuing to unpack her bag.

"He remembers some of the parties," Joey chimes in with a knowing smirk and Micah shoots him a look that says he is going to get it later. I already assumed Micah went to all the parties happening at school but I never concerned myself with the conversations about it.

"Mommy!" I spin around to find Micahs youngest brother running in, clad in a superhero costume as he catapults into his mother, giving her the best greeting by far.

"Well hello to you too Charlie," she says with a bright smile, scooping him up into her arms. He looks over to me, his eyes wide before he brings his attention back to his mom.

"It's Micah's mate," he says in what is supposed to be a hushed tone but isn't at all. "Is she staying here now?"

I look anywhere but at Micah, whose eyes land on me immediately, nerves fluttering through my body like a swarm of butterflies. "It is, but we call her Athena remember?" The Luna corrects, sending me a warm smile mixed with the look of an apology. "And no, she's not staying here now. Though you are welcome to any time of course," she adds quickly and a blush rushes to my cheeks at the implication. She means to stay overnight—oh god.

"Uh, thank you."

"Mom."

Micah and I say simultaneously, our tones vastly different. She looks between us and smiles, as if she thinks we are just being shy, not entirely uncomfortable.

She raises her free arm in defence. "Okay, I get it, I'll stop being an uncool mom. But I do mean it when I say you are welcome here anytime, with or without Micah. This will be your home one day and we all would love to get to know you more," she says with a kind smile and although her words may as well cut me like a knife, I know her intentions are pure.

So I smile back. "I appreciate that, Luna," I say.

"Please, call me Rose," she says, putting her son down as he starts to wriggle. "Well I best leave you both to it, if you need anything just yell out. I'll be in my office getting some work done and Joey here is going to go over to Beta Samuels house, aren't you Joey?" She asks with an edge that says he has no choice.

Joey looks like he is immediately about to protest but stops when he sees her face, his shoulders slumping. "Fine," he says solemnly, sliding off the table and leaving the room in a sulk.

"Bye mom," Micah says and she gives us one small wave before leaving the room, Charlie hot on her heels and then it is just us again. Silence filling the room. "I'm sorry about that."

"Its fine," I say—shocking, that the Alpha family is somewhat normal, but fine.

An awkward silence drifts between us and he looks at his pizza before throwing it into the nearby bin. "Are you sure you aren't hungry?" He asks and I nod. "We can order something later if you want. My office is up this way."

He begins moving from the room still heavy with tension and I have no choice but to follow him down through a large dining and living room, up two flights of stairs and down a hall until we reach a decently sized room, just smaller than my bedroom, with a large desk and bookshelves lining the walls.

This house is massive, and for five people? I know it was built fairly recently, in addition to the large pack house next to it at the cities centre. But if this is supposed to be my home one day how the hell am I going to fill it? I can't see loving pictures of Micah and I plastered over the walls or our children running through the halls.

Micah moves a large whiteboard which is full to the edges with what looks like some form of mathematics and pulls my chair out for me which I take. He takes an eraser and removes all the contents before writing in big sprawling letters on the top, 'MATE', turning to me like a teacher would a student.

"Okay," he says with a huff. "Maybe let's just start with the like non-negotiable's. Then we can look through the law notes there and check it out." 

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