Chapter 6 – Dread
Maeve
I rolled over in bed and felt my body ache. Panic surged inside of me, and my eyes shot open. Looking around the room, I realized I was home but couldn’t remember how I got here. One moment I was at the hot spring… and the next…
Sweet Moon Goddess!
Memories of the night came flooding back to me, and the breath seemed to leave my lungs. Lifting the blanket slowly, I looked down at my naked body. I never slept naked, but here I was, completely naked, covered in marks, and smelling like sex.
It had to be a dream!
I sprang for the window in my room and pushed it open, hoping to air out the lingering scent. Then I dashed for the bathroom and turned on the shower. His scent was all over me.
“Of course, it is, ye wee hoor!” I scolded myself.
I had sex with Rex… over and over again. Beside the hot spring, in the hot spring, on a soft thatch of grass, and again in this room when he carried me home. He had reached into my underwear drawer and shoved panties in my mouth the last time to keep my grandparents from hearing us.
I muffled a scream of shock when I saw my reflection in the large bathroom mirror. Bite marks, hickeys, and bruises littered my skin. A faded red imprint of his palm was still visible on my ass. I examined the other cheek and saw a deep bite mark. Deep enough to draw blood. The memory rushed back to me.
He lifted me in the hot spring and bent me over the rocky edge. His hands caressed my ass every chance he got, kneading possessively and kissing it like he was worshipping it. Exhaling a deep breath, I recalled how he sank his teeth into my flesh and slid his tongue over the spot to soothe it.
“I’ve wanted to do that for so long,” he said in a raw voice that sent waves of heat through my body.
Even kneeling behind me, Rex oozed dominance and power.
“More,” I begged, pushing back against him, needing more.
“What was that?” He practically purred. There was no way he didn’t hear me with his lycan hearing.
“More,” I whined, feeling the heat of his skin seep into me. I had waited longer than him. Dreamt of him even after he rejected me. I was done waiting.
His eyes were shifting from blue to the swirling grayish galaxy-looking eyes of his lycan. I had no idea who was in control, and at one point, I was sure I saw his tail twitch behind him. The fullness was almost too much to handle, yet I couldn’t get enough. Every touch was pure pleasure and dominance as he pulled and pushed my hips against his. My body demanded more because something inside me worried that this might be the only time I would ever have him, and I wanted it to last.
I stepped into the steaming hot shower, and his scent rolled off my body and wafted up to my nose. Dread filled me thinking about how sensitive shifter noses were. I reached for my washcloth and soap and started scrubbing like I had something to hide.
“This is ridiculous,” I muttered to myself. Sex was natural, especially in the shifter world. I was an adult by werewolf and human standards, so why was I worried?
I washed and conditioned my hair before doing another thorough scrub with my lavender soap. It didn’t matter how much I washed, the marks on my body would remain for a few days. Everything felt sore, and I was tempted to stay in bed today. I still had no wolf, so I could easily fake a headache or illness.
I considered driving into the city and shopping, but I was expecting my first shift tonight and wanted to be prepared. The romantic in me hoped that Rex would come over to check on me. A part of me wanted to have him there to help with my first shift, but the other part worried he would come to his senses this morning and regret what had happened.
When I was a child, I had been chunky and teased for being fat. Once I hit puberty, I was less chunky and more curvy. I noticed how my hips were wider, my bum rounder, and my breasts bigger than the other females my age. As if that wasn’t enough, the Moon Goddess thought it would be funny to make me shorter than the average she-wolf.
I exercised because training was required of all young pack members. I didn’t eat junk and preferred to cook with Nan, but my curves were as stubborn as a Heilan coo. Like my Nan and my mother, I knew my wolf would also be a little Omega, so it wasn’t likely I’d have a mate at the top of the food chain.
The thought of finding my mate tonight should have worried me because I was covered in marks from another shifter, but it didn’t. Sol had turned eighteen two months ago and didn’t find her mate in this pack. It didn’t seem to matter what the ranking of the wolf was because no one in this pack had found a mate in the eight years I had been here.
Rumors were whispered in secret about the delay. Some thought it was a curse, while others thought the Moon Goddess was giving werewolves extra time to find their mates because it took lycans longer. I wasn’t born in this pack, and I don’t believe it was a curse. Persephone told me that finding a mate had become a challenge for shifters worldwide, but no one knew why.
I turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. Drying myself off, I froze when I noticed my missing necklace. It was one I’ve had ever since I could remember—a pendant of the old oak tree that my mother once said was sacred.
Searching my room frantically, I came up empty-handed.
“It must have fallen off sometime last night,” I muttered.
I quickly brushed through my long, tangled hair before moving to my closet for clothes.
“Good morning, Sweetheart,” I heard Nan call as I rushed to the front door. “Any sign of your wolf yet?”
“Not yet, Nan, but I need to take a walk.”
I didn’t walk, I ran. The hot spring wasn’t very deep, so there was a good chance it was just sitting at the bottom. My eyes focused on the path I walked last night, hoping to catch a glimmer of the gold. The sound of voices reached me as I moved toward the hot spring through the trees.
“Good morning, Maeve,” Phoenix greeted me first. He was a year ahead of me and had always been friendly. Phoenix favored his mother with his hazel eyes and dark brown hair. He was nothing like his older brother Ranger, who was the serious and brooding type.
“Hey, Haggis! Come to take a soak in the spring?” Flaym asked with a smile.
“Good morning,” I swallowed dryly and looked at the ground, hoping to find my necklace. Not only did I not find my necklace, but I also didn’t see any clothing, which meant that Flaym and Phoenix had run in their wolf forms and were naked below the surface.
“The triplets should be here soon, but there’s still plenty of room for you,” Phoenix offered, and I felt my pulse race. Nudity was normal for shifters, but I had never shifted or felt comfortable being naked in front of anyone.
“Thanks, but… I was just…” how the hell was I going to explain this? “I came for a soak earlier this week and lost a gold necklace with an oak tree on it. You haven’t seen it by any chance, have you?”
“The one you always wear?” Flaym repeated, and I nodded. “Gold would have sank to the bottom. Give me a few minutes to look for you.”
Flaym shoved his face beneath the water's surface and walked around the hot spring, looking for it. I suppressed a laugh when he turned, and the pale skin of his ass gleamed in the water.
“He sure is good at holding his breath underwater,” I stated, watching Flaym dip lower.
“Flaym can breathe underwater,” Phoenix reminded me.
“That’s right,” I laughed, feeling foolish. I knew Flaym was fireproof and had the gift to breathe underwater like his older sister, but I didn’t know how they had gotten the gift.
“Sorry, Haggis,” Flaym broke the surface. “There’s nothing under there except for Phoenix’s crown jewels.”
Heat rushed to my face, trying not to think about Phoenix’s crown jewels. “Thanks… I’m just going to look around the trees where I left my clothes.”
I heard the sound of footsteps and knew Persephone’s older brothers were approaching. Perseus, Theseus, and Dimitreus were identical triplet lycans and Persephone’s personal cock blockers. She didn’t even have male friends because they were so intimidating. They were cordial to me because I was friends with their sister, but they were four years older and dismissed us as silly little girls. I moved into the trees, hoping to avoid them.
My eyes found chunks of wood near the base of a tree that had fresh wounds from something clawing or hitting it. The gouges were deep and clean, indicating sharp claws and immense strength. My hand stroked over the damage, and I closed my eyes, hoping the tree could heal itself. I remembered Rex striking a tree last night and realized this is where his claws must have made contact with it.
The triplets arrived, and I retreated deeper into the woods, away from the hot spring. I searched the ground and around the rocks, but there was nothing. I thought about the soft patch of grass Rex had carried me to and rushed along the river bank until I reached it. The grass looked near perfect, with no sign of what had happened here hours ago.
“Did you have a nice walk?” Nan greeted me when I returned. “What’s with the long face?” She pressed.
“I’m not feeling too good,” I told her. “I thought a walk would help, but I think I need to lie down.”
She sniffed the air and looked at me curiously. “Did you run into the Lycan Prince?”
“Rex?” I questioned.
“Is there another Prince I’m not aware of?”
“Yes,” I replied quickly as I considered another shower. “He wished me a Happy Birthday.”
“That was nice of him,” she hummed. “I need to get to the mansion. Alpha Ranger is returning from Greece today with the Great Grandparents.”
“Sounds like a big fancy feast.”
“I’ll be back in plenty of time to help welcome your wolf.”
Tears filled my eyes as I plopped down on my bed feeling defeated. Losing that necklace felt like a bad omen. Turning eighteen without my parents had been hard enough, and now I felt like I’d lost another piece of them. Hugging my pillow, I breathed deeply and relaxed into the clean amber and woodsy scent.
A knocking sounded on my door, and when I opened my eyes, I realized the sun was low in the sky. My heart skipped a beat, thinking Rex had come to see me.
“Maeve?” Brianna pushed the door open. “Are you still in bed?”
“I… I’m not feeling so well.”
“HOLY HELL!” She screeched. “What happened to you?”
It took me a moment to notice the marks on my neck were exposed because my hair was pushed back and my shirt had dipped low.
“Shhh,” I sat up and tugged my top up before I swept my hair forward to hide my neck.
“I’m no expert, but I recognize love bites when I see them!” She smiled. “You’d better start talking,” she practically jumped onto my bed like an eager dog waiting for a treat.
“I…” I paused a moment, unsure of what to say. “I’ll tell you, but you have to promise not to tell Persephone or Sol.”
Her hand clasped over her mouth in shock. “Was it one of the triplets?”
“What? No!” I shook my head. “But you really can’t say anything.”
“Sol left on her family vacation this morning, and Persephone is returning to Greece with her great-grandparents tomorrow. I have no one to tell, so spill.”
Spill I did, and when I was done, Brianna sat in quiet shock for a long moment before she said anything.
“I can’t believe you had sex for the first time with Rex!”
“Yeah, me either.”
Her brows knitted together, and she looked me over. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” I replied out of habit, but I wasn’t okay. “I’m a little nervous about his reaction today,” I confessed. “He’s never wanted me before, and I’m worried the new moon had everything to do with it.”
“Did he leave a note?” She glanced at my nightstand.
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “No.”
“Did he call or message to check on you?”
I shook my head, trying to hide my disappointment. “I don’t think he has my number.”
“I’m sure it’s in the Alpha file on you… but he’s probably been busy with all the company arriving today.”
“Alpha file?” I asked.
“The Alpha has a file on every pack member with your background and current information.”
Dread filled me. I knew what this meant… what was coming.
Just then, the door downstairs opened, and I heard someone stomp inside. “Maeve?” It was my grandad.
“I’m upstairs.”
“Get dressed,” he replied. “The Alpha King has requested you join the family for dinner tonight.”
I shot to my feet and yanked the door open. “What? Why?”
“It’s not my place to question the Alpha King. You’ve got ten minutes. Put something nice on and get down here.”
Between Moon Realm East and Moon Realm West, the Kingdom had nearly three thousand pack members. I was a nobody. Why would the Alpha King summon me for dinner?
“Do you think Rex said something?” I whispered to my friend.
“What if someone saw you last night?” She questioned as I rushed to the closet to find something appropriate to wear.
“New moon,” I reminded her. “No one is allowed in the forest.”
“Yeah, except for you,” she scoffed. “Remind me to wander in the woods when Kairo starts to shift.”
“His Great Grandparents are visiting from Greece. Why would he request I join them for dinner?”
“Maybe he’s your mate?”
“He would have sensed it already,” I replied as I stripped out of my clothes.
“Lycans don’t mature until they reach twenty-five,” she reminded me.
“Yes, but Rex, Storm, and Lukas can all shift. They must have reached maturity sooner because of their royal status.”
“They’ve been shifting since they were in diapers,” she said thoughtfully.
“Rex dated Lara for a year. When he broke it off with her, he said it was because he knew she wasn’t his mate. If I was his mate, he would have sensed it already.”
“MAEVE!” She suddenly yelped and started laughing. “Is that a bite mark on your ass?”
“Don’t ask,” I huffed, slipping a long dress over my head and yanking it down.
“Cute!” Brianna eyed the dress. “Maybe your wolf will sense him as your mate tonight.”
“And maybe the Loch Ness Monster is real, too.”
She gasped and clutched her chest, feigning outrage. “Maeve MacDougall, how dare you insult Nessie!” She picked up my stuffed Nessie andcuddled it to her. “Don’t listen to her Nessie.”
I brushed my hair at the speed of light and reached for some lipstick and mascara while Brianna selected a bracelet and big, dangly earrings. “You can put these on in the car.”
“Maeve!” My grandad called out impatiently as I swept on a bit of brown eyeshadow to match the earth tones in my dress.
“AYE! Be right thare,” I replied, and Brianna giggled.
“It’s always funny when your accent peeks out.”
“Let’s just hope my wolf peeks out too!”