18 - Regina
I opened my eyes abruptly and the room was pitch black. It took me a moment to realize where I was. I must have left the curtains closed yesterday evening. Why was my heart beating so hard? I could hear the pounding in my ears. I could suddenly smell the sea, like when you stand on a cliff overlooking the ocean, and a breeze brings you the wonderful, soothing smell.
The last time I felt it this intensely was when Dorothy had taken me to visit her pack in my teens; those were some of my fondest memories with her. I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, causing my wolf to go absolutely berserk. Mate! Mate! Oh, so that was what this was!
I looked at the white lump next to me – hello, David, you sneaky bastard . I touched his fur and it felt like touching a live wire. The new bond between us was strong, shiny, and electric in a way that took my breath away. I felt every cell in my body buzzing, wanting to be pressed against all the cells in his body. His scent was like a cool breeze on my skin, caressing me in all the right spots and
I felt like arching my back. I suddenly wanted him to moan things into my mouth. I felt like I wanted to lick the hollow of his throat. Should I wake him up and make him shift? No! What the fuck? Had he felt this way while my wolf was dormant? Or was he going to start feeling this way now?
It was a consuming sort of tension that sat heavy on my chest. I hadn’t felt this in so long, years probably. I hadn’t even realized until now how frayed and damaged my bond with Henry had gotten towards the end, it had become a mere shadow of its former self. The thought of Henry was like a cold shower. I absentmindedly ran my hand through David’s wolf’s fur, and he cuddled further into me. I must have fallen asleep soon after that.
In the morning, I was alone again. My wolf was whining for us to go find our mate. Like I’d already said, things were simple for her. No questions about why the fuck she'd been out of commission for months, no mourning our last mate – no, the hussy was ready to jump back into another relationship already. I kind of envied her, to be honest. If I rationally looked at all the mated couples I knew, and I knew many, my mating was the only one that had taken such a terrifying and traumatizing turn; it was clear that we had been the outlier, the exception. I couldn’t always be rational, however, especially not when thrust into an even more high-profile mating than my last one had been.
I groaned, pulling the pillow over my face to stop myself from overthinking first thing in the morning. A colossal mistake since it smelled faintly of my mate. Whoa. So he was my mate now, huh? My wolf was back in full force, and it assuaged a fear that I hadn’t dared admit, even to myself. I had been so afraid that this whole experience, combined with the various drugs, had damaged her beyond repair. I’d worried that she either wouldn’t come back or that she’d come back volatile and violent. However, for now, she felt exactly right, the same as she always had – my better half.
Today would be a good day, I could feel it in my bones. Not only was my wolf back, but tonight I was cooking dinner for David and his friends. Feed mate , she approved. Oh, God.
If tonight went well, I would have a job and perhaps some new friends, too. First things first, shower, clothes, then the kitchens to get some inspiration for the meal. I had been toying with several ideas this last week, but I still hadn’t settled on a definite menu. After breakfast, I’d go to the market David had shown me yesterday to get the groceries I needed. By the time I had gotten showered and dressed, I was a female with a plan.
The palace kitchen was intimidatingly grand, shiny, and well-equipped. As I rummaged through the pantry, someone cleared their throat behind me. I saw two Omegas who I’d seen clearing off the breakfast tables in the big dining hall.
“Hello, ladies. Am I disturbing your work?”
They couldn’t have been older than 19. One of them elbowed the other one, who then shyly said:
“Luna, we've gotten some fresh currants this morning from the pack greenhouse. We heard about your dinner tonight and wanted to ask you if you would like to use them for the dessert.”
I was stunned. That was so incredibly thoughtful and kind.
“Wow, I – thank you so much. Yes, actually, please set them aside for me. What are your names?”
“Caroline and Patty, Luna.”
“Nice to meet you; please call me Regina,” I said, but I knew they would never.
That decided my entire menu: I would make pice bach, Dorothy’s favorite Welsh cake, and keep that theme going for the rest of the dinner as well. Comforting, hearty, winter-friendly homemade food to warm their bellies: shepherd’s pie and cawl, a Welsh soup with lamb, swedes, and oatmeal dumplings. I was buzzing with excitement. The kitchen pantry had almost everything I needed, I would just run to the market to find some good leeks – as one of the symbols of Wales, it was imperative that I use the perfect ones tonight.
Was it tacky to say you had outdone yourself? The lamb, leeks, potatoes, swedes, and carrots were simmering in the nice thick broth I had made from the lamb bones, just waiting for the dumplings to join them. The shepherd’s pie was assembled, ready to be put into the oven 20 minutes before it needed to be on the dinner table. Now all that was left to do was measure out the flour, butter, eggs, milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and currants and keep them in the same spot until the time came to make the dough and fry it in a cast iron pan. I glanced at the clock – perfect. Still enough time to shower and change before the guests arrived.
I decided to wear a thin dark-blue silk dress and I liked what I saw in the mirror. I had steadily been gaining weight back and all of my curves were almost as they had been. I decided against bracelets or rings since I’d be working with dough, but I found a simple flat white gold chain that would go with the dress nicely. David was waiting for me in front of my room.
“You look breathtaking,” he said and I think I actually blushed.
This was so much harder now that I was feeling the pull of the bond.
“Thanks. You look great,” I replied because it was true.
He was wearing black dress pants and an emerald green cashmere sweater. I wanted to touch his shoulders, just to see what they felt like.
“Should we head down?” he offered his arm and I braced myself for the wonderful sensation.
“Yes,” my bare hand touched his, and we both gasped.
“Regina, please tell me you felt that?” he almost moaned.
“I did,” I whispered.
“Fucking dinner,” her ran his hand through his hair, and I laughed.
“Come on, let’s just walk separately,” I suggested and although he pouted slightly, he knew it was the smart thing to do.
Our guests for the night were David’s brother John and his mate Elizabeth, who I’d already met several times over the years, Beta Helen and her mate, Charlie, who was David’s Gamma, doctor Matthews – or Dylan, I guess, and a couple that I was meeting for the first time tonight: Alicia and her mate Alex.
Alicia was tall for a female, blonde, and had a gruesome scar on her neck that lent her a dangerous aura, whereas her mate was stoic-looking, dark-haired, and perpetually leaning towards her in a semi-protective stance. She smelled like fig leaves and his scent reminded me of resin.
It was also nice to finally put smells to the faces I'd met while wolfsbaned – Helen smelled like chamomile and Charlie like rose hip, whereas Dylan's scent was that of juniper. There was something about Dylan's wolf that felt incongruous with the image of him I had, but my wolf couldn't tell what yet.
I already knew and liked most of these wolves so I didn’t feel nervous. I was especially looking forward to potentially reconnecting with Elizabeth; she had been regal, kind, and welcoming each time I met her. I remembered her telling me that she and John were childhood friends who discovered they were mates when they first shifted. That must have been nice, I thought wistfully and immediately looked at David, whose eyes were already on me.
“Is everything okay, Gina?” he whispered in my ear, and I shivered.
“Yes, just got lost in my thoughts a bit.”
“So, Regina, how are you liking our pack so far?” Elizabeth asked between spoonfuls of the soup. “This is really delicious, by the way, you’ll need to give me the recipe later.”
“Honey, I love you,” John quickly interjected, “but we both know you’ll take that recipe and never make it,” he laughed at her and I could see that this was some sort of long-running joke between them because she theatrically threw her hands up and said, “Just let me believe that one day I will! Shush now, I’m talking to my new friend,” she frowned and scrunched her nose up at him and I could just imagine them as little pups having some version of this exact conversation.
It was heartwarming. “Go ahead, Regina, just ignore him. God knows I do.”
“The pack has been great so far,” I responded with a smile. “I’ve been healing and adjusting in other ways during my first weeks here, so exploring and integrating hasn’t really been a priority. Now that my wolf is back, I have a feeling that will change.”
“Yay for your wolf!” Helen clapped her hands together excitedly.
“Congrats!” Dylan said at the same time and raised his glass to me. “We should schedule a check-up next week, just to be safe. And there’s other things I want to talk to you about.”
“No shop talk,” Helen fixed him with a glare.
“Sorry, hard habit to break,” he smiled sheepishly. “Come to my office tomorrow, Regina?”
“Will do, Doc.”
“Don’t give him a cool nickname, please; he’s insufferable already,” David groaned, and Dylan actually threw a napkin at his King.
“You’re the insufferable one, pup!”
“Are you all from this pack?” I wondered, because they all seemed so close.
“Charlie, Dylan, and Alex aren’t,” Helen clarified.
“Oh. Where are you three from?”
“I’m from the North Carolina pack,” Dylan said and it surprised me.
“I’m from Alaska,” Alex said in a gruff voice.
“And I’m from Nebraska,” Charlie told me, and John added, “He’s our cousin on our mother’s side.”
“I’ve always been fascinated with mating customs of different packs, can you all please tell me about yours?” I looked around the table excitedly.
“You first!” Alicia suggested.
“Well, I’m originally from the Pennsylvania pack, Allegheny. Our males have to gather berries in the forest for their female, and build her a bed with their own two hands.”
“Why the berries, though? I mean, I get why the bed,” Dylan laughed.
“The way I always saw it was, both of those things are very unwolflike. Is that even a word?” I laughed. “But you get my point. We’re hunters, not gatherers, and definitely not carpenters. By doing something that isn’t in your nature, something that doesn’t come easily to you, you demonstrate your commitment, your willingness to step outside of your comfort zone for your mate,” I explained and I could feel David’s burning gaze on me as I spoke.
“On the other hand, the Spruce Mountain pack males would hunt and kill the biggest animal they could find, and the hide would be displayed in the couple’s home afterward. A nice thought, but we’re regularly hunting anyways, you know what I mean?” I looked around the table.
Elizabeth nodded thoughtfully, “I know exactly what you mean. Our pack kind of has two customs, and unlike other packs, ours apply to both the males and the females.”
Interesting.
“After meeting your mate, both the male and the female will always wear something the color of their mate’s eyes, the closer the shade, the better. Some people like experimenting with all the different shades of the color. But like you said about hunting, some wolves will just get earrings with an emerald and wear them all the time, where’s the effort in that?”
“Boooo, you’re nitpicking,” Alicia booed from the other end of the table, and I could see that she, in fact, did have amber earrings on. Alex just smiled at her.
“Ask anyone, Alicia, and everyone will tell you the same thing! The more effort you put into something daily, the more it is appreciated. Now, you’re getting away with it because your mate is from another pack, but I can tell you for a fact that a Rocky Mountain male would have picked a fight with you over this by now.”
“You don’t mind, babe, do you?” Alicia gazed up at Alex, who seemed mesmerized.
“No, babe. As long as you honor the customs of my pack, I’m good.”
“What are those, if I may ask?” I interrupted their almost-kiss.
“The newly mated couple must spend two months in the wilderness in the dead of winter. The first month in their human form, and the second month in their wolf form,” Alex told me.
“Oh wow, that sounds intense.”
“It was. It teaches the couple to be a team, to survive whatever life throws at them, to work together, and it truly forges your relationship in fire,” Alicia explained as her hand automatically went to her scar. Alex nodded.
“So tell me again how picking out an outfit every day is more special than that,” Alicia was now mocking Elizabeth, who rolled her eyes.
I thought both were amazing. One helped shape the foundation of who you were as a couple, and the other served to daily remind you both of your commitment to each other. I looked at David’s piercing blue eyes and thought about picking out different items daily to let him know I had been thinking of him while getting ready....
My eyes widened.
“Wait,” I looked down at my dress, suddenly remembering all the outfits bought for me ever since I’d arrived and how much blue there was among them in all shapes and forms.
I groaned. Meanwhile, David looked very pleased with himself as he crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, watching me connect the dots.
Elizabeth laughed, “I see you’ve pieced some things together, haven’t you?”
“You’re an ass,” I hissed at David but he just winked.
“Wait, what’s the other custom? You said there were two?” I asked Elizabeth, trying to get away from my mate’s charm.
“The other one is that both males and females wait for their mate. I know almost all packs do this to some extent, but here it’s a rule. See, one custom is about showing your mate that you were thinking of them even before meeting them, and the second one is daily showing them you are thinking of them for the rest of your lives together. I think it’s dreamy,” she sighed and put her head on John’s shoulder, who promptly pressed a kiss to it.
“Tell her about your old pack, Dylan,” David prompted.
“Oh wow. The males from my old pack have to challenge their mate’s father or older brother to a fight and defeat them if they want to be seen as worthy.”
“I’m not sure I like that,” I said apologetically, as I didn’t want to insult their customs.
“Me neither. It’s part of why I left,” he smiled but it came off as forced.
Alicia got his attention to ask a follow-up question just as David shifted in his seat, and his thigh was now pressing against mine. All coherent thought fled my head. The atmosphere was lively and friendly; everyone was joking and enjoying their meal, but I could no longer focus on anything else but David's leg against mine. He put a hand on my thigh and started gently tracing something over my paper-thin dress. I had to close my eyes briefly. I felt my core clench at his touch, and I let my legs open slightly. I could feel David tense at the movement.
“Regina,” he whispered so that only I could hear. His hot mouth at my ear made my nipples pebble under the silk. “If you continue like that, everyone at the table will be able to smell you and then I’ll have to kill all my friends.”
I stood up abruptly, my chair almost falling back from the movement.
“I need to go prepare the dessert, please excuse me for a moment.”
I splashed some cold water on my face and neck before I started preparing the cakes.
The process, as always, calmed me. When they were done, I lovingly dusted them with caster sugar and instructed Caroline to bring them out as soon as Patty was done clearing the plates from the main course. I could sense David’s scent nearby, so I headed towards the dining room, but there he was, waiting for me in the hallway, leaning against the wall with one foot up.
I approached him slowly, my breath catching in my throat. All I knew was that I wanted to be closer to him. He pulled me towards him and it felt like I was naked when his hands started gliding all over my body in my thin dress. All of me was pressed against him as he nuzzled my neck while inhaling deeply. I arched my back and moaned before looking up into his eyes and kissing him gently on the lips.
His strong arm went around my waist, completely molding our bodies to each other as he pushed one of his legs in between mine to give me some much-needed friction. I was eagerly grinding on his leg as my hands were tangled in his soft hair, and we were sucking and nipping at each other’s lips. I felt so lost in the kiss that it took me a moment to register poor Patty clearing her throat because she was trying to carry the dirty plates past us into the kitchen.
We broke off the kiss, mumbling apologies to her before looking at each other once more. He looked wild-eyed and breathless, his pants tented and his hair all mussed up from my hands. I could bet that I didn’t look any better.
“You better go ahead,” he said huskily. “I’ll follow as soon as this,” he waved at his groin, “calms itself.”
I snickered and gave him a small peck on the cheek before leaving. Of course, everyone knew what we had been up to – one didn’t need enhanced shifter senses to deduce that. They teased us a bit, and I was mortified but David was a good sport about it and just laughed. All in all, the dinner had been a success and I felt great about the entire evening. I made plans to see Dylan the next day and to meet the females for coffee over the weekend. Everyone raved about the food and I was positive I would be starting a new job soon.
After they all left, David asked me to have tea with him in the library.
“What did you think about my friends?”
“They were all so nice, I really enjoyed spending time with them.”
“I’m glad. They all loved you, you know.”
I looked away shyly.
“I can’t wait to show you my house,” he said out of nowhere.
“I thought this was your house,” I frowned.
“This is the palace. But my house is on the other side of the town, I had it built after I returned from one of my longer campaigns. It sits on a big plot of land and has a huge porch. I can’t wait to show you the kitchen, and all the other rooms,” he winked playfully, but he had this faraway, wistful look that made me wonder whether he was happy in the palace.
We were both quiet for some time. I kept replaying everything that had been said during dinner.
David came up to me, lifted me from the armchair, and sat down before depositing me back onto him as my new armchair. He put his arms around my waist and his chin on my shoulder.
“Ask me,” he said. “Ask me if I waited for you.”
“Did you?” I asked almost inaudibly.
“Yes.”
He was now stroking my thighs again, and again they fell open at his touch. I could feel his heart beating on my back.
“I love you so much, Gina, I cannot wait to give all of myself to you, to share that experience with you. But not yet. I have to tell you something,” he said without stopping his hands from rubbing up and down my thighs. My chest was heaving and my nipples were straining against the dress.
“I have to go to Spruce Mountain for two or three months,” he said into my neck.
I stiffened, but he kept caressing me until I relaxed again.
“I need to deal with distributing the pack money and relocating the pack members, you know already how much needs to be done. If I stay here, the bond will just pull us to each other until we give in, and I would much prefer it if you had some time to talk to a healer, build your body back up, untangle your mind, and then when I come back to you, I hope you’ll be ready for a life with me,” he lifted his chin and turned to look at my face.
“What if I’m not ready?”
“I’ll be making myself ready for a life with you as well. I'll give you whatever you need to thrive,” he whispered in my ear as his hand inched closer to my panties.
“David,” I moaned as I lifted up my dress to give him easier access.
His fingers immediately sank into my wet folds, and we both moaned at the sensation while his other hand covered my breast. It was overwhelming. The attraction and the affection I felt for him threatened to drown me. The tiny jolts of electricity his fingers sent into my core consumed my body, and before I knew it, I was grinding my ass against his front and panting as we both reached our peak while still fully clothed.
“Fuck,” he breathed heavily with his forehead on my shoulder.
“I’m gonna miss you so much, David.”
“Me too, love.”