Chapter 9
“He's not your prince charming if he doesn't make sure you know that you're his princess.” ― Demi Lovato
Rose's POV
My breath caught in my throat. His abs were on full display, and the sight of him—broad shoulders, toned muscles—sent a jolt through my body.
Quickly, I dropped my gaze to the floor, willing myself not to stare.
“Be nice, Aiden,” Tony chided from behind me. “Rosie usually has dinner with us after Mom’s training sessions.”
“No, it’s okay,” I said hurriedly. “I know you guys probably want some family time—”
“What training sessions?” Aiden interrupted, his voice sharp.
I swallowed hard as he descended the stairs, stopping directly in front of me. I could feel the heat radiating off his skin. His scent wrapped around me, intoxicating me and setting my nerves abuzz.
I kept my eyes trained on the floor, afraid of what I might do if I looked up. My hands itched to reach out, to trace the ridges of his muscles.
“The sessions all retired lunas must give to the future luna,” Josie answered smoothly.
Aiden scoffed. “Then shouldn’t you be giving those lessons to Lexia? She’s the future luna. Not her.”
I bit the inside of my cheek. Hard.
Had Josie never explained the rules of our pack to him? He needed to understand that while he could step down as alpha, I would always be the luna.
“Aiden,” Josie sighed, rubbing her temples. “We’ll talk about this later.”
Aiden shrugged, his gaze flicking back to me. I kept my focus firmly on the floor.
“You can stay if you want,” he said offhandedly. “I was just surprised to see you.”
Right.
I knew better than to read into that. The truth was, my presence put him on edge. But if I was a guest in his home, he couldn’t exactly ask me to leave.
Still, I couldn’t bring myself to say anything. Instead, I simply walked into the dining room.
“Get a shirt on Aiden before you join us for dinner,” Josie called out.
I heard Aiden grumbling about house rules but he begrudgingly left to follow his mother’s instructions. I held back a giggle. He was the highest ranking member of this pack and even he had to listen to his mother. It was…cute.
Tanya burst into the room like a hurricane, throwing herself at me.
“Rosie! Pretty Rosie!” she squealed, yanking at the curls I had tied back in a ponytail.
“You’re very pretty too, Tanya,” I said fondly, settling her into the seat next to mine. “Did you have a good day today?”
She nodded enthusiastically. Winter break had just ended, and she was back in school.
“My teacher taught me how to add numbers today!” she declared proudly. “She said I was the only one who could understand addition.” Her little face was scrunched up in determination as she pronounced "addition" as adashiooonnn.
“Oh, really?” I said, feigning excitement.
“Uh-huh! Bet you don’t know five plus one?” she challenged, her eyes twinkling.
“No, I don’t think I do,” I said good-naturedly.
Tony coughed into his glass of water, clearly amused, but I shot him a look, silently warning him not to ruin Tanya’s fun.
“Six!” she declared triumphantly.
“Good job!” I said, giving her a high-five.
By then, the rest of the boys had filed into the dining room, including Aiden, and Dylan scoffed at Tanya.
“That’s easy, Tanya. Rose, I bet you don’t know how to multiply big numbers like…like…three hundred and sixty-one times thirty-three!” Dylan challenged, crossing his arms.
Tony opened his mouth again, but I sent him another warning glare. This time, Aiden caught the exchange, his eyes flickering between us in confusion. There was something in his expression—something prickling beneath the surface—as if my easy connection with his family unsettled him.
“Why don’t you tell us?” I prompted Dylan.
He took a minute, counting on his fingers before finally announcing, “Eleven-thousand-nine-hundred and thirteen.”
“Great job, Dylan,” I praised. “You guys are so smart!”
Aiden scoffed. “Rose is too busy learning how to be the next luna. She can’t be bothered to really learn anything that has to do with math.”
I felt my face heat up.
“Now, Aiden, I’ll have you know Rose is up for a scholarship!” Josie interrupted sharply. “Don’t you go belittling her. She’s got more substance and knowledge than that Lexia of yours. She couldn’t—”
“Lexia is going to become a lawyer,” Aiden pointed out, taking a sip of water. “She’s studying for the LSAT. Now that’s a professional smart woman. She wants to be independent and focus on her career.”
I took a slow breath, keeping my hands folded in my lap.
“Just because a woman chooses to focus on her home instead of a career doesn’t make her any less,” I said quietly but firmly.
“Every woman contributes in her own way, whether through her family or her profession. And not that it matters, but I do want a career, Alpha. I’m trying to get into med school and am training to be a physician's assistant for our pack. My academic advisor says I have a fair chance of becoming a doctor too if I keep my grades up. Dr. Danvers could retire, and I’d take over as the pack doctor.
But even if I didn’t want that, it wouldn’t make me or anyone else lesser than Lexia. ”
For a moment, silence filled the room. Then Tony clapped, followed by Dylan and Kyle. Even Bradley, oblivious to the conversation, clapped with a mouthful of garlic bread. Tanya beamed at me, as if I had just revealed the secrets of the universe.
“Thank you, Rose, for putting that point across,” Josie said warmly. “It means a lot to me that my daughter was able to hear such an inspiring speech.”
I smiled at her just as Lorraine walked in, carrying a steaming pot of spaghetti. The rest of dinner passed with Aiden brooding in silence while everyone else exchanged stories.
I could see resentment building in his stormy eyes. But why should I feel guilty about enjoying time with his family? So I steadily did my best to ignore him, exchanging jokes with the Sinclair siblings. Let him glower.
The conversation slowly shifted to the circus which was coming to town.
“What do you think, Aiden?” Kyle queried, turning to his older brother who had been alternating between glaring at me and his plate of pasta.
“Think about what?” Aiden asked, tearing his gaze from me and looking at Kyle.
Had he really not been paying attention to the entire conversation?
“About us going to the circus! It’s coming next month, and we could all go together as a family!” Kyle pleaded.
Aiden’s gaze flickered to Tanya, Kyle, and Dylan, who was pretending to be uninterested but failing miserably. Even Brad had paused mid-spaghetti slurp, his eyes hopeful.
Leaning back in his chair, Aiden finally spoke. “I don’t mind. We could go. It’ll be a nice family affair.”
He deliberately locked eyes with me, emphasizing family—a pointed reminder that I wasn’t part of it. I looked down at my lap. Josie seemed like she wanted to say something but held back.
“It’ll be a good opportunity for you to bond with Lexia—”
A collective groan rang out.
“Oh, come on, guys!” Aiden exclaimed.
“She’s not a bad person,” Tony spoke up.
Aiden gave him a grateful look.
“She’s just…reserved,” Tony continued. “Lexia is an only child, so she isn’t used to all the chaos.”
“But Rose is also an only child, and she fits right in!” Tanya huffed.
Not for the first time, I realized children were more perceptive than adults.
“Tanya,” I said softly. “No two people are alike, sweetie. Just because someone is different doesn’t make them bad.”
Josie smiled. “Thank you for such insightful advice, Rose.”
After dinner, as I walked outside, I heard a soft rustling behind me. Turning, I saw a massive silvery-gray wolf standing in the driveway. My breath hitched.
Aiden.
I didn’t know how I knew—it was instinct.
Slowly, he padded toward me. He was massive in his werewolf form, bigger than the average wolf.
And his entire body rippled with unconcealed power and feral strength.
But he wouldn’t hurt me. Tentatively, I reached out, scratching behind his ears.
His fur was softer than I expected, and when he let out an appreciative rumble, I smiled.
Running my hand along his flank, I sighed in contentment. Then he nuzzled against me.
I laughed as he licked my face.
“I wish you were this nice in your human form,” I murmured absent-mindedly.
He let out a soft whine, pressing closer.
I hesitated, then whispered, “I think your wolf is beautiful, but your human form is drop-dead hot.”
It took me a moment to recall that I was spilling my guts to Aiden. He might be in his wolf form, but he could still understand every word I spoke.
Shit.
And then I heard bones cracking and relocating themselves.
The wolf before me began to shift into the man.
Surprised, I took a step back and lost my footing.
Bracing myself for the fall, I closed my eyes and expected my butt to hit the gravelly driveway.
But strong arms came around my waist to steady me and my own hands instinctively scrambled for purchase.
I found myself clutching the very human shoulders of Aiden.
The very human bare shoulder. His arms wrapped around me, and my body was pressed flushed against his completely naked one.
There were no sparks I had become accustomed to when it came to him.
There were fireworks. Explosions of pleasure shooting up and down my spine.
I had to fight the urge to press myself closer to him.
My eyes flew open to meet his stormy blues.
“You’re naked!” I exclaimed in abject horror, pulling my hands away from him. I stepped away, denying my body the thrill that always erupted from skin-to-skin contact.
“Well, have a look. Do you still think I’m drop dead hot?” Aiden grinned down at me, his body only a hairbreadth from mine. One arm still snaked around my waist.