Falling Rain

18

    By the time we get home it’s early afternoon, I feel exhausted. Helen and the twins want to see me to find out every detail about our trip, so two hours later I am finally free to relax. Annie brings me a cup of tea and sits on the patio with me. 

“I’m so sorry for how things turned out dear”  She reaches out and pats my arm affectionately. 

“It’s okay, it feels off somehow. It’s nobody's fault, maybe too much time has passed and that’s why...” I tell her. 

“I’m here if you need anything, me and Max both. Don’t hesitate to ask if you need us” 

“Thank you Annie.. I really appreciate it” 

“I know it’s not the right time, but when is there ever a good time, really. I want you to feel like we are your family, because to us you are.” She smiles and gets up from her seat and heads back inside. 

I enjoy the breeze and fresh air before I think about going back inside when a woman comes up to me, 

“Hello Luna.. how are you?” She smiles sweetly at me  

“Hello, I’m fine, how are you?” 

“I’m Bonnie, I am doing great. I heard you just got home from visiting your family?” She sits down on a seat a few feet from me. 

“It nice to meet you Bonnie, yes I did just get home this afternoon” I glance at her, she is very pretty, her long blond hair braided over her shoulder, she has light grey eyes and a golden tan. She is not very tall, maybe 5’4” and she is very thin. Her collarbones protrude as she sits back in the chair, I can see her chest bones as she breathes in and out. 

“So how was it? Seeing them after all these years, everything you imagined it would be?” She pushes. 

“It was nice” I lie. 

“I heard you have an older brother, has he found his Mate yet?” 

“Yes, he has, his name is Evan.” 

She narrows her eyes at me and frowns, “Oh.”  

“Have you found your Mate yet?” I ask her  

“No, I’ve been on the hunt though.. I hope I find him soon” She sighs, folding her arms over her chest. 

“How old are you?” 

“Twenty one. You and Mason seem to be moving quickly, you smell like him” She sniffs the air and smiles. It makes a chill run down my spine. 

“I do?” I sniff my shirt self consciously. 

“It’s not a bad thing, females smell like their partners after Mating, it’s like another form of Marking. Letting everyone know who you belong to” 

I knew that it happened but I never thought about it before. 

“Did you need something from me Bonnie?” I ask, feeling like I’ve had enough of this. 

“I’m sorry Luna if I hit a sore spot. Please forgive me” She smirks. 

“I’m tired, excuse me” I say as I wheel away from her. I go inside and see Maximus in the kitchen, he smiles at me and offers me a cookie. 

“Thank you” 

“How are you holding up?” He leans against the counter and takes a bite of his cookie. 

 “I’m alright” I say 

“You don’t need to pretend like you're fine. It’s understandable you’d be upset after what happened” 

“I know, but I’m really okay. My family is here, with Mason. I know it sounds harsh but I don’t know them. They may be my blood but I don’t feel a connection to them... Not yet at least. Maybe that will change in the future, but it was too much” I sigh 

“I can understand that.. Let me know if I can do anything to help you” He pats me on the shoulder and leaves me alone in the kitchen. 

“Are you alright?” Mason asks from the door, making me jump slightly. 

“No… but I will be” He walks over to me slowly, kneeling down in front of me, placing his hands on his knees. 

“I’m here for you, whatever you need… I love you” He whispers as he leans in and kisses me softly. 

“I love you too… I know you’re here for me,  I just need some time is all” I say. He nods in understanding and rests his head on my lap for a moment. 

    A few days go by, I’ve been getting into my physical therapy again, spending hours in the therapy room a day. Mason seems concerned that I’m overdoing it and keeps telling me to take a break. Parker seems to think I am making progress. I am able to get in and out of the bathtub by myself now, although Mason still likes to wash my back for me. 

I just finished my therapy for the day and I stretched my legs out. 

“You did really well today, I’ll see you tomorrow” Parker says before leaving the room. 

I lay on my back and close my eyes, I like to finish with meditation on my own in the dark. I try to connect with Ember every day, so far she has not responded. 

Please Ember.. If you're there.. Please say something. 

I’m here. 

Why have you been avoiding me? I demand 

You weren’t strong enough, I told you this. 

Am I strong enough now? Or are you going to abandon me again? 

I am sorry, we both would have died if I pushed too hard, she sounds irritated.

I needed you. You can’t leave whenever you want to, not anymore. 

You’re right. I have no intention of leaving you again, Rain. 

Good. What do we do now? 

You have to wait a bit longer… the next full moon. 

That’s three weeks away! 

Stop complaining and do as I say! She growls at me, Or I may never come forth again. 

With that I feel her leave my thoughts, receding back into the depths inside me. 

    I scream out with frustration, filling the silence in the room. I can hear footsteps running down the hallway, Mason bursts through the door. 

“What’s wrong?” He comes over to me, sitting beside me. 

“I’m fine” I start to sob. 

“What happened? Talk to me Rain” He begs

“It’s Ember…” I tell him everything she said, how mad I am with her for everything that’s happened. 

He holds me, letting me cry on his chest before he scoops me up and carries me from the room. 

“Let’s go for a run?” He suggests. I nod and he heads outside, shifting into Striker and I climb onto his back. His fur is warm under my fingertips, he purrs as I run my hands through it before he takes off into the woods. I hold on tight to him as he bounds through the forest. Watching as the trees pass by and the birds chirp in the distance. He runs for almost an hour before stopping at a waterfall.  

He stops by the water and I feel the sprinkle of it hit my skin. I climb off him and sit down with my feet in the water. Striker comes up beside me and lays beside me, putting his head on my lap. I stroke his head and watch the waterfall, after a while I curl up beside him on the ground, his body keeping me warm. 

“I love you Striker” I tell him as I close my eyes, drifting off. 

When I wake up I don’t feel Strikers fur but Mason’s rock hard body holding me. 

“Did you have a good nap?” He asks as he places a kiss on my neck, on my Mark. A wave of tingles shoots through my body.

    His hand is on my hip, the other one under my neck supporting my head, I roll over and face him. He smiles at me as I nod, biting my bottom lip. He leans forward and kisses me, soft and slow. His hand slides up my hip, to my jaw as he pulls me closer to him. I feel like it’s been forever since he’s touched me like this. 

    I moan into his mouth, making his hand tighten on my jaw. My fingertips feel up his torso, every muscle under my fingers tenses as I slide over them. He slowly starts to lift my shirt up my stomach, over my head. His lips coming down on my chest, licking his way down to my pant line. He hooks his fingers into the waistband of my leggings and peels them down. 

    After tossing my leggings and panties to the side he kisses each of my hips before lining himself up between my legs. He winks at me before shoving his face into me, I feel his hot breath fill me up as he slides his tongue deep inside me.