The Beta's Human Mate

Do You Always Wear Black?

  Serenity couldn’t tell why such a petite woman could immediately make her feel so worried. Could she already know that Serenity was a spy? Had she been that transparent? For the first time Serenity felt panicky.  Somehow her pink hair did nothing to make her seem less intimidating when she stood in the center of the room, turned to face Serenity, and crossed her arms over her chest.

  “Ok, what’s up?” Serenity tried to keep her voice light as she closed the door.

  “I want you to tell me right now that you’re not going to hurt Damien.” Melissa narrowed her eyes.

  “What makes you think I would? We’re mates.” Saying the word felt weird, but she couldn’t deny that she already felt more for Damien than any other man she had ever met.

  “Human’s don’t feel the bond as strongly as werewolves do. And you are from the council, not that that’s your fault, I just don’t want to see him broken, and neither does anyone else. He can be a pain at the best of times, and it’s steadily gotten worse. I can tell losing you would break him already. And as his Luna I will take that very seriously.” Her green eyes burned into Serenity’s and suddenly Serenity knew the power of a Luna protecting her pack.

  “He said he’s been waiting for a long time?” She asked quietly.

  “Probably since before he was eighteen, he just never talks about it.” Melissa immediately loosened her arms. Now that her point was made, she started easing back into the Mel from the car ride. “Those in packs usually find their mate at eighteen, but he didn’t. It’s not the worst thing, but after he’s visited just about every pack in America and been just about everywhere and still hadn’t found you…well, he’s just kind of thrown himself into his duties for the past few years. It’s really a conversation you should have with him though. I’m sure you guys have a lot to catch up on.”

  “Yeah, I guess so.” Serenity had never thought about it, but there weren’t even that many rogues that hadn’t found their mate at twenty-five. If they didn’t have a mate, they had a horrible tale of being rejected or their mate died.

  “Well, now that that’s over can I help you unpack? One of the gammas should have moved all Damien's stuff to the side so you’ll have plenty of space.”

  “Like I said, I don’t have much.” Serenity said sheepishly.

  Mel looked her over. “Do you always wear black? I’m not judging, but it kinda seems like your thing.” She frowned when Serenity nodded.

  “It was the style at the council.” She said quietly. She didn’t know why she felt so self-conscious about that. It had never bothered her before, but now she thought maybe Damien would like it if she had something more feminine or modern. Not that I care what he wants. She added to herself.

  “Ok, how about we go shopping tomorrow after breakfast? We can grab some coffee and I’ll show you the village. Its small, but there’s a small town not too far from here if it ever gets too boring. We’ll have to go with the guys though. Sometimes rogues are passing through the town. They usually know not to cause trouble, but Peter doesn’t like people going alone.”

  Serenity gave her genuine consent. It wasn’t until Melissa left, saying that she would have a gamma send up some lunch that Serenity remembered that she was supposed to hate Melissa and everyone in the pack. Damn that wolf is so charming. Less than a day and she was already weak. Vlad would have thrown her on ice already.

  It took her less time to unpack than it did for her to pack. Mel was right, she had a whole half of a giant walk-in-closet to herself. And her clothes took up not even a full corner of it, including shoes. She grimaced and once again felt inadequate to her surroundings.

  Before she could dwell on it someone knocked on the door again. She couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed that Damien hadn’t come back yet. She forgot all about him when a skinny man wheeled in a tray full of food. The smell made her realize she hadn’t eaten since lunch yesterday, and then only a sandwich. The man smiled at her politely and pushed the cart past the bedroom. Serenity just realized that she had completely missed a curtained off room just past a large dresser. When she followed the cart in, she realized it was a study, much like the one Vlad had, with books on every wall, a desk in the center, and a large couch on the back wall.

  What really caught her notice was the Yamaha piano standing in the corner opposite the couch. It was one of the few things that Markus had taught her. Well, not so much taught as she heard him playing once in the library, and when he noticed her starting to come down more and more to listen to him, he would leave beginners guides behind for her. She noticed a light layer of dust on it and wondered if Damien played.

  The skinny man left her alone with the cart. She grabbed a plate of chicken parmesan and sat on the couch. If she put her shoulder against the back the window behind it offered a great view of the forest line. She could see a group of men under some trees, two of them much larger than the others. She assumed they must be Peter and Damien. She watched the group for a moment before returning to her parmesan, which was easily the best she’d ever had. Not that she had much to compare since the council didn’t ever have a long-lasting cook. Sometimes a rogue would come in and make something, but for the most part she had to learn to cook basic things on her own.

  Before she finished, she heard the door open. She hated that her heart jumped a little, knowing it must be Damien. She heard his steps stop for a moment and wondered if she should say something or just wait for him to find her. She decided to wait. In another moment he had thrown back the curtain and almost ran into the room. She wondered why he looked so surprised to see her, his eyes widened, and his mouth opened a little. When their eyes met though he let out a barely audible sigh and let a small grin appear on his face.

  She was confused by his reaction but didn’t mention it. “They brought lunch. Chicken parmesan.”

  “How is it?” He asked, ignoring the cart. He sat on the arm of the couch and threw one arm behind her. He reached down, took the fork from her hand and stole a bite.

  “Hey! You have a whole plate to yourself!” She complained, taking the fork back and using her shoulder to push him away.

  “But yours might be better.” She could almost hear a whine in his voice, but he got up and grabbed his own plate, then joined her on the couch.

  “So how did the meeting go?” She wanted to fill the silence.

  “Like I said, the elders just wanted to know what happened at the council.” He didn’t seem willing to talk about it, which was fine. She was amazed at how quickly he scarfed down his meal. Every now and then still trying to reach over and steal some off hers, even though they had the exact same thing. When she was done, she handed the whole thing to him and he finished that off too.

  “Big appetite huh?” She raised an eyebrow at him. He set the plates on the cart and looked back at her with an odd look in his eye.

  “You have no idea.” His voice lowered till it was almost a growl. She caught his eye and realized it had gone dark again. She thought she understood what that meant now. He really did have a crazy appetite. He took a step back toward her, but instead of trying to hold her or make a move he surprised her by sitting beside her, only putting one arm on the back of the couch and turning so his barrel chest faced her.

  “But for now, I think you have some explaining to do.” His voice was soft but allowed no argument. Serenity knew that tone from her own days in charge of others. He wouldn’t take no for an answer. “What were you doing in the council?”