The True Union

Chapter 8 Sam

Sam woke up feeling extremely groggy. She quickly tried to assess the situation. She was in a rather comfortable bed, and there was water running in the next room from what sounded like a shower. The room she was in was unfamiliar, and she was still in wolf form. She also had mild pain in her back leg. She tried to quietly turn her head to see if she could find any clues to her whereabouts. It definitely looked like a bedroom but had no personal items in it, like she’d seen in hotels. The only other thing she could sense was the most delicious smell all around her.

When she heard the water turn off, she contemplated her choices. She could pretend to be asleep again or let whoever was in there know she was awake and try to get some answers. Deciding she needed more answers and knowing she could take on one wolf, she sat up. At the sound of her movement, the most handsome man she had ever seen ran out of the bathroom in only his boxers. Clearly, he was still trying to get dressed when she moved. And he was flawless, from his short-cut black hair to his eight pack and large defined calves, she couldn’t take her eyes off of him. After looking him up and down, twice, she let her eyes linger on his beautiful dark green eyes. It was as if she could see into his soul in those pools of green.

“Feeling better I see?” he said slowly with a small smirk on his face. Clearly, he did not mind her checking him out. When she didn’t answer, mostly because she couldn’t in wolf form, he smiled and asked if she would shift and showed her where her bag was. Relief filled her at the sight of it. “How about I go and finish getting dressed, and you can shift and get dressed in private. I’ll also take my phone with me into the bathroom and ask my Beta to bring us something to eat.” Without waiting for an answer, he turned towards the small table near the couch, grabbed his phone and went back into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. Sam knew this was her best chance to run, but something told her to stay. Her wolf was captivated by his presence. She doubted her wolf would let her leave if she tried.

Sam made quick work of changing and getting dressed. As soon as she sat back down on the bed, the man returned as if he had been listening for it. She sat with her back to the headboard just staring at him silently. Then he spoke, and her heart stopped, “I don’t know if you remember me introducing myself, but I’m Derrick, Alpha of the Dark Moon pack.” She had tried her best to avoid this pack, but even in her fear she realized her wolf still felt at peace. Her wolf’s lack of response quickly calmed her, but she still needed to be cautious. “Can you tell me your name?” Should she? Could she trust him, everything she had ever heard about Derrick was that he was ruthless and vindictive? It didn’t make sense though, he had saved her, he had even brought her to safety so she could heal. If his pack hadn’t showed up, she would probably be dead.

Instead of answering him, she asked, “How long have I been here? What day is it?” Upon hearing this was two days had passed since she was attacked, she panicked a little again. “Don’t be scared, aside from my pack doctor and Beta no one else has been in here with us. Our doctor said you’re healing nicely. You just needed to rest. Your leg is almost healed completely.” “Why did you help me, and bring me here?” She saw him smile a little before responding, “I’m not sure really, my wolf is very protective of you. Something about you calms him.” This was all wrong. She knew his reputation, but she couldn’t bring herself to fear him. Everything about him made her feel safe. “If you wanted to know my name, why didn’t you look at my ID? I mean you said I’ve been asleep for three days with my bag in this room.” He looked sheepish again, as if it was silly. “I considered it, but I didn’t want to invade your privacy, plus I wanted you to trust me enough to tell me.” Well, that was interesting, she could be anyone, and he hadn’t gone looking for answers to ensure his pack’s safety. It also didn’t go unnoticed that he hadn’t put her in the cells, which was the nicest punishment for trespassing, it was within his right to kill her if she crossed his borders without permission. He really was protecting her.

Before she could decide what to tell him, there was a knock on the door. He immediately went to answer it, and the man she had seen with Derrick the other day walked in pushing a cart loaded down with delicious smelling foods. With a huge smile on his face, he said, “I didn’t know what you liked, so I had the kitchen prepare a couple of different options. There’s steak, chicken, and pork chops, along with a couple kinds of veggies, mac-n-cheese and mashed potatoes with gravy. I also brought a couple of cokes, bottles of water, and a gallon of tea with two cups.” The new man said. Her mouth began to water, and her stomach growled. “Thanks Jared, this is perfect.” Derrick replied, chuckling. “No problem, man, is there anything else you guys need? I can go get something else, it’s no trouble.” This time it was Sam who chuckled, “This is great Jared. Thank you so much, I’m starving. I haven’t eaten since the morning you all found me.” Upon hearing that, Derrick growled softly. “Thank you, Jared, that is all. I’ll text you if I need anything else.” was his response. Sensing the dismissal for what it was, he quickly turned and headed back out, shutting the door behind him.

Derrick pushed the cart next to the bed and began setting the food out in front of her. “Is there something in particular here you wanted? It looks like there’s two of everything.” He said once he’d sat across from her at the foot of the bed. Sam immediately reached for the steak with a huge smile on her face, “Who can resist a good steak?” They sat eating silently, quickly finishing off everything there. She kept catching Derrick glancing up at her smiling. She didn’t know what it was about this man, but she couldn’t keep her eyes off of him either. This was all too strange, even as an Alpha’s daughter she wasn’t used to this level of care in a foreign pack. Sure, she was treated with the utmost hospitality, but this was next level. This was the kind of care the Luna received in their home pack, maybe in an allied pack if she was too injured to be returned home for treatment. Even then though, the Alpha wouldn’t be the one caring for her, just coming in to address her and letting her know the staff would be handling everything she may need. Alphas never personally cared for anyone but their mate and sometimes children. Her dad, for example, was very hands on himself so he would regularly be there to care for her and her siblings if they were hurt. The food was incredible too, his staff really knew what they were doing.

“Are you still hungry, I could ask Jared to bring us something else? Dessert maybe, I could have Jared check and see what the cooks have downstairs.?” “Oh, I would kill for some chocolate, maybe cake or brownie!” Laughing Derrick picked up his phone, “Your wish my command.” Instead of texting him like Derrick had told Jared he would, he called him. “Hey, would you mind checking to see what kind of desserts we have in the kitchen, preferably chocolate. Maybe like cake or brownies.” Sam heard Jared laughing on the other end. “A woman after my own heart.” Derrick growled, causing Jared to laugh harder. “Yeah, it looks like Marie made her double chocolate cake and her red velvet. I can bring up a couple of slices of both.” Sure, enough within a few minutes Sam was eating the most mouthwatering chocolate cake, it was like it just melted in your mouth. “I don’t know who Marie is, but I love her already.” Sam said when they had finished off all the cake. “I could eat that every day and it still wouldn’t be enough. That was incredible.” Derrick chuckled, “Yeah we’re lucky to have such a talented staff working in the kitchen.”