The Silent Heart

First Contact

It had been a week since Aidan scented his mate, and since their first meeting at Camlan. Life was far from normal for Aidan and everyone noticed. So, when he was summoned to Cole’s office he was worried it would be a comment on how he had been behaving. Not that it was a problem, just out of the ordinary and he was sure they noticed. He was running in wolf form most nights, just to exhaust himself to sleep. He was as quiet as usual, but he was also staying away from people. The truth was, Cole wasn’t the only one worried and so they had sped up their timeline for investigating. So Aidan grabbed breakfast to go after training, showered and changed, then headed to the office. Everyone was there by the time he got there. Even Beau, who was sitting on the couch next to Kai. A bad sign when those two got along. With a sigh, Aidan sat down in the upholstered chair and then looked around.

“So, what’s going on?” He asked, as if he had no idea what they wanted to talk to him about. He watched them exchange glances and grumbled as he sat back and ran his hands over his face. “I know, I know. I’m trying not to upset anyone, and if you have something you need me to do, I will do it.”

Cole put down his pen and went to say something but Beau raised a hand to let him talk to him first. “Hey, we’re allowed to be worried about you, you know? None of us have found our mate, and honestly, any time I’ve seen someone find their mate, it was a wolf and so pretty well taken care of fast. No way we can understand finding your mate and being kept away. We just want to know how to help.”

Cole gave Beau a nod, being a relatively new alpha and team, there were plenty of things that they were going to be dealing with for the first time. Normally, they took it on together and figured it out. This time it was one of them that they were dealing with and so they were all struggling with how to help. Most of them had asked their families since they were the old alpha team, but, as with the Camlan group, they were stumped. Aidan narrowed his eyes at Beau, unsure if he was being sincere, but he knew better, so he looked at the others and shook his head.

“I know we have to go slow, be patient normally, that isn’t a problem but. . . “ His fingers dug into the chair's arms. “Caliburn is not so patient. And it’s not just that he’s away from his mate, it’s this protective thing. He’s sure that we have to keep her in sight at all times and is not happy with me.” He started speaking and then it all just fell out, he normally would take his time and figure out how to say what he wanted to as well and as simply as possible. This time, he just let it all out.

Cole and Lucas went around the desk and Cole leaned back against it while Lucas sat on the arm of the sofa. Cole folded his arms over his chest as he thought for a moment. Cole was rightly named with his coal-black hair kept just long enough to brush the top of his ears and his almost crystal-clear blue eyes, he could stare right through you. Like all alphas, he was built well, broad-shouldered and muscular, small waist and legs strong enough to kick down a tree. All impossible to hide even in a suit. He stood at six foot six and wasn’t the tallest in the room. That honor went to Beau, who stood at an impressive six foot eleven. Cole, however, had the look. With those clear blue eyes, dark brows, high cheekbones, and angular face, even in repose, he looked intimidating. If you didn’t know him. For those in the room, they knew that he was simply worried, and not in a bad mood, even if it was impossible for him to relax fully.

Cole nodded then and looked at Aidan. “We figured it was related to the mate bond, but your wolf seems to know something we don’t. Have you asked why he’s so worried about her being safe?”

Aidan gave a dry laugh, which made a few brows raise. Realizing that he was truly worrying his friends, he stopped and leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “Actually I have, and honestly, I do not understand his answer.” He looked up at them all. “He said that’s why we’re at the lake.” This time when Cole and Lucas exchanged looks Aidan sat up straight and looked at them both slowly. “What?”

Lucas grumbled then shook his head. “We’ve been looking into Gwen and Camlan and there is no connection we can find. Not that she knows about it anyway. They did kind of recruit her and for no reason, we can see, maybe she’s just that good at her job. Something about Camlan though. Cole and I talked to our dads and they showed us something.” He inclined his head to Cole, who turned and grabbed a file, and handed it to Aidan.

Once Aidan took it and opened it, Cole looked up at the others, addressing the room. “There are packs from when the pack was founded here. They are incomplete because they are old and I guess some things were lost. What we did find was there was a reason this area was chosen, and it had to do with the lake.” Now everyone was looking at Aidan, who looked over the papers and then handed them to the rest to look at.

Beau looked at them and then handed the file to Kai. “So now what? It looks like there’s something we need to know and no idea where to find that information.”

Lucas nodded and his eyes went dark as his jaw ticked, “Which is why we have another meeting at Camlan. Tomorrow. This time, we need to be prepared, have questions written down, and stay on topic. Focus and get answers.” This had obviously been discussed between Beta and Alpha and was much more serious than that first meeting. There were nods of agreement and Aidan seemed to relax slightly. They all felt like they needed answers, and now they were wondering if they were lost with the pack’s history.

***************************************************

For Gwen, it was finally the first day that Marcia hadn’t told her to be on the lookout for flowers. They didn’t come, and Gwen hadn’t expected them to, but Marcia was sure of it and the woman seemed confused at them not arriving. Thankfully, things were back to normal for Gwen and she could relax and enjoy the kids. That weird feeling when she entered the building, that feeling of eyes and breathing down her neck hadn’t come back and so she had shaken it off as just her imagination. After a week, she relaxed again into a routine. She liked routine, she liked knowing what her day would bring, knowing what she had to do when she would be home. There was a kind of comfort in a routine that you just didn’t have when you grew up with no family. Kids coming and going, changing homes, never knowing who was in charge or what the rules were, punished for not knowing. So when she felt like she was being watched again at lunch, she closed her eyes and tried to will the feeling away. It didn’t work so she gave up, shook her head, and got up from the table in the cafe. Cleaning up after herself, she turned to head back to work and froze.

There were a group of men all staring at her. While they were all wearing suits, not one of them looked like they belonged in this building. They were too tall, too broad, too muscular, and too gorgeous. Wincing at that thought, she almost apologized in her mind for judging, but the truth was, no accountant or marketing executive looked like that. They just didn’t! They all stared but it was the green eyes that caught her attention. Green like Lucy’s had been. Hers had been full of mischief and twinkled like lights were always dancing. They were vibrant and full of energy. His were like that, but they felt calmer somehow. Bright but not racing with thoughts and plans that would get you in trouble. They were tuned to her as if they had been searching for her. Realizing how long she had been staring back, she quickly turned and grabbed her purse, tucking a stray piece of hair back and ducking her head. She knew she had flushed pink and knew that thinking about how embarrassed she was would only make it worse.

Aidan was determined not to cause a scene. They were there for the meeting. He might not even see her when they came in. Cole and Lucas had both told him they were arriving early so that he could try and talk to her. Perhaps it would put his wolf, Caliburn, at ease. Maybe they would even get some more information about her or the company. More importantly, taking it slow meant actually taking a step, even a small one. He ignored how tuned into him they all were when they walked into the building. He had planned on keeping his head down and just walking to the elevators, but as soon as they entered he could smell her. She smelled of the dew at dawn on the lake and of crisp green apples. He stopped without thinking and turned to look at the cafe and spotted her immediately. Even from the back, he knew it was her and while he did not go to interrupt her, he didn’t move to walk away either.

He recognized that his friends had all come to stand around him and were most likely also looking her way, but it felt almost hazy, dreamlike. The only thing that felt and looked real was her. Everything else around him was muted. When she finally stood up and turned, he saw her surprise and almost kicked himself for probably scaring her. They looked like some sort of human trafficking group stalking her. Then he caught her eyes and he could only smile. She had looked at them all, but once she saw him, she stopped. He was sure that meant she felt the bond as well. They had been told humans would feel it, just differently and not as intensely as they did. He had no idea how long they had just stared at each other, but Caliburn was purring and rolling around in his head. She suddenly ducked her head and began walking back to the daycare. His smile faded but he heard a chuckle behind him and knew it was Cole. He tapped Aidan on the shoulder.

“Go talk to her, we have time.” The smile in Cole’s voice was obvious and normally that would deter him.

He hated when they tried to get him to go out with a girl, even just for fun. This time, he was already walking away before Cole could even finish the sentence. He tried not to run, no reason to freak her out, but was able to catch up and be in front of her before she got back to work. She stopped quickly and looked up at him. They were barely a foot apart and he took it as a good sign that she didn’t step back. With an unsure smile, he tried to sign to her. *hope you out with me?*

Gwen didn’t stop because she saw him in front of her, she felt him. Like a wall of heat and so stopped and looked up, though she already knew it was him. The one with those green eyes. She should have stepped back but there was something comforting in standing so close that she could feel that heat. Like being in front of a fireplace on a cold morning. She hadn’t felt cold before, but standing this close, she wondered how she didn’t feel cold all the time without him around. She was surprised when he tried to sign to her and tried to stop herself from smiling but was unable to. He obviously had used some app or something that never taught how sign language grammar worked. Or that some words were different in different connotations. She wasn’t laughing at him, it was just cute, like when the kids first learned words. She looked up at him and signed slowly, assuming he wasn’t up to speed on reading just yet. *Are you asking me out? You can speak, I can hear you.*

She smiled. Even without knowing why, he felt his chest tighten to see her smile, it was honest, it reached her eyes and they lightened to the blue of a deep lake. They were just the color of Silver Lake on a clear summer morning. She signed back and his brow furrowed. He hadn’t thought about being able to read what people signed. He kept staring at her hands as if the answers would float to him and she tried again, slower. This time he got it and he almost groaned at how stupid he was. She could hear him, they had told him that. “I’m sorry, I - I forgot. Um, I was wondering if you would like to go out sometime. Like a date? With me?”

Gwen’s smile faltered, this is where it got awkward, and not just for him. She had to admit that a few men here at the company had asked her out. They had been way too smooth and way too sure of themselves for her comfort and Mr. Green Eyes didn’t seem like that at all. Nervously, she didn’t exactly turn him down, but didn’t accept either. *I don’t drink or go to clubs. I’m sorry.* Before she could go to step past him and leave all that glorious warmth behind, he shook his head and held up his hands.

“Oh, no, I didn’t mean like that. Honestly, I don’t drink often and I’m not much of a dancer. I thought, a quiet dinner at a small place in town? It’s not fancy, but it’s a nice place kind of hidden away.” It was the truth, he didn’t really drink, human alcohol wasn’t enough for them to even get a buzz going, and as for dancing, he had been dodging that since high school when he had trodden all over Cole’s mother’s feet when she tried to teach them. That embarrassment was enough to last a lifetime. He saw her reconsider and didn’t realize he was holding his breath hoping she would give him a chance. Then her brow furrowed again and she looked up at him. *I don’t even know your name. Do you know mine?*

He let out a breath and smiled, “I’m Aidan. And yeah, your name is Gwen? My friend he - “ He had thrust a thumb in the direction of his friends and then stopped. He almost face-palmed right then. Did he just admit that he had sent his friend to go find out about her? No wonder he didn’t want to date, he was horrible at it! He was surprised when she started laughing and shook her head.

*Marcia told me, let me guess. That one, she said he was charming and she wished she was ten years younger.* She pointed straight at Kai and Aidan frowned. Did she think he was charming? While Aidan was making himself look like an i***t?? Just what he needed. Then he felt a tap on his arm and tingles spread up to his shoulder and he almost gasped. Turning back, she was looking at her fingers and shook them off. She felt something too. He felt relieved that she had. Then she shook her head. *He has that kind of smile. Always hitting on girls* she signed. His face must have given away his thoughts on Kai. Well, at least she knew what he was like. Hopefully, that meant she didn’t think he was cute. Or charming. He’d have to ask Kai exactly what he had said to Marcia.

“Ah, yeah that’s Kai. He’s kind of a ladies' man I guess.” He turned back to her. “Does that mean yes? You’ll let me take you to dinner?” He didn’t mean to sound so hopeful but he was and when she tugged at her bottom lip with her teeth to think about it, he had to stop himself from growling right at her. The way her bottom lip just got nice and pink when she bit it. He wondered if she would turn pink everywhere his teeth went. He had to stop that thought, they were a long way off from actually mating. Human, he kept reminding himself, human. He watched as she opened her purse and took out a card and then gave it to him. Then she nodded.

*I have to get back to work, but I’m always off at 6:30. My number. Text.* she smiled and then finally stepped out of his way and back to the daycare. She put her hands to her face the minute she got to the back and put her purse down on the table. They felt warm to the touch, as if she really had been standing in front of a fireplace. Then she put her hands over her heart and realized it was beating a mile a minute. Sitting down hard on the chair in front of the table they used for meetings and paperwork, she let out a long slow breath. Did she really just agree to a date? With a man she just met? Why had she been hoping that he would ask her out, and been so ready to say yes?

Aidan watched her leave and stared at the daycare door where she had disappeared. He was wearing the goofiest grin and still had her card in his hand. This time he didn’t even notice when the others came over to him. Beau patted his shoulder and Kai threw an arm over his shoulder. “I knew you could do it. I mean, once I softened them up.” Aidan shrugged his arm off his shoulder and growled low.

Cole laughed and shook his head. “Okay, good, one mission down, one to go. Now let’s get to that meeting?” As they all agreed and headed to the elevators, Cole hung back with Aidan and nodded to Lucas to go ahead. “So, how does Caliburn feel now? More settled?”

Aidan nodded and looked back towards the daycare again. “He chilled out as soon as he saw her. Let’s just hope he doesn’t get upset that we aren’t bringing her home tonight.”

Cole smiled, “It’s a step, remind him that she’s human and if he does it on her timeline it will go faster for her to accept him than just throwing her over your shoulder and taking off with her.”

Aidan smirked and couldn't help but picture that in his head. "Don't give us any ideas."