Second chance love

F o u r

Lacey could feel the wind ruffling the fur on her back, smell the salt air of the sea, and feel the grains of sand falling away beneath her large paws. She could feel Holly at the back her mind and knew that she was feeling just as relaxed and free. Lacey forced herself to run that little bit faster, and soon caught up to Marcus. Just as she was about to tackle Marcus, a chocolate coloured wolf came from the tree line and barrelled into Lacey, who then took out Marcus' legs from underneath them, causing all three wolves to end up in the sea just at the water's edge. The wolves returned to their human form and soon Lisa, Finn and Holly were all laughing and flicking water at each othe like children without a care in the world, almost oblivious to their naked form. 

Suddenly, all three of them froze. The scent of an unknown wolf drifted through the air. Within a split second the wolves were back and heading towards the pack house, as a huge black wolf bounded out to join them. 

"Holly, you come with me to the east. Lisa, Finn, head around to the west. We'll surround this guy before he gets anywhere near our lands." 

The Alpha had given his orders, and the three wolves were following them.

"Lacey, do you smell that?" Holly said to her wolf. 

"I sure do girl. Prepare yourself, this might be the one!" Lacey picked up the pace a notch so that she was just behind the Alpha so that she would be able to intervene if anything went awry. 

***

Holly had been dreaming of this day for months. Once she had her first shift, she was sure she would find her mate. She said as much to Lisa the evening after her birthday, and Lisa laughed. 

"Hols, I'm almost a year older than Finn remember, and Darren hasn't found his mate at all. I know you're desperate to find your mate, but you might want to just lower your hopes just in case."

Holly knew that Lisa was coming from a good place, but she couldn't help the pout that was forming. As the days passed, she grew more and more impatient. She began to accompany Darren to any meetings he might have, claiming that she felt left out when he, Finn and Lisa would go without her. Secretly however, she was just trying to expose herself to as many different people as possible in order to find her mate. 

As more and more time passed, Holly grew more and more disappointed that she was still alone. In a conversation with her mother, the Luna, she asked how she should live her life without a mate. 

"Darling, you have so much more going for you in life. Why don't you focus on being the best version of you for now?" She wrapped her daughter in her arms, kissed her on the top of her head, before taking her hand and leading her to the kitchen downstairs where Beth was taking some chocolate and caramel muffins out of the oven. 

"Oh god, what is that incredible smell?!" Holly audibly moaned at the smell, causing a giggle to erupt from Beth, before she placed a muffin in front of her. 

"It's a bit hot Miss Holly, you might want to wait a moment." Beth said before turning back to the oven, leaving Holly to drool over the smell of the muffins while mulling over her conversation with her mum. 

In the forest now, coming toward the unknown wolf scent, Holly could smell those muffins now, mixed with the smell of a freshwater lake the family had once fished in when Darren and Holly were small, and a hint of something dark and earthy.

"Oh yeah, this is the one!" Lacey said to Holly, as the came to a clearing in the woods. Tall beech trees surrounded the clearing on three sides, while a meadow of bluebells spread across the fourth side into the distance. Normally Holly loved coming to this spot to smell the freshness of the woods combined with the perfume of the bluebells, but she couldn’t detect any of that now. 

No, Holly could only smell the wolf that was stood in the middle of the clearing, looking towards the two wolves coming towards them, and automatically bowing his head in the presence of an Alpha. Holly linked her brother, asking him to back down a second, just as Finn and Lisa's wolves came into view. 

Holly stepped out into the clearing. The dark grey wolf looked at the feet of the stranger coming towards him, and as much as Holly willed him to look up, he didn't. Darren stepped out from behind a tree, dressed in a pair of khaki combat shorts that had been stashed nearby, holding a vest top and gym shorts in his hand for Holly. Lacey took the clothes in her mouth and went behind the tree to shift. As she left, she heard Darrens command. 

"I am Alpha Darren, of the White Tide pack. If you come in peace then we will not hurt you. Reveal your human form and state your business here in my territory."

Holly returned having just pulled the grey vest top over her head. The wolf still hadn't looked up from the floor and Holly prayed that he would shift back rather than attack. One large almost white paw lifted from the ground ever so slightly, before the human forms of Finn and Lisa arrived, dressed and holding a spare pair of shorts for the newcomer. 

Finn threw them towards the wolf, and whatever had been holding him back before left him. The wolf became the form of a tall and tanned human, who had sun-bleached dirty blonde hair that was just short of being in his teal coloured eyes, broad and muscled shoulders that led to arms covered in intricately detailed tattoos that finished at his wrists. By the time Holly's eyes had made it down to his torso, the stranger had put the black cargo shorts on and was stood seemingly studying his own feet. 

After what seemed like an eternity, he finally spoke. 

"Alpha Darren, I have come to beg for refuge."