Her True Mate

Chapter 4 - History

*4 Years Earlier*

Kaitlin's POV

The smell of breakfast rouses me from a strange dream of running in the forest on four legs rather than two. I stretch out my body, keeping my eyes closed, and love the feeling of the long stretch, but I am unwilling to wake fully.

Once my brain clears of the drowsy state and starts to process the smell of bacon, I smile as my stomach grumbles loudly. I reluctantly open my eyes. The sun isn’t peeking through my window yet, and I roll over and grab my watch—6:15 AM.

Damn, it’s early, but I anxiously sit up. Today is my seventeenth birthday!!

‘Hello?’ I think in my head, praying to Selene that I am finally blessed with my wolf.

‘Ugh, Kaitlin! Why are you up sooooooo early? You NEVER wake up early, and I am not a morning wolf either.’

Holy shït. I jump off the bed and fly towards a mirror. I stare at my unchanged reflection and pout slightly.

‘Shït, you’re real!’ I say back. I hear a wonderfully fantastic chuckle deep in my mind and immediately know it’s my wolf!

‘Yes, Kaitlin, I am real. My name is Annika, your new best friend you can’t get rid of!’ She adds the last bit with as much sarcasm as she can muster, and I grin widely at my reflection. My eyes flash from their startling blue to near black as I feel Annika more forward to peer out of my eyes.

Ah! I scream internally.

‘I am so freaking excited to meet you! When do we get to shift? Will we find our mate today?’ I fire off my questions so fast that they sound jumbled and slightly incoherent.

‘Easy, please! As I stated, you are NEVER up this early, and I was unprepared for it! You’re making my thoughts hurt.’ She chuckles, and I can distinctly picture her attempting to rub her temples very humanly. After a moment, she looked back at me through my reflection.

‘We will shift this evening. Not many are blessed to turn seventeen and shift for the first time on a blessed full moon; our ceremony will be different from most wolves.’

I honestly did not even think about that! I have been so busy studying for finals that it has not even crossed my mind.

‘Really?? What is so special about it, Annika? A lot of wolves shift on full moons.’

‘We are blessed by Selene, Kaitlin. I can not tell you much now, but the moon goddess has great plans for us. We are only going to learn what that is after a test. That is all the goddess will let me say for now.’

A test? Strange. I shrug off my annoyed feeling. I can hear my parents downstairs, wondering if they should wake me up or let me keep sleeping.

‘Okay, Annika!’ I say, letting it go for now. Who am I to question the moon goddess? ‘I am so happy to have you in my life now!’

‘I have always been here, silly – we just get to be one now.’ She states, curling up in my mind and yawning.

I turn away from the mirror and stride into the bathroom to get ready for the day. After my shower, I put on my favorite pair of jeans, loose-fitting T-shirt, and Converse and head to our common area for breakfast. My parents, Mark and Sara, jump up when they see me and shout, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!”

My smile is so big that my cheeks burn.

“Thank you!” I hug everyone and gather at our small round kitchen table. My favorite breakfast skillet is in the middle, overflowing with all the fixings for burritos, tacos, or plain old toast. I grin and dig in. The sound of all of eating and my brother and father reviewing pack details is so normal that I forget entirely about telling everyone about Annika.

“So, Hunny, have you met your wolf?” my mother asks, smiling and looking curiously at me. “I would have bet money that would have been the first thing out of your mouth this morning.”

“Yes!” I practically shouted, embarrassed that I had forgotten about her. “Her name is Annika, and she’s very spunky! I’m sorry I saw the food, and I have been starving since I woke this morning.” I feel her prickle in delight at my assessment of her.

“That’s a beautiful name, darling, for a beautiful girl like you! That’s normal, too, by the way. Now that you have your wolf, you will eat a ton. After I got Axel, I was ravenous for weeks.” Mark says to me, and I can’t help but grin back at him.

My father is quiet, he has barely looked at me this morning, but he finally speaks up, “Honey, I don’t mean to be a party pooper, but today is a significant day in your life. Today is when you may stop being daddy’s little girl and become a woman and partner to your mate.” His voice cracks when he talks, and Annika starts to whimper in my mind, already wanting to soothe him. I feel tears gathering in my eyes.

“However, I just want you to know how proud I am of you. I know you will be a wonderful mate, and should you be mated to an Alpha, a wonderful Luna.” He chokes out that last part as tears fall, and I jump from my seat and run to him. He scoops me up, and I whisper, “I will always be your little girl. That will never change.” And squeeze him tight.

I hear my mom sob, and he puts me down to comfort her. I return to my seat, and we finish breakfast much more animatedly after expressing our emotions about what today could bring. Soon, the excitement was too much, and I needed some space. My body feels trapped inside, and I start to get out of my seat.

I tell my family I’m going to the forest for a bit. They all smile knowingly at me. They know I have a favorite place to be and leave me to it.

I stroll to my clearing, nestled into the mountains, lost in thought. Once I get there, I sigh. It’s stunning, no matter how many times I see it. There is a small lake that I love to be near on the far side of the clearing that ends in a waterfall over some rocky cliffs. I must be careful because I am so close to the territory border here, and if I am not careful, I could be caught unaware by rogues. I am lost in thought, listening to the gentle sound of the waterfall, when the smell of fresh-cut grass immediately makes me freeze.

‘Mate,’ Annika whispers. Her tone seems off, but the word sends excitement shooting through me, and I miss its hesitancy.

I look around me, and suddenly, across the clearing, I see him standing in a tall patch of trees. He is tall and lean and in shock at seeing me. My heart melts, and I can’t help but smile.

From where I stand, I can see his muscles flexing, but they are not too bulky—just right. I look up and down his frame, and he’s filled out in all the right places. His light brown hair glints in the sunlight, and his dark hazel eyes are stunning. My breath catches in my throat.

He quickly approaches me, and I am frozen as he’s on the opposite side of our territory line. Oh no.

“Hello, gorgeous.” His voice is deep and accented, sending my heart into a crazy rhythm. “What’s your name?”

As I stare into those dark eyes, my brain has forgotten how to function, and I practically choke out my name, “Ka-Kait-Kaitlin!”

“Hello, Kaitlin. I am Dakota Bane, Beta of the Blue Lake Pack.” I can see the green flecks dance in his eyes as he smiles at me, making me swoon.

“Hello,” my breathy voice says as I finally remember to speak.

“I am Kaitlin Hamil, daughter of the Alpha of the Silver Lake Pack.” I smile up at my mate.

He smiles, runs the back of his finger down my face, and gently places it under my chin with his thumb.

“Why, gorgeous, are you all alone out here?” His eyes go dark momentarily, making me want to step back, but I hold my ground. Annika still hasn’t spoken a word, and I frown.

“I–uh, I needed space to think for a while. I come here often. It’s on the edge of my pack territory,” I say back to him. If anything, he is nowhere near his. Blue Lake is one of our closest allies deep in the Canadian wilderness.

“Why are you here?” I ask, suddenly aware that his finger has resumed exploring, sending sparks exploding everywhere it goes on my arm.

“I came because I have a meeting with your father.” He smirked, knowing exactly what he was doing to me.

“Oh.” My brain is all fuzzy, and I am still frozen in my spot.

“I can take you to him if you’d like.” I managed to get out. He looks at me with a twinkle in his eye.

“In a minute, gorgeous.”

His lips find mine, and he gives me a sweet, gentle kiss. My arms shoot around his neck to keep him close to me, and he pulls my body closer to his, deepening our kiss. I explore every inch of his mouth, our tongues fighting for dominance. I have never kissed anyone before, and I cannot believe what I am doing now! I gently pull back, needing a breath to steady my racing heart.

I can feel that I’m flushed and panting with a need deep in my gut and look down, not entirely understanding how I got so high up that I was face to face with my mate and noticed my legs are wrapped around his middle. I shrieked and tried to get out of his hold.

He chuckles at me, and I unlatch myself from him; he slowly puts me down but doesn’t release me from his body just yet.

“You smell amazing, gorgeous. Taste amazing, too.”

I smile. “So do you. Like freshly cut grass in the spring.” I blush at my admittance, and he groans as a gentle wind blows past me and towards him. He closes his eyes and tries to control his breathing.

“Mmm, you smell like honey and cinnamon, gorgeous.” He pulls me in again for another kiss without opening his eyes, holding me tightly. He finally pulls away, looking at me and saying, “Shall we go see your Father then?”