The Golden One

Just A Stone Cold b***h

After undressing behind a tree and stashing my clothes ready for my return, I make my way over to the gathering of Alpha wolves. Not surprisingly, I stand taller than all of them. The closest to my size is Alpha Damien, and even then he's nothing impressive to me. Nothing I or Michael couldn't handle.

Oh Michael.

The thought of him brings a tear to my eye, but I shake my head in the hopes of shaking away the thoughts of him. Now that we've confirmed there is something between Christopher and I, it would be foolish to ignore it. Everyone deserves a mate, that's why the Moon Goddess pairs every wolf. There's a reason Christopher and I are bonded.

I snap my mind back to the here and now. This hunt is for Alphas only and it's really just a show of your abilities as a wolf. Each Alpha wants to brag that they are the best hunter, the fastest or the strongest. I don't need to brag, I already know I'm the fastest, strongest and most agile. I just want to run free and blow off some steam. It's been too long since I ran as my wolf, she was itching to be free. That's probably the cause of her bitchy comment in the shower earlier.

Damn right it was, keeping me locked up for weeks. And I'm the b***h?

I roll my eyes. Always so cheeky. But she has control now, it's up to her to show these macho men what she can do.

Carl howls to signal the start of the hunt, and everyone takes off in the same direction. I follow, not pushing myself to keep pace but easily keeping up anyway. I suppose it's better to warm up since it's been a while, it would be embarrassing to strain something on our first shift together.

Once warmed, my pace increases. I easily pass by the other Alphas until I am behind Alpha Damien. There's no denying he is fast, but I'm faster. A little more effort sees me gaining easily on his tail. I run and run, feeling the cool evening air flow through my fur. I am long past everyone now but I don't care, I feel free.

I come to a clearing and slow my pace, coming to a stop in the opening. I sit and stare up at the moon, my breath visible in the cold night air. Other wolves might be tired out by that run, but not me. It's a walk in the park for me.

I can hear the rest of the Alphas off to my right, they must have found something to kill and I'm happy to leave them to it. I'm not interested in killing for sport, I don't need to prove my place in the food chain. 

I sigh, thinking back to the past 24 hours. What a f*****g rollercoaster.

I let my mind ponder over what I should do next. I suppose I should spend time with Christopher. It is the reason Michael left so easily, he clearly wanted me to have space to explore the bond and I assume he also didn't want to watch it happen in front of him.

I'm not sure how long I've been sitting here but it feels like a while. As my mind continues to process today's events, the snap of a branch behind me brings me back to the moment. I jump up and spin to where the sound came from. A low growl falls from my mouth and my teeth are exposed. I dare someone to jump me now with all this hurt inside me.

A putrid smell fills my nose and I almost gag as a dishevelled wolf steps from the tree line. Their eyes are dark, their fur is patchy and falling off where they stand and that smell, it's disgusting. It smells worse than death. Although they have stepped from the tree line they appear to come in peace. Their head is bowed and they whine with every step they take. They appear to want my help.

I hear a howl from my right and my head turns to listen to Carl signal the end of the hunt. When I turn back, the dishevelled wolf is gone although the smell still lingers. It looked sick, but wolves don't really get unwell. With the smell still stuck in my nose, I turn and make my way back to the pack house.

Although I had ran further, I still made it back before everyone else. They are so slow. I chuckle to myself:

Big, strong , slow as f**k men, hah!

I quickly change into my stashed clothing- basic denim shorts and a T-shirt- and head up to the house. I am in no mood to chit chat with the other Alphas about who did the best on the hunt. I don't give a f**k.

It's nearly dinner time and I make my way to the kitchen to find lots of pack members busying away making dinner for everyone. I offer my help and they all look slightly confused. I love cooking and often help out in the kitchen back home. It calms me.

An older woman offers me a wooden spoon and asks me to stir. I happily oblige and busy myself with the rhythmic stirring of the delicious smelling pasta sauce.

His smell fills the room even above all of the food smells. I wonder if he smells this good to everyone or if it is just our bond. I turn my head to see Christopher leaning against the kitchen counter, arms crossed with a cute little smile on his face; I've caught him staring at my ass in my little shorts.

Note to self, wear more clothes when in this household dummy!

When our eyes meet he blushes, knowing I've caught him out. I chuckle at his embarrassment and gesture with my head for him to come over. He shuffles over, still embarrassed, and stands next to me, resting a hand on my waist.

Less than 12 hours ago I was uneasy at his touch but now I craved it. The change in how I felt towards him alarmed me but only confirmed that this was in fact a mate bond. Wolves often mated within 48 hours of finding each other, the pull was so strong.

I grimace into the large pot of pasta sauce, remembering that our situation is different and that it is my fault. He notices my change in demeanour and spins me to face him. I pull my head up to create eye contact between us and for a moment we just stare, our eyes locked on each other.

"Michael's gone." I say, my voice slightly shaking as I speak.

"I noticed. Are you ok?" He seems genuinely concerned and it warms my heart. Who would have thought the feral beast I met yesterday would be so soft and caring now.

"Not really. But I will be." I try to put on a strong voice and he smiles down at me. My heart flutters, damn he is gorgeous.

"We decided I should give this a shot. It's only fair to you and I that we explore this connection." The smile finds its way up to his eyes as they seem to glow brighter at the thought of us being together.

"I want to go slow. And I want you to know although the bond is growing, it's still not as strong as I'd expected it to be." He nods at me, his smile not dropping as he seems happy that I'm just willing to give us a shot.

"Meila, would you like to go on a date with me?" His voice is velvety smooth and my breath hitches as he nibbles at his lip, nervously waiting for my response.

"Yes, I would." He almost jumps at my response, his smile the widest I'd seen it. I giggle at him as he looks like a kid in a candy store.

The older woman, who had given me the spoon, tuts at me. She brushes me out the way and causes me to bump into Christopher's strong body. I am burning the sauce from lack of stirring. I spin around to apologise to her and Christopher catches me in his arms and holds me from behind, it feels so natural to be in his arms. The older woman continues to tut at me and we laugh together at her annoyance.

Still holding me, he guides me to the large dinner table and pulls out a chair for me next to his. Ushering me to sit down, he pushes the chair in after me.

The other Alphas enter the room laughing and joking about the events of the hunt and everyone takes a place at the table. Everyone sits and eats dinner, casually chatting amongst one another. I keep myself to the people around me; Christopher, Carl and Alpha Caesar mostly. I'm comfortable in their presence, they don't quiz me or judge me and we just enjoy normal conversation. I notice Carl and Christopher mind linking then Christopher leans over to me and whispers in my ear.

"Carl wants to talk to us after dinner." I barely listen to him, distracted by his warm breath washing over my jaw and neck. He pulls back and chuckles at me and I blush as he's realised his effect on me. Maybe the bond is stronger than I care to admit.

After dinner everyone disperses and I follow Christopher to Carl's study. We enter and sit down in front of his large desk. He offers us a scotch and we both nod, taking the first sip of our drinks before Carl speaks.

"I have been speaking with Caesar. He thinks he knows why the bond is weaker on Meila's end." His voice trails off. Maybe it's bad news. Maybe I'm broken. He coughs before he speaks and I'm tense waiting for the explanation.

"He believes that because Meila... gave her heart to another... the bond is weaker on her side. Although she has not been marked, she has been sleeping with him and he thinks she's has essentially given a piece of her soul to him; effectively starting the bonding process." My head had already dropped at the words gave her heart to another. Nope, not broken. Just a stone cold b***h. I look out of the corner of my eye to look at Christopher's response, he is calmly sipping on his scotch.

"Michael and I— we um— we decided to break up." I stutter out, Carl raises his eyebrows as he sips his drink.

"Do you feel different around Christopher?" He speaks softly, knowing I am hurting. Christopher turns to face me now too.

"Uh— Well— it's been a steady increase since we met but tonight... yes, it feels different." They both smile and I blush.

"Well I just wanted to let you know what I had learned. Maybe this is you back on track for the mate bond now that, uh, Michael has left."

 I sigh. It’s been a very long time since I was without Michael. He's my Beta, we usually do everything together. I gulp the last of my scotch and let it's smoky taste burn down my throat.

"I'm going to head to bed, it's been a long day." I stand as I speak. They both stand and bow their heads as I leave, wishing me a good night.

I climb the stairs to my floor and trail wearily to my room. Once inside I strip down to my underwear and crawl into bed. It really has been a long day, more emotionally than physically. I reach for the spot Michael had occupied only last night and let a tear slip from my eyes. I really can't remember the last time I slept alone. I roll onto my back taking a deep breath and let myself drift off into a deep, dark slumber.

Pain.

Darkness.

More pain.

"She's waking up sir. She's fighting back." I can't see where the voice is coming from but it sounds faint, like I'm under water.

"Of course she is, she's strong."

"She's just a child, don't you think this is too much for her?"

"She needs to be tested, we need to be sure. Turn it up to full power."

I scream out at the torturous pain coursing through my body. My body thrashes around, my eyes still shrouded in darkness.

"That's it child, embrace your full power. Well done Meila."

"Meila?"

Pain.

"Meila!"

Darkness

I scream and sit up in bed. Christopher's hands holding each of my shoulders, tears are pouring down my cheeks and my body is glazed in sweat.

"Are you ok? You were screaming bloody murder in your sleep." His voice is shaking with worry. I pant and try to regain composure. It has been years since I've had dreams like that, actually they stopped not long after I started sharing a bed with— Ugh.

"I-I'm fine. It's just a bad dream." I manage to pant out while wiping away my tears.

"A seriously awful dream I think. Do you want to talk about it?" His voice is steady again, knowing I'm ok has calmed him and he is doing his best to calm me by gently rubbing my bare shoulders.

"No, it's fine." I lie back pulling away from his touch, embarrassed that I had caused such a scene from a little dream. They always seem so real but I'm never sure if it a glimpse of my past or a figment of my imagination.

"I just want to go back to sleep." I say scrunching myself into the foetal position, hugging my knees to my chest to comfort myself.

He nods then grabs a pillow from beside me. I scrunch my brows, confused, as he throws it on the floor and lies down.

"What are you doing?" I ask in a grumpy tone. I'm not a child, I don't need to be looked after.

"I'm staying in case you need me." He says calmly as he lies down, hands behind his head, staring up at the ceiling. I know there is no point in arguing with him and in all honesty, I don't feel like being alone tonight.

I can't help but study his body. He has obviously came straight from his bed as he is only wearing shorts which hung low on his hips showing off that delicious "v" muscle all the guys crave. His abdomen is highlighted by the moonlight falling through the half closed curtains and it accentuates each muscle on his perfectly sculpted body. The tattoo that peaked out over his collar before is now on full display flowing down his neck, onto his chest and down and around his side. I study the intricate ink lines down his mouth watering physique.

I swear I'm just looking at the tattoo, I swear!

He smirks knowing I'm watching him so I roll over and close my eyes. A few minutes pass and I sigh, feeling bad for him camping out on my floor, so I roll back to look at him again.

"If you're going to be stubborn and stay would you at least like to get in the bed?" He almost springs up at my words, throwing the pillow onto the bed which smacks me in the face.

"I really thought you were going to let your mate sleep on the floor there." He says in his husky tone and pushes his bottom lip out in a huff. So cute.

"No funny business now, or do I need to build a pillow wall between us?" I say mockingly, I like having him here but I feel so guilty at sharing a bed with someone other than Michael.

"Scouts honour!" He raises his hands up beside his head, showing them in surrender. I chuckle and roll over to try to fall back asleep. I feel him shuffling to get comfy next to me and find myself so grateful he came to check on me after my dream.

"Thank you." I whisper, not sure if he would hear me, not sure if I wanted him to.

"Anytime, sunshine." He whispers back, my heart skipping a beat at his nickname for me.

Feeling safe in his presence I let myself drift off into a peaceful sleep.