Behind Closed Doors

Chapter 3: Good and Bad Surprises

Fairy lights, a trail of flowers, and again the ominous glow of the castle comes into view as we pull up in the car. My nerves are in overdrive, like last year but more intense, and I’m not sure why. I know part of it has to do with a potential run in with Jackson but it feels like it’s more than that. My wolf is on edge, I can practically hear her footsteps, like she’s pacing back and forth in my head.

“Sage, stop that, you are driving me nuts!” My wolf huffs in response.

“Something is going to happen tonight Mia, I don’t know what it is but I feel like we’re being watched.” My wolf pushes through just enough to give me her keen eyesight and looks to the tree line behind the castle. I see some rustling in the bushes but it’s probably just border patrol. I look for any familiar wolves and I…

“Mia! Come along love, the ball is about to start!” my dad calls. I spin around and walk quickly to catch up with my family.

Just like last year the ballroom is glamorous and everyone is ready to party. As we reach the bottom of the stairs, my parents are quickly whisked away to meet with other ranked leaders from other packs, leaving me and Dana to gaze across the crowd.

“I think I need a drink.” Whipping my head around in shock to look at Dana, who is wringing her hands and is looking around erratically. Werewolves metabolize alcohol fast so most werewolves start to drink young. Despite that, Dana has never been a big drinker.

“Don’t have to tell me twice, but it seems a bit out of character for you. Everything ok?” I ask as we make our way to the bar.

“Yeah Iris is just acting really bizarre. Like she won’t settle.”

“That’s so weird, Sage was doing the same thing outside and she said she felt like we were being watched.”

“Watched? By who?”

Shaking my head, “I don’t know, but she said something is going to happen tonight.”

“Oh maybe we’ll both find our…” she suddenly stops at the same time I run directly into someone. Stupid me for not watching where I was going.

“Oh god I’m so sorry, I wasn’t… oh Jackson!” My smile of embarrassment fades as I see who I slammed into.

“Always knew how to make an entrance, Mia. It’s good to see you.”

“Yeah, it’s good to see you too.” His boyish grin and tousled light brown hair, while cute, doesn’t give me any heartache as he peers down at me with those bright green eyes. Maybe I was building this reunion up in my head too much because I really feel nothing. At least until he steps aside.

“You remember my mate, Bethany.” Motions to her and she steps up to his side. He pulls her close and tucks her into his side. She is stunning and practically glowing in an all black glistening silk gown with gold jewelry to match her golden hair. Her brown eyes meet mine with trepidation. She must be a little nervous about this interaction as well.

“Of course, it’s nice to see you again. How is your pack doing?” I exchange pleasantries and try to put her at ease, putting on a friendly smile looking into her eyes. Suddenly, my calming energy waivers and as she’s responding I don’t hear a word she says because I look down to a hand resting over her slightly rounded stomach.

I do not show my shock. I can’t. They will think it’s a reaction to my past broken heart rather than just surprise.

I look back up at them just as she stopped speaking. “I see congratulations are in order as well, how far along are you Bethany?” I say with a smile.

“Just about 4 months now, almost half way through!” She beams and while I’m still shocked, I can’t help but be happy for her and Jackson. “My little brother is so excited to be an uncle, it’s adorable!”

“What, I’m not allowed to be excited for my little niece or nephew?” The male version of Bethany strolls up to the growing group. He is just as handsome as she is beautiful and I see Dana eye him with curiousity.

“Of course you can Tyler, it just happens to be adorable.” She turns back to us, “He even got an outfit already that says “I love my uncle.” Tyler groans clearly embarrassed by that sharing of information.

Dana speaks up and looks at Tyler, “I mean that is pretty adorable.” She smiles at him and he looks up for just a second before blushing.

“Well congratulations again. We’ll let you go to mingle. Enjoy your night!” I pull Dana towards the bar as we part.

As we stand in line waiting to get drinks, I can sense Dana’s eyes trying to pry into my inner thoughts. She is much more subtle and demure than I am, usually listening on and letting answers reveal themselves in their own time but that interaction has piqued her interest enough to suspend her patience.

“So should I even ask?” Dana says after we order our drinks.

“What?” I ask.

“How are you doing after all that?” She gestures over to where Jackson, Bethany and Tyler were.

“Weirdly ok, the pregnancy announcement was a bit of a curve ball and definitely shocking but I’m happy for them.”

“Really?” My sister eyes me skeptically.

“Really. We weren’t meant to be and hey it’s not like I’m really ever going to be around them all the time other than occasional pack meetings so it's not like it affects me.” I reason.

She nods in understanding.

We grab our glasses of champagne and head to the dance floor. We dance and sing along to the music and before we know it, Alpha Greene takes the stage.

“Hello again everyone and welcome to the annual mating ball! Before we get started I want to give everyone some peace of mind.” He pauses. “As you know, as of late there have been rogues creating their own pack, led by what some pathetic outcasts are calling the Rogue Alpha.” He scoffed. “We believe they may be involved with the disappearance of some pack teenagers and we know they have stolen a few project supplies that we’ve generously helped other packs with.” He smugly smiles. “But I assure you we are doing everything in our power to keep our packs safe and projects on track. We have nothing to worry about.” People glance around warily as they applaud.

“Now! It is time once again to head outside and embrace the moon goddess’s plan to meet your mate!”

Dana practically jumps out of her seat but waits for me to follow.

“You go ahead, I’ll be right behind you.” She smiles excitedly and runs off.

I sigh and slowly rise to make my way outside. It’s only a minute now before midnight and you can feel the energy all around us. Nervous, scared, worried, hopeful. It’s all there. I see my sister look up to the sky, I can guess saying a silent prayer to the goddess for her mate.

Finally, the longest minute passes and you see dozens of people frantically sniffing and running around. Including Dana.

She’s spinning around wildly until I see a flash of blonde hair tackle her. I can’t see his face for a moment but all I can see is how happy she is. A smile beams across my face, I can’t be happier for her. They stand up and he spins her around like in some cheesy fairytale and that’s when I see his face and everything comes crashing down.

It’s Tyler. Bethany’s brother. My mouth opens in shock and I turn away, I need to get out of here before they see my reaction. I quickly walk to the other side of the castle, out of sight from all. As soon as I am out of sight, I start running to the tree line. As I break through the trees, I run for another minute before I stop just to make sure I am out of sight. I steady myself against a tree, feeling the tree bark scrape against my back with every breath I take. I try to slow down my breathing but my mind is reeling.

My sister’s mate is basically Jackson’s brother-in-law. I’m going to have to see them all the time. I thought we could just be civil when we would be forced to interact but now we’re practically family!

Then the guilt settles in. Here I am practically having a panic attack over one of the happiest moments of my sister’s life and over a guy I don’t even care about anymore. I should grow up and go back and congratulate them, give them a big hug and welcome him to the family but I can’t. My head is spinning with these revelations that I don’t even notice the activity and smells around me until it’s too late.

Emerging from the bushes, my head snaps up and I see who could only be described as the most perfect man in existence. His towering form, black hair sweeping over, tan skin with the most piercing green eyes. His black waffle shirt stretches tautly around his broad chest and as he steps closer I am hit with the most mouth watering scent. Cinnamon, cloves and orange. A perfect balance of spice and sweet. He slowly walks towards me, so controlled while I am standing still growing more feral but frozen in place, my wolf howling in my head. He takes a final step until we are a mere inches away from each other. My breath is snatched away from me as I take in his devastatingly handsome face. He grips my waist and slides his strong hands across the silk until they are wrapped around me. Sparks radiate up my back where our skin touches. He dips his face to my neck and breathes deeply. My heart pounds but his scent is oddly calming. He runs his nose up my neck to my ear and my whole body shivers with need, my body begging to be pressed tighter against him. He nips my ear between his teeth and my eyes roll as I let out a moan.

“Mate.”