Alliance of Shadows: NEIL

Laying Claim

Guilt still ate at me as I made my way back to the table where she was playing on her cell phone. I didn’t even know she had one. For the first time since we were out in public, I didn’t lower my voice when I addressed her. I didn’t bother looking around to see if anyone was watching, either. Not that it would matter anyway. I couldn’t keep ignoring the string of fate that was slowly taking hold of both of us, even if it was currently one-sided.

Her opening up to me was because of the bond we shared. The urge to trust, to make each others world seem bright and beautiful, was all due to the connection she still had zero clue about. I wanted to call Dre, but he would only come by to pick at me in his own way. Kaden was gone to the Mage Towers to start training his Druid abilities. Colt was busy taking care of his family, visiting the pack now and again to build a little more on the new home he was creating for Daisy and their twin boys.

No, I didn’t have many friends, but the ones I did have were loyal, brutally honest, and they cared. People like John, who had led me astray during my darkest time – my teenaged angst stage – were no longer people I could trust.

Getting my breathing under control, I returned to the table. The smile on my face was a mask created to help her feel at ease. After all, I was the one all of Shadow Storm had dubbed the “Moody Alpha”. Sliding in beside her, I pointed to the device in her hand. “Hey, when did you get a phone?”

“It’s an old one and not even activated. I only use it for gaming and watching videos anyway. Um, Rachel gave me the Wi-Fi passcode for the diner while you were in the bathroom.” She replied stoically.

My chest ached. Her voice had no emotion at all. And that cell phone she was holding? Useless. She needed to know that she could call or text me anytime she wanted to. I had no clue what I was doing, but I wanted to keep my promises to Clara and Dad. Despite not really liking her, my stepmother had done me a solid by allowing me to explain the reasoning of my actions. She was also likely the one behind my father’s acceptance.

Leaning over the table, I said, “I've got good news and bad. What do you want to hear first?”

I watched as the colour drained from her cheeks. Her fingers flexed around the phone as her body stiffened to a statuesque state. Though concerned, I held back, letting her open up to me first.

Finally, her voice resigned, she said, “You might as well give me the bad first.”

Unable to help myself, I took a deep, calming breath as I tilted her head up. There was a spark in the depths of her sapphire eyes. It wasn’t big, but almost a smouldering ember that was trying to flicker to life. I had been “not thinking” a lot lately, but the results of my ignorance were purely blissful. This time, as I lowered my lips to hers, I felt my guilt slip away for just an instant. For only a heartbeat of time, as I cupped her face, I sank my fingers into the dark waterfall of her hair.

Her sudden, shocked gasp filled my ears, and I pulled away from her. Her eyes told me everything she couldn’t. Everything I feared, the work I’d put in that day alone, seemed useless and forgotten in a moment of idiocy.

When had I gotten so careless? It wasn’t like me to lose control of my emotions, to let my actions move into thoughtless, selfish deeds. I dropped my head into my hands as I whispered a rushed apology. “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve done today. I totally should have asked.”

“It was… unexpected,” she murmured softly. Then, “Different. Like you actually care. I’ve… I’ve never felt that before.”

Not wanting to drag out the news any longer than I needed to, I said, "My father and Clara know what happened last night."

“What," she asked. "I thought you said no one had to know."

I sighed heavily, leaning closer to her. Lowering my voice slightly, I explained the situation to her. “Yeah, I know. Unfortunately, they somehow found out and your aunt called me on it. My father isn’t someone you lie to, so I told them the truth. You can tell your side when you want, but it doesn't matter, Izzy. They're okay with it as long as I don't hurt you.”

She stiffened beside me. “Are you serious?”

Downing the rest of my drink, I continued. “I know you initiated it, but I should have known better. I shouldn’t have let my libido lead me like the way I did, but, in all honesty, I don’t regret a damn thing, Izzy. The more I think about it, the clearer it is. I have no regrets about last night, but this may be our chance to connect better. To get to know each other on our own terms and not because someone wanted us to clear the air.”

She moved away from me, shocked. Fear darkened her eyes just for an instant. “I… I don’t understand.”

“Simply put, they're going to let me be with you. I have a s**t-ton of rules to follow, though,” I whispered.

I heard her heart pick up speed as she registered what I was saying, and what I wasn’t. “Do you… I mean… like dating? My aunt said that? But what about the whole legal aspect?”

“Yes,” I held her close, lightly kissed her forehead before tucking her under my chin. It was a gesture between Mates, a way for them to silently let each other know they were there. Waiting and watching. She didn’t know it yet, but I would stick with this. I wouldn’t stop treating her the way I had been all day. “As for the legalities, Clara’s a lawyer, and my father’s the Police Commissioner. The rules are simple. You lead, not me. That means you decide what we do and when. As long as you’re a willing participant, there’s nothing anyone can do. The moment I overstep in any way, my father’s gonna hand me my ass, though.”

Telling her how I felt was not an option at that point. Not yet. She was too anxious for my words to leave the desired impact on her. The last thing I wanted to do was scare her off. Or worse, drive her into the arms of another guy. It would kill me if she flipped the script and rejected me, but I was getting ahead of things.

Patience Neil, I thought as I scolded myself for the ugly insecurities that reared their heads. The biggest question that bounced around in my mind was whether or not I was good enough for her. Could I handle this new, significant reality that was now my life?

We gathered our stuff, making our way to the counter to pay for our meal. Rachel, winking at me knowingly, chatted enthusiastically with Izaria, offering her another piece of cake to take home while already boxing one up.

Completely ignoring the judgmental stares and angry whispers from the other patrons, I pulled Izzy toward the exit. They knew what happened and still treated me like I carried the damn plague. I stopped just a few feet from the door as she yanked her hand from mine. The final comment stung, not only me, but her as well.

“Oughtta be put down like a dying dog,” one man said loudly enough to make the whole place spiral into a chaotic silence. It was so deafening, so targeted and critical that even the other Werewolves who didn’t really like me stopped what they were doing and stared.

For the second time that day, my kitten – I could no longer call her a mouse – reupped and became emotionally angry. Walking over to the man who had spoken, she slapped him with his wife looking on in shock. "What the hell is wrong with you? He's not doing anything wrong, and yet you're crucifying him over a lie someone else told. Did you get the whole story, or did you just blindly follow someone else’s lead like a well-behaved sheep to the slaughter?"

The crowd never moved, never said anything; their guilt saturated the air with a stale scent. As for me, I could only wait as Izzy finished her tirade. A slow clap shattered the quiet as I spotted Farrah, who asked, “Is she something to you, Mr. Dane?”

I nodded as Izaria hid her face in my shirt. (Damn, she was cute.) I hugged her close, glaring at the room full of people as I said the words that cemented our fate. "She’s my girlfriend.”

Her head shot up, and our eyes met. When she nodded, I knew that she somehow understood that I was asking and not making assumptions about her decision on the matter. Fully aware of all the stares I was getting, I opened the passenger side door and helped her into the car before I got into the driver side.

What? Can’t I be a gentleman?

I smirked as I leaned over to kiss her.

Her arms snaked around my neck as she responded to me like it was the most natural thing in the world. The bond was obviously working double-time if she was already this trustful of me. When we parted, I searched her face for any sign that I’d overstepped. Finding nothing, I started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. She’d been checked by the pack’s lead doctor, fed, and now we were heading home for some decent R&R.