Obsidian Moon Pack: Mate

Chapter One

Talijah’s POV

The electricity started flickering again.

This has been happening for the last two months now, ever since they showed up. My hometown, Green River Valley, was large enough to fit in two towns, both with nurseries, high schools and colleges. It didn’t help that my local school, Valley High, doubled up as a college, so we had students here until 25 years of age sometimes. After their own school and most of their part of town suffered from vandalism and gang activity that ultimately led to most of their town being closed due to structural damage, we have had non-stop problems with the electrics, vandalization etc. In all honesty, no one ever seemed to see them up to anything they shouldn’t be so no one could prove it was actually them. That being said, it wasn’t hard to figure out that none of this happened until they were moved over. You could tell who they were from a mile away, they all wore the same leather jacket, every day, no matter the weather. The jacket was black with a big wolf on the back. The shiny black wolf had a menacing grin on his face, tongue lolled out to the side, and its mouth wide open with blood dripping from its teeth. Very hard to miss.

I do keep finding myself staring at that wolf. Something about it draws me in and I have to pull myself back to reality, instead of thinking about how the shiny black fur would feel in between my fingers…

The bell rang. Signalling the end of class and bringing my attention back to my surroundings. I couldn’t believe that I had been entranced by the wolf on his jacket again, this was the third time this week! I pulled my own jacket from the back of my seat, put my notebook and pen neatly in my backpack and left the classroom. I had a free period now, but instead of heading home I made my way to the library to continue with my revision.

The library is my favourite place. I was even known to frequent the place when I wasn’t scheduled in class! The smell of books filled my nostrils and I immediately relaxed. Something about the knowledge kept in this room made me feel at home. The dark and towering oak bookcases clinging to the walls, the smaller ones in the centre, all neatly stacked with books upon books. I couldn’t put into words how relaxed I felt. I made my way to the little nook in the left-hand corner, a nook that I had made my own, took out my headphones and put on my favourite audiobook. Recently I had taken a liking to the thousands of werewolf stories out there and found myself obsessed with listening and reading them all.

I took out my maths homework and set about working on the mock exam we had been set by Mrs Wurple. I liked maths but I wouldn’t say I was great at it, especially since the last three lessons I’d had I was completely zoned out thinking about Stark Jones’ jacket. He was one of the new guys to the school and was absolutely delicious. He was classically handsome and had very dark grey eyes, with his luscious black hair that was always styled just right and was always shiny, he always smelt amazing too. I’d never smelt the cologne before, but it was like I could tell right away when he was around, it was intoxicating. Hugh was tall and lean, and you just knew his body was perfect under those slim fit t-shirts he always wore. I had seen him in the school gym once and twice, so I knew my suspicions about him were correct… He always wore the same, white tee, black jeans, black vans and that leather jacket. Of course, I don’t think he even knows that I exist, but I could tell when he’d even had a haircut which, now that I'm thinking about it, was almost every two weeks. He doesn’t know this though, I am very good at keeping my face blank and my emotions unknown, I called it my superpower. No one ever knew what my next move would be.

I caught sight of my reflection on my phone. My big and bright grey eyes and dark lashes staring back at me, on my defined face. I had high cheekbones, a splattering of freckles across both and my button nose. My face was a little round, but I was happy with my appearance. I was in good shape too as I absolutely love running! I was often complimented on my creamy coloured skin and physique, always receiving compliments from the guys at my school. None of them caught my attention though. Pushing my phone to the side, I finished my homework.

Whilst leaving the library, I bumped into my best friend, Ruby Sparkes. “There you are Talijah Meeks!!” She’s a gorgeous mixed race girl, long black hair and sparkling blue eyes. She was absolutely ecstatic that her crush, Parker Night, had finally accepted her advances and agreed to go on a date with her. They were going to the drive-in movie that was showing this weekend. Jaws was playing and was one of my favourite movies. I wanted to go too but I didn’t want to be the only single person there. I wouldn’t dare ask Hugh (I wasn’t fearless like Ruby) and I wasn’t interested in anyone else, so I simply wasn’t going. Together we walked through the streets of Green River Valley, Ruby n normally drove us but with it being a nice day, we had walked to school and decided to walk back too. It was only a 15 minute route from school. Excitedly chatting all the way home about Ruby’s upcoming date and making sure to squeeze a shopping trip in the next couple of days to ensure she was fully equipped for it, tomorrow night would be perfect as it was my birthday and I did enjoy browsing the shops in the local shopping centre.

We reached Ruby’s street and parted ways. I walked round the corner to my home and could hear them before I saw them.

Right enough, the familiar scent that I knew to be Stark surrounded me as I saw him and two others making their way up my street. This wasn’t unusual, the local pub was at the top of my street and some of the newbies frequented there, Hugh was at least 18 I thought as I remembered overhearing a conversation he had with our maths teacher about staying back a year to improve his B grade to an A grade.

I couldn’t wait to wake up tomorrow and finally be 18! No one other than my family knew my birthday. It wasn’t necessarily a secret, I just never really celebrated it. Since my mum was a single parent to me and my little brother Ethan, money wasn’t great so we didn’t get the lavish gifts that everyone usually bragged about at school. We were brought up to be humble so anything we got as gifts we were super grateful for anyway. Luckily Stark and his friends didn’t notice me walking behind them and when I got to the gate that led to my house, I ran up the small pathway, unlocked the door and went inside.

Mum was busy in the kitchen cooking dinner and Ethan was playing on his Xbox. He was always on that thing. I ruffled his hair as I walked past him and into the kitchen, setting my backpack down on the table and headed over to my mum.

“Hey mumma, I thought you had an extra shift tonight?” I said, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek before sitting down at the table. My eyes travelled to the counter trying to see what she was cooking.

“Hey hunny, I was going to pick up an extra shift but decided I’d spend tonight with my babies instead, how’d you feel about a Disney movie night? We can watch your favourite first, Princess and the Frog?” She replied, waggling her eyebrows at me with a cheeky grin on her face.

I shouldn’t have been surprised, looking on the counter I could see that she had prepared my favourite meal, spaghetti bolognese. There was a bag of goodies on the side with my favourite sweets and treats and the tell-tale signs of birthday cards and a couple of bags with wrapped gifts inside. I grinned.

“Absolutely! I’ll take a quick shower, put some fresh PJs on and I'll bring the comfy blanket too!” and ran upstairs.

When I got to my bedroom, I headed straight to my ensuite bathroom and turned the shower on. I was lucky to have my own bathroom, but that was only because we inherited grandads house when he decided to move to Canada and two out of the three bedrooms were ensuite. Plus, in the game of rock, paper, and scissors that I played with my brother to determine the owner of this room, rock beat scissors.

After a wonderfully warm shower, I got dried and put on some fresh pyjamas. I went into the bathroom again to brush my teeth, I needed to ensure that they were ready for all of the junk food I’d be eating tonight. I caught my reflection in the mirror and gasped at what I saw. My canine teeth were super long, in fact all my teeth were! I wiped the mirror free of condensation and my teeth were back to normal. Relief washed over me. This wasn’t the first time that I’d seen some crazy new change in my appearance. The other day, I swore my eyes were a glowing crystal blue and last week, my nails grew so fast I had to cut them twice!

I shook my head and headed downstairs. We watched three Disney films before my brother finally gave in to the sleep that was calling to him. Me and mum both decided that 11pm was an acceptable time to go to bed too. I helped her wash up and tidy up, said good night and headed to bed.

In an hour, I would finally be 18 and the world would be my oyster. I snuggled under my duvet, set my alarm for tomorrow and got ready to fall into a deep sleep. The only thing that I remember from my sleep was the overwhelming heat that was coursing through my entire body for the majority of the night and the desire to take my clothes off and just run through the woods until exhaustion claimed me. But that was just a dream, right?

Stark’s POV

With a yawn, I stretched out my arms and fumbled around on my bedside table, trying to turn off that damned alarm. At least it was Friday, finally.

I got out of my very comfortable king size bed, before sleep could tempt me again, and headed to my bathroom. I turned the shower on and checked the temperature of the water with my hands. Looking down at them, I could see that some dirt was still there and under my nails from the run last night. Wow, what a run that was! Us werewolves loved running, that was a given, but when our beautiful moon goddess was high in the sky, full and shining those wonderful rays down on us, there was nothing that could compare to that feeling. Apart from being with our fated mates, or at least I've heard that. I wasn’t lucky enough to have met mine yet. I am nineteen, most wolves meet their mates at eighteen when the bond has fully matured, even if we haven’t locked eyes with them yet.

It wasn’t like what you saw in the films or read in the books. When you meet your mate, first you are both enticed by the same most wonderful scent (this was different to every couple) the connection when your eyes finally lock on each other, is supposed to send electricity throughout your body, tingles up and down your spine and a red hot desire to mate which eventually swallows the other feelings. This is all what I've heard from my father, the pack alpha, and my best friend Zac. Both lucky S.O.B.s to have met their fated other halves.

Jealousy washed over me. I’m not ashamed to admit that this wasn’t the first time that the little green-eyed monster was on my shoulder when thinking about my fated mate. If only I could find her already! I pulled the shower curtain open and stepped into the soothing hot water and let it run all over my body. The steam from the shower filled up the room and reminded me of the run last night through Pixie woods. It got its name from the pixies that lived in the bottom of the towering oak trees that made up the woods. Something was different about the run last night, every run was invigorating and really helped clear my head, but last night was the best run that I have ever had. It was on par with my first ever run which was absolutely incredible. Males can shift from the young age of fifteen, whilst females didn’t shift for the first time until they were 18.

Being the alphas son, I had a lot of responsibilities and these full moon runs always helped ease my anxieties and gather my thoughts to make clearer decisions. I didn’t run things yet, my father was still in charge. Although still two years away, everything had to be in order for the ceremony on my 21st birthday, where my father would pass the role of Alpha to me and my mum would pass the role of Luna to my mate. I had been training for this since my 16th birthday. I haven’t found my mate yet and it was unusual for an alpha to have the crowning ceremony without their Luna by their side. I really hoped that I met her before, but the ceremony would go ahead as normal if not.

During the run last night, I caught the flash of a pure white wolf, one I wasn’t sure that I’d seen before and the most amazing smell I’d ever known hit me like a brick wall. It was the forest mixed with rain water, and a hint of black cherry, it almost floored me. When I gathered my senses and looked around for the source of that smell, there was nothing there. They were so fast! I couldn’t get that wolf out of my mind for the rest of my run and even the sleep that followed. It was absolutely beautiful and the complete opposite to my wolf. Where they were a brilliant white with crystal blue eyes, my wolf was dark as night and my eyes shone a bright purple. I was larger than the white wolf but that would be due to the warrior training we, as a pack, have to take part in.

I turned the shower off, dried myself and put on my clothes for the day. I made my way to the kitchen to make myself a coffee to go and came across my father at the dining table, reading the daily newspaper.

“There’s a fresh pot already brewed, Stark. Do you have a moment before you head off to college?” He spoke to me without looking at me, he must be enthralled with the contents of the newspaper.

“Yeah sure” I answered.

I poured the coffee in my flask and took the seat at the table that was directly in front of him. The headline of the paper caught my eye and I found myself smiling with pride.

“Super Sebastian strikes again!” was written in a large, bold print at the top, with a black and white photo of my dad in his fireman’s uniform underneath it. He’d hate that I sniggered. Only his family and inner circle called him that, everyone else called him Seb. Most of the pack worked in the emergency services. This was to ensure that the werewolves' existence in the valley, well actually in the world, was kept a secret. This was also to ensure that we were kept up to date with any animal attacks and check that the other packs weren’t encroaching on our land.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, taking a sip of my coffee and burning my tongue.

“How’d the run go last night? I trust that everything went well and followed suit as usual?” He asked me, lowering the paper and looking at me now. My dad is the best alpha this pack has ever seen. He was logical and practical, always knowing the right thing to say and 99% of the time his carefully strategized plans came together and worked out exactly how they were supposed to. He was a hit with the ladies too with his handsome yet rugged face and extremely muscled physique.

I launched into my story of the run, explaining that all went as planned and before I could stop myself, the white wolf sighting spilled out of my mouth. My father just stared at me, an unreadable expression on his face.

“A pure white wolf, are you sure of it?” He asked, a strange look on his face now.

“Well to be honest, I only got a glimpse of them, they were so fast! I didn’t get a feeling of them in the mind link either. They must be a first-time shifter or not a part of this pack.” I explained to him. His expression changed to one of wonder. What was he thinking about?

“Okay, thank you for filling me in. Stark, I need to speak to Matt ASAP. On your way out, could you let him know that I’m here and I need him please?” He asked, his expressionless mask falling back into place.

“Yes, not a problem. Everything okay?” I asked, a little confused about what had just happened.

He had folded up the newspaper and on his phone now, he didn’t answer me.

I furrowed my brow, grabbed my flask and left the kitchen. I made my way up to the beta’s floor, where Matt would be. Since my father was the alpha, we lived in the pack house. Me, dad and mum, all lived on the third floor, better known as the alpha floor. The beta’s lived on the second floor and the omega’s, Caroline, Tom and Charlie, lived on the first floor. I passed the maid on the first floor and carried on climbing the stairs. I arrived outside Matts door and rapped three times. I could hear some shuffling about but no one answered the door. I could smell a weird scent coming from under the door, so I knocked on the door again.

“For fuck’s sake” Is all I heard from the mumbling that followed my second attempt at knocking on the door, before the door was pulled open to reveal the room in a red light, candles lit around the room, and Matt stood there completely naked, an irritated look on his face.

“Oh, hey Stark, sorry I didn’t know it was you! I thought it was Charlie, the damned kid keeps knocking on my door and running off! As you can see, I’m in the middle of, erm, well, I don’t think I need to say, and I was going to tell him to knock it off. Sorry, I’ll put on some clothes. How can I help you kiddo?” Matt looked a little red in the cheeks and I saw a dark haired woman, who I knew to be Zara, pull his quilt up over her face.

Matt fumbled round his room, opening drawers looking for some clothes to put on. I looked away, gave the man his privacy and let him know my dad wanted to speak to him urgently. Without wanting to stay in this awkward situation any longer, I turned and ran back down the stairs without waiting for a reply from him.

Finally outside, I took a deep breath of the cool and crisp morning air and headed to my car. I had a black Volkswagen sirocco, my favourite! I got in, started her up and commenced my 25-minute drive to the other side of town, where my new college is located. Valley High isn’t the same as my local college but will have to do until mine is rebuilt. ‘Structural damage’ is what the newspapers said, but anyone who is a member of our pack, knew that wasn’t the case.

Chapter Two

Talijah’s POV

Wow, I am so warm! I groggily opened my eyes, feeling for my phone to check on the time. I had the best night’s sleep ever last night. I felt revitalised, refreshed, like a new woman! Finally getting a hold of my phone, I pulled it in front of my face and carefully opened my eyes against the bright screen. The time read as 1:03pm. I had to look at it a few times, not quite understanding how I slept so long. I had slept through my morning alarms and I had a bunch of missed calls too! I jumped out of bed and ran to my bathroom. I grabbed my toothbrush, sloppily put toothpaste on it and started to quickly brush my teeth. I looked up at my reflection whilst brushing my teeth and stopped dead still. I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

Looking down at my hands, I saw that they were covered in dried mud. This was very strange. I bit down on my toothbrush and washed my hands under the warm water with some hand wash. I started to notice other things too, my clothes were ripped and had mud all over them. My hair looked like I'd been pulled through the hedges backwards. I frowned, trying to piece together what had happened since I’d gone to bed. Without realising, I kept biting down on my toothbrush and it snapped in my mouth.

“Shit!” I thought, pulling the pieces out of my mouth, I caught my finger on one of my teeth which caused it to start bleeding. What the hell was happening! I washed my face, rinsed my mouth with mouthwash, wrapped my finger in plaster and headed back to my bed. I picked up my phone and listened to the voicemails I’d received. One was from my mum, wishing me a happy birthday and to make sure I'd gotten up for my alarms, two of them were from Ruby asking where I was about an hour ago. I sighed and clicked on her number to call her back.

“Hey Ruby,” I said when she eventually picked up, “Sorry I missed your call, I’ve slept through all of my alarms so I won’t be in school today, I’ve literally just woken up.”

“Finally! Talijah what the hell! First, you leave them weird voicemails last night saying how you was going out on a run and how amazing you felt, then you left another a few hours later mumbling about a beautiful black wolf, THEN you don’t show at school or answer my calls! Girl, you owe me an explanation and a frappucino from Starbucks!”

I let her go on for a few more minutes, accepted my fate in providing the cookies and cream frappucino, hung up the phone and threw myself back on my bed. I couldn’t stop thinking about what Ruby had said. What run was I talking about? What wolf had I seen? I sighed and headed back to my bathroom.

After a lovely and warm shower, I got dried and put some clean pyjamas on and got back in bed. My head was swirling with so many questions. I had no idea what had happened last night at all. I drifted to sleep without realising and dreamt of the night before, briefly remembering that it was my birthday and to call my mum back.

Somehow, in my dream, I’d taken the form of a beautiful white wolf, I could hear her thoughts too! This was weird, she was just like me. Where I had grey eyes, she had crystal blue, she was super fast and had the silkiest pure white fur. I had never seen anything as beautiful! She was magnificent. I was almost sad that I woke up to my phone ringing again. I answered my phone, endured my mum singing happy birthday down the phone to me, said our goodbyes and hung up the phone. The time was 17:34, I had been asleep for another 4 hours!

I got myself up out of bed, used the bathroom and made my way downstairs. Man, was I hungry! I made myself some burgers, the smell of the medium rare meat cooking made my stomach growl even louder. I fried off some onions too. I piled the burgers, pickles, onions and cheese onto a plate and wolfed them down without a second thought. I normally liked my burgers well done, but the smell was unreal, I couldn't eat it fast enough! I washed up, spoke with my brother for a little, checking he was okay then headed back up to my room. Hearing ‘Happy birthday!’ as I walked up the stairs, I smiled. I was wide awake now.

I wrote a message out to Ruby, seeing if she wanted to go to the Valley Walk, the local shopping centre and waited for her reply. Almost immediately, she replied with a ‘Yes!’ and I started to get ready. I put on some leggings, a thin jumper, my converse, grabbed my shoulder bag and headed down the stairs. I decided to open my cards and presents when I got back, I didn’t want to open them without my mum being there, it didn’t feel right.

Although only 13, Ethan was okay in the house on his own. Mum would be back home in the next hour anyway or so anyway, so I was happy to head out shopping. I gave him strict instructions to keep the door locked and his phone at his side.

Ruby drove us there and we arrived around 20 minutes later. We hit the shops hard. Ruby found the perfect outfit for her date with Parker, a cute pastel pink pinafore dress paired with a white t-shirt, and I found a few outfits. Not for anything in particular, but I got 2 new dresses, some jeans and a couple of tops. The centre wasn’t as busy as I thought it would be with it being Friday evening.

We hit the food court and I was surprised that I was hungry again, stuffing my face with the salty goodness that was McDonald’s fries and taking a bite out of my overdone quarter pounder. We were happily munching away when I was hit with the most amazing smell. It smelt like the earth mixed with rain water and a hint of black cherry. One word sprung to mind. ‘Mate.’

Suddenly on edge, I found myself surveying the room around me, looking for the source of that smell and fighting the urge to follow the pull that was trying to get a hold of me.

“Erm Talijah, what is going on with you eyes?” Ruby said, a confused look on her face.

This brought me back to reality. I shook my head, rubbing my forehead to the dull aching pain that was forming.

“What do you mean?” I said, not really paying attention. What was that smell? And what did I mean by Mate?

“You’re eyes were like a crystal blue! They kept flickering to your grey and that blue, you looked like you was searching the crowd for someone.” Ruby looked at me worried, finished her fries and got up to clear the table. Sneaking glances at me all the while.

“Oh, I’m not sure, thats happened a few times. I think its to do with these headaches that I’ve been getting lately. Probably just stress!” I smiled at her, trying to ease that worried look on her face.

She smiled back and relief flooded me. We cleared up, grabbed our shopping bags and walked towards the exit. I checked my phone, it was 19:30. I quickly texted mum to let her know that I was on my way home and put my phone back in my pocket.

The ride home was a little quieter, but we both cheerily sang along to the latest pop songs before Ruby pulled up at my house. After a quick hug and a thank you for taking us, I exited the car and walked up the pathway that led to my house. As I was about to turn my key in the door, I got that delicious smell again. I turned around, looking for where it was coming from. I walked to the end of my pathway, looking up the street and then down again. My eyes found him, about ten feet away, and I swear my heart stopped beating. Stark Jones was staring right at me. Purple eyes shining. Stark said one word and it hung in the air between us both, like it was palpable. “Mate.”

Starks POV

College was OK. I got good grades, but it wasn’t my passion. I had to leave college with good grades in Maths and politics at least so my dad would stay off my back. Art and sport was my passion though. I loved the physical exercise and the creativity of painting. After a gruelling double lesson in politics, I practically ran down to the lacrosse pitch. IT was my favourite game, the perfect mix of cardio and strength. My wolf loved this game too. We had strict rules from the coach to not use our heightened strength and speed in the official matches to give our opponents a fighting chance at least, but in training we could go all out.

I changed into my grey slacks, pulling on my white vest the only other colour being my number and second name, 19 and Jones, on the back in a navy blue. With us nearing the end of the academic year, we had played most of our matches. We only had three games left and they would be my last. I was leading this training session as Coach Khan was off today. My best friends, Zac Elderidge and Riley Mann, were already on the pitch, stretching their muscles and guiding the warm up with the other team mates, ready for the training to begin.

“Hey Stark, what have you got planned for us today?”, “Hey Cap, We’re ready to go!” Was shouted towards me as I quickly jogged over to them. Doing some quick stretches, I talked them through the warm up and split them into two equal teams of 10, mentally keeping track that both teams had a good mix of wolf and human to keep it fair.

“Right team, the aim of this training session is to have some well earned fun. We’ve got three matches left and we’re at the top of the league so I’m not worried about this training session. We’re going to do three laps of the full pitch, whoever finishes first, gets the first ball toss. First team to 10 points, gets a meal of their choice paid for them at Valley Walk food court by the losers! Alright, you ready?” They erupted into high fives and banter about who would win. Being part wolf, I could actually smell the testosterone levels being extremely high at this moment.

“Go!” I yelled and blew my whistle. We set off running, I kept a steady pace and kept my eyes on my team. The next hour and half was full of laughter, running, bashing, crashing and finally, victorious howls/woops! The team that Riley was in had won, much to Zacs dismay. “Alright, hit the showers guys! Good session. Shall we meet in the food court around 7/7:30pm?” A few grunts and nods confirmed and we all headed to the showers.

I drove home and checked the time, it was only around 5pm. I had plenty of time before we’d be going out for food, so I sat pulled open my gym clothes drawer, put on some shorts and a basketball vest and looked around for my earphones. I was looking under my bed when a knock on my door interrupted me. I got to my feet and found my mum watching me with a smile on her face.

“ Oh hey mum, whats up?” I asked her whilst giving her a hug.

“Stark, you’re going to meet your fated mate very soon!” She beamed at me, bright ember eyes sparkling.

Words escaped me. I didn’t know what to say or what to do. I was going to meet my mate! I had a surge of very powerful emotions. Relief, happiness, nervousness and fear? All washed over me at once. I needed to sit down. I couldn’t believe I was going to meet my mate! What if she didn’t like me? What if I didn’t like her? I looked up at my mum, she was frowning at me.

“Stark, what’s wrong? I thought you’d be delighted but you don’t look too happy?” Her tone was soft but her words were questioning.

“Yeah its great mum, but, I don’t know, I think I’m just nervous. Thank you for telling me,I really am thrilled. I’m going to go for a run, I need to burn off this nervous energy, okay?” I gave her a kiss on the cheek, noticing that her eyebrows we’re furrowed as she turned around and said bye.

I jogged down the road and crossed the street. Following the short familiar path that lead to Pixie woods. I could shift within seconds now and as soon as I was partially hidden by the trees, I changed and ran for it. I picked up speed very quickly and let out a howl. I was so relieved I was going to meet my mate! But then, why was I nervous? The mate bond was incredibly strong, I’ve heard, and being rejected almost never happened. I shook my head and found myself remembering that scent I picked up on last night. Could she be the one? I’d never seen her before.

I ran for over an hour before I made my way home. I got showered, put on some clean clothes and styled my hair. Now I knew that I would meet my mate pretty soon, I wanted to look my best. I looked in the mirror, I’d styled my hair the way I liked it, put on some blue skinny jeans (for a change), put a black tshirt on and my all black slip on vans. I put on my leather jacket, everyone in the pack had one, and I grinned at the wolf on the back. Not many people knew, but the wolf was supposed to be me. It was a present from my mum and dad when I’d turned 18. I absolutely loved it and it looked just like my wolf.

I grabbed my phone, car keys and wallet and went to my car. I couldn’t hear mum and dad, or anyone else in the pack house. This wasn’t unusual, they would probably be out themselves. Fridays was the only day off from training, this worked perfectly with our lacrosse training. I got in the car and travelled in the direction of Zac’s house, I’d pick him up first then go and collect Riley, the other guys can make their own way there.

We arrived at the food court at around 7pm. All the guys were rowdy and winding each other up whilst we queued up for our food. I’d chosen the Chinese restaurant; this was my favourite kind of food but I’m also partial to some good Italian food. Some of them finally went and sat down at a table. Some others started dragging other tables over so there was room for everyone. Finally ordering my food, I found myself surrounded by the most wonderful scent. It smelt like the forest, mixed with rainwater and a hint of cherry. It was only for a minute before it started to fade again. Not this time. I stopped mid order and started to follow the scent. I could tell my eyes had changed colour when I tapped into my wolf scent to chase the scent. I wasn’t letting her go this time.

Before I realized, I was in my car and driving through the streets of Green Valley, nose in the air, determined to find out where that delicious scent was coming from. My wolf was howling in delight, I knew I was getting closer. I recognised this area, there was a local pub around this area that I frequented with my friends. I noticed that the scent was leading me as if directly to the pub. Suddenly, that beautiful scent was overwhelming. I pulled over to the side of a residential street and got out of the car. I didn’t even take the keys, I was too focused on this scent. I followed it until my wolf felt like it was doing backflips and howling in delight. I walked up the street, looking around for anyone who was about. A petite girl walked out from a hedged pathway. She looked at me and I stopped dead still. Her crystal blue eyes met my shining purple ones. “Mate” I said out loud. This was the most amazing feeling I could ever imagine. I felt my face change into a grin. I sensed her mood change and a smile tug at her lips. I took a second to take in her features. She had big beautiful blue eyes, high cheek bones and soft pink lips that called out to him in a way he had never felt before. I closed the distance between us both and wrapped my arms around her. She melted in my arms, all the time gazing up into my eyes. “Mate” she replied, so soft I almost didn’t hear her. Staring into them eyes, I leant down and kissed her.

Chapter Three

Talijah’s POV

He kissed me. Stark Jones bent down and kissed me! I couldn’t believe it. As soon as my eyes hit his, I had this overwhelming desire consume me. I had never felt anything like this before, it was so intense. That kiss was like something out of this world. As soon as his lips met mine, electric currents surged up and down my body. His scent washed over me and I had a strange feeling starting to bubble deep down in my tummy. I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. His tongue teased my lips, and I parted them slightly. His tongue started to explore my mouth and the most delicious feeling washed over me. I slowly met his tongue with my own and the electricity intensified further.

We had kissed for what felt like eternity but, had only been a few moments. We pulled away from each other, lips swollen and breathing hard. This was crazy. I had spoken one word to this man ever and that was a few minutes ago. Hell, I don’t think he even knew my name! A sudden change in my mood grounded me and I dropped my gaze from Stark.

“Erm, sorry about that. I don’t know what happened there, I don’t think I’ve ever kissed anyone like that before.” My cheeks heated further with my ridiculous rambling, and I started to fumble with my fingers. What was happening? I couldn’t grasp what was going on and the more I thought about it, the more it didn’t make any sense. I furrowed my brow and steadily lifted my eyes back up to Stark. He had the cutest grin on his face and this caused my heart rate to increase. Wow this is embarrassing!

“You don’t need to apologise doll, this is completely natural. When two mates finally meet, there’s no stopping the chemistry that follows.” He said coolly, that cute grin getting wider.

I furrowed my brow further. “What do you mean by mate? I mean, I’ve had a crush on you for a little while but this is crazy. I don’t understand what is happening.” I said, my voice a little quieter.

It was his turn to furrow his brow. The confused look on his face almost hurt me. “Haven’t you ever been told what happens when you meet your mate? My dad told me when I first shifted at 15! With you being a female, you’ll have first shifted at 18, when did you turn 18?” He asked, his confused look had changed, and a simple smile replaced it.

My heart rate increased. Something had happened last night but I didn’t remember! I closed my eyes and tried with all my might to remember what had happened last night. Stark closed the difference between us and wiped the tear from my cheek that I didn’t know was there.

“Hey, don’t cry. It’s okay if you don’t know, you can ask me anything. I’m so happy I’ve finally met you. You’re beautiful, I’ve never met someone who is so perfect for me.” He looked at me with them purple eyes and the intensity of them gave me butterflies.

I sniffed and leant into his hand. Why was I so comfortable with him all of a sudden? “Okay, do you want to go grab some food and talk about all of this? I’ve noticed some changes lately and they don’t make sense. I woke up this morning, I turned 18 today, and I was super warm and” I didn’t get a chance to finish my sentence before Stark answered me.

“You turned 18 today? Wow, how’d your first run go? My first run was incredible, and I won’t ever forget it! You must be so excited, what colour is your wolf?” He asked casually.

My jaw literally dropped open. This man was crazy. I stared at him for a few moments, not knowing what to say. I looked dead in his face; he must be joking around. I started to turn around and head into the house. I wouldn’t be surprised if I woke up at any minute now. I was either dreaming, or ready for a mental health check-up. Stark grabbed my arm lightly and turned me around to face him.

“Come on, lets go grab some food. I have a lot to tell you with the looks of it. Now I’ve found you, you’ll never leave my sight.” He said, he looked like he was in a kind of trance. That look compelled me to go with him. We went to Dina’s, a local diner/café. I ordered tea and a slice of lemon cheesecake. Stark ordered a coke, burger, fries and also a slice of lemon cheesecake.

“Hungry?” I asked, smiling at him.

“Well, I was in the middle of ordering some food when I got distracted by that beautiful scent of yours and followed it until I found you. That’s what I want to talk to you about.” He flashed me a mega smile that almost made me faint.

“I’m a werewolf Talijah, and if I’m right, so are you. That’s what this amazing feeling is whenever we lock eyes or touch each other. That’s why I’ve been able to smell you faintly for the last couple of months but not able to directly locate you. Did you leave your house at all last night? I'd put money on you being the beautiful white wolf I saw running last night. She was gorgeous, and wow was she fast!” He was beaming at me, his eyes full of an emotion that I’d never seen on anyone before.

I didn’t have time to think about a response to all of that as the waitress had brought over our food. I grabbed my tea and wrapped my hands around the hotness. Stark is a werewolf, and I am too? I thought back to all of the weird things that had happened in the last week or so. The constant heat, my teeth changing, my eyes flashing another colour, my nails elongating. It did make sense.

I looked at Stark. He was happily eating his food, stealing glances at me with that goofy grin on his face. His happiness washed over me and made my insides feel like velvet. That bubbling I felt earlier started to stir and my cheeks heated again. I looked down from him and took a sip of my drink.

We sat in a comfortable silence whilst he finished his food and then he launched into the story of how werewolves came into existence. He talked about Celeste, the moon goddess and how a pack of wolves had helped her when she had gotten into some trouble. Their reward for helping was a longer life span (some wolves lived up to 500 years old), healing powers, speed and power. The only requirement would be for the wolves to shift at least once a month and go for a run when the moon was full and high in the sky. Over the years, they lived their lives as humans instead and only changed into their wolves when required.

I watched Stark intently, loving how passionate he was about his moon goddess and also getting a little jealous with the love that dripped off of his lips when he spoke about her.I shifted in my seat. Stark finished his story and was waiting patiently for me to answer him.

“Can you show me your wolf?” I said the words before I realised I’d open my mouth.

Stark gave me his best grin yet, grabbed my hand and pulled me outside.

Stark’s POV

This had to be my favourite night ever. I met my mate and she is breathtakingly beautiful. Those amazing eyes on her gorgeous face. Lush looking blonde hair, and those pink lips. I licked my own lips thinking about the kiss that we shared. I could tell that she was scared, she looked like she had no idea what was happening. Poor thing. I had to fight the urge to not wrap my arms around her and pull her close to me.

I snuck a glance at her and wondered what she was thinking about. We had just left the diner and were walking towards my car. I wanted to grab her hand and curl my fingers around hers, but we had walked in silence since she asked me to show her my wolf. We climbed into the car and I reversed out of the car park. I headed towards Pixie woods, this was my favourite place to go running and I couldn’t think of a better place to show her. I became aware of our closeness whilst in the car and I wanted so badly to touch her hand. It was just placed on her lap, manicured nails atop her fingers comfortably curled in the other hand. I couldn’t believe I was jealous of a hand.

I snuck a glance at her face and was pleasantly surprised to find her big grey eyes looking right back at me. I smiled at her and this somehow caused her cheeks to redden which in turn made my heart happy. She turned away and bit her lip. Oh my! I felt a twitch in my pants and pushed my foot harder down on the accelerator. Fuck, she was so sexy! My wolf was so happy, he was practically laid on his back with his belly open to her, tongue lolled out to the side.

We was about 5 minutes away. The time seemed to be moving so quickly, this was perfect. I gingerly reached out and touched her cheek.

“Hey doll, what’s going on in that pretty little head of yours?” I asked her, my tone soothing. The electricity shot up my hands and travelled throughout my entire body, I could get used to this.

“I’m a little nervous. I should have been on alert when you told me that you’re a werewolf and that I am, and there's a moon goddess and everything else. But it was like everything clicked. I mean, I don’t know if i’m a werewolf but all I wanted to do when you told me that story was see it. I want to see your wolf. Is that weird?” She asked me, her brow furrowing at the end.

Gosh was she cute!

“Normally when a wolf shifts, especially someone from the alpha family line shifts, you’ll get a feeling you’ll want to change too. If you get that feeling, give in to it.” I said whilst I smiled at her.

I pulled into the pack house garage, turned off the engine and rushed out of my door to open the door for her. That’s when I realised I didn’t even know her name. Guilt washed over me as I opened the door and grabbed her hand. “This is a little awkward but, I don’t think I caught your name, doll?” I asked, watching her face for any change in her mood.

“Talijah Meeks, I know you’re Stark Jones.” She answered, her cheeks flushed a little. I could practically feel the embarrassment flowing from her and wondered what had caused that. Before I could ask, she asked me a question first.

“Is this your house?” She looked around the garage, then the house with a look of awe on her face.

“Yeah, see that top floor? That’s my family’s floor, my room is round the back. It looks out onto Pixie Woods.” I grinned at her. Both me and my wolf getting excited to show our true selves to our mate.

I led Talijah around the back of the house, up the pathway, over the bridge that carried us over the river Nyx and to the entrance of the woods. I pulled her gently just in front of the trees and started to take off my jacket. Talijah realised what was happening and turned around to give me my privacy. I noticed she was nervously biting at her nails. I took off the rest of my clothes until I was just in my boxers. “Okay, i’m in my underwear. You can turn around if you want. You’re my mate, I want you to see my transformation from the start.” I said coolly.

She turned around and her eyes got bigger as she took me in. Talijah eyed me up and down and licked her lips. That was all I needed. I maintained eye contact and made the shift into my wolf form. I didn’t think her eyes could get any bigger but they did. I slowly walked over to her. She didn’t move, her eyes roaming all over my form and a look of wander taking over her face. My wolf is so happy. I reigned in my excitement and slowly put my muzzle out to nuzzle her hand. She lifted her hand to my muzzle and ran her hand down the side of my face. “Can you understand me?” she whispered in my right ear, sending my insides crazy. I nodded my big head and she leaned in closer. “You are magnificent, the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life. That feeling you told me about, I can feel it right now.” She ran her hand along my body, from the top of my head all the way down to the tip of my tail. I shivered in excitement.

I turned to her and locked eyes with her. She came closer and placed her forehead against mine. She closed her eyes and I could see the convulsions that took over her body. Her nose grew longer, legs shorter and fur spouting out from her. Her forehead never left mine the whole time. Her shift took a little longer than mine but I was impressed with it only taking her a few minutes. She couldn’t have shifted more than twice and the shift can take a long time when you’re starting out.

She was breathtaking. She was only a few inches shorter than me. A beautiful pure white wolf stood before me, crystal blue eyes focused on mine. I was in love.

Now she was in wolf form, I could communicate with her. “You’re the one who is magnificent! I thought you were breathtaking in your human form, but in your wolf form, I am speechless.” We started to circle each other. Both our eyes were shining at each other. I stopped and sat on my haunches. “Do you want to go on a run?” I asked her, cocking my head to the side.

“Yes!” her excitement mirrored in her voice causing me to shiver.

We set off on a jog and then pushed ourselves to our limits. I’ve never felt joy like I did during this run. We kept glancing at each other, erupting in laughter when we did. I lost track of the time and slowed down when my wolf was tiring. Talijah was a machine! She was so fast, I had trouble keeping pace with her. She slowed down too and looking around I realised we weren’t far from the entrance. I started in that direction, indicating for Talijah to follow me. She still had some much energy!

“That was amazing! As I was running, I remembered that I did go out last night! I ran through these very woods! How did I not remember that this morning? Why now? I was 18 today, does that have something to do with it? This has been the best birthday ever! Oh, shit!” She looked at me, worry flashing through her eyes.

“What’s wrong?” Trying to keep my voice steady and concern out of it.

“ I haven’t seen my mum yet and it's still my birthday. She had to pull a double shift today and she’ll be worried that I’m not home, gosh I don’t even know what time it is! Wait, do I tell her i’m a werewolf? Does she know werewolves exist?”

I smiled inwardly at her verbal diarrhoea. “ We’ll head right there, I’ll have you home quick as a flash.” I threw her one of my best grins and we set off on a quick jog together in the direction of the packhouse. I knew if she was still in human form, she’d be blushing right now at that smile.