Chapter 7

Everly

The sounds of laughter and water splashing echoed through the clearing, bringing a smile to my lips where I sat watching my friends who were wading in the stream on our lands.

I’d left the water under the pretense that I wanted to bask in the sun, knowing we would need to dry off soon to head to Juniper and Myles’s house for her birthday dinner. But really, I just wanted to process the discovery I had made when I arrived at the stream.

I’d done a double take when I walked out of the trees, sure my eyes had been playing a trick on me at first. But there was no mistaking it — the pointed ears and the emerald eyes swirling with gold were dead giveaways — June was a fairy. A Fae.

I opened my mouth to question it when I realized what I was seeing was fuzzy or grainy. Sort of how I would imagine things looking for humans who needed to wear glasses.

I pursed my lips together and looked over at Myles, who was standing nearby talking with a warrior from our pack, Dave, and his mate, Amber. I realized I could see the same features on him — pointed ears and eyes swirling with bronze — and his were muted as well.

I ignored it, since it seemed either everyone else was as well, or I was the only one seeing it. I ran straight into the stream, jumping onto Drew’s back and screaming “Drewbie!” straight into his ear.

I was still unsure why I was seeing what I was seeing. But as I sat on my towel with my eyes closed and my mind swirling, a soft warm breeze blew through the clearing, and a gentle voice whispered in my mind, ‘A new gift: the gift of identifying and seeing through enchantments.’

Of course. Of course, that’s what it was. It made sense no one else could see Juniper and Myles were fairies. I could only see through whatever enchantment was on them because of my moon-gifted wolf.

Every pack in the kingdom always had at least one moon gifted wolf — a pure white wolf with special abilities granted to them by the moon goddess. Some moon-gifted wolves had only one ability, and some had two or three. With my newest gift, I had four.

The day I first shifted, my parents were shocked but incredibly proud to see Selene had chosen me as our pack’s moon-gifted wolf. It was very rare for someone of alpha blood to be moon-gifted, so my parents knew we were very lucky, and thought Selene must be rewarding our family.

My first gift came to me right away: sensing emotions. I could tell my mom and dad were thrilled, and Luke was happy for me but also jealous. I could sense Drew’s admiration of my white fur and blue eyes, and a deeper emotion underneath that I hadn’t been able to identify.

The rest of my gifts came to me sporadically over the years. I could also become undetectable — no one could see, smell, or hear me. I could sense when someone was lying or being dishonest. That gift came in handy when my boyfriend at the time, Santino, was cheating on me.

:Ev,: my brother’s voice interrupted my thoughts. :Are you with June?:

:Yeah, we’re by the stream,: I replied, rolling my eyes. :Didn’t you get Drew’s mindlink?:

:I have a weird question,: he continued, ignoring me.

:Of course you do.:

:Was June wearing a black sweatshirt?:

I furrowed my brow, looking around the clearing to June’s stuff sitting on Drew’s giant towel. There it was, her black hoodie that she wore constantly. It was probably closer to a dark gray color, though, with how often she had to wash it.

:Umm yeah?: I finally replied to him.

:… can you bring it to me?:

I choked on a laugh, covering up my mouth and acting like I was yawning to hide my reaction from our friends. :Why the fuck do you want her sweatshirt?: I teased.

:Never mind,: he rushed out. :Goodbye Everly.:

Goodbye? I couldn’t figure out why he was telling me goodbye. We never said goodbye to each other in a mindlink, or ever, really, unless…

I stood up quickly, darting to grab June’s sweatshirt. I shoved it in my bag before heading out of the clearing.

:Where are you, dumbass?: I growled at him.

He chuckled at me half heartedly. :The gate closest to you,: he replied before cutting our mindlink.

Shit, if he was at the gate, then that meant he was doing exactly what I thought he was doing — leaving the pack for whatever reason without saying goodbye to June.

I sprinted in his direction, sending a quick link to Drew. :Hey, I need to go back to the packhouse. I’ll see you soon.:

My brain was racing, my thoughts jumbling as I headed towards my idiot brother. If I was right, and he was doing what I thought he was doing, then this was going to cause a lot of pain to a very important person in our lives, and I was going to give him absolute hell for it.

I broke through the tree line, and there he stood, leaning against his black Audi, the gate already opened for him to drive through. I stopped about a yard from him, and just stared at him with my arms crossed, the breeze blowing the strands of my chestnut brown hair across my face.

He had his sunglasses on, and he was looking at the ground, but I could see how tense his body was, and sense the overwhelming emotions flooding through him. They were so strong, so intense. I inhaled sharply and had to put up a mental wall around myself to block them out.

I didn’t need to ask him if he was leaving. He was. I didn’t care where he was going. I only had one question I needed him to answer, one thing that was important to know before he drove off our lands.

“Why?” I asked him in a whisper.

He sighed, his hand running through his already messy hair and scratching at the back of his neck. He knew what I meant, knew I was asking why he was leaving without saying goodbye.

I was pretty sure I already knew the reason, but I wanted to hear it from his mouth. I wanted to confirm with my own two ears that my brother, Future Alpha Lukas Daniel, was acting as cowardly as I thought he was.

“I can’t, Ev,” he said dejectedly. “It will make it harder for me to leave.”

I smirked at his words. His words confirmed my thoughts.

“So you’re just going to disappear without a word to two of our best friends?” I shook my head. “You’re so fucking selfish.”

“I’m selfish?” he growled, stomping towards me on the gravel road. “Drew just quit on me after spending our whole lives knowing we would be alpha and beta together, without even having the decency to talk to me about it. Instead, he let Dad be the one to break the news to me. And then, my—” He pulled his lips into his mouth to cut himself off, his fists clenched at his side, his body shaking.

My eyes were wide at his words. “Drew quit?” I whispered, completely thrown. That was so unlike him.

“Yep,” he answered, emphasizing the “p”.

“Why?”

“Not a fucking clue,” he said, huffing out a sarcastic laugh.

I blew out a breath, filing that information away for later so I could ask Drew about it. I could tell Lukas was telling the truth, but I still needed an explanation from Drew.

It was mind-boggling to me to think he’d so easily give up his post he worked so hard for. It was completely out of character for him. He had always been so excited when speaking about him and Luke taking over the pack, always talking about different training programs he wanted to try, or ways to improve the pack security.

I sensed my brother didn’t want to talk about the loss of his beta anymore, so I switched gears and asked him the question I had been dying to know the answer to.

“Sooo, why do you want this?” I pulled the black hoodie out of my bag, holding it casually in my hand by the hood. The rest dangled down towards the ground.

Luke’s hand automatically reached out to grab it, but I stepped back, keeping the hoodie out of his reach. “Ah ah ah… if you want it, you’ll answer my question,” I reprimanded, shaking my other finger at him.

“Everly…” he groaned, his hand still held out for me to pass the shirt to him.

I cocked an eyebrow at him, my foot tapping on the ground impatiently. “I’m waiting!”

“For fuck’s sake…” He looked up at the sky in exasperation, a deep sigh leaving his lips. “I wanted to check the size so I could buy her a new one,” he said to the clouds.

Lie.

“Hmm… I don’t think so,” I replied.

I shook my head as I put the sweatshirt back in my purse.

”Come on, Ev, please. Just let me have it,” he begged, his voice almost breaking as he spoke to me. “I just… I want something to keep me from missing her too much.”

I glared at him. My nostrils flared in anger, and I didn’t care to examine whether he was lying.

“Excuse me?” I threw my head back, my laughter coming out hysterically in my anger. “Oh, that is just fucking rich. You want something so you won’t miss June, but you won’t even tell her you’re leaving?”

“It’s better this way,” he said harshly. “She doesn’t even…” He cut himself off again, his hands gripping his hair as he gritted his teeth together.

I examined his reaction, examined his state of being, and processed his words all at once. I reflected on my interactions with him since I could detect honesty, and I pieced everything together.

“She’s your mate, isn’t she?” I whispered.

He whipped his head towards me at my words, his breath catching in his throat. “I…” he sighed. “How’d you figure that out?”

“Built in lie detector, remember?” He chuckled and nodded. “I know you’ve been lying about finding your mate. And I can sense that you… feel strongly about her,” I told him. “I just didn’t know why you’d lie about finding your mate. I thought maybe your mate rejected you or something, and you were pining for June, thinking she’d get her own mate, or—”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s always been her. I’ve known for two years, and have been waiting for this day since then. But she didn’t feel it, Ev. She didn’t feel our bond. She touched my hand and didn’t even react.”

I opened my mouth to mention it was probably because she was a Fae, but I stopped myself. He didn’t know, and no one knew I knew, so it was probably better that I said nothing.

“I’m sure she’ll feel it soon,” I reassured him.

“You can’t say anything to anyone, though,” he told me. “Selene said I couldn’t tell her, that we had to wait until she could feel it too.”

“I won’t say anything,” I promised him. “But I still think you’re making a mistake by not saying goodbye to her. Or not telling her how you really feel about her.”

“She doesn’t… she won’t even miss me that badly!”

I blinked at him, trying to figure out what was going on in his head. I didn’t understand how everyone we knew could see that June was head over heels for Lukas, and yet Lukas had no clue. For two of the smartest people I knew, they were completely clueless about their mutual feelings.

But it wasn’t my place to tell him. He needed to figure it out for himself, needed to wolf up and tell her he loved her.

“You’re a coward,” I finally said, my voice low.

His body tensed at my insult, and I gripped the strap of my shoulder bag, ready to throw it to the ground and shift. I sensed he would not let my words go without a fight. Although he might have been older, bigger, and stronger, I was faster.

Instead, he clenched his jaw, turned on his heel, and walked to the driver’s side door. He got in the car and started it, driving through the gate and off the packlands without another word to me.

I stared after him, watching as the dust settled into the ground, feeling the moment he went out of mindlinking range.

My heart still beat frantically in my chest. Tears sprang to my eyes as I realized not only did he not tell me goodbye or where he was going, but he hadn’t said how long he’d be gone either. My big brother, my best friend and protector, who had been by my side for as long as I could remember, would be gone for the foreseeable future, and we hadn’t even given each other a proper goodbye.

Although he annoyed me by being so cagey with me and for making such a stupid mistake by leaving June without saying goodbye, I was already feeling regret for the way things ended between the two of us. I vowed to give him sometime, maybe a few days, and then I would try to text him or call him. Let him know I was sorry. Maybe I would even find out where he was staying and send him June’s sweatshirt.

With that plan in mind, I started back towards the stream when I received a mindlink from Drew.

:Hey Ev, the party at the stream is winding down. June, Myles, and I are heading to their house. Dinner should start soon.:

I switched directions, using the walk to think about what I would say to Drew and June. I also remembered what I discovered about Juniper earlier, and I sped up my footsteps, hoping to catch her alone before her mom sat us all down for dinner.

I walked into their cottage unannounced and dropped my bag on the bench. I made my way straight for the stairs to go to June’s room, but Sofia stopped me and ushered me into the dining room.

Everyone was sitting around the table and ready to serve themselves. The scent of the lemon chicken and creamy garlic pasta wafted around the dining room. I hurried to my spot at the end of the table to the right of Drew. Once I sat down, Simon started passing the food around the table.

“Where’s Lukas?” June asked softly from the other side of Drew.

I turned my gaze slightly to see her glancing around the table at our families. Her eyes searched for him, and she realized they hadn’t even left an empty seat for him.

“He left to find a new beta so we can hand the alpha title to him on the solstice,” my dad answered.

There was silence for a moment, only interrupted by the gentle sounds of everyone passing the food platters and serving themselves. I stole another glance at June as I took the basket of bread from Drew. She furrowed her brows while she was thinking.

“He couldn’t have waited until the morning? Or after dinner at least?” she asked.

My dad thought carefully before replying, meeting no one’s eyes. “He had a pretty long drive to make, and he didn’t want to waste any time.” Lie. “He told us to tell you he was sorry he missed your dinner.” Another lie.

I could see Drew discreetly patting June’s leg under the table, giving it a small squeeze before putting his hand back on the table. I raised my brow at him, and he subtly shook his head.

:Don’t look at me like that. You know the girls can’t resist my charms,: he linked me, his lips twitching into a slight smile as he teased me.

:And yet here I am, completely immune,: I said back to him with a smirk, then I turned back to my food.

I heard his low chuckle in my mind when I reached for my water glass. His voice flooded my thoughts as I took a drink. :Your lips were singing a different tune when we were ‘training’ the other day.:

I choked on my water, almost shooting a spout across the table. My eyes widened as I coughed. Drew automatically began paying me on the back with his hand, wiping his mouth with his napkin to hide his smile and laughter.

“Sorry,” I sputtered. “The water went down the wrong side,” I told everyone, waving off their concern and praying they’d turn back to their side conversations.

I let out a relieved sigh once their attention was off of me again. Drew’s hand gave the base of my neck a small squeeze before he removed it to finish his meal.

He and I were walking a fine line, practically playing with fire, flirting back and forth and stealing moments with each other. Not only because I would be 19 in a matter of weeks, but also because he and I both knew how protective my brother was with boys who were interested in me.

Lukas made almost my entire high school career miserable, scaring off every boy who ever showed even the tiniest bit of interest in me. I had finally caught a break during my junior year because Luke had graduated and was no longer around me all the time. That was when I had dated that asshole Santino who cheated on me after we’d been together for a year and a half.

It turned out he hadn’t cared about me as a person. He just liked that I was the alpha’s daughter, and he thought I could be his ticket to climbing the ranks. Thank the goddess I got my lie detecting gift and saved myself from that disaster.

After that, Drew and I just sort of… happened. I wasn’t really sure whether either of us intended to make a move on the other, or exactly when I started thinking of him as more than just my brother’s future beta or one of my best friends. But somehow, over time, our banter became more flirtatious, and we ended up in an unofficial relationship.

We agreed not to put a title to what we were, and we’d kept it hidden from everyone in our pack. I think we were both protecting ourselves, with my birthday and the possibility of me finding my mate looming over us.

We hadn’t brought it up to each other. We hadn’t discussed whether we would stop before then or if we’d continue if I didn’t find my mate. I didn’t know how he was feeling about any of it, but I knew it would disappoint me if he wasn’t my mate.

“Everly?”

I broke myself from my thoughts as I realized June had asked me a question and I hadn’t heard it at all.

“Sorry. What did you say?” I asked sheepishly.

“Drew and I are going to sleep out on the back patio tonight like we all used to do when we were kids. Did you want to stay as well?” she repeated, ignoring my impolite behavior.

I nodded my response to her with a small, grateful smile. A night like old times with the two of them was just what I needed.

“Great! Why don’t the three of you get yourselves set up out there while the rest of us clean up in here?” Sofia asked, dismissing us from the table.

I was sure they all wanted to discuss something private, probably something about my stupid brother, which was why they were shooing us outside. That way, we’d be far enough away from the kitchen so we wouldn’t overhear what they discussed.

Which was completely fine by me, since I intended to have a conversation with June.

As we were setting up our sleeping bags on the giant deck bed Juniper’s dad and Myles built one summer, something on June and Drew’s arms caught my eye. Something I had been too distracted to notice earlier.

“When did you two get matching tattoos?” I asked them, surprised they would do something like that without telling any of us.

They exchanged wary glances, trying to communicate with their eyes, before Drew finally said, “We went out to get them earlier today.”

Lie.

I narrowed my eyes at them.

“Has everyone forgotten that I’m literally a lie detector test?”

Drew flinched, and June grimaced and they both looked at the floor.

“I also got a new gift today,” I mentioned. They both nodded and glanced at each other, looking confused. “I can see through enchantments,” I confessed. “So I know the truth. About what you are,” I said, looking right at June.

Her hand shot up to her necklace, and Drew growled deeply behind me. I turned in surprise to look at him. I found him rubbing his hand over his face in aggravation.

“Sorry, Ev, I’m having a really hard time controlling it right now.”

My eyes widened, and my heart clenched as I realized he could very well be the second male from our pack to play me for a fool

“Wait, are the two of you… seeing each other? I thought we… I thought you were…” My throat tightened, and I couldn’t get the words out, couldn’t express my thoughts clearly at the betrayal I felt from my not boyfriend being with my best friend at the same time as me.

I didn’t care that June was standing right there. I didn’t care that she would find out Drew and I had become more than just friends. I never thought he’d be that type, but she deserved to know he was two-timing both of us.

And this would kill my brother. I had never sensed the dishonesty from either of them, never sensed an attraction towards each other, but they must have been excellent at hiding it. And I had never asked Drew if he was seeing someone besides me.

Drew swallowed, his eyes darting towards June, but the damage had already been done. I could feel the tears threatening to fall and I tilted my head up to the sky, blinking my eyes and willing them to go away.

I could sense Juniper’s wheels turning in her head. I sensed her watching us and piecing it together.

“He’s my protector,” she whispered. My head looked towards her at her words. “It’s like…” She bobbed her head around as she thought. “It’s like a gamma. The protector is chosen specially for the luna, to keep her safe when her mate can’t. Drew’s kind of the fairy version of a gamma. For me.” I looked back at Drew for confirmation, and he nodded. “That’s all we can really tell you right now,” she finished.

I could tell they were telling the truth. “Is that why you quit?” I asked Drew.

“Yes.”

I nodded and laughed at myself for how ridiculous I had just sounded.

“Sorry, I don’t know what came over me just now. It doesn’t matter if the two of you were seeing each other. That wouldn’t be any of my business. You’re both adults, both capable of making your own decisions. It’s not like I have a claim over Drew — I mean, I’m not even—”

Drew’s lips cut my rambling off. His mouth covered my own and his hands cupped my cheeks to keep me from pulling away. I stiffened at first, trying to deny him, even though I desperately wanted it.

My heart won in the end. I returned his kiss, parting my lips just enough to tease his own lips with my tongue, and my hands slid up to rest on his chest.

“Sorry,” he murmured as he pulled away so our noses were touching. “It was the only thing I could think of to get you to stop talking,” he finished, kissing the tip of my nose.

“What about—”

“She doesn’t care,” he answered.

He pulled me to his chest. His arms wrapped around my shoulders and my head turned to glance at June. My cheeks heated knowing she knew what Drew and I had been hiding for a few months.

But she only gave us a smile, albeit a sad one. Then she clapped her hands together and said, “Who wants to make s’mores?”