1

Three more weeks. Just three more agonizing weeks until Teddy could mark me and I could finally claim my mate.

We'd managed not to cross the line, but the burning desire that had consumed me since we found each other was relentless.

The only time he didn't stop me from touching him had intensified the need, making it the sole thing on my mind most of the time.

It was impossible to forget the way his body responded, the way his eyes flashed with that wild hunger before he realized what was happening and jumped up to stop me.

That fight afterward was epic, magnified by the fact that we were at my house when it happened. Only a few halls down from where my brothers were asleep. I realized that night it was entirely possible to have a screaming match while whispering.

Still, we kept our promises to my family, keeping boundaries intact. But those promises felt like chains, holding me back from what I craved.

What were three more weeks compared to the torturous ten months we'd endured?

Every day had been a fight against the primal urges that came with a one-sided mark. Teddy had been marked for damn near a year, and the imbalance was pure torment. Especially for me, an alpha.

A female alpha.

The dominance and power that was literally in my blood clashed with the agony of waiting. My wolf was desperate to unite with him. She did not understand why we were waiting, why we were torturing ourselves like this.

The answer was simple.

Human laws and expectations didn't always align with werewolf ethics. And the human side won out here. Mainly because it protected Teddy from the rest of the alphas in my family. At least until I was old enough to do it myself.

I wasn't naive. I was aware of the reasoning. I wouldn't be an alpha if something that plain wasn't obvious to me. Still, the reasons didn't make being apart any more manageable.

Our separation turned into a battleground. We fought more than we were together. Our disagreements were brutal, often erupting into intense screaming matches. Our voices often echoed through the mind link even after we hung up the phone angrily.

Then, as soon as we reunited, the details of our arguments blurred into insignificance. All that mattered was our relentless struggle to be together and finally unite the way we were meant to be.

I was pacing, scanning the horizon for any sign of Teddy's truck. I typically heard it long before it came into view. The giant aftermarket muffler and large bass-boosted speakers blaring music always made sure of that.

Tonight, I needed to hear that sound like I needed air.

He said he'd come tonight, but that was before we started fighting.

"Again? This is the third time this week, Mon Loup," Sky said, startling me. She was leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed with a smile on her face.

Mon Loup... 'My Wolf' in French. That's what Teddy called me most of the time now. Well, when we weren't fighting. And we were fighting again. That's why I was out here, waiting.

This was our pattern lately. Blow up, cool down, then rush back into each other's arms like gravity pulling us together. I craved it, even when it tore me apart.

Sky laughed at my restlessness. She understood. She dealt with this even now, being all three of my oldest brother's mates. "You're gonna kill me, you know that? The only reason I'm awake is because the twins are."

Ah, the youngest set of twins currently overtaking the Monroe house. My niece and nephew.

Two more alphas.

It's no wonder I escaped to the Bayou as often as I did. Our house was bursting with alpha energy. Nine of us were under one roof, including a five-month-old baby girl who already acted like she ruled the place.

And she kind of did.

My 24-year-old identical triplet brothers, Nola's dads, bent to her will and demands, as did my younger 9-year-old twin brothers. Hell, even Nola's own twin Huckley, seemed to give in to her desires.

I must admit, it was cute. Plus, it proved to me just how powerful female alphas could be.

Nola made me wonder if I'd been the same way as a baby.

Probably. I couldn't imagine any other way in a family of alphas.

I was the only one without a carbon copy, the only Monroe conceived naturally, and the only female out of six. So, everyone doubted I was Alpha my entire life. That was until Leila, the Moon Goddess had me shift early so I could mark and save Teddy.

I proved them wrong. Only alphas shift before their eighteenth birthdays.

I finally heard it.

A faint rumble that grew louder. I jumped up, my heart pounding. I needed to see Teddy, to touch him, to kiss his neck where my mark had long since healed.

I also had to make it to the full moon, just three weeks away, so he could finally mark me.

Teddy's truck came into view, and my heart fluttered. This time, I'd make sure we didn't fight again.

Not tonight. I needed him too much.

The truck pulled up, totally caked in mud. There was no telling where he had been this time.

He had a habit of driving deep into the Bayou on paths he called roads whenever he was upset. We'd gotten stuck out there more than once, leading to me missing curfew and us getting into a lot of trouble.

Teddy jumped out to open the door for me, and I noticed his clean shirt. He also didn't reek of the Bayou, which meant he'd tried to clean up, knowing it didn't matter to me how he showed up, as long as he did. Clear signs he felt terrible about our fight.

Teddy wasn't great at explaining his feelings, but his efforts spoke volumes.

I hopped into the truck. He didn't say anything. He just looked over at Sky, standing by the driver's door with her arms folded.

"How them babies, Cherie?" Teddy asked her with a wink.

Sky laughed. "Giving me hell, just like their daddies... Can I go with y'all?"

Teddy chuckled, glancing at me. "Well, you could, but you won't like it." Then, almost as an afterthought, "But of course, you."

Sky jumped off the step and landed on the ground with a grin. "Ehh, y'all have fun. I have enough to worry about here, me." 

Teddy laughed out loud and winked at her. He loved the fact that my family were sounding more and more like him. It was almost impossible not to pick up some of the things he said.  While hard to understand for most outsiders, the Cajun dialect was beautiful. It took me awhile to realize using pronouns at the end of sentences created emphasis. It was an exclimation point via words.  

With that, Teddy eased the truck into gear and we pulled away from the house. He still didn't say a word, just stared ahead. I huffed, turning to the window.

The past year had been brutal on us.

Thanks to my dad, Teddy kept his position as Beta of the Bayou pack while I was stuck on Monroe land. Sure, Teddy spent more time at my house than his packhouse, and I snuck out to the Bayou whenever I could, but we still fought.

Often.

Mates weren't supposed to be apart like this. I felt the distance in every argument, every frustrated look.

Every moody silence.

The mate bond pulled at me, but life kept shoving us in different directions.

I looked over at him. He shifted a little but kept his eyes on the road. "We need to talk," I finally said. "Really talk. Not just fight."

"I know, Cassy." He lifted the console and looked over at me. “Viens ici, mon amour.”

I hesitated, gripping the seatbelt like it was the last lifeline to my pride. I'd barely flinched before he found the buckle, releasing it with a click.

If I didn't move now, he'd just pull me over, make me sit beside him, and wrap his arm around me until I couldn't remember why I was mad in the first place.

Experience told me to pick my battles. When I didn't fight this, we were usually calm by the time we reached the Bayou land.

“Oh, so it’s ‘Viens ici mon amour’ now?” I huffed, sliding closer reluctantly. "Now it's suddenly 'Come here, my love' again and not, how would I say it in French? 'Come here, you vicious little mess?' That's what you called me earlier, right? How would you say that in French?"

I was starting to spiral again.

He slid his arm around my waist. Before I knew it, I was pressed against his side. "In all fairness, you called me an asshole," he muttered.

Teddy had cracked the code. Physical contact was the remedy. We only fought when separated, a distance enforced more and more by the chaos in his pack.

Teddy's best friend growing up picked him as Beta right out of high school. Now, the Bayou Alpha's endless string of women, civil wars within the pack, and the constant threats from neighboring packs trying to take over were dragging him down.

And us as well.

I couldn't wait for the full moon. Soon, I'd be marked, and I could bring him to my land. Despite the alpha energy, it was more peaceful there.

Far from the bullshit tearing us apart.

I rested my head against his chest. "I can't wait to get you away from all this," I whispered.

He just pulled me closer and sighed.