Chapter Four: Taylor

"I hate you so much. I literally asked for one thing."

"Look I'm sorry but I have to work, I can ask someone to―"

"I don't want other people here; they just annoy me and then refuse to leave."

"You're kidding right?"

"Do I look like I'm fucking kidding?"

I cover my mouth with my hands to stifle my laugh. Shawn squeezes my shoulder a little and I notice he has an amused smile on his face.

"Fine. Love you too babe."

Angel walks into the living room a moment later, sighing heavily. "Honestly, she's lucky I had to deal with a pregnant Lyza on two separate occasions otherwise I probably wouldn't be able to put up with her for more than a few minutes," she mutters.

"Is she really that bad?" I ask.

She snorts. "She just yelled at me because she can't give herself a pedicure and I didn't bring her the pizza she never actually asked for."

I shake my head with a small chuckle. "Zella is the most patient, level-headed person I know. If this is what pregnancy does to her I can't imagine what it would do to you," I remark.

Angel scowls at me. "I mean you're not wrong but seriously, ouch."

"How much longer does she have now?" Shawn asks.

"Two months if I remember correctly, though Jada said she'll be lucky if she doesn't go into labor in the next couple of weeks."

"Lucky?"

"Yeah it's more dangerous for her and the babies if she has them earlier," she sighs.

I hear a sudden crash in the next room and what sounds like a dish breaking and I jump a little. Angel swears under her breath. "You guys should get out of here before she starts yelling at you too," she says.

"You gonna be okay?" I ask.

She nods. "Yeah we'll be fine."

I give her a sympathetic smile before heading for the door, Shawn's arm around my shoulders. I freeze at the harsh sound of another dish breaking.

"Will you stop throwing stuff? You're going to hurt yourself!"

My eyes widen at the growl that echoes through the house.

"What—no! Zella, I did not say that you're fat I just meant that—ow! Stop throwing plates at me!"

"Should we send in some guards?" Shawn asks, looking genuinely concerned.

"I really don't think they'd be able to help," I mutter when Angel suddenly rushes out of the kitchen.

"Goddess this is really close to being Lyza bad," she murmurs.

"What the hell did she do that's worse than this?" I hiss, my eyes wide.

"Well she kinda decided she wanted payback all of the sudden," she says.

"Payback for what?" Shawn asks.

Angel waves him away and pushes past us to get out the door. I roll my eyes before following her. "Angel what did you do?"

"I tried to kill her a few times and almost got my brother killed and also made a few mistakes that ended up getting Lyza mind-controlled for a little while and a lot of stupid stuff that she—rightfully—wanted revenge for," she grumbles.

"You're not dead so she obviously didn't get her revenge."

"Yeah no shit. She still got me pretty good though. I totally deserved all of it, but it still sucked. Her mood swings were ridiculous, and she sent me on errands constantly, so I got like no sleep and then when the twins were born it got way worse," she sighs, then smiles a little. "There were a lot of problems so Lyza had to go to dragon territory a lot to keep the dragons under control and Daerius was busy rebuilding the pack so he couldn't really help either, so I practically raised Maia and Kaine with the help of their brother."

I bite the inside of my cheek and stop dead in my tracks. I don't know how she is surviving. Kaine, Jaxon, and their mother are far away and have plenty of work to keep them distracted but I don't think Angel will ever be able to move on.

She still lives in the house where her brother shot himself and has to train warriors every day in the same place where she spent months training Maia. She doesn't get to see her nephews anymore since they can't stand to be in werewolf territory. She never even had time to grieve because her mate was pregnant, and she had to take over as Head Warrior.

"Tay are you alright?"

I watch Angel disappear into the trees and clench my jaw. "I can't do it. I can't do it to her it's just not fair," I growl, shaking my head.

Shawn sighs and kisses the top of my head. "We can wait until after Zella gives birth," he suggests.

I shake my head. "They're going to having three babies to take care of, there's no way they'll be able to take care of an entire pack on top of that," I mutter.

"I just want you to be happy. But if being Werewolf Queen is too much for you then this is the only solution. Angel and Zella are more than capable of leading a pack and Angel has alpha blood to support her claim. It seems the children are the only problem."

"I can't do it and it's ridiculous. Maia was going to take all of this responsibility when she was 16 and I'm 19 and I have no fucking clue what I'm doing," I growl, burying my face in my mate's chest. 

He wraps his arms around me. "Queen Lyzaria knew it wouldn't be fair to you, but she didn't have any other option. Angel and Zella are starting a family, her son refused, and you're already mates with an Alpha, you're the only one that fits the position."

"I know, I just wish it was different," I mumble.

He sighs. "Well if Angel becomes the Alpha and Zella is her Luna, then there is no need for a werewolf king or queen. We will have fewer responsibilities and to make up for their added ones, we can help with their children."

I pull away with a small chuckle. "Free babysitting in exchange for becoming the alpha? Sounds pretty fair to be honest. I kinda suck with kids though," I mutter.

He shrugs. "I have two younger sisters and a younger brother, I can handle pups," he chuckles.

I grin. "Thank you."

He leans down to kiss me softly and I slide my arms around his neck. He pulls away with a smile. "Anything for my mate."

"Where did you learn that?"

"My mother taught me."

"Can you play another one?" I ask.

He nods with a smile. "Any requests?"

"I don't really know any names, but I like the slow ones," I tell him.

He nods and his expression completely changes as he looks down at the keys. He begins to play, and it's only a few minutes before his brother comes creeping down the stairs.

Dylan plops down beside me, watching his older brother intently. I chuckle, leaning back against the couch and adjusting my blanket to cover us both.

His fingers run smoothly over the keys and I can't help but grin as I watch him play the piano. His eyes are closed and his head sways gently; there's a smile on his lips.

"What song is that?" I hear his mother suddenly ask and the music stops.

"Mom shhhhhh!" Dylan whines making everyone laugh.

"I know you like listening to the piano but you're supposed to be in bed young man," she tells him.

"Can I listen to one more song?"

"Maybe tomorrow, tonight I've already let you stay up later than usual since Taylor is here so now you need to go to bed," she says.

"Dang it," he huffs, climbing off the couch.

She rolls her eyes and follows him upstairs with an amused smile. "Goodnight Shawn, goodnight Taylor," she calls.

"Goodnight Mom," Shawn says before coming over to me. He takes my hand and pulls me to my feet.

I raise an eyebrow at him. "Do we have a bedtime too?"

***

"Goddess why do you have to be a morning person?" I groan, yanking the covers over my head.

I hear a laugh and they're pulled back again. I roll over with a grimace. "Seriously Shawn the sun hasn't even come out yet," I grumble.

"You said you wanted to be a warrior; warrior training starts at sunrise."

"I don't want to be a warrior, now let me sleep."

"Yes, you do."

I sigh. "Yes, I do," I mumble. I slide out of bed and wrap my arms around myself. Even my thick fuzzy pajamas can't keep me warm.

I hear music coming from the bathroom and smile. "Were you having a dance party in the shower?"

"Perhaps," he grins.

I shake my head. "Everyone thinks you're a stern, proper alpha, but deep down you're a major dork," I tease.

He smirks, tilting up my chin. "Only for you," he growls, kissing me softly.

I make a face when he pulls away. "I need to brush my teeth."

He chuckles. "Go get ready for training, I'll get you some breakfast—"

"Just coffee," I tell him, and he snorts.

"No, you are going to eat something. Last time you almost passed out halfway through the day," he says.

I scowl. "Fine," I mutter.

I pad into the bathroom and take a hot shower before brushing my teeth. I dry myself off and pull on my training clothes—spandex shorts and a tank top.

I am pulling my hair up when Shawn walks in. I notice he has only a mug in his hand. "I don't have to eat breakfast?"

"They're still cooking downstairs," he explains.

"Why do you guys have cooks? There's six of you in this house. Can none of you cook?"

"Not really. My mother can make amazing desserts but that's the extent of my family's cooking ability," he chuckles.

He hands me the mug and I drink almost half of it before finally feeling fully awake. "Well your barista is fantastic," I say, setting it down on the nightstand.

"Why thank you," he grins, bowing a little.

"So, you can't make a frozen pizza but you can make the world's best latte?"

He shrugs. "Everyone has their talents."

I laugh and lean forward to kiss him. He sits down on the edge of the bed, pulling me with him. I straddle his lap and curl my arms around his neck before closing my eyes.

I run my tongue across his lip and he growls a little, smirking against my mouth. He runs his hands down my sides where they settle on my thighs.

I slide my fingers into his hair and tug gently. He growls again and I moan when he grabs my butt.

He suddenly pulls away and my eyes snap open. His head is bowed, his growls echoing through the room.

"Shawn are you okay?" I ask carefully.

He shakes his head with a small sigh. "I normally have full control over my wolf but I'm struggling at the moment," he mutters, glancing up at me. "You're just too beautiful," he adds lightheartedly.

I bite the inside of my cheek, watching as his eyes flash icy blue for a moment. He growls and they return to their normal dark green.

"Do you want to mark me?" I ask.

"I don't want to do anything you're not okay with," he says.

I smile. "It's okay. I've been thinking about it for a while now, I just didn't know how to bring it up," I admit.

"Are you sure?" He asks.

I nod. "Yeah I trust you, I trust Helix a little less but—"

Shawn's chuckle cuts me off. "Helix is overeager sometimes but he still respects you. I promise I won't let him do anything," he assures me.

I lean forward to kiss him again and he puts his hand on the side of my face. My heart pounds as he starts trailing kisses down my jaw.

He makes his way to my neck and I squeeze my eyes shut, bracing myself for the excruciating pain. It never comes.

There's a small sting and then a firm pressure and that's it. "You can open your eyes now Taylor," he chuckles.

I slowly do as he says and see him watching me with amusement. "Did you do it?" I ask.

He makes a face. "Never thought I'd hear a girl say that," he mutters, and I scowl.

"Funny. No, I just don't understand, I was told that being marked hurts like hell, but I barely felt that," I say.

He chuckles a little. "The longer you wait to mark your mate, the less it hurts. Everyone thinks it's just a stupid myth, but the moon goddess made it that way to try to counteract the effect the mate bond has on our wolves."

I frown. "Is that why you were willing to wait? Cause you knew it would hurt me less?"

"I was willing to wait because you weren't ready," he says, his lips curing into a small smile. "I would've waited years if you had asked me to."