4, The new house

Rayvin was walking in a daze, she registered that Mikael was mind linking someone, probably Ben, and took the moment to get her thought straight. 

When she had walked up to Mikael’s office, she had been more than nervous. She had been scared of what was waiting for her. Once she had reached the top floor, she had been distracted by a faint scent of freshly brewed coffee and honey. It had distracted her enough to get her to the alpha’s office and knock on the door. 

As she heard Mikael ask her to come in, she almost turned around. But she opened the door, and the scent had hit her full-on. Both her animals had let her know she had found her mate, the two of them were in total agreement. Rayvin had just stared at Mikael sitting behind his desk. He was her mate. 

As he had run up to her, she had thought he was about to kiss her, but they had just looked at each other. He had gotten older, but not in a bad way. The awkward teenager had been replaced by a man. He was muscular and moved with determination and purpose. His blond hair and beard made him look rugged, but his deep blue eyes were the same as they always had been. 

Rayvin could drown in the ocean of his eyes. She had been helpless when he put his hand on her cheek and she had felt the sparks that set her skin on fire. When he had pulled her into an embrace, she had panicked for a moment. But his scent and the feeling of his arms around her had her returning the hug and burying herself in him. 

He felt like home. She felt safe and calm in his arms. The world seemed a little better when he was close to her. She had missed him more than she had let herself admit. 

When he had taken out her necklace, she had almost cried. Not only because of what the necklace meant to her, but the fact that he had kept it on his desk as a reminder of her. 

Rayvin felt guilt as she walked with Mikael’s arm around her. She was going to have to tell him everything, at least most of it. Not only would he understand why this mating was doomed, but he would never look at her the same way again. She was terrified that he would tell her that Milly had been right all along.

“You are far away,” he smiled at her.

“Sorry, things are moving fast,” she told him.

“I know, it’s okay. Do you like it?” he asked her and she followed his gaze.

Tucked into the treeline there was a house. The facade was clad in shingles and the woodwork was in dark wood. It wasn’t a small house; it was three storeys, and the large veranda on the second floor spanned the entire house. The view over the village must be stunning, Rayvin thought. 

“It looks amazing, but three storeys? Did your ego finally grow so big that it needed an entire floor for itself?” she joked. Mikael laughed and nuzzled into her neck again.

“Goddess, I really have missed you, Ray,” he chuckled. 

The sincerity in his voice made Rayvin smile. She tilted her head, so it rested against his. 

“Right back at you,” she smiled. 

“I got a little carried away,” he admitted as he looked up again. 

“To be honest, I mostly use the bedroom and the living room. Sometimes the office, if I need to work in peace,” he confessed.

“How many rooms are there?” she asked as they walked up to the front door.

“Well, let me show you,” he smiled and opened the door. 

The interior was a mix of modern and homely. They entered into a mudroom with plenty of space to hang their coats. 

“Down here there is a gym, a workshop and storage areas. The fun things are on the second and third storeys,” Mikael told her.

They took a stair and entered the enormous kitchen. To Rayvin’s surprise, it was a round room. In the middle of the room, a huge cooker hood in copper hung down over the stove that was placed on the round kitchen island. The walls were covered in counters and wall cabinets. 

“Do you cook often?” Rayvin asked as she looked around. 

“Not as often as I would like. I usually eat in the pack house. But I would like to use this kitchen more,” he told her. 

“In here is the dining room,” he said, showing her into a large room with a stone fireplace and a huge dining table made of chunky wood. It seated twelve people and stood on a soft cream-coloured rug.

“I love the table,” Rayvin said honestly and ran her hand over the smooth surface. 

“I’m happy to hear that, I made it,” Mikael smiled.

“You made it?” she asked, surprised. 

“Yeah, apparently I’m good at working with my hands,” he told her as he ushered her into the next room. 

They entered the living room, and the ceiling was two stories high with wood beams crisscrossing above them. There was a freakishly huge couch and a TV that was the largest one Rayvin had ever seen. There was another fireplace and a bar area. What took her breath away was the enormous two-storey window that looked out onto the terrace and the village.

“Wow,” she said. It was all she could say.

“You like?” Mikael asked, sounding a little nervous. 

“Yeah, it’s amazing,” she smiled at him. “And I love how you stole a jumbotron from a stadium,” she said, eyeing the TV. Mikael just chuckled. 

“Back there is my office, a bathroom and another room,” Mikael waved in the direction of a corridor. 

Instead of going to look at that part of the house, he led her upstairs. They came to a landing that spanned the entire house. They looked down into the living room. 

“These are all guest rooms, for now. They all have en suites,” Mikael said as they walked past three doors.

“This is the master bedroom,” he smiled as they came to the final door. 

Rayvin tensed a little. She didn’t know what his expectations were of her, and she hadn’t figured out what she wanted. 

“Relax, Ray. I’m not going to demand that you move in with me in this room this second,” he said, as he must have felt her tense up. 

“I’m sorry, Max. I’m probably the worst mate ever,” she sighed.

“Don’t say that,” he told her and pulled her into him. She let herself be engulfed in his strong arms.

“I have waited ten years for you. I can wait a little longer if it means you are comfortable,” he said.

“Nine,” she corrected him.

“Sorry?” he said.

“It’s been nine years since I left. You said ten,” she told him.

“Yeah, I may have had a crush on you before you left. I was really looking forward to your eighteenth birthday to find out if I was your mate,” he chuckled.

Rayvin looked at him with surprise.

“You did?” she asked.

“Yes,” he nodded. “I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to feel pressured,” he told her.

“I had a crush on you too,” she smiled.

“What?” he said. Looking devastated. That wasn’t the response she had expected.

“If I had known, I would never have let you go. I should have done something,” he said.

“No, Max, don’t think like that. I don’t blame you, and I know you did what you could. We both lost something that day, but it also led to good things,” she told him. 

“Good things? I had you right here and lost you for nine years because of my father’s decision,” Mikael huffed.

“Yes. But without that decision, you would never have become alpha a year later. The pack would have suffered under your father for several years more,” she reminded him. 

He looked at her with surprise.

“What? You didn’t think I kept tabs on you? Of course I did,” she smiled. 

He burst out smiling and gave her waist a squeeze. 

“Okay, let’s find a place for you to sleep. I recommend this room,” he said and pointed to the room next to the master bedroom. 

“I’ll take it,” she nodded, and he opened the door and showed her the room.

It was a spacious room with a large bed, a wardrobe, a desk and a fireplace. There was a door that Rayvin presumed led to the bathroom. The window showed the small garden at the back of the house and the woods. 

“It looks really cosy. I love that you have fireplaces everywhere,” Rayvin told him.

“I’m happy you like it,” he said, placing her bag on the bed. “The fireplace in the master bedroom is even bigger,” he added. 

“Strange thing to flex about,” she laughed, and he smiled at her.

“Ready to head downstairs and have a talk?” he asked, holding out his hand. 

Rayvin was definitely not ready, not even almost. This would be the end of the peace and happiness she was feeling. She wanted to tell him they could talk later, to ask him to just hang out for a while. But that wouldn’t be fair to him. She needed to let him go before they got too attached.

“Sure,” she therefore said and took his hand. 

Mikael looked at her for a while, then he nodded and they walked downstairs. 

“Sit,” he told her and gently nudged her towards the enormous couch. He walked away, towards the kitchen as Rayvin sighed and resigned to her fate and sat down.

Rayvin wasn’t a small person. She was taller than the average she-wolf. But the couch didn’t agree with her. It made her feel like a pygmy as she scooted further and further back to find the back of it. When she finally made it and leaned into it, it embraced her. There were no better words for it, Rayvin thought as she sank into the soft, plush couch. 

As she relaxed and stopped fighting it, she found herself truly loving it. She could spend the rest of her life right in this spot and she would be happy, she thought. 

Mikael came back with two beers and stopped by the fireplace to light it. Rayvin smiled as she felt the dry heat from the fire. She could almost forget her sorrows, she thought as Mikael handed her a beer and then joined her on the couch. 

“You look much more relaxed,” he smiled.

“This monstrosity of a couch will do that to you,” she sighed and wiggled further into it. 

“You will make me jealous,” he laughed and took a swipe out of his bottle. 

Rayvin took a sip of her own beer and decided it was time to get serious. She put in the effort to sit up. She drew her legs into sitting cross-legged on the couch, facing Mikael.

“Time for a serious talk, Max,” she said.