7

Maverick does a mental nod in his head when Layla says that Aurora has been using a scent masking spell since she entered the room, it now makes sense when he realizes that must be the reason why he can't smell her when she walks into the room and only realizes that he still can't.

Not until she whispers some things to herself and her sea-like scents hit him, the problem is that it hits all too well.

Aurora smells like the scent of the breeze that hits you when you have been standing at the ocean while staring at a sea shell and he has always liked it.

One doesn't get to see too much of the sea when one is a werewolf and has to be in the woods and forest and small town, so her scent was a fresh difference from the others in the town and calmed him.

When those scent play with all the nerves of his sense organs and his wolf rumples at the prospect of finding a another mate, it is happy but the happiness dims and it whines when he sees that it is still the soul that hurt them and they break a bond with, a small pained howl was let out but none of it reflects on Maverick's face.

“I don't want to have anything to do with you, Alpha Maverick,” Aurora says firmly and Maverick nods. “This mate bond is not going to do anything.”

Her words cause his wolf to grunt in discomfort but it makes everyone else in the room go almost crazy and starts murmuring.

“What? They are mates?” Sadie asks with wide eyes.

“Again? I have never heard of two former mates becoming each other's second chances!” Hilda says.

“Are they going to reject each other like the last time?” Floyd asks instead, but none of them gets any answer.

“That has to be the weirdest mate's realization that I have ever seen,” Jared says.

“Me too.” Owen agrees.

“Me three. Normally, it is usually enthusiastic acceptance, dramatic rejections or awkward stare-touches. These two just stand there like blank canvas and converse like voodoo dolls,” Layla says but she doesn't bother to whisper like everyone else in the room is doing.

The other representative of the Rogue pack is surprised that the two used to be mates.

“That's understandable and preferred. Let's keep our distance, I hope that this won't affect our dealings,” he says and she scoffs like it is an insult.

“If you think that it will, then it is already affecting your thinking, we are going to be very diplomatic about this. You go over that file of yours while I run my eyes over mine, then we would meet tomorrow morning and everyone can fuck off, back to where they come from. My delta would lead you to your rooms for the night. Night, Alpha Maverick.” She says and stands up to leave, Alec doesn't fail to continue giving her the stink eyes.

Easton quickly stands up, not so subtly pushing the chairs beside Alec to make it hit him, before him and everyone else in the pack present here except Hilton and the gamma follow Aurora, Layla was chatting her ears off about how unbelievable she is to talk to her mate like that.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

“You have to convince her to be you, Luna, Alpha.” Dan says and Maverick turns to glare at him. He wonders if the leader of the pack council has a death wish.

Everyone else went to their room except for Gary, Dan and his best friend.

“Who the hell do you think you are to tell me what I should do?” He asks with an icy voice and both Dan and Gary flinch.

“Even though we were clearly against coming here before we came because we didn't know their oh-so-powerful witch and the Alpha are ex-members of our pack who went rogue.

Like seriously I am so surprised, that woman was just a Twink and that idiot just followed her around, how people have come to respect her far and wide is over my head. But still…” Gary says and expects either Maverick and Alec to ask him questions but neither of them speaks and just keeps staring at her which makes super uncomfortable leading him to clear his throat.

“We still don't trust them, if anything, we are more on edge because of the history you had with them, they look like they will do any fucking thing to bring you down. So if you manage to get to mark her as Luna, then she will be under you.” He finishes and Alec scoffs.

“And when she is the Luna, will she stop planning against the pack that drove her out? Fucking Hilarious.” Alec says sarcastically.

“Get out of my place, both of you.” Maverick says with finality, he has too much running in his head to deal with these guys’ bullshits.

“You might tell us to go out all you want but I have reported the event of this evening to my dad, and he will have to talk to his friends before they advise you on what to do. It's the pack business now. If you are away from her you will start feeling weak and sick, you are not immune just because you are the lycan king, Alpha.

There is pressure from the rival pack already, we can't have them getting a whiff of this, you are already lucky enough that your mate just happen to be the woman no one can just up and go and kidnap, that's a big bad bonus Alpha~” he says before he pulls Gary out with him.

His dad was the former elder when her father was still the Alpha and have a lot against Aurora, he was also the one that ranted on and on about how unfit Aurora was to be the Luna and got the witches that broke their bonds too, he and ‘his friends’ might have passed the position of the pack councils to their sons and daughters but these people are just puppets who get news back to them.

Fuck if he will allow them to make the decision of what he does with his mate this time too, they did a lot of trampling around the last time.

Maverick has been trying to eradicate them but they are such a pain in the ass and he can't get rid all at once. They are a huge apart of the pack too, so him, Alec, Floyd, Sadie and Hilda are drafting some plans, it was just supposed to be him and Alec but the rest found out, Floyd wants some excitement and excuse to investigate the ‘wrinkling things’ and everyone knows how much Sadie hates them.

“What are you going to do now Maverick?” He asks, his voice has turned soft and Maverick runs over his face and lets his best mate see him for how he truly feels.

Confused, angry, hurt, sad, and fed up.

The emotions he kept perfectly under wraps are bare and open for all to see behind the safety of closed doors and his friend’s understanding.

It is not mate bond that is letting him act this way, it barely has anything to do with that thing, they are even able to feel less since Aurora wolf is still barely at the surface, it is weak naturally and the broken bond must have done nothing to help it. His complex feelings have to do with all the buried tingles and strangles he buries deep, the complicated decisions and well thought brutal actions that come with no choices.

Were they going to go through that endless spin all over again? Aurora clearly announces that they shouldn't deal with each other but unless that addresses the big elephant in the room, nothing will get easier.

It will only be a matter of months after he is back in his pack before he starts feeling post mate-withdrawal symptoms.

“I honestly don't know Alec, I don't know.”

“Why don't you just reject her and get this over with, it hurts you a lot right here, I know that pained look in your eyes, it is just like that night after you ran all around the wood with pains of betrayal in your eyes.” Alec says and Maverick shakes his head and rests his arms on the nearest wall, placing his head on it.

“I can't do it again, Alec.”

“What can't you do?”

“I can't hurt her again, another fucking rejection will end her, I … I am done with.. that. I … fuck, Alec. All I know is that I can't hurt her again.”

“But she won't know the extent of the favor you are doing for her,” Alec says in exasperation and Maverick clenched his fist, the agony in his eyes immeasurable.

“It doesn't matter Alec, I am used to it now.”