#3 New Home, New Playground

Present Day...

Outside the porch, Jake stopped me, taking advantage of this situation.

"You were quiet during the ride," he said, but his eyes glistened with delight.

"Why do you care?" I threw my weight around.

"Mate, I suggest you take a bath quickly," he said in his baritone voice, teasing me. 

"I am not your mate?" I puffed, scratching my head. "Do I stink to your alpha nose?" I scoffed. Was he trying to humiliate me now? But why do I think he was hinting at something else?

He came dangerously close, making my heart leap to my throat. What was he trying to do navigating troubled waters? The last time, I had felt this intense; it was almost a year back. "Mate, I can smell your arousal." His words dropped like a bomb, even if his face showed amusement.

"What!" My eyes widened comically. The ride back to home had been a roller coaster ride. Every time I stole glances at him, I found myself drowning in a pool of hormones, my pussy throbbing for him. If I had not had a release this morning, I would already be having a heat episode.

"Jake! Tyler said he would take care of the rest," my aunt's voice cut through the tension. 

Using it to my advantage, I rushed inside the house, my heart racing with confusion and anxiety.

Boom!

Nobody said we were moving out! My world collapsed at the sight of the packed luggage.

When I heard their footsteps, I bolted to my room, desperate to catch my breath and think through this. First, I needed a bath!

I turned on the shower, hoping the hot water would gulp down all my worries. But no! The cascading water felt like Jake's fingers, pulling me back to the mall when the hot stranger had finger fucked me. Even if it was a distant memory, I still went back there every now and then. But why was I thinking of him now? And why was I giving him a face now? Jake's face! 

"Mmmm," I tried not to moan, but when my fingers trusted inside my wet hole, I was reminded of how good it had felt that day. I imagined Jake to be here with me, fucking me instead.

"Aah!" I placed my free hand around my mouth to cover my moans as I closed near my orgasm. But it wasn't helping today when I knew the man of my fantasy, my new crush, my aunt's boyfriend, was looming downstairs. 

I trusted my hands deep and fast, trying to make this faster. I can't make them wait any longer. What if someone walks into my room? 

When I finally had the release that could save my face in front of Jake, I stepped outside my room.

The small cozy space weighed on me. It had been my hiding spot for years. And suddenly I have to move? Why? Determined not to leave and carve my way out of the situation, I descended the staircase to confront them.

Fuck! My eyes widened at what I saw.

The two were having a casual moment. They were laughing and giggling, looking at some old photos. Was I an object of ridicule? Why would he want to see them? But when they shared another casual laughter, my world collapsed. It pained me more than I could admit. It was as if someone ripped my heart from my chest with their bare claws.

I looked up towards my sanctuary - my room. Rather than being the third wheel, it was better they left me alone here. He was a forbidden fruit that I could not have.

"Elsa!" His voice cut through me, his eyes piercing through my soul. I felt almost naked under his gaze.

“Did you freshen up, honey? Let's eat something before we leave.” Sylvie said nonchalantly.

“I’m not leaving,” I snapped, not really caring to hide my frustration.

“Can you be a little more reasonable? Jake is here,” Sylvie responded, clearly pissed.

“I am 18. My decision is final!” I retorted, for once acting like a normal teenager.

Sylvie’s eyes were burning holes in my back, but before she could say something, I stormed to my safe place. “Jake, I told you she might be unreasonable. She doesn’t understand your good intentions. Despite my warnings, you wanted to surprise her, to welcome her as a family on her birthday.”

So it was his idea! I laughed at myself. I slammed my door behind me, running towards my bed. I covered myself with my blanket as if it could shield me from anything and everything.

Her words were like a punch to the gut. Who was he to plan a surprise for my birthday? Does he know me? Now, with that stupid idea, he was crushing my world again.

But fuck! My body propelled towards Jake. My heart was excited to stay in a house with Jake - to be able to watch him every day. It could be my guilty pleasure. My secret.

Burying my face in my pillow, I cursed at my life as tears began to fall freely. I couldn't shake off the nervousness and anxiousness coursing through me. It was all so overwhelming. 

My heart raced when I heard a knock on my door before it flung open. Peeped outside my blanket, and my eyes widened in horror. It was Jake, visibly disturbed.

"Elsa! Are you alright?" He rushed to my side, concern evident in his tender voice. By now I could tell that the way he reacted and talked with me was different from others. I couldn't be wrong always.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice gentle and full of care.

No one had ever asked if I was okay. Never. People around me always made assumptions. No one bothered to understand what I wanted. Here, this stranger whom I had met only a couple of hours before wanted to know if I was okay. I didn't know what to understand about this.

I was turning to face away when the medicine bottle from my hand slipped.

“What’s this medicine?” Jake asked, picking up the bottle of pills. “Do you have an anxiety issue?”

“Yes,” I accepted, my voice trembling. “I take it when I have to.” These days I had better control over my emotions.

"Are you scared of me now?” He asked, bothered, pulling me out of my thick blanket.

I didn't know what to speak, especially when everything I tried to say choked on my throat. His hands on my shoulders were a major distraction. His eyes on mine were a major trigger. He was leaving me breathless, igniting a desire I might not push away.

Jake exhaled deeply in helplessness. He rubbed his temples, noticing my discomfort. “Your aunt is worried about you" A silence prevailed. "With the Blood moon approaching, you should stay with us. What if your wolf recovers finally?”

I gasped. He knows? Did my aunt share this with him? Exactly how close were they that she told him about such sensitive information? But he was wrong. My wolf was long gone. I was always alone.

“She is at work and I am almost always alone at home. It hardly matters where I stay. I am comfortable here.” I replied, fidgeting my fingers. I realized at that moment that this loneliness had engulfed me, leaving me more sad.

“I will be worried.” His words left me in splits. Why does he care? Who am I? "Don't you want to live with me?" His eyes had pain and fear. And he was faltering my earlier resolution. I would cross ten lives to live with him.

“I don’t want to move to a different pack,” I confessed. "You must know that change is what frightens me the most."

I was afraid that once my feelings for Jake faded, I would not be able to cope again. I was afraid that if my feelings further increased, I might not be able to handle them. After my parents' death, it took my wolf to get back on my feet. What would it cost me if Jake left me? He doesn't even know how I am beginning to see him!

“Do you trust me?” Jake asked. I don't know with what confidence and authority he asked me, but I wanted to trust him with all my heart.

“Can I?” 

For the first time in a long time, I felt hopeful because of him. His presence soothed me better than any medicine. I just knew I could trust him.

"Yes," he ran his hands on my hair gently before pecking on my forehead affectionately. I didn't know why he did that. I didn't know why I didn't stop him. “You can trust me always, mate." His words felt familiar and reassuring.

“It's not like I like being alone,” I whispered, my voice breaking as the tears flowed freely.

“You won’t be ever again. I promise,” Jake said, taking my hands in his. His touch sent tingles rippling through me. 

“Thank you, mate,” Jake said, his eyes glistening with hope and smile radiant with happiness. I had fallen for him all over again.

---

Jake’s POV:

Finally, Elsa agreed to move in with me. The joy I felt was indescribable.

From the moment I sniffed Elsa at the mall opening last year, I knew she was my mate. Her crazy virgin hormones stirred me that day and I had acted recklessly as I had pleased her in the restroom. Later I dealt with my hesitation. She was just seventeen - a stark decade age gap stood between us. I was the powerful billionaire alpha, the CEO of the largest mall group. And she was a wolfless girl. I had decided to reject her.

But the more I followed her to reject her, the more I was drawn. Her past was as bad as mine. No wonder the moon goddess paired us - so that we could heal each other. I developed a sense of responsibility for him. Only I could uncover the mysteries shrouding her life. She went on a heat on meeting me. I knew her wolf was reacting to my presence. So, I was going to bring back the remarkable white wolf. 

I was determined to change her tragic life and turn her into the heroine she was destined to become. I was her mate. I will protect her with my life.

But right now, I have one deep regret. I should not have complicated us by entering into her life as Sylvie's boyfriend. My good intentions were hasty. Even though it gave me the upper hand to protect her, investigate her parents's death, and not stir her world, I was afraid I could stay away from her. I wanted to be more than her silent guardian. I wanted to be her partner.