Chapter Twenty - New Arrangement

Jake stood just inside his bedroom door waiting for the smell of the soup to dissipate enough to tell him Liana was done with her dinner. He’d been so ecstatic to have finally found his mate that he hadn’t really thought about how she felt. It was time to correct that. Typically both werewolves were happy once a bond was revealed and he’d just arranged things as though she was as happy with the match as he was and would want to start adjusting to her new position as quickly as possible. He should have realized that wouldn't be the case with a werewolf who had been raised to believe she was human. He should have talked to her about what he was doing. Normally they would be sharing through the mind link and he’d just know, but since that wasn’t possible with Liana he should have been talking to her more, asking more questions. It wasn’t as though he’d mated with someone who’d grown up knowing werewolf ways and was excited to find a mate quickly and proud to have the moon goddess choose her as the Luna. This is a huge change for Liana. He winced remembering the songs she’d sung and admitted that it was an even bigger change for her than he’d ever imagined. Hopefully, if he apologized and gave her some time, let her adjust to the idea more slowly, maybe she would forgive him and they could still make a good match. She didn’t have to agree to it on the wolf moon, but hopefully, she’d be willing to give them a chance and get to know him rather than refusing him outright. The moon goddess must know they needed each other, but the why and how were not exactly obvious to either of them in this instance. Not to him, and certainly not to Liana, she hadn’t even believed in the moon goddess until recently. Actually, he wasn’t even sure if Liana believed or was just being tolerant of their belief to be polite. Sweat coated his hands as he heard the silverware being laid down on the tray. He listened carefully, but when Lia didn’t call for an omega to collect it he went and knocked on her door..

“How in the world did you know I was done?” Lia said as she opened the door, obviously expecting him to be an omega there to collect the dishes. “Oh. It’s you.”

“May I come in and talk to you?”

“Do I have a choice?” she asked stepping back, her face slightly surprised when he didn’t step in after her.

“Of course you have a choice, though I understand now why you would think otherwise. I came to apologize, but I can do that another time if you prefer.”

“You’re going to apologize? For what?” His eyes held hers for a moment, really wishing that he could mind link with her. Emotions were so much easier to share without having to put them into words.

“A lot,” he said finally. “Can I come in and sit down or would you rather come out to the couch? Or do you just want me to say it in the doorway? Or maybe you would prefer tomorrow?”

“Now’s fine,” She looked over her shoulder at her little room. Jake thought about the furnishings and got even more nervous. The bistro stools would be a bit small and uncomfortable for him, but the bed was not a good place to keep his wolf in check so the stools would be better.

“Maybe the couch would be best,” she said at last. He smiled in relief and gestured for her to lead the way. She sat rigidly on the edge of the sofa with her hands clasped on her knees. She didn’t trust him he realized, not that he could blame her. From her education and experience, he was the enemy. His mouth went dry, his hands got sweaty, and all of his carefully planned apology flew from his brain as she looked up at him, waiting. Jake plunged his hands into his pockets, simply for a place to have them, and he found the keys that he’d slipped in there earlier. He pulled them out and held them out towards her.

“I’m told you have your driver’s license?” His voice almost cracked like a schoolboy's. That would have been embarrassing.

“You’re giving me a car?” she asked, eyeing the keys suspiciously.

“Well, David said you have a license, but that you and Selene have no car. You can borrow mine while you’re here, that way you can get back and forth to your school. All I ask is that you bring it back here before dinner each evening and spend the night. I’d prefer you stayed away from your cottage since there is obviously still poison in there, but I’ll trust your judgment on that.”

“You will?” Her voice sounded odd, as though she were not really trusting her own ears.

“You were able to detect the toxin when David and I could not,” he answered with a shrug, “obviously you know what you’re doing.”

“Thank you.”

“I can send a team to clean it more thoroughly, but we won’t know if it’s safe there until we know how the poison got in. I’m sure you’re capable of dealing with it while you’re awake, but when you’re sleeping I’d rather you were in the pack house. It’s very well protected, so we’d all feel better if you slept here until we know what happened. I thought about having you stay with the Rogues but if someone is trying to hurt you, specifically you, then you staying with them could be putting their pups at risk.”

“I hadn’t thought of that.”

“You can explain the change in plans to your school by saying a friend was able to lend you a car. We’re outside the busing area, so that was your only way in.” She nodded, “And your Gran will still be here, so they won’t think it’s strange that you come back every day to see her. We really are doing everything we can to help her,” he said, sitting down on the chair across from her. “I’ve got all the local healers, from our pack and the other two local ones and one from up the Cape here, trying to figure out how to help her. We’ve even been calling other packs across North America and we’re looking for contacts in the ones overseas too. It’s just...nobody has ever dealt with an adult wolf who has the scarring Selene has. The most difficult thing is most werewolf medicine uses the enhanced healing of the werewolf bonds and the inner wolf, but she can’t seem to shift to wolf. Herbs and medicinals are great medicines for werewolves, but the wolf bond augments them and speeds our healing. We’ve always depended on that. We don’t know if she just needs more time or different medication, or if it is possible to heal her wolf first and get its help from there. We’re searching for more answers. We even risked contacting a human doctor to see how they’d treat aconite poisoning in case we should be treating the human and wolf halves of her differently. A werewolf who is poisoned and can’t fully shift is uncharted territory for everyone we’ve asked.”

“I understand.” She was still sitting there fiddling with the keys in her lap. He couldn’t see her eyes, but he could hear the tears and strain in her voice. “

We’re doing our best, and the consensus seems to be that she is getting stronger. Everyone is hopeful that it is just going to take time.” She nodded. They sat in silence for a moment when Jake realized that he hadn’t actually apologized yet.

“I want you to know that I am sorry, Liana. I made plans and set things in motion as though you were a female werewolf. It is very rare for any werewolf to question a bond, even rarer to refuse it. I wasn’t really taking into account how differently you might feel having only just learned of the werewolf ways. I should have been talking to you more and assuming less. As Alpha I’m used to making plans and setting things in motion, always looking for the most efficient route from point A to point B. As soon as I found you I started making plans and when you arrived here I made them faster without looking at the whole situation.

Now that I’ve taken a step back and heard your point of view I can see that it is more than a bit overwhelming. Everything is changing fast, and it’s okay if you need time to adjust. I’m sorry I wasn’t more aware. I’m sorry I didn’t ask you for your input as I made my plans for our future. It wasn’t fair of me.” She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Jake wasn’t sure if that was a good sign or a bad one.

“Will you forgive me?”

“I’ll try.”

“I heard your conversation with Davids at the cottage. You are a werewolf. Refusing to shift won’t change that, it’s part of who you are. I hope you will give yourself time to get used to the idea and then maybe you’ll want to let yourself shift. I know you will feel the mating bond with me as soon as you turn eighteen, but we don’t have to mate immediately. Most werewolves do, but it isn’t required. All I ask is that you don’t refuse it right away. Leave the option of our union open until you know for certain that it isn’t right for you. Once you break a mate bond, you can’t choose to have it back later. If you look around the pack and talk to mated couples here you’ll see what I mean. Those fated to mate aren’t formed by chance, each member of the bond brings different strengths, and together the couple is stronger. Separation after bonding is almost as unheard of as refusing a bond.

I also wanted you to know that you don’t have to worry about any of the werewolves hurting you. It’s a fairly small and close-knit group, even when the other two packs are included in the count. No wolf on Cloud Lake pack land, or at the Pack Private school would hurt you or even dare challenge you. They all know that I’ve scented you as my mate. That not only makes you the future Luna, a very respected position in the pack, but it affords you my protection, so hurting you would be...very detrimental to their health. You are absolutely safe here. I can guarantee that.” She still looked a bit out of sorts so Jake decided it would be best if he left and gave her time to think. He stood up and said, “Well, I’m on my way down to dinner. I’ll take your tray with me so you won’t be disturbed again unless you call for something. Good night, Liana.”

“’Night” She mumbled. He went to her room for the tray and noticed as he left the Alpha’s quarters that she was still sitting in the same spot staring at the keys in her hand.