Chapter 2

Lexie

After I shook Aiden’s hand he nearly ran back to his friends. I brought them their order and left the check. They were all suddenly acting weird. They pretty much chugged their coffee and then left like their asses were on fire. Aiden wouldn’t even look at me, not that I expected him to after what happened when I touched his hand. It was like nothing I have ever felt before. As soon as I touched his hand I felt a warm pleasant pulse go through my body. And suddenly everything around me smelt like pine and smoke from a campfire. Then there were the emotions I felt. Lust, comfort, confusion, anger, doubt,  denial, and attraction. But who’s emotions they were, I couldn't be sure. I don’t know how but I think I could feel Aiden’s emotions mixed with mine. And the birthmark on my left shoulder started to burn a bit. Which made an already weird situation weirder.

I finished all my closing work, grabbed my things, and locked up. I stood at the door looking around. If it wasn’t so cold it would be a beautiful scene.  Everything was covered in glittering snow. Most of it is untouched aside from the roads and sidewalks. As nice as it was to look at, I wasn't going to stand there and freeze my ass off. I quickly cross the road to the parking lot and get in my truck. I toss my bag in the seat and jump in. I’m so ready to go home. Only one problem with that. 

When I tried to start my truck I realized it was dead. No lights came on. It didn’t try to turn over. Great, a dead battery. Just what I need. I pop my hood and get out. After raising my hood I jiggle the battery cables around to make sure they aren’t loose. I jump back in the truck and try again. Nothing. I pound on the steering wheel to let my frustration out. After I let it all out including some screaming I pull out my phone and think of who I can call. And that leads to another problem. I don’t know anyone other than Patsy.

I lay my head back and think of what to do. Walking was out of the question. I would get hypothermia before I ever got home. I look at my phone again and start looking up tow trucks. I’m scrolling through when something catches my eye. I look out my front window and see a gray and brown wolf standing at the very end of the parking lot at the edge of a building. I know this area has a small wolf population but seeing one in town is odd. 

 I stare at it thinking it will run off at any moment. But it doesn’t. It stays where it is like it is watching me. I feel drawn to the wolf. Like I need to get out of the truck and go to it. But why though? It is a wild animal and I shouldn't want to go anywhere near it. I should be afraid. I should not be thinking about getting out and going to it. 

Since I’m stuck in a staring contest with the wolf I’m not paying attention to my surroundings. So when a knock comes from my window I freak out and scream. I turn to see who it is. To my surprise it is Aiden. I crack my door open since I can’t roll the window down. Sometimes having power windows and locks sucks. Before I can ask him what he is doing there he asks “ Car trouble?”  I nod “ Yea. Dead battery. I was going to call a tow truck.” waving my phone at him.“ No need for that. I can jump you off,” he says. I get the feeling there is some innuendo behind that statement with the way he smirks. I shake my head “ No that’s ok. I don’t want to trouble you.” I remember how he acted earlier. Like he couldn’t wait to get away from me. I’m not going to ask for his help.

“ It is no trouble. Let me pull my truck over and hook up some cables.” He says and walks to his truck that I just now notice is parked in the  corner of the lot  from mine. He pulls his up in front of mine and gets out. Aiden raises his hood and locks it to place then goes to the back and grabs the cables. I pop my hood so he can hook them up. Once he raises mine I can’t see him anymore. I feel the need to look over and see if the wolf is still there. I’m a little disappointed to see it gone.

Aiden knocks on my window again. I open the door and he tries to hand me a thick coat. “ Take this. You must be cold.” I push it back at him “ No. I have already troubled you enough.” “ Please. I don’t know how long you have been sitting here but it is long enough to have your teeth chattering. Plus it would make me feel better if I knew you were warm.” I’m reluctant but I take the jacket and wrap it around me. I get a whiff of the pine and campfire scent.  I pull it closer wanting to soak in that smell. It warms me, calms me, and makes me feel safe at the same time. 

Weird. I look at Aiden who is hanging on to the door and my roof “ Thanks.”   He gives a small smile but it is enough to make me feel butterflies in my belly. Then my birthmark starts to warm again. 

I get the butterflies. Aiden is handsome as hell. Tall about six foot three maybe. Dark chocolate brown hair that hangs to his shoulders. Piercing bright hazel eyes. Strong chiseled jaw with a light covering of stubble. When he was in the diner I could see he was built when he took his jacket off. His shirt was stretched tight against his chest. Tight enough I could see his defined pecs and six-pack chest. Broad shoulders. His jeans looked like they were painted on over his thick muscular thighs and tight ass. Oh, yea when he went back to his table I got a good look and had to bite my lip to keep from groaning.  To be honest, Aiden is the hottest man I have ever seen. And the only man I have ever had a  physical reaction to. Another thing to add to the weird list.

But why would my birthmark start to bother me? It is probably not related to everything else I was feeling. The timing was just a coincidence. I must have pulled something. I’m sure of it. Yep, that is what happened. It is unrelated. This whole time I’m in my head Aiden is standing at my door watching me. I turn to look at him better and notice an odd look on his face. “ Everything ok?” I ask. “ I see what you mean about your eyes. While you were thinking they changed. They got a little darker.” he said. I just nod. I know it is weird when my eyes change but there is nothing I can do about it. Unfortunately, it freaks people out.

Aiden

I watch Lexi as she wraps my jacket around her. I can see her snuggle into it and see a look of comfort come over her face. She is not meant to be my Luna but I get a sense of pride knowing it is my scent causing that to happen. Razor is damn near strutting at the thought of taking care of our mate. He is the reason we are here in the first place. He wouldn’t leave me alone until I agreed to watch the diner to make sure she was ok. He didn’t like the idea of her being alone. I didn’t want to. I figured she would be fine. She has probably been left alone loads of times.

 But Razor wasn’t having it. He kept ramming against our barrier trying to take control to get to Lexi. And he kept yelling at me to go back to Lexi. He was giving me a headache. He needs to get over her or it is going to get worse for him when I choose a mate that is better suited for us.  To shut him up I went back to the diner. I got there just as she was walking out. I parked to the side so she wouldn’t see me but I could see her and watch. When she first got in her truck and didn’t leave I figured she was just letting it warm up. I tuned into my wolf hearing but I didn’t hear her engine running. I was about to go over to check on her when movement caught my eye. I see a gray wolf standing at the edge of the lot watching Lexi.

 I roll down my window to try and catch its scent. I don’t recognize the scent. I know it is a he, a shifter, and possibly an Alpha but not someone from my pack. And he definitely has his eyes on Lexi. I look at Lexi to make sure she is ok and I notice she is looking at the wolf. I wait to see if she shows any kind of fear. An elevated heart rate, a change in her scent, or her emotions fluctuate. But I got nothing but a bit of what I now know as frustration because of her dead battery.

 When she was watching the wolf she was calm and I think curious but I didn't get any sense of fear. I don’t have time to ponder what that might be about because Razor is ramming the barrier again to go help, Lexi. He says she will freeze with no heat. She needs our help. I agree and will worry about the new wolf later. Just because she can’t be my mate doesn’t mean I’m an asshole and won’t help her out.

I lean in the door where I’m standing. “ I will leave the cables on for a few minutes then we can try to crank it.” “ Sure,” she says. Since we have nothing to do but sit and wait I decided to use this chance to get to know her. Maybe I can get some answers as to why my friend’s wolves want to protect her. See if I  can find what is so special about her if anything. When she first told me her eyes changed I didn’t believe her until I saw it for myself. When we were at the diner they were bright green. Whatever she was thinking about a minute ago made them go darker almost like jade. This close to her I can sense something but I don’t know what. There is a pull that is different from the mate pull. It is like nothing I ever felt before. I’m protective over my pack, my family. But this, it is so much stronger. Time to get to try to get to know her.

“ Since we have time, why don’t you tell me about yourself. I know you came here recently because I have been here all my life. I haven't seen you.” Lexi looks at me like I just gave some cheesy pick-up line. I want to slap myself for how it sounded. Even Razor is shaking his head embarrassed. After a second Lexi laughs “ You're right I’m not from here. I moved from Florida about five months ago to go to school.” That explains the slight accent. 

“ Yea? What are  you studying?”  I ask. These are not the questions I need answers to, I just don’t want to come across like I’m interrogating her.  “ Zoology.”  she says. “ So you like animals then.” I state. “ I do. I have always been drawn to all animals. But I’m more concerned about protecting their natural habitat and keeping invasive species, poachers and developers from destroying it.”  she says with a smile. 

Wow, that’s pretty cool I thought to myself. I remembered the wolf from earlier and how calm Lexi was. “ What is your favorite animal?” I asked. Razor had jumped to the front of my mind waiting for her answer. “ I would have to say wolves are my favorite. For some reason I feel drawn to them above all others. Almost like a closeness to them. Like I’m supposed to be near them. I need to keep them safe.” Lexie looks at me and I see her eyes flash for just a second but I know it was there. Razor agrees. He saw it too. Why do they keep doing that? And why am I drawn to it? Lexi shakes her head “And now you probably think I’m weird. Or crazy.” 

“ She can get close to me anytime she wants.” Razor said. “ Would you shut up. I told you we can’t have her.” I told him. He growls at me but his focus is on Lexi. He is looking at her through my eyes. “ Tell her she isn’t crazy. And you don’t think she is weird. She needs to hear it.” Razor told me. “ Why?” I asked. “ What she is saying is the truth. She is supposed to be near wolves. I can feel it in every part of me. But it isn’t the wolves she is thinking of. She is supposed to be near us. You need to tell her.” he insists. 

I must have been in my head for a while because Lexi is no longer looking at me. She is looking straight ahead out the windshield. She has her shoulders hunched trying to make herself look smaller. The pink tint on her cheeks tells me she is embarrassed. I don’t like it. Razor is right. I need to tell her. “ Lexi, I don’t think you are weird or crazy. I think it is kind of cool you feel so drawn to wolves.” I said.

Lexi turns back to me and gives me a smile so fake a blind man could spot it. She doesn’t believe me. But what do I say to tell her otherwise. I don’t want to get too close to her and allow the mate bond to start to grow. So it is probably for the best. I may feel the need to keep her safe. “ I think we should try to start my truck now. I think it might be ready.” Lexi says. I can tell she is trying to get rid of me. “ Go ahead and give it a try.” I told her.

She turns the key and it starts up the first try. “ Good. Your battery posts have a little corrosion on them. I get us disconnected.” Lexi nods. She pulls my coat off of her and hands it to me. “ Thanks for the coat. But I’ll be fine now. And here.” Lexi reaches into the pocket of her apron and pulls out some money. She flips through it fast. Too fast to be normal. Then hands me a five and some ones. “ It isn’t much. But to compensate you for your time.”

I shake my head and hand Lexi back the money. “ I didn’t help you for money. You needed help and that ‘s what I did. Anyone else who had seen you would have done the same.” I told her. Lexi takes the money back. I noticed she is careful not to touch my hand. “ That’s because you acted like you could stand to touch her when you shook her hand earlier. She is being respectful. Asshole.” Razor grunts. Damn he has an attitude today.

“ Thanks again.” Lexi says as she closes her door. I just stand there and watch as she puts the truck in gear and drives away. I want to make sure there are no more problems. I stay until I can no longer see her tail lights then turn back to my truck. I shut my door and do a quick look around to see if I can spot the other wolf. When I see no sign of him I toss my jacket in the seat next to me. The cab of my truck is now filled with Lexi’s scent. Razor practically purrs at the smell. 

I put my truck in gear and headed home. “ Razor buddy. You need to get her out of your mind. You know we need a strong she-wolf to help us lead. Lexi won’t be able to do that. She doesn’t even know about shifters.” Razor growls “ You know nothing about her. You won’t even try. The moon goddess paired us with her for a reason. And you know there have been human wolf fated mates before.  I’m telling you if you reject her or try to take another mate YOU WILL REGRET IT. I will make sure of it.  How do you think the pack will feel when they find out you rejected your fated mate? You know how sacred they are. What will your father think? Or the elders? Do you really think they will make you Alpha when they find out?” 

Razor has some valid points. We were raised to honor and cherish the mates the moon goddess gives us. That she pairs people who will work best with each other. Be each other's strengths and weaknesses.  I do know of human wolf pairs. But they weren’t Alphas. My parents will be disappointed. I know that. “ They won’t find out. I’ll just pick a wolf and say we are fated mates.” I said.

 Razor laughs. He fucking laughs. “ Good luck with that. Like when she finds her mate. Or you don’t produce an heir because I won’t let you mark her. That is for my mate only.” Is he kidding me? Can he even do that? “ I can and I will. Talk to elders. First about the connection the others have towards Lexi. Then asked them what a wolf can do if his stupid human rejects thier mate.” Razor says. Then he puts up a block so we can’t talk. 

Razor and I have always been in sync with each other. We knew what we had to do and we did it. I have never heard of a wolf going against his human like this. He is right about talking to the elders. I’ll give him that. But not about Lexi. I just have to show him. I reject her just yet, though. I need to make sure what Razor said was wrong. He can’t stop me from marking my chosen mate. That can’t be possible.