ZOLA'S P.O.V
By the time I made it back to my room I was in tears. I had more questions than answers. If there was one thing I did understand, it was that Shanti wanted me gone. She wanted me to be taken away from the only place I knew. However, the more I thought about that, the more it sounded nice. To get away from all these feelings I wasn't supposed to have. To start fresh. A clean slate.
"ZOZO, WHERE ARE YOU!?" The sound of Irelyn's voice echoed out.
I wasn't in the mood to listen to her, but I also knew I didn't have a choice.
"Don't tell me you're in bed, under the covers already?" She asked as the bedroom door creaked open.
I opened my eyes to see the darkness that embraced me every time I hid from the world under the blankets. It only lasted a moment before it was ripped away and the brightness of the light hit me.
"UGH LYN, SERIOUSLY!"
"What are you doing? The night is still young."
"Incorrect. The night is over. I had enough embarrassment. Thank you kindly."
"Embarrassment? Is that what you call what happened?"
"How else would it be defined?"
"Zo, you realize that every she-wolf aside from his family wishes they were you right now, right?"
"How is that supposed to make this situation any better?"
"You're a human. The king of all werewolves just told everyone that you belong to him. That's big."
"Only I don't belong to him. You and I both know that Elias and I can never be."
"I never saw that stop you from trying."
I released the breath I was holding, unsure of how to respond to her just yet.
"Weren't you always against me having a crush on your brother?"
"I mean, yeah, as a kid."
"And not now?" I asked curiously.
"The older I've gotten, the more I realized that he can't do better than you."
"Are you drunk?"
"Tiniest, a bit tipsy. But that doesn't mean I don't mean it."
My heartstrings tugged with each word she spoke.
"But I am a human."
"A bad-ass human." She said, flopping back down on the bed next to me before speaking again. "Just like... if it's with my brother, I don't want to hear anything sexual because ew."
"Irelyn!"
"You're turning into a turnip! You're such a prude, I love it."
"Am not." I replied defensively.
"But if, by the grace of the Goddess, you fuck anyone other than him, I want all the deets."
"I'm not fucking anyone."
"Yet."
"Irelyn, seriously, ew."
"You know what I want in a mate?"
I didn't stop to think that another year had passed, and she still hadn't found her mate. This entire time, I was making it all about me with my pity party. Yet she had it worse. Most wolves have already found their other half. It wasn't impossible to find your mate later in life, it just wasn't as commonly known.
"What do you want in a mate?"
"I want someone kind. Someone loyal. I want them to love me. The real me, not the one everyone else has to see. I want him to be funny, and…" She was cut short when her mouth opened wide, an exaggerated yawn sounding out. "I also don't want to be in the light all the time. I'm probably destined to be a Luna, but fuck I don't want to be."
"Then don't be."
"That's another thing. I want him to be a geek, but a freak. You know?" She said, ignoring my comment.
"You want your mate to be a geeky freak?"
"Not a freak but a ffrreeaakk." She said, exaggerating the last word by using a higher pitch.
My face must've showed her that I wasn't following her drift because she spoke again.
"I want him to be nerdy to everyone else. But a cute nerdy. Kind of like Spencer Reid, that super hot nerdy guy off of criminal minds. I want that. Smart, geeky, but so fucking hot. I also really want him to be a freak in the sheets. Dominating me in every way."
This conversation veered back to sex again. Lucky me. This was one topic I was the most awkward about. It didn't matter if it wasn't about my sex life, just the subject in general made me feel uncomfortable. Irelyn was right, I am a prude. Maybe if I were more experienced in the area of sex, then something as simple as talking about it wouldn't phase me. But I was a 23-year-old virgin who hadn't even kissed a man.
I did, however, kiss a tree for practice after watching the movie 'Superstar', but I would NEVER and I mean EVER tell a soul about that. It was a terrible choice, talk about rough and splintery! The movie never said how awful it could be.
Elias almost kissed me but I stopped him. Why did I stop him?
I closed my eyes and my hand went up to touch my plump lips, thinking back on the very moment. It was as if I could physically feel his breath beating down on my face still.
"My nuggets, back off."
The words took me out of my thoughts. The moment I opened my eyes, Irelyn's face was directly in front of mine. Her eyes were shut tight, and her chest was heaving up and down. Well, that made sense now, it was her hot breath I was feeling on my face, not his.
"Don't touch my nugs, bro!" Irelyn talked in her sleep for as long as I could remember. Sometimes it was hilarious.
"Bitch."
I shook my head in laughter before sitting up. My stomach let out a loud growl, reminding me I hadn't eaten today. I threw the covers off of me and over Irelyn before making my way to the kitchen. I opened the fridge, but all that was seen was emptiness. Damnit, I didn't go grocery shopping. I guess I will be eating in the pack house kitchen tonight. I grabbed a robe, tightly coiling it around my body. It was always cold in the packhouse, my little silky tank-top and short-shorts weren't going to save me from the draft. They kept it below freezing year-round. I guess it had something to do with the wolves being hot blood by nature.
"What're you doing down here?"
I could feel goosebumps all over my body from the deep husky voice. I looked up to see Elias of all people standing there staring hungirly at me. He had no shirt on, sweat dripping down his face and abdomen. He must've just returned from a late-night run. I gulped inward before gathering my bearings to speak.
"I think what I'm doing here is pretty self-explanatory." I replied with a hint of sass.
"A late-night snack. I know a late-night snack that I would love to devour." He said with lust lingering in his eyes.
"You can't do this to me, Elias."
"Sorry, you're right. I'll just grab my drink and go." He replied as he casually reached around me to grab a Gatorade from the fridge door that I was still clutching tightly.
He slightly leaned in, his face close enough that I could see his swirling irises.
"Don't worry, peach." His hand grazed my face while moving a strand of my blonde hair back. "I'm not going to touch you that way until you beg me to."
He had to know that his words were doing unspeakable things to me.
"Whaa...what?" I asked dumbly.
He looped his hand around my hip, pulling me away from the fridge before placing them right beneath my ass, using his strength to hoist me onto the counter. Every touch made my heart beat erratically.
"Why is your heart racing, peach?"
I wasn't sure where this new nickname came from, but it was doing unholy things to me.
"I... I thought you weren't going to do anything until I begged you to," I asked breathlessly. His hands were resting on my thighs.
"Oh this? This is nothing but me moving you out of the way." He then said confidentially as he pulled back, returning to the fridge. Instantly, I felt cold in the absence of his touch.
"But believe me, when I say, you'll beg for my touch. And when you do, I'll show you what you've been missing all these years." His tone came out seductive and demanding. I was completely overcome with arousal and needed exactly that. I needed his hands on every inch of my body.
A clash was heard, making both of our heads snap in that direction. Shanti was there with an icy glare in her eyes.
"What's going on here?" She asked in an angry tone.
How do we answer that? Because I myself wanted to know what the hell was happening.