Tess
The following morning, I wake up to Claudia’s voice. “Good morning, sunshine! Why are you still in bed? We have so many things to do!”
Groaning, I rub some dirt from the corner of my eyes and look up at the blonde werewolf currently standing inside my room. She is standing by the window, and I shriek when she abruptly pulls away the curtains with a bright smile.
“Look at the sun!” she exclaims in my direction. “It’s a beautiful day for mischief, Tess!”
“Mischief?” I ask. Claudia is by far the most energetic friend I have and probably the one closest to me.
“Mhm, now that we are members of the Luan pack, I think that it’s about time we find part-time jobs. And guess what? There is this coffee shop in town,” she fishes up her phone from her pocket, handing it over to me. I take it in my hands as I sit down and stare down at the job advertisement.
“The Coffee Shop?” I repeatedly blink at the name. It feels a bit lacking and non-creative. “A-are you sure this is a good place to apply to?”
“Yes!” Claudia beams at me. “I get my coffee there every morning, so I know for a fact that they are legit. And we are in luck because they are looking for new people that can start working immediately, and yes, yes—I know you’ve been offered a job to work as Wesley’s and Lily’s nanny. But their baby isn’t born yet, and this place is perfect for us. Just imagine the number of hot guys we are going to see on a daily basis!”
When I say nothing, Claudia continues talking.
“And sure, I know you have found your mate, but looking isn’t going to hurt anyone, right? I’m sure your beloved Lucas will understand,” she grins at me. “How is it going, by the way? Have you tied the knot yet?”
My stomach lurches at her question, and I look down at the floor with pain slicing through me. “Lucas doesn’t want to be with me.”
“What!” Claudia gasps, and my heart warms when I see the anger written over her pretty face. “Why? What the hell is his damn problem? I thought he invited you to come and live with him so that you two could get it on!”
“No,” I hand her a sad smile and sink my teeth into my bottom lip in order not to cry. “I think he gave me a room because he doesn’t think I can handle myself now that I’m a human and no longer a werewolf.”
Claudia pauses at that. “Right... you’re a human now,” I can see that her head is swimming with questions, and since Claudia lacks a filter, she just blurts out the first thing on her mind, “How the heck did that happen?”
Should I tell her? Claudia isn’t good at keeping secrets, but the burden feels too great to carry on my own. So far, Wesley seems to be the only one who knows the truth. Probably Freddy, too, since I have a feeling he can look inside my head, but my friends have no clue what is going on.
I sigh when I realize talking to Claudia will probably make me feel less alone. “I gave up my wolf to save Lucas’ life. I haven’t told him the truth, and I don’t want him to know about it either. It would make him mate with me out of obligation rather than out of love.”
My heart feels lighter after admitting the truth, but to my surprise, Claudia goes awfully silent. When I look up at her, I find her glaring down at me. Her hands are balled into fists by her sides, and there is a fire in her eyes.
“I’m going to fucking murder that werewolf,” she grits out, and I don’t think she is joking. “You gave up everything for that idiot, and how does he repay you? By not accepting you as his mate! Fucking blockhead!”
“Hey, hey,” I hold up my hands, hoping to calm her down by offering her a smile. “Calm down. It’s not Lucas’ fault. He doesn’t know that I—”
“He should!” Claudia interrupts me, and I gasp when I see tears falling from her chin. “He should know, Tess! The doctors called it a miracle that he made it. His injuries would have killed him if he hadn’t suddenly developed an inhuman regenerating ability!”
I say nothing, and Claudia shakes her head. “Now everything makes sense. Lucas didn’t suddenly become a magical werewolf—the moon goddess gave him the ability to heal quicker than Wolverine because you gave up your wolf! Fuck. Why didn’t I figure that out sooner? In my defense, I’m an idiot, but Lucas should know! He should have put the puzzle pieces together!”
“Well, he hasn’t,” I say in a low voice. “And you can’t tell him either.”
“What?” Claudia questions. “Why the hell not? That idiot needs to take responsibility, Tess!”
“No, Claudia, pleased,” I look up at her with pleading eyes. “Don’t tell him.”
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t want him to be with me out of obligation. If Lucas knew I was the one who saved his life, he would mate with me, but not because he likes me. He would do it because he thought he owed me as much.”
“Oh,” Claudia gives me a sad smile. “That’s true…sorry, I didn’t think of that.”
“No problem,” I get up from the bed and grab my t-shirt from the floor before flipping my black hair over my shoulder. “Let’s talk about something else: do you think this coffee shop would hire us if we went there and spoke to them? It’s owned by werewolves, right?”
“The Luan pack owns it, yes,” Claudia says. I can tell she wishes to comfort me and keep talking about how much she hates Lucas, but for my sake, she is reeling in her anger. “Do you want to go there now?”
“Yeah,” I pick up my hairbrush and run it through my hair in front of the mirror. “That’s why I’m getting dressed.” I can’t wait to leave Lucas’ mansion.
“Great,” Claudia opens the zipper to her bag and takes out her mascara. “Do you want me to do your makeup?”
I beam at her. Claudia is very talented when it comes to makeup. “If you don’t mind.”
“Not at all,” she winks at me. “If you won’t let me beat Lucas’ ass, then at least I can make him regret not accepting you as his mate by making you look like a daydream.”
My heart warms. “I would like that a lot,” I touch the scar on the right side of my face. “Mind covering this up?”
She frowns. “Absolutely not. I will do your makeup, but that scar? It makes you look dangerous and exotic—I don’t want to cover that up.”
I pout. “Pretty please? It’s giving me a complex.”
Claudia hesitates, but when I jut out my bottom lip, she groans and slumps her shoulders in defeat. “Fine! But only because you’re asking for it...”
“Thank you.”
She motions for me to sit on the chair in front of my mirror and moves behind me, running her fingers through my hair to gather it in a ponytail. “But just so you know, Tess, you’re beautiful even if you have scars from the past.”
“Lucas doesn’t think so,” I say in a low voice. “He called me ugly on the first day he met me.”
Claudia growls. “Then he is an idiot who doesn’t deserve you. Are you sure you don’t want to reject him?”
I giggle at her words. “No, I won’t reject him. Lucas might be rude and sometimes even a little bit mean, but I believe he can change for the better. And it’s not like he is evil or anything,” he isn’t Freddy, and I’m grateful for that and smile at Claudia in the mirror. “Lucas has a lot of good qualities.”
“Like what?”
“He noticed I was a bad fighter in the war against the hybrids and took me back to Wesley’s mansion. That was very thoughtful of him.”
“Or tactical,” Claudia sighs. “Has he done anything else that is nice of him?”
I place my fingers underneath my chin, trying to think. “Well, he brought me here, didn’t he?”
“Yes, but not to accept you as his mate, so we don’t know if bringing you here was actually a good thing.”
My heart falters at that, and Claudia meets my eye in the mirror. There is concern written all over her features, and she affectionately squeezes my shoulder.
“Tess, don’t you think you’re giving Lucas too much of a chance? I really don’t think you should live with him. Wesley’s mansion would be a much better choice for you.”
I swallow thickly. “I don’t think I should—”
‘You should listen to her,’ Freddy’s voice suddenly says inside my head. He sounds strangely invested in the conversation. ‘Living with Alpha Wesley is a far better option than staying here.’
I grow suspicious as soon as I hear him say “Alpha Wesley” and try to talk back to him. ‘You just want me to spy on my Alpha, don’t you?’
Instead of answering my question, Freddy simply says, ‘Lucas is going to break your heart. He is bad for you.’
Anger swells inside my chest. ‘If someone is bad for me, it’s you! Get out of my head!’
He chuckles. ‘But your brain is so fascinating...’ There is a brief pause before he speaks again. ‘If you stay with Lucas, he isn’t going to pay attention to you, but if you leave him and pretend you’re okay, he will grow interested in you. Men always want what they can’t have.’
‘Lucas isn’t like that.’
‘Lucas and I worked side-by-side for five years in the Luan pack, Tess. I know him better than most people, and he is a simple werewolf male: jealous and arrogant. Go live with Wesley, and Lucas will beg you to come back within a week.’
Well, that is... that is quite the statement.
I take a deep breath and smile at Claudia. “You know what? I think that’s an excellent idea. Can we move me out today after we have been to the coffee shop?”