Mated to the Warrior
Chapter 1
This summer was going to be a blast! I spent the year traveling after graduating high school, and now I'm ready to settle down for a while. And the best place to do that is with my best friend who happens to be my only cousin on my father's side.
Alice and I have always been very close growing up. We used to live right next door to each other until her and my aunt up and moved out of nowhere halfway across the country. I was devastated. We were just about to start high school and had so many plans.
We ended up talking on the phone almost every day, keeping each other updated on what was going on in our lives. It was always pretty boring here, but Alice always kept me entertained with the drama in her small town out in the middle of South Dakota. It was like my own personal audio book. I lived for her phone calls.
When I called my aunt and asked if I could come stay with them this summer they quickly agreed. I missed them, and they missed me.
My Aunt Katie was always like a mother to me. My own mother walked out on us when I was little, and I barely remember her. My dad was sad for a long while and kept himself busy with work. I was then left to my own devises with the help of Aunt Katie. It was miserable after they moved.
As I saw the welcome sign coming into town, I couldn't help but smile with giddiness. The excitement of seeing them again hitting me tenfold. I kept on driving down the one main road and was taking it all in. There really wasn't much here and I didn't see anyone else outside except for an old man sweeping the sidewalk outside his business. He looked at my car with curiosity as I drove by. I smiled and waved at him, which he returned with a tip of his head.
When I came to the bend of the road, I turned left and there it was. My aunt's little white house with blue shutters. I've seen pictures of it, but never have I set a foot inside. It was very cute with a small porch and hanging plants. There were flowers of every color planted around their home with birdbaths and feeders. It was perfect! My aunt has always had a nak for gardening.
I parked my car on the side of the road and got out, stretching. The nine-hour drive here made me somewhat stiff.
Shutting my car door, I breathed in the fresh floral air and sighed. I walked to the trunk of my car and opened it to grab my things when a I suddenly got a weird feeling of being watched.
Shutting my trunk door, I stepped back and looked around me. The birds were quiet and the squirrel I saw just a moment ago disappeared. Something felt off, but not in an uncomfortable way. I couldn't put my finger on it except maybe I was just tired and not with it. I could really use a nap come to think if it.
The loud squeal from behind me made me jump and whirl around. The sight of my cousin running towards me distracted me and I dropped my bag and ran to meet her halfway.
"Oh my gosh! I can't believe you're here! I've been waiting what seems like forever," Alice yells out, smiling and laughing.
"I know! I can't believe it either!" I yell back as we barrel into each other and squeal and giggle like we are kids again.
"I missed you so much girl! Five years is way too long," Alice complained.
"Same! I would have come to visit sooner, but you know how dad is," I tell her, pulling away.
"How is dear old Uncle Kyle?" She asked rolling her eyes.
"Same as always," I shrug. "He freaked out when I called and told him I was on my way here. He tried to talk me into just coming home. I put my foot down and said I'd call him later."
My father wasn't a bad person. He was just a bit strict and can come off as a bit overprotective. The one thing he was adamite about was forbidding me of coming here to South Dakota to visit my aunt and cousin. Every time I would ask, he would yell and say, "absolutely not" and then just walk away. He didn't mind Alice and I talking on the phone, but when it came to my Aunt Katie it was a different story. Even the mention of her name would send him on a tangent. I never asked him about it, and when Alice asked her mom what crawled up my dad's butt, Aunt Katie said he just had a hard time accepting things. I assumed it was because he wasn't happy with them moving, but I sensed from Alice that she knew more but wasn't going to tell me, so I just let it go.
"Well, I am so happy your here now," Alice tells me with a smile as she walks over and picks up my bag. "We are going to have so much fun. I want you to meet my friends here. They've heard all about you and are excited to meet you. There is a field party this weekend we are going to. And then Chris has invited us over tomorrow night for dinner. I told him that since you will be staying with me that he had to learn to share. I think he's going to try and insert himself in our time together one way or another," she giggles.
Chris was Alices boyfriend. They have been together since the moment she moved here. I talked to him a few times on the phone, and he was always very nice. I am looking forward to meeting the man that makes my cousin happy.
"Sounds like a plan," I tell her, as we walk up to her front porch. "Where is Aunt Katie? Is she at the bakery?" I ask.
"Yeah. She wanted to be here when you arrived, but one of the employees said the coffee machine was down and didn't know how to fix it."
My Aunt Katie owned her own bakery and coffee shop. It was always a dream of hers, and when she moved here it just so happened the previous owner was retiring and handed it down to her. It is now called Katie's Delights.
"Oh, I miss her baking," I moan out, thinking of the sweetness I remember from when I was a kid. "That's the first place I want to stop at as soon as possible. I just know as soon as I walk in it will smell like heaven."
I notice Alice is looking over my shoulder with a smile. I turn to see what caught her attention, and all I find is some tree brush to the side of her house. The feeling of being watched comes back as it gets quiet again.
I turn back toward Alice and give her a questioning look.
"Let's go inside. I'm sure mom will bring us some goodies home. She usually does," she says with a giddy smile.
I watch as she opens the door and glances back one more time to the tree line, before walking in.
"You'll be sharing a room with me like the old days," she says, excitingly. "Those sleepovers were the best."
"Yeah, this is going to be just like old times," I agree, following her inside.
Alice and I stayed in her room, catching up till we heard Aunt Katie pull up in the driveway.
"Where is my favorite niece?" She asks as soon as she enters through the front door.
"I'm your only niece," I laugh as I hurriedly walk up to her. I notice she looks older, but still my same warm aunt.
She sets down a paper bag and embraces me into a tight hug and squeezes. "Oh, I missed you kiddo. How have you been?" She steps back and holds my arms out. "Wow, you sure have grown into yourself since I've last seen you. Look at those curves! I'd bet money those boys are chasing you in every which direction."
"No boys that I have been interested in," I say blushing. There were a couple boys from back home that wouldn't take no for an answer and kept hounding me about going out with them, but I just continued to ignore them and after graduation I left and haven't seen them since.
"No, you need a man is what you need. One that knows how to love you for the beauty you are," she says, patting my cheek and kissing my forehead.
"I have a feeling....," she continues on, mumbling as she picks up her bag and walks into the kitchen.
I look over at Alice who is leaning against the wall in the hallway in question. She just smirks and shrugs her shoulders.
"Come on," she says, smiling and throwing her arm around me as we follow my aunt.
"Alice, I think this is too much for just dinner," I tell her, pointing down to the tight black dress with a deep neckline that she made me wear. I'll admit it made my boobs look great, but this is something one does not wear to meet her cousin's boyfriend for the first time. Alice was also wearing a tight dress, but it didn't showcase her chest like mine did, and her chest was bigger. "I look..."
"Hot," she smugly says. "Trust me. You look good. Besides, you never know who you might meet and first impressions and all that."
"I'm only about to meet your boyfriend. Who else is going to be here?" I ask, as we walk up the steps to Chris's house, which is massive.
Alice opens her mouth to say something when the front door opens wide, and Chris is standing there smiling at Alice. I didn't expect him to be so big. He was very tall and seemed to be packed with thick muscles. His arms were like boulders. I don't think I've ever seen a man at his stature before. I blink my eyes, hoping I don't look like a crazy person.
"About time you two got here," he says, pulling Alice to him and nuzzling her neck. "Hey, baby. Missed you."
"Missed you too," she tells him, hanging onto him and then giving him a sweet kiss on the cheek.
"Chris, this is my beautiful cousin, Myra. Myra, this is Chris," she says, introducing us while she stares up at him with so much love, patting his chest.
"It's very nice to finally meet you in person, Myra," he tells me with so much genuine, sticking his hand out. "I'm glad you're here. Alice has been missing you."
"You too, thank you. I'm happy to finally be here," I tell him.
"Come on inside," he says, pulling Alice through the door. "The food is about ready."
I follow in behind them and take in the grand entrance. A large chandelier hangs from the ceiling and stairs leading up split into two on the second landing. A beautiful piece of artwork is displayed to the left of mountains with the moon shining down on them.
We walk through the foyer and down a long hallway. The smell of food greets my nose. It smells wonderful. I haven't had many homecooked meals in a long while.
I hear laughing that immediately stops when we enter the dining room. Looking around, I see three other men already seated at the table. They look back at me, taking me in from head to toe, causing me to blush. I look away and over at Alice and Chris, who in return are also staring at me. Alice frowns and looks away, but not without me catching the glimpse of sadness in her eyes.
"Alice?" I ask her, quietly. "You ok?"
"Yeah, just hungry," she tells me, looking up at Chris. "Shall we?"
"Uh yeah," he says, rubbing Alice's back. "Myra, these three brutes are my friends, Blake, Hendrix, and Prestin. Don't take what they say personal. They like to mess around."
"Hi," I tell them, giving a small wave.
All three of them stand up at once and I almost take a step back. These three looked like they belonged in an underground fighting ring. They were tall with broad shoulders. Their arms were thick and bulgy. They weren't packing as much muscle as Chris but seeing all three of them standing in front of me, it was a bit intimidating.
"Hi, I'm Blake. It's nice to meet you," the first one said walking up to me and taking my hand. His eyes were soft and gentle as with his voice.
"You as well," I tell him, a bit stumped by his kind approach.
"Hendrix," the one tallest out of the three says as he steps up to me and shakes my hand as well.
Then the third one pushes Hendrix out of the way and grabs my hand in a firm hold. "Prestin, sweetheart. It is dam nice to meet you," he says with a sly smirk, looking at my chest. "Damn Alice, you could have warned us what a hot little thing your cousin is."
"Sit next to me, sweet girl," he says, looking back up at my face. "I'll make sure you're well taken care of."
"Back of Prestin," Alice says smugly, coming over and standing in front of me. He lets go of my hand which I just realized he was still holding. "She isn't yours," she continues, quietly.
"Alright, guys," Chris pipes up. "Take a seat. Let's not chase Myra off this soon. We want her to like it here," he says, staring pointedly at Prestin.
Alice grabs my hand and sits me down beside her just as food is brought out and set down on the table from two beautiful women. I raise my eyebrows in surprise.
"Those are Chris's twin sisters. They run a kitchen here in town, and when Chris asked them to cater tonight for us, they were happy to help," Alice explains to me.
"Oh, how nice of them," I say, gratefully as I look around all the food set on the table thinking there is no way we can eat all this. It smells divine.
"So, Myra," Prestin starts in, filling his plate up." Tell me, where have you been all my life? Sucks my eyes haven't been able to grace your beautiful face till now. Maybe after dinner we can..."
"Owe, man! What the hell?" Prestin shouts after Hendrix smacks him on the back of the head. Hendrix just ignores him and takes a large drink from his glass.
"So, Myra," Prestin says turning back to me and causing the table to laugh.
Dinner was very nice. It was fun to just sit back and relax while the guys all made fun of each other and had a pissing contest or two. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard. Watching them eat up every piece of food was shocking. Where did they all put it? They had no ounce of body fat whatsoever.
Blake was very nice and kept me in conversation. I felt instantly comfortable around him and thought he was cute.
Hendrix started opening up a bit more, but only to pick fun at Prestin.
I learned Prestin just liked to flirt with anyone. He even sent kissy faces over at Alice which caused Chris to chuck a fork at his head. I loved being around them and felt a sense of peace.
Alice stood up and starting to clear some things from the table. "I'll go get the dessert your sisters made us. They left it in the fridge," she tells Chris standing up.
"I'll help," he says, standing up and leaving the room hot on her tail. I wanted to offer to help, but I could tell Chris wanted a moment with her. I noticed several times throughout the evening it was hard for him to take his eyes off her. I hope someday I can have that. To know someone loves you so much that they just can't look away.
"Um, can one of you point me to the bathroom?" I ask.
"Sure, pretty girl," Prestin pipes in. "I'll take you. I'll come in and guard the door if you want."
Hendrix smacks him on the back of the head again and I stand up laughing.
"Just follow the hallway down to the right. It's the last door to the left," Blake tell me.
"Thank you."
I leave the room, the boys making me giggle with their banter. You would think they were brothers the way they acted.
After finishing my business, I make my way back down the hallway and hear Alison's voice. I follow the sound but stop in my tracks when I hear my name. They are in a room a few steps ahead with the door slightly cracked open.
"I was hoping it was going to be Blake," I hear her say. "He is your Beta and I thought..."
"I know, baby," I hear Chris whisper. "Did you bring it?"
"Yeah, I don't think she'll know its missing."
"I'll bring it with me tomorrow when the pack is training. See if anyone reacts to it."
I hear Alice give out a long sigh. "She's been alone for so long. I don't want her to be alone. What if her mate isn't here? What if he belongs to another pack?"
"We will figure it out, baby," Chris soothes her. "She belongs here. I know it. My wolf senses it."
"Ok," she says with a sniffle. "I just want her here with me. She's my best friend. I want her happy. I want her to have what we have."
"And she will."
I slowly back away from the door, feeling like I am intruding, and head back to the dining room. As I sit down, I drown out the others talking. I don't know what to make of the conversation I just overheard. I am sure they were talking about me, but maybe not. And what did they mean by Blake being a Beta. What does that even mean? And what is a mate? Pack? And Chris has a pet wolf? Too many words that make me feel like I wasn't with it. Were they codes for something?
"Hey, you good?" Blake asks me.
I look over at him, smile, and nod.
"You sure?" He asks, frowning with concern.
"Yeah, I'm good," I tell him, not sure if I can trust him now.
Alice and Chris walk back into the room. Alice is holding up a pie that looks delicious, but I don't think I can stomach it right now. Something tells me things are off here.
Looking at my cousin, all I can think is I hope she didn't get herself involved in something sketchy.
