Prologue
She had returned today as she had promised.
She could not hold back the smile that blossomed on her face as the familiar house came to view. It was at an ideal distance from the pack house and the pack clinic, shielded in a way by the fence all around it. The doctor could rush at either one if need occurred without losing his peace of mind when he most needed it.
He must be home at this early hour, she thought. She imagined him leaning by the kitchen window, drinking his tea, always warm despite of the season, just before he would make his way to the clinic. This was his routine for as long as she knew him. A part of it at least.
She opened the small gate, climbed the steps to the neat porch and simply pushed the door open. He never locked. It was useless. If a member of the pack or the Alpha wished to get in, no lock would stop them. Not that they would disrespect his privacy that way.
She walked inside feeling happier than she had been in years. Far happier than she was before she had left.
The house was quiet in the early light. This was strange but not alarming. Although she knew he liked to have music softly playing in the morning, she figured that perhaps today he was not in the mood, or he could still be in the bathroom. With that thought she turned to the narrow staircase that would take her to their bedroom, when a smell made her halt with her left foot slightly lifted from the ground.
Coffee.
Coffee? He hated the taste, so why the hell would he be making one? Not for her, surely. It was one of the things they had in common. They did not like the bitterness and they opted for tea. He was into original back tea and she liked hers flavored.
She headed cautiously to the kitchen, and she stood awkwardly at the doorway. He was nowhere in the kitchen. But there was someone else standing near the window she had imagined him at earlier. A woman. Her long auburn hair caught the light and almost sparkled. She had her back turned to her as she was sipping her freshly made coffee. The scent was more potent now and made her insides turn.
She drew a breath and slowly entered.
“Good morning” she said her voice coming out less confident than she intended, yet still it was clearly audible in the silence.
The woman with the auburn hair turned around immediately and gazed at her startled.
“I am so sorry” she apologized. “I did not mean to creep up behind you like this”
The other one smiled at once.
Oh God! Wasn’t she beautiful! The auburn hair came with a clear pale skin and bright blue eyes. She was tall and slender and had an elegant air about her. If you added to all these the dashing smile, you had a perfectly desirable woman.
She unconsciously blushed. She was no match to her beauty.
“Oh, don’t worry about it, sweetheart. I was just surprised is all. How may I help you?”
Okay, something was not right here. Why was this woman behaved as she was the mistress of this house? She had only been away for one week. What could have… Suddenly an idea crossed her mind.
“Are you Max’s patient?” she asked politely.
She remembered that sometimes he brought home patients requiring special care, children mostly. But still…
The woman gave her a strange look and then she burst out laughing.
“His patient?” she said trying to drown her laugh. “No no. I am not Max’s patient, but you look familiar, I think”
She gazed at her perplexed for only a moment but then she clapped her hands excitedly as if she made some kind of discovery.
“You are his protégée!” she exclaimed.
“Well… yes” she admitted uncomfortably.
She felt heartbroken. If he referred to her as his protégée it meant he only regarded her as such. She was nothing more and all that they planned before she left… It was all a lie…
“Max had an early call at the hospital” the woman spoke again. “We had some minor problems with rogues this past week and he has been kind of busy. Imagine, that I have been here for four whole days, and I only saw him once. But now that you are here, I will have some company at last. I was dying to meet you, you know”
She had said all those things in one breath while hugging her by the shoulders and helping her sit one of the wooden chairs. However, this whole situation was strange. She had known Max almost her entire life. She was already familiar with whatever relatives he had. They all lived in the pack after all. This woman was no relative of his. She had never heard about her. Not a single word.
She started feeling a little sick and dizzy as the only option possible began to settle in. But perhaps she was wrong. Couldn’t she be?
“I am sorry” she finally spoke barely recognizing her own voice. “I know nothing about you. Who are you?”
“I am Delta, Max’s Mate, of course, you silly!” the woman grinned broadly pushing some auburn locks behind her neck gracefully.
