“Lilly has known this Jacquelyn’s whole life and never told her?” Fane asked.

  “She probably didn’t think she would ever have to. For all she knew, Lilly gave birth to a healthy human baby girl. Jacquelyn may have never shown any wolf tendencies whatsoever. Regardless, Lilly knows who and what you are, Fane. I called and spoke with her about what is going on, and she took it well. She agreed to let Sorin stay with them because she realizes he would be added protection,” Fane’s father explained.

  “I know I can trust Sorin, but you know how hard it is for a male wolf to allow another to be so close to his mate, especially when the bond ritual has not been performed,” Fane said through gritted teeth.

  “I know it is going to be hard for you, but you’re going to have to leash your wolf and recognize what will keep her safe. Still, I don’t know if Sorin will be enough of a deterrent to keep the other pack from attempting to take Jacquelyn. I have no idea how dominant this Alpha is or how large his pack. How he has managed to hide from us is a mystery to me, not to mention why he has hidden at all.”

  Fane growled at the idea of his mate in the hands of a pack to which she did not belong.

  “How can they possibly want her when she is not a true mate to any of them?” Fane asked.

  “I know it is hard for you to understand because you are so young, especially in Canis lupus terms. You found your mate quickly, which is rare. Most go decades, if not centuries before they find their mate. Female Greys are not abundant, and after such a long time some males get desperate enough to settle for less and hope that, over time, their wolves will bond. Blinded by the darkness slowly driving them mad, they foolishly believe any female will be the balm to their pain. They forget their true mate is the only one who can bring balance with her light. They disrespect themselves, the one they take, and their own true mate when they do this.”

  Fane couldn’t imagine being with a female that wasn’t Jacquelyn. The idea was repulsive to him.

  “Will Sorin need me to pick him up?” Fane asked, getting back to matter at hand.

  “No, he will rent a car to keep for the duration of his stay,” his father answered.

  “I will keep you updated as I learn things. You lay low, Fane. I don’t want my only son and future Alpha of this pack killed.” His father used his Alpha voice that demanded obedience and could not be defied.

  “Yes, Alpha,” Fane replied, recognizing at that moment he was not speaking as a son to father, but as a pack member to Alpha.

  Fane hung up and laid back on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He decided to wait a couple more days before he confronted Lilly and Jacquelyn, but he was going to have to convince Lilly to tell her daughter first. He would obey his father and not tell Jacquelyn before then.

  Because he needed her touch, even if only mind to mind, Fane reached out to his Luna. “Are you awake, meu inimă, my heart?” He patiently waited for her response.

  “Well, I am now. Is it customary in Romania to wake people at the crack of dawn?” she replied grumpily.

  “It is not the crack of dawn, Luna. It is already 10:30 a.m.” Fane told her.

  “Oh, my bad, it’s moved up to still-too-freaking early,” Jacquelyn grumbled sleepily.

  Fane chuckled at her grumpiness and found it rather endearing.

  “So, I take it you are not a morning person?” he asked her.

  “I’m not a person at all until after noon so make a note to yourself to keep your thoughts out of mine ’til then.”

  “Duly noted. I will not seek you out until 12:01 p.m.,” Fane said, joking with her.

  “Aren’t you just so clever?”

  Fane wondered what she looked like in the morning, hair a mess, rumpled clothes. He imagined she was adorable.

  “I would rather you not see me first thing out of bed, nor imagine what I look like. I assure you ‘adorable’ would not be the description you would choose,” Jacquelyn assured.

  “I believe how I see you is not really up to you, my Luna,” Fane said gently.

  “What exactly does loona mean?”

  “I will tell you soon, but not today. Rest assured, it is a high honor to be called that. I was planning to pick you up at 5:30 p.m. Is that too early?” he asked her. Fane hoped not. He’d prefer to pick her up now if he could. He desperately wanted to spend time with and get to know her. Fane wanted her to know him as well, and he hoped she liked what she learned. He wanted to be worthy of her because she brought him balance and control and love. Fane carefully kept those thoughts from her.

  “5:30 is good. Are you going to tell me what we are doing?” she asked him.

  “I was thinking that golf game Americans play that has all the different obstacles,” Fane answered.

  Jacquelyn giggled at his description, and Fane grinned, glad he could make her laugh, even if it was at his expense.

  “You mean putt-putt. That sounds like fun. So, I will see you at 5:30. Are you going to be in my head anymore today?” she asked him.

  Fane’s voice was very soft and intimate when he answered, “Do you want me to be in your head, Luna?”

  Fane felt Jacquelyn respond to his voice. When she answered, even her thoughts sounded breathless. “I, um … I don’t know.”

  “I will take that as a yes, and you can tell me to leave at any time, knowing I will obey you. Talk to you later, meu inimă, my heart,” Fane said to her sweetly.

  “Bye,” was all Jacquelyn could manage to get out.

  OceanofPDF.com

  Chapter

  Eight

  “Hello, earth to Jacque,” Sally said as she snapped her fingers in front of her friend’s face.

  Finally, Jacque turned her head to Sally, looking spacey and out of it and said, “I’m in trouble.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?” Jen asked her as she sat on the floor painting her toenails.

  “I was just talking to Fane, and his voice got all sensual on me, and it was like…”

  Jacque didn’t know how to finish, so Jen offered up, “Phone sex, virtual mind sex, and I would say sex on a stick, but that really only applies to Dove ice cream bars.”

  “Jen, paint your toenails,” Sally ordered.

  Jen stuck her tongue out at her but obeyed.

  “I could so fall hard for this tasty Romanian,” Jacque told them.

  “There’s nothing wrong with that, just make sure it’s not a rebound from the whole Trent thing,” Sally told her honestly.

  “I hear what you’re saying, Tonto,” Jacque told her with a smile.

  “Are you going to tell us about the upcoming date?” Jen asked.

  Jacque thought about Fane’s cute description of putt-putt. She hadn’t played in a long time, so she was looking forward to it.

  “He’s picking me up at 5:30 and taking me to play putt-putt. I think it will be interesting to see a Romanian hottie play something he didn’t even know the name for,” Jacque told them.

  “He didn’t know what putt-putt was called?” Jen laughed. “That’s awesome.”

  “It’s the little things, Jen, the little things,” Sally told her.

  Jacque spent the day discussing various scenarios for the evening with Fane. Naturally, all Jen’s included vivid make-out scenes and somehow always ended with their clothes off. Jen truly was a piece of work. You can’t help but love her.

  At 3:30 p.m. Sally and Jen sat Jacque down on the edge of her bed then began pulling various outfits from her closet. She decided right away that a skirt or sundress was out because of riding the motorcycle. Finally, it came down to a pair of jeans with holes in various places and her “Daisy Duke” shorts that looked worn out, only they weren’t because that’s how she had bought them. She had already decided on a hunter green, spaghetti-strap shirt with various sparkly designs.

  “Just go with the jeans,” Jen said. “They’re sexy in a badass kind of way, and they will help keep your skin intact if you are in a motorcycle wreck.”

  Sally glared at Jen.

  “What? I’m just saying,” Jen defended.

  “Yeah, I think I will go with the jeans. They leave something for the imagination, and if it is the slightest bit cool while riding that bike after dark, they will be much more comfortable than the shorts,” Jacque decided.

  “Okay, hair up or down?” Sally asked.

  “I’m thinking down for the motorcycle ride because of the helmet, and then I will take a hairband to put it up once we get there. It’s putt-putt, Sal, no need for a French twist,” Jacque told her. “I’m just gonna wear my green flip-flops,” she told them. Jacque hated wearing shoes, and if they weren’t required, she avoided them—just another one of her weird quirks.

  She took a shower while her two best friends picked out eye shadow for her. When she returned to her room, they had Jen’s phone hooked up to her computer speakers jamming to a Southern rock band. Jacque just shook her head at them. She dressed and Sally pushed her down onto her desk chair to work on her unruly hair while Jen started on her eyes.

  By the time they were finished with Jacque, it was 5:00 p.m. Sally and Jen looked at her, spun her in a circle to see their finished product, then looked at each other and bumped fists, saying together, “Damn we’re good.”

  “I would have to agree ladies. Y’all are fantastic. Thank you both so much,” Jacque told them.

  “Oh, hell no, don’t go getting all sentimental on us. If you mess up the work I did on your eyes, I will not hesitate to kick your butt between your shoulders,” Jen said sternly.

  “I love you, too, Jen,” Jacque said sarcastically.

  “Are you nervous? Sally asked her.

  “If I said I wasn’t, I would be lying. But I would also be lying if I didn’t say I was absolutely beyond excited,” Jacque told them.

  “Why do you say that?” Jen asked her in a rare moment of seriousness.

  “I wish I could tell you guys this without y’all thinking I’m a total nut, but no matter how I put it, it’s still going to sound crazy,” Jacque admitted.

  “Um, Jac, hate to point this out, but two days ago you told us you were hearing a voice in your head,” Sally told her.

  Jacque thought for a moment. “Point taken,” she agreed.

  “Okay, well, I don’t know quite how to explain it, but I feel like I belong with him, like I have always belonged with him. Now that I have been close to him, it’s like a part of my soul was missing, and now that he’s here, I have it back,” Jacque explained.

  “That is so romantic,” Sally said dreamily.

  “I guess now you should spend time with him, get to know him, and see if he feels the same way,” said Jen.

  Jacque and Sally looked at each other in shock. “Jen, did you just suggest something that didn’t involve wild making out, clothes coming off, or is comparable to the car scene in Titanic?” Sally asked incredulously.

  “You didn’t let me finish. Then after you get to know one another, seal the deal with a steamy make-out scene on the motorcycle, like in Top Gun. Ahhh, see there is always a time and place for lip-locking, hand-roaming, and good ol’ fashion clean, or if you’re lucky, not so clean, fun,” Jen said with a wink.

  “As always, Jen, you do not disappoint,” Jacque told her.

  “I aim to please, my dear,” Jen replied completely undaunted.

  Jacque looked at her watch and realized it was 5:20 p.m. Okay, have fun and don’t worry about all the other crap going on. Jacque took one more look in the mirror and caught a glimpse of her neck and shoulders.

  “Oh shite, the markings are showing,” Jacque exclaimed.

  “We know,” Sally said.

  “Why didn’t you remind me?” Jacque asked.

  “Because they look cool as Hades, that’s why,” Jen piped in.

  “That statement doesn’t even make sense, Jen. Hell is not cool, jeez—”

  “Oh, my bad, they look hot as Hades, that’s why,” Jen interrupted.

  Jacque continued undaunted, “And what should I say to my mom? Hey, Mom, going on my date. Oh, don’t worry about these handy dandy marks. Ya know how it is with random, mysterious markings and whatnot just popping up when you least expect it,” she said with thick sarcasm.

  “No, we were going to tell her they are the stick-on type, and that Jen insisted you wear them,” Sally said.

  “The idea that I am the one to blame was completely involuntary, I will have you know.” Jen frowned.

  “I doubt she will swallow it, but he is gonna be here—” before Jacque could finish, the doorbell rang.

  “I don’t have time to change,” Jacque finished.

  “Look, you’re going to be great. Just be yourself,” Sally told her in a motherly voice.

  “For goodness sake, if you wind up not liking him, kiss him anyway for us, okay? Throw us a bone, Jac,” Jen told her.

  “And if I like him but I’m not ready to kiss him, what then my little nympho?” Jacque asked her.

  “If you like that gorgeous piece of meat out there, and you don’t kiss him, I will personally take every bra you own and hang them on all the antennas of the cars on your street. Oh, and I will write your name on them in black magic marker, being sure to hang two on hottie’s motorcycle! How’d you like them apples?” Jen told her.

  “Where on earth do you come up with these ideas? Is there, like, a website called vindictive.com, or cruel-mean-ideas.org?” Sally asked her sarcastically.

  “Nope, I think of them all by my little self,” Jen answered.

  The girls all turned when they heard a soft knock on Jacque’s bedroom door.

  “Come in,” they said. Jacque looked at the other two as if to say, “Hello? My room,” but they just shrugged.

  Jacque’s mom came in the room looking at the girls like they were guilty of something, because, in truth, they usually were.

  “Fane’s here. He’s brought a helmet. Did you forget to mention you would be riding a motorcycle?” Lilly asked her.

  “No, I just assumed you knew,” Jacque said.

  “Why would I assume that? I figured he’d borrow a car.

  “Well, you know what they say about assuming,” Jen added.

  Both Lilly and Jacque turned their heads to look at Jen, who simply shrugged and said, “I’m—”

  “Just saying, yeah, we know,” Sally finished for her.

  Jacque decided to just go ahead and let her mom see the marks so she wouldn’t freak out in front of Fane.

  “Mom, what do you think about these fake tattoos Jen put on me?” Jacque asked, turning around so her mom could get a look at her shoulders and neck.

  Jacque heard her mother take in a sharp breath. She turned to look at her and saw her mom’s hand over her mouth. There was fear, major fear, in her eyes. Once again, Jacque knew her mom knew something she wasn’t sharing.

  “Are you okay, Lilly?” Sally asked.

  It took a minute for Lilly to regain her composure, but as soon as she did, her face went right back to normal.

  “Of course, I’m fine, it was just a bit of a shock, and they look so real,” her mom told them.

  Jacque turned to look at her two best friends. “Are y’all planning to stay here or going home?” she asked them.

  “We’re going back to Jen’s to hang out. If you want to come over after your date and Lilly’s okay with it, that’s fine,” Sally answered.

  “That’s fine with me,” Lilly told Jacque.

  Jacque didn’t know what to do. Part of her wanted to be with her friends, but the other part wanted to be alone so she could talk to Fane. She would see how the night went and decide then.

  “I’ll call you guys and let you know if I’m coming. I don’t know what time we will be home, so I wouldn’t want to come over if it was late and y’all were already in bed,” Jacque told them.

  Sally and Jen gave her a ‘Yeah, what a load of crap supersized with fries’ look. Jacque just tried to look as oblivious as possible to their scrutiny.

  Jacque expected her mom to say something about a curfew, but she didn’t. She just turned to go back downstairs. “I’ll be downstairs with Fane telling him embarrassing stories from your childhood, so you might want to expedite your final preparations,” Lilly told her daughter.

  Jacque turned back to her friends. “Look, I’m not going to lie. Part of me wants to stay home tonight so I can talk to Fane, but the other part of me wants to be with my girls,” Jacque told them.

  “We’re totally cool with you staying home to get to know him more. There is only one stipulation to this, and that is we get everything in living-color detail. No condensing, no paraphrasing, no in-conclusions, and no summaries—every single detail!” Jen told her adamantly.

  Jacque laughed and gave her two friends hugs. “Thanks, chicas, you two are the best,” Jacque told them. “Okay, I’m ready. I’ll see you guys later.”

  “Have fun!” Sally and Jen said together. “Oh, look, Sal, our little girl is growing up. Where did the time go? From teaching her to cut her Barbie doll’s hair, then to cutting her own hair, and now sending her off with a hot piece of Romanian meat. I’m getting all choked up,” Jen joked as she faked tears.

  Sally looked at Jen and shook her head. “You done?” she asked her.

  “Yeah, I’m done. Why you always gotta cramp my style, yo?” Jen asked in her best slang voice.

  “Cuz’, that’s how I roll,” Sally answered.

  “Are you two sure you can be left unattended and to your own devices?” Jacque asked them smiling.

  “Go already,” Jen said.

  Jacque opened her bedroom door and walked to the top of the stairs. She took a deep breath and let it out through her mouth.

  “Luna, I’ve been waiting to see you all day. Are you rethinking going out with me? Because that’s okay. I’ll just go back to the Henrys’ and let you be with your friends,” Fane told her through his thoughts.

  “NO!” Jacque responded, realizing a little too late that she had just incriminated herself letting him know how much she wanted to see him as well. “I’m on my way down now. Quit being so impatient. It’s not becoming,” Jacque told him.