Chapter 5

Ethan POV

"I apologise. I truly mean it when I say, "I feel like I'm using you for our mate bond." I was using him as a way to decompress.

With an embrace, he says, "It's ok, An, whatever you need, I'm here."

"Are you prepared for bed? I nod in response to his question.

When we get in bed, he pulls me to his side and puts his arm over me. I relax and breathe in his scent as warmth spreads, lulling me to sleep. I close my eyes and concentrate only on her sweet citrus scent and breathing; nothing is more comforting. When her breathing becomes a steady rhythm, I shift my weight and adjust my leg, and I can tell she's fallen asleep. I never imagined that I would find my mate, and not only that but close to home too. I have known Anna for most of her life; she was annoying as a child but quickly won my heart. I never imagined that our relationship would end up this way, but to be honest, I'm not angry about it. I know she will make a great Luna, but I'm unsure how Jake will handle this. I breathe deeply of her vanilla scent, close my eyes, and drift off to sleep with my mate in my arms.

When I wake up, Lucas freaks out, so I sit up and glance around the bedroom.

Anna enters then, carrying a tray.

"I'm glad you woke up. I brought some breakfast for us. I grin as she settles up next to me and lifts the tray, laying it between us. It includes two breakfast sandwiches and a delicious-looking potato hash. "I thought we could eat up here for some privacy," she says, setting the tray onto the corner of the bed.

I pick up a sandwich and say, "Thanks for breakfast." She grabs the other and bites into it.

"Now what? Chewing, she says to me.

"You mean like with us? She nods in response to my question.

"That decision is yours, An. What are your goals?"I inquired.

"So what occurs when regular individuals meet their partners?"May I ask?" she queries.

"Well, I guess they would meet the families, start a relationship, move in together, mate and mark each other, and live happily ever after," I responded.

"Well, we already know each other's families, so that's done." She replies.

"Haha, true."

"So establishing a relationship would be the next step? She looks at me and says, "

Is that your desired outcome?"I inquired.

"Well, it makes us mates since I won't reject you, and I have a sense you won't reject me. She continues, "And the sooner we both jump in, the easier it might be for everyone."

I concur with her.

"All right. We're dating right now?"Yes, I affirm.

"You're my boyfriend now, right? She responds with a question.

"I feel this will still take some getting used to," I add, and she chuckles.

Yes, you're most likely correct. But now is the best moment ever," she remarks as we finish our meal.

"I need to return to the pack home for more training, though. Can we have lunch together after?"I inquired.

Yes, it would be nice. "I'll walk you out. Just let me know when you're done," she offers.

After leaving her room, we went down the stairs to the front porch.

I replied, "I guess I will see you later, beautiful." She smiles, hugs me, and says, "See you later, Ethan." She turns to walk inside. I take a deep breath and go to the pack house, thinking solely of all that has transpired over the previous eight hours.

I enter my room and see Candy sitting on my bed with her arms crossed and her feet tapping.

Oh my, I forgot about her.

"How on earth have you been?"As she stands up, she asks.

She took offence when I said, "Candy, look, I'm sorry, but I'm going to need you to leave." You take me home to meet your family, leave me behind, and now you want me to go? She screams.

"This isn't where I brought you to meet my relatives. You're the one I got here to go on my party date.

The party is over. I repeat with greater vigour, "I need you to go.

"All well, anything. I watch as she rushes out the front door and downstairs, thinking to myself, "Man, I am a d*ck." I get ready for training and proceed to the field. "You're a d*ck," she exclaims.

Brody approaches me as soon as I get there.

"Hey, dude," I say.

"Hi, Ethan. I'm very glad you're back. Brody is one of our greatest fighters and will be my future beta.

"Glad to be back," I responded, shaking his hand.

"Your brother is definitely in the mood this morning. He looks angry, and I know why: "He's over there kicking everyone's ass." He gestures to my brother, who is on the sparring mat.

I ask Brody, who oversees training, "How's he been doing?"

"Over the past six months, he's been rather busy. But today, it appears he has found his concentration," Brody remarks.

"Want to engage in combat?"I questioned him.

Brody laughs and replies, "Yeah, I don't want your little brother to kick my ass."

"So you don't believe I could give you a kick in the ass?"I say, arching my brow.

"Even in that case, you're in charge. We get to a mat and begin fighting; he's improved since the last time, but I've become quicker. We have a few sparring sessions before running training drills with the guys. As we finish, I send Anna a link to meet me at the pack house in ten minutes.

Brody rushes to me and says, "Hey Ethan, wait up."

"Hey, what's up?" I say.

"This evening, are we going out? Meet some women, perhaps?"

"Oh my goodness, I just assumed that everyone would be discussing this, but it turns out that nobody is." "Dude, I'm done with ladies," he says, looking at me bewildered.

Jake replies, strolling by us and glancing at me, "Tell him why, Ethan."

"What can you tell me? Brody queries.

I reply, "I'll tell you, but don't mention anything until the announcement. You found your partner, dude? He seemed thrilled.

"Yes, I found my mate."

"Whoa, from what pack is she?"He queries

His joy wanes when I add, "It's Anna."

"Whoa. That makes sense, I suppose. "I agree. No wonder Jake is so mad." I nod.

"Dude, that's a tough place. Have you talked to Anna about it?"May I ask?" he queries.

Yes, I spent the night at her apartment. That's not at all what you're thinking. All we did was sleep. We discussed it this morning and decided to proceed. The entire partner thing," I remark.

Running to the pack house, I think, "But hey, I'm meeting her at the house for lunch. I have to go. See you tomorrow." As I get there, I find Jake and Anna conversing on the porch; while I'm delighted they're talking, they seem uncomfortable with each other.

Anna's POV

As I step onto the porch of the pack house, I notice Jake approaching. I pause, and I

Jake approaches and stands before me as I watch Ethan start to wake toward us from about ten yards back, but he pauses to give us a minute.

“Ann. I apologise for my outburst last night. Even if I promised not to be. Without glancing at me, he replies, "I wasn't being a good friend to you."

"I'm sorry it didn't work out like we planned." I murmur, "Everything changed just like I knew it would."

"What are you doing here anyway? I'm still your friend; I need time to process everything," he says. I turn to see where Ethan is. Jake responds, "Oh. Well, I'll leave you two to it," as he turns to face Ethan and enters the building. Ethan approaches.

He asks, "You ok?" I nod, catching sight of his sweat-drenched shirtless torso—not a terrible appearance.

With a foolish smile, he says, "Are you checking me out?" I narrow my eyes as I snap up to meet his stare.

"Well, you are my boyfriend after all," I responded. He chuckles.

He opens the door for me and says, "I'm going to shower and change. Do you want to wait in my room or.." "I'm joking, babe. You can check me out whenever you want."

His mother cuts him off, saying, "Or I could steal her for a moment while you do that." I tell him it's okay as I nod in response to his glance. He goes upstairs, and I go to the living room to join Luna.

"Give me a minute to complete this page."

As I settle beside her and wait for her to complete, I answer, "Sure." I survey the living room.

She sighs after a while and puts the book down.

"Hello, sweetheart. How are you today? Better?"Yes, better," she says, taking my hands. I tell her, "I'm still treading lightly but embracing the mate bond." She beams broadly.

"Well, my love, that is wonderful to hear. I understand that it's challenging to go through, but it will become better eventually," she adds.

"When would you like to disclose the news officially?"May I ask?" she queries.

"We recently started dating, Mom. Could you give her a chance to process this? As he descends the steps, Ethan remarks.

"I know, sweetie, I was only speculating. You know we must send out the invites in advance," Luna remarks.

"Two weeks?"If that's okay with Ethan," I break in. They both glance at me. Luna grins and turns to face Ethan, who, to my surprise, is also smiling.

In a deep voice, he replies, "If that's what you want, beautiful."

"Excellent! I'll leave you two and start working on the arrangements afterward. Whoa! Hello baby, welcome to the family," Luna adds, giving me a quick kiss on the head before disappearing to join Ethan on the couch.

Are you certain that this is okay? With the most exquisite green eyes, he grabs my hand and stares directly into mine.

I say, "Ethan, I'm all in this." As his hand slides over my cheek, I feel a tingling sensation across my face. He then wraps his hand around the back of my neck and pulls my head up to meet his, kissing me gently until our lips meet, and a wave of warmth washes over me. I close my eyes and let the kiss carry me away.