The second outfit is another pair of jeans. I smile because Mia knows what I like. It's a pair of black, skinny jeans and a red halter top with a deep-v plunge neckline. I immediately think of Sabrina—this looks like something she'd wear. I give it no more time and move on.
Running my hands over the soft gray sweater that lays on the bed, I know this is it. Vintage wash skinny jeans, a black tank top, and the softest gray cropped sweater.
"This one is perfect!" Picking up the sweater, I rub it against my cheek; it's so soft.
"Are you sure?" Mia asks. "Red is a more powerful color,"
I cut Mia off and giggle. "I don't think I need to give my wolf an extra power boost tonight."
"Gray and black are so drab," Mia protests, wrinkling her nose.
"Then why is it here?" I ask.
"Fine. If that's what you want to wear," Mia sighs and then smiles and rolls her eyes. "The boys win."
"What?" My heart pounds against my ribs.
"Caiden and Dylan picked that out. They said it looked the most like you." Mia giggles. "While you get dressed, I'll go find accessories."
Mia grabs the other clothes on the bed, tosses them into the bag and heads out the door.
"Oh, and dry your hair the best you can. I have an idea," Mia says with a wink as she closes the door.
I flop onto my bed. All I want to do is crawl under the covers. Taking deep breaths, I remind myself, I need to be a social butterfly tonight and win everyone over; I'm doing this for Caiden. Closing my eyes, I see Caiden, his deep blue eyes, and perfect smile. A heat rises to my cheeks as I remember his soft kisses and gentle touch, and I smell that sweet scent of Bergamot. Picking up the sweater, I take a big sniff. He scented the sweater. I hug it and smile.
Snapping my head toward the door, I know someone is there before they knock; quickly standing, I start to dress.
"She's fine," I hear Mia say as she opens the door. Then I see Caiden standing in the hall behind her. I flash him a small smile before he turns into his room.
"How long until we leave?" I ask Mia as she walks across the room.
"A couple hours, why?" Mia asks, eyeing me suspiciously.
"So soon?" I ask. "What happened to the whole day," I whisper to myself.
"You slept and showered?" Mia says.
"Thanks Captain Obvious," I say, glaring at her. We both laugh. Tears run down my face and I can't stop laughing.
I gave her this nickname when we were out in the wild. She was so naive; she really had no business being out there. I collapse on the floor giggling as I remember the time she said 'someone camped here' when we came across an old campfire.
"It's a good thing we haven't done your makeup yet, or else it would be ruined!" Mia says when she finally regains composure.
"Makeup?" I frown. "You didn't say anything about that."
"Just a little. You won't even know it's there," Mia smiles.
"Fine. I'm at your mercy." I give her my best devil eyes as I walk across the room to sit in a chair.
After what feels like hours of Mia playing with my hair, she's finally satisfied with a French braid. But not just any French braid. First, she teased my hair to give it volume, then she sprayed it with a sea salt spray to give it texture, and finally she pulled it into a braid; ensuring it had that messy, unkempt look too.
"Perfect!" Mia squeals. "Go look in the mirror, you'll love it."
Walking to the bathroom, my feet move like lead. I like big events almost as much as I like shopping. Mia brings me a hand mirror and I admire the back of my head. A grin tugs at the corner of my lips, it looks amazing.
"I knew you'd love it," Mia says. "Now, shoes." She walks to a box sitting on the bed.
"What do you think about these?" She asks, holding up a pair of black flat booties.
"Let's see." I take the boots and put them on. "Fashionable, and surprisingly comfortable."
"And the final touch," Mia says, holding up a pair of rose-gold dangle earrings. Taking them from her, I see the interlocking loops, which create an infinity symbol.
"They're beautiful," I whisper.
"Come on, hurry up, put them on," Mia says.
Putting them on, I step back a few feet from Mia and she looks at me with a scrutinizing gaze. After a few minutes, she finally smiles.
"You look smashing!" Mia says. "He's going to drool all over himself," she giggles.
"What? Who?" I ask in a deep voice. Looking in the mirror, I get lost in thought. I know I'm not all dolled up for a wedding or prom, but for me, this is the fanciest I've been in a long time. I hear Mia talking, but I'm not listening, my eyes are glued to the young lady in the mirror. Who are you?
"Hello?! Earth to Cinda." Mia snaps her fingers in my face.
"What?" I ask, turning away from the mirror.
"I was saying, the boys are meeting us there. Since it took so long to get you ready, they went to the store to buy everything for tonight," Mia says. "Just one last thing."
"What's that?" I ask, rolling my eyes.
Picking up her cell phone, she smirks, "A selfie!"
The cookout is at a pavilion deep in the forest. As we walk along the woodland path, Mia tells me the story of how Caiden and their father built the pavilion.
I try to listen, but the beauty and serenity of the woods are distracting. My pulse quickens—being back in the woods, my wolf is on high alert. She's full of mixed emotions, just as I am, only for different reasons—well, maybe a few of the same reasons. Letting out a sigh, I relax my shoulders and look to the ground.
"What's up?" Mia asks.
"It's so beautiful out here." I look around at the last of the sun rays shining through the trees, dancing on the forest floor. I give a small smile. "I think I miss it."
"Caiden likes it out here too," she says, giving me one of those looks.
"Mia," I say, coming to a halt, "I told you earlier, he's not interested, and it won't work. Just leave it alone."
"He's interested." Mia steps closer to me, we're eye to eye. “He just has to get over a few things first."
"A few things? Like what," I ask, folding my arms across my chest.
"Well..." Mia says in a long-winded breath, "for starters, he holds the bond between mates in the highest regard; it's a little old-fashioned if you ask me," she snickers. "He has feelings for you, I can tell. But he's fighting it because you found your fated mate. To claim you as his own mate, in front of your fated mate, it goes against everything he is." Mia squeezes my hands, giving me a small smile.
"Oh, is that all," I say, rolling my eyes and stepping past her to continue our walk. My fated mate rejects me, I have a psychotic Alpha that wants to claim me against my will and the most decent man I've ever met can't get over the fact that my fated mate rejected me. If I can accept it, he should be able to too. But why should he? Do I want him to? While I'm lost in thought, we arrive at the cookout.
The pavilion demands my attention first. Stopping on the outskirts, I admire the massive structure. It's an Adirondack-style Pavilion, complete with rugged woodland accents. But next I admire the backdrop. The view is stunning. As the sun sets, purple, pink, and orange color the sky and fireflies add a magical element as they twinkle in the air.
"Come on." Mia tugs at my arm to get my attention.
After my eyes leave the beauty of the pavilion, I survey the pack members who are standing around. I know Caiden has a large territory, though I've never asked how many members are in their pack. By the looks of it, I'd estimate a few hundred, double the size of my father's pack. My heart pounds hard in my chest.
As we draw near, the pack members are standing around chatting amongst themselves. They turn to Mia and me, and it gets so quiet you can hear the hum of the tree frogs. Scanning the crowd, I find Caiden standing at the grill, with Dylan and Sammy by his side. There are a few other men chatting with them too. Watching him, I smile and a rush of adrenaline flows through my body,
leaving me breathless. I know as soon as he senses my presence because he stands taller and his head twitches, but he doesn't turn around.
Dylan is the first to turn in our direction, and smirking, he walks toward me.
"Nice outfit," he says. Giving me a hug, he whispers in my ear, "Tonight will be hard, but I'm going to try. Don't think anything of it, okay?"
"Yup," I say as cheerfully as possible, a fake smile on my face.
"Hey Mia," Dylan says, backing away from me.
"Hey Lucinda, glad you could make it!" Sammy says as he jogs over.
"Thanks, I'm excited to be here," I say, this time with a genuine smile.
"You're wearing make-up." Sammy grins.
Tugging at the hem of my shirt and rubbing my palms on my pants, I sigh, "Is it that obvious?"
"No, you look pretty," he says and my cheeks flush.
"Well come on, let's go meet the pack." He tugs on my arm. I look to Mia for help, but she shrugs and turns in the opposite direction heading toward Gavin in the distance. Figures. Dylan only laughs before walking away.
Chapter 25
Lucinda
Sammy first guides me over to a group of women that appear to be around our age. Their fake smiles and high-pitched voices prove to match their attitudes. After giving me a once over, they turned their attention back on themselves. It took all my control to be polite to them. Sigh. This will be a long night at this rate.
Next, Sammy takes my arm in his and navigates me through a massive crowd congregating in the center. He introduces me to people as we pass through, and luckily, he doesn't stop for small talk.
I catch a glimpse of that young girl, Eva, and I wave in her direction. A man standing beside her takes notice and pushes his way through the crowd to reach us.
"Who do you think you are?" he says in a deep tone.
"Excuse me?" I ask.
"Filling a young and naive girl’s head with silly nonsense," he says.
"Hi, Mr. Willow." Sammy extends a hand. "Have you met Lucinda? She is our guest—"
"I don't need to meet her. I've heard enough about her already. You should be ashamed of yourself." He turns back into the crowd. Ouch.
After that, it was harder and harder to put on a happy face and mingle with the pack members. The warm welcomes included hugs and kisses, while the cold shoulders included insults. Some people were even blunt enough to ask about my relationship with the Alpha. The nerve of them.
Dylan finds us and motions to Sammy. Thank you. Sammy turns to me and says, "It's time."
I take a deep breath and for the first time since I arrived, I look to find Caiden. His eyes are already on me as we approach.
"Welcome, Lucinda." Caiden smiles. "Are you ready?"
"Yup, let's do this," I say, softening my eyes and flashing my pearly whites.
"Hello everyone," Caiden says over the crowd, "thank you for coming out tonight on such short notice."
"Where've you been, Alpha?" A man shouts from the crowd.
"Yeah, where've you been the past few days? We needed you," another voice calls out.
"You left with no word and no trace," yet another concerned voice calls from the crowd. One voice turns into many.
"You left your pack again, unguarded," an angry voice says. This pack is more broken than I thought.
"And you!" The crowd turns, pointing at Dylan, "You were nowhere to be found either!"
"Usually we can depend on you when we can't depend on our own Alpha! But not this time!" An elderly man yells.
"Yeah, when Caiden pulls his disappearing act, you're the one we turn to. But you weren't here," another man says, and the crowd roars.
This crowd is turning into an angry mob. I bite my lip and scan the crowd. I find Sabrina leaning against a tall white pine tree on the outskirts of the crowd. She's smirking. Following her gaze, she's intently watching a group of young men standing in the center of the crowd, not too far from Caiden. They're wearing brightly colored polo shirts, and every single one of them has hair spiked up with gel. They have their backs turned to Caiden and instead are shouting into the crowd. Heat flushes the back of my neck. How can they be so disrespectful? I take deep breaths and clench-unclench my fists to calm myself down. Caiden's voice brings my attention back to him.
"Everyone, calm down," Caiden says, and I feel a wave of power rolling through the air. "I'd like to introduce you to our guest, Lucinda." He points to me, successfully ignoring their outburst.
"She needed Dylan's help earlier this week," Caiden begins but is cut off by the crowd once more.
"You chose a rogue over your own pack?!" They yell. I see the group of young men, once again yelling into the crowd.
"No," Caiden booms over the crowd. I notice his jaw muscles tighten as he clenches his jaw. Running his hands through his hair he says, "She isn't a rogue, at least not by choice." Dylan surprises me by stepping forward.
"Lux, or Lucinda," Dylan says, "is a childhood friend of mine. We grew up together in the same pack."
"But this is your pack now! Where does your allegiance lie?" The crowd demands.
The corners of Dylan's lips turn down as he puckers in disgust. This is not the response he was expecting. He steps back and Caiden turns his back to the crowd, speaking with Dylan and Mia.
Out of the corner of my eye, a quick movement and flash of color catch my attention. Turning toward the crowd, I leap and shift in midair, successfully pouncing on one of the young men from the group I spotted earlier. I spotted him charging toward Caiden. A sharp serrated knife drops from his hand, as my big paw places pressure on his wrist. A low growl vibrates from my throat and I bare my teeth.
One of my claws extends and is close to puncturing his skin when a warm hand rubs my head and leaves behind the most wonderful scent of bergamot. My growl becomes a low rumble and I sit up, freeing the young man. He scoots to a standing position with a pale face and wide eyes. Turning around, he runs back to his group of buddies.
"Is there anyone else that would like to challenge me? If so, please be honorable and challenge me to my face." Caiden growls into the crowd. I nuzzle against his leg and he flashes me a smile.
"Now, as we were saying before," Caiden speaks again, "Lucinda is no mere rogue. She's the daughter of an Alpha, an Alpha that was slain; and member of an entire pack that was slaughtered."
Watching the crowd, the pack members shrug their shoulders and shake their heads. Some members look horrified.
"We know the pain of losing pack members, we've been through it and survived," Caiden continues. "But we didn't survive all on our own. If our neighboring packs didn't provide us with assistance, what would've happened to us? Now we're in the reverse situation. Another pack is in need of our assistance. Yes, it may only be one member—because that's all that is left. Are we to turn our backs and not provide help when needed?"
Caiden's speech is inspiring. His emotions roll through the air as he speaks, wave after wave of emotions rolling through the crowd. Pack members wipe their eyes, dab their noses, and shuffle their feet.
"No decisions need to be made tonight; tonight is a night of celebration—celebration of life," Caiden says, flashing a smile to the pack and Mia cues the music.
The chemistry of this pack interests me. Watching them, I see a clear division. There are two types of members. Those that lived through and had their lives permanently changed during their rogue attack; these members are standing as stone statues. And the others, the young or those not affected at all, they're laughing and joking with each other, eager to eat, dance, and party.
I rub against Caiden. This is a hard pack to lead—having to please two types of people. I flip my tail to get his attention, nodding my head toward the woods trying to tell him I'm going back to the pack house. I think he understands because he doesn't try to stop me when I turn to leave. Life would be easier at times if I could communicate with him while in wolf form, but that would require b
eing accepted into his pack, and I'm not ready for that yet.
***
Back at the pack house, I look through the clothes Mia loaned me, trying to decide if I want to get dressed and join the pack again, or lounge here and relax. The flannel pants win. I'm better off here anyway. Caiden needs to restore not just confidence in his pack, but loyalty too. He needs to do that first, without me by his side.
Heading downstairs, I crawl into the soft and comfortable chaise I've had my eye on since I first arrived. Grabbing a blanket and the TV remote, I get lost channel surfing.
When the front door opens it startles me and I throw the remote across the room. I was so caught up in whatever movie I stopped on, I didn’t even notice how late it had gotten. A smile creeps over my face when I see the intruder is Caiden, and only Caiden.
"I brought you some food," he says, holding up a bag.
"Thanks! I'm starving." I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I smelled the food—and the tantalizing scent of bergamot.
He walks toward me and takes out all the food, placing it on the coffee table. I kneel down on the floor and begin eating.
"Lucinda," Caiden says, "I want to thank you for what you did earlier. Pouncing on that punk—"
"Don't mention it." I shrug my shoulders, successfully cutting him off before he can continue.
"Your sleek transformation caught everyone's attention," he snickers. "That's all anyone was talking about after you left."
"Awesome," I say in a dry tone and Caiden begins to laugh.
"I'm sorry you weren't able to enjoy yourself," he says. "There was music and dancing after you left." I lift my head up from eating and raise my eyebrows.
"Oh yeah?" I say, with a mouth full of food.
"Would you like to dance?" he asks.
"Here? Now?" I wipe my mouth with a napkin. He nods and stands up, extending a hand out to me.
I place my hand in his, those little sparks of electricity run through my arm as he helps me stand up. He changes the TV channel to a music station and we begin to dance.
The Rogue's Fate Page 13
