7. Release

I decided to take a quick nap. The past couple of days had been so hectic that I needed the rest.

I followed Lucien down a flight of stairs and stared at the house. Every step I took made me fall in love with the place. It was very simple but modern. Five floors extended further back into the mountain – concealing most of its parts. I wondered who the hell built this place – without a road it must have been hell to construct. But then again, werewolves had their ways.

Lucien brought me into a small hallway and opened a door to a large and spacious room. Large glass windows showed off the forest, sleek black bookshelves were filled with books and glass framed photographs, and the room smelled wonderfully of mahogany. A small fireplace was lit by the door. Adding to the coziness of it all.

I peeled off the thick jacket I was wearing – I was already sweating from the heat. The floor was made of finely polished wood with a mix of plush carpets. A large panel divided the other half of the room. I walked over to the other side and my jaw dropped. There was a king-sized bed with nothing but green and white sheets, large pillows, and a black leather bed frame. Two large lamps stood on each side of the bed, there were no nightstands but there looked to be a movable tray with a laptop and leatherbound notebook atop of it. The walls were dark wood with a nice mix of white and a hole-in-the-wall arch led into a well-concealed bathroom that had its own built-in closet. There was nothing much in the closet so I thought for sure that the room was mine – until I slid a drawer open.

I walked out and spotted Lucien with his arms folded over his chest.

"Like it?"

"Lucien be honest with me," I said, hoping to the goddess that I would growl – but of course that would never happen.

"What?" He asked with a bemused grin on his damned god-like face.

"Okay," I said with a pause, "Is this my room or yours?"

He smirked. He fucking smirked.

"It's both."

"Are you serious?" I asked and Lucien grinned.

"We can discuss things later. Feel free to rest. I have to go to a meeting," he said. He then turned and left, closing the door behind him.

I plopped down onto the bed and immediately relaxed into the bed as it seemed to mold against my body. Note to self, talk to the mate later.

.

.

.

.

.

"Just… try," My mom said, nudging me along and I bit my bottom lip as I hunched over, my fingers touching damp soil. I closed my eyes.

Please… please… I begged inside my head. But nothing happened. Zaina smiled as she got in front of me, she bent down, touched the ground, and her bones began to crack and shift… Fur sprouted along her body until she had become a wolf. I got up from my position.

"Auden?" My mom called and I turned around and sighed.

"I can't."

"But you haven't even-"

"I can't! How many times do I have to tell you that?!" I screamed before seeing a scared look grace my mom's face– "Mom– I'm sorry I–"

.

.

.

.

.

I opened my eyes and groaned as I rubbed them. I was having one of those moments where my eyes didn't know whether or not to go completely to bed or stay up now that they were open. But apparently my nap had become a full day's sleep. I looked around, the windows revealed to me that it was morning. If I hadn't checked my phone, I wouldn't have known it was the next day. I stretched out my arms and stood from the couch before making my way into the bathroom on the other side.

The bath was simple, with black tiles all over it and some wooden embellishments. It honestly looked like a sauna. I looked at my reflection in the widespread mirror that basically took up one entire wall of the bathroom. My brown eyes looked pretty tired, my hair looked like a bird's nest and as I pulled it out of its ponytail, I almost screamed murder – it had tangled up and pissed me off. I stripped down and turned on the shower.

As I started to wash my hair, I realized exactly that Lucien's scent of cinnamon and vanilla came from the shower set he had. I hopped out clean and refreshed. I wrapped a towel around my body and picked up my clothes, folding them up in my hands before I padded my way out and headed for his closet. I opened one of the drawers and picked up one of his shirts, a plain crimson colored v-neck, and pulled it on. I searched through the rest of his drawers and did my best to look for something to wear underneath it. But of course, I found nothing. Unless I wanted to put his underwear on - and to be honest, I would, but we just weren't that close yet.

Feeling a little bit exposed down there, I searched the other drawers and opened up the cabinets until I sniffed him in the air. I turned around and found Lucien staring at me, his eyes looking from my legs up to my face.

"What?" I asked and he shook his head.

"Breakfast is ready," he said.

"I'll be there in a sec." I shuffled through the cabinets and came up empty-handed – mostly because they were actually empty.

"What are you looking for?"

"Underwear," I replied before opening a bottom drawer and spotting loose boxers, "Do you wear these?" I asked and he paused.

"Not often–"

"Good enough," I said as I took a pair of gray ones, held them up to my body, and looked at him. "Turn around." I said. Lucien chuckled and did as I said.

"Good?" He asked as I pulled them up and let the shirt down over my thighs.

"Good." I answered.

He turned around and I ran my hand through my wet hair. I followed him out the door and smiled as I spotted the propped up table of food. The table was one of those foldable ones and had two chairs by them. There were waffles, an assortment of toppings and syrup, and a pitcher of water along with another of orange juice.

"Did you make this while I was in the shower?" I asked and Lucien nodded. "Well, thanks," I said, not knowing what else to say. Lucien did the same and I poured some syrup into my waffles, adding some butter and a handful of blueberries.

"I wanted to talk to you about something," he said. I spied on his waffles, which were covered in a buttload of syrup and cream.

"Mmhmm…" I trailed off as I ate a forkful, I softly moaned at the taste of fresh waffles, earning a hint of a smile from Lucien.

"Xander told me you were human– and yesterday's 'ride' to the pack house seemed to confirm it. I wanted to hear if you had an explanation–"

"Do I need one?" I asked as I poured myself a glass of orange juice.

"I do want to know more, considering you're my mate and all," he said simply.

"From what I know, I'm a full-bred werewolf. I can do just about everything other than shift – which makes me more like a special human rather than a werewolf," I said with a shrug. Just as he was about to speak, a knock on the door stole his attention. Lucien wiped his mouth with a napkin before he stood up and opened the door.

In walked a girl with short curly black hair and bangs, she had painted red lips against a deep brown complexion, she wore a white shirt tucked into a pair of black flowy overalls – she looked like a vintage movie star. She also walked in with a bunch of bags– shopping bags.

"Okay, so I've got a couple dresses to spare and I asked Xander what size she looked like and he said to go with medium just in case– I brought some loose pants and, well, I guess–" she spoke with a British accent. And then she froze.

"Oh, wow. You are so much prettier than Xander credits you for," she said as she dropped all the bags and walked over to me. She held her hand out and I quickly stood to shake it, she grasped my hand tightly and smiled at me.

"Katherine, Lucien's ever-so-underestimated Beta," she introduced and I smiled.

"Auden."

"Beautiful name, beautiful girl, and from what I hear, she's a doctor. Lucien you lucked the hell out of the mating pool," she said giddily before looking at me from head to toe. "But getting stuck with Lucien's wardrobe is an absolute pity for such a pretty woman."

"Noted, Katherine," Lucien said in a somewhat irritated tone. She simply laughed before turning to me.

"Well, we girls gotta stick together– and as Beta, I think it'd be good for you to know that I live just on the opposite hall, all you need to do is walk out go down a floor and then turn left – Desmond and I have this agreement to have all guests take off their shoes before they enter our apartment."

"You have an apartment– in here?" I asked and she smiled.

"My mate and I need our privacy– and I'm not down for breakfast sex where Lana or even Lucien can see."

"Desmond?"

"He's my husband and mate, he's the pack doctor–"

"I thought most Beta's–"

"Were men? I know, right? Unfortunately, Desmond lacks the, um, social skills– but it is one of the things I love about him."

"Katherine–" Lucien said and she laughed.

"Right, you wanted me out of here. Anyways– nice to meet you and I'll see you around. Hopefully you enjoy the clothes – I know not everybody's into my style so I picked a wide variety." She turned to Lucien and after a long pause, she laughed.

Man do I crave that mind-link. I thought to myself.

"Okay, farewell for now, Desmond's linking the fuck out of my brain," she said before she hit Lucien hard on the shoulder before walking out and closing the door behind her.

"Do you want to–" Lucien began as I got up and made my way towards him.

"Lucien, shut up," I said, as I placed a hand on his chest. "Listen, I'm not down for any exclusion – I know how that feels and I know you might not mean it– but take me into your pack." I felt a rumble come from his chest before he growled possessively.

"Are you sure?" He asked in a low voice and I nodded.

"The link with Carmine isn't much use all the way in Vancouver– and I've already tried running."

"I will never leave your head," he said and I smirked.

"It's a mind-link not a mate bond– we're not there yet, Alpha Lucien," I teased and Lucien wrapped his arms around my waist.

"I never thought I'd move this fast with my mate," he said and I laughed softly.

"Hm... well, you do have a human mate, we're efficient," I said and Lucien chuckled.

"I'll have to call your sister–" he began but I ran my hands down his body, traced his abdomen, and earned a low groan. It made my stomach cave, hearing him do it against my ear.

"Or we could do it without her."

"She's your Alpha." He said, trying to sound firm. I placed my hands underneath his shirt and he let out a low moan, I chuckled in his ear.

"Shame, I thought you were," I said low into his ear, before I traced the area around his waist.

"The only… reason I'm… not… stopping you-"

"Is because I'm your mate and trust me, this feeling is mutual… but since I'm not in 'tune' with my werewolf– it's a lot easier for me to control it." Lucien stepped forward before his hands traced my waist and lifted me up, my legs instantly wrapped around his lower torso.

"Do you rescind your link to the Carmine Pack?" He asked just as he laid me on the bed. "Then repeat after me…" He had his hand on my thigh and I resisted the urge to move.

"Oh…," I breathed out and I barely even felt anything else as he traced his hands along my body.

"I, Auden Breaux…"

"I, Auden… Breaux," I repeated as I arched my back and he placed his hands on my hips.

"Renounce the Carmine Pack," he said as he lifted himself from me, placing his hands on either side of my face.

"Oh… Okay…" I looked into his eyes and he stared expectantly at them. "I… Auden Breaux, renounce the Carmine Pack."

Maybe it was because I hadn't seen my pack in a long time – or I was used to not being with them… But– I felt nothing as it–

"Then I, Lucien de Martel–" he continued. I paused. Whoa.

"Hold on, your last name is de Martel?" I asked, gawking.

"Sorry, that was a little bit too cool for me not to comment on, please, go on," I said and he chuckled.

"I, Lucien de Martel, Alpha of the Umbra Pack, welcome you, Auden Breaux, as my mate and as the newest addition to my pack."

…

Now that I felt.