NINA POV

'Where are we right now?' I remembered being bitten and a pain gripping my leg right before I passed out. I was still sore but the guys must have found a way to patch me up. I tried to open my eyes. Move. Or do anything but I couldn't. I could feel the presence of the guys, as usual, no one was talking.

'Can you guys hear me?' I tried the Mind-Link, but there was no connection. Like I was inside a soundproof room. My wolf, Clover, wasn't answering me either, like she was outside whatever this bubble was.

'OK, that's ok. Nothing is wrong. I'm just going to try to sleep and hopefully when I wake up, I will be fully awake.' I felt my body rise and fall with the deep breath I wanted. I continued to breathe evenly and relax my body.

Then his scent hit me like smelling salts. The feeling of being slightly electrocuted went through me and my eyes opened. 'It's him! Mate, it's really him. I knew we would find him.' I tried to get my eyes to cooperate and find the source of the smell that my wolf was telling me was my mate.

Forbes was shaking out a blanket and throwing it over me, but in my effort to try and see everything, I kept kicking it off.

"Oh honey, you shouldn't have shifted. You've been terribly hurt. How are you feeling?" An older woman patted my shoulder to get my attention, and when I turned to look at her, my eyes met his.

"Mate?" I know what my wolf is telling me, but I needed him to confirm it. I needed to know that he was waiting for me, just as long as I had been waiting for him. He had been holding plates of some pastry, now laying in a heap on the floor. He stood airing at me for a moment and started to shake his head.

Disappointment flooded me at the thought of rejection. Maybe he thought one of the guys was my mate. I tried to stand, to go near him before he had a chance to leave. My knees gave out when my feet tried to hold them up and a sharp pain shot up from my knee to my hip.

"Oh no no! Don't move." I looked up and he was kneeling in front of me, staring into my eyes with his hands hovering over my arms.

"You're my mate." Confirm it, asshole. Or get dumped. His eyes lit up and the most brilliant smile showed itself onto his face.

"Yes. I hope you're not too disappointed." A blanket suddenly cut off my view of him. Forbes was holding it up like a sheet and making a show of averting his eyes. I growled, snatched the throw and wrapped it around my shoulders. The movement caused the pain to spike, but once my eyes met my mates again, it started to dissipate.

"My name is Nina. Ari, James and Forbes are my friends." I hope he wasn't jealous. I couldn't go on without them at this point. He only gave a small smile, no evidence that he was feeling animosity toward any of my loved ones.

"I'm Quest, but you can call me Love, baby." He chuckled and took my hands in his. The sparks were refreshing and it was an added relief that he didn't seem to be thinking about rejecting our bond.

"UGH, gross!" James said lowly.

"How are you really? You had a broken leg and I set it but I was hoping you wouldn't shift until you had recovered a little bit more." I looked over to the older woman hunched over me with a smile on her face. It was hard not to relax in her presence.

"My wolf is faster than most at healing. There's still a lot of pain but I think I will be ok." I looked back into Quest's eyes. "Especially now."

She laughed in a melodic way and did a little shimmy. "We did bring some cake and food for you. OH! Are you hungry? We have so much. I'll get you some clothes…" She turned away and started a slow walk toward the door, mumbling to herself about all the things she needed to gather. When she turned back, she snapped her fingers at the lingering guys.

"Let's give them a moment. I don't think she'll die if you go take care of yourselves." She turned away and walked through the den's door. Ari started the walk, but both James and Forbes looked at me.

'We shouldn't leave you alone with him.' Forbes nodded his head at Quest, not bothering at all to be inconspicuous.

"If he wanted to hurt me I'm sure he could have done it already, considering we are on his pack's lands." I explained out loud to him.

"Oh well, we're a new pack, kind of. We don't really have ranks yet." Quest said quietly and dropped his head. I felt the shame coming off of him.

"Then we have plenty of time to build." I smiled at him.

"BOYS!" The old woman called from the outer door. They all scrambled to do her bidding.

"Uh, how come you can Mind-Link with them, if you don't mind me asking? You all left the same pack."

I was hoping that I wouldn't have to speak on anything so soon but if we are to be fully mated then we need to be honest with one another.

"No… I left my pack with Ari. We met Forbes and James some time later on our… travels." I could hope that we would leave it at that but I wanted to be open with him. I had promised myself that when I met my mate that I would give him all of me and not to anyone else. "I was intended; my father had plans to mate me to the the Beta of the neighboring pack. He thought it would be good for our family and the Beta had just lost his mate but, I knew I wanted to wait for my own." I stopped and smiled at him. He stared at me. I had his undivided attention and he knew I wasn't finished yet.

"I'm glad you waited for me." He brought my palm up and kissed it gently. "I waited for you too." He whispered.

I wanted to cry. "Ari was always my friend. He's the most unapproachable looking but he's the sweetest, I promise. We always used to hangout on the swings by this lake. He would be there, almost everyday, rain or shine, reading. He never spoke at first. I think I pressured him into it if I'm being honest." I was getting sad remembering the life I used to have before we started our journey.

"The Beta figured he was competition, I guess and fabricated a vulgar rumor that he had forced himself on me. He told my family and everyone close to me." Tears came to my eyes. "Ari was so determined that day, certain that if he left that NO ONE would be uncomfortable. I was angry that everyone was so ready to believe the word of a stranger. So, I left with him." I had been focusing on the green and orange tones in his eyes. When looking into the rest of his face, there was despair.

"I'm so sorry, Love. It sounds like you are one of the strongest women I've ever met. It's not easy to leave your home and everyone you know and love and start anew to protect your beliefs. And I can only be grateful, because it led you to me." He brought my hands to his lips again and kissed my fingers.

"Hey, hey. Sorry to interrupt. I brought some fresh clothes and some food and a little elixir to help your pain if you feel you need it." She set the tray and basket on the coffee table.

"Thanks Agnes. I'm gonna come and help you bring in all the stuff from the beach in a minute." He called after her. She turned and quickly shuffled out of the room.

"Don't you dare! I have more than enough help out here. Thank you!" He turned back to me chuckling and shaking his head.

"She doesn't like being treated like a Goldie, but I get a kick out of annoying her." I immediately had one new thing to learn; all of the American colloquialisms.

"And what is a Goldie?" His fresh cedar and mint smell was starting to permeate my senses. My whole body was languid and relaxed. He got up from in front of me and my heartbeat spiked.

"I'm getting you some clothes, and maybe something to eat?" He raised his brows at me. I nodded. "And, Goldie! Like, golden girls! Come on!" He laughed his boisterous laugh and bent over the basket. Pulling out a loose pair of white pants with little red hearts and a plain white tee. He held them out to me and when I took them, he turned his back.

"So, we have corn, some sausages, meat patties. I think she brought some stuff in here for burgers…" I realized he was giving me a moment of privacy but without leaving me.

'Oh, he truly is perfect.' Clover kept preening and purring.

"I'm not truly picky and we haven't eaten in a few days. So I'll take anything." I said pulling the shirt over my head.

He turned around just as I stopped pulling my pants any higher because of the pain. He put the overloaded plate on the table and gently held the top of the pants so I could shimmy my bottom into it. He gently patted my hips and brought the plate in front of me.

"You know, I don't want to start off my relationship by telling you what to do but you should really join us. We are new and we're small. We're in the process of figuring things out together. I'm saying we could both give it a chance and if either of us feel it isn't worth it, we can leave…together."

"And what about Ari, Forbes and James?" Non-negotiable, of course.

"Take 'em with us." I grinned and leaned forward sharply to kiss him which sent a shocking pain up my side. I hissed.

"Careful, Love." He settled me back onto the seat and brought himself forward to gently peck my lips. I sighed at the blissfully static contact.

"You take some time and eat. I'm gonna go help Aggie and send Ari in so you won't be alone?" I nodded he pecked my lips again, this time lingering a bit longer and stood. He took one step forward before he turned and knelt back down.

"By the way, you are the most stunning woman I have ever seen. The Moon Goddess is nuts." He let out a hysteric giggle and dashed out of the room.