Chapter 3: Iris Miller

Three

Iris Miller

The door to my room opened, and there was a pretty blond girl with purple eyes looking at me. “Well, you don’t look like an annoyance,” she said. For a split second, I thought I saw a brown wolf pacing in her gaze, and I realized this must have been Celestine. The other werewolf we were living with.

I had finally finished packing, and Dawn had gone off to a local salon to get her nails done for the party leaving me alone. I pulled myself out of the closet where I’d been arranging things then looked at the pretty, blond girl. “Hi,” I said, “I’m Iris Miller.”

She smiled. “I know. I’ve heard all about you. Apparently, you made quite the impression on my mate’s brother.”

I sighed irritably. “Oh god, that’s right. You’re dating one of Dawn’s brothers, so you probably know all about how Malaki already hates me.”

Celestine nodded. “I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Malaki kind of hates everyone. The girl he was best friends with and thought was going to be his mate ended up being mates with a vampire. So, he’s not really happy about anything these days.”

I winced. “Sorry about that.”

She shrugged. “It’s not like you were responsible, right? Anyway, I’m sure he’ll be fine. Dawn has some crazy theory that one of the girls we’re living with is going to be his mate and that they’re going to have kids.”

I laughed. “Oh, trust me. I know. I heard all about it. I’m just glad I’m out of the running. Malaki wasn’t exactly present when I met him, you know?”

She smiled. “I know. He can be a lot to take. But that’s only because he’s fiercely protective of his people. If his brother were a little more serious like him, we might get along better.”

“I find that hard to believe. Granted, I only had a brief interaction with him, but I’m willing to bet Malaki doesn’t get better over time.” I played nervously with one of my corkscrew curls.

Celestine stood up so that she wasn’t leaning against the doorframe anymore. “Malaki has his moments, you know? Anyway, you’re going to the party, right?”

I nodded. “I mean, I don’t think Malaki really wants me there, but Dawn does, so I’m going for her. What about you?”

She made a face, as if the very idea was repugnant to her. “I don’t do pack parties.”

“Why not?”

Celestine came in, and sat down in my desk chair. “The Crescent Wolf Pack is one of the oldest werewolf packs out there. Being one of their mates is kind of like being royalty. And since I’m Milo’s, everyone’s just going to stare at us. I’ve known he was my mate since we were seventeen, but I’ve only known I was a werewolf for just as long. I didn’t think I was ever going to be part of this world, and everyone expects us to be all in love or whatever. But I had this whole other life before him, so it’s been kind of hard giving it up.”

“Other life?” I raised an eyebrow. “You mean, like a boyfriend?”

She bit her lip. “I’ve been best friends with Peter Mullins my whole life. Right before I found out my true origins, and about Milo being my mate, we kissed and had sex. But then, my mom told me the truth about me being a werewolf, and as soon as I met Milo, I got tattooed with his name on me somehow.”

“Mate tattoos? That’s actually thing? I thought that was made up.”

“Unfortunately, no.” Celestine was wearing a pink hoodie, and she pulled up the sleeve to show me the name Milo tattooed across her wrist. “And it hurts if he’s in danger, and his does the same. We also always know when the other one is around us too. It’s annoying. I can’t ever escape him.”

“Wow!” I exclaimed. “That’s so weird. I don’t know if I could handle that. Does everyone who has a mate have one?”

She nodded. “Sometimes, it doesn’t appear right away though. Sometimes it won’t appear until after you’ve had sex or kissed.”

“Why was it so instant for you and Milo?”

“That’s something I haven’t figured out yet,” she admitted, “and neither has he. Anyway, I just try and stay away from him as much as possible. It makes things easier. If neither of us has sex with each other by the time we’re twenty-one, sometimes you get lucky and the mark fades. Then you can have a normal life.”

“Wow, I’m glad I don’t have to deal with that. I think just finding my classes is going to be hard enough.”

She smiled. “Anyway, I might not be going, but that doesn’t mean I can’t help you find a dress to wear. Milo’s a jerk, but he does have exceptional taste. Want to take a look at my closet and see if you can find anything to wear for the party tonight?”

“You mean it?”

“Totally. We’re going to be living together, and you’re going to have to deal with other werewolves coming out of this place all of the time. It’s the least that I can do.”

“You’re awesome,” I told her.

“I know,” she answered with a wink. We went into her room. She lived with the other human girl, Anna, who was out with the two other roommates I hadn’t met yet. Sinead and Keavy. They’d gone to get coffee or something before I’d arrived.

Celestine’s side of the room was done in blues, with lots of shots of the moon on the while. While Anna’s had sketches it looked like she’d done herself up, and a tie-dyed bed spread. “Is Anna nice?” I asked.

Celestine smiled. “From what I know of her. She went to school with Sinead and Keavy, apparently, and the witches think she’s part of some prophecy involving their brother.”

“That’s rough,” I said.

“Always. But I think she’ll get through it. Anyway, lets get to the makeover portion of the evening. I think I’ve got just the thing to bring out your wild side.”

I thought maybe I should have been worried, but either way I let her find the perfect outfit for me. And I didn’t think Malaki would think of me as the Little Human if he saw me in it. At least, a girl could hope.