A Gift from the Goddess

Book Two – Ch.#18 

*knock* *knock*

C‘mon… please… *knock* *knock* *knock*

Please open the door…

*knock* *knock* *knock*

Kieran…

*knock* *knock* *knock* *knock* *knock* *knock* *knock* *knock* *kno–,

I was beginning to panic, thinking that I‘d left it too late but then, finally, the door opened.

“Raven,” Kieran said, almost in disbelief. “You actually came. You‘re–.”

But I didn‘t wait for him to finish.

Without missing a beat, I instantly moved forward and threw my arms around his waist. His scent was mixed in with soap and water, clearly having interrupted him from a shower. But it was the best thing I had ever smelt. Already, I could feel my body start to relax from the warmth coming off of him. Something much needed to help calm the adrenaline pumping through me.

Hesitantly, his arms then moved to encircle me, reciprocating the hug. Almost as if he was still in shock I‘d arrived.

“I was starting to think that you weren‘t going to change your mind,” he said. “I‘ve been putting off leaving for a few hours now, stubbornly in denial.” “I‘m glad you were stubborn… Thank you for waiting.” He pulled away slightly so he could look at my face, bringing a hand to touch my cheek. “How though? Are you in danger or…?” But I quickly shook my head. “I‘m fine… I just don’t want to talk about it, if that‘s okay.” It wasn’t that I wanted to hide it from Kieran… I just wasn‘t sure what to say yet. I didn‘t entirely know myself what I was doing. Was I truly escaping? Or was I just merely playing along with what my father wanted? It felt like I was hedging my bets rather than actually making a decision. Waiting to see how things would turn out first.

Kieran held my gaze for a few seconds, obviously trying to tell if I was lying about being fine, but finally he nodded.

“Okay… I‘ll grab my things and we can go.”

I sat on the couch as I waited for him to get his luggage together, happily watching him move about. Every now and then he would look over at me, almost as if he were expecting me to not be there, and I would give him a small wave in reassurance. By the time he was done, all I could feel was intense nervousness fluttering inside. We took all our bags outside to his car and, once everything was loaded up, he then turned to me, politely

holding open the passenger seat door.

you ready for this?” he asked. “There will be a lot to

been so sure in

at him, now buzzing with anticipation. “I‘m

the expression, instead, he seemed almost taken

 is it?” I asked, thinking something

a daze, but my voice seemed to pull him out of it. “Nothing, nothing,” he quickly replied, but he then brought his hand up to my face and brushed his thumb gently against my lips. “It‘s

 to those sparks. That feeling of being captivated by the way

 to ask quietly, though I couldn‘t

 time

 flustered, feeling a little guilty for faking during our

 in my head. “It‘s so beautiful,”

 I quickly turned my head to the

 in persuading men to fall for me, that had been something I‘d picked up quickly in my job, but that experience did little to defend myself against every little thing Kieran did. He had me completely

 once more, and my gaze locked with his. He looked like he was going to kiss me… and I really hoped that he did. I could still remember it from the other day, how perfect it had felt. But, due to circumstances at that time,

would feel like as it moved against mine…

should get going,” he said quietly, taking a step back. And, for a moment, I thought his eyes had appeared darker again. Was that normal or was I just seeing wrong every time! “We have a long trip ahead of us.”

it did end up being a long trip indeed. Even though the ‘public‘ border was only a few hours’ drive, according to Kieran, the actual town itself was located a lot further up north. Along the journey, he did his best to fill me in on basic things I needed to know. Things like basic terminology, details about the ‘pack’, and a

 aloud, trying to remember the right names. “And then you have warriors, each with their own ranks… and then… Elders? Which are

 up of the older generation,” he answered. “Unlike the birth ranks, the Elders don‘t

 seemed a bit strange, but I was doing my best to understand.

 the eldest son of Victor, so I therefore get a birth title as well. Mine would be Alpha heir. It means that I‘ll take over as leader

 during the charity event. I remember him asking if it

 realise that, even though my father must have known what I was, he clearly didn‘t have an understanding of everything werewolf related. If he did, I doubted that he would have agreed to let me go with Kieran and his family for a while. Especially if he‘d been

 and it might seem odd, but you‘ll get used to it eventually. Personally, all that you‘ll need to worry about is just remaining respectful to my father. Not that I think you‘ll have any trouble with that. As for everyone else, they would technically be considered benea, ah….” He then stopped himself mid–sentence, thinking about his phrasing. “Just… you don‘t need to worry about everyone else as much. You‘re my… guest.” “Okay…,” I said, frowning. “…And one more thing.” His voice then became lower, more serious. “…I‘d love to be able to say that my pack

“What do you mean?”

is a chance that some people might not like you. I doubt you’ll encounter anyone brave enough to say it

Oh.

Reid’s daughter?”