Night

"Can I stay here for the night?" he asked while scratching the back of his neck. "I don't think my wolf will like it if we stay apart from you tonight."

I tilted my head to the side as I asked, "Why?" We have always stayed in our own rooms every night. What makes it different now?

"It's hard to control my wolf now that you know you are my mate," he turned his head away awkwardly, "You don't know how many times he urged me to... do stuff for you."

"Do what?"

He gave me a tight-lipped smile and said, "Things that you don't want to know, yet." He walked to the sofa and threw his body atop of it, saying, "I will sleep here tonight. You don't have to mind me."

I nodded and tucked myself into bed. The warm and soft quilt won over me from the very first night I laid beneath it. I was used to sleeping on a hard and damp underground floor, so the feeling of sleeping in such a high-quality bed was very pleasant and comforting.

I wonder what my dad is doing right now? Was he searching for me or was he happy now that I'm away from his sight? It was not like I missed him, but I couldn't help but be curious about what he felt when he realized I had escaped from him. I was sure Fiona was going to be bored now that she didn't have anyone to toy with. Maybe she will search for someone else to use for her vile entertainment.

What did my dad even see in Fiona? How could he like someone who is as evil as her? I admit she was a looker, but there was nothing good about her except for her outrageous beauty. Sure, she was pretty on the outside, but on the inside, she was very sadistic, conniving, and perverse. Hell, I could even use every word to describe evil in the dictionary to describe her, as every word matches her just as perfectly. She was the devil herself.

It has been a few minutes since Luke started to spin his body around the sofa. It must be uncomfortable for him to sleep in such a narrow space with his tall body. I didn't know how big and luxurious the bed of the Lord of Wonsvile was when my bed itself was pretty spacious.

Should I ask him to sleep beside me? There will be enough space for both of us to sleep without disregarding the safe distance between us. And I also wouldn't be able to sleep if he kept on shifting on the sofa.

"You can sleep in the bed if you want to," I offered, which made him spring up immediately.

"Really?" he asked as he positioned himself at the edge of the sofa. I could see how the corner of his lips turned upwards a little, which he tried to hide by tucking his lips in when he heard my offer.

I blinked my eyes slowly, telling him that it was okay for him to do so. A dashing smile sprawled across his face as he made his way to my bed. The soft mattress dipped down with the bear of his weight as he stepped into it.

He tilted his body in my direction as he placed both of his hands under his head. I was uncomfortable with how we were facing each other, so I turned my body around with my back to him.

"Why did you turn around?"

"Because you are staring at me," I answered while biting my lower lips. I was uncomfortable and a little shy about how he stared at me with such intensity. He didn't seem to want to move his gaze the moment he stared at me.

A soft chuckle went to my ears, "How can I not when you are right next to me?"

I ignored his remark and decided to let my unconsciousness devour me. The night was still long and I just wanted the morning to come as soon as possible to run from this awkwardness. Maybe I was the only one who felt awkward about our proximity, looking at how relaxed he was beside me. I did sleep in his embrace just this evening, but it was because I was scared out of my wits by what had just happened. I needed to feel safe and it was him who gave me the safety that I sought. I couldn't care less about how close we were before, but it was different now.

"Do you want to meet my pack?" he asked just before I fell asleep.

"Do they live here?

"Hmm," he hummed. "I told them to stay away for a few days because I haven't told you what I am. I was afraid that they would go around in their wolf form and meet you on the way."

That explains why this place was always so empty. "Are you the leader of the pack?" I inquired as I turned around to face him again.

"Yes, I am the Alpha of the Moon pack, and the Supreme Alpha of the whole werewolf races," he explained. "And you will be my Luna."

"What's a Luna?" I've heard this word ever since Denise, the girl who thought I snuck into this house and snapped.

"Luna is the Alpha's mate, meaning, my mate." His face beamed with happiness as he fixed his gaze on me. His eyes were shining, showing a beautiful dark red color that I was starting to get used to seeing.

"Isn't Luna the owner of this room?"

He brushed off the few hairs that fell on my face and tucked them behind my ear. "This room used to be my mother's, the previous Luna," he pointed to the portrait of the blonde woman on the wall. "That's her."

My mouth formed into an 'O' shape as I nodded in acknowledgment. The captivating beauty on the wall was Luke's mother. No wonder Luke has this godly appearance, turns out he got it from his mother. Their features resemble each other a lot. The only differences were their hair color and eyes.

"Let's sleep," he ruffled my hair before closing his eyes to drift off to dreamland. I soon followed him and finally slept through the night.

...

I opened my eyes and was immediately blinded by the light that went past my window. I tried to get out of bed but halted when I felt something on my waist. Two strong arms had placed themselves comfortably on my waist, making me realize the safe distance I kept the night before was now invaded. My back was touching his chest, and his face was buried in the nape of my neck. That explains how close we were right now.

I didn't remember being so close to him before I fell asleep yesterday. I was still on my side of the bed, so it was Luke who sneaked his way to my side. I tried to move his arms away from me, but he wouldn't budge. I couldn't turn around to look at him as he was hugging me so tightly. I tried to move his arms again, and this time, he released his hug slightly, giving me the opportunity to finally get out of bed.

Just before I escaped from his hug, he pulled me back to him and snuggled closer to me. I sighed and asked, "You are awake, aren't you?"

He let out a small chuckle, "Am I caught?" His voice was husky, it was evident he had just woken up from his slumber, "Can't we stay this way for a couple of minutes?"

"No," I refused and slipped out of his arms. I marched out to the bathroom and gave myself a quick shower. After I finished showering, I noticed Luke was still in the same position as when I left him. He had a small pout on his face, with one of his hands supporting the weight of his head.

"How can you refuse me so heartlessly," he huffed, "I am hurt."

"I don't remember allowing you to be so close to me."

"That's not my fault," he babbled. "It was my wolf's. He couldn't keep his hands off you," the little pout on his face was now replaced by a smirk.

I rolled my eyes at his answer but decided to not reply to him. He walked out of the bed and dragged me gently by my wrist, "What?" I asked.

He sat me on the dressing table, then pulled out the drawer and picked up a scissor. "We need to cut your hair," he said as he entangled his fingers in my hair and caressed it softly. It was the first time I checked myself in the mirror since yesterday, so I just noticed my hair was chopped sloppily, making my hair look uneven.

"You are right," I frowned as I touched my uneven hair. My mom used to praise me for having beautiful and smooth hair. That's why I adored my hair. I always cared about it, so I was kind of angry that the mad man cut it off. If he wanted to cut it, then couldn't he at least cut it neatly?

"Let me take care of it," Luke smiled at my reflection in the mirror while patting the back of my shoulder reassuringly.

"Can I trust you?" I narrowed my eyes as I stared back at him. He laughed and pinched both sides of my cheeks lightly.

"Of course, rabbit," he said as he pounded his chest proudly. "Trust your mate."

I nodded at him skeptically, but let him do what he intended to do. He started to cut my hair. Bits and bits of my hair started to fall to the ground. The more he cut my hair, the more anxious I felt. I don't like the idea of cutting my hair, but I had no choice. I stayed quiet as Luke focused on cutting my hair. A few minutes of silence went by, and the silence that surrounded us was broken when Luke announced, "Done."

I lifted my head to look at my reflection. My hair, which previously went down to my waist, is now cut just above my chest. Surprisingly, it didn't look bad. I have never had my hair this short before, so I didn't know what I would look like with shorter hair. I thought it would look bad, but surprisingly, I looked... good? I think I look better now that my hair is not covering my body.

"How is it?" he asked while stroking my hair.

"I like it," I smiled at him and nodded in satisfaction, "Thank you." My head felt lighter now with the lesser amount of hair weighing down my head. It was weird, but I felt like I let go of some of the burdens on my shoulders by cutting my hair. It was very refreshing.

"I can't believe I have such a beautiful mate," he sighed. "How can I keep the other guys away from you?"

"Stop saying such a thing," I said as I furrowed my brows. "That's not true."

"But it's the truth," he smiled, ruffling my hair. "Shall we go?"

"Where?" I tilted my head to the side, confused at his suggestion.

"To meet our pack."