Forbidden Territory

Alexina

I drained my wine glass, and Chloe was quick to refill it. I was a few drinks in when I remembered the freedom I had to let my wolf out.

“Let’s go for a run!” I exclaimed, leaping from the couch with a careful balance to avoid spilling my drink. We downed our drinks and made a beeline for the door.

My hand was on the doorknob when Chloe halted me.

“Wait,” she said, placing a hand on my shoulder. I swiveled around to face her.

“What?” I asked, my eagerness to run making me impatient.

“How are you going to shift with that on?” she asked, pointing to my hand that wasn’t on the door handle. I glanced down to see my bright pink cast glaring back at me.

“Damn it! I told her to take this thing off. I know it’s healed already,” I grumbled, trudging back to the couch, my hopes of a run evaporating.

“Zena, even a werewolf takes three weeks to properly heal a bone. You know that,” she said, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder as she sat down next to me. She could tell I was upset about not being able to run.

“Chloe, I have Alpha blood in me. This bone was healed days ago,” I said, holding up my arm, as if she didn’t already know what I was referring to.

I watched her mouth drop open before she composed herself again to speak.

“What? You have Alpha blood in you and you didn’t think to tell me this why?” she asked, looking upset at me. I racked my brain to recall the words she used earlier when I accused her of not telling me about her brother.

“Minor detail, I overlooked it,” I said, shrugging, a smile playing at the edges of my lips as I fought to hold it back.

She tried to maintain a stern look, but she couldn’t hold back her laughter for long. Seconds later, we were both literally falling off the furniture from laughing so hard.

When we both ended up on the floor in front of the loveseat, we managed to take a few deep breaths and start to compose ourselves.

“We have to get ready!” Chloe said, looking a little panicked as she glanced down at her watch.

“Get ready for what?” I asked as I followed her, darting towards her bedroom.

“The bonfire!” she called out excitedly as she rummaged through her closet.

“What bonfire?” I asked, still clueless about what she was talking about.

“Every Friday night the pack has a bonfire out by the lake. It’s mostly just teenagers and young adults that go. I haven’t been to one in a while, but it should be fun. Plus, it will get us out of this godforsaken cabin for a while,” she said, looking around with a disgusted expression, her hands full of clothes.

“Okay, what time does it start?” I asked, leaning on the door frame.

“We only have two hours to get ready,” she said, hurriedly.

“Two hours! How much time do you need? I can be ready in less than an hour,” I said, looking at her, wondering what could possibly take that long. She’s a werewolf, it’s not like she had to do much. She would have been beautiful just stepping out of a shower and throwing on a robe.

“Perfection takes time!” she said proudly, sticking her nose in the air.

“You’re so full of yourself. Go ahead and take a shower first. Apparently, you will need more prep time than me,” I said, tossing her the towel that was hanging on the back of her door.

“Don’t hate,” she said, sticking her tongue out at me as she pushed past me to get to the bathroom.

“Just hurry up,” I said, heading to my room to pick out some clothes.

It took me a whole thirty seconds to decide what to wear: a tight white tank top and some jean shorts. I couldn’t imagine what Chloe would have to say about my outfit.

I’m sure she would be all dolled up for our first trip out of the cabin together. I just didn’t see the point in wasting my time with all that.

I put in some headphones and sang along to the songs as I waited for Chloe to finish her shower.

“You’re a good singer,” Chloe said, startling me when she appeared out of nowhere, landing on my bed still wrapped in her towel.

“Thanks,” I said, pulling out the headphone plugs. I had secretly had a vocal coach in my old pack since I was ten. I loved to sing, I just never wanted people to know about it.

“Your turn,” she said, hopping back out of my bed and skipping off to her room.

I crawled out of bed and headed for the shower. When I was dressed, I took a few minutes to blow-dry my hair and brush on some mascara.

I walked into Chloe’s room to find her still in her bra and panties, holding up shirt after shirt, not looking satisfied with any of them.

“Chloe, you are going to look awesome in whatever you wear. Will you just pick something already?” I said, making myself comfortable on her bed.

I had been through this with her a few times over the last few weeks when she had plans to go places. She would take an hour just to pick what shirt she was going to wear.

“I just can’t find anything to match my mood,” she frowned as she held up another shirt and a second later tossed it onto the pile that was forming on the floor.

“What kind of mood are you in?” I asked, not even trying to hide my annoyance with her.

“Well, right now I’m in a celebration mood, but if you keep being bitchy then that might change,” she said, sticking her chin up at me before returning to the closet for yet another shirt.

“Hold on,” I said, an idea coming to mind. I ran back into my bedroom and opened the closet. I fumbled through the shirts until I found the one I was looking for.

The top was a shimmering silver, cascading in layers and adorned with sequins. It was the epitome of celebration, and I knew it was perfect for the occasion.

“Here,” I said, tossing the top to her as I reentered her room. Her face lit up like a firework display on the Fourth of July. She yanked the shirt off the hanger and pulled it over her head.

“Perfect!” she exclaimed, rushing over to envelop me in a hug. “What would I do without you?” she asked, her arms still wrapped around me.

“You’d spend ninety percent of your life in front of a mirror instead of eighty, like you did before you met me,” I retorted, extricating myself from her embrace. She punched me lightly on the arm.

“Bitch!” she retorted, feigning anger. But within seconds, she was asking me how her ass looked in the shorts she’d chosen.

“Your ass looks great, as always, Chloe. Can we go now?” I asked, eager to escape the confines of the cabin.

“Okay, I’m done. Let’s go,” she declared triumphantly, giving her reflection one last approving glance before grabbing my hand and pulling me out the door.

The lake, where the campfire was set up, was only about a fifteen-minute walk from the cabin. My wolf was itching to run free, but she was content to be outside, away from the cabin. I was ready to set her free too, but it didn’t bother me as much as long as she wasn’t tearing at my insides.

We grabbed a few beers from one of the coolers, and Chloe started introducing me to some of the pack members. She moved so quickly through the introductions that I barely remembered any of their names. Once the introductions were over, we walked down to the lake and settled on the small sandy beach.

“You don’t want to hang out with your friends?” I asked, once we were both comfortably seated on the ground.

“I only have one friend, and that’s Jayden. He should be here later tonight. I don’t really like very many people, so you should feel lucky,” Chloe replied, her gaze fixed on the moon’s reflection on the lake.

“I’m the same way. I really only had one friend in my old pack, and he was basically like my brother, so I don’t know if that even counts,” I said, a frown tugging at my lips at the thought of Nico. I missed him so much. I couldn’t believe he was gone.

“I can tell that talking about your old pack is hard for you, so I won’t pry. But I want you to know that I’m here for you if you need someone to talk to,” Chloe said, taking my hand in hers and squeezing it tightly.

“I know you are. Thank you,” I replied, returning her squeeze.

We sat there in silence for a while, just enjoying the serenity of nature. Every wolf felt most at home in the forest. The silence gave me time to ponder my future. I didn’t have much time left here, and I needed to start figuring out my life. I would have to find a place to live and a job. It would be a drastic change, living on my own.

I would have to accept the fact that I would never be able to live in a pack again. Having Alpha blood in me would make me too big of a risk to be accepted into a pack, out of fear that I would try to take over. I knew that I couldn’t live under the control of another Alpha anyway. I had a hard enough time living under my father’s control, and he was someone I loved.

It was just the way I was born. I was born to lead, and getting my wolf to submit to another Alpha would be nearly impossible. I didn’t think I had the power in me to do it.

“Hey, Chloe,” a voice came from behind us, breaking me out of my thoughts. I turned around to see a striking man with black hair and blue eyes, standing about six feet tall.

“Jayden,” Chloe squealed, jumping to her feet and into his waiting arms.

“Jayden, this is Zena,” she introduced when she finally let him go and turned to face me again. I rose to my feet and extended my hand.

“Yeah, we’ve already met,” he said, grinning as he shook my outstretched hand.

“We did?” I asked, confused.

“Oh, yeah,” Chloe said, as if she’d just remembered something.

“Yeah, the first day you came here. You attacked my friends, and I had to jump in to stop you. Ring any bells?” he asked, still smiling, so I assumed he wasn’t too upset about it.

“Technically, your friends attacked me first,” I retorted, feeling my face flush with embarrassment. I couldn’t believe this was one of the wolves I’d fought that day.

“I can’t argue with you there. Tristan has a short fuse,” he said as we started walking back up towards the fire to get more beers.

“Umm, sorry about your back,” I said sheepishly, remembering the huge claw marks I was sure I’d left on him.

“Please, I should be the one apologizing. I did break your arm and your leg,” Jayden replied, flashing me an apologetic smile.

“No worries. The leg was just a fracture, and the arm is healed, but the nurse won’t take off the cast yet,” I reassured him. He shouldn’t feel bad; he was just protecting his pack.

“So we’re cool then?” he asked, extending his hand in a ‘let’s make a deal’ gesture.

“Yeah, we’re cool,” I agreed, offering him my hand and a smile.

We grabbed a few more beers before heading back down by the lake. It was easy to fall into conversation with Jayden, just like it was with Chloe. I felt like I’d known them forever.

We stayed for about another hour before deciding to head back to the cabin and turn in for the night. The fifteen-minute walk back to the cabin passed quickly as we chatted along the way.

As we emerged into the clearing where the Alpha house and cabin were situated, a few men were engaged in conversation by a bench in the yard. They turned to regard us as we entered the clearing.

I studied the two men standing a few yards away. They bore a striking resemblance to each other, with the same dark brown hair and blue eyes. Their builds were similar, though one was slightly taller. They had to be twins, or at least brothers. The expressions on their faces suggested they weren’t exactly thrilled to see us.

Jayden

After a long shower following my patrol, I hurried to get dressed. Unable to locate a comb in the chaos of my bathroom, I ran my hand through my short black hair a few times, deciding it would have to suffice. I was already running late, and Chloe would have a fit if I didn’t make it to the bonfire before she left.

I dashed out of my house and jogged down the trail to the lake. I was both excited and slightly nervous about meeting the rogue in person for the first time. Chloe had been spending time with her for the past two weeks and had taken a liking to her. If Chloe liked her, then she must be likable—Chloe wasn’t exactly the easiest person to get along with.

“Hey, Chloe,” I greeted when I found her and Zena down on the beach.

“Jayden!” Chloe squealed, leaping to her feet and into my waiting arms.

“Jayden, this is Zena,” Chloe introduced when she finally released me.

I took a moment to study the woman before me. She had long, wavy dark brown hair and a petite frame, much like Chloe, with captivating green eyes. Not exactly what I had expected from the white wolf I had seen covered in blood in the forest a few weeks earlier. She was stunning, as most ‘were’ girls are. Too bad I had a thing for blondes.

After introductions and apologies for our initial encounter in the woods, we returned to the fire, grabbed a few beers, and headed back down by the lake.

It quickly became apparent why Chloe liked Zena so much. She was incredibly easy to get along with. We fell into conversation as if she had been part of our group for years.

Despite being three years older than Chloe, we had been best friends for the past four years. Something had happened between her and Tristan, and although she wouldn’t divulge the details, I could tell she needed a friend. Since then, we had spoken every day.

Chloe used to be a completely different person—outgoing and friendly. After whatever transpired between her and Tristan, she began to withdraw. The death of her parents and Klaus’s mate only exacerbated her isolation.

I was one of the few people left in her life, along with her brother. I hoped Zena would stick around, giving Chloe another person to love and care for her.

Zena, I could tell, had a big heart. Even in the short time I had known her, it was evident. She was also a spitfire, quick to react—another trait she shared with Chloe.

I had a feeling these two were going to stir up quite a bit of trouble together. I couldn’t wait to sit back and enjoy the show.

Chloe snapped a few pictures of each of us, earning herself some glares. We stayed for about an hour before deciding to head back.

I was surprised to see Tristan and Trevor in the clearing behind the pack house when we emerged from the forest. I could only hope Tristan would keep his distance and not start anything with Zena. But knowing his lingering anger over his broken arm, I had a feeling that wasn’t going to happen.