“Dick move, Tellurian,” Coop added.
“Didn’t tell me what?” I said, looking between the three of them.
Silence.
“Well, don’t all jump up at once.”
Chance heaved a great sigh before walking over to me and taking a seat on the other side of the table. “There’s… a thing that happens with Alphas during this kind of conjunction. It can be… alittleintense. But I don’t want you to worry. We’re taking precautions. Anyone with Alpha heritage will be taken to an individual location on the property.”
“Why? What happens?”
Chance didn’t reply. I looked at the other two, raising an eyebrow.
“They… kind turn into monsters?” Leo said, shrugging his shoulders. “If they aren’t kept separate, they might fight and hurt one another. We haven’t had an incident like that in decades, but the urge to squabble for territory or take over the pack is strong.”
“What do you mean,monsters?” I had my gaze focused on Chance. “Care to explain that part?”
“I… I didn’t want to tell you this… because of… you know…thingsthat happened when we met. But the transformation for Alphas on this kind of night is… off-putting.”
“It’s downright scary, is what it is,” Coop added.
“It’s a partial transformation,” Leo explained, filling in the gaps. “Kind of likes the werewolves you see in movies.” He gave another small shrug. “That’s why that image is so prevalent. People have accidentally seen us or been victims of werewolves in the past. And once you see something like that, you don’t forget it.”
I leaned forward, my face only inches from Chance’s. My cheeks were flushed red as I reached out and grabbed him by the collar.
“So… Chance Tellurian, yet again, you are keeping secrets from me to try to spare my feelings or because you think I can’t handle the truth.” I pulled him closer. “I’m getting a bittiredof that, which I know, you know.”
“I–”
“No,” I growled. “I don’t want to hear your excuses.” I let go of his shirt and stood up, my chair squealing across the linoleum floor. “Since I’m not privy to all the information surrounding this event, I guess I’m not needed here.”
With that, I grabbed my coffee and stomped out of the room. Just before the door shut behind me, I hear one last comment from Cooper.
“You done fucked up, dude.”
I sat on the wrap-around porch, quietly creaking back and forth in one of the wooden rocking chairs spread around the house. In my hands was a book that I was currently speed reading to keep my mind off of how irritated I was. A cool breeze blew over the well-manicured landscaping, threatening to flip my pages without permission. It didn’t matter that I fought them back. I wasn’t taking in anything I was reading, anyway. I was too preoccupied with my own thoughts about Chance and his constant attempts to shield me from the world. On one hand, it was cute and sweet, but it also irritated the shit out of me. I was an adult. I’d been through the wringer the past couple of years, and I knew I could handle anything that came my way. Now I just had to convince him to give me a chance. I was the Luna of the pack, after all, not a damsel in distress.
The creak of a rusty hinge sounded behind me on the other side of the yard. I didn’t need to turn around to know it was the back gate swinging open. Heavy footsteps approached, and judging by how apologetic they sounded, I knew they belonged to Chance.
“Don’t even say it,” I said, staring at my book with ferocity. “I don’t want to hear it.”
The footsteps stopped, gravel crunching as he shifted his weight back and forth like he always did when he was searching for the right thing to say. A few seconds later, he stepped up onto the porch, making his way toward me.
“Can… Can I sit?”
“Make yourself comfortable,” I muttered. “You’re sleeping out here tonight, anyway.”
I just caught the tiniest whine in his throat before he took a seat. For several minutes, he didn’t say anything, but I could feel him staring at the back of my head. I’m sure he had those big green puppy eyes going on that he knew I couldn’t resist. And, if I was being honest with myself, I wasn’tactuallymad at him. Ijust didn’t understand what was going on and I didn’t like being kept in the dark. Up until this point, I thought I’d gotten that through to him. Especially after the fiasco with the wedding last summer.
“Well?” I snorted, slapping the book shut. “Are you gonna sit there all night or are you gonna explain yourself?” I stood up from the rocking chair and turned to face him. “It better be good too, because you know this didn’t go well last time. I can’t imagine what would convince you to keep things from me again.”
He sighed, leaning his elbows onto his knees and burying his face in his hands. For a long moment, he stayed there, his fingers combing through his hair. I noticed how haggard he looked, like the duties of the Alpha were finally taking their toll on him. How long had it been since he’d taken a break? After the incidents with Cooper, Leo, and most recently Nathan, things had been rather tough for our first year running the pack. I could only hope, for his sake and mine, that it wouldn’t always be that way.
“Chance,” I said softly, taking a seat next to him. “Talk to me. I know you have a good reason, but I’m your mate. You can tell me anything, and I’ll always be here to support you. We’ve made it through so much, I doubt something like an extra funky full moon is going to tear us apart.”
“I… I’m worried about hurting you,” he said at last, his words so soft I could barely hear them.
“Are you planning to hurt me?”
