Stepping off the bus, Eva sighed tiredly as she followed the crowds to the terminal. It had been two weeks since she had left Silver Moon territory. She hadn't been in touch with anyone despite desperately missing her family, Maria and Duncan. The guilt of leaving without a word still hung heavy on her shoulders but was not heavy enough to quash the dread of accepting Daniel Wolfe as her mate.
She was acutely aware that she had no way of knowing if the Hellhound Alpha had left Silver Moon and thus making it safe to return but her gut told her that he wouldn't just leave, not after Eva had embarrassed him by practically rejecting him.
Inverness wasn't Eva's original destination of choice but she feared crossing the border would draw attention especially since she wasn't sure which towns and cities were run by Hellhounds. She hadn't exactly made it her life mission to learn about the Hellhounds pack's territory. Also she wanted to stay as close as she could to home even if it meant remaining in her Pack's territory and being spotted.
So she had decided to head to head only a little further south and stay in a bed and breakfast in a nearby town. Her heat was coming and being out in the wilderness was dangerous.
Now she just needed to find a place to hide out and a way of getting there. It seemed simple enough really.
Except Eva had been too busy looking at the departure boards to notice the man with a familiar patch on his jacket watching her every move as he pulled a phone from his pocket and took a photo of her.
---
Daniel was sat in his room watching another storm roll in and batter the Silver Moon territory when the message came in.
A headache had been threatening since the meeting with Eshe and Daniel had retreated to his room to mull everything over.
It wasn't every day a pack just gave up their territory to another pack without convoluted terms but Eshe had given no terms or requests. Perhaps she was so desperate to go back to her family that she didn't care what happened to the pack she led for so long but Daniel doubted that. Perhaps she simply had faith that the Hellhound pack would welcome Silver Moon into the fold with open arms.
It did pose the issue of logistics though. The Pack's territory was about to more than double in size and that meant the pack was spread out even further leaving them vulnerable. How could the Alpha family lead a pack split across two pack capitals? Choosing one capital was not so straightforward either. Families had homes and businesses not to mention choosing one capital over another could be seen as bias.
Then there was the matter of Daniel's missing mate.
Shifting slightly, he pulled Eva's phone from his pocket and tapped the screen so it lit up to show a picture of the missing she-wolf and a man Daniel hadn't seen around.
They were both smiling and judging by the warm glow it appeared the photo was taken in the summer. The man was tall with light blonde hair and goatee and a scar above his right eye. Eva had her hair down, reddish auburn locks spilling over her naked shoulders and her hazel eyes bright with happiness. A crown of daisies sat on top of her head making her look like a nymph.
Daniel felt his gut twist and the heat of jealousy flood his veins. Eva looked happy and it didn't take a genius to see the love in her eyes for the mystery man next to her.
His fingers tightened against the phone, threatening to crush it as the anger swelled inside his chest. When he found Eva he was going to make sure she and this man knew exactly who Eva belonged to. Daniel did not share.
Before he could do any damage to the phone, his own buzzed in his pocket, snatching his attention away.
It was a message from Kade with a photo of Eva.
Kade: Inverness. Heading for Tomatin.
The anger settled as Daniel stared at the photo. Sure enough, it was Eva in what looked like a station of some sort. It was the first glimpse of her in nearly three weeks and Daniel felt relief as well as the rush of anticipation. Finally they had her.
Daniel: Meet me there. Make sure we don't lose sight of her. This ends now.
Kade: Got it.
Smirking, Daniel shoved both phones into his pocket and leaned back in his seat, taking a few moments to relish that satisfaction of Eva being within his grasp.
"Times up, princess." He murmured before standing and heading out to start the journey to pick up his mate.
Tomatin was definitely small but it had a bed and breakfast and that meant Eva had somewhere safe to lock herself away for a few days until her heat passed.So far she hadn't sensed any werewolves but that didn't mean they weren't around. Luckily humans didn't react to a werewolf in heat so it wasn't like Eva would have to avoid all contact, definitely a relief given that Eva didn't think she could stay locked up in a room for three days straight.Dumping her bag on the small lumpy bed, Eva decided a shower was in order and then something to eat. She had spotted a cafe down the road and the thought of hot food instead of packaged sandwiches or rabbits she caught when in wolf form was too inviting to miss out on.Clean and dressed in fresh clothing, Eva grabbed her room key and headed out to find the cafe.15 minutes down the road she found the white cottage with a pavement sign by the gate announci
Morning came all too quickly. Eva knew she had no choice but to face the music. Maria couldn't hide her forever and her parents would be worried.Nursing a cup of coffee at the kitchen table in Maria's home, Eva silently formulated a plan on how she was going to deal with the day. It didn't make her feel any better but it meant she had some control of the narrative. She'd head home first to freshen up and change. Hopefully her parents were still there so she could talk with them.Despite the fact that the conversation would probably be difficult, Eva knew that it was going to be the easiest part of her day. Once she had her parents onboard, she would speak with the Ouma and then look to reject Daniel as her mate. All being well she'd send him packing by the end of the day and Eva could go back to her life.However that plan fell apart the moment she stepped into her parents cottage.Insta
Daniel had no idea if this evening would work but after his meeting with Eshe and Axl he knew he had to try. The collective secret shared by everyone except Daniel was becoming a dark cloud, hanging around like an unwelcome guest. It didn't take a rocket scientist to work out something was amiss but no one dared to speak about it or simply didn't want to. Then again Daniel had to admit he hasn't actually asked, at least not directly.He had found out little about Eva but one of the things he had found out was she was a sucker for chicken nuggets and a bottle of beer. So, that's where Daniel would start silently hoping that bribery with food and alcohol would set their ship back on the right path.He had only just sat down when the door to the packhouse bar opened. It wasn't as big as the one back on Daniel's territory but it was empty, the manager kindly agreeing to let Eva and Daniel have the place to themselves for the evening.
Three days had passed since Daniel and Eva's date. Despite Daniel being prickly and standoffish at the best of times, Eva had to secretly admit she had enjoyed the evening. The fact Daniel went out of his way to learn something about Eva had impressed her and she was starting to think there was more to the Alpha than met the eye.However, since that evening they hadn't seen much of each other. Eva had opted to hide out in her room as her heat passed and Daniel had explained he was going to be busy for a few days. That meant only a few brief conversations and texts. Eva thought she would be relieved but instead she felt out of sorts, like she couldn't think straight without Daniel around.Even Kalla seemed miserable away from her mate and had hardly perked up when Eva decided a shift was in order. In control, Kalla had just whimpered and wandered the moors, her nose close to the ground as if searching for something but not knowing what it
It had been almost four days since their date and Daniel hadn't heard or seen Eva. She wasn't responding to texts or answering his calls. He feared she had run again but her scent lingered around her home as if she had just been there.Despite this, the world was still turning and the day when the two packs merged was drawing near. Eshe had made her final preparations to step down and leave. The council had been formed and now all that remained was announcing to the packs the changes. The problem was Daniel didn't want it to happen until Eshe had spoken to Eva personally but it had been a week already and that didn't seem to be happening.So while trying to get Eva to speak to him, Daniel had reluctantly agreed to move forward with plans to bring the two packs together.That in itself was a mammoth task. Room needed to be made for the Hellhound pack to attend and then there was announcing to other packs what was ha
It was tipping it down but Eva and Duncan were still sparring. Maria had skipped being a cheerleader this time and opted to stay inside where it was warm and dry. Eva was surprised Duncan had agreed to train given the weather but he had without hesitation.It had been five days since Eva had last seen or spoken to Daniel. She left her parents early every morning and came back late, keeping herself busy and ignoring his attempts to speak with her.Everyday she trained. She wanted to improve but also training gave her an outlet for her anger.She wasn't angry at Daniel. He hadn't done anything wrong. His only sin was getting messed up with Eva. He wasn't the bad guy but Eva had to admit it was all too easy to project everything she felt onto him and make him the enemy.But the truth was the anger Eva felt was for herself and for Noah. It was for the moon goddess and the drunken stranger who had
The first thing Eva noticed as she was pulled from the safe confines of sleep was the weight of something across her waist. It was a familiar feeling but one Eva hadn't experienced in over a year. It was the telltale sign of a body close to her own. It was a protective arm relaxed over her body, holding her close but not trapping her.Slowly Eva became aware of the warmth radiating from a body next to hers, the soft cotton sheets, the softness of the pillows under her head and the weight of the duvet over her body. The rain had stopped and the sun was fighting against the grey clouds racing across the sky. The buttery light of the morning sun pulsed softly between the shadows of the clouds, lighting up the room every few seconds.The events of the previous day came back to Eva in a great wave. Eshe and her father had told Eva Eshe was stepping down as the Alpha and had made the decision to pass the mantle to Daniel. Silver Moon and the Hellhou
The announcement to the packs had gone smoothly, in fact it has gone really well. Despite being very different, the packs embraced each other like long lost friends. The news of Eshe's departure had been a little more difficult for Silver Moon to handle but they had accepted it. Overall, the day went well and once the union ceremony was completed and Eshe's emotional departure passed, the packs had celebrated as one pack. Daniel had finally been able to relax a little and enjoy the night. He had watched friends reunite, families meet and even a few people found their mates. Really it couldn't have gone any better. The mood had been light and joyous, chasing away the bite of the cold winter night. People drank, ate and danced under the canopy of lanterns and fairy lights. Seeing everyone accepting their new future with such positivity had lifted some of the concerns from Daniel's shoulders.