“What's so funny hon?” My mom asked while placing the plate of bacon on the dining table.

“Just looking at old pictures of me and Tyler,” I replied while turning my phone around for her to see.

“You're two peas in a pod, both as crazy as one another.”

She made her way back over towards the fridge.

Tyler tried everything he could to embarrass me in front of Tristan. Each time he tried to blurt out that I had a crush on him, I had to beat him to shut him up. Well, I tried to, but he was always so damn fast, and he was really ripped too which was weird for his age. I used to chase him around the house until I fell down with exhaustion. He'd then jump on top of me and start tickling me to death. I swear a few times I actually peed myself.

The play fights happened so often that Tristan started telling us to get a room, he even asked us once if me and Tyler were dating. We both just burst out laughing and rolled around on the floor. I saw Tyler as a brother and he saw me as a sister, the thought of anything else was just disgusting.

“Do you want orange juice, Honey?” My mom asked with her head still in the fridge.

“Yes, please, Mom.”

As the years went on, I finally began to develop. I was now nearly sixteen-years-old and was filling out nicely if I did say so myself. I had a nice little tush and my two ladies had come in big and fast. I had some nice curves of my very own. It took some getting used to, let me tell you. I liked to dress more feminine and I enjoyed doing my hair and makeup, but I still felt too embarrassed to go around to Tyler's all dressed up and showing off my figure. So, I just used to chuck on some old jeans, a baggy t-shirt and my sneakers.

That was until Tyler's sixteenth birthday, it was a few months before mine and I’d decided to go all out for his party. I wore a long, tight black dress with a plunging neckline to show off my new ample cleavage. The dress came down to my ankles at the front but had a split all the way up to the middle of my right thigh. It was a low backed dress too and had had a small train that beautifully slid along the floor behind me when I walked. I finished it off with a pair of red four-inch stilettos and a red clutch bag. I wore my hair up in loose curls with a clip at the back and had some of the loose curls coming down the front to frame my face. My makeup was smoky black eyes, with eyeliner and red lipstick to finish the look.

I was so nervous when my mum dropped me off at Tyler's birthday party that night. I stood at the front door for almost fifteen minutes before I had built up enough courage to walk in. I opened the door and made my way through the house and into the back garden where all the guests were. There were pretty lights, balloons, and flowers everywhere. Tyler’s parents had also got a massive marquee with a huge dance floor and DJ. It looked amazing and there were so many people there.

Tyler saw me and ran right up to me. He picked me up into a hug and spun me around. He set me back down and said something along the lines of,

“damn girl, you's looking fine!”

I forgot the exact words, but that was the gist. I laughed and punched him in the arm. I wished him a happy birthday and gave him his gift. It was some computer game he had wanted for ages. I had no idea which one, but he loved it. He hugged me again and left to go get us some drinks.

I felt self-conscious standing there all by myself, guys kept wolf whistling at me and making sexual comments and I wasn't the type to defend myself.

Urgh, guys can be such pervs, I thought to myself while I reached for the orange juice that my mom had left on the table.

Tyler had been ages and I was starting to panic while standing there all alone, I hated being alone. I'd decided to give him ten more minutes to get back or I was going home. Needless to say, he didn't come back, so I stormed off in search of him. I planned to give him a piece of my mind before I went home. The big jerk knew that I hated being on my own in big crowds.

I stormed over towards the house and heard noises coming from down the side of the pool house. As I got closer, I heard Tyler speak, I couldn't work out what he'd said, but I knew it was him. I was ready to march right over there and give him a piece of my mind. I picked up the pace and thundered around the corner of the pool house.

I closed my eyes and screwed up my face when I remembered what I had seen that night.

“Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my GOD! What the hell?” I’d screamed out as I frantically tried to cover my eyes. I’d already seen more than enough. Tyler was half naked and had a girl pinned up against the wall. I spun around, so that I definitely couldn't see anything else.

I apologized profoundly. The girl giggled and I just apologized again and told him to have a good night. I let him know that I was going home, he didn't mind me leaving and said he'd catch up with me the next day. I hurried off and made my way back through the house, completely red-faced and flushed with embarrassment. I quickly opened the front door to leave, but as I went to walk through the door my heel got stuck on the back of my dress. I tripped, fell forwards, and smacked face first into Tristan Cole's rock-hard chest.

I bit my lip when I remembered what happened next.

“Whoa there!” Tristan said as he grabbed hold of my shoulders to stop me falling over. I was absolutely mortified. I didn't want him knowing who I was, so I kept my head down and mouth shut, hoping that he would just let me past him.

“Are you leaving already?” He’d asked in a husky voice.

But all I could muster up was a,

“Yup,” I replied with a slight nod of my head.

I couldn't bear to look up at him.

“That's a shame. Now I've arrived, the party is just getting started,” he said cockily.

He placed my chin between his thumb and finger, then slowly pulled my face up. I was so scared that he was going to laugh at me once he saw who I was. But, when I finally gazed up, he had his eyes closed and his lips were coming straight towards mine and I froze in pure panic.

He pressed his lips onto mine and kissed me, I stayed perfectly still for a few seconds not knowing what in the hell to do. But with each caress from his soft lips, my confidence began to grow. I finally put my arms around his neck and grabbed his hair pulling his head back a little, he growled with pleasure and that was my cue.

My heart skipped with excitement when I remembered my first kiss, and the very first time, I’d heard Tristan's sexy growl. It was so deep and primal. Even thinking about it now, had me squirming around on my chair. I quickly returned to my daydream.

I pulled him closer and slipped my tongue into his mouth. I kissed him harder and he followed my lead. We were both panting by that point and he had moved his hand down to my ass and gave it a little slap. I moaned, and he deepened the kiss in response.

“Freya!” Tyler yelled out.

Tristan promptly pulled his head away from me and I apprehensively opened my eyes. Tristan was wide-eyed with shock and gawping back at me. He stepped back, looked me up and down from head to toe, then said,

“Damn girl!”

He let out another sexy growl, bit his lip and then walked right past me and into the house.

I remembered how much I wanted him that night, and the butthead just walked off and left me hanging. I couldn't stop myself from blurting out loud,

“Asshole!”

Tristan Cole

I pulled the car up to Freya's house. Tyler immediately jumped out of the car, quickly followed by Cassie. I called out to them before they could walk off,

“Hey, guys? Can I speak to you for a second?” They both turned around and gave me a questioning look. They nodded in unison, then stood in front of me. I rested my back against my car door and stared down at the ground. I rubbed the back of my neck as my nerves took over.

I cleared my throat before addressing them.

“So, how would you guys feel about me telling Freya our secret tonight after your graduation?” I asked them cautiously.

I glanced up at them with a hopeful raised eyebrow, and Cassie answered immediately.

“I think we should've told her years ago, but you guys already know that. So, it's just up to you, Ty.”

Cassie and I both eyed Tyler in anticipation of his answer. He gazed off into the distance with his brows furrowed, clearly deep in thought. After what seemed like an eternity, I sighed and rolled my eyes in frustration.

“Dude? Come on already,” I snapped at him in my authoritative voice, startling him a little.

“Okay, okay!” He snapped back, like a petulant child.

“Why now? I thought you were waiting until after her eighteenth birthday. What's changed?” He asked me honestly.

He had a valid point, I was going to leave it until after her birthday, but I didn't think I could realistically wait that long.

“She's changing Ty, or I am. I'm not sure what's going on to be perfectly honest, but I nearly bit her today,” I replied as honestly as I could.

“What?” Cassie snapped at me.

“Oh Crap, what happened?” Tyler asked with concern.

“I don't really know exactly. I'm just finding it so hard to resist her lately. Her scent is so damn strong, I can barely control myself around her. I've had to hide out in the bathroom a few times, and when it’s been really bad, I’ve had to climb out of the window while she slept. It’s gotten that bad dude!”

I rubbed my forehead with my hand, and to my surprise, they both burst out laughing.

“Guys, this is serious!”

I rolled my eyes and folded my arms across my chest while I waited for them to sort themselves out.

“Sorry, T. Look I have always wanted to tell Freya, she's my best friend. When I found out that she had a crush on you, I knew instantly that she would be perfect for you. But I don't want you breaking her heart if you eventually find your... You know?” He said with a shrug. I stared at Tyler and nodded my head.

I knew he was right, and the last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt Freya, but unless I told her soon, I’d end up hurting her physically and then I’d lose her forever.

“I know Tyler, I try not to think about that, because in my heart, I know that she’s the only woman for me. She is my forever.”

“Then if that's the case, I will support you and be there for you both when you tell her.”

He smiled at me and I nodded back at him and said,

“Cool, thanks, Ty.”

I stood away from the car and headed towards the house. I ruffled Tyler's hair as I rushed past him and he shouted out at me,

“Hey! You dick, I gotta redo it now.”

I let out a laugh as I turned back and watched Cassie and Tyler trying their best to sort out his messed-up hair. I then turned back around and made my way into Freya's house. I walked through the hallway and heard Freya call someone an asshole. I knew it couldn't be anything to do with me. I was sure she didn't know anything about our secret, but it didn't stop my heart from racing, or the panic from filling my mind.

Freya Rose

Tristan, Tyler and Cassie walked into the kitchen, so I put my phone back in my bag. I began pouring out five glasses of orange juice.

“Hi, Mrs. Rose,” Tyler and Cassie greeted my mom.

“How many times have I told you two? You are family, call me Eleanor,” she said while folding a tea towel.

“Sorry, Eleanor,” they apologized while taking their seats at the other end of the dining table. Tristan sniggered as he picked up the plates of pancakes from the worktop. He walked over to us and placed them in the middle of the table. My mom followed over and sat in an empty seat to my right. Tristan came up to me and held my face between his hands and then softly kissed my lips. I slid my hand through his hair and pulled his face in closer, deepening the kiss. I heard Cassie whistle.

“Ewww that's gross, get a room will ya.” Tyler whined in disgust.

I smiled into the kiss, pulled away, then laughed. Tristan leaned over the table, grabbed a piece of bacon and launched it at Tyler. I was stunned when Tyler caught the bacon with lightning reflexes. He smirked at Tristan as he took a bite out of it.

What is it with these boys and their lightning reflexes? Must be a family thing.

“Bro, you're just jealous cos you’re not getting any,” Tristan mocked then pulled out the chair to my left and sat down.

“How do you know I'm not getting any, hmmm?” Tyler replied as he lifted one eyebrow and then flashed Cassie a sideways glance.

Cassie immediately choked, and orange juice shot out of her mouth, covering the table. She quickly raised her hands up to her mouth and tried to stop any more escaping. Tyler patted her on the back, and she managed to swallow the juice that was still left in her mouth. She then began to cough a little as she tried to clear her throat.

Once Cassie had stopped choking, she looked up and saw, that me, my mom, and Tristan had stopped eating and were sat there staring at her with wide eyes. She covered her face with her hands and shook her head in embarrassment. My mom laughed as she stood up. She smiled at Tyler and then walked around the back of me, and with her spare hand gave my shoulder a slight squeeze.

“I'll give you guys some space. I’ve got to pick up some last-minute things from the store anyway,” she said in a calming voice, she then turned and walked out of the room.

Tyler was the first one to break the awkward silence that weighed heavy on the room,

“I... well, we... um,” he stuttered when he realized that he'd opened up a can of worms, that he was now struggling to explain.

He glanced at me and then at Tristan, before lowering his eyes to the table and letting out a defeated sigh. Cassie dropped her hands away from her face and turned to look at Tyler. She cupped his chin in her hand and pulled his face up towards hers, then out of nowhere, she kissed him.

“Oh my God!” I squealed. “You two?” I questioned while pointing a suspecting finger at the both of them. They each turned to look at me and nodded.

“I am so happy for you guys!” I squealed again with excitement.

They both exhaled with relief, as Tyler looped his fingers with Cassie's. My brow then furrowed as I asked them,

“Wait, how long?” I paused and squinted my eyes at them then asked, “and why didn't you tell me?”

They gave each other a questioning look. Then their faces began changing expressions like they were having an in-depth conversation, but they weren't speaking any words. Tristan scowled at them for some unknown reason to me.

I didn't have a problem with them being together, in fact, I thought it was amazing. Two of the people I loved the most in this world had found each other and had fallen in love. I was a bit worried just in case it didn't work out. Because that would make it very awkward for me as their friend, but I wasn’t that selfish to let my worries come in between two people's happiness. My problem with the whole thing was that they had hidden it from me, but why? We were best friends and had been since we were ten years old. Why wouldn't they tell me? Did they think I wouldn't approve? I needed to know why they hadn't told me.

“Hey!!” I shouted and clicked my fingers at them in annoyance.

They both stopped their weird mime act thing, then turned to look at me. Tristan growled at them and shot them both a thunderous look. They instantly made this strange whimpering sound like dogs, then lowered their heads in some sort of weird bow of respect.

What the hell was that? I thought to myself.

With their heads down they carried on staring at the table. Tristan huffed through his nose, looked away from them, then carried on eating his breakfast. I suspiciously watched the three of them and I felt utterly confused with their behavior. I skidded my chair out with the backs of my legs and stood up. I then bent over slightly and slammed my hands down onto the table with a loud bang. All of them stared up at me in shock.

“What the hell is going on with you three today?” I shouted angrily.

Not one of them tried to answer me, they just all kept staring at me with worried looks on their faces.

“No one's going to say anything huh?” I asked them, then paused for a response. “Fine, I'll go, first shall I? Why didn't you guys tell me that you were dating?” I asked as I glared directly at Cassie and Tyler.

I sat back down while I waited for one of them to answer me. They glanced at each other, then at Tristan, then back at me.

“Well, we only got together a few weeks back Frey,” Cassie answered in a low voice, “Tyler came around to my house to wish me a happy eighteenth and...”

She raised her eyebrows and stared wide-eyed at Tristan. Tristan closed his eyes, pressed his lips flat together, and then nodded as if he now understood clearly what was going on.

More weird behavior! I thought to myself. What the hell is going on?

Tyler decided to help Cassie out and carried on the story where she'd left off,

“One thing led to another, and here we are.”

I thought about it for a second then replied,

“It still doesn't make any sense. You guys never seemed to like each other like that. In fact, I'm pretty sure you...” I paused and pointed my finger at Tyler then continued, “had a huge crush on Amber Wade!”

His eyes grew wide in shock at the fact that I'd just blurted out his most precious secret. He opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, Cassie shot up from the table and screamed at me,

“Well Amber fucking Wade isn't his mate, is she? I am!”

Her words dripped with pure jealousy and dominance. Tyler gasped, and Tristan slammed his fist down onto the table, the sound of it made me jump back in my chair. Cassie instantly lowered her head down and then showed her neck to Tristan again.

“You've said enough. Go and wait in the damn car!” Tristan growled at them both.

He stood up and pointed towards the door. Tyler slowly got up, and they both stared over at me with a mix of apology and guilt written all over their faces.

“Freya, I...” Tyler began to speak.

“Now!” Tristan barked.

They both nodded at him in compliance and quickly scurried out of the room.

I was in complete shock. I'd never seen Tristan get that angry before, and I didn't know what to make of what I'd just witnessed. Tristan and Tyler have always had arguments, but it was just silly sibling fights and mostly ended up with Tyler in a headlock and Tristan tickling him or messing up his hair. But this was different, Tristan was dominating and stern. I couldn't believe that Tyler had just bowed down to him like that. He'd usually put up some sort of a fight, but he just treated Tristan like he was a king, or some shit.

What is up with that?

Tristan sat back down while letting out a frustrated sigh. He rubbed his hand down his face and then placed one of his elbows on the table. He rested the side of his face on his open palm and just stared at me. He furrowed his brow seeming to try and work out what I was thinking.

What am I thinking? I don't even know myself right now.

All I want to know was why my best friends felt like they needed to hide their relationship from me. I was also wondering what the hell just happened between my boyfriend and my friends.

Why did Tristan get so angry? Why did Cassie and Tyler bow their heads to him?

Those were just a few things I want answers to, and I was determined to get them out of Tristan.

“So?” I asked him as I sat further back in my chair, firmly folded my arms and raised my eyebrow at him.

He huffed at me then closed his eyes. I ignored his childish reaction and asked,

“What was all that about?”

“What was all what about baby?” He asked casually while sitting back up in his chair.

I took in a deep breath and told him,

“Well, I get that they’re dating, and I get that they got together on Cassie's birthday. What I don't know is how or why they started dating in the first place, but that's a question I can ask them later.” I took in a deep breath, and then began my rant raising one finger with each point, “this is what I don't get. One. Why did it look like Tyler and Cassie were having a conversation, but they weren't actually speaking any words? Two. Why did they whimper and bow their heads to you? And three. What did Cassie mean when she said Amber wasn't Tyler's mate, and that she was?” I stared at Tristan waiting for his answers.

He didn't answer me, instead he stood up and walked over to me. He pulled my chair out from under the table, picked it up and turned it around to face him. He then set it back down onto the floor, all while I was still sitting in it, and I was utterly amazed by his sheer strength. He knelt down in front of me and took both my hands into his. With a soft sigh, he gazed lovingly into my eyes.

“Baby, we have been together a long time now. Believe me when I tell you that I love you more than anything else in this whole, entire world.”

He placed a soft lingering kiss on the back of my hand, and then continued,

“There are things about me and my family that you don't know.” He paused again to see my reaction. I stayed quiet and squeezed his hands prompting him to continue. “You're going to think I'm crazy when I tell you this, but I think it's about time you knew the whole truth,” he said as he stood up and picked me up bridal style. I relaxed and put my arms around his neck. “I think we should talk somewhere a little more private,” he whispered into my ear and kissed my cheek.

I wanted to argue with him and yell at him, just to tell me already, but I didn't want him to back out of it. I needed answers for all of this strange behavior, so I let him take control.

He walked me up the stairs and into my bedroom, then gently set me down on the bed. He climbed on to the bed beside me and turned his body to face me. He began to speak in his usual low and husky voice,

“Right, here we go,” he sighed and then blew a bit of his hair out of his face. “I will answer your questions one by one. If you have any more questions afterwards, then you can ask them once I'm finished, is that understood?” He said firmly.

He'd never been so authoritative with me before and to be honest it was kind of a turn on. I blushed and nodded my head in compliance.

“Good!” He said with a sexy smirk on his face.

I guess he liked it when I obeyed him.

I'll have to remember that for later.

“Right. Tyler and Cassie were having a silent conversation. Well sort of, they were speaking to each other through a mind link,” he stated.

I furrowed my brow in confusion and began to ask,

“what?”

He quickly placed his finger on my lips and said in a firm voice,

“What did I say, baby? Wait until I have finished and then you can ask me more questions.”

“Okay,” I replied while crossing my legs and placing my hands in my lap.

“They whimpered and bowed their heads to me because I am their future Alpha,” he explained.

I gasped and put my hand over my mouth, I sat there wide-eyed just staring at him. I couldn't control myself and I burst out laughing, he growled at me and I noticed how angry his face had become, so I immediately stopped.

He is serious, are you kidding me?

Does he mean like a werewolf Alpha? No, he couldn't possibly, I scoffed at the idea.

Maybe he means like some sort of group, club or game or something.

Yeah that's got to be it surely? I mean werewolves aren't even real right?

Tristan put his hand on my knee, I guess he wanted to continue but he could see that I was deep in thought. I put my hand on top of his and said,

“Go ahead.”

“I didn't know it until today, but Tyler and Cassie are mates. There is no other bond like it on this earth. You and your mate are two halves of the same person,” he said in a low and sweet voice then paused for a moment.

He pulled my hand up into the air so that my palm was facing him, he then held his own palm up facing mine. There was a short distance between them as he carried on speaking, “when you meet your mate you both become whole.”

He slowly moved his hand towards mine as he spoke until our palms were touching. He then entangled his fingers with mine, symbolizing whole.

“Once you find your mate, they’re yours for life. You will do everything you can to make them happy, and whatever it takes to keep them safe. Your life isn't worth living without your mate.”

He turned my hand around and kissed the back of it, before letting it go. My heart swelled up at the way he was describing the concept of mates to me.

That's exactly how I feel about him.

He reached forward and pushed my hair behind my shoulders, and then slid his hand down my neck, making me shiver as the heat from his fingers brushed over my skin. I closed my eyes and let out a low moan, he chuckled as he picked up my locket and then opened it. He brushed his thumb over the picture of me and smiled to himself. I reached my hand up to touch his face as a small tear fell down his cheek and I asked him with concern,

“Baby what's wrong?”

He shut my locket and brought his hand up to meet mine that was still placed upon his cheek. He closed his eyes and rubbed his gorgeous face into my hand, I smiled as he left a soft kiss on my palm.

“I'm scared that you will freak out and not love me anymore when I tell you what I am,” he said softly as he pulled my hand away from his face and dropped his head down.

I got up onto my knees and crawled towards him, then lifted his face up to meet mine. I placed a delicate kiss on his soft lips, and he let out a low sigh as I rested my head on his shoulder.

“I love you always, forever be mine,” I whispered our promise into his ear.

“I love you, baby,” he replied as he stroked my hair.

I sat back up and clutched his face within my hands.

“Whatever it is, I love you more than words can describe. I trust you and I know you will never hurt me. I know you will always love me and keep me safe.”

Tears welled up in my eyes as I opened my heart up to him, and it was hard to finish what I was saying before I cried my eyes out. I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down.

“I am hurt that you didn't feel like you could trust me with the truth earlier, and that Tyler and Cassie are a part of it, or at least know about it. But I am sure you all have your reasons for not telling me,” I said as tears began to fall down my face. Tristan delicately brushed them away with his thumbs. “I know you were probably trying to protect me,” I paused while Tristan nodded in agreement, I then continued, “and I'm sad that you have to tell me this way, but I love you baby and I will always be here for you. So please whatever it is, just tell me,” I begged him.

He suddenly sat back, and my hands slipped away from his face making them fall into my lap. I watched as tears fell down his cheeks, I'd never seen him cry like that before, and my heart broke for him. He took in a deep breath and held it for a few seconds, then exhaled and said in a breathy voice,

“Freya, I'm a werewolf.”

***

Freya Rose

I sat in silence just staring at Tristan. I was in complete shock after he'd told me that he was a werewolf. His eyes were as wide as saucers while he studied my face, trying to work out what I was thinking. I took in a deep breath and exhaled it slowly.

“So,” I paused and raised my eyebrows at him. “A werewolf huh?” I questioned him in utter disbelief.

“Yup,” he replied with an emphasized pop of the p.

I didn't really know how to respond, so I just blurted out the first thing that popped into my head.

“Wow. So, do you like, turn into a wolf when there's a full moon or something?”

I cringed inside, after I heard the stupid question slip past my lips. He smirked and tried his utmost to hold in a chuckle.

“Um... No, not exactly.”

Then it happened again, I just couldn't keep my damn mouth shut, it had a mind of its own. It seemed to think that it didn't need to consult with my brain before blurting out something stupid.

“Oh, do you have to chain yourself up before you turn?”

I rolled my eyes when the silly and completely irrelevant question floated around in the air like a bad smell. Tristan stared at me with a huge smirk on his face and a slight blush in his cheeks. I pathetically tried to come up with some sort of excuse, something, anything to try and explain why I’d just asked him that.

“I think I saw them do that on a Tv program once.”

I dropped my head down in complete embarrassment. My mouth finally ceased its tirade of naive and childish questions. I was beyond glad that Tristan didn't seem offended in the slightest. It was clear that he was finding my awkward questions amusing. He burst out laughing at me and even slapped his knee. I popped out my bottom lip and gave him my cute, sad face expression, in an attempt to make him feel bad for mocking me.

“You'd like that, wouldn't you? Any excuse to tie me up, huh baby?” He asked with an eyebrow raised.

I bit my lip at the thought of him all tied up and completely at my mercy. When he saw me bite my lip, he lunged forwards and began to tickle me around my ribs. I giggled and tried to wriggle free from his tortuous tickly fingers, but it was no use. I tried a new tactic and wiggled my butt further down the bed. I playfully batted his hands away, each time they came anywhere near me. He moved even closer to me and positioned his knees either side of my hips, then grabbed both of my hands and pulled them above my head. I tried to struggle out of his grip, but the dude was so damn strong.

“There's no point in fighting me. You won't win. I’m a werewolf remember?”

He chuckled at me with a wide grin on his face. I saw that as a direct challenge and prepared myself for war.

“Oh yeah, it's on,” I said while giving him a determined stare.

I slowly pulled one side of my mouth up into a slight smirk, then violently thrashed around, attempting to free my hands. I felt my face flush while I huffed and puffed, pulling my arms either which way trying to break free.

“Ugh.”

I closed my eyes then threw my arms and head back onto the bed in defeat. When I opened my eyes back up, I saw Tristan staring at me with a big cheesy grin on his face. I hated losing, and all I wanted to do now was slap his stupid face, but I knew that he was just too damn strong, and I didn't stand a chance against him. I relaxed my body and whispered,

“Okay, you win.”

He let go of my hands and lifted one of his own hands to his head. Cupping his ear with his hand, he asked,

“I'm sorry, what did you say? I didn't quite catch that.”

I huffed and shouted back at him,

“Ugh, you win.”

He sat back onto his knees and dropped his hands to his sides. He then pulled his head back and let out an ear piercing and high-pitched howl. I frantically scrambled backwards onto the bed, pulled my knees up to my chest and rested my head on them. Tears began to stream down my face, and I was shaking like a leaf. I stayed silent and just let my thoughts engulf me.

I guess he howled in the excitement of his victory, and I knew he wouldn't have wanted to scare me on purpose, but the sudden howl caught me by surprise. I had never heard anything like it in my life, and it instantly churned my stomach, raised my pulse, and sent my heart fleeing into my throat.

In over ten years of knowing Tristan, I had never felt scared of him before. To be honest, the tickling and play fighting took all of the seriousness out of the situation. It made me feel like it wasn't a big deal, and that we could carry on like normal.

How naive of me.

The reality of it all, he was a wolf. Snarling teeth, ripping animals apart, werewolf.

How do I know that he won't ever turn on me? I mean he has been acting very strange lately.

Multiple thoughts were running through my mind and it felt like I’d been silent for hours. I had no idea how to take all of it in, or what it meant for our future.

Do we even have a future? Can a human and a werewolf ever make it work? My thoughts were interrupted when I felt Tristan crawl towards me. He sat back onto his knees and reached around my back to pull me into his chest. I tightened up but allowed him to pull me towards him.

“I'm sorry if I scared you, baby,” he said in a low and concerned voice, then asked softly, “you know I'd never hurt you right?”

I gradually glanced up at him, then moved forward slightly and placed my hands on his chest. I stared into his beautiful blue eyes, they were flushed with worry and slowly filling with tears. I raised my hand to his cheek and wiped away a stray tear.

I wanted nothing more than to trust him. I should have known him well enough to know that he would never hurt me. But in all honesty, I wasn’t entirely sure what I thought. In my heart, I believed that he would never hurt me, but my gut was telling me something different, and I just couldn't shake it.

I decided to ease the tension in the room and lie to him, it was the only thing I could think to do in that tense moment.

“I know you wouldn't hurt me, babe,” I said to him, trying to be as convincing as possible.

He sniffed and smiled slightly. I could tell he was not completely convinced though, so I tried to make it more believable and said,

“I'm just a little bit overwhelmed, that's all. This is a huge change and it's going to take me some time to get used to it.”

I brushed a wave of hair away from his face and he nodded to me in agreement. I leaned in and placed a soft kiss on his lips, and he exhaled with relief. Pulling back to look into his eyes once more, I then asked cautiously,

“we will be okay won't we babe?”

With tears occasionally sliding down my face, I allowed him to pull me in to him and squeeze me tightly. My stomach began to settle as safety and comfort swept over me. I inhaled through my nose taking in his familiar scent and it instantly calmed my nerves. I still had no idea what would happen or what our future held, but I had loved Tristan for as long as I could remember. Sitting there in his warm embrace just felt so natural.

“We will definitely be okay. I love you, much more than you will ever know,” he said with raw emotion in his voice.

I sighed slightly. His words surprisingly made me feel a lot better. I rested my head on his shoulder and he squeezed me even tighter.

“Ugh, T,” I coughed out as his tight hug began to cut off my air supply.

“Oh, damn, sorry babe,” he said with a chuckle while letting me go.

He grabbed me, then collapsed onto the bed, pulling me down on top of him. He stroked my hair while we laid there embracing each other.