Page 39 of Mated in Darkness

Only…not yet? Maybe not yet. Because we hadn’t slept together, and didn’t you need to do that in order to have a mate?

I had so many questions, and I knew Kaylee had answers, but it was tough to focus.

Someone knocked on the door, and Kaylee’s hackles rose before she moved past me, pointed at the shirt, and I slid it over my shoulders. She nodded tightly, then opened the door. My gaze went to Riaz’s instinctually, and then I lowered my eyes, just as instinctually.

Riaz let out a grumble, moved past Kaylee, who growled softly, but Riaz just quirked his lips.

“You’re awake. Good. And showered. I know that you two need some time alone, but your wolf needs to know where he stands.”

“He’s Redwood, Riaz. You know that.”

I looked at Kaylee, meeting her gaze. Was she more dominant than me? How the hell was I supposed to know who was dominant? Was I going to have to do challenges in order to figure that out?

“Dominance challenges take time, and yes, you will have to do dominance challenges.”

I looked up at Riaz. “Did I say all of that out loud?”

“You did,” Kaylee said with a smile. “And no, you’re not more dominant than me, but you’re my mate, so you can meet my gaze. Meeting Riaz’s is harder, and once you get to know your wolf, especially after the first shift, your dominance can change. That can always change, depending on who you are. I don’t think you’re going to be a submissive wolf, nor do I think you’re going to be middle of the Pack. I can feel it here.” She put her hand over her chest. “However, we’re going to need to take our time with that. And you are Redwood.”

“So, I’m not yours then?” I asked Riaz, before I looked over back at Kaylee.

“You’re not. But I’m the closest Alpha around right now because we are in a unique situation, so my wolf is here to keep you in line before your first shift.”

“What does that mean?” I asked, my eyes wide.

“That means your wolf is going to take a little bit of time for you to gain control of it. It can be dangerous, especially when you haven’t shifted yet.”

“Dangerous for me, or for others?” I asked, full of worry.

“Either,” Kaylee said. “But you’re going to be fine. I’m going to be here. Now, come on. Let’s talk.”

“You know those words are never good when they come from a woman,” I mumbled, and Riaz laughed.

“They’re from your mate, so they’re really not good.”

“Oh, good. We’re going to play boy-games. I can’t wait.” She said dryly.

“Okay, I have questions.”

“And maybe we have answers,” Riaz said as he moved towards the couch in the small living room.

We were in one of the small homes that Riaz and the Pack built on Pack grounds for guests. They weren’t the same buildings that were outside of the den wards where Kaylee had stayed. It seemed they wanted to keep me safe, even though I wasn’t Pack.

I still wasn’t sure exactly what was going on, but I was learning.

At least, I hoped so.

“So, I’m a werewolf.”

“Or a shifter. We pretty much go by shifters. Although you can use werewolf.”

“I won’t offend anybody if I do?” I asked.

Riaz shook his head. “No, though werewolves are more in the movies. The ones that shift into half human, half wolf, and terrorize the night.”

“So you don’t have like a warrior form then?”

Kaylee frowned and looked over at Riaz. “I thought you said that he was a friend of the Pack. Shouldn’t he already know these things?”

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