Page 38 of Tied in Knots
ChapterTwenty-One
Faith
I wake up with a lazy stretch and wonder how on earth I got back into my nest. I must’ve fallen asleep downstairs and one of the alphas must’ve carried me up here. I can’t get over how much I’m sleeping lately. It’s crazy and a bit annoying. I want to be up and learning stuff about this pack, not sleeping my arse off in the fucking cupboard the entire time.
On that note, I stand up and stretch again as I step out of the wardrobe. The room is dark, the moon glowing full through the window. I gasp in surprise and run over to it, looking up at the vision above me. Stars for miles and miles in the cloudless sky. I shiver from the cold breeze that filters under the slightly opened window and I shut it, flicking the lock. The heating is going full blast which makes it nice and warm in here. I wonder how they can afford to have the central heating on in this huge house. If I was back at home, I’d be shivering under my thin duvet.
“But you aren’t at home, Faith. You are here.” I smile at my words, my heart feeling warm and full of a joy I haven’t known since my dad died.
That doesn’t mean that everything is bells and whistles, but I know that despite a rocky start, this pack actually does want me to be their mate. The pull is too strong to deny. I can feel it. I know they can as well. I rub my fingers over the inside of my wrist where Sebastian bit me in the park. Frowning, I rub harder. I don’t like that he marked me as a possession. However, if he had tried to give me a mating bite, I’d be less than impressed about that. He hasn’t earned that yet. None of them have.
With a sigh over my vastly conflicting feelings, I make my way over to the door and open it, peering out into the dimly lit hallway. I wonder if Derek is still here, and if he is, where is he? Hopefully alive and not buried under a bush in the garden somewhere. Xander was not happy with him being here. I hasten out into the hallway and down the stairs, past the creepy portraits that at this time of night, in the semi-dark and eerie quiet. They freak me out a bit. I feel like their eyes are following me.
I make it to the bottom of the stairs without a Scooby Doo incident and run smack bang into a solid wall of male.
“Sorry!” I pant and look up as he grips my arms. “Oh. It’s you.”
My tone makes the beta I hooked up with raise his eyebrow and give me a smirk. “Oh, it’s you too.”
“Pah, like you didn’t already know I was here.”
“Back at you. You stalking me?”
“Fuck you,” I spit out and then jab him in the chest. “You are the one that set these alphas on my tail.”
He shrugs. “I can’t help that you smell like heaven to them. Try masking your scent with some severe BO or something.”
My cheeks heat up with indignation, but the comical expression on his face is too much. I snort loudly and in a very unladylike manner. Mortified, I slap my hand over my nose and mouth while he chuckles.
“Listen,” he says after a few seconds. “I’m really sorry for being a dick that night. I really fancied you, and I wanted to see you again. I really thought you were blowing me off.”
“I could’ve tried harder to explain,” I say, immediately taking the blame.
“Maybe we both could’ve done better,” he says.
“I’m kind of glad to see you actually. You’re the whole reason I’m here. It’s nice to see that you’re…you know…” I chew my lip nervously, knowing I sound like a bumbling idiot.
He scrutinises my face for a moment, but then nods. “I get what you mean. But you have nothing to worry about. These alphas can be huge douches, but seriously, deep down they are a good pack. They know what respect is and don’t expect everything to just land in their laps. Although in your case, that might have been preferable. They were getting majorly cranky.” He snorts with laughter.
“Thanks,” I say, looking down and tucking my hair behind my ear. “That helps. A lot actually. Unless you’re just saying that…”
“Not my style,” he interrupts me.
“What’s your name?” I ask suddenly, realising I never got it that night.
“Matt.”
“I’m Faith.”
“Yeah, I know.”
I nod and give him a tentative smile. “Friends?”
“Definitely.”
“Have you seen my brother around?”
“Yeah, he’s in the kitchen.”
