Page 17 of The Wolf's Bullied Mate
Was there anything I wouldn’t do for this woman I’d never met in person?
My crush on her was almost silly. I felt like a schoolboy again, dreaming of holding hands with Pauline Anderson. I remembered her shy smile from underneath her long lashes the freckles on her face that gleamed in the sun. For some reason, I imagined that RedRuby looked like my crush from high school. I knew equating the two was wrong, but in the absence of any idea about how my new potential partner looked, the image of someone I had likewise known and loved couldn’t help but come to me.
Pauline Anderson had moved to another pack long ago, and I would never see her again. Now, it was time for new love.
Just as I was reprimanding myself, a car stopped outside my house. I rose from my seat. My wolf pronounced in my soul. He, too, anticipated finally getting to see the woman we longed to marry.
I took one final look in the tall mirror next to the coat rack. I had dressed up for the occasion. I wore a black dress shirt and simple black pants; not dressy enough to appear out of place but more elegant than my usual attire. I had tried my best to make sure my unruly, curly blonde hair was somewhat tidy. I really had done all I could to make myself presentable, hadn’t I?
There was no room here for uncertainty. I had to present myself as the rock RedRuby could depend on for support since she desperately needed something stable in her sorrowful life. I wanted to be someone on whom she could rely. I couldn’t lether see that inside, I was afraid she wouldn’t choose me as her husband; she would see me and be disappointed.
No, I was the beta of Moondust Hollow, a respected member of my pack, someone people looked up to and admired. I had a lot to offer RedRuby. I had the strength to protect her, to be at her side, and to guide us through life.
She would choose me.
When the doorbell rang, I smiled the most charming smile I could muster and opened the door.
On the other side I saw the most beautiful woman I had ever encountered in my life. She was tall, though not as tall as me. She was slim but with enough curves for my liking. Long, straight red hair fell in a waterfall down her back. Freckles adorned her face - they were even on her nose. How cute.
When my gaze met her big green eyes, though, what I saw there made me shudder.
Confusion mixed with fear.
I frowned, unsure of what was distressing her. She looked like a deer caught in the headlights, ready to bolt at any moment. She tightened the grip on her son’s hand—he was the spitting image of her, with the same red hair and large green eyes—and pulled him closer.
The agent, whom I only now noticed—an older woman with large glasses barely supported by her small nose—chose this moment to speak up. “May I introduce Pauline Anderson of the Lone Bite pack along with Roy Anderson, her son?”
My eyes widened when I heard her name. Pauline. My crush from my high school years. She now stood here on my porch in the flesh, ready to start talking about… marrying me.
Pauline was RedRuby.
I had begun to fall in love with the same woman my heart had chosen all those years ago.
The girl I had thought I’d never see again had returned to me, and now she was a full-grown and beautiful woman.
Realizing that RedRuby and Pauline were the same person made me look at her even more fondly.
“Pauline, this is Oliver Norton, the Beta of the Moondust Hollow pack,” the agent introduced me.
Pauline opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but then closed it. Much like when we texted, I waited patiently for her to speak.
With every passing second though, she only looked more and more panicked.
Then, before I realized what was happening, she took her son in her arms and bolted.
My first thought was that she was no weak wolf if she had enough strength to carry a five-year-old so easily.
Only when she was already a few paces away from me did my mind catch up to what was happening.
Pauline had recognized me, learned my name, and… she had run away from me.
Chapter 5 - Pauline
“Ray, we’ve arrived.” I touched my son’s hand gently.
Ray woke up, his eyes glazed over from the deep slumber he had fallen into during the journey to Hope30’s house. The Lone Bite and Hope’s community were two hours apart. Apparently, he lived in Moondust Hollow—the pack where I had been born and lived for the first eighteen years of my life. The pack where I had first been bullied.
Why did my fresh start have to be in this community? Seeing the familiar buildings made me feel uneasy. When I left Moondust Hollow with my parents, I prayed that I would never return here.
