“So, what’s his name? Do you know what pack he belongs to?”
“Lucian, and no, I didn't ask him about his pack. We didn't talk for very long, so there is still a lot I don't know about him."
A LOT.
Rehema's mouth curved upwards with a grin, her black-painted nails tapping against her plastic cup. “Lucian? As in the first white wolf?”
“What?” I repeated, confused.
“Massive guy, long black hair to his waist, and a mysterious gaze that draws women in like a magnet?”
“Yep,” I laughed. “That’s him.”
Her excitement grew. “Lucian Wolfborn. He's the first white wolf created by the Goddess. I can’t believe it.” She reached out and took my hand. “Your man is like the Goddess’s own son. That makes you kind of like her daughter-in-law!”
I’m like the Goddess’s daughter-in-law? Lucian’s the first white wolf? What?
I only stared at her in shock, unable to speak as I processed her words. Lucian had said nothing about this last night, but then again, we hadn’t talked long. But now, I was wondering if I’d given him too much attitude.
No, I’d been right to treat him the way I had. Respect went two ways, and he’d been rude to me first.
“Do you know him personally?”
She shook her head, then took another sip of her drink. “No,” she said, pushing her smoothie cup to the side. “He’s just well-known. He’s a good man—incredibly reserved, but a good man. Now that I know he’s your mate, I can see him reacting to you the way you said he did. He’s honestly a little terrifying to me.”
“He was,” I admitted, recalling his icy stare. Then my mind flashed to the warmth in his smile. It was like he was two different men.
One thing I’d learned on Earth was that men like Lucian—reserved and commanding—were usually the ones who should be feared. They had power that didn’t need to be flaunted; it oozed from them, like an alpha knowing where he stood: above everyone else. I should have expected Rehema to know of him. She adored werewolves, since the nanny who had raised her had been a wolf.
The gold bracelet on her arm beeped, and a message appeared on a hologram floating above it. When I saw Japanese writing float across the screen, I figured her father had sent her a message.
She'd lived with her human father her whole life. And while she'd told me who her mother was, I could sense that there was tension between them. She wasn't a soul like me, who’d come from Earth after dying. She was a native, born and raised in this realm.
As an arrived soul, my bracelet was silver, not gold like hers. I twisted it around my wrist as a ray of sunlight beaming through the café’s window reflected off it.
“Good afternoon, ladies.”
Rehema and I both looked up as a dryad, a tree nymph, approached our table. His short blond hair was combed upward, resembling roots, with patches of moss on his hairline that blended with his hair. He had moss on his temples as well, down his cheek, in his beard, and on his neck. His somewhat pointy ears, though not as pointed as a fae’s, moved a little as he smiled down at us, his deep-green eyes glinting.
“Good afternoon,” Rehema and I answered in unison, and his eyes fell on me.
“Sorry to interrupt, but I had to come over and say hi. You're a white-haired Enchanted, aren’t you? One of the strongest among your kind, right?"
I frowned. “Um, yes, I am.”
I wasn't sure what to say, to tell the truth. Another supernatural creature being excited about seeing someone like me seemed a little odd. I wasn't anything special. There were many Enchanteds who were much more powerful than me, and they all had white hair, which symbolized their power.
“My ex-girlfriend was an Enchanted. She had white hair, too.” He sighed. “She was everything to me." Rehema and I shared a quick look, and the dryad continued to speak. “We were perfect together until she met her mate.”
There was a hint of venom in his voice, and inside my head, I heard my wolf growl. I wasn't feeling comfortable any longer. This conversation wasn't heading in a good direction. I could feel it.
"I'm sorry to hear that," I told him as Rehema tapped at her bracelet to pay for our drinks. “Well, we were just heading out. It was nice speaking to you.”
“That’s fine.” He held his bracelet out to mine. “Let’s share our contacts. I’d love to spend quality time with another Enchanted again.”
My frown deepened. Despite his smile, his eyes were anything but pleasant. My eyes changed to black in response, and his grin was wiped away.
"I don't think so." I pulled my hand away, and he glared at me.