Chapter 3

“Where is Jennifer?” I asked.

“She went with Daisy to see Scott,” Betty said with no elaboration.

I quickly dismissed it with no questions asked. The tense silence that followed lasted a couple of seconds as they all looked at me. I cleared my throat and smiled.

“Guys, this is Jake,” I motioned towards my cousin. Betty and Brian introduced themselves, welcoming him with bright smiles.

“Did you visit your mom and Andrew yet,” Brian asked, concerned.

“No, not yet,” I sighed, scratching the back of my neck. It reminded me of Harrison, so I quickly dropped my hand. “I’m going there when Andrew calls. They went to the doctor for a daily check up.”

“You’ll be staying here for a while, right?” Betty asked with a warm smile and I nodded.

“My room is being used as an equipment sight for all my mom’s medical machines,” I said. “I hope its okay that I stayed.”

“You’re welcomed anytime,” Betty said. “In addition, Beta Nell gave you permission.”

As I was about to say something, I heard the distant sound of car doors shutting. The familiar manly smell wafted up my nose, causing my wolf to jump in joy. I froze, feeling my heart drop into my belly. My heart beat faster with every step that grew louder as he approached the front of the house.

What confused me was the sweet, feminine smell that mixed with his and the heavier sound of footsteps that followed after him. I inhaled deeply, trying to recognize the smell. However, I couldn’t. I shrugged it off. It was probably a new werewolf.

Everyone around me watched me with wary eyes. Jake stood behind me as we all awaited the presence of my mate. I really didn’t want this moment to come so soon, but I quickly closed my eyes knowing I had to encounter him sometime.

When I opened my eyes, there he was staring back at me with his crystal blue eyes that darkened like a storm. I could see all the emotions that flickered in them. He opened his mouth to say something, but he was at a loss of words.

He was still as handsome as before with his black hair cut short, his prominent jaw line, his sculpted cheekbones, and his muscled arms I remembered myself being wrapped in. My wolf demanded that I embrace my mate now, but I followed the same muscled arms that used to hold me and found that his hand was intertwined with a smaller hand.

My world collapsed as I saw the woman next to Harrison. She was around my age and she was extremely pretty. Her light brown hair was in a lose side braid, her shorter hair framing her heart shaped face. She looked happy to see me as her lips pulled into a big, welcoming smile. She was … average. She wasn’t a someone who I’d imagine to see wrapping her arms around Harrison. She was just a normal … human.

For a couple of seconds, it was quiet as I swallowed in on myself. I could literally feel my heart breaking in two. My vision started to blur, but I blinked back the tears and plastered on a fake smile.

“Hello, Harrison,” I addressed formally and his expression never changed. He still looked at me with all the emotions flickering on his face. “This is Jake Woods, my cousin.”

I looked up at Jake to see his lips set in a thin line. His light brown eyes had darkened in anger. “Calm down, Jake. You promised,”I spoke through the mind link. He didn’t listen, but stared at Harrison as if he wanted to kill him right there.

“Baby, are you okay?” The female next to Harrison put a hand on his shoulder in worry. I held in the growl that dared to escape my lips.

That seemed to snap Harrison out of whatever he was thinking. He ran his hand in his hair before glancing at me again. He, too, plastered on a fake smile as he spoke. “Welcome back, Jessica,” I cringed when he said my full name. His smooth and deep voice brought back memories of when he used to tease me, tell me stories, and whisper adoring words in my ear. I shook it off. “Jake, welcome to Lancetown.” Jake shifted his weight, but didn’t say anything.

“Uh,” Harrison continued, still wearing that fake smile. “This is Sarah Price, my – um – my girl friend.”

“Nice to meet you,” I forced out. “I’ll see you guys at dinner. I’m going to go – um – unpack my stuff.”

“Do you need help?” Betty asked, her voice soothing. I didn’t dare look at anyone else in the room afraid that if I met their sympathetic eyes, I would burst.

“Um, no. Thank you.”

Walking past Harrison and into the corridor where the stairs were located, I felt the tears roll down my face and heard the whimper of my wolf. She cried too.

Even if I sat as far away as possible, I was still aware of his every movement.

Usually, I would bathe in his manly smell that engulfed me for the past two hours. I would bury myself in my favorite scent, content and happy. However, it felt suffocating when I reminded myself that we weren’t together anymore or he didn’t want me.

Harrison was quiet, occasionally looking in my direction. My wolf would purr every time he secretly glanced at us. My hands itched to wipe the food that smeared on the corner of his mouth. Whenever I was aware that Sarah entwined her hands with his own, I had to stop the growl that wanted to escape from my lips.

“Jessie,” Perry groaned, smacking his forehead with his hand. “Please tell them to stop!”

I laughed when he motioned towards a bickering Jennifer and Nell. They sat across each other, leaning forward in the heat of the moment. Jake, who sat next to Nell, stared at them with wide eyes.

“Listen to me, Nelson Cooper –,” Jennifer scolded angrily, her face turning red.

“Only if you promise to talk dirty, babe,” Nell winked, crossing his arms over his chest. His gray eyes danced with amusement while Jennifer’s green eyes glared at him.

Jennifer twirled a piece of her long blonde hair before biting her lip suggestively. She looked down at Nell’s lips. Slowly dragging her gaze to look straight into his eyes, she smiled seductively. I held back my laughter when Nell’s eyes widened before darkening.

“Why don’t we -,” Jennifer said sweetly before someone interrupted her again.

“Oh gosh,” Perry cried, gripping his hair with both his hands. “Please, not again…”

However, the couple ignored his comment.

“Why don’t we go to your room,” Jennifer said suggestively before her voice went harsh. “So that way, I could suffocate you with all your pillows.”

“Oh come on,” Nell leaned back, still smiling at Jennifer. “You know you love me.”

“Shut up, lover boy,” Jennifer said, before returning her gaze towards me. “Where’s Betty and Brian? They sure are taking long with the dessert.”

In that precise moment, we heard glass shattering inside the kitchen. We all laughed when Brian yelled, “Ouch! Gosh, Betty, it was an accident!”

“That was my favorite glass bowl,” Betty retorted. “Because you are so vertically challenged, you ruined it.”

“Are you calling me clumsy?”

My eyes landed on Daisy, Harrison, and Sarah. Daisy and Harrison were deep in conversation, probably discussing about Scott’s well being. Sarah stared down at her porcelain plate, playing with her food.

“Jessie,” Jennifer whispered so only I could hear. “I’m sorry about what happened.”

“You didn’t do anything, Jennifer,” I said, smiling at her. “It’s fine. If he’s happy, then I’m happy for him.”

“Harrison obviously doesn’t see what a great girl he was blessed with,” Jennifer said angrily. “He doesn’t deserve you at all.”

“Jennifer, I wanted the break up. Not him. So he’s not at fault.”

“But still! He doesn’t need to be gallivanting with other girls when he found his mate, does he?”

I stayed quiet for several seconds before voicing the question that has been haunting my mind for a while. “Does she know about us?”

Jennifer shook her head. “I think its better that way,” she whispered. She looked over my head, her eyes widening slightly. “Oh, no.”

I looked back to see Sarah coming towards us. She sat in Betty’s chair – which was next to me – with a friendly smile on her face. “Hi guys,” she said.