“Of course. I will be the only person to kick his ass if he needs it!” I said, laughing.
“Language, young lady, just because your parents aren’t here to make sure you act like a lady doesn’t mean I will stop either.” Ben said sternly, with a hint of amusement.
“Yes sir! I will be here shortly!”
“Okay, I will see you soon. I have a meeting at 10am that will last an hour, so just be aware.” Ben said, distracted. I could hear someone in the background, so I said goodbye and hung up.
Walking inside the front door, I could see Zach had made quick work of everything. He had all the pictures placed in a box, all the other d?cor had been wrapped in newspapers and he was playing Tetris, getting everything just right. Zach realized I had walked in and stood up and got a really nervous look at him. “I, uh, wasn’t sure, uh what you all wanted done. I have just started the basic stuff but if you are okay with dad’s offer, we, um only need to protect stuff from getting damaged. I figured we could put it in the bedrooms? Only if that is okay with you?” he finished hurriedly.
“Zach, you are fine! And yes, I accept your parents’ offer. I want to run to his office now before his meeting at 10. If you don’t mind keeping going, I should be home by lunch. I will bring something home.”
Zach visibly relaxed and said okay. Grabbing a jacket. I suddenly felt excited. I was going to be getting a fresh start and, with any hope, enjoy some of my youth before I need to be realistic and get a job. With a little hop to my step, I decided to walk. It was a 15-minute walk to Ben’s office. Instead of going through the woods, as a short cut, I decided a good walk would do my soul good.
About 10 minutes into the walk, I got an uneasy feeling. Like I am not going to like what is about to happen, but not that I am in danger. Frowning, I made my way to the front door. ‘Ben’s Personal Finance’ was written on the door in gold. Walking in, I was instantly greeted with a sterile smell mixed with flowers and lemon. Scrunching up my nose, I made my way to Ben’s secretary.
“Oh, hi Nina! I was expecting you. I will let Ben know you are here. I am sorry about the smell. A mother had brought in her 2-year-old and the kid vomited everywhere! I tried to hide the smell with an air freshener but it isn’t working and only making it worse.”
Vivian sighed and slumped down in her chair. Waving her hand toward the door letting me know I could go in, she got up to open a few windows.
Laughing, I made my way to his office. He was on the phone but allowed me to sit down and signed he was almost done.
The meeting went pretty quickly and I signed all the paperwork I needed to. I have my Visa Black Card in my pocket. I went to give him a hug and suddenly we heard yelling from the lobby.
We walked out into a scene that I did not want to be a part of. Both of us realized what time it was and his 10am appointment was here.
“The hell is that smell?” Damian yelled.
“Please future Alpha, we are trying to air things out. A little boy vomited and, well, this was the best we could do” stammered Vivian.
“I would be getting on that, Vivian; this does not make me happy….” Damian shouted, but stopped suddenly when he realized I was right there. I have never seen this side of him before. His eyes were shining blue, his wolf Colt was present. I was actually a little scared of him at that moment. “Nina……What are you doing here?” he said, taking a few steps towards me.
“Actually, future Alpha Damian, I am ready for our meeting. Please excuse us Nina, Vivian will show you out. Let me know if there is anything else I can assist you with.” Ben interjected skillfully. I appreciated it and gave him a nod of thanks, which he returned. I quickly made my way to Vivian and left quickly.
“Holy crap, what was that? I don’t remember him ever acting that way when we were around him”, Raven said, going through my memories.
“I have never seen him like that. I don’t like that at all. Maybe I dodged a bullet?” I responded.
“Most defiantly, I would not like to have to kill our mate because he was disrespectful towards us”. Raven said. I didn’t even respond, as I just nodded my head. Maybe leaving is all for the best.
The rest of the week went by pretty quietly. Zach managed to bring breakfast over every morning and I made lunch and dinner. I have learned more about Zach and we talked and laughed together. I never realized I hadn’t taken the time to get to know him on more of a personal level, since I was always focused on Damian. He always wanted to run a museum. His knowledge of old artifacts and events was astonishing. Apparently, the ring I was wearing was worth more than 1 million dollars. The Emerald was one that was smuggled into the U.S. and was lost in transit from unknown causes. I was more than a little skeptical. My parents said they saw it from an old lady in a small store and thought it would bring out my eyes. Surely, I was not wearing a million-dollar ring on my finger. Zach said after he saw it for the first time, he didn’t think anything of it but he was reading a book that described the ring and it was a pretty good description of my ring. Shaking my head, I laid down in bed.
Tomorrow, we leave first thing in the morning. I have been hearing whispers that there will be a Luna ceremony in a month or two. I knew they had already marked and mated, so I was eager to leave this old life behind me. Zach was sleeping on the couch. My house was all packed and boxes off the ground in case it flooded. The electric company was supposed to come out tomorrow and turn everything off. We left the water on so Zach’s parents could come by to keep the house from smelling like old rusted pipes that something died in.
“Wake up sleeping beauty! It’s time!!” Zach yelled happily.
“Why are you a morning person? What did sleep ever do to you?” I questioned.
“Well, Damian mind-linked me last night since you still have a concrete wall up, that him and Holly will be stopping by at 9am to talk to us before we leave, so we need to leave in 30 minutes if you want to avoid seeing him.”
That got me awake fast. I flew from my bed and went straight to the shower. I had a light bag packed since we were taking my car (my mom’s old one). I was bring a few personal things but it was already packed and ready to go. I had clothes laid out so there was no reason to worry about that. Since I will be driving, I opted for leggings and a t-shirt with my signature side braid and no makeup.
“Boy let’s go!” I yelled from the drivers’ seat of my 1969 Dodge Charger. It was all black with a black interior. I left the white fuzzy dice my mom had hanging from the rear-view mirror. I would always make fun of her for it, but now I can’t seem to part with it.
“I’m sorry! Jeez, I was getting the bag of snacks for you!”
Once we were outside of our territory, I instantly felt lighter. Like there was a huge weight on my shoulders and I was trying to get away fast, so when they realized we had left already, Damian couldn’t command Zach to bring us back. For some reason, his commands never affected me. We assumed it was because I was his mate, his equal.
Zach got a pained look on his face. “Drive faster” he growled out. I immediately slammed on the gas and floored it. After a few minutes, he sighed and relaxed.
“Sorry, I felt Damian mind-linking me asking me where we were. I stalled and said we were grabbing breakfast. He should realize we are gone now….” Right on queue his phone rang and it was Damian.
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