“So far, solidly the dirt,” I admitted, “but we plan on turning a new leaf soon.”
“Ahhh, agricultural puns. Classic.” The warrior raised his cup in a toast. “Well, my sister told me I needed to get over here and muscle some hedgerows into order, or something like that. So just point me at your bushes and I’ll get to work.”
Somehow, he managed to slip a cheeky wink in as he said it, and I spluttered on my sip of juice.
I think I’m being flirted with? I realized with a jolt. That’s not happened in a while.
“I’m Avery,” I said, by way of introduction. The warrior’s eyes widened, and he nearly dropped his cup.”
“Oh! You’re the new Luna.” He immediately bowed his head. “Please forgive my informal statements, Luna. I meant no offense.
“Oh!” I stared back at him in consternation, “Oh, not at all! It was refreshing to talk to someone like a normal person for once.” I admitted. I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed it until now.
“Well, it’s my honor to meet you. I’m Ian,” the young warrior bowed again. “And that’s my sister, Melody,” he pointed at a young woman sitting nearby, who waved.
“Very nice to meet you as well, Ian.” I said, with genuine feeling, “Please don’t feel like you need to avoid me, just because I’m the new Luna.”
“I will do my best, Luna- er- Avery.” Ian gave a lopsided smile, “Though probably best if I stay out of your bushes.”
I laughed out loud. He was certainly a lively one.
We spent the rest of the afternoon casually chatting while we worked.
Ian told me about his sister and parents, and I talked a little bit about the nicer parts of my life, which is to say, I let Ian do most of the talking.
“Oh, what’s this?” Ian pointed at something buried in the soil. I leaned over him, intrigued, as he unearthed what looked like a ring from the dirt. “Someone’s lost ring?”
We rose together to examine what he’d found.
It was a large moonstone ring, though the stone was cracked down the middle. I put my hand on his to turn the ring from side to side in the light.
We were so absorbed in examining the lost piece of jewelry that it took me a moment to realize the rest of the planting group around us had gone silent.
I looked up to see Gideon and a group of warriors standing at the end of the garden, watching us.
I quickly withdrew my hand from Ian’s with a curse.
In an instant, Ian was darting down the garden to kneel before Gideon.
“Apologies for my offense, Alpha,” Ian said sincerely, head bowed, while I stared in disbelief. Gideon stared back at me over Ian’s prostrate form, his face a mask, unreadable.
Still meeting my eyes, Gideon said, “Fifty laps in the training ground. Now.”
Yes, Alpha.” Ian rose, bowed again, and took off towards the training grounds.
I strode down the garden towards Gideon, confused.
“He didn’t do anything wrong! Why punish him?”
In Silvermoon, those sorts of punishments were often just another form of bullying. An excuse to pick on someone lower in the hierarchy. I hated that kind of behavior.
I won’t put up with bullies any longer! I crossed my arms and waited for Gideon’s response.
He flicked his eyes to me with annoyance, “Don’t think these little tricks will make me jealous. I’m not falling for it.”
Not everything is an attempt to seduce you! I rolled my eyes, Since you think it’s my fault, why not punish me instead?
Gideon’s gaze narrowed as I rolled my eyes.
“Do you want to be punished?” Gideon asked. There was danger in his tone, but my mind unhelpfully supplied some ideas for what ‘punishment’ might look like.
Flustered, I flushed and dipped my chin and discarded those dangerous thoughts.
Too late, Gideon was already stepping closer to me. He loomed over me, and one hand gripped under my chin and lifted my face to look at him.
Gideon’s POV
I raised Avery’s chin. She was streaked with mud and dirt, and she smelled of fresh air and growing things.
I stared at the line where the graceful curve of her neck met her shoulder. It was beautiful… but disappointingly unmarked.
I inhaled slowly, and chose my words carefully, the way one would with a disobedient pup.
“In the Pack, hierarchy is what keeps us alive. There are always wolves watching and listening.”
The image of her holding lan’s hand at the end of the garden row kept swimming to the front of my mind and I bit my words off more sharply than I intended.
“Stop. Speaking. Back. I won’t always let you get away with it.”
Avery stared at me with eyes that flashed like coins. Her jaw was clenched tight, and I could tell she wanted to argue. Her stubborn expression was unexpectedly endearing.
She is cute when she is trying so hard. The thought surprised me.
I found my eyes drawn to the way she’d pressed her lips together in a firm line, the dimple in her chin as her bottom lip pouted just slightly. Her lips looked soft and inviting.
I watched her swallow her frustration, and then her face broke into a sweet smile that she flashed at me on purpose.
“Okay.” She said brightly, and then turned and walked away, ignoring me.
I watched as she broke into a jog and caught up with Ian as he headed towards the training grounds.
She had to know that blatantly disregarding my correction would be the absolute worst choice here.
My pulse picked up its pace as I heard her say, “Sorry, I’ll run with you.”
The little minx. I cursed under my breath. She had thrown me off balance with her smile, and now she was openly defying me?
I wanted to run after them. To pull her away from Ian and shake her until she finally listened to me. Perhaps a spanking was in order, if she insisted in behaving like a child. I thought with grim satisfaction.
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