#4 Moonlight on the Water

Chapter 12: Navy

There was so much I needed to tell Knox, but I wasn’t sure how and I was weary about how he would take all of my news. I wasn’t completely comfortable with this strange man who I was moving in with and I had to learn how to communicate with him.

He drove me to his packhouse in the moving black box he called a car. I was apprehensive about my first automobile experience but I figured it was all a part of the adventure. We pulled up the pack house. It was large and structured almost like the hotels I saw on the boardwalk. It appeared to have five stories.

Knox led me up the large front steps and across the front porch to the double doors. The doors were grand and made of glass. The front porch wrapped around the entire house with large wooden rocking chairs and swinging benches scattered about. He pushed open one of the glass doors and revealed a grand lobby with sandy colored tile on the floor and orange walls.

“The first floor is the common quarters for the entire pack to use.” He said, showing me around the various recreational areas for the pack members to utilize including a movie theater, gym, game room, dining hall and kitchen, and a large living room.

“I’ve spoken with our groundskeeper and he’s going to arrange for an indoor/outdoor swimming pool to be added to the sunroom.” Knox explained as he showed me the large, four season sunroom with floor to ceiling windows.

“Oh?” I said curiously.

“The pack’s been asking me for a swimming pool for years now and I figured it would be nice for you to have somewhere private to stretch out.” Knox shrugged, pointing out where the swimming pool would go. He explained how part of it would be inside and heated for the cooler winters, while the other half would be outside with a covered patio area.

“You don’t have to do that for me.” I blushed thinking that it was all too much, especially if I wasn’t going to be staying permanently.

“I know, but I want to. Besides, it’s for the pack, too.” He shrugged again. I looked out the windows of the sunroom and noticed that the back of the packhouse was on the beach.

“There’s a beach.” I pointed out at the perfectly good ocean.

“It’s too cold in the winter months.” Knox said. I smirked at him,

“Not for a siren.” His expression was clueless and adorable.

“Well, the pool will be more private, anyway.” He said. I bit the inside of my cheek, unsure of what to say next. I was afraid that he was embarrassed by my tail or that he was hiding something. I thought about what my grandma said, how the werewolves exiled her for what she was.

Before I could say anything else, Knox pulled us away from the sunroom and towards an elevator.

“The second floor is for guests and formal meetings, the third floor is where the Beta and Gamma stay with their mates, and the fourth floor is for my parents, although they mostly stay in a house in town.” Knox explained,

“The fifth floor is for the Alpha and Luna.” He pushed the number five button in the elevator.

“I had the mates of the Beta and Gamma arrange your room and get you some clothes, I figured you didn’t have much.” I looked sideways at my mate in surprise,

“You didn’t have to do that.” I said again.

“I wanted to. I want you to feel at home here.” He smiled proudly down at me. I looked straight ahead, fighting the blush that threatened to take over my cheeks. The elevator ride was silent and a little bit awkward. The doors finally dinged and slid open, revealing a grand hallway.

I didn’t know that hallways could be grand until I saw this one. The floor was black and white marble, the walls a dark, burnt orange. There were several portraits hanging on the walls that were framed in heavy brass. An enormous rustic gold mirror was hanging on the wall at the end of the hall. Candlesticks were settled in antique brass holders and gas lanterns were dangling next to each door and by the elevator. It was modern and traditional all at the same time.

The hallway was very short with only one door on each side about halfway down. The left door had the word Alpha written in cursive while the door on the right had the word Luna in the same brassy font. Knox opened the door and waited patiently for me to step inside the room.

The door opened up to a large sitting area with an L-shaped couch, a reclining chair, a coffee table, and a TV hanging on the wall framed by built-in bookcases. Dark, hardwood floors flowed through the entire space, opening up to a small dinette and kitchenette.

A counter spanned the length of one wall with upper and lower cabinets in a creamy white finish. The countertops were white with specks of gold, brass, and orange to match the rest of the finishings. The dinette looked like a fancy, oversized picnic table with two large bench seats on either side. Small appliances sat in designated nooks and a full sized refrigerator finished off the space.

Knox led me to a door off the kitchen which was a small open room that could be used as an office or library. All three walls were covered in built-ins with a large window on the wall across from the door. A cushioned bench seat was under the window.

“You can use this for whatever you want. My mother used it as a reading nook.” Knox explained, watching me as I explored the small space. I looked up at him with wide eyes and no words. He smiled softly and motioned for me to follow him.

Off the living room was another door that led to a bedroom that was at least the same size as the living area. It has a huge bed in the middle that could probably sleep at least four people. Not that I'm suggesting anything.

The bed was white and the backboard looked like an old barn door I had seen in pictures. The bedspread was a dark blue with flowers all over it. There were matching end tables, a dresser, and a large TV hanging on the wall. I wasn’t sure why one space needed so many TVs.

A door in the bedroom led to a huge bathroom that had the same finishings as the kitchen. It had a tiled walk in shower with two, count them, two shower heads, and a clawfoot bathtub. As if the room would never end, another door led to a closet that was the same size as the bathroom and filled to the brim with clothes. All organized by color and style.

“This is like a small house.” I gasped, feeling overwhelmed.

“It’s designed that way, yes. My space is exactly the same.” Knox said,

“I went to the cove and checked your clothes there for sizes. I told Julia and Natasha to get a variety of things so I hope there’s something you like here.” He added, motioning around the room.

“If I can’t find something to wear here I’m better off naked.” I joked, but Knox didn’t seem to find it funny.

“That’s a hard no.” He said with a small growl rising in his chest,

“I don’t even want anyone watching you change into a siren.” He added, surprising me by wrapping one arm around my waist. I eyed him curiously,

“Why?” I asked. He snorted, looking down at me like I was clueless.

“Why? Because you’re basically naked except, somehow, the scales and the tail are even sexier than being naked and no one else should get the privilege of seeing that.” His voice was deep and velvety. I blushed horribly, resisting the urge to cover my face with my hands. My grandma’s salsy words echoed in my head.

Knox laughed at my embarrassed expression and led us back out to the living room.

“Is it normal for the Alpha and his mate to live in different spaces?” I asked, thinking that it wasn’t a common practice for sirens. Even when sirens were mated to more than one person, they would all sleep together.

“It depends on the relationship.” Knox said.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“For instance, my parents weren’t destined mates. My father chose to make my mother his mate. Their relationship is very….business like. So, they lived in separate quarters. But, my grandparents before them were destined mates, so they both lived in the Alpha’s quarters.” Knox explained. I thought about his words for a second, wondering why an Alpha would mate with someone who wasn’t chosen for him by the Moon Goddess.

“I didn’t realize an Alpha would take a chosen mate. From my understanding, I thought that made an Alpha weaker.” I admit, I didn’t understand much, so I was trying not to sound too ignorant.

“It can. It depends on how you look at it.” Knox shrugged. I still wasn’t understanding so I decided to take a different approach,

“My parents aren’t destined mates. It’s common for a siren King to choose a mate if his destined mate is not from nobility.” I said.

“Really?” Knox seemed interested in what I had to say, so I continued,

“My people believe that the royal family line has to stay noble. If a King’s mate is a commoner, he either rejects her or keeps her as a mistress. The Queen and heir bairer has to be from a noble bloodline.”

“I guess I don’t understand a monarch because we don’t have one.” Knox said, eyeing me curiously.

“Yeah, anymore.” I shrugged.

“What do you mean, anymore?” Knox asked.

“You have a Council now, right?” I asked, afraid I had outdated information.

“We’ve always had a Council.” Knox was looking at me strangely.

“Oh. I was told you had a King and Queen once, more than a century ago, before the species split.” I ducked my gaze away from his, feeling embarrassed by my misinformation.

“Who told you that?” Knox asked.

“My tutors and my grandma.”

“You have tutors who teach you about werewolves?” He asked, sitting down on the couch and looking at me intently. I wasn’t sure if Knox was mad because I had false information or was interested in the siren’s education system.

“We have tutors who teach us about all the species and the surface. How else can we learn from under the water?” I said, sitting down on the other side of the couch.

“I thought your grandmother didn’t stay with her mate for very long?” He asked, changing the topic slightly. I sighed and decided that I had to come clean about this at least.

“My grandma told me her story before I came here.” I told him about my grandmother’s mate, Quinton, and his pack. Knox was staring straight ahead, unmoving.

“I’m sorry, did I upset you?” I asked, worried. Knox quickly shook his head and grabbed my hand, moving closer to me on the sofa.

“No, not at all, love. I just never knew that the Council did that. I knew they banned the packs from having any dealings or partnerships with the other species, but getting involved in the mate bond? That’s unheard of.” Knox said.

“So, that wouldn’t happen now?” I asked hesitantly. Knox’s eyes locked with mine as he seemed to finally understand my fears. He gently cupped my face in his large hand,

“Never. I would never let that happen, you understand me? I promise you’ll never be separated from me unless it’s what you want.” His eyes were on fire as they stared into my soul. I could only nod, licking my now dry lips and focusing on my breathing.

“I am curious about something, though. Come with me?” Knox asked, standing quickly from the sofa. I silently obeyed, taking his hand and following him out of the room.