Wolves of Enchantment

Chapter 17: A Heart Divided

Axel’s Point of View

“What’s gotten into you?’ I asked my brother as we cleaned up the games room.

“I’m sorry I picked a three-player game and threw the controller at you and Jax. Are we done now?” Jackson responded, quite annoyed.

“She’s not even your type. Why are you chasing after Lilith so much?” I pressed.

I knew it was because Jackson wanted something he couldn’t have. My brother could have any girl he wanted, well, maybe not the twins, but I’d never seen him work so hard to try and impress a girl. Not even for Hazel, and Jackson had a crush on her for years.

“She’s gorgeous, a badass, and fun to hang out with. But she clearly doesn’t want even to be my friend. Don’t worry about me being competition for you, I’m done,” Jackson rolled his eyes.

“Competition for me? What are you talking about?” I exclaimed.

Was Jackson trying to start an argument with me so he wouldn’t need to help clean up?

“I just want to be her friend. Why do you think it is anything more than that?” I asked.

“You smiled more around Lilith tonight than I remember you ever smiling. Like, ever,” Jackson scoffed.

I furrowed my brow and went over the night's events in my head. Being around Lilith felt amazing, like I was genuinely happy and carefree. I felt at ease and was having a great time without overthinking things. It was such a nice feeling, and I wanted more of it. But did that mean I liked Lilith? I didn't think so.

“Mom asked us to look out for her. Are you not planning to do that?” I asked, preferring not to engage Jackson, who was clearly looking for an argument.

“I stood up for her with the twins. I’ll do the same at school and run interferance with Hazel and Prue when I need to. But after tonight, I won’t bother making an effort where I’m clearly not wanted. I read the room. Did you?” Jackson groaned.

“Lilith is not interested in any of us. Her parents are dead, and she's been hiding her powers her whole life. We've had people helping us control our abilities since day one, but Lilith never had that luxury. It seems like her parents were always MIA, too. Can you imagine being so alone for most of your life?” I said to my brother.

“Whatever. Forget about Lilith, bro. She's just another girl in town with a tragic backstory. I’m done with cleaning and this conversation. See you in the morning,” Jackson muttered and was gone.

I rolled my eyes, but in fairness, the room did look tidy. It was good enough. I teleported to my room, and my mind raced with what Jackson said. For the first time, I hoped that I dreamed of the mystery girl tonight. I wanted to know if I was dreaming of Lilith.

Lilith’s Point of View

I had an ice cold shower after texting with Emily. It helped. Kind of. I took matters into my own hands, which gave me some satisfaction but not much. I sighed. I would need to get laid at one point. f**k, it sucked being in a small town. Everyone knew everyone, even if I didn’t.

Did I want things to go further with Jax? I wouldn’t mind. There was intense chemistry between us. But then I found my mind wandering to Axel and Jackson. Would it be weird if I pursued something with Jax? How would that affect things with his brothers? And why did I care?

Jackson was annoying, infuriating, and a narcissist, but there was something in his eyes when he was defending me to the twins that caught me off guard—something unexpected that I couldn’t define. I wanted to know more and understand it. I just hoped that the spark I saw there didn’t burn me.

Axel was gorgeous but didn’t seem to capitalize on it. It was fascinating to know that he had the same demonic abilities as his brother and yet did not choose to use them. He was a walking contradiction, too, with the most beautiful smile I had ever seen. It made his whole being radiate.

I snuggled into the covers, wearing the pyjamas Juniper had loaned me. Three boys, so different and yet equally compelling. I felt an urge to protect Jax. I felt an urge to do much more than that, too, if I was being honest. With all of them. Even the annoying as f**k Jackson. I sighed. I’ll figure this out tomorrow. I needed sleep.

I had a dreamless sleep, and even though I was out from the moment I closed my eyes to the moment I woke up, I was terrified to find Ember and Juniper staring at me. It was clear that they had been watching me sleep. Pretty creepy, right?

“What in the actual f**k? Seriously!” I yelled.

“Good morning! Mom wanted us to wake you up. She thought you would appreciate that more than one of the boys doing it. Terrance kept volunteering, so I lit his socks on fire,” Ember shrugged.

“You didn’t!” I exclaimed.

“His toes were only a little singed. He’ll live,” Juniper laughed.

“We’re werewolves, remember? We heal fast,” Ember rolled her eyes.

I looked at her in shock.

“Well, werewolves with a bit more,” she blushed. “But still, he’s annoying and crushing on you and everything.”

“Are the boys in the kitchen?” I asked, embarrassed that I had slept so late.

“Yeah, Aunt Sage wouldn’t let them eat breakfast until you joined us. Please come. At this point, I think one of my brothers will teleport in here, throw you over his shoulder, and bring you to the kitchen just so he can have a piece of bacon,”

“Why can’t they go ahead and eat?” I asked. It was polite but a little over the top.

“Mom spelled the food. We can smell it; it’s staying warm, but we can’t see or feel it,” groaned Ember.

I looked at Juniper, eyebrows raised, and she just laughed.

“Yeah, it’s a thing in the Foster home. It started in the Winters's home, with Aunt Sage’s adoptive parents hiding cookies from her, and she’s carried on that parenting strategy,” Juniper giggled.

That was just weird. Effective. But, weird.

This bed was super comfy, and the pyjamas that Juniper had loaded me were so soft. My eyes were starting to close again when Ember’s stomach began to growl very loudly. It took all my strength, but I threw back the covers and got out of bed. I was worried I would have to change but one look at Juniper and Ember, and I realized that was foolish. They were still wearing their pyjamas, too.

I could smell the delicious food as we walked down the hallway and into the dining room. Jax looked up after sipping his coffee, and our eyes locked. He blushed and looked back down. Was Jax ashamed of what we had done?