Returned (ATHENS WOLVES NOVELLA)

5

I got to her house and saw her little car in the driveway and I waited after knocking. Before too long I heard something opening... and that was when I saw the garage door opening and my mate had the audacity to walk out in a sports bra, headphones, and short shorts. I was next to her in a second as she started to stretch. She jumped and laughed putting her hand to her chest.

"I thought you were going home."

"Dinner is a while away. I got clothes from your cousin." I told her and she hummed and nodded. "Then I came for that mat session you offered out." I backed her a bit more into the garage and she smiled and nodded, trying not to smile.

"A mat session, or a mate session?" She asked and then she licked her bottom lip and tucked it in so she could bite it.

"We can't... mate, you know that." I told her and she licked her teeth and I saw them extend like she wasn't going to wait, but then she took a deep breath and then she nodded slowly. "Spar, yes, kiss, yes... no claiming until I know you will be safe."

"What if I can prove it to you, that I can beat you." She challenged and I saw her eyes start to become a bit brighter.

"You really want me on that mat huh?" I asked and she nodded before backing farther into her empty garage. She had a punching bag in the side, and the mat was in the middle. Some shoes were lined up to the door leading into her house and I caught myself heading to that door, following my nose as I got caught up in her scent.

"Looking for my bedroom?" She giggled behind me and as I turned towards her she had her full on laugh going. I remember the first time I was caught up in seeing it... dodgeball in middle school. 7th grade, she was hearing the black shorts and white shirt like every other girl, her hair was up in a ponytail, not all of it laying flat... and she was one of the last on the girls side while me and some of the other guy wolves were still in play.

I had taken my eyes off of one girl to aim and hit her, but just as I had gotten her out and she looked my way, just as I was hit in the face with a ball. She and I walked to the side as she laughed and kept saying that she might piss herself.  She had saw me working my jaw and how red my face was, and she clamed down and started to touch my chin. "You'll be fine." She said and then slapped the same side of my face gently before laughing hard again, so hard that she bent over and kept giggling.

"Sam, come here." I saw her kind of sober up from her giggling and she came closer, as soon as her feet hit the mat I charged and she almost dodged me but I got her leg, and I took her down hard until she was under me.

"You cheated." She breathed out and I smirked and kept her hands pinned.

"An enemy won't count down before their attack." I told her and she rolled her eyes.

"You think I don't know that?" Before I could get her legs pinned beneath mine she raised her hips and connected hard with my pelvis, just shy of my c**k and I bowed up enough to let her get her knees up so they got to my chest, she pushed up so hard I was forced to let go of her hands to cover my open territory. I got off of her and she rolled so she was now on her knees and she made a grab for my arm until I could twist hers and get it pinned behind her back.

She kept getting out of my holds by using force, I had her legs spread wide and her hands behind my back as she struggled. "I got you." I kissed her neck and she stopped struggling.

"You're getting me all sweaty in the wrong way." I heard her and I let one arm go before trailing it down her side. "You know you could slip that hand-"

"You're talking an awful lot like you're in heat." I kissed the other side of her neck as I moved my other hand down to her side and she shivered.

"To be in heat you would have had to lose your virginity." She told me and she jerked her hip away from mine before she turned and got to the other side of the mat to grab some water from the pack of bottles she had there.

"You're still-"

"And it has to be close to the full moon." She shot me a look because she knew what I was going to ask.

"Sam-"

"Sean." She turned her eyes to me, almost challenging me, silently asking me if I want to really ask the question.

"You'll tell me in a week and a half then." I watched her take in that information and she didn't act nervous, just smug and I knew that our reactions to the full moon would be different. I would need her, and her wolf would just simply crave me. My little mate was still a virgin.

"Shall we get ready for that dinner?"

"It's 3pm." She smiled and I nodded and backed up until I was almost at her door in, so I hit the garage door and she came closer.

"Shower, nap, changing." I listed and she narrowed her eyes. "Maybe something to eat."

"Oh, came to your little female to wrestle and be fed huh?" She asked as she crossed her arms and I just looked her up and down before leaning down to her size and she took a breath, hitching like a hiccup almost and I just smirked.

"I could give you something back... but not the claiming." I told her and she narrowed her eyes.

"You want me to give you something that is precious and I have been saving for my mate-"

"I am your mate."

"You are... but who says you're actually going to stick around after I give up my goodies." She narrowed her eyes, and I could smell the truth and the worry coming off of her. I tipped her chin up slowly until her lips were set up so I could claim them.

"Who says I am going to stick around, who says you are. We have a lot of things to talk about when things here are settled. And for your information little mate of mine, I wasn't going to take your virginity until I claimed you. However... there are a lot more enjoyable things." I reached out and set my hands on her hips, keeping her flush with my body as I stepped up the stairs and got inside.

"Like what?" She asked almost breathless and I just smirked until I found my way to look around. I saw the kitchen, the couch and tv by the front door, an opened bathroom door, and a door leading to a closed room and another next to it.

 "Shower and then I will show you. I am going to get the clothes your cousin gave me." I told her and let her go and watched her take the hint to get to the shower. She opened up her bedroom door and I saw the grey and purple bed spread before she moved away from the door without a backwards glace.

"If you hurry you might be able to come and help wash my back." She called out and I smirked before heading to the front door. I left it open and headed to the back of my bike. I took out the jeans that should fit me, the white shirt and then headed inside, making sure to lock up.

I headed farther into her room, looking around, seeing some pictures of her many graduations. She had some with her cousins, holding babies and in front of this house as she bought it all by herself.

I got to the other end of the small room where I could hear the water and her small humming and singing. I pushed open the door slowly so she would hear it and she looked over with her hands in her soapy hair and I got to see her for the probably millionth time naked. But this time... things had changed. She had a tattoo of a bleeding heart in the middle of a ton of roses and flowers all along her side but stopping before her mid thigh and just under her boobs.

As teenagers we were around everyone nude all the time. After full moon runs, after training as wolves, all of it. I was always careful not to stare at any of the girls too hard, noticing how defensive they got. As right they should. Every woman was different, and Sam, even as a teenager she was always catching my eye, making me want to stare a bit more.

Now... now we were mates, no marking to prove it only feelings, and I got to stare at her body as long as I wanted to.

"You just going to stand there and stare at me, or are you going to strip and give me something to look at too." She called out before tipping her head back and letting the shampoo wash out of her hair.

I went for the shirt, getting it off before going for the buttons on the jeans. I let them drop with a little pushing before getting the  belt hit the ceramic tiles and she looked over through the clear curtain and smiled at me.

I wasn't fully hard, but I was getting there. Now was not the time. I got to the curtain and she covered up her n*****s and pushed some water out of her face.  I got in and she took the sprayer from the holder and started to get me all wet.

"I thought I was going to wash your back." I muttered and I reached behind her for the small pump for body wash and made sure to keep it in my hands as I circled her waist and then I slid my hands together before putting them on her back. I went up and down making sure I got from the top of her ass to her shoulders. Getting her all soapy and she sighed and leaned back into my hands so instead of making it quick, I started to add pressures around her shoulders.

The more she enjoyed it the longer I kept it up until she pulled away slowly and started to turn. She handed me the sprayer and I cleaned off her back as she faced away from me and started to get her own handful of body wash. She turned, headed right for my chest, over my left side and then down before I saw her start to focus on the scars on my body. They had been from before my wolf. Marks from belts or shoes, all small enough not to catch until you were sitting next to me... or getting to wash me apparently.

"Where did you get these?" She asked as she started to wipe away the soap so she could see them all more.

"Dad mostly." I told her and she shook her head as she started to wash me again, she put a little more pressure as if she was trying to scrub away the old pain. "I have a couple on my back that are more recent, but since you're having a difficult time with these, maybe I should wash my own." I pulled her hand from my arm and placed it on my shoulders so she would stop wiping and slightly scratching my arms and ribs.

"Let me see." I heard her whisper and I just looked down at her, she was already pushing my shoulder just slightly so I would listen, and since she would see it all eventually, I started to turn and let her see the scars I got from the fighting as king. I was a protector in Canada, I took on the biggest wolves, the dirty fighters, I put them in their place. I took care of the women and kids who ran from packs here in the north American territory.

Women who ran from bad mates and bad men in the states were under my protection and when the men came after them. I took them on.

"Sean." She hissed as if when she started hurting when touching the marks on my back and I waited to see what she was going to say. I was slightly surprised when she started to kiss them as if that was going to make them go away.

"Let's finish." I told her and she started to rub more soap around my back before her hands went around my front and her body molded to my back. It felt good to have her body against mine, and I wanted to keep her close.

"You're going to have to talk to me about what happened with each of these scars. I want to know." I felt her lips on what I knew was the biggest scar on my shoulder blades and I worked my jaw and grabbed both of her hands and kept them tight in mine before I got back under the sprayer.

I kept warm and got to the towels just outside of the shower and she wrapped her hair at the same time as the rest of her body and I was set in a slightly somber mood as she crossed her arms and took time to take me into the bedroom where the clothes for myself were laid out and she sat on the bed but brought me to stand between her knees.

"You want me to tell you about the scars? Now?" I asked and she nodded and looked up at me like she was waiting oh so patiently. Slightly batting her eyes and pouting so I would give in. And it worked. "The one on my shoulder blade was my most recent fight. With the Rogues... we kind of took on some females that have been running from men in their packs who take advantage. Men like that alpha from the Luna's old pack. The one that wanted young girls, abusive men like my father... we save them. Relocate and help protect kids." I told her and she cupped my face so I moved to get on my knees so I was closer to her face. "An alpha... he wanted his property back, a female and their daughter she was carrying. She was so black and blue from the recent beating. She couldn't be moved from the place we were keeping her, so I added more men, including myself." I added and she started to tear up so I decided to keep most of the details to myself. "So I was there when he showed up. Tracking her. We fought, us Rogues won, but I was torn up when I made sure he couldn't get through the door."

"Your shoulder... you were human fighting?"

"Yeah... it's healing well. He bit me so the bite mark is mostly gone."

"He was in his wolf form?" She asked and her pitch went up a little but I was going to tell her the truth so I nodded. "Are you crazy, you could have been killed."

"That woman was slowly bleeding out with a baby inside her. She needed help." I stopped her next words and she took a couple deep breaths, her eyes were back to a calm color and she nodded slowly. "Most of the women we help are terrified and need medical attention. We usually find a pack up there willing to take them and hide them."

"You don't have a doctor with the rogues?"

"No, we have a house, a couple cabins and we're close to a small town but we can't just take a werewolf into the town clinic and explain why they looked like they had a broken bone but now it's only a fracture." I told her slowly and she nodded and worked her mouth.

"That's why you want to go back, to help women and kids." She whispered and I nodded slowly and she took a deep breath.

"We can talk about if and when we go back later, I need to dress, you need to get ready, and I have to prepare myself for dinner. We can get to my sisters early-"

"Am I going?"

"Yes." I told her and she laughed before crossing her arms. "Did you not think that we were both going?"

"No. I thought it was something for your sister."

"It's for family, so if you want to still be my mate after seeing all these scars, then you're family." I told her and she smiled before nodding. "So you get ready too." I leaned up and kissed her and she kept her hands on my shoulders before going into my short hair. I moved my hands up to her hips and I stayed on my knees. I kept kissing her until she sighed and pulled away and then kept her hands on my face. This was getting real, as it should. 

She was going to be by my side from here on out, and she was going to be protected. I knew Alpha Ian was setting out more guards by my sisters house. They would be protected if another attack happened, which was why I knew that we were ok to stay here for a couple more hours. Tonight I would have to pretend I was here with her... but she would be here alone.

Tonight was going to be new for all of us, but it was going to bring Rene some peace, and maybe the rest of us would get some answers.

As long as Sam was by my side it would be bearable.