Chapter 3
1624 Words
“Moon Goddess, Charlotte! Lower your voice!” yelled Bella, looking around, praying that Jeff is not within earshot.
If Jeff heard Charlotte, he would definitely not let Bella go to California for her final year in college and her internship.
Bella was overprotected by everyone in the pack. But Jeff in particular was like a big brother to her, an overprotective big brother.
Since Bella skipped so many years in school, she was always the youngest one among her peers and everyone was worried about her, worried someone might take advantage of your younger age.
Jeff did not let her go to homecoming nor to prom because she was hardly fourteen years old whilst all the other kids were four years older than her. She was not allowed to have a boyfriend neither since she was so much younger than her schoolmates.
Still, Jeff never smothered Bella; instead, he just looked out for her. With her parents, he did not let her attend prom, but he organized a special party to celebrate her early high school graduation. He invited kids her age and even Alpha Dean attended her party.
Jeff encouraged her to mingle and meet with pack members her age, but Bella was too mature for her age group. The girl already had over five patents in her name and had nothing in common to discuss with them.
“We are in the car, and no one is close enough to hear us. Relax and spill it out” grinned Charlotte.
“There is nothing to spill out! I did not go to San Francisco to hook up Charlotte. I went there for a job interview and to finalize my college registration.”
“I still do not get why you need to attend college there. You already did most of your software engineering curriculum online.”
“I will have to stay in Santa Clara for at least six months, better use this opportunity to live the real college experience!” explained Bella.
“If you want the real college experience, you should have taken my advice and lost your virginity.” Muttered Charlotte.
Bella laughed as she saw how frustrated her friend was. Charlotte has been Bella closest friend. They met during training sessions and grew closer over the years. It helped that Charlotte was two years older than Bella and most importantly she never treated Bella as a fragile little girl who must be shielded and protected.
With Charlotte, Bella felt as herself… she could make mistakes; actually, Charlotte was her partner in crime, encouraging her to make mistakes. Believing that she is wasting her teen years living like a boring adult.
“Do not laugh, Bella. You know I am serious about that. You need to loosen up a bit… to live like a teen, not a boring adult.”
“Here it is: The Charlotte lecture” giggled Bella.
“Ok, there is no talking to you!” growled Charlotte.
“How is Tristan? Is I treating you well or should I kick his ass?” asked Bella, trying to change the topic.
“Tristan is awesome. Still the perfect mate to me… And the s*x, Bella, the s*x gets better every time!”
“Moon Goddess Charlotte. TMI! TMI!”
“Prude!”
“Wench!”
They looked at each other and burst into laughing.
“Missed you Char. You and your foul mouth!” grinned Bella
“But let’s talk about something else than s*x for now.” Winked Bella.
“Sure. How about we talk about the peace treaty ceremony this afternoon.” Asked Charlotte.
“Now I am not sure whether talking about your s*x life is better than talking about those rogues.” Growled Bella.
“Come on Bella. This is a historical event for us. This war has been going for over a quarter of a century.”
“I just cannot understand how we can forgive and forget that easily.”
“If Alpha Dean and Luna Taylor can do it, why can’t we. Knowing that the Alpha Rogue who was leading the negotiations is the brother of the lunatic criminal who kidnaped and tortured Luna Taylor.”
“What? You want me to believe that Alpha Dean shook hands with the family of this psychopath?”
“Yes! And the family of this psychopath shook hands with Alpha Dean who killed their brother. Well technically it was Emma who gave the deathly bite, but you know what I mean.”
Bella could not believe how both sides managed to overcome such fundamental obstacles and to reach an agreement that will change the lives of so many… especially if as Charlotte said, rogues are now welcome to join any pack.
“And did you meet the rogues who joined our pack?” asked Belal, curious to know who those newcomers were and whether they really fit in their pack life.
“Not all of that. I met the two stepsisters of the Alpha Rogue as they were the first to join our pack. They look up to Luna Taylor so much and are blending quite well in our pack.”
“Of course, they would look up to our Luna. She is the best.” Beamed Bella who loved Taylor and is proud to call her a friend.
“Their stepbrother is going to join the Black Moon pack, where his Alpha Rogue’s mother is from. But I heard rumors that Alpha Rogue Ash refuses to join any pack. He wants to remain a rogue.”
“Seriously? He leads the negotiations and convinces all packs to welcome his rogue friends and family with open arms… yet he does not to leverage this deal to his advantage? Not too smart!” mocked Bella.
“Well, from what I heard, the guy is sharp and smart. He led the negotiations with a friend of his, Carmen Verges, a leading lawyer in the city. She is a rogue herself although she lived among humans most of her life.”
“Alpha Dean and Alpha Liam supported him in the negotiations, but he did most of the work and managed to convince all the Alphas of Idaho. Brain, muscles and looks… damn this Alpha can convince me to do anything.” Added charlotte, earning a nauseated sound from Bella.
“For Goddess sack, you have a mate Char!”
“So what? I can appreciate beauty when I see it! You will agree with me when you see him at the ceremony. All the girls are swooning over him. Swooning hard!”
“I do not think I will attend. I am not happy with this treaty to be honest Char. Those rogues made our lives a living hell. We lived in fear all our childhood.”
“Most of the rogues are our age so they are not responsible of what they parents did. But anyway, you will attend the ceremony. No discussions possible here!”
“And why is that?”
“Because all the packs are sending their representatives to attend the ceremony. Who knows, maybe your mate will be at the ceremony tonight.”
Bella did not think about this possibility. This was indeed a rare occasion to meet up with the other packs and since she turned eighteen years old a couple of months ago, she can recognize her mate if he is in attendance.
“Although I hope your mate turns out to be one of the rogues… you need a bad boy in your life Bella!”
“What the hell Char! Why are you wishing such a horrible thing for me!”
“You need a bad boy to even out your goody two-shoes side.”
“I will reject my mate immediately if he is one of the rogues!”
“Bella Brooke Bailey! Do not ever say that again. What the Moon Goddess bring together is blessed and should not be broken by werewolves!” criticized Charlotte.
“You know my plans Char! I do not want a mate for now. And when I find my mate, I want to live with him in the River Moon pack. I want to live a peaceful and fulfilling live. Not a life full of worries and problems. Rogues will only bring problems!”
“Yes, I know your plans. To live a boring life! Bella, you are 18 years old, and you will graduate from college next year! You started working at sixteen years old and already have a career path levered for you! take some risks! Live a bit! You have all the time in the world to be a responsible adult! Be an irresponsible teenager for once!”
Bella rolled her eyes at her friend’s lecture. Charlotte was never a fan of Bella’s plans. She always lashed at her for being too risk-averse and too conscientious.
“Bella I am telling you. If you do not find your mate tonight, you must hook up with one of the sexy rogues! Have fun a little!”
“Let’s focus on the road and get to the caterer for now.” Stated Bella, changing the subject… once again!
“Mate or not mate, I will make sure you get laid tonight Bella! Mark my words” warned Charlotte laughing at her friend’s red face.
Yep, Bella knew that her friend would stop at nothing tonight and she was already embarrassed imagining the awkward and uncomfortable situations her friend will undoubtful put her through!
“Maybe I should pray that I find my mate tonight, or else, I am up to a night of humiliation!” grumbled Bella.
- Writer
