She Dances with Wolves

Chapter Three

Katherine's POV

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        I usually do my jogging at night because the rest of the family is sleeping and can't fuss at me for pushing myself. Plus, I'm too busy in the morning helping with prep. I forced myself to go a little further and a little harder than the doctor said to do which caused me pain in the morning but I didn't care. I was used to the pain and it helped remind me that I'm grounded forever now. When I was on the ice I could fly and I felt free from everything. I couldn't fly ever again. So I got to the woods and I begin to jog when suddenly I thought I heard something large move behind me. I stopped and looked but there was nothing there so I kept going. A moment later there was a howl and my eyes grew wide like dinner plates. That was when I knew that I was in trouble.

        Another large mass moved in front of me in the opposite direction that I was moving so I decided to keep running. Even with the full moon and clear night sky, it was hard to see with all the branches of the pine trees blocking the light. The pain in my leg felt like that skate blade was digging into me all over again and was burned but I did my best to ignore it as adrenaline had started to pump through my veins. More shadows and more howls until I skidded to a stop on the dirt path as I saw a pair of glowing green eyes glaring at me. The black mass snarled and snapped in my direction which caused me to scream and run off the path. My leg gave out when I hit a clearing and I decided to huddle behind a tree hoping that whatever I ran into would move on by.

        That was when I heard the movement of pine needles and dry leaves on the ground and looked up to see a large, white wolf. His fur shined silver in the moonlight and his golden eyes drew me in like two shimmering whirlpools. I felt my breath get caught in my chest as my once racing heart that was beating out of fear is now beating with excitement. Something about this wolf told me that I shouldn't be afraid of him, that he'd protect me from all my fears. He walked up to me slowly and even got down on his belly to crawl towards me, showing me that he meant no harm. It just looked so cute seeing a large creature crawling as he was that he made me chuckle, earning a tail wag from him.

        The white wolf then did something sillier, rolled over onto his back and started to roll in the leaves and grass. I couldn't help but laugh and wished to go over and rub his belly. But the throb in my leg reminded me that I can't move for a while. While I was finishing my laugh, he placed his large head onto my right leg but I could tell that he wasn't putting all of his weight on me. I hesitated and pulled my hand back after one attempt, but I decided to reach out and gently petted his snout up to his cheek. His large tail thumped against the ground as I did this and I smiled at him again. My left hand let go of my throbbing leg and I started to pet and scratch him with both hands for a moment before his cold nose nuzzled my left leg and whimpered. He knew that I was hurting and I guessed wanted to know what was wrong with me.

        "I'm okay, I just overdid it running from your friends. I was afraid one of you was going to eat me but I guess with you here I'm okay." My leg throbbed once more so I started to rub it with both of my hands. This usually helped ease the pain but I wasn't sure if it would work this time or not. Needless to say, I was going to be sitting on my butt for a while. That was when another pair of hands gently brushed mine away and took over rubbing my leg. They were large and a little on the rough side but felt so good on my leg. I enjoyed it for a split second before realizing that the wolf was gone and a person was sitting in front of me.

        Right in front of me was a young man, maybe a little older than myself, with straight, black hair that came down to his shoulders and the most gorgeous hazel eyes I had ever seen. He was on the slim side but well-toned at the same time. He kind of reminded me of the Statue of David but with the face of a young Ben Barnes. My mouth started to water and my heart about beat out of my chest as I looked at this God of a man in front of me. And then my face turned completely red and hot as my eyes wandered too far done and saw things that my mother said I should only ever see after my wedding day. So I quickly shielded my eyes and tried not to peek at his gorgeous form.

        "That isn't something you see every day. Where are your clothes?" He chuckled at me, chuckled!

        "In due time, love. First, why don't you tell me your name?" Love? Did he call me love? Oh, be still my aching heart!

        "K-Katherine. My name is Katherine. And you oh naked one?" He chuckled again while continuing to rub my aching calf. His hands were like magic! Soothing away the throbbing pain and making my leg feel so much better.

        "Well, Kat, you can call me Randolph or Randy if you so desire."

        What I desire is to not feel like a total pervert and get another look at your delicious body. Put some shorts on! Not that I was going to say any of that out loud. There was more rustling and I spread my fingers open to take a look at what that could be this time.

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Randolph's POV

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        Katherine's face was so red and I could smell her excitement coming off of her. And I could see her fingers twitching every now and then to steal glances at me before covering her eyes back up. Humans, silly creatures that worry more about clothes than wolves do. Wolves don't care if we are naked in front of others, it's natural and free. But seeing her squirm and blush was all too cute and I just wanted to claim her for my own then and there. Just as I was about to move in and steal a kiss from those pouting lips, Phil had to come by and ruin the moment. Turning around, I give him a glare and he coughs into his fist.

        "Sir Randolph, all the others have returned to the hotel. I am happy to report that there were many successful pairings this year." He raised an eyebrow at my mate and I give a protective growl.

        "You can report back to my father if you wish that I was successful this year as well. Now if you excuse me, I'd like to spend some alone time with Katherine." He had found my clothes at the edge of the woods it seemed and brought them with him, placing them down not far from me before he left to go back to the mansion himself. I got up and smirked when I heard my mate squeak, glancing back to see her covering her eyes once again. Goddess, she was adorable and I wanted to get to know more about her. After getting dressed in my gym shorts and t-shirt, I went over and picked my Kat up off the ground and smirked again as she squeaked once again while wrapping her arms around my neck tightly. She was as light as a feather and her curves seemed to fit into me in all the right places. I nuzzled into her neck before I started to make my way to the hiking path back to the hotel.

        "So... I take it that... you're a werewolf then?" Katherine looked up at me with those big, blue, doe eyes of hers and I got lost for just a moment inside of them.

        "Very good, kitten. You earn a prize." I pulled her in close and gave her a kiss on the cheek that instantly turned pink. Though her lower lip poked out to form a pout for a moment and I smirked, knowing that she was hoping in some small way for a kiss on the lips. So I whispered in her ear and felt as she shivered as I did. "Get this one right and I'll give you a proper kiss. What was I looking for tonight?"

        Once again she looked up at me with those baby blues as she bit her bottom lip, tempting me to do it for her instead. "I honestly don't know."

        "Oh well, no kiss for Kat then." She nearly whimpered but seemed to have caught herself in mid-action which caused me to chuckle and plant a small kiss on her lips anyway. "We'll go inside and we can play a little game of Q&A, how does that sound, kitten?" The kiss seemed to put her into a bit of shock for a moment but she nodded her head in a yes.

        We got inside and I went to the lift at the end of the hall and Katherine started to protest about being held by me, claiming she could walk now. I rejected her claims and held her tighter to me, saying that I didn't mind carrying her as I liked her close to me. This earned me seeing her face bright red once again which I found cute. Though her smiling face was still my favorite look. I got to my room and unlocked the door with the key that looked like it was from the Victorian Era before walking inside, closing the door with my foot. Thinking she wouldn't take kindly to going straight to the bed I go down to the love sofa in the living area instead. I sit down with her in my lap and smile up at her.

        "So, ask me your first question. I'll answer the best I can and then ask you a question."

        "Okay. So what were you doing in the woods this late at night?"

        "The other werewolves that came here and I were performing the Full Moon Blessing. It's a ceremony where we hope to find our mate. What were you doing in the woods this late at night?"

        She gave off a nervous laugh before playing with her fingers. "I was jogging like I do most nights. I was all worked up after watching the Olympics earlier that I couldn't sleep. Did you find your mate?"

        "Yes I did find her and I'm having a lovely time getting to know her better as we speak." Her face turned red again as her mouth opened and closed a few times before looking down. "Now, why did watching the Olympics rile up my kitten so badly?"

        Katherine then motions down to her left leg and rubbed at the scar in her exposed calf. "I was supposed to be there this time around. Back when they were doing the competitions to see who would go for the USA I was one of the semi-finalists. But another girl cut me with her skate during warm-ups and sent me to the hospital." I could see her smile sadly as a tear ran down her rosy cheek. "The doctor said I could never skate again because the strain on my muscles would be too much. It was my dream to go and compete but now... I am stuck on the sidelines." I kissed away her tears as I held her tightly to me.

        We continued like that for a while, talking back and forth and learning about each other. I got to learn about her likes and dislikes, favorite foods, colors, and songs. Even learned a little about ice skating and judging. She learned a bit about me and the werewolf lifestyle. How we live, our hierarchy, eating habits, and how I was so sure that she was my mate. I explained how it was all in the scent, that a mate smells like themselves to others but to their mate smells sweet. To me, Katherine smelled like warm cinnamon sugar on our shared favorite cookies. Before I knew it, I was waking up to my mate in my arms as we laid on the love sofa. Her head laid on my chest as she was on top of me and our legs intertwined. She was trying to get up and take her warmth with her so I just hugged her tighter to my form, breathing in her scent. I was happy the way I was and I didn't want that happiness to go away too soon.