His Desired Mate

Chapter Three

I toss my suitcase on the carpet and throw myself down on the bed. 

“Becca, I honestly don’t know if I can do drinks tonight. I am so tired. Maybe I’ll just go to bed.”I mutter pulling the pillow over my head. 

“Uhhh absolutely not! You are not getting out of it that easy Lex. Now get your ass up and find something sexy to wear in that suitcase of yours.” She giggles as she sifts through the garments she has scattered over her bed. 

I pull my suitcase up onto my bed and cross my legs while I have a look through my clothes, none of which could be classed as sexy. I finally pull out a pair of black skinny jeans, black heels and a white t-shirt and make my way to the bathroom to shower and change. 

“Hold still, I just need to finish this eye.” Becca pouts as she pulls the mascara wand away from my face. 

“I’m trying! You almost poked me in the eye that time!” I giggle standing up to examine her work in the mirror. 

I have to admit that she is way better at all of this than me. The light make up she applied compliments my features nicely. My large green eyes are accentuated by the dark mascara and my lips are red and plump against my olive skin. I pull my hair tie out and let my chestnut brown hair fall in natural waves down my back. I have no time to deal with it right now so this will have to do. 

“Okay are we ready to go?” I ask Becca as she puts the last curl in her blonde hair. She is dressed in a blue blouse and a black skirt with her long legs on full display. I really admire her confidence. I’ve always felt a little awkward in my own skin, despite being told many times that I am beautiful, I’ve never really believed it to be true. In high school I would catch guys looking at me but they were quickly put off by my stand offish attitude. Not to mention my father had made it no secret that he did not want me to date. So it’s fair to say the guys kept their distance, leaving me pretty inexperienced in the male department. 

We make our way downstairs to the hotel bar, Andrew and Evan hot on our heels, scanning our surroundings. The hotel is definitely on the fancier side, I wouldn’t expect anything less from Becca, her father is pretty wealthy and she is used to nice things. As we turn the corner and head into the bar we spot a group of people our age sitting together. I suddenly feel the nerves hit me as we approach the group. Growing up within the pack, meant that I very rarely got to meet anyone new. When I was younger we would sometimes visit neighbouring packs like Blackstone. My mom and dad are good friends with the Luna and Alpha so we spent a lot of time there growing up. However, as soon as I turned 16 that all changed. I’ve hardly stepped foot out of Crescent Moon in three long years. What if I make a complete fool of myself? What if I don’t know what to say? I panic as I fight the urge to run off and hide back in the hotel room. 

“Don’t worry. They are going to love you! What’s not to love!?” Astra says encouragingly. 

Thankfully, Andrew and Evan take a seat at the bar. Close enough to keep an eye on me but far enough to give me some space. 

“Hey guys!! I’m Rebecca but most of my friends call me Becca and this is my friend Lexi. She will be on the course too.” Becca says smiling widely at the group and pulling up a chair for us both. 

We are met with a chorus of hellos and pleasant introductions and my nerves are instantly put at ease when I realise how friendly everyone is. There are 10 of us on the trip, 6 girls and 4 guys. From their scents I can tell that one of the girls is also a werewolf. She has short red hair, bright blue eyes and a big smile. She tells me her name is Willow as I pull my chair up next to hers and we chat about our excitement for the day ahead. 

“I can’t wait to see the Eiffel Tower. I know it’s so touristy but i’ve dreamed of seeing it since I was a little girl.” she beams at me practically bouncing up and down. 

“Yeah it’s definitely been on my bucket list too.” I admit sharing in her infectious excitement. 

“Is it too much to ask for me to meet my mate under the Eiffel Tower?” she whispers lowly, careful not to let the humans hear our conversation. 

“Hey you never know! Stranger things have happened I’m sure.” I chuckle at the cringey romantic cliche. 

During our talk I can feel a pair or eyes on me and I shuffle around a little in my seat. I hazard a look towards the man watching me intently from the other end of the table. He grins widely at me and I return the gesture with a small smile and a nod. 

This guy is very good looking I think to myself as I take in his black hair that is swooped neatly to the side. His black thin sweatshirt clings to his arms and torso, inviting my eyes to feast on his muscular form. 

“His name is Ben.” Willow says while following my gaze across the table. 

“Oh I- uhm” I stubble over my words, my cheeks growing red from being caught checking him out. 

Willow laughs out loud at my awkwardness and I feel like I want the ground to swallow me up. 

“He is a werewolf too, I’m sure you’ve scented him already. He’s a cool guy we spoke for a bit on our flight out here.” she says, reaching for her drink which the bartender has now placed on the table. 

I tear my gaze away from his and focus back on my conversation with Willow. 

The night passes quickly as we laugh and joke together sharing aspects of our life and our hopes for the coming years at college. I already feel myself opening up to the possibility of letting these people into my sheltered life. 

“Lexi who are the guys that keep looking over here?” One of the human girls questions as she watches Andrew and Evan sitting at the bar. 

Shit. I didn’t really think to come up with an excuse for their presence. 

“They are her bodyguards!” Becca blurts out suddenly, shrugging her shoulders as she sips her drink. “Lexi’s parents are super rich and they prefer her to travel with protection at all times.” 

“Wow!! That’s so cool.” the girl named Diane states in equal parts shock and enthusiasm. 

“Goddess, Becca way to make me sound like a freak show in front of the humans.” I huff at her through the mind link. 

“Well how else could you explain why they are here!?” she snaps back. 

In truth I’m glad that she came up with an answer quickly because I had no idea what to say. 

After a while, I make my excuses and get up to head up to my room. Becca is having the time of her life, being the life and soul of the party and I can tell she won’t be following me to the room anytime soon. 

*** 

“Urgggg, why did you let me drink so much?” Becca groans lifting her head off of her pillow to watch me pack my guide book into my bag. 

“I’m not your mother! Besides would you have listened if I had tried to stop you?” I question, raising an eyebrow at her and sitting down on the edge of her bed. 

“Now chop chop we have a lot to see today and I don’t want to waste a minute.” I giggle while she rolls out of the bed and heads to the bathroom to get ready. 

Down in the lobby we meet up with the rest of the group and head on foot towards the Eiffel Tower. On the way I marvel at all of the beautiful buildings that line the vibrant streets, stopping to take pictures on my phone. Despite my large bodyguards trailing behind me, I feel a sense of liberation, wandering around these unfamiliar roads with a bunch of new friends. When we arrive in front of the Eiffel Tower, I find a spot on a nearby bench and watch as the others take their pictures and joke around. I look around at the normal humans going about their daily lives and I can’t help but feel envious of their seemingly carefree existence. 

I could definitely get used to living amongst them. 

Next we walk the 40 minute journey to the Louvre museum, a place I have hoped to visit ever since my mum bought me my first set of water colours. I can scarcely contain my happiness as I wander through the halls, stopping to gaze at the wondrous creations on display. My emotions are all over the place as I take in every piece savouring the feelings that wash over me when I examine each one. I stop in front of “Liberty Leading The People” by Delacroix and my breath hitches when I take in all of its passion and grandeur. I rummage in my bag and pull out my notepad and pen and begin to take small notes.  

“You know you could just take a picture of it. To look at later. No need to take notes.” Ben says as he appears next to me to gaze at the painting. 

“What are you writing anyway?” he muses, taking a sneaky peak at the scribbles on my notepad. 

“Hey that’s personal.” I pout, pushing the notepad back into my bag. 

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.” he chuckles giving me an apologetic smile. 

We continue to stare at the painting for a while longer before I begin to move on to the next. I notice that Ben is following behind me quietly. We both don’t say anything as we walk from painting to painting in complete and comfortable silence. 

“I don’t write about what they look like or who the artist is. I write about how I’m feeling when I look at them.” I say as I turn towards him, breaking the silence. 

He nods at my admission and smiles. 

“Well I’m sorry that I disturbed you.” He grins, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. 

“No it’s fine you didn’t, it’s nice having someone to look at this stuff with. My family don’t really get it.” I shrug. 

“I know what you mean. It’s part of the reason I left my pack to go to college. I don’t really feel like I fit in there.” he admits shyly. 

I can’t help but offer him a big smile in response. 

“Oh trust me I know exactly how that feels.” 

Ben gestures towards Andrew and Evan. Who are leaning on a nearby wall, half asleep. “I take it your travel companions are pack warriors. You are not mated, so I assume that makes you an Alpha’s daughter?” he questions looking slightly amused. 

“Yep, that would be correct and my father is a tad overprotective.” I admit as we head back towards the rest of the group.  

“Goddess, no wonder you are moving off territory for college.” he laughs nervously as Andrew and Evan study our exchange from afar. 

“This weekend trip... it’s a good idea for us to get to know each other. Make some new friends.” 

“It’s been one of Becca’s better ideas I must admit.” I giggle watching Ben cross his large arms over his chest. 

“I hope we will be good friends Lexi.” Ben states, giving me a small smile before heading over to join one of the other guys from the group. 

It’s fair to say that I like Ben already. He seems easy going and relatable. Just the sort of person I can see myself being good friends with. 

*** 

The rest of the weekend passes all too fast and before we know it it’s time to head back to the airport for the long flight home. We are all on the same flight this time as we are going back to start preparing for college in a couple of days time. We share so many laughs together on the plane and my sides begin to ache from laughing so hard. In this moment I am not the girl with the secret. I am just a normal girl and I have never felt more accepted.