Chapter 2 The return to the night sky 2
Out in the forest, Serena kicked off her shoes. She laughed as she dropped her companion‘s hand, running faster through the trees. She could hear his footsteps behind her. “Are you trying to get away?” he called after her. Serena looked behind her for a moment, sticking her tongue out at her pursuer. “isn‘t the chase half the fun?” she asked. She giggled again, running faster. The man behind her was strong. She‘d felt his muscles while they were dancing. He would catch her long before he ran out of breath! Dodging to the left, Serena slipped between two trees. The man behind her easily changed his direction to chase her. Serena laughed, the sound carrying through the dark forest and tempting her pursuer. When he did catch her, he collided with her full force. Serena grunted, being knocked completely off her feet. She playfully struggled as the man grasped her wrists and pinned her to the ground. He growled at her. Serena licked her lips, arching her back so her body pressed against his. Ke smirked at her.
“I caught you,” he said. “Do I get my reward?” Serena licked her lips again. “What do you think you deserve?” she asked, cocking her head to the side slightly. Her mask was skewed slightly but still secured on her face. The man pinning her down was breathing heavily, his hot breath on her face.
“What are you willing to give me?” he asked. Serena struggled against his grip. He released her, sitting back on his knees, eyes looking around the forest. “Everything okay?” Serena asked, sitting up. “I haven‘t been to this part of the forest in years,” he told her, rising to his feet and looking around at the treetops. Serena groaned, frustration settling into her stomach. “Come on.” He held his hand out to her. Serena took it and he pulled her into a standing position. Her companion led her deeper into the woods, but it wasn‘t long before they came across a treehouse sitting high in the branches.
“Wow,” he muttered. “I used to play here all the time as a kid. I didn‘t know this thing was still standing.” He pulled his hand away from Serena‘s and headed to the tree where there were planks nailed in as a
ladder to the treehouse. “You don‘t expect me to follow you up there, do you?” Serena asked when he started to climb. He laughed.
“That is what I want for my reward,” he told her. Serena sighed, crossing her arms as he climbed higher. “Don‘t go back on your word now!” Rolling her eyes, Serena went to the tree and started to climb.
She made it to the treehouse, nervous that the floor wasn‘t stable, but the man who she‘d followed was walking around easily enough. “This place seems pretty sturdy, being left alone here for years,” she commented.
“I‘m sure some of the kids still play here,” he said. Serena stood up. The treehouse was small, but there was a window. She looked out, staring down at the ground. “Oh,” she muttered. “It is…high.” She backed away quickly. Her companion laughed again, catching her in his arms as she stepped back. Her back pressed against his chest, and his hands slid down the bodice of her dress. “Haven‘t you ever heard the expression ‘don‘t look down?‘” he teased her, his nose brushing her black hair aside, lips pressing against her neck. Serena sighed, tilting her neck to give him better access. He kissed her neck, then her shoulder, his hands moving to the back of her dress. As an authentic gown, it was laced up, but his fingers hardly hesitated as he began to unlace the bindings. “Uh…um,” Serena went rigid in his grasp. “Do you have any objections?” he asked, his fingers caressing her back as he opened the unlaced bodice. “No,” she admitted breathily. Her stomach twisted; her skin heated so much that his fingers felt cold. He pulled her sleeves off her arms. The alcohol still strong in her system, night air sending a shiver down her spine. The dress fell from her hips and she was completely naked, except for her mask. Turning to face him, Serena wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling herself up on tip toes to kiss him, her breast pressing against his silk shirt. With a pleased grunt, the man slipped his hands around her hips, caressing her backside. She moaned, dropping her hands to his shirt, pulling at the buttons furiously. His lips moved against hers deeply, and Serena closed her eyes, pushing his shirt violently off his shoulders. Grunting again, the man squeezed her backside again. Serena unbuttoned
his pants next, pushing them down his hips. The man lifted her up, forcing her to wrap her legs around his waist. He pushed her back up against the wall of the tree house, lips moving to her neck and throat.
Serena moaned, feeling her companion‘s hard arousal seeking entrance. Succumbing to fatigue in the aftermath of their pleasure, Serena and the mysterious man collapsed on the floor of the treehouse, falling into slumber.
Sunlight struck Serena‘s face, waking her. She groaned, throwing and arm over her eyes and accidentally striking a warm body beside her. Forgetting her headache and her sensitivity to light, Serena sat up quickly. She was still naked, and so was the man beside her. His blond wavy hair covered his face, and Serena quickly grabbed her dress and mask. Her hair was a mess, but she didn‘t have time to worry about that! Without even checking his face to see who he was, she descended the treehouse. “I can‘t believe I did that,” she muttered to herself as she walked back through the woods. She shook her head, mortified that she had gone so wild! “There she is, the woman of the house.” Santino teased her when she went back to the building the party had been held at. “Shut up!” she snapped. Santino stopped smiling at her. “Rough night?” he asked. “It is a little fuzzy,” she admitted. Santino shifted into the caring twin Serena had always known. “Well, I‘ve got some news that will cheer you us,” he said, pulling an envelope out from behind his back.
“Since when does our mail get sent here?” she asked, seeing her name on the envelop. Santino shrugged. “I guess dad had it driven here personally,” he said. “And you should see why.” Serena sighed, taking the envelope and ripping it open. Quickly, she scanned the contents of the letter, mouth dropping open as she did. “I got in!” she cried “What?” Santino asked. “That is amazing! I knew you‘d get into medical school!” he hugged her fiercely, picking her up and swinging her around. Serena laughed, hugging her twin back. “This is everything I wanted!” she said. Medical school would mean leaving her home again for at least five years, maybe longer. She’d be living in the human world, far from her pack and family. . She felt like she‘d just gotten back after graduating college, and now she was going to be leaving again. Serena sighed, eyes on the road as her memories of the past faded
away. It had been a long time since she had been around her pack and family, and now she was on her way back. She hadn‘t set foot on Night Sky territory since that fateful night.
Glancing in her rearview mirror, Serena smiled at the two passengers secured in their booster seats. The girl smiled back, kicking her feet back and forth. The boy met her eyes, but then looked at his sister instead.
A fateful night it was, Serena thought to herself, bringing her eyes back to the road. “We there yet?” her daughter, Olivia, asked. “Almost, sweetie,” Serena said back. Her daughter clapped her hands while her son, Oliver, smiled shyly. She caught it in the mirror when she glanced back at them again. “I’m thirsty,” Oliver said. “Can you wait another ten minutes?” Serena asked. Oliver shrugged.
“I‘m thirsty too, mommy!” Olivia chimed in. “I want a drink now!” Serena shook her head, smiling to herself. “We‘re almost there, then we can have a drink,” she assured. Serena had always.loved having a twin brother growing up. She hadn‘t considered that being a twin was in any way genetic, but now she had a pair of twins sitting in her car.
After discovering she was pregnant with them, Serena had had one of the hardest decisions a woman ever has to make when she isn‘t expecting to be pregnant. Seeing their chubby, round faces in the rearview mirror, watching them grow into two entirely different people, she knew every day that the decision she had made had been the right one.
They pulled up in front of the main Night Sky pack building. Serena could feel it in her bones. Her life was starting anew, and the lives of her children were about to begin. They‘d never been part of a pack before, and it was a connection she wanted them to have.