116- Amber and Smoke
POV Lunara Grimwald:
I tilted my face, sniffing.
“You smell like amber and smoke,” I said, pursing my lips. “As if you’d just emerged from a dense forest after a hunt.”
Andrei stared at me, incredulous.
“Have you gone mad?” he asked, looking me up and down. “We’ve been living together for months and you’ve never said anything about my scent.”
I shrugged.
“Just noticed it now,” I confessed.
We were walking through the village center, taking advantage of a break in the snowfall to stroll and clear our heads. I spent the entire day locked in Edric’s room, fussing over that damned nest as if I were a bird about to lay an egg and brood it. I’d even begun considering asking Edric if Valmorin had some sort of medicine for the mind, because I was clearly losing mine.
“Then stop smelling me, please,” he hissed, offended.
“You’ve done that to me several times.”
“Yes, since the very beginning. I acted normal, but you...” He pointed a sharp finger at me. “You’re scaring me, acting like some lunatic sniffing everything in sight. It’s bad enough you’ve forbidden anyone from entering Edric’s messy room.”
I stiffened.
“It’s not messy.”
“Oh really? Then what are all those torn clothes and that smell of sex wafting from the door?”
A blush crept up my cheeks.
“You know, Andrei, you’ve been awfully cranky lately. Go find yourself some company and stop meddling with my nest.”
“And you, start acting like a normal person again, please,” he mocked.
I rolled my eyes and kept walking, ignoring his teasing.
Everything was almost perfect. Edric protected me, fed me, spoiled me. He spent the nights with me, holding me safely in his arms. Every now and then he’d come in carrying some new prey for me — a deer or a bird — covered in blood, with a huge, proud grin on his face.
Life beside him was light and happy. I felt joy in a way I never had before — not even when I thought I was in love with Alessio and saw him as the great love of my life.
With Edric, everything was different.
As improbable as the idea of us being predestined seemed, I couldn’t stop thinking about it sometimes — just as I couldn’t shake off the shadow of doubt that everything could crumble and he might abandon me, the way he had Thalira.
My mind kept circling, spinning with theories.
But in the end, it was the life I wanted — calm, peaceful, safe, serene. Only one thing was missing to make it truly perfect: having Elowen by my side. I wanted her to experience the peace of Eldoria, to have the chance to know a good pack, one built on respect and, above all, pride in belonging — so unlike the pack we’d been raised in.
“You and Edric have turned into two weirdos since your early heat,” Andrei said after a moment of silence.
“What do you mean ‘two weirdos’?” I asked, making air quotes.
Andrei puckered his lips.
“He’s all Alpha now — powerful, protective, nearly wiping out the forest’s wildlife to hunt for you,” he teased. “Meanwhile, you’re all neurotic over that mess you call a nest, not letting anyone near it.” He looked up at the sky as if pleading. “I can’t wait for things to go back to normal.”
A sincere laugh slipped from my lips.
“I haven’t noticed anything different.”
“Of course you haven’t,” he huffed.
I caught Anton’s scent — a soft spring breeze laced with wildflowers — even before I saw him. I frowned, confused.
“How’s your walk?” he asked, joining us and matching our pace.
“I was just telling Lunara how strange she’s been acting since her heat.”
Anton chuckled. “I also can’t wait for this heat hypnosis to end.”
“Very funny, both of you,” I muttered.
Snow blanketed the roofs of the cottages and houses in the village center, turning it into a rustic, picturesque scene. Smoke from lit hearths rose through the chimneys, curling into the air. The villagers who passed us greeted me, waving and bowing slightly, as if I were part of Eldoria’s royalty. I’d noticed the change since Edric had defended me from Thalira in front of everyone, many days ago.
I had everything I wanted in Eldoria — a mostly safe home, respect, and a good life. Only Elowen was missing, nothing more.
We passed a house with its front door open; an omega was sweeping the floor, pushing the dust outside. The smell of roasted meat drifted toward me, twisting my stomach.
I pressed a hand to my mouth and stopped walking, trying to control my rebelling stomach.
“What is it?” Andrei asked, worried.
“The smell of that meat...” I murmured, my voice muffled. “I think it’s pork. It made me sick.”
He and Anton exchanged a glance, brows furrowed in confusion. Andrei sniffed the air, flaring his nostrils.
“The smell’s so faint, Lunara. How did you even catch it?”
Still holding my hand over my lips and my breath locked in my chest, I quickened my pace, moving away from the house. I only exhaled when I was far enough that I couldn’t smell it anymore.
“It wasn’t faint at all. How could you not smell it? Burnt pig skin,” I shuddered.
“It was nothing more than a weak aroma, mixed with the wood smoke from the other houses,” Anton said.
I wrinkled my nose, still queasy.
“I think you two have a problem, boys. Must be age catching up to you,” I joked, trying to lighten the mood, though both looked tense and suspicious.
“You’re the weird one here,” Andrei shot back. His phone beeped. He reached into his pocket, pulled out the device, and read the notification. “Remember that you got a phone, Lunara? Sometimes it’s useful to actually use it. Around here, we communicate like this — not by letter,” he teased.
I rolled my eyes.
“I don’t find technology that useful. You’re always around, so it makes no sense to send a message when I can just call you in person.”
“It makes perfect sense. It’s easier and makes our lives simpler.” He waved the phone in the air. “My babysitting shift’s over — a new duty calls. Celindra and Lyris need me.”
“Did something happen?” I asked, worried.
“No, nothing serious. They just need help with a few things for the pups — the kind of things a strong male like me can handle.”
I rolled my eyes and huffed.
“Oh, then go ahead, strong male, help the little ones,” I retorted mockingly.
Anton burst out laughing.
“I’ll take over from here,” he said, waving to his friend. “Your shift’s over, mine’s begun.”
I crossed my arms in front of me.
“I don’t see anything funny about you two acting like I’m some pup that needs babysitting.”
“Sweetheart, if anything happens to you while you’re under our watch — even a scratch — Edric will tear our heads off.” Andrei snapped his fingers in front of my face. “So yes, we do see you as a pup we need to care for. Besides, you’re much younger than both of us — still just a baby wolf.”
A low hiss slipped from my throat, mingled with a growl.
“Get out of my sight, Andrei,” I scolded, though the playful glint in my eyes gave me away.
He waved and blew a kiss in the air to tease me before turning his back and heading toward the schoolhouse. Anton and I stood quietly in the middle of the village.
“What do you want to do now?” he asked.
I bit the inside of my cheeks, thoughtful.