Chapter 26 Chapter 26

Chapter 26 Chapter 26
I wake up with a big smile on my face. I try and fail miserably to suppress the laugh bubbling up in my throat. I jump out of bed and run to the mirror.

Last night was incredible. We didn’t do anything much. We just kissed and talked till maybe the early hours of the morning. Who knew Casper could be so sweet and patient and gentle? He’s just been getting on my nerves these past few months for no reason. I slap my cheeks to stop my blushing self but it doesn’t work. I giggle a bit and skip to the shower.

I hum a tune as I shower. Then, I dress in something casual since I’d be meeting up with Dakota later. As I brush my hair, I keep reminiscing about last night’s events. I remember how he looked as I straddled him. His lips red and swollen. How he smiled and listened to me. How excited he seemed to share stories about his childhood with me. But I remember how his face fell when we talked about our parents and I remind myself not to probe him about it.

I look at the time on my wristwatch. It’s almost eleven in the morning. They must have had breakfast already. I go down the stairs to the kitchen and open the fridge to see what I can whip up when I hear Isabella shout, her voice far away.

“Is that you Odetta?”

“Yeah.” I shout back as I scan the fridge.

“There’s already breakfast in the dining room and we’re all here.”

They are all here includes Casper. Oh my. I try to purse my lips and fake indifference but a smile breaks out followed by small giggles. I swallow and bite my lip before deciding to step into the dining room.

“Morning Ody.” Javier says and continues rambling to Isabella. I avoid Casper’s gaze when I feel his eyes on me. It’s hot here all of a sudden.

I sit beside Javier which is opposite Isabella. “Morning Javier.”

“He can’t shut up about your grandparents.”

I laugh and smile at Isabella, “They loved him too. He charmed the pants off them.”

“And they gave me so many cookies.” He turns to me. “Can we go again today? Please.”

“Not today.” His face falls. “But I promise to take you very soon.”

That seems to satisfy him and he turns to Isabella to continue the story of his adventure with my grandparents. I share a look with Isabella and we both burst out laughing. I reach to place two pieces of French toast on my plate.

“So Ody—where were you last night?”

I hesitate mid-air then snap out of my trance before clearing my throat and carefully placing the French toast on my plate. “What do you mean?”

“You know what’s funny? I heard you leave and assumed you went to grab a midnight snack but you never returned.”

“I went to check up on Javier and ended up staying there for a while.”

“Is that so?” Sebastian drawls with a knowing smirk.

I narrow my eyes at him. “Yes.”

He holds up his hands in surrender. “Just concerned. After all, it is my job to keep you safe. And that includes knowing your whereabouts.”

I spare a glance at Casper to see him reading something on his phone with a smirk on his face. He notices me looking at him and our eyes meet. He smiles at me and gets back to reading whatever he is reading.

I suppress a blush and take a bite out of my French toast. I roll my eyes when he winks at me and my eyes land on Sebastian. My eyes widen when I realize he saw the whole change between Casper and I.

He raises his brow and makes an exaggerated face that instantly tells me exactly what he’s implying. I frown at him and shake my head. What the fuck? How old is he?

We have breakfast without Sebastian bringing it up again but he reminds me that we need to get going to the cabin.

“So—” He starts during our walk.

I raise a hand to stop him. “I was with Casper last night. If you really want to know.”

“Did you break the bed?”

I slap his arm. “Ew no. We didn’t have sex you dumbass.”

“So what did you two do last night? You’re red. It wasn’t anything innocent.”

“I’m red?” I ask and press my hand to my cheek. Fuck. Does that mean everyone saw?

“So what did you two do?”

“We just—did stuff and talked. We kept everything PG thirteen.”

“I need to know the juicy bits. Give me something woman.” He groans and throws his head back.

“I don’t ask about you and Anne so don’t pry into Casper and my business.”

“If you really want to know, I don’t mind telling.”

I push him lightly as I chuckle and try to hide my blush. Sebastian and I change into our wolf forms separately and run the rest of the way to Dakota’s cabin with our clothes in our mouths.

She’s practicing some combat moves with her stick in front of her cabin when we get there. She performs some more moves as we wait before she finally stops and acknowledges our presence.

“Way to go granny.” Sebastian shouts, impressed as he high fives Dakota.

“I’ll be teaching you how to defend yourself properly soon. You’re weak in both your human and wolf form.”

“That’s harsh.” I laugh.

“It’s the truth. Now, come closer.” She says and takes a few steps back.

“Why?”

“I said come closer.”

I walk towards her and when I’m a few feet away, I bump hard into something.

“Fuck.” I mutter as I rub my forehead with the heel of my palm.

She smiles and I try to move closer and come in contact with the invisible wall again. I take a step back and reach forward with my arms but the invisible wall prevents my arms from moving further.

“What the fuck is this?” I murmur as I lightly skim my fingertips across the wall.

“It’s a force field that works with your will.”

“Your will? That’s hard.”

“It is summoned with your mind and strengthened by your will. When you’re mentally weak, the force field can be easily penetrated. That’s why I need you to strengthen yourself mentally. It can also be extremely damaging to the mind. Memory loss is one of its side effects.”

“What the fuck?”

“It will come in handy trust me. Have you been keeping up with your mental training?”

“Yes I have.” I’ve been distracted by the thought of a certain Alpha so it’s not as often as I would like.

She catches me in my lie and gives me an unimpressed look.

“Can you teach me how to do it?” Sebastian asks.

Dakota looks at him and chuckles. “It is not for you. Trust me, your destiny is different.” She continues, “Now I want you two to try as hard as you can to break it and come through.”

I purse my lips. “Are you sure? You did say this can cause mental harm.”

She laughs. “Do you underestimate me? Now give me your best shot.”

“You asked for this granny.” Sebastian shouts with a grin. He stretches and moves far back before changing into his big, white wolf and running at full speed at Dakota.

He reaches just a few feet from her before he is knocked backwards with force by the wall. He takes a few seconds to stand before he growls and Dakota chuckles. He charges straight at her and he’s thrown back again.

“Why aren’t you doing anything?” Dakota asks me.

“It’s of no use, I can’t fight at all.”

“You won’t be saying that when I teach you but for now give me your best shot.”

“Okay then.” I move my head from side to side, cracking my neck before changing into my smaller, grey wolf and charging.