30

“Should we wake them up?” Sally asked Jen.

“Yeah, but first we should draw on their faces. We could put paw prints on Jacque’s face and claw marks on Fane’s,” Jen said laughing. “Get it? Paws, ya know ’cause he’s a wolf.”

Sally was looking at her like she had grown an ear on her forehead.

“Oh, never mind,” Jen said as she batted her hand at Sally.

“You are one disturbed little girl, you know that, right?” Sally asked her sarcastically.

Jen gave Sally a “go to hell” look and then said, “Just wake them up already. Fane’s dad said he needed to talk to all of us, and I’m guessing that means the prince and princess here.”

“There’s no need to wake us up, you dip. Nobody could possibly sleep with Thelma and Louise standing over them gabbing. And if you had drawn anything on our faces, I would personally make sure the entire school knew you had a third nipple,” Jacque told her crankily.

“Who has a third nipple?” Fane perked up.

“Oh, bring up the word nipple and you’re all ears, furball. And you,” Jen said, pointing her finger at Jacque, “know I don’t have a third nipple, so how can you possibly tell people that?”

“I know that, but do they? And how exactly would you disprove me? Flash the school at a pep rally?” Jacque asked, sounding victorious.

Sally laughed and Fane grinned.

“Man, she so got you pinned, sista, ha!” Sally pointed at Jen and gave Jacque a fist bump.

“Okay, fine, whatever. Both of you get your royal arses up. Fane, your dad wants to talk to everyone down in the living room,” Jen told them. Then she grabbed Sally by the arm and pulled her out the door, muttering as they went, “What the hell? You’re supposed to be on my side now that Jacque has to side with her furball all the time.”

“Hey, I side with the victor, Thelma. So next time, win and I will be in your corner,” Sally told her with a wink.

“Why do I have to be Thelma? I’m more of a Louise personality,” Jen whined.

“Seriously, do you want to argue about what movie characters we are going to be?” Sally asked her in amazement.

“I’m just saying,” Jen retorted, holding her hands up in surrender.

Jacque stood up and lifted her arms in the air, stretching. She looked down and saw that Fane was watching her intently.

“What are you looking at, oh prince of wolves?” Jacque asked him.

“I’m looking at my beautiful mate, and are the nicknames ever going to stop?” Fane asked her.

“Hmmm, well I guess I could… Nope, sorry, there are just too many possibilities, and I like to explore my creative side,” Jacque said in mock seriousness.

Fane stood up, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her hair. Jacque leaned into him, loving the way he felt against her and the way he smelled. She noticed the clock on her dresser said 6:30 p.m. and her stomach tightened. They had slept the day away, and every minute that went by brought them closer to the challenge. She closed her eyes and squeezed Fane tighter, wishing she could just whisk them away to somewhere safe with just a thought. Geez, you would think with all this werewolf stuff there would be some way to teleport or something, but nooooo, that would be too weird—not like werewolves weren’t weird or anything.

“Guess we better head downstairs,” Fane said.

She pulled away from him, put on her best smile, and nodded her head. Fane took her hand and they went downstairs. Everyone was seated already, and oddly enough, they were all in the exact spots they had been that morning. The other Greys were sitting on the floor. Fane didn’t hesitate to sit down on the couch.

“What did you need to talk with us about, Tata, Father?” Fane asked.

“Just some finalizations of the plans for tomorrow. First, I want Jacquelyn to shower over at the Henrys’ in the morning.”

Fane put his hand on Jacque’s knee before she could protest. “It’s so you won’t have my scent on you. It will provoke Lucas and his wolves much more if you smell like me,” Fane explained.

“Oh, alright then,” Jacque said out loud. Everyone looked at her. “Dang, I always do that, and then I look like a crazy person talking to myself.”

“I take it you explained why I want her to do that?” Vasile asked Fane.

“Yes, I explained she didn’t need to have my scent on her. What about clothes?” Fane asked.

“I’ve got that taken care of,” Lilly said. “I bought her brand-new things and took them to the Henrys’.”

“Oooh, did you get her a shirt that says, ‘Team Fane’ on it, ’cause that would so rock,” Jen said grinning.

All eyes turned to Jen, Sally slapped her on the arm, and Jacque just rolled her eyes. Vasile cleared his throat, which brought everyone’s attention back to him.

“Second, the challenge starts at 10:00 p.m. Fane, I want you and the rest of the pack there at 8:30 p.m. I want you to know your battlefield, so to speak. You need to look at the ground, check for soft spots, any holes, or sharp objects. Knowing your battlefield can give you an advantage over your opponent. I want you to check it in both forms, wolf and man, understand?” his father asked.

“As you say,” Fane responded.

“Lastly, Mina and Lilly, I need you to prepare for the bonding ceremony. I thought about waiting to bond them until we get to Romania, but after seeing Fane’s reactions, and especially after the challenge, I think it would be best for all involved if they are bonded as quickly as possible. The evening after the challenge, Fane and Jacquelyn will be bonded,” he announced.

Jacque had started having difficulty breathing as soon as she heard Vasile say that her mother and Alina were to prepare for the bonding ceremony. Now Jacque was coughing and trying to suck in air through her closing windpipe. Jen jumped up and began pounding on Jacque’s back hollering, “Cough it up.”

“She wasn’t eating anything, you dip weed. Quit hitting her,” Sally told Jen as she jerked her arm and pulled her back down.

Finally, Jacque was able to get enough air to speak. “Don’t I get a say in when the bonding thingy happens?”

Vasile looked at her like she had grown horns out of her head. “No.”

“NO? What do you mean no? I mean, cripes, I’m the one bonding my life to a wolf for all eternity, I’m the one getting bitten, and I’m the one being hauled off to a third-world country, so NO is not good enough!” Jacque stood up and stomped her foot.

“Ea doar stomp piciorul ei? Did she just stomp her foot?” Decebel asked.

Fane growled at him, and that caused the wolf to lower his head in submission. Then Fane turned to Jacque. “It’s not a real good idea to yell at an Alpha, Luna,” he said as gently as he could. The look on her face made it clear to everyone he should have just kept his mouth shut.

“Oh, this is fixin’ to get good,” Jen whispered to Sally, who promptly shushed her.

Before Jacque could completely blow her top, Vasile spoke, and there was a push to his words that made everyone, including Jacque, shut up and listen.

“I am Alpha. I know what is best for my pack. Fane is a ticking bomb right now, and I will not have him kill one opponent who is in competition for you only to have him face five more. If you do not want to bond with him, then I will not have him risk his life tomorrow. We will just move you and your mother somewhere out of Lucas’ reach. If you do want to bond with him, then you will do it when I tell you to. I’m not asking you to jump in bed with him.” Jacque flushed at his words. All the while Fane was growling and trying not to glare at his Alpha. “I am asking you to calm the beast that is raging in Fane. You are his other half, Jacquelyn. You and only you can complete him. Are we clear?” Vasile asked after his speech.

Jacque had tears streaming down her cheeks. Good grief. When did I become such a cry baby? The thought of Fane gone, not with her, took her breath away. She did want to bond with him. It was just a shock, that’s all. She was ashamed at her outburst, realizing it had come across that she was rejecting Fane. She turned to look at him, and he stared back at her, stark honesty written all over his face. Fane wanted her. He wanted her for however long they had together. How could anyone turn down unconditional love?

“I’m sorry,” she began. Fane surged to his feet and roared, storming out the front door. The other wolves whined and cowered, and Alina hung her head, shoulders shaking with silent sobs. Jacque was a little confused, then the lightbulb hit. Naturally, Jen was a step ahead of her.

“He thought you were saying you were sorry that you didn’t want him, genius,” Jen told her, sounding very put out.

Jacque jumped up and ran after Fane. She made it out the front door and saw he was nearly across the street, striding toward the Henrys’.

“Fane! Wait,” Jacque called as she ran after him. “I wasn’t…” Huff, huff, pant, pant., “… saying I didn’t want you,” Jacque told him breathlessly. “Please, how…” Jacque took another deep breath. “Crap. Hold on. I can’t breathe,” she told him. Once she caught her breath she continued, “How could you possibly think I don’t want you?”

Fane had his back to her, his head bent, shoulders slumped in defeat. He didn’t answer.

“Dammit, answer me!” Jacque yelled at him as she grabbed his arm and jerked it to turn him toward her. Tears filled his eyes but hadn’t spilled over yet. It hurt her to know she was the cause of those tears.

“Do you want me?” Fane asked her.

“Yes,” Jacque answered without hesitation.

Fane stepped forward, towering over her, and she took an involuntary step back.

“Then why do you have a problem bonding with me in two days?”

“It’s not that I have a problem with it, Fane, I was just taken by surprise. You were raised knowing that one day you would bond with someone in a way that is so far beyond what humans do. I was not. It’s just a lot to swallow. But I’m good. I’m okay. I had my little fit and, yes, I stomped my foot, but I’m ready to move forward,” Jacque told him.

Fane grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips. He didn’t take his eyes off her as he kissed her hand. Jacque’s breathing sped just a bit as she noticed the predatory gleam in his eyes.

“So, we are good, yes?” Fane asked her.

“Nope, babe, we are great,” she answered and stood on her tiptoes to kiss his lips. Fane growled and pulled her close. Jacque giggled and batted her hand at him.

“Stop that, wolfman. We’ve gotta go explain to the others that I wasn’t rejecting you. Your mother was having a breakdown,” Jacque told him.

Fane took her hand and pulled her quickly back toward her house. As they entered the living room, Jacque saw that Alina hadn’t moved, but Vasile was now sitting next to her with his arm around her. At the sight of Fane, Vasile stood and stepped away from Alina. Jacque rushed to Alina and knelt in front of her.

“Alina, please, I wasn’t rejecting Fane. I didn’t get to finish what I was saying before he jumped up and took off. I was apologizing for the little two-year-old fit I threw. Apparently, I didn’t get them all out of my system as a child. I want to bond with Fane. I will bond with him right now,” Jacque said, but then Alina’s head snapped up and she put her hands on either side of Jacque’s face.

“You can’t bond with him yet, child. Once you are bonded, your fates are tied to one another. If Fane is killed in the challenge, you will die as well,” Alina explained.

“Hells bells, I forgot about that. Well, I intend to mate with him.” Jacque paused when Alina tried to cover a laugh with a cough and Fane rumbled low in his chest. “What did I say?”

“Well, Sherlock, you sort of threw out there you were planning on doing the horizontal mamba with fur ball here,” Jen said pointing her thumb at Fane.

“The horiz…” Jacque started to say, sounding confused, then it hit her what she had said. She had said mate, not bond. Crap.

“I wasn’t talking… I mean I wasn’t… That is to say I…” Jacque was trying hard to correct her mistake, but she was thoroughly embarrassed at this point.

Fane walked up behind her and put his arms around her waist, pulling her against him. He leaned down to whisper in her ear. “And here I thought you were so shy,” he teased her.

Jacque pulled away quickly and put her hand on his chest as if to hold him back. “Uh-uh, buddy, you back up and keep those paws to yourself. I meant to say I will bond with you once the challenge is over. Bond as in b-o-n-d. Clear?” she asked him.

And repeating what she had said to his father, he answered with a very sly, very suggestive grin. “Crystal.” Then to seal it, he winked at her.

“Holy crap, is it hot in here, or is it just the freaking fine Romanian prince? Cuz I am so, so burning up! I mean, did anybody else see that wink and that smile? He wasn’t even doing it to me, and I’m all hot and bothered. I mean geez, man!” Jen said fanning herself.

The three wolves on the floor were trying hard not to laugh, but it just wasn’t working. Vasile didn’t even disguise his laughter, Alina was beaming, and even Lilly was laughing.

Well great. Everyone saw her man make a pass at her, and she couldn’t even enjoy it with all these buttheads laughing. The grin on Fane’s face meant he was listening to her thoughts, which made her laugh too.