Aris - (Storm's POV)

Hopeless, that's what I am.

I know I have no right to be upset or hurt, but I can't help myself.

I'm hopelessly in love with Makai Stone, and keeping it from him is the most difficult thing I've ever had to do.

For someone who craves human contact, it's a punishment not to be able to touch the one person with whom I want to connect the most. I had to fight myself to accept that I couldn't touch him right now, hoping that one day he'd let me.

Of course, I'd like to do more than just touch him, but small steps. Let's start from there.

I get excited just looking at him, with his wild hair and piercing gaze from brown eyes that turned golden when he was happy. Kai was so sexy, and he would be shocked if he knew the kind of delicious dreams I had of us.

When he locks his golden gaze on me, my mind becomes jumbled and I feel hot all over. Today all I wanted to do was jump on him and kiss those sensual lips of his senseless.

I never show him any of the naughty feelings I have when I'm with him because I know it would scare him away, and I don't want to lose his friendship over my unrequited attraction.

There are times when I could feel him staring at me, such as when we were watching the movie today, that I feel a glimmer of hope in my heart that maybe he is attracted to me at least a little and sees me the same way I see him.

But before the glimmer can grow he'd always say something that would instantly kill any hope that had taken root. I mean, the man was happy that I was going to meet my mate. He can't express his disinterest any clearer.

"Why wouldn't I be?" he had asked.

He hadn't even seemed disappointed or concerned that my mating might alter our friendship in some way.

It was frustrating sometimes, but there was nothing I could do about it. It wasn't his fault that I was hopelessly in love with him.

I don't even know for sure if Kai is gay. I had tried to bring up the topic a few times, but he always cut such discussions short. I wasn't certain if he was just a prude or if he didn't want to have the conversation with me.

But then, who else would he have such a conversation with? I was his only friend, as far as I know. He interacts with the pack better now than before, but he only speaks to people when he has to, and generally avoids people before they can avoid him.

I despise the pack for making him feel that way. He was such an important member of the pack but nobody seems to realize it, not even my dad, and I don't understand why. After all, Makai was the reason our pack hasn't been attacked or challenged in five years.

Not only has his famous fights in the Pit given the Hakhan Pack a terrifying reputation as a strong, unbeatable pack, but he was also the one who taught our elite warriors how to better master their wolves for battle. Those warriors were the only ones who were decent to him.

Makai was smarter and more talented than anyone gives him credit for, and it would even come as a shock to the Pack to learn that he was wealthier than all of them.

Each of his paintings fetched hundreds of thousands of dollars, and he has been painting professionally for years. However, Kai was such a simple man, as was his mother, that it didn't appear on the outside that he had so much money. When his first collection sold, he had looked at me, somewhat horrified, and asked me what he was going to do with all that money.

I doubt he even knows how much money he has at the moment. I manage his finances and only send him a meagre monthly stipend for his and his mother's upkeep like he had told me to do.

Dera had been so proud of him but had equally been wary of having that much money. They had both been relieved when I had offered to help manage her son's finances.

The ungrateful pack had no idea that the majority of the anonymous donations used to improve the Hakhan Pack's living conditions came from the "beast" they all shunned. When we were arguing earlier, I didn't bring up the donations because Makai didn't like being reminded that he had money.

Silly man, I think fondly, my earlier irritation with him forgotten.

The pack only acknowledged him in a positive light when he was fighting for them in the Pit. Over the years, it appears that his display of strength had impacted more than just the rival packs. The people he was fighting for were terrified of him as well.

It hurt me to see people treat him like a wild beast who could erupt at any time. The few times he goes out, people give him a wide berth, and mothers pull their children away while glancing fearfully at him.

It's not because he has a bad appearance either. My Kai is a snack. It is simply because they can't separate who he is when he fights from who he is outside the Pit. Makai is ferocious in the Pit.

He didn't seem bothered by their bad treatment, which was fine. I'm annoyed enough for both of us.

If I'm being honest, they had been treating him like that even before he started fighting in the Pit. The Pit just made everything much worse.

As he grew older, he had grown accustomed to being treated as an outcast and had come to accept it as normal. He even seemed to think that he deserves it, and that infuriates me endlessly. That was the only thing I don't like about Kai. I disliked the way he looked down on himself.

I'm conflicted about meeting my mate. When Kai turned twenty-one, I had been scared that he would meet his mate and forget about me. I had been jealous of a faceless person and had wondered what kind of partner he would get and whether he or she would accept our friendship. I had spent weeks before and after his birthday making myself sick with worry.

When his mate hadn't materialized after years, I prayed to the Moon Goddess to give me Makai as my mate. When that didn't happen either, I pushed it to the back of my mind and allowed myself to fall for Makai.

Life would be so simple if Kai was my mate. We would have been bonded and living happily now. Sadly, he's not. I know that it is risky. Werewolves can find their mate at any time, and being in love with someone else when you've found your mate can be tough.

I genuinely love the idea of having a mate, your other half, and someone who will love you completely, flaws and all, and be yours alone. Someone with whom you could build a life. I love the concept, but I want that someone to be Makai.

I can't imagine loving or spending my life with anyone else but my sweet, wild man. However, I can't ignore my mate any longer. I've put off the inevitable for too long.

I also need to give myself the opportunity to be loved back rather than harboring unrequited love for someone who will most likely only see me as an annoying younger brother.

My mate is likely somewhere waiting for me to find them, and I owe it to both of us to do so.

Taking a deep breath, I teleport myself outside the door to my father's office, knocking gently.

"Come in," he called, and I enter nervously.

When I walk in, there are four people in the room. My mother sat next to her hulking husband, her straight blond hair brushing against her shoulders. Quinn, my eldest brother, is sitting across from my parents, almost a carbon copy of my Dad with the same tall and broad frame, dark brown curls, and dark eyes. He sends me a warm smile before returning to the call he was on before I arrived.

I look at my mother, who smiles back, her blue eyes scanning me for any signs of discomfort as they always do.

"I'm fine, Mom," I assure her, and she visibly relaxes.

"What took you so long?" My father inquires sternly, and I smile apologetically.

"I'm sorry for the delay; I needed to prepare myself."

They all smile sympathetically at me.

"I know how much you've been looking forward to this moment. It's taken a long time, but thank Goddess Aris is here to help."

The woman who had been standing at the window when I arrived turned at her name, and I can't help but look surprised.

She smiles broadly as if reading my mind, then glides over to the last available seat to sit. She is the smallest person in the room, but you could feel the power radiating from her, and when she opened her mouth to speak, the only word that came to mind was "majestic."

"Hello, Storm. I've been looking forward to meeting you for a long time."

I nod dumbly, still perplexed by the majestic woman sitting there smiling at me.

She notices the confusion in my eyes and laughs. Even her laughter sounded like music.

I spare a quick glance at my family, and they're as entranced as I am.

"I'm sorry," I apologize, but I'm not sure what I am apologizing for.

She waves her hand gracefully. "It's fine; I get that a lot. I'm not what you expected, am I?"

I shake my head and smile wryly at her. "Well, I was expecting more..."

"Older woman?" She fills in when I don't continue, fearing she'll find it offensive.

I nodded. "Well, yes. I was told you were the oldest werewolf, but you don't appear to be that much older than me," I say, certain there had been a mistake somewhere.

"I would have asked you if you came in place of Aris, but Dad called you by your name. Why do you look so young if you're so old?" I ask curiously, thoroughly fascinated.

"Storm!" Mom scolds, and Dad groans in embarrassment, but Aris gives a delighted laugh.

However, it was a valid question. Aris was stunning. She appeared to be about 5ft tall, with dark skin that seemed to glow and lovely dark eyes that changed colors depending on her emotions. Her eyes had been dark brown before, but when she laughed, they turned bright green.

"To answer your question, I haven't physically aged since the Moon Goddess made me a priestess to keep and uphold the Laws centuries ago."

I notice my parents' shocked expressions, as well as Quinn's, who had finished his call and was now listening to Aris.

Obviously, they also hadn't known that Aris was that old.

"Those who have seen me in the past have assumed that I use magic to make myself look younger."

She casts a glance at my parents and brother, who are both red with embarrassment and avoid her gaze.

My eyes widen as I examined each of them in turn. "Did you think that too?"

Aris grinned. "They aren't the only ones who believe that. Even the current Were Council doesn't know much about me. Over the years, many have come and gone, but I have remained. I do not often make an appearance so few wolves have laid eyes on me. Some of those that have assumed that and it turned into a rumor that most people believe."

That explains why my question embarrassed my parents.

"How come people aren't aware of the truth?"

"Because, my Dear, people prefer to assume rather than ask, and I prefer to let them assume if they refuse to ask."

"Are you a priestess too? I only knew that you are the Supreme Keeper of the Were Laws and the Seer. To be honest, I have no idea what that even means."

She lets out another delighted laugh and waves away my father's apology of "I apologize, your grace. He's just an inquisitive young man."

"Let me tell you a secret, Storm. There are fewer than ten people in the world who understand what my titles mean."

"Titles? Have you got more than one?"

"Well, yes," she responds to Quinn, who appears to have caught my curiosity bug.

"They all mean the same thing and are the same job I've been doing for centuries, but people have assumed they were for different people over time. Some refer to me as the Seer, while others refer to me as the Keeper of the Were Laws or the Supreme Protector. There are other titles, but we'll get to them and what I do later. The title honestly doesn't matter. The most important thing is to refer to me as Aris."