Chapter 23

I go downstairs in a complicated mood, too many thoughts playing in my mind and making me numb, but what I actually find takes me away from it a little as a very lively living room greets me, the first thing to reach my ears being the full out laughter of someone downstairs, followed soon by the smell of freshly baked pancakes that makes my stomach growl.

And true to the sounds that reach my ears once I manage to reach the living room I see our strange visitors been merry, but is not the peculiar person sitting on the sofa nor the fragrant breakfast that caught my attention at first, but the wolf pups running around non stop did as they stumble along with their short legs and large paws, sniffing and running like children do.

Yeah, I said right, wolf pups.

"Oh, look how cute you are! Good morning love!" The boy that was sitting at the couch while having his fingers chewed by the black wolf pup says, bringing my attention towards him only to watch with awe his angelical features, golden wavy shoulder ledge hair and emerald green eyes smiling brightly at me. "My name is Adam, I'm that grumpy werewolf Will's mate." He says with a smile, pointing at the big man that was in the group that saved me yesterday, his figure appearing over the balcony that led to the kitchen, being the one responsible for cooking the very fragrant meal, but my gaze goes straight to the man beside him, recognizing the wavy black hair and the wide shoulders and back, but once he somehow notices my gaze and turns to look at me I cannot help but blush and look away.

Damn how did I get entangled with such a gorgeous creature? Did I really kiss that piece of walking art yesterday?

Body of mine please stop heating up like a furnace every time our eyes meet thank you very much.

"So…" Adam says, bringing my attention back to him and giving me a knowing smile. "What's your name love?"

"Keep calling him love and I will get jealous." I hear Will's deep voice say from the kitchen, but Adam only sneers at his commentary.

"You will get jealous anyway no matter what I say."

The other one shrugs. "True."

Adam chuckles, and I'm entranced by the way his blond eyelashes frame his reflecting bright eyes, but I do not realize that I'm staring until a hissing sound takes me away from it only for my eyes to find an angry vampire staring Adam out.

With those red eyes shining and fangs exposed in a clear threatening attempt, surprisingly coming out of nowhere from no one other than Lucien, Will on his side reacts in a similar way towards him and growls out loud, exposing rows of sharp teeth, and suddenly the tension grows between them both, and yet, to my surprise, Adam seems rather calm with the situation, as if it had happened before, and simply says:

"Sigh, boys, would you please calm down?" However even at his words the tension is still present, fangs and claws and tensed up muscles, so in the end Adam simply sighs again and stands, making that the three pups stop running around and focus on him as he comes closer to me and, grabbing my arm, says: "We are going out for a walk, do not follow us."

He seems like a nice guy, but as gentle as he may be he does not fall back on his words even when both of them realize that they went too far and try to convince him to stay, but gives them short answers back as he drags me out of the living room.

"Yes we are going. Is not dangerous, we will just walk around. No, we won't go far. Don't burn the food. No, you cannot follow." And suddenly, after all that talk and tension, is just me, Adam, and the pups walking around in their chubby legs and bouncing their small buts and tails around.

Ok, what can I say, puppies are the cure to all illnesses, at least for the mind in my opinion, so while we walk around in silence, only taking in the fresh smell of the woods around us and the humid slightly chilly air brought by the wind.

This time around, without having a heavy mind plaguing me nor many questions filling my mind I start to really look and take the place around me in as we leisurely walk around.

And the place is actually quite peaceful and charming, with some cabins made of wood here and there, but others where seemly made afterward with bricks and stone in a mix that gave the place a small european village look, with vases outside their windows with daisies, lilies, sunflowers and roses, filling the place with color and a sweet perfume as well as a road made with a fusion of cobblestone and soil, with some trees and greenery positioned here and there with their leaves shading the path, and no cars around surprisingly.

Adam sees me looking around and explains: "Werewolves are very sensitive to smells and sounds, so cars and motorcycles are not allowed inside the city most of the time, only for deliveries or emergencies." That explains the picturesque feeling the place gives, almost as if I'm back in time.

The werewolf village is small, it is remote, but it is brimming with life and people walking here and there without a worry, enjoying the path as much as the destiny.

It is… inviting like the smile of the creature before me.

"Never been to a werewolf village before?"

"Never seen a werewolf before yesterday even." I say, making him nod as he looks up at the sky, the only grey thing preventing this place from being washed by the warm orange sunlight to its fullest.

"Yeah, I remember what I thought of them before meeting Will, how barbaric and wild they should be, living in caves, bathing in rivers, howling to the moonlight." At that he comes closer, and with a smile on his face whispers. "Well, most of that is still true, and they may be a little rough sometimes, but they mean well and they are good people."

I say nothing to that, very aware of what he is trying to do, and somewhat grateful for his attempt into comforting me, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to talk about that or any of this as of yet, and that perhaps changing the pace and pretending that everything is ok while avoiding the problem is just what I need right now, just a small breather.

So while we walked around and one of the pups got yelled at for trying to eat a poisonous plant on a small garden, trotting back with his ears down and showing small teeth, I managed to calm down enough to start enjoying the walk and the company to say:

"Adam, you are not human, are you? I mean, i-if that's ok to ask…" He seems amused by my reaction, smiling while lifting his eyebrow, but with a little chuckle he bends forward and says:

"Not at all, but what did give me away?"

"You seem very comfortable with all of this, plus is a… hunch."

"A hunch?" That seems to surprise him even more.

"Yeah, humans don't act the way you all do, too… confident I supposed. Is hard to explain."

"Oh, really? And here I thought I was showing off somehow. Ah!" At that he claps his hand, stopping, and turns to look at me.

"How about we play a game? Try and guess what I am, try it, just try it!" He says, waving his hand around, enjoying this a little too much.

But I kind of enjoyed the challenge.

And I smiled at him while I said:

"Very well, challenge accepted." I say as we shake hands, playing around as we make it official.