Chapter 8

Her almond-colored tanned skin shimmered and her striking green eyes seemed to glow brighter than usual. Another change thanks to the rogue's bite. A change that she actually liked for she had always wanted her skin to look tanned and not pasty white like she thought it did.

She tied her Roman sandals and smoothed her dress down, readying herself to leave the cabin and face the pack's watchful eyes, alone. She had neither Jax nor her mother by her side and the hall was quite a walk from her cabin.

Amelia took a deep breath to steady herself and applied her lipgloss. She checked her long dark hair as it hung halfway down her back, everything had to be perfect. This was her first impression on the pack and she wanted it to be a good one. "You can do this!" she said to herself, but she knew that it would take all the strength she had to walk past the strangers without looking afraid or uncomfortable. She hated being the 'new girl'.

She mustered up the courage and bravely opened the door of the cabin. She promised herself that she would hold her head up high no matter what anyone said about her as she passed by. She would keep calm and exude a sense of bravado as she passed each pack member. Showing them that she wasn't afraid of any of them and that she now felt that she belonged.

She turned to close the cabin door behind her when a familiar voice greeted her. A voice that she would recognize anywhere…Jax. His smell overtook her senses, yet again.

"Hi, Amelia," Jax felt short of breath. She looked even more beautiful than before and he didn't think that it was even possible but there she was, standing like an angel in front of him. "You look absolutely beautiful," he said and almost kicked himself as the words left his mouth. He needed to cage his feelings for her. It wasn't right to feel this way. He could not be falling for her. The mere thought of it was absurd to him. "Would you mind if I escort you to the celebration? I thought that you might not want to walk alone. Being the new girl can be rather scary."

Amelia smiled at Jax and his heart melted. "I would love that," she answered and he saw relief wash over her face, "you've come as if you were heaven-sent. I've been dreading the walk alone."

She knew that she would never have made it alone to the hall without feeling like an outcast, but she now no longer needed to worry about it. Jax had, yet again, come to save her. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately. Something she liked, but knew that it was silly to count on him always being there to save her as she was the new Omega and he the Second. She needed to know her place in the pack. She was still a pup and he was a high-ranked member. Two opposite members who would never usually have so many private encounters together.

They initially walked in silence. Neither knew what to say. Clearing his throat, Jax broke the silence. "How are you enjoying your first day here? I'm sure that it's a lot to take in and that you're still trying to process everything. Life in a compound is very different to life in the human world." He was too afraid to look at her as he spoke because he knew that he wouldn't have been able to keep his eyes off of her if he did. So he kept his eyes focused on the floor in front of him instead.

"Yes, it has been extremely overwhelming seeing how different life is here. But knowing that my mother is also here does make it a bit easier." Amelia started to relax in Jax's company. He had a way of calming her. He made her feel like everything was going to be okay. It felt as if he knew exactly when she needed him. As if they were somehow linked.

Amelia fiddled with her hands as they walked. Something she'd always done when she was nervous. That and fiddle with her hair. She had no idea why being around Jax made her so nervous. It might have been the fact that he was so darn good-looking, or maybe the fact that he was so highly ranked in the pack. Either way, she felt special when he looked at her. His kind chocolate brown eyes burrowed deep into her heart and she couldn't help but like him. His scent of cinnamon warmed her soul and felt like a hug from within.

She shouldn't be feeling these feelings. It was wrong and she knew it. She needed to stop but she didn't know how. Thoughts of him had invaded her mind and she didn't know how to get rid of them.

Jax felt proud as he escorted Amelia to the hall. He had no idea why, it wasn't as if she was his mate or anything of the sort. He just couldn't shake how protective he felt over her. It must have been because he was the one who saved her from the rogue wolf. He was sure that that was the reason. What else could it have been?

"The compound looks lovely at night," commented Amelia as they walked side by side towards the hall, "all of the fairy lights in the trees make this place feel quite magical. I almost forgot that it was a compound that I'm walking through."

Amelia's face beamed as she walked past the trees and lamp posts decorated with fairy lights, and Jax couldn't help but stare at her. Her beauty once again took him by surprise. The kind of beauty that radiated innocence and purity.

Amelia caught Jax staring at her and smiled back. A smile as bright as sunlight. A smile that made her nose crinkle. She was perfect and there was nothing about her he would ever want to change.

He'd only known her for a day and he already felt so connected to her. It frightened him and made him feel like a little pup all at the same time.

All that he wanted to do was take her hand as they walked, but he knew that that would be a bad decision. He needed to keep his cool and his distance. He needed to first feel the waters and see if she'd turn. The last thing he needed was to fall in love with a human. Human and wolf pairings were forbidden and you were shunned from the pack should you break the rules.

Oh, how he wished that she would turn and be his. He shook his head, tried to get rid of the thoughts of her, and carried on walking towards the hall.

"Your mother has worked tirelessly to make tonight a special one. She is gifted with party organizing. She is a very important part of our community and I'm sure that you will be too."

Their walk wasn't a rushed one. They took their time to get to the hall, both wanted their conversations to carry on for a bit longer.

When they eventually reached the hall Jax said, "here you go, delivered all safe and sound."

Amelia put her hand to her mouth and giggled at how formal Jax was being. She loved seeing this side of him. He was a lot of fun to hang around with and she enjoyed every second. If only he wasn't a Second. Things would have been so different.

"Why, thank you, kind Sir," said Amelia as she played along with him and bowed.

Jax's eye went as big as saucers and Amelia had no idea what she'd done wrong. "You only ever bow to our Alpha," warned Jax in as friendly a way as he could, "bowing to anyone else would show great disrespect to him."

Amelia stood grounded on the spot.