Chapter 11

Chris POV

While it was great fun to tease her, of course I slept on Ava's sofa. There was little a man could do that was more abhorrent than coercing a woman, or a man, into their bed.

The thought made me smile a little. It was actually Ava's bed.

There was nothing wrong with good memories of consensual pleasure, though, so as I lay there on her comfortable sofa and smelled her apple-crisp perfume, I remembered our night together in detail.

Perhaps most strongly of all I remembered her half-disguised surprise when I spent time getting her ready instead of just diving right in. She was so responsive, so warm and welcoming, I couldn't help but linger over her breasts, her stomach, and her thighs.

I pressed dozens of kisses to her lips and still wanted more. I told her she was beautiful, strong, and generous. I told her so many things I had been wanting to tell her for years, since a lonely little boy lay in his bed and wished he could earn smiles and hugs from a woman who seemed only half-real to me at times.

It was difficult to explain to myself, let alone to her, that my feelings as a child had been deeply loving, but not lascivious. I didn't spend my teen years imagining her naked-well, not always naked, and certainly before then I hadn't thought of more than just wanting her to be with me. I didn't even want her all to myself, like a child does. I felt no jealousy, even of Ethan, just envy that others got to spend more time with her than I did.

It had been so difficult last night not to tell her my life story as we lay together in the aftermath, wrapped around each other and sliding into a deep, delicious sleep. I wanted her to know everything about me, and I wanted to know everything about her.

And, damn it, I reveled in how she had looked at me as a man. A young man, certainly, but a man nonetheless.

I slept after that, surprisingly well, considering the challenges I was facing with getting a new Alpha for the Pack and wondering how I would ever convince Ava to come with me back to the sanity of the Human World.

I woke up as the morning was hitting its stride and folded up my blankets before padding into the kitchen. I wore sweat pants and a T-shirt that I supposed were Ethan's, but they smelled only of eco-friendly detergent, so I didn't mind.

I opened the fridge to the familiar sight of berries and veggies. I found fresh brown eggs in a reusable carton, and admitted to myself it was nice to see less one-use plastic in the kitchen. Ava had been right that the Human World polluted the Earth, and I had donated more than a few dollars to recycling and clean water efforts. But Humans weren't able to enjoy the slow pace of werewolf society, and they had their needs, as selfish as they could be at times.

I shook off the thought and took four eggs to the (thankfully) gas range she kept in (bewildering) addition to the wood-burning stove. I found locally produced feta, mushrooms, and a peppermill, and then got to work making up a decent breakfast. I had toast going and fresh-squeezed orange juice in glasses when she walked out of her bedroom.

"Morning," she said, looking confused but adorable in old-lady flannel pajamas with long sleeves. "You're making breakfast?"

"Yes, if that's OK?" I asked.

"Yes, of course." She looked at me. "I noticed it last night, I mean, how helpful you are."

"Helpful?" I turned the gas off and plated up the eggs while she went over to the toaster. Soon, we had buttered toast on a plate and walked together back to the table.

She shrugged, then tucked into the eggs. "This is great."

"Thank you." I let a beat go by. "Helpful?"

She shrugged again. "It's just odd, you being so self-reliant. You and Olivia were raised not to lift a finger."

I ruthlessly stomped on the resentment her words caused and smiled. "I'm not much like my sister."

"There's an understatement and a half, but I was actually thinking of Ethan. I mean, he could cook when he wanted to, but he just never wanted to. Even when I was tired or not feeling well, he always made it seem like such a huge favor to me when he'd make his own dinner or do his own damn laundry."

"Not much for chores?" I asked, keeping it light even as her words warmed me inside. It might have been a very short time since the self-centered jerk had broken their bond, but there was no trace of grief in her tone.

"Well, he certainly never made us breakfast." Her eyes went serious then. "But please understand, our union was based on serving the Pack above everything else." Then she frowned at the last of her eggs. "Or, well, I had thought it was."

"Ava," I said as softly as I could without whispering.

She looked at me.

"Ethan should have cherished you, worshipped you, blessed Luna every day for being with you. The fact that he didn't makes him a fool."

She looked touched, then uncomfortable.

"So," I said. "When am I supposed to be feeling this magical effect from our dinner?"

She smiled somewhat mysteriously. "Finish breakfast first."

It took only a few more minutes before we were done. Then we finished filled the dishwasher and turned it on before we walked into the front room together.

"Drop your fangs," she told me, which I did as I had done many times before. To my surprise, and quite unlike during the Challenge, my canines lengthened with a mere thought.

She nodded, and I repeated it with the claws on my hands. The transformation was decidedly easier.

"Think about how badly you were wounded yesterday," she said next, making me realize how little the gashes and bites from the Challenge now bothered me. Indeed, I had hardly thought about my injuries. When I checked the bandage on my arm, I saw no blood had seeped through.

"Everything in Wolf Territory enhances our health," she said.

"It seems like you're right," I said, still trying to wrap my brain around it. Then I shook my head. "But even if that's true, think about the freedom you have to give up, the 'traditions' that are actually laws that forbid a female Alpha."

I looked at her with some urgency then. "I remember you before, complaining about many unreasonable aspects of being Pack. You didn't even want to be Acting Luna at first. Can you tell me now you really accept a place where an adulterous man is favored over a victimized woman? Can you tell me you approve of omega slavery?"

"No, I don't approve of slavery," she said, making me hopeful. "But I meant what I said. I'll never leave Moonstone Pack."

I threw up my hands. "Why ever not?"

She turned decidedly serious then. "The last Alpha, your father, told me when I was a child that the oldest Elder of our Pack left a prophesy that you and I must remain in Moonstone Pack, that our future depends on it."

I looked at her in disbelief, then stifled a snort. "The 'stay-here' prophecy?" I asked. "Goddess. I almost forgot about that."