k W

foun

my blood had

hert

d having a nap but decided against it as she would probably only end up dreaming of him and would turn up to the date hot and flustered. At least she could put a name to a face now, Hugh, she liked it and it suited him. She found herself wondering what pack he came from as a p

ey were all about dressing up and showing off their wealth. As Reivers were followers of the old religion, she-wolves aspired to nothing else but finding their mates and producing pups as they had always believed that their strength was

ever light make-up, nothing complicated, nothing fussy. He thought back to the wedding, that dark blue dress which clung in all

g him slightly light headed. Annie nodded in his direction and took a seat opposite

ught it would be better out here where

ugh followed her lead clueless as to what she meant but he followed her regardless. He tried to open the door for her but Annie got there first, pulling the door open and disappearing through it. All Hugh could do was trail

he asked her what

ch time around humans

ly when doing busin

umans the trick is

sure where she

bloody freezing."she finished, slightly annoyed. "I know we don't feel the cold but they do, you already stand out due to your size so don't do anything else that m

at the humans in th

bled. "Ok."answere

own anyone do that, especially not a she-wolf?"as

called, they want their op

out more about her but was managing to either threaten to expose or insult her and Knox was p

came out wrong, I'm just curious

cheeks. "There was nothing there for

from?"she asked, ch

a from the

y then?"enquired Annie,

care of the pack finances."he added when he saw her

thing considering you found out my name and where I live.

he had found her and he could hardly tell her the truth without looking like a s

ress."she countered watching

w, so, what do you do for a living?"replied Hugh hoping to rapidly change the

gh suspiciously. "I teach history at the university he

story?"as

history it would be all pitchfork

ean you have to hide yourself, pretend to be one of

hard to get where I am, in the human world, no one gives a damn what gender th

d between them until Hugh

t when you move

ith horror and disgust when we met and then left without a word, wha

sitive again, he was no good with this stuff, it was why he preferred numbers to people, numbers were so much easier to deal w

verything I love and cherish to live with you in Highlands, what would you have me do there exactly, wait for you to get home wi

e any other way, do you? The Goddess chooses a mate for us, her decision

keeping her temper and her voice down she asked, "What about you, would

ght of moving away from hi

r glass. She stood and picked up her coat. His scent was assaulting her and she couldn't think straight, she was a mess of anger and confusion, it was suffocating and she needed to think. Yes, she wanted happiness

then you'd leave me

his, please sit down." He tried to grab her hand but Annie stepped out of reach. She had heard about the conne

bout us."su

aw her cheeks colour and he knew she had. "Look, let you tell me about myself," he said despe

f with his old fashioned values. She sighed and sank to her seat. Hugh went to get more drinks while Annie hung her coat

nto our territory. My mate, Aisling had just taken our pups to nursery and had decided to take her wolf for a run in the glens when she ran into some rogues. I don't think these rogues realised they were on Reiver territory to be honest, so when Aisling ran into them, they attacked her. They killed her of course, she was a good fighter but she didn't stand a chan

ied. "Oh, I'm so so

well," he said, pride radiating out of his face. "Lennox is almost ready to take my position, he and his m

his eyes lit up and shone, his features softened. She unexpectedly f

megas were incredible, I couldn't have done it wit

ords, what an awful thing t

nd I suppose I panicked. I was worried about how my kids would react too, you know, them thinking I was replacing their mum, it felt like a betrayal to her memory." he smiled a sad smile, "I'm not sure Lyall even remembers her mother, she was so

something about wha

tions in turmoil. She felt sad for this man and clouded by her own past experiences she ha

know the mate bond is not bindi

ed. After hearing what Hugh had been through,

seemed uncomfortable and worrying he had un

o tell me, I shou

d us his story, we should tell ours. If he doesn't under

r, in twenty years ever said those words out loud. To do so lifted a weight she didn't know she was carrying off her shoulders. The twenty years of shame that she had b

urvive that once, never mind twice. He realised that this was a str

, "It took me a year to recover from that one and my wolf was weakened for a while, but we got through it though with the help of my family," tears pricked her eyes at the memory of the humiliation. "The second time, I was twenty, I went to the Moon Ball with my family in Cumbria, there was a wolf there who rejected me as soon as he saw me. He already had pups with his girlfriend and didn't want

, I'll get these." she said motioning him to sit down and h

l as she. It was rumoured that rejecting a mate hurt the wolf of the one doing the rejecting, not just the one who was rejected. The shame always seemed to fall on the rej

table and sat down place

live in the human

e no

lways bee

've had a few relationships, all long lasting, until it all ended in tears of

?" Hugh rais

have a child with a human and run the risk they would explode into a wolf when they turned fifteen co

t." said Hugh angry that fate had dealt her a

ppened to the wolves

pparently found her true mate. It seems once she met him, she didn't think twice about her boyfriend

come and

e by then anyway." said

ave your wolf,

uld she tell him that he almost killed he

e and my wolf has had more damage done to her than most. I had to go to a henge and pray to the Goddess to return

sked a con

n, some of them in certain places are very powerful, they have magical properties." Annie wondered if Hugh had ever read a book in his life or just did calculus or whatever he did. "There

ugh looked horrified and Knox

be fair, the other two are just as

r to choose to be with him. She was a very independent and self sufficient person. He knew from her file that she financially supported herself and apart from a small inheritance she had received once her parents died, everything she owned she had worked and paid for herself. He felt like a piece of shit for hurting her wolf but the stone circle thing a

ow so I better go."said A

his broad shoulders filled his shirt in all the right places, how his suit trousers fitted his slim waist perfectly and she liked the grace in the way he moved. He might be an accountant

an come back next weekend and I was wondering if you wou

owly, "Would you like me

he replied nodding.

reed Anni

e week to confirm, I'll book

n."said Annie rummaging th

ook her card and slipped it into his breast pocket, little did Annie know that all her numbers and email were

"said Hugh, searching his t

u've been drinkin

grab my jacket the

appeared up the stairs towards the hotel's rooms. She waited pat

ss us?"whispered Sabine

te ready for that yet."admonished Ann

. "Do I look suitabl

nswered Annie,

about his pups, telling her about his grandkids and how he hoped that o

r than Lennox's son." Annie pointed

of thinking as other packs." Hugh

his century kicking and screaming a

ey had reached A

a nice time. It was nice to t

aid his name. It was the first time she had used it w

atched her let herself into her house and only when the door was

ve claimed her

ied Hugh grinning, walking back to hi