Try Me

Chapter 4

It snowed last night, winter now upon us. The dragons were cold blooded and clearly weren't a fan of the cold. They were doing their best to stay inside and stay warm. Except Jacey, who braved the cold to come to the guest house. I had been lounging in the room with the window open, enjoying the cold temperatures when there was a knock on the door. I opened it and saw Jacey on the other side wearing a leather jacket and a red scarf. "Why in the hell do you have the window open woman," he asked when he saw it. "I'm an Alaskan wolf," I told him. "I enjoy the cold." To be nice, I went and shut the window. "So what brings you by to see me?"

"I wanted to spend time with you before our shifts," he answered while taking off his scarf and jacket. He took my hand and we went down to the bar where his brother Dancer was sitting at the bar. Jacey took me over to one of the pool tables. "Let's make it interesting," he offered. "Anytime one of us gets a ball in the hole, the other has to answer a question." I nodded, "That seems fair enough."

He racked the balls together while I picked a pool stick. When they were ready, he gestured to the table, "Ladies first." I readied my shot and sent the white into the others, a striped going into the hole. "Looks like I'm stripes."

"What is your favorite holiday? Mine is Winter Solstice," I answered. "Halloween. What is Winter Solstice," he asked as I began to line up my next shot. "It's the celebration of the longest night. We gather to give gifts, dance, and sing. We party from sun down to sun up." "Sounds a lot like Christmas," he said as I missed my shot. "Yeah well, we don't decorate for Solstice like we do for Christmas."

He then lined up his shot and got it in the hole easily enough. "What is your favorite color? Mine is green." "Silver," I answered. "When you say green, are we talking green like a traffic light or like an emerald?" "Emerald," he answered as he lined up his next shot.

It went easily in the hole, "How many have you been with before me? I haven't been with anyone." "None," I answered. "It's against tradition to give yourself before you find the one you want to marry or your mate." "Then why go to the club if not to meet up with someone," he asked curiously. "Because I like to dance," I answered. "It's fun to just let the music take me and enjoy myself."

He nodded as he lined up his next shot but he missed. He gestured to the table for me to go next. I lined up my shot, and scored two stripes in two different holes. "I guess this means I get two questions. When is your birthday? Mine is January ninth."

"May fifteenth," he answered. "What tradition do you practice, that you cherish the most," I asked him curiously. "For me it's what we call, The Gifting. The Gifting is when you are given a rank in the pack, and everyone gives you a gift in honor of your achievement." "The Naming," he answered. "It is when we are declared official warriors in our tribe and they give us our warrior names. I was given the name Roaring Winds."

I nodded as I lined up my shot, but I missed. He lined up his next shot and easily got it in the hole, "You said The Gifting is the tradition you cherish the most. Where you ever celebrated in a gifting?" I nodded, "I became the first ever Vir wolf to become warrior chief." "If you're warrior chief, then why leave your pack," he asked next. "Because of what happened to my father. I can't stand in my home without smelling burnt flesh, or look at my mother without seeing that dead look in her eyes that she has because her mate was killed and I couldn't stop it from happening," I answered. "I failed my family and I failed to keep the oath I swore." "So like a coward, you ran with your tail between your legs," Jacey asked and at the moment, I wanted to ram my pool stick somewhere not so pleasant.

"No actually," I said. "My Alpha sent me away. Claimed I needed to find myself. I had become a shell of who I used to be. I can't go back until he gives me permission. He and I communicate often, to check on me. I still hold my title though even though I'm not home."

He went to take another shot but missed. I then lined up my next shot, I got it into the hole. "What are some talents you have? I can play three instruments." "I can play the guitar, drums, and sketch. What instruments?" "The flute, the violin, and harp," I answered.

I lined my last striped ball but missed. He lined his second to last shot and made it into the hole. "Did you bring any of your instruments along with you," he asked me. I shook my head, "I travel on a motorcycle with a duffle bag on my back, not much room for an instrument." He lined his next shot and made it. "What is you biggest pet peeve? Mine are people who enjoy looking for loopholes." "Being late without a legitimate reason," I answered.

He then got the eight ball into the hole. "Care to go again," he asked. I nodded and got them set up.

For a couple of hours we played, asking each other questions. There were times we seemed to have clashed and others we agreed on. When it was time to get ready for work, I went to my room to dress.

I went down to the bar and saw Jacey was working as bouncer tonight. Unfortunately that meant other women were able to approach him easily. That shot my mood to hell. He simply did his job and watched the bar but women kept flirting and hitting on him.

"You okay," Addy asked me as I was wiping down a table. "Peachy," I answered. "She's annoyed our brother is an idiot and doesn't realize wolves are some of the most territorial species of Subcinctus," Jade said with a soft laugh. "We dragons are also just as possessive, but our dear brother is defective, which we apologize for."

"I'm fine," I told them. "If he doesn't realize it, then I can't be mad." They gave me smirks before going back to work.

Jacey's POV

After the bar was closed to humans, Willow was quick to finish and go upstairs, and I could tell she wasn't happy. "What's her problem," I asked my siblings, who all shook their heads at me. "You remember when you got jealous last night and broke a glass because she got one number," Dancer asked me. "Yeah," I said. "Well, you talked to several women, one of which for forty minutes," Ethan said. "And every time, Willow tried snagging your attention by either smiling at you or walking by, you were oblivious." "I told them I wasn't interested," I said confused.

"But you never said you were already spoken for," Jade clarified. "You have always been uninterested, even before Willow." "And let's not forget, earlier today you called your mate a coward over something she's truly struggling with," Dancer threw at me. Jade and Addy looked at me wide eyed. "You did what," Addy asked me.

Dancer then explained what he over heard during our game of pool. "You're worse than defective," Jax said with a shake of his head. "What," I asked them. "You treated her like a warrior and not your mate, that's what," Jade exclaimed.

"Think of it like this," Dancer told me. "Say you failed to protect us, something you swore an oath to do. You would be constantly reminded that you failed as a warrior, and as a brother every time you look at those of us who are still alive, as you look around your home. Then dad tells you, to step back so you can mourn and get your head straight. When you tell Willow, who is your mate, someone who is supposed to support you, calls you a coward, how would that make you feel? I know I would feel pretty pissed off, but it would also worsen how I already feel because my mate sees me as nothing but a coward." I let his words sink in.

"I get you've done nothing but think and act like a warrior, but you have been given this opportunity to actually have your mate, someone who is the other half of your soul, and I would hate to see things not work out for you Jacey. Is she a dragon? No. Sure we're all upset by that, but that is something we are accepting because it means you get to have something none of us may get. In the end, what matters, is that you're happy and whole. It's clear your mate hasn't been happy in a while," Mistigan said to me.

"You need to apologize man," Leroy said. "And how do I do that," I asked them, seeing their point. I was an ass of a mate and I had to fix this before I screw up more. "That's something you're gonna have to figure out on your own," Jade said with a sigh. "We wish you the best of luck brother," Terroce said.

I went up the stairs and to the guest house. I went to knock on her door until I heard her sniffle, evidence she was crying. I did this. I needed to make this right and I knew words weren't going to make this right.