The Secret Pull

Chapter 12 - Meet The Pack

GABBY  -

As I walked out of the house, Paul was waiting with his bike already in the circular driveway. "This Bluetooth button here lets you talk to me while we're riding", he pointed as he handed me a matching black helmet. He hopped on the bike first and held it steady as I slowly got behind him. I wrapped my arms around him and he chuckled. "I can hear your heartbeat racing already! I haven't even started the bike! Don't worry, you're safe with me." I mumbled ok into the helmet and clutched him tighter. I had never been on the back of a bike before and but I didn't want him to know that.

We started riding north. He kept checking in on me using the helmet Bluetooth. I reassured him I was fine and enjoying the view. As we sped through a blur of beautifully colored trees, Paul talked about life in a werewolf pack. He spoke about taking over the role of pack Alpha when he turned twenty-five. I continued to grip him tightly as he spoke of the immense responsibility of being a leader to thousands of wolves.

I have never been this far north. Through the helmet speaker, I could hear Paul's voice saying, "And here's our escorts!" I was confused for a second before I heard at least ten bikers coming up alongside us. "These are some of my soldiers. They fight with me and guard our borders."

We turned off the main road onto a narrow unpaved road and rode through a thick cover of trees for several minutes. All of a sudden, we came upon a massive clearing. A saw a huge three-story cabin with big windows. There was a massive deck surrounding the entire building. It had the look of an exclusive lodge. There were people everywhere, with little kids running around. I was very nervous now. I gripped onto Paul tighter than before. As Paul stopped the bike, the other bikers that were trailing us pulled up behind us. "Welcome to the packhouse!" I heard him boom through the helmet speakers. I smiled to myself at his excitement.

As I hopped off of the bike and took my helmet off, I saw the other bikers surround us. There were six men and four women. One of the women I recognized immediately.

Stella FUCKING Cosgrove!

Ugh! She was gorgeous. Why wouldn't she be? She was still fit and the only difference was her blonde hair was shorter and shoulder length. I tried not to roll my eyes at her perfect hair, despite having just removed her helmet. She wore jeans and a red leather jacket that matched her red bike. She looked at me and nodded but didn't move closer. My stomach was in knots seeing her again. I turned towards Paul when he grabbed my hand and pulled me with him towards the huge building.

We walked up the stairs holding hands and entered the massive building through heavy mahogany doors that seemed to open by themselves. As we passed through I could see the two muscular doormen who opened it for us. I smiled at the heavy iron door knockers on the doors in the shape of wolves. The interior was bright and looked like a hunting lodge. There were beautiful rugs on the hardwood floor and a massive brick fireplace. All of the men and women we encountered bowed their heads and whispered something as we walked past. We walked past a massive dining hall where wonderful aromas of comfort foods emanated. It was filled with even more people. I was in awe of everything. My head was turning in all directions.

Paul was well-loved by everyone. It gave me a sense of pride. As he spoke about the pack and the packhouse I could hear the hope and ambition in his voice. He wanted to better the lives of the entire pack. I was impressed. He listed all the amenities and free services offered to pack members at the house. He spoke about installing solar-powered generators to keep them off the grid and protected. I simply nodded in appreciation. He continued walking through the building purposefully, introducing me to people. I felt shy. I felt I was meeting his entire extended family all at once.

Some of these people went to high school with us. Some of them knew me and tormented me with him. I wasn't sure how to act around them. They hated me then because Paul hated me. I wondered if they tolerate me now because Paul saw me as his mate. I wasn't sure how to feel about it all. I looked into Paul's eyes as and I could tell he was excited and wanted me to feel at home. But I didn't. Not yet.

Then surprisingly I saw a familiar friendly face. It belonged to Josiah Burkes. We shared several classes in high school and he was the closest friend I had. He also took me to senior prom. Paul had already graduated and left town for college. At that point, high school was no longer a nightmare. Back then, he was stocky with pimples and his hair was just as red as mine. But no one teased Josiah. Everyone loved him. He was smart, sweet, and very funny. I never suspected he was a werewolf. I know I shouldn't feel bad that he didn't share that with me. I never shared with him that I knew werewolves existed.

Now, he looked like a bodybuilder with muscles spilling out of his t-shirt. He had a neatly trimmed beard and his hair was in a braided mohawk. He held an adorable little boy in his big tattooed arms.

"Josiah!" I called out!

He turned quickly at the sound of my shout. He had a look of surprise but he was smiling the biggest smile.

"Gabby?!"

I dropped Paul's hand and ran to him with arms wide open. I couldn't believe my old prom date was a werewolf. He looked equally surprised to see me at the packhouse. Josiah smiled a bright smile and reached out with one big arm to pull me into a hug. But, he immediately looked up at Paul who trailed behind me and pulled away. I looked back to see what kind of look Paul was giving him but I was distracted.

"This is my son, Bo," he beamed with pride. The little boy in his arms buried his face shyly into his father's chest. His eyes were a beautiful brown and his wispy blonde hair was in a bowl cut. I smiled at the sweetness of it all. I leaned in to introduce myself to Bo as I touched his back gently. The little boy turned towards me and smiled before burying his face back into his father's chest. Josiah laughed and said, "Bo, don't be shy... Gabby is our new Luna."

At that point, I looked up at him questioningly and said, "What is a Lun.." Before I could finish, an alarm started blaring.