Love Bites

Chapter 35: Star-Crossed Mates

Zoey draped her arms over her shoulders as she waited politely outside while David fetched her a blanket. She wasn't sure that Damon had told her the truth about everything going on, and she wanted to hear different opinions. Whose better opinion to get than someone Damon idolized?

She glanced out at the scenery around her. The large pines covered in snow were breathtaking. Then again, so was the scenery around Trint. It would be a shame to move from such a beautiful town because of T.E.R.A. Nothing but tragedy seemed to follow her. It was a bit depressing.

The lightweight wool over her shoulders brought her back to the present. She quickly wrapped herself in the hand-made blue knitted blanket that reached just past her hips, "Thank you so much."

"Of course. We can't have a soon-to-be mother freeze to death, can we? Shall we catch up to Damon now?" He gestures his hand forward.

Zoey nods and begins to walk in front of him. She had questions, but she wasn't sure how to start asking them. As if reading her mind, he lightly prodded, "You have something to ask me. Don't you?"

Her eyes widen a bit, surprised by his sudden comment, "Yes. I do. How did you know?"

David stuffs his hands in his pockets as he walks alongside her calmly, "The longer you live, the easier it is to read people. So? What is it you wanted to ask me? Don't be shy. You don't have to walk on the glass around me. I'm not as hot-headed as Damon or as nasty as Gordon. I would say I'm quite level-headed now, but I wasn't always. Something else that comes with age, I suppose." He chuckles a bit.

Zoey grips tightly onto the blanket, "You said you heard a lot about me... what exactly have you heard?" It seemed like a loaded question to ask but knowing that would help her understand how to proceed with the rest of her questions.

Zoey kept a watchful eye on the warm breath in front of her, afraid to look him in the eye. She already knew what Damon's pack thought of her, and she could only assume that he had the same low opinion of her.

David stops in his tracks and gives her a small smile, "Well, I can tell you that you seem quite timid compared to how Cole described you." The mention of Cole made her head shoot up, and her green eyes met his, "And you seem more reserved than how Damon described you. Is there a reason for it? I was expecting to meet someone quite... resilient."

Zoey licks her lips. She was still stuck on the idea of Cole. Did Cole speak about her to David? It was enough to stir her up, "C-Cole talked about me to you?"

He nods and keeps walking in the direction they were heading, "Of course. When Damon and Cole got into a disagreement about you living on pack grounds, he asked me if the two of you could move here to raise your family. He tried to reassure me time and time again that despite you being a soldier for T.E.R.A that you would never bring harm to me or my pack. He was positive that if it ever came down to it that you'd help us protect it."

She listened to him intently, and her heart ached. It sounded exactly like something Cole would do. The flash of his golden eyes and a quirky smile crossed her mind, and her vision blurred with tears. Cole thought so highly of her. She knew that, yet she wasn't sure if she deserved such praise.

David pats Zoey, "He loved you very much, and I can tell you loved him just as dearly, but that's not what you wanted to ask me. Is it?"

Zoey takes a deep breath, clearing her sniffles and the tears from her eyes to compose herself again, "No. I wanted to ask you what you knew about the mate bond."

"Not too keen on being Damon's mate?" He looks to the side at the short redhead.

She shakes her head. He already knew about it, and she wondered how many other people knew before she did, "No, that's not it. I don't have a problem with Damon. He said it wasn't a big deal, but I-I guess I just wanted to know more about it. That's all."