The Beta and his Mate

"The Beta and his Witch" Chapter 6

"Are you sure about this?" Sybil said for the umpteenth time. Ethan laughed at her, wrapping his arm around her waist and kissing her quickly but deeply.

"Yes, little witch. Come on, I've been dying to see this." He was jumping up and down like a kid at Christmas, looking up at the cottage.

Ethan and Sybil were standing in front of her cottage, a backpack slung over Ethan's shoulder and an overnight bag for Sybil in the back of his Jeep. Sybil sighed at him, shaking her head, before she waved her hand in a sweeping motion. A glittering gold stream followed her motions and then the cottage disappeared before them.

Except, it didn't disappear. Ethan walked towards the space where the house had once stood and bent down, picking up the miniature version of the cottage and examining it.

"Careful, don't shake it around. It makes a mess." Sybil said with an exaggerated expression, indicating that she was speaking from experience.

Ethan gently carried the toy sized house to the Jeep and handed it off to Sybil. He didn't want to be responsible with keeping her entire home safe. She snickered at his timidness and then stuffed the house inside his glove box.

"Ready?" He asked her and she nodded, twisting her hands nervously in her lap.

Ethan reached across the Jeep and laid his hand on top of hers, rubbing his thumb comfortingly over her knuckles.

"You okay?" He asked.

"I am with you here." Sybil answered honestly, revealing a rare bit of honest emotion.

Ethan grinned widely and couldn't help himself as he leaned over to kiss her loudly on the mouth. She laughed and swatted him away. Ethan started up the car and backed out of the abandoned gravel road they had lived on for four weeks. They took off on their journey to North Dakota.

Surrounded by some of the oldest trees in the country, the ponderosa pine forests near the Theodore Roosevelt National Park was home to what was left of the Emerald Coven. Near Madera, North Dakota wasn't just one of the oldest witch covens in the world, but also a very old werewolf pack known as the Gold Pack.

Ethan had already given the Alpha, Evan, a call to inform him of their arrival. The coven was just outside of his pack's territory and, prior to its destruction, the Gold Pack and the Emerald Coven had a strong alliance. Alpha Evan was more than happy to welcome them into his pack lands and to help them with whatever they needed to resurrect Sybil's old village.

"Should you call your Alpha?" Sybil asked as they drove out of Kansas.

"Not yet."

Ethan hadn't spoken to August in months, something he wasn't particularly proud of, but he wasn't ready to come home yet and he wasn't ready to share his mate with anyone. He knew that it might've not been rational and that August and Josie would have supported whatever decision he made, but his guilt kept him from making the call. He was afraid that if they said the wrong thing, just one little thing that made his guilt flare up, he would be forced by loyalty to run back home and he knew that would threaten his growing bond with Sybil.

"Ethan...." Sybil's voice sounded concerned but Ethan just clung to the way she said his name. She often did and he loved it like it was the first time, every time.

"It's okay, baby. August and Josie understand." He shot her a crooked smile and squeezed her hand, which was still clasped in his and resting on her lap.

"Whatever you say." Sybil shrugged but he could tell that she wasn't convinced.

"So, what do we do when we get here?" Ethan asked.