Luna Revealed

Chapter Five

I hear Phoenix draw in a sharp breath at my words. He seems shocked, not by my speaking, but at the words themselves. He remains quiet and instead leads me back into the kitchen, where other members of the pack have congregated for breakfast.

The smell of bacon and eggs snaps me back to reality for a moment. Breakfast? I glance at the clock on one of the stoves and see that it is 8:10 in the morning. Did I really run all evening and into the night? I take a seat on a stool at the bar, dazed and exhausted.

My fatigue only causes my thoughts to wander into anxious territory. I begin to worry that Phoenix is upset with me for asking if I can stay. I know I should have waited for him to accept me first, but I want so desperately to get away from Aurora. Will he hate me for this? I am nothing to him; just a strange woman who is barely a proper wolf. I will be a bother to him, that's all. My mind races with every self-deprecating thought I've ever had.

The smell of burning pancakes makes me look up. I see another female pack member alone at the stove, struggling to juggle cooking and preparing plates at the same time. I stand to help her, picking up a spatula to flip blackened pancakes. Phoenix jumps into action as well, pulling out plates and thanking the woman for cooking.

He brushes against me at every possible moment – a hand on my lower back, our hips bumping when he reaches past me. It's a bit unnerving, but the sparks feel amazing and keep me calm in the hectic kitchen.

Though the kitchen is busy, no one says anything to me. If anything, the women here seem intimidated by me. Though intimidated doesn't seem like the right word to describe it. One blonde woman smiles at me a lot, almost too much, and another older, gray-haired woman bows to me every time I hand her something.

Pack members rush in and out of the kitchen after the food is ready, snagging a pancake or piece of bacon before running off again. Dozens of faces I don't recognize – and a few that I do from class – bow their heads at me and smile. A few people sit at the bar with me and Phoenix, chatting away while they eat.

After breakfast, most of us move to the room with the piano. Someone hands me a remote and asks me to choose a TV show and I pause, looking at the large TV screen. I don't recognize any of the shows or movies, so I select the second show in the 'new and trending' section. Someone whispers, "Good choice!"

I settle onto a couch against the wall, tucking my legs underneath me. Phoenix sits beside me, tossing an arm on the back of the couch behind my back. I expect him to touch me again, but he doesn't, instead focusing his attention on the TV. The room is quiet as people watch the show, some people still eating bits of pancake as they lay on the couches and the floor. The atmosphere is so kind and relaxed, so unfamiliar to me. All of these pack mates, watching TV with their Alpha. The sight almost makes me laugh.

I barely pay any attention to the show as I look around the room, stuck in the surrealness of it all. Just yesterday, I was in my pack house, terrified of what my father was going to do to me. And now, I'm sitting in a room full of people, next to my mate. My mate!

The first episode of the show is just finishing when I catch a familiar scent in the room. I look up at the doorway and see Cass standing there with her jaw slack, eyes widened in surprise. I try to hide my amusement and simply shake my head at her expression. Phoenix follows my eyes and looks directly at Cass. She stops her dramatic gaping and smirks at us.

"How are you here?" Cass asks. "I heard Phoenix introduced you to the pack and I could barely believe it!" Someone shushes her and she glares at them before looking back at me, eyes bewildered. I blush softly, but give no response to her probing.