The Mating (The original Law of the Lycans story)

Chapter 4

Hi!  Thank you to those who have stopped by and read The Mating so far.  I hope you are enjoying it.  When I originally wrote The Mating,  I wrote and posted a chapter a day so I'm going to try to recreate that my updating this story each and every day.  (The only difference is that the original was full of typos, lol!) - Nicky

Elise sat on the edge of Kane's king-sized bed and surveyed her surroundings. The black and white colour scheme was definitely masculine and matched Kane perfectly, but it left her feeling rather cold and out of place. The idea of her under-things draped here and there, or her makeup scattered on the dresser seemed wrong. A slight shiver ran through her; would she ever be able to feel at home here?

She spent a few minutes thoughtfully considering how she could make the space more appealing then checked her watch again. It was now four-thirty. After showing her to their room, Kane left, promising to return and give her a tour of the house once he dealt with some pressing business. That was two hours ago. Since then, she'd explored the three rooms of their suite, finished unpacking her things, and familiarized herself with Kane's collection of music, movies and books. Now what should she do? Kane had said he'd be back, but she'd run out of ways to occupy herself and was beginning to think he must have forgotten that he now had a mate.

She couldn't quite figure out how he viewed her. He seemed to vacillate between careful attentiveness to her feelings and blatantly ignoring her. Right now she was feeling ignored, just as she had upon arriving. Her mind drifted back to a few hours previously...

~~~

Once Marla stopped blocking the doorway, Elise made her way inside and looked around with interest. She could see into several rooms from her position in the main foyer. A living room was to her left, a staircase with an oak banister was in front of her, and a dining room could be seen down the hallway. A few rooms were to her right, but their closed doors gave no indication as to what might be inside.

Elise's first impression was that the house was simply, yet tastefully decorated in a homey, traditional way with comfortable looking stuffed chairs and small occasional tables scattered about. Gleaming hardwood floors and neutral walls were a perfect foil for the dark green curtains that hung from the expansive windows. Light shone in from all sides and the impressive view of the outdoors, combined with the earth-toned decor, gave a feeling of being one with nature.

Not sure if she should follow the men carrying her boxes upstairs, or wait for Kane, Elise stood in the middle of the foyer, debating the best course of action. When she hesitantly stepped towards the stairs, Kane quickly called out her name.

"Elise, wait! I'll just be a minute." She wondered how he knew what she was doing when his attention was so focused on Marla. The other woman was speaking intently to him and Kane nodded several times before ending the conversation with a one armed hug. After watching Marla walk away, he moved to stand by Elise. "Sorry about that. Marla needed a bit of reassurance."

Glancing over to where the woman stood near a window, Elise noted that Marla was shooting daggers at her with her eyes. Why did the other woman seem to have taken an instant dislike to her? About to question Kane on the matter, he took her hand and led her upstairs. As she trailed her hand on the wooden rail, she could feel eyes watching her and had to resist the urge to turn around and see who it was.