Mila's Heart

3. Graduation

I awoke with a very strange sensation. I became aware of several things at the same time. I was in my bed with a breeze blowing through my open French doors and I was incredibly warm. Mikal lay beside me and had me comfortably tucked next to him. I looked up at his beautiful face. He was awake and smiling down at me.

"Hey there beautiful." He whispered in my ear.

"Hey to you." I smiled shyly at him, pulling the coverlet up a little further. "What time is it?"

"It's about 3:00 a.m." He replied as he yawned and stretched.

"You've been awake all this time?" I asked.

"No. I am just a very light sleeper." He snuggled closer under the covers.

"Where's dad and mom?" I sat bolt upright in the bed attempting to jerk the covers off so I could get up.

"Hey, take it easy. They came in while we were still on the swing." He pulled me back down and tucked me in. "They've been asleep for hours in your guest room. Besides, we have only been sleeping. Nothing they could object to."

After a strong blast of the cool breeze, I gratefully snuggled back up against Mikal's warm chest. "Mikal?"

"Huh?" He replied, sounding extremely content.

"Where have you been?" I whispered, almost afraid to ask.

He sighed. "That's a long story, Mila."

"I got all night." I softly pleaded. "Or, what's left of it."

"Well Mila, the invitation..." He hesitated.

"From Rafe." I finished for him.

"The invitation came at a bad time for me." He continued, nodding when he noticed that I didn't curl and die at the mention of Rafe. "I had a lot on my mind. There you were weeks away from getting married and I couldn't stand the thought of losing you. I guess you know by now that I can be pretty stubborn when I have my mind set on something."

"Hadn't noticed that trait in you, Mikal." I laughingly trailed my finger down the scruff along his strong jawline, daydreaming of kissing it.

He smiled and continued. "There was also a lot of pressure to take over as Alpha of the pack. That wasn't something I was mentally ready for." He hesitated. "Then there was Lily." He turned his head as if this was a subject he really didn't want to talk about.

"Lily?" I asked. Lily was a warrior she wolf with the pack. She wasn't an easy person to get along with, but he had never mentioned anything particular about her before. "I remember she nearly got you killed when she tried to take on two rogues by herself and you had to jump in to save her."

"Yeah. Well, Lily had made it her personal duty in life to become my...uh...protector. It was becoming increasingly hard to deny...to reject that kind of commitment..." He tried to go on but couldn't seem to find the words. "You see...she and...I...we were..."

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He had clearly been ordered by the Alpha not to talk about it because it was causing him so much stress. "Mikal." I soothed him. "Don't let it bother you. I understand."

"You do?" He was clearly shocked that I was being so understanding. But we had been through this before.

Wanting to end his struggle, I changed the subject. "Where did you go when you ran off?".