4
Fane woke up and, without thinking, sought out Jacquelyn’s mind. It was second nature for him, even though he had just met her. Well, he hadn’t really met her, more like found her.
He spoke to her mind effortlessly, the link between them growing stronger. “Good morning, my Luna.” Her panic and confusion nearly knocked the breath out of him. He bolted up, pressing his hand to his chest where his heart was beating out a rapid-fire rhythm Fane knew matched Jacquelyn’s. His wolf was not happy with him at that moment. It didn’t like to be the cause of their mate’s fear. It’s going to get worse before it gets better, Fane told the beast inside him.
He picked up Jacque’s conversation with her friends as she explained she had heard his voice, or rather a voice she wasn’t completely convinced was his. And she wanted to know what Luna meant. He also caught a passing thought that the girls were on their way over to the Henry's house … now.
Fane looked at himself in the mirror and quickly decided a shower was in order, if nothing else, just to help calm his nerves. He hopped in and was out in a record five minutes. He stood in front of the bathroom mirror brushing his teeth. Then he noticed something different on his chest and shoulder. Fane’s eyes widened at the markings that ran along his skin.
Like every male Canis lupus, Fane had markings that looked like tattoos which appeared of their own accord once he entered puberty. These markings revealed where in the pack order a wolf belonged. The more elaborate the marking, the higher a wolf was in rank. The tattoos varied in size, shape, and placement on the side of the body. His were on his right side, which indicated he was a dominant. The design started on his right shoulder blade and came over the top of his shoulder before descending onto his bicep and across the right side of his chest. The fact that the markings came around to the front of his body, and weren’t confined to his back, indicated he was an Alpha. Only Alphas boasted markings on the front and back of their bodies so that, no matter what direction they were facing, all could see the markings. The marks were dark black with curves and points at the ends of the lines. Now the markings had climbed up the right side of his neck. They looked like flames, only black in color. He honestly didn’t know what it meant, as he had never heard of the markings spreading. Fane decided he would have to call his father later today to find out what was going on. Meanwhile, Fane hoped the Henrys hadn’t paid much attention to his neck the previous evening. It might be a bit hard to explain the sudden appearance of dark tattoos. He’d just have to claim they’d been there all along and hope they wouldn’t press the issue.
Fane moved on and quickly ran a razor across his face and threw on some aftershave. He walked over to his suitcase to pick out some clothes. He hadn’t bothered to unpack anything last night because he had been so tired. There wasn’t a whole lot of variety in his wardrobe—black, grey, and dark blue shirts mostly. He decided on a dark grey short-sleeved T-shirt and his Lucky brand jeans. He wore biker boots and a wallet with a chain attached to it. Motorcycles were a little bit of an obsession for him, and he owned a Honda. He tried to ride as much as he could, even during the winter months. Of course, he was completely covered in leather when he did ride because it helped keep out the cold. He found himself hoping that Jacque would like to ride with him, and then his mind wandered to the idea of her on a motorcycle. Hot didn’t begin to describe how he felt about her on his bike. He let out a low growl and pushed the thought aside. He’d never felt desire like that for a female and knew it might be a problem if he didn’t learn to control it, very quickly.
Fane had wanted to bring his motorcycle with him, but his parents told him they would buy him a used bike once he arrived. He was planning on talking to Mr. Henry about that later today, and Fane hoped his host would be willing to take him to a motorcycle dealership to let him pick one out. His parents had given him a credit card with a decent limit, enough to purchase a pretty nice bike. Royalty occasionally had its perks.
His wolf perked up at the sound of footsteps in the street. He walked over to the window and parted the curtains. On the street below, he saw three teenage girls walking with a woman that must be Jacquelyn’s mother. The similarities in their features were a dead giveaway. His gaze shifted to the only one who mattered, and she looked up straight into his face.
She is beautiful. Now that he could get a good look at her, he saw she had wild, unruly, auburn curls, freckles dusting her fair skin, and thin lips. She was on the short side and slender. Jacque wore faded, holey jeans and a green shirt that said “I’m not stubborn. My way is just better.” So, his Luna had attitude. Of course, she would. A meek woman could not be Alpha to female Greys. The pack would tear a timid Alpha female apart. She turned to talk to her friends. He stepped away from the window to head downstairs. He was tired of only seeing her from a distance. Fane wanted her close to him, where she belonged.
The prince had never been nervous around girls, but he was now. Fane had not dated all that much. No one seemed to catch his eye, and it was discouraged for the males of his race to waste time with females that were not their true mates. The few girls he had dated, in an attempt to find his true mate, had never produced even a quarter of the attraction he felt for Jacquelyn.
Fane, feeling unsettled and wobbly like a fawn taking its first steps, wished he had gotten up earlier and called his father to talk to him about this whole mate thing. The prince had learned a little growing up, but he still felt very unprepared. Especially since his mate was a human and knew nothing of his world.
As Fane reached the bottom of the stairs, the doorbell rang. Mrs. Henry came around the corner. She saw him and smiled warmly.
“Good morning, Fane. Did you sleep well?” she asked.
"Bună dimineaţa," Fane said gracefully. “I slept very well, thank you.”
“I take it that Bună dimineaţa means good morning?” Mrs. Henry asked.
“That was a very good pronunciation, and yes,” Fane agreed.
“Oh, I guess I better get the door,” she said as the doorbell rang again.
Fane felt his stomach tighten in anticipation. What was he going to say to her? He had a feeling starting the conversation with “Hi, I’m Fane and you are my mate” might not go over too well.
So, he would settle with a simple “Hello, I’m Fane.” Yes, he thought that was a very normal thing to say, and normalcy was what he wanted, right? Right.
The four ladies were standing at the threshold of the door as Mrs. Henry greeted them.
“Lilly, how sweet of you to come over to meet our guest,” Mrs. Henry announced sweetly. Fane was pretty sure the woman didn’t have a rude bone in her body.
“We come bearing a home-cooked Southern meal for the newcomer,” Lilly responded.
“Come in. Let me introduce you to Fane. He is from Rom—well, here, I’ll let him tell you. He can speak for himself, after all,” Mrs. Henry said as they filed into the entryway.
“Sara, why don’t we set this food in the kitchen and then sit in the living room to make our introductions, if that suits you okay?” Lilly asked.
“Oh, of course. You all can’t stand here in the front door holding all that food. You would think I’ve never had company before. Come on, girls, let’s set it on the counter in the kitchen,”
“Sara.” So that was Mrs. Henry’s first name. He hadn’t thought to ask when he met them last night, though it might have been on his paperwork for the exchange program and he just hadn’t paid attention.
When the food was deposited on the counter in the kitchen, they filed into the living room, each taking a seat. Lilly sat on the rocking chair by the fireplace, while the three girls sat on the couch to the left of the rocking chair. Mrs. Henry and Fane both sat on the loveseat across from the couch.
Fane realized the five ladies were all silently looking directly at him. Jacquelyn’s gaze lingered on the markings on his neck. His wolf liked that she noticed, even though she had no idea they might have something to do with her. Once again, he found himself wanting to strut around in front of her like a proud peacock. Good grief. He growled inwardly.
He cleared his throat and started speaking. “Good morning, doamnelor. My name is Fane Lupei. I am from Romania, I am seventeen, and I will be a senior this year.” Fane looked at each of the women, pausing briefly on Jacquelyn. “Should I say more?” he asked.
Lilly looked at him quizzically and asked, “What does dome-na-ler mean exactly?”
Fane tried not to grin too much at her poor pronunciation. Romanian, after all, was a very difficult language to learn.
“It means ladies. I was saying ‘Good morning, ladies.’ I have a bad habit of mixing my native language with English. I beg your pardon,” Fane said to Lilly.
“I don’t mind. It’s actually pretty neat to hear you speak Romanian. It’s not a language one hears very often, if ever,” Lilly assured him.
“And by pretty neat she means it was hot.” The blonde girl sitting next to Jacquelyn spoke up. Fane nearly laughed when his redheaded mate stomped on her friend’s toe.
There was an awkward pause for a moment, and then the blonde-haired friend spoke up again. “So, why Coldspring, Texas?”
Fane cocked his head to the side. He could feel his wolf just beneath his skin itching to get out because of the nearness of their mate. “Scuzaţi-mă?” he asked. “I do not understand the question.”
“Why did you choose to come to our little blink-of-an-eye town?” she reiterated, speaking slowly as if Fane was a child.
Jacquelyn elbowed her. Fane bit back the laugh that nearly erupted out of him at his mate’s audacity.
“Oh, I see. Well, honestly, I’m not sure. When I applied for the exchange program, they sent me several candidates for my host family. I read about them, and something about the Henrys felt right. Perhaps that doesn’t make much sense, but that is only how I know to say it,” Fane answered.
“Your English is very good,” Jacquelyn’s other friend, the brunette, stated.
“My parents have always spoken both Romanian and English to me. They thought it foolish to think I would only need to know the Romanian language and culture,” Fane explained to her.
“So, you have studied American culture as well?” Mrs. Henry asked.
“Yes, American culture is quite different from mine. What I have been taught by teachers has not always stood true in real life.”
“Okay,” Lilly said, “enough of the Spanish inquisition. Girls, let’s briefly introduce ourselves, and then we will be on our way so Fane can get settled.”
Fane wanted to tell her that the only place he wanted to get settled was next to her daughter’s side, but he imagined that might come across as a little strange and a lot stalker-ish.
Making no move to stand up, Lilly simply introduced herself from where she sat. “Fane, my name is Lilly Pierce, and I’m Jacque’s mom. I own a bookstore on the square downtown to which you are most welcome any time to study or chat. Please call me Lilly. It makes me feel less old. I am so glad to know you.”
“Doamna mea, este o onoare,” Fane said, bowing ever so slightly. “In your language, I said, ‘My lady, it is an honor.’”
“So hot,” the blonde muttered as she stood up and held out her hand. “I’m Jennifer Adams, AKA Jen. I am also seventeen and a senior. By all means, please speak in your native tongue all you’d like. We don’t care if we can understand you or not,” she said as he took her hand. There were groans from the other girls, but Jen ignored them.
By the wide eyes that met his, Fane knew he surprised her when he did not shake it. He simply brought the back of her hand to his lips, just barely laying them against it.
Fane looked up at Jen after lightly kissing her hand and said, “Este o placere sa te intalnesc.”
Jen looked slightly dazed and confused.
“It is a pleasure to meet you,” Fane translated.
The brunette stood up, gently pushing the hazy-looking Jen back down to the couch, and also held out her hand. “I’m Sally Morgan, seventeen, senior, and it’s nice to meet you. Let me be the first to apologize for Jen. She lacks any sort of social couth,” the girl said with natural cheeriness. Fane liked her immediately. It was obvious to him she was the levelheaded one of the trio.
Again, Fane took her hand and lifted it to his lips, placing a feather-soft kiss on the top of it, repeating what he had said to Jen, “Este o placere sa te intalnesc.”
Sally sat down next to Jen, and when Jacquelyn made no move to stand up, Jen reached over and pinched the back of her arm.
“Oww,” Jacque yelped.
She shot Jen a reproving glare as she rubbed the offended arm and finally caught on to what the blonde was trying to silently tell her. Standing up to introduce herself, Jacque began to speak but she stumbled over her words. She grimaced and looked to Fane as if she were in pain. “Oh, um, I, um, I’m Jacque, seventeen, and a senior as well. Lilly is my mom.” Jacque made no move to give Fane her hand.
But he took it regardless. Fane loved the way her breath caught as his skin touched hers. He bowed over it as he brought it to his lips, and this time they lingered. Her flesh was warm against his and as soft as silk. As he held her hand to his mouth, he took in her scent and found, to his delight, she smelled of cotton candy and fresh snow, an odd but strangely comforting combination. He tried not to growl possessively, but he didn’t quite suppress the urge completely and knew Jacquelyn had heard him because she tensed even more.
He lifted his eyes to look at her, and just as he had to Sally and Jen, he said, “Este o placere sa te intalnesc.”
But unlike with the other two, Fane sent her a message with his thoughts as he spoke to her with his mouth.
“I am so honored to finally meet you my Luna. We have much to learn about each other.”