Chapter 6: Strangers no more

"Where the hell are we?"

I narrowed my eyes at Aidan as we stood in front of a weather-worn building on the edge of town. Paint peeled off the cracked walls, vines crawling like secrets up the sides. This place looked like a murder documentary waiting to happen.

Aidan didn’t even flinch. “Chill. I brought you here to see someone, remember?”

He pushed open the creaky door, and I followed him—reluctantly. But the moment we stepped inside, my breath caught.

Gone was the abandoned exterior. Inside was a whole different universe. Warm lights hung from the ceiling like little golden stars, plush furniture welcomed you with open arms, and the scent of something spicy and comforting floated in the air.

Aidan gestured toward the couch. “Make yourself comfortable.”

I shot him a sideways glance. “You’ve said that way too many times today.”

Just then, footsteps echoed from the hallway. A guy emerged—tall, confident, wearing a smug grin like he was born with it.

“Hi,” he said, offering his hand. “I’m Ethan. Nice to finally meet you. You’re Roxanne, right?”

My eyes narrowed. “Why the hell do you know my name?”

Aidan smirked and stepped in between us. “This is the person I wanted you to meet. Meet Ethan—my best friend, childhood buddy, practically a brother.”

I shook his hand, still watching him carefully. “Nice to meet you... I'm Roxanne as you already know.”

We all sat down, with Ethan lounging like he owned the place and Aidan watching me like I was a bomb that might go off at any second.

“So,” I said, leaning forward, “I want to know more about your pack. Crimson Pack.”

Ethan exchanged a look with Aidan, then shrugged. “Well, Crimson Pack wasn’t always the powerhouse it is now. It started generations ago—small, quiet, kinda hidden. But things changed when Aidan’s father took over. He’s... not exactly the soft type.”

Aidan nodded. “He’s a traditionalist. Believes in old ways. The Luna Binding Ceremony is his idea of sealing alliances and maintaining the bloodline.”

“The wedding thing,” I said flatly.

“Exactly,” Ethan said. “And it’s a big deal to the pack. Marrying you means Aidan’s choosing you to stand beside him. That’s not taken lightly.”

I tried to read between the lines. They were giving me crumbs—on purpose. But I didn’t push. Not yet.

“So... how do we make this look real?” I asked.

Ethan looked at Aidan, who finally said, “You’ll meet my father soon. He’ll want to see the woman I’m ‘marrying.’ After that, the rest of the pack. Ceremony’s supposed to happen before the next full moon.”

“Wow, no pressure,” I muttered.

Then Aidan leaned back, arms crossed. “I’ve introduced you to someone from my world. Now I want the same.”

“What?”

“I want to meet someone from your world. Your side of life.”

“Why does that even matter?” I asked, trying to play it cool.

“Because this is a partnership. I don’t know much about you outside the hunt, Roxanne. I introduced you to my best friend. Now it’s your turn.”

I sighed, then gave in. “Fine. Since I met Ethan, I’ll introduce you to my best friend.”

There was a pause

A look passed between Ethan and Aidan. Something unspoken.

Best Friend’s POV (Flashback)

A few days earlier...

Her POV

I was already running late, of course. It was my own fault—I’d stayed up way too late watching some documentary on wolves (don’t ask, I swear I wasn’t even that interested), and now here I was, scrambling to get to the coffee shop before Roxanne's so-called "Tracking" Not that I had any idea what was going on with her, but I still had to show up for her, like I always did.

The streets were packed with the usual morning crowd, and I cursed under my breath as I tried to navigate through them while clutching my coffee cup like it was my only lifeline. I almost tripped over a man’s foot but managed to catch myself just in time.

I quickly glanced at the time. Five minutes late. Great.

Rounding the corner to the coffee shop, I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going and collided with something—or, rather, someone—hard.

The force of the impact sent my coffee flying straight up into the air. I gasped, watching in horror as it splashed all over the front of his shirt. And of course, this wasn’t just some random guy. No, it was the guy who I’d just bumped into earlier, standing outside the store, probably on his phone like everyone else.

“Crap, I’m sorry!” I exclaimed, my face flushing red as I stared at his chest, now soaked with my very expensive caramel macchiato.

The guy looked down at his shirt, then back at me, his expression completely unreadable. A slow, wry smirk spread across his face. “Well, at least it smells better now.”

I blinked, a little taken aback by his calm demeanor. “I swear I didn’t mean to—”

“Clearly,” he interrupted, his voice dry but not unfriendly. “But it’s fine. You didn’t kill me with the coffee, so I think we’re okay.”

I was scrambling for napkins in my bag, mortified. "You sure I can’t buy you a new shirt or something?"

He lifted a hand, cutting me off. “No need. I’ve survived worse.” He stepped back, looking at me in a way that made me feel really awkward, like he was trying to decide if he should make some sarcastic remark or just leave.

It wasn’t lost on me that he was a lot taller than I expected. His dark hair was a little messy, like he’d been running his hands through it. He was one of those guys whose smirk seemed permanent, like he didn’t take anything too seriously. His eyes were a piercing gray, kind of intense, but they softened as he glanced down at the coffee now dripping on his shirt.

“You seem... nice,” I muttered, not really knowing what to say. Couldn’t apologize a hundred times, right?

He chuckled, though it wasn’t a mocking laugh. “Nice? I think you’ve got me confused with someone else. I’m just trying to figure out if I should be offended or flattered.”

I couldn’t help the awkward laugh that escaped me. “Definitely flattered.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Okay, I’ll take that. Just make sure I’m not your next victim next time, alright?”

I blushed, now completely embarrassed. “I’ll do my best.” I stepped to the side, trying to make it clear I wasn’t just going to stand there and keep making a fool of myself.

He glanced over his shoulder as he walked away, then turned back around. “By the way, I’m Ethan. If we ever run into each other again, maybe we can try this coffee thing properly?”

I didn’t know what to say to that. “Sure.” I couldn’t even believe I was standing here having this weirdly casual conversation with him.

He smiled at me, but it was the kind of smile that was more teasing than anything. “Well, if you don’t spill coffee on me again. You should definitely work on that.”

He walked off without another word, leaving me standing there with a cup of cold coffee in my hand, completely stunned. And the worst part was... for a second, I didn’t even care about the stain on his shirt. My mind was stuck on that grin—like he knew something I didn’t.

Back to Present – Roxanne’s POV

I looked over at Aidan. “Okay, I’ll call her. You’ll get to meet her soon enough.”

I stepped aside and pulled out my phone, dialing her number.

“Hey,” I said when she picked up. “So, about that ‘fake fiancé’ thing? It’s gotten a bit more... complicated. I need you to come meet someone. Like, now.”

I could practically hear her rolling her eyes through the phone. “You always have the weirdest, most cryptic requests. Fine. I’ll be there in ten.”

True to her word, she was there ten minutes later. I was just about to hang up when I heard the sound of her boots clicking against the wood floor.

She walked in with that ever-confident stride of hers, her eyes searching the room before landing on me. Then, just as I was about to greet her, she froze.

Her gaze shifted to Ethan, and her expression completely changed.

“What the hell are you doing here?” she spat, eyes narrowing as if she’d seen a ghost.

Ethan stiffened, obviously just as confused, but for some reason, I felt the tension between them shift in the room like electricity.

The silence stretched. Neither of them said anything, leaving Aidan and I standing awkwardly, unsure how to break the tension.

I glanced between them, bewildered. “What’s going on here?”