16. Mate

*Jade's POV*
When I made my way down stairs the whole area had been cleared, the only people there waiting for me are the Alpha, Luna, my parents, and Emilio. My father asks, “Are you ready?” I nod my head in response not really wanting for a conversation to start. The Alpha then says, “Come on everyone, follow me.”

We all follow him deep in the forest. We reach a small clearing in the middle of the forest. I only assume we are this deep in the forest so none of the pack members see me shift. Emilio then says, “Only a couple of minutes left. Jade, remember you will be able to tell the when the shift will start, although you don't know what you wolf looks like, just picture a wolf in your head. That will help you shift.”

I nod my head and take in a deep breath, waiting for it to start at any time. There is silence for a minute and we are all waiting to see if there are any signs of the shift starting, I suddenly feel it. My body starts to feel hot all over and I mentally prepare myself for the pain that is inevitably going to start.

Esme says, “Its time, just remember the pain will only last for a moment.” I try to clear my head and I suddenly feel the first bone crack. I let out a small yelp, my parents try to approach me but Emilio holds out a hand to stop them. It is not a good idea to approach a wolf that is shifting for the first time.

I suddenly feel multiple bones crack at the same time, the pain knocks down to the ground. The pain also starts to cause a fog in my mind. I hear Esme ‘Remember what Emilio said. Because of the type of wolf I am the shift is more painful.’ I shout in my mind ‘What?!’ Confused at what I just heard her say. Esme raises her voice at me, ‘Focus, Jade!’

I do as she says and I start to concentrate and picture a wolf in my head. Then I feel my nails turning into claws, my skin getting replaced by fur, my hands and feet turning into paws. I shut my eyes when I feel my nose start to elongate. Even before opening my eyes, I can feel the changes.

My sense of smell is heightened, my hearing range has amplified, and when I open my eyes, I am amazed. It's like I am looking through lenses with extreme high definition. I look over to where everyone is standing and they all stare in awe. My mother approaches me to admire me closer and whispers, “So beautiful.”

She reaches out to touch my face and I lean into her touch. The Alpha mind links me, ‘You can go for a short run, don’t go too far, and remember no one can see you. I already cleared the patrols in this area.’ I respond, ‘Yes Alpha.’

I start running and I have never felt anything this liberating in my life before. Esme had asked me to let her fully take over and I let her. She ran, no, more like sprinted very fast. She suddenly started to slow down and gave me back control.

I am disappointed when I realize we are in an area with no bodies of water, where I could see my wolf’s reflection. Looking down I notice something I didn’t realize before, ‘Wait, I have white paws, how? Only special, rare wolves have white patches on their fur, while the royals are completely white.’ Hearing my thoughts Esme responds, ‘Oh my human, you and I are more special than you can imagine. I will not go into detail now, but you will find out at the right time.’

I head back with that in mind, I trust my wolf and if she doesn’t think it’s the right time for me to know more about this I will wait for the right time. I now know why they didn’t want me to shift in the presence of anyone. When I arrive, I only see the Luna and mom waiting for me. My mother holds out a robe for me which I take in my mouth and go behind a tree.

They explain to us in classes how to shift back and remembering those lessons, I picture myself in my human form. I suddenly feel a bit of burning while all my bones rearrange themselves. I shift back to my human form and while I put on my robe, I find my thoughts going back to the fact that my wolf and I are special.

When I come out from behind the tree my mom says, “We should walk back to the pack house, I asked Ava to pick up your dress and leave you a change of clothes in the Alpha suite.” I say, “Thanks mom’, and we are on our way back. When we arrive to the pack house I see my father, Emilio and the Alpha waiting for us.

I can't help but ask them, “Did all of you know I was going to have a special wolf? I ask because I noticed my wolf’s paws are white.” I don’t hear any of them answering my question, my eyes run around all of them in confusion. I decide to keep my eyes on Emilio since I know he might be the one to know more about these cases but, he is looking down as if avoiding my gaze.

Now instead of confusion my face changes to one of suspicion, what are they hiding? The Alpha speaks up, “We had our suspicions. That is why we asked for you to shift privately and we also will ask that you do not tell anyone about this for safety reasons.” I nod my head and say, “I understand Alpha.”

I decide to drop it for now, I am too tired for this right now. I make my way inside the pack house. I ask Esme, ‘You also felt that right, they are hiding something from me.’ Esme just chuckles, ‘They are definitely keeping something from you.’

I make my way upstairs and back to the room in the Alpha suite where I previously changed. Knowing the layout of the room I decide to keep the light off. Before I begin to change, I hear the door to enter the suite open and close.

I wonder who it could be and then I am hit with a scent, a very good scent. The smell is earthy with the scent of pines. I ask “Who is there?” I feel Esme start to get distressed. The bedroom door suddenly barges open and the scent hits me head on.

I can only make out the shadow of a well-built male. I then hear Esme say the words I didn’t think I would hear so soon. “Mate.” I gasp and hear the voice of the male say with a growl, “Mate.” I do not recognize the voice with the growl but I want to be near him. We start to approach each other. Our bodies move as if they have a mind of their own.

When we are close to each other, he grabs my hand and I frown. The sparks are not as strong as I expected, well at least based on what Emilio has described to me. Maybe I just expected too much. I will say it does feel nice either way.

I am pulled out of my thoughts, when my mate pulls me against his chest and start sniffing my hair and drags his nose down to the crook of my neck. His scent wraps around me. My mate places a kiss on my neck and I moan at the feeling. My response to him makes him growl.

I suddenly feel his hands moving, one is being snaked around my waist, while the other one is placed at the nape of my neck. My mate doesn’t waste any time to press his hungry lips against mine. He kisses me with urgency and need. I immediately respond and my hands wrap around his neck.

Soon our tongues come into play and we are both exploring every inch of our mouths. I hear him groan into my mouth. He then starts rubbing his body against mine and I feel his erection rubbing my lower abdomen.

I let out a breathy moan, excitement filling me with how his body is responding to me. Both of his hands make their way down to my ass, he gives it a light squeeze. He lifts me up and my legs automatically wrap around his waist. It is in this moment that I remember that I am bare ass naked under the robe.

He seems to realize it as well and this makes him growl. My naked core is pressed against the erection inside his pants. I start to feel him move, walking to where I know the bed is. He sets me on the bed, him on top of me.

He starts grinding his erection against my core. Making me dripping wet and a moaning mess. We pause for a moment and try to catch our breaths. I can hear him sniff the air and I know the scent of my arousal hit him full force. He groans out, “Fuck.”

I suddenly feel him hesitating for some reason. He asks me in a calmer tone, “What is your name mate?” I freeze when I hear him speak this time, his voice is a very familiar one. One I know too well.

I cannot believe this. No, why is this happening? I start to shake because of the state of shock I am in. I suddenly gasp and say a name that I hope I get wrong. “Julian?”