Page 114 of Fated to the Rogue

I exchanged glances with Tina, and we both nodded at the 300-year-old woman. Once the coach dismissed us, we headed straight to the dining hall, ready to fill our stomachs after our tiring morning. The place wasn’t half as full as it usually was. It was even weirder to see my friends’ seats at the Elite members table empty.

Mrs. Robinson brought us our food only minutes after we arrived, thanking me for having come personally to the dining hall. At first, I didn’t understand why she was so happy to see me, until she left our table, mumbling something about Malin and Zach ordering room service. I laughed at the situation before trying the mushroom risotto with steak and shrimp that she had prepared. Just like everything our cook made, it was amazing.

When we were done, we met with my parents at the main square. My mother shared stories with my mate about her time as Luna, and I got to talk to my father a bit more. It was nice to see him more relaxed after the conversation we’d had the previous day.

While Tina was distracted, I also took the opportunity to link my Delta and fill her in on the surprise date I wanted to prepare for my Luna. Although I had given Alex the day off, she was morethan happy to set up a few things for me. In less than an hour, she contacted me to let me know she was done. That’s when I called my mate to go up to our room and shower.

I told Tina that I wanted to spend the evening with her in the dandelion fields, but I didn’t tell her exactly what we would be doing. Once we were clean, I decided on a light blue slim fit tuxedo, and I told my mate to put on her favorite dress. Even if we weren’t going anywhere fancy, she didn’t question me; in fact, she seemed to like the idea of dressing up just for the hell of it.

As soon as we were ready, I grabbed my Ferrari keys and we drove to our destination. The last rays of the setting sun were still visible on the horizon, painting the darkening blue sky a calming lilac color. I watched my Luna closely as we drove down the small hill into the flower fields. Her eyes widened the second she noticed the huge projector screen in the center of the plains. It was a few feet away from a large, black-and-white checkered picnic blanket, on which was a small, round wooden table with a bottle of wine and a couple of glasses.

Before my mate could ask any questions, I started answering them. “I’m sorry I can’t take you to a five-star restaurant in the city, but I wanted to have a romantic date with you anyway. I thought a classic picnic and a movie could be a fun alternative.”

“Oh, Zephyr…” She sighed as we parked the car near the set up. “I love this more than the idea of a downtown evening.”

After hopping out myself, I opened Tina’s door for her and stretched my hand out to her to help her climb down. Then, I moved to the back of the car. Aside from setting up the screen and the blanket, Alex had also packed a small generator, a projector, my laptop and portable speakers, and a cooler with different cold cuts and cheeses in my trunk. My Luna’s eyes never left me as I adjusted the projector on top of the hood of thecar, hooked it to the speakers and the laptop, and then finished organizing the food.

“What are we watching?” she asked as I led her to the blanket.

“I knew it had to be something romantic. So I thought, how ‘boutThe Vow?”

“Oh, I’ve been wanting to watch that!” She smiled as I poured her a glass of our werewolf wine.

“I know.” I chuckled. “And I wanted to watch it with you.”

We got comfortable on the picnic blanket, nibbling on the food as the movie started playing. The romantic atmosphere of the night made our experience that much more enriching. The glorious moon shone above the dandelion seeds, twinkling like fireflies as they drifted in the wind. As Tina and I cuddled, we fought the urge to make out so we wouldn’t miss any scenes. Though it was impossible not to give her small pecks every now and then, we managed to make it to the credits without getting too lost in each other.

The movie was about a married couple who had just started their life together when they got into a tragic car accident. The woman was in a coma for some time, and when she finally woke up, she had no memory of her husband. The story goes on with the man trying to make his wife fall in love with him all over again, and it had us both cheering for them to end up together. By the time the movie ended, my mate was bawling her eyes out.

“Why are you crying?” My heart throbbed as I pulled her closer, using my thumb to gently wipe away her tears. “It was a happy ending. Why are you sad?”

“I’m not sad, silly,” she huffed a strangled laugh as the waterworks continued to fall. “It was a beautiful movie. I’m emotional, that’s all.”

“Goddess, you got me worried there for a second. I’m glad you liked it though,” I confessed, heaving a sigh of relief into herhair. Her tantalizing scent filled my nostrils, and I instinctively tightened my grasp around her. “I love you, Tina. I love you forever.”

“I love you too, my moonlight,” she said back, finally lifting her head to look at me with her pools of melting gold. “Nothing will ever change that. No accident or whatever could make me forget you.”

“I’d never let you get hurt.” I don’t think I’d ever said anything with such confidence before. Moving a strand of her hair away from her face, I went on, “Tina, I’ll die before I let anything happen to you.”

Her expression immediately changed. “Don’t say that.” She pulled away just slightly to hold my face with both her hands. “Zephyr, when the time comes and we have to fight, promise me you won’t do anything reckless.”

I hesitated for a couple of seconds. “I won’t, my sunrise. I promise I’ll live to make you the happiest woman in the world.” She continued to study me, doubting the honesty behind my words. Before she could insist on the matter, I decided to change the subject. “Since we’re talking about promises, and we’re both surviving this…” I slowly lied down, inviting her to do the same. “What are your plans for the future?”

My beautiful mate remained silent for a moment as we both just gazed into the stars. They seemed to shine even brighter tonight.

“This might sound silly, but… I’ve always wanted to learn French.”

The suddenness of her answer caught me off guard. “What?”

“I don’t know. I just think it’s beautiful.” She shrugged.

“Well, they do say it’s the language of love.” I chuckled, interlacing her fingers with mine.

“What about you?”

“Me?” I blinked a few times, taken by surprise by her question. “I…I guess I never stopped to think about it.”

“Aren’t there things you’d like to do? Places you’d like to visit?” she insisted.

---