Page 81 of Fated to the Rogue

“Girl, you know I’d be more than happy to do it!” Nisha agreed immediately. “I’m glad you two like it. I hope the boys will, too.”

“You think we should call them already?” I asked.

“Why not?” Amaya shrugged.

After linking each of our boys, we decided to hide behind the chairs while we waited for them. As soon as they arrived, theyfroze in their spots when they saw the set-up - that’s when the three of us jumped up screaming, “Surprise!” By the smiles on their faces, we already knew our idea had been a success. We greeted them with hugs and kisses before we all sat down to enjoy dinner and drink the night away.

“Thank you so much for this, sunrise,” Zephyr whispered in my ear, sending pleasant tingles down my whole body. “I love it. Your dinner was amazing.” After I smiled in response, he continued, “So, how was your day? Aside from all the cooking.”

“It was nice. I talked to a single mom whose son was having trouble sleeping since they moved into their new home. I suggested giving him some passionflower and lemon balm tea. It worked! Can you believe it?”

“I can, actually.” I was surprised when he replied to my rhetorical question. “My mom used to prepare that for me whenever I couldn’t sleep. It’s still the only thing that works for me to this day.”

“Oh my Goddess.” My hand moved to my mouth to cover a gasp of realization. “That’s how Dusk knew!” I concluded, leaving Zephyr confused.

I proceeded to explain what had happened to him. Once I was done, we shared a good laugh. We spent a couple hours talking and drinking wine with our friends. When everyone was a little dizzy, the couples started disappearing, and it was obvious from my mate’s expression he was considering doing the same.

“Do you want to run away too, my sunrise?” Zephyr asked in a husky tone as he leaned over me on the picnic blanket.

“I’d love to, my moonlight.” I chuckled. “But I was thinking… What if we let our wolves spend some time together too? I feel a little bad that Dusk doesn’t get to spend much time with Dawn.”

“Hm, Dawn’s been a little naughty lately. I’m not sure she deserves it.” I furrowed my eyebrows at him, and he burst out laughing. “Alright. Let’s do it!”

We both shifted into our wolves, and I was mesmerized by the way Dusk looked at his caramel blonde mate - it was the same way Zephyr looked at me. They approached each other and my black wolf didn’t hesitate before sticking his muzzle into Dawn’s neck, making her giggle. As I watched them cuddle and play together, I couldn’t help but realize something.

My whole life had been pretty confusing, and it didn’t seem like things would start making sense any time soon. But as long as I had Zephyr, we would make everything work.

27 | Origins

After the relaxing evening the girls had prepared for us, my Elite members and I could finally start letting our guards down. All of the enchanted alarm traps had been placed across the border of our territory, which made us feel a lot safer. I decided to also keep the temporary measures, such as sending triple the usual amount of men on patrols and the extra training sessions, but it was possible to see the pack starting to calm down. Even if there was no reason for a new attack - at least not for now - we had done everything we could to ensure we were well-protected.

Sure, the boys and I were still busy with a few details, but the atmosphere in my office was lighter. After making a public announcement in the morning to inform the pack about the recent incident involving the Fallen we were able to catch, my team and I had lunch, then headed straight to my office.

The first thing we needed to do was call our newest allies, Alpha Sanders of Sapphire Pond Pack and Alpha Ruben of Dune Drifters Pack. We told them about the rogue’s break in, as well as let them in on what we had discovered about the Fallen upon the National Elder Council’s visit.

With that out of the way, my Gamma proceeded to offer us some insight on our current situation. He had been spending more time at the borders since the tragic incident during mymate’s Luna Ceremony, studying the strengths and weaknesses of our security system.

“So, the I.N. Elder Council estimates that the Fallen army consists of around 300 enhanced rogues at the moment. I know we decided not to focus on numbers for now, but I couldn’t help myself. Either way, I believe the data I’ve found upon my analysis to be quite relieving, which is why I wanna share it with you.” Zach slid a tablet across the table we’d been standing around. On its screen, we could see a digital spreadsheet. “After the merge with Silent Rivers, Wind Howlers currently counts with the strength of precisely 203 warriors. If we add the 100 men Alpha Ruben lent to us, as well as Alpha Sanders' 54 wolves, including him, that leaves us with 357 warriors. The Fallen are strong, but we still outnumber them. With just the right traps, we should be protected from early attacks.”

“That’s a really great insight.” I sighed in relief.

Zach continued to fill us in on other important details regarding the new traps he had set up to cover our blind spots. An hour flew by as the three of us discussed changes and made suggestions, until a knock on the door caught our attention. A second after I told them to come in, Nisha poked her head around the door.

“How’s everything going?” she asked with a serene smile.

“We were just finishing up. You’re welcome to join us if you’d like,” I invited her.

“Oh, don’t worry about it, Alpha Zephyr. I was just wondering how long it’d be until you were done for the day…” Although it seemed like she was talking to me, her dark eyes were fixated on my Gamma.

“I’ll be free in a minute, my little magpie,” Zach whispered. She nodded in response, biting her bottom lip to hide a smirk, as she closed the door.

“Little?”Dawn snorted. “It’s funny he’d call her little when he’s clearly got his hands full with that one.” I was so surprised that I just couldn’t hold my laughter.

“Why do you always laugh randomly when I’m around?” My Gamma turned to me with a frown.

“You just make mesohappy, man,” I joked.

“I hate you,” he replied quickly, turning his back to leave. “You too, Dawn.”

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