I never had the chance to meet other vampires despite being a hybrid. Mom was a vampire, but she rarely took me with her when she went out. In her eyes, I was just added trouble that she didn't need so I often stayed home alone. When I moved to the Howling Night, there was never a chance for me to meet a vampire. We didn't have any around us, so I grew up only knowing wolves and the occasional human or witch, but even those were rare.

Still, the obvious metallic smell was a clear sign that the man in front of me was a vampire and if that wasn't enough, I could make out his fangs as he spoke.

"When did the pack get a hybrid?" The man muttered to himself as he analyzed me from head to toe. "I suppose it doesn't really matter. Archer's always taking in strays."

My eye twitched at the mention of my mate and the word, "stray". I examined the man as he had done to me. He was old or at least he was older than me by some years. He still appeared to be quite fit though. Honestly, he didn't quite fit the stereotype of a vampire I had envisioned.

The man started to walk again, but before he could get too far, I called out to him.

"Who are you?"

I could tell that he was a member of the pack in some way. Otherwise, Archer and the warriors would have already been here, but I'd never heard of there being a vampire in the pack. Boston and I were the closest to a full-blooded vampire, at least I thought so.

"Nobody you need to worry about," the vampire responded.

My eyes narrowed slightly as he continued to walk away. There was a strong urge to chase after him and figure out why he was here, but that dimmed slightly when I saw the obvious sign of a mate mark on his neck.

He was mated to a wolf? Did that mean he really was a pack member? Why didn't Archer say anything?

Probably because I was too busy being an ass to him, my conscience reminded me. It probably wasn't something he thought about.

A twinge of guilt filled me when the memory of his hurt expression flashed through my mind, causing me to lean back and groan.

As much as I complained, I didn't hate my mates. Far from it. Did I find them overbearing at times? For sure. Were they nosey? Undoubtedly, but I cared for them. I just...didn't know how to reach them.

I knew what Archer's reaction would be once he found out: he'd be elated. Archer grew up in a family surrounded by love, so it was only natural that he'd want to have kids to love equally as much. Not to mention, with him being an Alpha, the idea of having an heir was all but inevitable. I knew this, but I always thought we'd have more time to throw out other options.

Boston wouldn't be much different. Despite being a vampire-werewolf hybrid like myself, our lives had been vastly different. I knew from the limited conversations we had about his past that Boston always wanted a family of his own. He'd been adopted at a young age and wanted to shower other children with the same love that'd been shown to him.

My understanding of my mates and their predicted reactions was another reason why I hadn't told them. It'd be a punch to the gut to see their excitement devolve into disappointment once they learned I didn't share their enthusiasm.

I pushed myself off the ground with a sigh, knowing if I stayed too long, Archer would eventually come searching for me and that was the last thing I wanted.

I made my way from the woods and back to the center of the pack where people greeted me with warm smiles I tried to return, though I was sure they seemed more like grimaces than anything.

"Hi, Reo!" A squeaky, child-like voice called out.

I turned my head just as a girl with short, brown hair ran toward me at full speed. Her tiny arms wrapped around my legs, and she stared up at me with a big grin on her face. She couldn't have been older than four.

"Hello to you too, Ally," I greeted the young girl.

"Look!" She said loudly, opening her mouth wide. "I lost a tooth!"

Sure enough, there was a missing tooth which was strange given the fact that when I had seen her last week, all her teeth were intact and nowhere near ready to come out yet.

"What happened to it?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Reggie and I were playing catch, and the ball hit me in the face," she said as if it were an everyday occurrence.

I shook my head. "Next time, try to catch the ball with your hands on, not your face."

Ally pouted. "I didn't try to catch it with my face; it just happened!" She exclaimed before her eyes lit up. "But it was all worth it in the end! You know why?"

"Why?"

She glanced around before gesturing me to the ground. Anyone around us would most definitely still be able to hear due to their werewolf-enhanced hearing, but I shook my head and complied nonetheless.

"The tooth fairy came," she whispered in my ear as if it were some big secret. "Mommy told me not to tell anyone, but since you and I are friends, you can know, but you have to keep it a secret, okay?"

"Okay," I entertained the child.

She stared at me doubtfully before sticking her pinky out. "Pinky promise?"

I fought the urge to shake my head and held out my pinky. "I pinky promise."

Neither Ally nor I were able to say anything else about the matter before a voice called out for her. Ally's head turned in the direction of the voice before she glanced back at me and gave me one last toothy smile.

"I have to go now, Mr. Reo, but I'll see you later, okay?"

"Okay," I found myself saying, and Ally gave me one last hug before leaving.

I watched her small figure dart back down in the direction she originally came from and shook my head when I saw her trip and fall to the ground. She quickly got back up and turned to me before raising her hands to her cup, her mouth in a megaphone-like manner.

"I'm okay!" She shouted before running once again.

I watched her until she disappeared before sighing. Ally was one of the first people I met when I came to stay with Archer and Boston. While I usually disliked most children, something about her was different. Maybe it was because she reminded me of Archer's niece, Layne, or perhaps it was because she-like myself-was adopted. I wasn't sure what it was, but for some reason, whenever I ran into her, I found myself talking to her.

At first, it was completely random, but now she made a habit of coming to visit me at least once a week and gave me updates on whatever had happened in her life. She was constantly full of energy and always seemed to have a smile on her face.

The buzzing of my phone caused me to pull my eyes away from the direction Ally had run off to and down to my pocket. I grabbed the small device and, unsurprisingly, it was Raiden. If there was one person who texted me more than Tatum, it was him. Most of the time, it was small things such as pictures with a few quick questions like asking how I was and things like that. However, every once in a while, Raiden seemed to get in this mood where he felt the need to send me long messages. This happened to be one of those days.

Raiden: Cloud and I just left the pack today after visiting Tatum and being there made me want to reach out to you. I know we weren't very close even before I left, but I wish you would let us come visit you soon. I haven't seen you since I left the pack which sucks. Tatum wants to come see you too. He keeps asking me if I've heard from you and how you're doing. Luna Quinn has plans to throw a birthday party for Cato soon. I'm sure you and your mates will be there, right? We could all meet up then. Would you like that?

The message continued to tell me more about himself, Cloud, and Maia, but I remained focused on the part where he mentioned the party Archer's sister and Alpha Gray planned to throw for their son. He'd be turning one and while I was sure Archer had brought it up, it'd completely slipped my mind but there was still a month or so left before we had to go. The only reason they mentioned it so far in advance was because they wanted to give Cloud and Raiden time to make sure they could attend.

I sighed to myself, knowing that meant I couldn't avoid them for much longer.