This chapter is dedicated to @RoyalMara. Thank you so much for your reads and votes! They make me really happy!!❤❤

-:Cecelia's PoV:-

The training was brutal. I had to train with Aaron since David had already decided to partner with Aaron's Gamma, Caleb. Let's just say my brother was still in a terrible mood.

"When are you going to let it go?" I finally asked after training. Not that it was my fault, nor did I think I was wrong, but he was being overdramatic about it. I didn't like quarreling with him.

"Let it go?" He scoffed. "Cecelia, you really need to start thinking before you speak."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" I demanded.

"Exactly what it does mean," he said flatly.

"What is your bloody problem?"

"My problem?" He laughed humorlessly. "My problem is that you don't tell me anything anymore. You don't talk to me, you don't spend time. It's either homework, Julian, Liana, or now Ashton! And when I try to involve myself in my little sister's life, she tells me to stop 'preaching' on her! Then she shows up home from school in her boyfriends' clothes!"

I felt a little guilty, but then I remembered what made me lash out in the first place.

"Should've fucking thought of that before you went along basically calling your sister a 'whore', " I said coldly. "As for me wearing Ashton's clothes, some idiot dumped their lunch tray on me so he was kind enough to offer me his spares."

Why did I even try to talk to him, again?

He recoiled back as if he'd forgotten how he insulted me yesterday. Wow, he had an excellent memory.

"I didn't mean it," he muttered, dropping the clothes topic. "I just wanted to protect you."

"You don't go around calling girls 'whores' if you don't mean it," I snapped at him, my blood boiling. "That word means something. A lot of something, actually. And as for you protecting me, what the heck were you thinking? He's my mate!"

"I . . . I don't know, Cece. At that moment all I saw was a naked Silver Moon hovering over you," he scrunched up his face in disgust. I cringed back in embarrassment and at the way he worded his statement. 

Why can't we get past that already?

"That doesn't excuse anything, Aaron, and you know it," I said.

"I know," he sighed. "Still, I apologize."

"Okay," I responded as I walked away. He didn't stop me.

Why didn't I forgive him? 

Because brother or not, nobody questioned my character and dignity to be forgiven after just a half-assed 'I apologize'. 

**********************

Ashton
i'll pick u up at eight😉
5:57 pm

You
i'll be waiting🥰
6:12 pm

Dang it! I panicked after seeing his text. A date. What does one do on a date? I had never been on a date unless I counted the one I went on to get Ace off my back. 

Why did I agree to this? What was I thinking?

'Loosen up!' Sera laughed.

'Shut up!' I grumbled. 'How do I even begin?'

No answer.

'Sera!' I whined.

'You told me to shut up, remember?' She taunted, holding back her laughter.

'I hate you,' I complained.

'You love me and you know it,' she smirked.

'Help me,' I demanded.

'You're a human teenage girl who has no idea what to do. What makes you think that a wolf such as me would?'

I sighed. Serafine had a point.

'I always do,' she said smugly. I rolled my eyes.

'Sure you do, hon,' I said to appease her. She didn't miss the sarcasm and pouted. I blocked her out. I had to concentrate.

Then a lightbulb went off in my head. I grabbed my phone and quickly dialed the number I knew by heart.

"Hello?" A groggy Liana picked up after a few rings. I threw a swivvet glance at the time. It was not a normal time to sleep.

"Why were you sleeping?" I asked her incredulously, taking in her appearance.

"Because I was sleepy!" She snapped crabbily.

"Rraawwrr," I mumbled. "Geez, I was just asking."

"I'm sorry, Lia, but the mood swings are awful," she said guiltily, rubbing her eyes. I sighed.

"Have you told Julian yet?" I asked.

"Do you see him either crying or dancing around the Packhouse?"

"Umm, not the last time I saw him."

"Then you have your answer."

I would've laughed had the situation not been grave.

"Liana you have to. Soon." I pleaded with her. "Keeping it from Julian is really hard. I'm used to sharing everything with him."

"I know, so am I." She groaned. "I'll do it soon."

"Thank you," I said genuinely. "How are you holding up?"

"Terribly," she confessed.

"Did you tell anyone else?" I asked her.

"No . . . " She trailed off. I pinched my nose in frustration.

"Liana do it before they figure it out themselves," I warned. "Your scent will change soon too."

"I forgot about that," she cursed.

"I guessed," I said drily. "Did you at least visit a doctor?"

"Umm . . . "

"Liana!"

"I'm sorry, okay?" She cried, "I'll do it soon."

"Two days," I told her.

"Hun?"

"You have two days to come clean, or I'll do it for you."

"Cecelia," she said pleadingly. I swallowed the lump in my throat. She was like my sister. I loved her. And sometimes when you love someone, you have to do what's good for them instead of what they want you to do.

"I'm sorry," was all I said resolutely.

"Lia," she pleaded again. This time with those puppy dog eyes.

"I'm sorry," I repeated, truly sad for putting her on the spot. But it was necessary.

"Goddammit!" She freaked out.

"Trust me, it'll be okay," I reassured her.

"No! No, no, no, no!" She started to cry.

"Liana," I said in my best soothing voice. "Deep breaths."

She gulped in huge mouthfuls of air, her hands flailing about. She exhaled sharply and put the back of her palm on her forehead, the other going to rest on her waist. I watched her slowly regain her bearings.

"Better?" I asked. She merely nodded and left the camera's range, only to return with a glass of water.

"So what did you call me for?" She asked, changing the topic. "Don't tell me it was to haunt me about this." She scrunched up her nose adorably.

"No," I laughed awkwardly. "I did not."

She narrowed her eyes at me.

"What were you going to say?" She asked.

"Nothing. It's not important anymore." I said nervously.

"Spill." She ordered in a determined voice.

"Fine." I huffed. "I have a date tonight."

She squealed loudly. 

"So Ashton finally manned up enough to ask you out?" She smirked.

It was my turn to narrow my eyes at her.

"The situation wasn't right before," I defended him.

"Sure," her smirk widened. She wasn't kidding about those mood swings.

"Liana," I cautioned.

"Fine," she pouted. "So, what are you wearing? When is he picking you up? Where are you going?" She fired.

"I don't know, eight, and I don't know yet," I answered.

"Oh, shit," she cursed. "We have just about an hour!"

"So . . . ?" I trailed off. "That's more than enough."

"No, it's not!" She yelled, "We have work to do, girly."

Why do I have a feeling this is going to be a very difficult hour?

********************

I was right. It was difficult. But so fucking worth it.

Her instructions were simple and to the point. So detailed that even an idiot like me could follow through. 

After a quick shower, she guided me through a light make-up session with the focus on the eyes, but not before we picked put my outfit. She wanted me to put on a pair of heels but I flat out refused to step into those death traps. Instead, I wore my black and white converse. She instructed me to curl my hair lightly.

To be honest, I didn't even know I had make-up. Liana laughed evilly when I told her I didn't. That sneaky bitch revealed that she threw in a few makeup essentials and a few items that shall never be named in my suitcases without my knowledge. It was pure coincidence that the bags I had yet to unpack because of my laziness were the infiltrated ones. I glared at her when I examined all the horrific contents but couldn't express my rage fully because I was more focused on the date.

Later, I promised myself, hoping I'd remember. Sera snickered at my thoughts. I glanced at the time.

"It's three minutes to eight," I said to myself, pacing around.

"Ruh-laaax!" Liana drawled, amused. "Boys are idiots. They're almost always late to dates. Ian was half an hour late to our first official date."

"I remember, he was so nervous," I laughed, reminiscing. "I had to literally kick him out of his room."

"He told me," she chuckled. I plopped down on my bed.

"You guys went ice skating, right?"

"Yup," she laughed. "That boy had no idea how to skate. He took me there just because I wanted to go. He fell down like a million times."

"So that's why he had half blue limbs the next day," I chuckled. "When I asked him, he said that they were just marks from training. I was suspicious because it's hard to land a hit on him but he brushed it off!"

"Fuck," she chortled. "I-" she was cut off from a loud knock at my door. I frowned, checking the time. Eight pm on the dot. I got up, the phone still in my hand, and opened the door. I was surprised to see Ashton standing there, looking jittery.

"Umm, hi," I smiled.

"Hey," he smiled back nervously. He looked devilishly handsome even in his casual clothes. He wore a white and gray striped tee underneath a black leather jacket I'd seen him wear to school a few times along with dark blue jeans. He wore sneakers to complete the look.

"I'm guessing your hot mate is there," Liana laughed. Color rushed up to my cheeks. Ashton gave me a teasing smirk.

"Give me a minute," I told him with a shy smile as I shut the door close. I glared at Liana who was guffawing like there was no tomorrow.

"I am going to kill you!" I snapped at her.

"Now, now, Lia," she chided playfully, "That's not how you thank your helper."

"I'm-"

"Take the black clutch I got you for Christmas last year." She interrupted with a cheeky smile.

" . . . I'll deal with you later," I said, at last, doing as she said before making sure to stash some cash and my phone in it. I grabbed my keys and stepped out. Ashton was leaning against the wall beside my doorframe.

"You look breathtakingly beautiful," he complimented. I locked my door.

"Thanks, you look great too." I grinned.

"Excuse me," he said, acting offended as I put my key in my clutch and we started moving downstairs. "I believe I'm the hot mate."

I groaned.

"I never said that," I lied.

"Your lying skills are rusty," he chaffed, sliding an arm around my shoulders. "Don't worry, I think you're hot too."

I glared at him half-heartedly.

"You're not going to let that go, are you?"

"Nope," he grinned sexily.

"Great," I mumbled, trying to get over the butterfly invasion in my belly. He laughed. It was contagious and I found myself laughing as well.

"Ashton?" A familiar voice questioned. "And is that you, Cecelia?"

We turned around, his arms still around my shoulders.

"Julian," Ashton acknowledged.

"Hey Jules," I greeted. His mouth dropped open comically.

"Fucking hell," he muttered. "Liana would flip out if she saw that you finally willingly put on a dress."

"Actually," I laughed. "She helped me choose this."

"Fucking hell," he exclaimed again. "My baby sister is all grown up."

"Close your mouth, Jules," I snickered.

"I'm speechless," he admitted. "Great job, man," he congratulated Ashton. I rolled my eyes. Ashton just smiled smugly and squeezed my shoulders.

"I'm guessing the coercing wasn't enough to get you to wear heels for a change?" Julian's eyes twinkled.

I scowled at him. "Do I look stupid?" I questioned.

"Definitely not," he chuckled. "Where are you guys headed?"

"A date in the town," Ash answered. Immediately Julian's mood became somber.

"In the town?" He frowned. "That's no man's land."

"So?" I questioned.

"It's not safe, Lia," he said gravely.

"It's been over a week since Tasha was taken, Julian," I sighed. "The rogue sightings have only decreased since then."

"We're not taking any chances," he said firmly.

"I'll be with-"

"Julian, it's fine, trust me," Ashton cut in. The two boys seemed to have some sort of a staring contest. A battle of wills, perhaps? I fully expected Julian to win like every time. So I was very surprised when instead of grinning triumphantly he released a defeated sigh.

"I'm trusting you with her safety," he addressed Ashton sternly. "Don't make me regret it."

"She will come back without a scratch," Ashton assured him. As much as I loved that my mate and best friend were getting along splendidly, I scowled.

"Don't talk about me like I'm a fragile doll who's incapable of protecting herself should the need arise," I said petulantly.

"You're not," Ash assured me, kissing the top of my head. I couldn't help but smile. 

'You're so whipped,' Julian mouthed at me when Ash wasn't looking at him. I glared at him warningly.

"We're leaving," I stated, not liking the evil glint in Julian's eyes. Julian laughed as I frantically dragged out a surprised Ashton outside.

"Remember to be safe!" Julian shouted teasingly over the quiet din in the Packhouse. I groaned loudly as I buried my head in Ash's shoulder sideways. His chest rumbled with barely contained chuckles as he rubbed my arm soothingly.

"You're one to talk," I muttered to myself.

"What?" Ashton asked me, out of the loop.

"Nothing," I plastered on a smile. "Where are we going?"

"I thought you were going to chose?"

"Uh, yeah, about that," I said unsurely. "See, I realized I don't know any place anymore. A lot changed in these six years."

"Okay, that's fine," he smiled, unlocking his truck. "What would you like to eat?"

"Umm . . . how do you feel about Chinese?" I asked after a thought.

"I love it," he assured me.

"Then Chinese!"

"We can work with that," he opened the door for me to get in. I smiled and pecked his cheek as thank you before seating myself. He closed my door gently and grinned as he walked over to the driver's side.

He reversed out of the parking lot and steered out of the Pack lands. My stomach fluttered with anticipation. I looked at Ashton as he drove. Julian's words echoed in my head.

I can't be whipped so soon. . . can I?

***********************************

A/N:-

Chapter twenty-five, ya'll! I can't believe it. Twenty-five. *Wipes away a tear*

Thank you so much for reading my book and sticking with me so far. All your votes and comments make me so happy. I read all your comments and treasure every vote.

Also, thank you so much for over 300 reads. I have no words to express how happy I am.

So, Ash and Lia have a date night! How will it go??

Keep reading to find out.

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Until next time, all my love,
xoxo.

P.S.: Harvey (aka HRVY) released his new single!! 1 Day 2 Nights. I'm legit obsessed, you guys! I've attached the link to its lyric video since I couldn't resist and also because I was listening to it while I was writing this chapter. Check it out if you want!