"The real lover is the man who
can thrill you by kissing
your forehead or smiling
into your eyes or just
staring into space."

~~Marilyn Monroe

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~Robbie~

I couldn't help the smirk that tugged up one corner of my mouth when I turned away from Nova's shocked expression. Leaving him speechless was not an easy feat but I seemed to be doing a lot of that lately. While I enjoyed his reaction when I dropped the bomb about seeing my grandmother, I managed to keep my own feelings hidden.

I hadn't seen or spoken to the woman in six years. To say I was nervous would be an understatement but I was also excited along with a whole mix of other emotions I didn't bother to acknowledge. There was enough shit swirling around inside me at the moment and I didn't need anything else to overanalyze. 

Telling Nova that I knew he was my mate had been terrifying. Fearing his reaction and possible rejection but receiving none of it had lifted a huge weight off my chest. I wasn't surprised that he hadn't considered the possibility seeing as how most people never got a second chance mate. What Nova and I had was rare on all accounts, but it was ours. 

Anticipation swept through me as I stepped out onto the porch with my phone in hand, thinking about the moment I would claim him and mark him as mine for the world to see. Just the prospect of it made my jeans a bit tighter but I suppressed the primal urge to possess and focused my attention on the device in my hand.

Nova's accidental display of magick had left most of the light fixtures and outlets in the cabin fried, some even melted to unidentifiable blobs. Every window had been blown out, glass shards littering the porch and glittering in the grass beneath the morning sun. I couldn't help but be smug about the fact that I had been the cause behind his slip in control. However, I needed to make sure the damage was repaired nonetheless. 

It took me over thirty minutes to get the arrangements set up for the window repairman and an electrician to come out to do the work before the end of the day. By the time I had hung up, I considered throwing my phone across the yard in frustration. People could be so irritating and money hungry sometimes. Scowling at the fragile device, I scrolled through my contact until I found the one I wanted. Ignoring my nerves, I hit call and pressed it to my ear, listening to the rings drone through the speaker.

The call was answered on the fourth ring by a terse voice.

"What?" 

"Nice to talk to you too, brother," I replied, keeping my voice cool.

A pause.

"Robbie?" my brother asked, the anger in his voice dissolving immediately to be replaced by surprised. 

"The one and only," I answered, shrugging even though he couldn't see me. "Everything alright, Reyne?"

A sigh crackled through the line. "Yeah, mostly. Fucking pack shit."

His answer was vague, anger slipping beneath the words. My brows drew together and I glanced into the living room. Nova was no longer on the couch and I could hear the shower from down the hall. 

"Elaborate?" I asked, attempting mere curiosity or something along those lines but it sounded more demanding than anything. 

Reyne growled under his breath. "Fucking Jackal."

"What's he done now?" My body stiffened at the name.

Reyne didn't answer immediately but I could hear shuffling from his end of the call and the sound of a door close. After another moment of moving around he answered.

"Bastard took off that night in the woods but never showed back up like he was told," Reyne informed me, clearly getting pissed again. "Took several members when he did and my trackers have had… difficulties finding any of them. If I were to believe the rumors, he's down with that Torch fucker and his cronies. His actions have caused an influx in disagreements between the other members and a few have decided to test my authority… It hasn't been pretty, Hatter."

Plastic creaked in my hand as it tightened around my phone. I had been looking for information but this shit pissed me off. The Blood Onyx pack may not be my pack any longer but they had been for the majority of my life. 

"Any idea what Torch wants with the pack?" I asked, trying to keep my anger in check. "Any high ranks go with him?"

"No on both accounts except for Miguel," Reyne answered, something crashing from his side as if he had thrown something, "but he was basically a glorified secretary so no major loss there."

I heard the bitterness in his voice and the situation angered me even more. Miguel had been Reyne's childhood friend, always at Reyne's side no matter where he went or what was going on. It didn't matter what my brother said because I knew Miguel's betrayal hurt him more than he would ever let on. But I also knew that Reyne wouldn't let his emotions guide his decisions when it came to the wellbeing of the pack because it always came before everything else.

"Huh," I mused thoughtfully as I continued to pace. "There's got to be more to it."

"All I know is that Jackal and that blonde fae you were with, the chick, were working together that night," Reyne informed me. "What the goal was, I have no idea, but according to Jazz, the pack members present were under the impression that they were protecting the pack at my request. Some bullshit Jackal fed them I'm sure."

"Is Jazz still there?" I asked, my curiosity striking.

"Yeah, he's my beta and has more respect than that although he's been punished for his stupidity," Reyne growled and I could almost hear him roll his eyes. "Fucking moron."

I hummed in thought, glancing into the house as the sound of the shower cut off. My eyes remained glued to the hallway as I spoke again.

"Do me a favor?" I asked, leaning against the open doorway.

"Anything," Reyne agreed immediately without hesitation, making me smile sadly. 

"If you hear anything else about Torch, what may be going down, or anything else that sounds… interesting, let me know." I paused, debating briefly before I pressed on. "There's a war coming, brother, and it's going to be ugly. My people will be at the center of it, just make sure you're on the right side when it all goes down."

"Don't worry about me, Hatter, I've always got your back," Reyne assured me. "I'll keep you informed. Is that why you called?"

I groaned inwardly. "No."

"No?"

"Is gran in the area right now?" I asked, wishing I sounded casual instead of nervous.

"Yeah, for now. She's over in Skulden. Why? Planning on making a visit?"

"I thought she would be," I muttered as Nova walked back into the living room, blonde hair darkened slightly by the water that dripped down his still bare chest. "Yeah, I'll see you around, brother."

I didn't wait for Reyne's reply before I ended the call, my eyes following the drops of water that trailed down Nova's skin. In nothing but a pair of black and white, knee length canvas shorts that hung low on his hips, ankle socks, and his defined muscles on complete display, he was a sight to see. I unconsciously licked my lips, imagining my tongue tracing the trails of the wayward water drops.

"If you keep looking at me like that, we'll never make it your grandmother's," Nova teased with a laugh, interrupting my thoughts.

"I'm allowed to admire, babe," I shot back, stalking towards him. 

I watched as Nova's eyes darkened and flashed a brilliant violet before returning to their normal indigo hue. He smirked and danced out of my reach with a shake of his head.

"Oh no, I don't think so, Romeo," he laughed, tugging a fitted white tee over his damp head and covering his body. "And don't pout. Business then pleasure remember?"

I scowled and silently cursed the world for having issues bigger than my sex drive. As a shifter, my libido had always been higher than the average but after turning it had increased ten fold. I was quite pleased with my self control when it came to Nova up until this point. But now that everything was out in the open, I would be more than happy to fuck him in the middle of a mall if given the opportunity. 

Growling under my breath, I forced myself to hold it together just a little while longer. Nova apparently heard the sound which made him laugh again. I turned to leave the cabin, lest I strip him bare right then and there, stopping only when I felt his arms come around my waist.

"Don't worry, Robbie, this is just as hard for me as it is you," he admitted, his head resting against the back of my shoulder. "This is a new concept for me, and I'm not going to lie that it scares the ever living hell out of me. But after everything the two of us have been through, this shouldn't be a quick fuck on the kitchen counter…" Nova paused briefly and sounded unsure when he spoke again. "Unless… that's what you want?"

I turned in his hold, cupping his cheeks with my hands. Nova's skin was smooth and unblemished beneath my rough and scarred hands. He was beautiful in a way the gods would envy, like a rose; delicate yet strong, vibrant and dangerous.

"No, that's not what I want," I reassured him, brushing the pad of my thumb across his bottom lip. "When I take you as mine, I want to worship you, praise you like the Prince that you are. There's nothing quick about the things I plan to do with you."

Nova's breath hitched and his eyes darkened even more, the beat of his heart loud and racing in my ears. I moved on hand to the small of his back, pulling his closer, while my other slid to his neck with my thumb resting over his pulse. The familiar dull ache tugged at my gums as my canines extended, my tongue darting out to lick my lips in anticipation of the moment I could finally taste the crimson gold running through his veins. 

"Then, we should probably get going," he breathed out, his Adam's apple bobbing beneath my hand as he swallowed. "Otherwise, we really won't get out of here."

I grinned, my elongated teeth sharp as they rested against my lips. "Would that be such a bad thing?"

Nova opened his mouth to respond but the sound of my phone ringing cut through the air. He released me and stepped back, glaring at my screeching pocket before walking towards his bag that was perched on the coffee table.

"You owe me a phone by the way," he tossed over his shoulder as I pulled the wretched device from my pocket. "This dinosaur phone I've got now was my old one and was outdated when I got the one you broke. I can't do half the shit I want to do."

"I'll make it up to you," I promised as I answered the call. "Yeah?"

"Heard something curious a moment ago and thought I would let you know," Reyne said by way of greeting. 

"And what's that?" I asked, sounding bored as I grabbed my bag from beside the door and headed out of the cabin.

"There's a human chick named Cecile that's a groupie for the supernatural," he informed me and I frowned in recognition. "Apparently she's got a thing for powerful individuals and was passing herself around with most of the members that deserted. But she was Jackal's latest trick, one he kept around longer than most so he must have been her favorite."

"Okay…how does that help me?" I asked, tossing my bag into the backseat of the SUV. 

"Melissa said Cecile called her because she couldn't reach Jackal which means he dropped her without a word," Reyne replied in partial disgust. "Figured if you were out and about snooping around you might want to see what she knows. A woman scorned could be likely to spill her secrets."

I debated for a moment as I wondered how true the facts actually were. Melissa was one of the younger shifters in the pack that wasn't a child but she had been the last time I had seen her. She had been a good kid back then, but I had no idea what she had turned out like in the last few years. There was a sneaking suspicion that this Cecile was the same that Nova had been close with. I would need to talk to him and see what his thoughts were about approaching her since he knew her. 

Sighing, I headed back towards the cabin. "Alright, thanks, bro. Any idea where we can find her?"

"Cecile invited Mel to a rave tonight," he answered and I felt the scowl deepen on my face. 

I already had another lead to check on and I didn't doubt it was the same place. I hated working a crowd… it was exhausting. 

"Let me guess, a large warehouse on the outskirts of Weblyn?" I asked without enthusiasm.

"Yeah, you know it?" Reyne sounded mildly surprised.

"I've heard about it," I acknowledged. "I gotta go but let me know if Mel hears anything else from her."

"You got it, brother," Reyne promised just before ending the call.

I slipped my phone back into my jeans and watched Nova glaring at his phone in his hand. The night everything had gone down at Michael's house, a wave of jealousy had consumed me and I had crushed his original phone into unrecognizable pieces. My reasoning had been shotty, something about him not being able to stay out of trouble. But it really boiled down to the fact that I had been jealous and over possessive of Nova. Even now, thinking about how that warlock had smelled like sex and Nova that night sent me into a blazing fury.

Nova must have felt it because his head snapped up, midnight orbs peering at me with concern and questions. Squashing down the uncalled for anger, I forced a smile onto my face.

"You ready?" I asked while pulling the keys from my pocket.

"Yeah…," Nova answered slowly, tilting his head slightly as he scanned my face. "Are you alright?"

I felt guilty for making him worry unnecessarily. Nova had been more and more sensitive to what I was feeling lately and sometimes knew what I was feeling before I did. It was a bit unnerving sometimes but it wasn't his fault and I knew it could take a physical and mental toll on him. That was one reason why I wished I had better control on myself around him. I loved Nova and the idea of him suffering, even a little, especially because of me pissed me off, which definitely didn't help either.

"I'm fine," I said, hoping to reassure him as I held out my hand. "Come on, if you're ready then we need to go."

Nova stood, still eyeing me warily but didn't say anything as he took my hand and let me lead him out of the cabin. My caveman issues when it came to Nova were impressive even for me. As we pulled away from the cabin, I tried to remember if I had been that way before, with James or anyone else, but I buried the question. It didn't matter because Nova wasn't James and I wasn't the same person I had been back then.

I slipped my hand into his, resting our joined hands in his lap while I drove with the other. There was no comparing this life with the one I had lost, or Nova to anyone else. I didn't want to. I had confronted the end of what used to be with a silent promise to myself, to James, to Nova, and the moon goddess Selene, that I would find a way to move on and not drown in the past or what could have been. 

What mattered now wasn't what I had lost but the future that was in front of me, the one that dwelled in the heart of the man beside me now. If I let myself fall back into that darkness it would ruin us both and I would die a thousand deaths before I destroyed Nova. He was everything to me and an eternity with him would never be long enough.

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A/N: Yay I finally managed to update again! It was a little filler but I think there was some good info here. What do you think?

Also, "Fated Connection" Book 1 went over 4,000 reads AND was added to the reading list "Wereswolves are the new Vampires| Paranormal/Urban Fantasy" located on the Wattpad "New Adult" ambassador profile!

Thank you all so much for reading and sticking with this story! It means more than I can say!❣❣

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XOXO🖤❤🖤❤

~SM~