Birds chirping outside the window were the first thing to drag Norah from sleep and for a brief moment, she forgot where she was. She felt a hand on her waist and yesterday came rushing back in, bringing with it a sense of fear and peace, the emotions warring against each other.

Peace slowly won - it was difficult to feel afraid in Rylan's arms - and she tried to disengage herself so she could go to the bathroom. As soon as she started moving, Rylan's grip tightened and she felt his face bury into her shoulder.

"Where are you going?"

"Bathroom."

He let her go, rolling away and she crawled out, stumbling over to the door. The mess on the floor was dangerous with limited lighting and her OCD for a clean room started to kick in. It was quiet out in the passage, and she quickly went to the bathroom. Her hair was in a mad bird nest and no matter what she did, it wouldn't tame down. Splashing some water on her face, she went back to Rylan's room to get dressed.

Upon entering however, Rylan proceeded to drag her back onto the bed. "Let me go, I need to get dressed."

"Not yet," he murmured. "Too early."

"It's seven thirty, aren't you  late for work?"

He shook his head, the morning light sneaking through the curtains highlighting that his dark hair was just as messy as hers. "I took the day off so we can sort out your house."

"Is it all right for you to take so many days off?" she asked worriedly.

He grinned, kissing the tip of her nose. "It's not very often I ask for a day off and Aston wasn't going to say no."

"Is it Aston who runs the mill? I didn't know that."

Rylan made a noise of agreement. "Holden passed the job onto him a couple of years ago, decided it was time to slowly retire."

Norah bit her lip. "How old is Holden?"

Rylan's hand brushed her hair behind her ear. "How old do you think he is?"

She thought of his strong features, the grey hair and wrinkles which were more distinguishable when he spoke. "Maybe seventy something?"

Rylan chuckled. "He's ninety one."

"What?" She shot up. "Get out."

Rylan laughed, pulling her back down and rolling so he lay half on top of her. "It's true. Holden and Jenna had their kids late in life because they were involved in a few movements during the 1900's. Cassie is close to sixty herself. It's part of being a werewolf, we age slower than humans."

"How long do you live?" she squeaked.

"The oldest werewolf I've heard of was about one hundred and eighty, he was in the Sun Stone pack. You should ask Holden though, he probably knows others who are older."

"Holy crap," she whispered. Her mind was in overdrive thinking about the aging and how she would get older before him. It was a vain thought, and deep down she knew that it shouldn't matter, but being young, it was an automatic response she couldn't stop.

Rylan, sensing her way of thinking proceeded to distract her. His lips brushed against her own, her hand came up, touching his cheek. The stubble felt rough beneath her fingertips and she traced it along his jaw line, coming up to his hairline as he deepened the kiss. His body shifted, covering her own and his hand rested on her waist, lifting her into him so the space between them was minimal.

Her free hand wrapped around his chest, resting lightly on the middle of his back and her other moved further into his hair. Her body felt hot, a familiar ache settling in her core and she was surprised when Rylan moved back. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said huskily. "I just don't want to rush you after everything that's happened."

She slapped his chest, rolling her eyes. "That's very gentlemanly of you, but trust me, I'd rather be distracted than think about it."

He grinned. "Back to distraction then."

His lips claimed hers once more, this time with more hunger and less gentleness. It was a pleasant distraction and she lost herself in his touch, discovering him with her own.

Knock knock

Rylan groaned, moving to the side and burying his head in her hair. "Olivia," he muttered.

"How do you know it's her?" she whispered breathlessly.

"No one else would be knocking on my door so early in the morning. She'll want you."

"I thought the rooms were sound proof. How can we hear her knocking?"

"Don't know. Some sort of faery wood Holden says. You can't hear anything if you are standing outside but inside, you can others if they make a noise on the wood."

Sitting up, she started to move towards the door but Rylan grabbed her. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Hoping that if we ignore her she'll go away."

Norah raised her eyebrow. "Does that sound like something Olivia would do?"

He shook his head. "No, she'll just get more demanding."

Sure enough, the knocking sounded again, this time more forceful, as if worried they hadn't heard the first ones. "Let me go."

"This sucks," he muttered.

Norah almost agreed with him but she knew there would always be another chance. Opening the door, Olivia waited on the other side, grinning widely. "Morning! Sorry to wake you."

"No you're not," Rylan muttered and she poked her tongue out at him.

"Do you need some new clothes for today?" she asked Norah.

"I should be all right with my own -"

"No, don't be silly, you had to sleep in those clothes, you should have come and borrowed some pyjamas from me."

Norah glanced wryly at Rylan. "That thought did cross my mind..."

Olivia grabbed her arm, dragging her out. "Come on, I have the perfect outfit for you."

"Olivia!"

Norah was dragged down the passage and she had forgotten that Olivia was a werewolf too and just as strong as the others. They passed Annie, who'd been out the night before and she smiled, greeting them before Olivia opened a door, shoving her into her room.

Olivia's room was full of colour. The bed linen and curtain matched with white and pale pinks, the walls a pretty cream and covered with photos and pictures from magazines. Olivia moved straight to her wardrobe, which was neater and well kept compared to Rylan's.

"Here." She pulled out a pair of jeans and a plain deep purple shirt. "I know you have to do some cleaning but don't worry about getting them dirty, I'm not fussed."

"I can always change when I get home -"

"No! Just leave them on, why dirty two pairs of clothing in one day? Anyway, I'm coming to help as well, so I'll order Rylan to do everything."

Norah grinned, slipping her other clothes off. "That would be nice, but I'd get too OCD about the things he moves around. I'd rather do it myself."

She heard a small noise of distress and turned, the clean shirt halfway over her head. "What's wrong?"

She followed Olivia's eyes to the bruises on her ribs and quickly lowered the shirt. "Does it hurt?" Olivia said softly.

"No, I'm tougher than that," she smiled. "They'll disappear soon enough."

"Rylan must have been pissed when he saw them last night."

Norah's brows furrowed as she pulled the jeans on, thinking about the night before. "I don't think he saw them. We changed at the same time and I had my back to him."

"Maybe he didn't say something, I'm sure he must have tried to perv on you though. He is a man."

Norah snorted. "I don't know if I feel comfortable discussing Rylan with you. You're his sister after all."

Olivia rolled her eyes, sitting on the bed. "Please, I'm not a child. As long you don't mention any bed action I'll be fine."

Norah laughed, rearranging her hair into a neater ponytail and walked back out. "I'll keep that in mind. Don't you have to work today either?"

Olivia bounced after her. "Nope, Gail gave me the day off. She's training a new girl and she finds it's better when she's on her own. When I'm there she says I try to help them too much and they don't learn how to do it themselves."

They walked into the kitchen and Rylan was already leaning against  the counter, drinking a coffee. He pushed two cups towards the girls. "What do you want to do for breakfast?"

Norah opened her mouth to say she didn't mind but Olivia bet her to it. "Let's go to the cafe! I want to ask Gail about her date last night."

"Who is Gail seeing?" Norah asked curiously.

Olivia was beaming. "She's been going out with Paul for the last two weeks. I know she's really into him and Paul feels the same way."

"Of course he does," Rylan muttered, "if he didn't like her, you'd be hounding him like an annoying little pest."

Olivia giggled, drinking her coffee, acknowledging that Rylan was right on the mark. Finishing their drinks, they left a note for Cassie who was still asleep, letting her know where they were going. Olivia offered to drive her car and Norah slipped into the backseat, considerate of Rylan's long legs.

The drive into town consisted mainly of Olivia and Rylan bickering about people they knew and a book they'd both read recently. They passed her driveway and she turned to look back, anxious to see her house again.

Pulling up in front of the cafe, Norah was eager to get out and take a break from the sibling argument. Though they weren't related by blood, it was obvious Rylan and Olivia were brother and sister. Norah thought Olivia lucky to have two older brothers who were so reliable. The other...well she felt she could relate to her when it came to a bad brother.

Gail smiled, talking with Olivia as they walked in and Rylan and Norah took a seat at her favourite table since the place was still empty at this time of morning. Her thoughts were still on Olivia's brothers and she worried for her friend. Though Liam was going down a dark road, did he still care for his little sister?

"Norah?"

"Hmm?" She found Rylan staring at her.

"Are you all right?"

She nodded, knowing not to bring Liam up. Thought she had only been the Montoya's home twice, she had seen the looks on their faces when his name was even hinted at, and though she was curious about him, she knew better than to pry and ask questions." Just thinking about today."

Rylan reached over, giving her hand a squeeze. "It'll all work out. Now, what do you want to eat?"

Norah browsed the menu, mentioning French Toast and Rylan voiced his disappointment. "That won't be enough. You should get the breakfast stack."

She smiled. "We both know I won't eat all that."

"I know," his eyes gleamed. "Leftovers!"

Olivia walked over with the new girl, Juliet who was a pretty black haired girl with large blue eyes. She took their order hesitantly, writing and scribbling as she made mistakes. Olivia stood next to her, whispering advice, only to quickly sit down when Gail snapped at her to stop helping.

"She won't learn if you coddle her Olivia!"

"I was just offering a suggestion," Olivia called out, sending Juliet a wink.

The young girl smiled gratefully, obviously terrified of her red haired employer. Once she had got their orders set - and some more advice from Olivia - she set off to get the drinks organised. Olivia looked at Rylan's hand on Norah's, a stupid grin resting on her face and Norah elbowed her.

Olivia's grin widened as she looked out the window and Norah turned, biting back a shriek. Wendy and Madison stood on the other side, eyes narrowed onto the hand holding.

"Oh crap," Norah muttered.

Rylan looked up, giving the ladies a nod before returning to the morning paper he'd grabbed from the table over. They disappeared and Norah didn't have to look behind her to know they were coming inside. The door tinkled open and she braced herself. She tried to pull her hand from Rylan's but his grip tightened.

"Just suck it up and get it over with," he said calmly.

Wendy careened into the seat next to Rylan and Madison stood calmly at the head of the table. Wendy's eyes beamed at Norah. "When did this happen?"

"Yesterday."

Wendy squealed, jittering in her chair and Madison placed a hand on her shoulder, like a mother trying to calm an excited child. Wendy turned and slapped Rylan's arm. "About time you opened your eyes and found a decent girl. All the others have been loco."

"Don't count your chickens yet," Rylan said. "Norah's got a fair bit of crazy in her I recon."

The table jolted as Norah kicked him. She knew it wouldn't harm him, but she felt satisfied when her foot connected with his shin. Gail came over, bringing chair for Madison. She spoke quietly in Madison's ear, her voice tinged with concern and Madison nodded, smiling in reassurance. Gail didn't appear satisfied but moved back to the kitchen.

Olivia face was guarded, and she knew Rylan and Olivia had heard the interaction. Rylan was preoccupied joking with Wendy but she figured he had to have heard it. Norah didn't know how they could handle it, listening to everyone's conversations. It would be useful, but terrible at the same time. Wendy and Madison joined them for breakfast, the former asking twenty questions about their current relationship status and where Rylan should take her on a date.

The latter was silent, listening quietly and smiling every now and then. They didn't tell Wendy and Madison what they were doing that day and fortunately they left them after breakfast. Wendy had to open the shop - after threatening Norah with bodily harm if she didn't come in soon - and Madison was working down on the beach. Three times a week she worked as a lifeguard and the rest worked in the towers as a secretary of sorts. According the Madison the men were terrible at keeping up with the paperwork and would be neck deep if she didn't keep it organised.

By this point Norah was anxious to get home. She wanted to get everything cleared and back to normal.

Pulling up out the front of her house, they were surprised that someone else was already cleaning for them.

"Jack." Rylan hopped out first, clearly surprised. "What are you doing up here? Norah is still living here you know?"

Jack glared at him, throwing a broken chair onto his small pile. "I ain't stupid boy, I know she still lives here. Got a call from Holden this morning. He told me what happened and thought I'd come down early and fix it up for the girl."

His eyes moved over to Norah. "You should have told me you had trouble on your heels. Would've looked out for you. Though I hear the wolves have been doing a good job of that."

Norah's eyes widened. "You know about the werewolves too?"

He nodded, reaching over the bottle of whiskey sitting on the veranda. "When you've lived in this town as long as I have, you pick up a few secrets along the way."

"Thank you, for helping, Jack. I'm sorry for any damage to the house. I'll pay of -"

"No you won't," he growled. "This wasn't your fault. I ain't expecting you to pay for this. I'll sort out a deal with Frank on my way back through town to replace the furniture that was broken."

"Jack," Norah said uncertainly, "that doesn't feel right -"

"Let me burn what's here and we'll call it even."

"Done," Rylan interjected. "Norah won't be staying here tonight so you can do it then."

"Right," Jack said, pausing. "All sorted then. I'll leave you to the rest."

Thankfully, he hadn't driven over and he ambled off down the beach, the bottle raising to his lips every now and then.

"I guess we better get started then." Norah said quietly.

They stepped inside and the place was neater than the day before. Everything that had been lying on the floor was stacked neatly on the table and Norah decided to buy Jack a good bottle of Whiskey to say thank you.

Olivia found Norah's laptop and put some music on while they cleaned. Rylan cleaned up the broken glass in the kitchen and Norah and Olivia set to putting her room back together. Daniel had torn it apart looking for the diamonds and everything was on the floor. Once she was finished, she packed a bag to take with her to the Montoya's.

They were done by mid afternoon and Olivia left them to lock the place up. Aston wanted her to come and collect some letters from the Mill and take them to the post office.

Once she was gone, Norah rested against the sink, looking at the main room. Three chairs were broken, and they had decided to throw out the coffee table when they discovered one of its legs had been kicked in and didn't sit right. The damage wasn't as bad as Norah thought it to be, but she still didn't feel easy.

Rylan leaned over her, hands resting on either side of her on the sink. "What are you thinking about?"

"Just wondering if I need new furniture. There's enough here for me to live with."

"I don't think Jack would be happy if you turned down his offer."

She bit her lip. "You're probably right. I was just going to get him some whiskey though. Wouldn't that be better?"

Rylan's eyes were focused on her lips. "What did you say?"

She slapped his chest. "Pay attention."

He shook his head. "Can't. Need a kiss, that might kick start my brain back into action."

Grabbing his shirt, she yanked him forward and kissing him lightly on the mouth. Rylan refused to move back, unhappy with just a light peck and kissed her again. It turned into a slow, languid kiss, the sensation causing a pool of heat to slowly boil in her core. He lifted her up onto the sink and she wrapped her limbs around him -

A phone started ringing. Norah recognised the tone, as Rylan groaned in annoyance.

"You should answer it," she murmured.

He nodded, muttering obscenities and answered the phone. "What? Yes Luke, I'm pissed. What do you want?"

He planted a kiss on Norah's head, walking outside to take the call and Norah grabbed the rest of her things. Grabbing her laptop, she quickly checked her emails and noticed one on the list which killed her good mood.

Adam Jacobs: PLEASE READ NORAH.

Slamming the lid down, she jammed it into its case and walked out to her car, not ready to open that can of worms yet.