Norah headed to the cafe early the next morning, an idea in her head for a scene to write. It felt like it had been so long since she'd written anything, her fingers were twitching with the need to put words to paper. She jogged into town, needing the exercise after all the eating she was doing at the Montoya's. She was happy she was going home tonight, and could eat what she wanted. Her notebook under her arm, she walked through the front door, bumping into Brad who was on his way out.

"Oh sorry," she exclaimed, brushing the drops of coffee that had spilled as their bodies connected.

Brad glanced at her coldly, and she guessed he still wasn't happy with her being involved with the Montoya's. "No problem."

He moved past her and she rolled her eyes. If he was going to be petty about it then fine. She would have been happy to be friends, but obviously Brad was incapable of being mature about the situation.

"Men," she muttered, sitting in her usual seat.

Gail walked over, placing a muffin in front of her. "Man troubles, Norah?"

"Not specifically, its more just men in general."

"Ah, I see. That's too heavy a subject for this time of morning." Gail pulled a red strand of hair back behind her ear. "Give us a shout if you need anything. Olivia should be in soon."

"Sure." Gail headed back to serve another customer and Norah opened her notebook, reading over her notes and the scene she had finished on. The scene she had in her mind, didn't follow on from her last point, but she felt it would be a good way to finish the story. The only problem was trying to find her way to that scene. Sometimes she would think of scenes that would be amazing, but she could never get the story to move in the right direction so the scene would fit in. 

She started scribbling down ideas for different plot lines which could help her. A coffee appeared in front of her and she murmured a quick hello to Olivia, recognising her perfume. Olivia disappeared and she kept writing, filling three pages back and front with ideas. A general plot had started to form by the time her coffee was finished and she reached for her muffin, but it was gone. Glancing up, she saw the last of her muffin being eaten by the man now seated opposite her.

"Is no food sacred?" she snapped.

Rylan grinned, licking his fingers. "Gail makes the best muffins in Bellvale. Don't tell Cassie I said that."

"What are you doing here?"

"I was hungry." She raised an eyebrow and Rylan chuckled. "Doing the coffee run for the Mill. I volunteered after Gail mentioned to Aston that you were here."

"How are they doing?" she asked quietly. "Are Logan and Aaron alright?"

He nodded. "Both back to their normal annoying selves. Aston's given them the day off though so I'm going to be working late tonight."

"Can I still go home tonight?"

He nodded. "I've asked the boys to keep an eye on your place until I get home. There's no chance they'll stay in the house all day and I'd rather they do something productive than go off and find trouble."

"Is that necessary?" she asked.

He reached over, grabbing her hand. "It's more of a precaution at t this stage. Last time I left you alone that stalker of yours got to you. I know you like your privacy, but humour me this once, okay?"

She consented to the boys keeping an eye on her house only because she wanted to go home. She loved the Montoya's, but she missed her own things, and her own space. It had been a mad week and she needed some normalcy.

Olivia called out that his order was ready and he gave Norah a quick kiss and headed out. She turned to a new page, and thought of what to buy for dinner tonight. If she was going to be feeding him from now on, she was going to need to increase her food budget.

"Norah?"

She glanced up. "Hey, Madison. Are you all right?"

Madison stood over her, looking more distressed that Norah had ever seen her. Her face was pale, and her hair was sticking out on all ends like she had just gotten out of bed. "I'm fine, but I could use your help."

"Sure." Norah grabbed her stuff and followed Madison outside. She hadn't known Madison for long, but she knew she wasn't the type to ask for help unless it was something important. She jumped into an old white sedan and Norah followed suit. "What's going on?"

"I just got a call from Dante. Wendy is over at his house causing havoc. Or at least I gather she is judging from the screaming I could hear in the background."

Oh crap. "What exactly do you need me to do?"

"Well, I need to get Wendy out of there, and I could use the extra hands."

"Why didn't you ring Charlie?"

"He's busy with work, and I didn't want him to know. He hates Dante and I was worried if he came with me, they would get into a fight."

"I'd still rather have a strong guy with us." Norah muttered.

"Dante wouldn't hurt us."

"It's not Dante I'm worried about."

The drive took half an hour, heading towards Cavenden, where Dante now lived. Norah hadn't been this far out of Bellvale and with the forest behind them, the land become more open, and livestock grazed in the fields. The road was busy with tourists heading back towards to the larger cities as the holiday season approached its end. Madison was still pale and Norah kept an eye on her, concerned there was something else going on.

"Are you sure there isn't anything else the matter?"

Madison sighed, her knuckles white on the steering wheel. "The anniversary of Parker's death is this week."

"Oh." Norah didn't know what else to say.

"I usually go to visit Parker's mother at this time of year, but..."

"You're worried about leaving Wendy alone?" Norah guessed.

Madison nodded. "She's normally very understanding, but she's been so caught up in this argument with Dante, I think it must have slipped her mind or something."

"Then we will have to remind her," Norah said firmly.

The town came into view and Madison took a few turns, heading into suburbia. The fact that she knew her way told Norah volumes. "This isn't the first time you've had to intercept a fight, is it?"

She shook her head. "I wish I could say this was a rare occurrence, but this is the fourth time this year."

"Bloody hell."

Madison pulled up in front of a red brick home. The garden was minimal with a neat lawn and a bed of white roses which were in desperate need of pruning. The only sign of trouble within was a chair lying on its side in the doorway.

"Do we have a plan?" Norah asked.

Madison turned the car off and got out. "Just to get her out before blood is spilled."

"Right," she replied weakly. They headed inside and Norah spent the next twenty minutes in hell.

Wendy was tiny, but her strength was terrifying. They entered to her and Dante in a shouting match. Wendy was too busy throwing objects to notice they had arrived and Madison took the lead, grabbing her arm and attempting to drag her out. It was almost comical trying to get Wendy out of the house. Voices were raised on all sides, Norah had to duck twice to avoid flying hands and on one occasion Wendy's leg connected with her shin, making her double over in pain.  

Dante offered no help, only continuing to rile her up and Norah felt her patience wearing thin. She was on the verge of hitting the man herself when they finally managed to shove Wendy out the front door. As soon as they were out, Dante slammed it shut and Wendy started kicking it.

"Stupid bastard!" she screeched. "Like he needs my bloody money, he should just get it from his whore girlfriend!"

"Wendy! Quiet down," Madison hissed. "People can hear you."

"I don't care! I want to kill him!"

They managed to get her into the car and Madison handed Norah the keys to Wendy's. "Would you mind driving her car home?"

"Are you sure you'll be right on your own with her?"

Madison nodded. "I'll try and have a chat with her."

"Good luck."

Norah climbed into Wendy's car, a black four door hatchback, and followed Madison down the road. She took deep breath, the moment feeling surreal. After dealing with all the supernatural problems in the last few days, something completely normal suddenly felt unfamiliar.

She stared at the white car ahead, What would Madison and Wendy think if they knew of the creatures living in their town? She knew Wendy would most likely be thrilled, though she couldn't be too sure how she would feel about Charlie. When it came to family, everything was different.

Speaking of family... Norah attempted to compose a response to Adam as they reached the outskirts of Bellvale. She continued on, after dropping off Wendy's car and went to buy some food, changing her response again and again. Her first few attempts were harsh, thinly veiled threats of bodily harm. She moved blindly through the grocery store, grabbing all the food on her list as she muttered to herself. The woman behind the counter stared at her strangely but she ignored it.

By the time she was unlocking the front door and stepping inside her house, she had it cut down to something short and simple. Rylan had dropped off her bag that morning, and she pulled out her laptop, firing it up. She bit her bottom lip, her palms sweating as she suddenly became nervous. As she opened her web browser, all the feelings of anger and hate faded away, leaving an ache in her heart. She wanted to see him. She didn't know for sure if she would try to hurt him, or scream at him when she did, but she still loved the stupid idiot. Finding the email, she hit reply -

Tomorrow. Morning visiting hours. Norah x.

 A tension she didn't realise she had been carrying eased from her body as she hit send, closing the browser tab. She still wasn't sure she had made the right decision, but she felt better, knowing she would be able to see him and hopefully put some closure on all the crap between them.

She put on some music - settling for The Beatles - and started fixing up the house. Everything was tidy, but she gave it all a once over, just to be on the safe side. The sun had set by the time she finished, and she had a quick shower, rubbing her bruised shin.

Pulling out the food for dinner, she started preparing meat and salad for tacos. In a normal situation it would have been enough to serve near on eight people. Instead, it was enough for one human and one werewolf - or at least she hoped it was.

The sound of Rylan's motorbike sounded as she placed the cooked meat on the table. "Hi honey, I'm home."

He strode in like he owned the place, a large grin in place. He was covered in dirt and oil, and she prayed he didn't get any on anything now that she had cleaned up. He kissed her and she squirmed away, rubbing dirt from her cheek. "Go and wash up, you smell disgusting."

"Crap, I don't smell at all."

He tried to grab her again and she scooted around the table to evade him. "If you can't smell yourself, then your werewolf senses must be on the fritz."

He pouted. "Fine, I'll wash up."

She grabbed some drinks, putting them on the table while he was in the bathroom and sat down to put a taco together. It would be best  to get in now in case she hadn't made enough food.

Rylan came back in with a clean shirt and water droplets falling from his dark hair. "Better?"

She glanced up, pretending to assess him. "You may be seated."

Taking the seat opposite her, he tucked in. Rylan told her about his day, ands she told him about the drama with Wendy and Madison. Norah finished her first taco by the time Rylan had finished his fifth, and she watched him eat, marvelling at the werewolf appetite. She was going to have to contact Cassie to figure out how much she should be purchasing to keep him from starving.  

"How many have you had?"

"Hmm?" She glanced up from the empty plates, distracted.

He motioned to what was left on the table. "How many have you had?"

"Oh just the one."

Rylan grabbed the rest of the food, enough to fill one last shell and passed it to her. "Here."

"What?" She stared in surprise. "Are you full?"

"Norah," he grinned. "I'm not going to eat all the food on my own. Have the last one."

She laughed under her breath, taking the shell from his hand. She hadn't seen any of the Montoya men give up food while she had stayed with them. This was a big deal.

"Are you sure?" she asked. "I'm not that hungry."

"Eat."

She consumed half of it, knowing he was still hungry, and returned the rest to him. Rather than argue, he ate it in two bites.

"You're so charming," she muttered, grabbing the empty plates.

"Nice of you to finally notice, and here I was thinking you only liked me for my body."

"I like the wolf one," she teased. "Your human one, not so much."

"You wound me, woman."

"You're tough, you'll get over it."

Norah filled the sink and started washing as Rylan grabbed a dish towel. "So the Gathering is two nights from now."

"Your werewolf night, right?"

He nodded, grabbing a plate. "Cassie has been wanting to cancel it, but Holden is adamant. It's tradition and he feels the area will be secure with the two other packs who will be there."

"So, is 'have fun' an appropriate response?"

"It is, as long as you come with me, otherwise it'll be boring."

Norah's hand slipped on a cup. "Why would you want me to go? Won't you be running around on all fours and howling at the moon and stuff? What will I be doing? Offering treats to the best looking wolf?"

"Wow, someone's crabby tonight. There will be other humans there you know. And we don't run around as wolves all night. Only at midnight when we do the Luna run."

"Oh, so I should go?"

"Yes," he said firmly. "And if I find out you've been giving treats out to anyone except me, I'm going to be so mad."

"But what if there is a better looking wolf than you?" she asked innocently.

The dish towel fell around her shoulders and Rylan pulled her close. "That's impossible. I'm the best looking wolf out there."

"We'll see." Rylan leaned in close, kissing her gently. Her eyes closed, her hands coming up to cup his face. He grunted and moved away. "What?"

She opened her eyes and laughed. Her hands had left soapy suds on his cheeks. He wiped them away. "Damn woman, stop trying to clean me."

"I wasn't cleaning," she grinned. "I was just trying the mutton chop look on you."

"Mutton chops, huh?" He stroked his chin in thought. "I'll consider it."

 They finished cleaning up and Rylan put a movie on. Norah grabbed a book, wanting to read and they sat together on the couch in comfortable silence.

Thoughts of tomorrow kept creeping in and Norah knew she needed to check the train times so she could organise the next day. She thought of telling Rylan, but she needed to do this on her own, and she knew he would want to come if she told him.

Halfway into the movie, she put her book down and using the bathroom as her excuse, sneaked off to check the times on her laptop. After looking at the times, she surmised it would take her a few hours to get home by train, and she would have to get the early one if she was to make it in time for visiting hours.

"What you looking at?"

She jumped, slamming the lid shut. "Nothing, just confused about something in the book I was reading."

Rylan raised an eyebrow. "If it's too confusing, you should try The Hungry Caterpillar. It's a nail biter but it might be more to your standard - oomph!"

Norah elbowed him in the stomach. "Bloody standard my ass. I'm going to bed."

"Oh what a good idea."

"Uh uh you sleep on the couch, like always."

Rylan stumbled. "What?"

She stifled a grin. "Oh man, I wish I had a camera to capture the look on your face right now. So gullible."

She squealed as Rylan grabbed her, throwing her over his shoulder. "You are going to pay for that one, Jacobs."

For the first time in over a week, Norah forgot about the monsters and went to bed feeling happier than she had in some time.

 ___________________________________________________
A big thank you to Keevs for making the cover on the side for me and for putting up with my constant nagging <3