At first Grant was very gentle and my wolf was nothing other than shocked by his advances. The very tips of his fingers hardly brushed against the tips of my fur, fearing that I would lash out and bite, but I was too surprised to even wag my tail. But when I stayed perfectly still for a moment and didn't show any signs of discomfort his hand became stronger and bolder, playing with my long ears, scratching my neck, and ruffling my coat.

As much as I tried to prevent my wolf from being a lap dog before I couldn't help but love this. If I had been a cat I would've been purring non-stop, but instead my tail was simply whipping itself against the leather of the couch and small whimpers leaked out of my lips whenever he stopped.

I don't know how long this continued, it could have been hours, or just a few minutes, but eventually my ears began to droop outwards and my eyes shut on their own accord. For the first time, I fell asleep on my mate, listening to his breathing and feeling his soft hands run through my fur.

My sleep was peaceful. Far more calm and content than it had been in years and I felt like my soul sighed with happiness inside my heart.

When I woke up I had shifted out of my human form and was splayed across my couch with nothing covering my body. Embarrassed and startled, I gasped, shot up, and quickly wrapped a blanket around myself. Only a second later I realised it was pointless because I scanned the space around me and found it empty. My only company was the bright sun streaming through the windows. Damn, I must've slept through the whole night.

With a yawn I tugged my blanket tighter around myself and then stood up, pausing for a quick stretch before I headed upstairs to my bedroom.

After a quick shower I brushed my teeth and twisted my still wet hair up into a bun before I slipped into some clothes. I don't know why, but standing at my closet I hesitated slightly before grabbing my most fitted hoodie and the least stained pair of jeans I had. Subconsciously I knew I was trying to look good for Grant but when I caught a glance of myself in the mirror I was immediately disappointed. Yes, it was the nicest clothes I had but it was still now dress. I always argued that my clothes were versatile but now I was truly able to see that they were also very frumpy.

So I did something I never thought I would do.

And an hour later I was being dragged around the mall by a very excited Karma.

"I can't believe you asked me to come shopping with you!" she gushed, "You don't seem like the shopping type. I think you've worn the same clothes since you became alpha." She giggled. "You must want to look good for Grant." She pushed, beaming up at me, "It's Grant isn't it?"

"Yeah." I admitted. I tried to look contained or bored when we entered a store loaded to the brim with dresses, skirts, and blouses but I was having a very difficult time holding myself back. It had been ages since I had gone shopping and even longer since I actually wanted to go get new clothes.

"You're so lucky to have a man like Grant." Karma said dreamily. She pulled out a black dress and held it against my body before scrunching up her nose and placing it back on the rack.

"Lucky." I scoffed, "He hates me."

I regretted the words the instant they were out of my mouth. It wasn't because they were true, but rather because I had always been incredibly private and telling someone like Karma about my love life seemed wrong. I was her leader, not her friend. Besides, she wasn't supposed to know what happened behind closed doors.

Karma, as usual, didn't seem to care that I had kind of just spilled my guts. The only sign that she had even heard me was her brow furrowing as she flicked through dresses.

"He doesn't hate you." She said finally, "You just intimidate him."

I scoffed, "Please, how could I intimidate him? Ever since he's gotten here I've been nothing but a mess. I'll be surprised if he doesn't challenge me for my position."

Now Karma scoffed, "He's an omega and from what I understand he comes from a long line of omegas. You are damn near royal blood; he would be a fool to challenge you for the title of alpha. And even if he wasn't an omega and he was somehow able to beat you he still wouldn't truly be the leader. You fought for your right to be an alpha, our pack respects that. They respect and follow you alone, Vienna.

"Thing may have not started out the best for you two and I understand that, but I spent a lot of time with him when he was healing and I really think he admires you. Think about it, you are this headstrong alpha who defied her parents and took over the pack and he was the punching bag for his whole pack. Honestly, I'm a pack doctor and my father was the second in command to your father but I would still struggle a lot if my mate turned out to be an alpha. You hold an amazing amount of power."

"But I'm still a mess." I argued.

She laughed and began loading up her arms with dresses, "Then let's make you a hot mess."

There were days when I really hated Karma for being so perfect, but today was not one of them because she was shaping up to be quite a lovely friend. I still hated her for having such a gorgeous body, such amazing hair, and the prettiest face, but she was being such a doll to me. she had no issue pulling dresses or jeans for me, or plucking at jewelry and make up shelves. I understood even more why everyone else wanted her to be the luna, but I hated her less for it. She was just a genuinely good human being.

She didn't laugh when I tried on heels and nearly fell on my face nor did she giggle when I tried to use a make up highlighter as an eyeshadow. When I opened my mind up a little bit I found that she would be a good luna, she was versatile- having no issue in being a doctor, but no problem with glamorous gowns- she was patient, she was kind, and she was beautiful.

Once my car was full of shopping bags we decided to call it a day and head back home. The drive was quiet, she was exhausted and my head was too wrapped around some thoughts for me to come up with a conversation.

After I dropped her off at her house I went straight home and began unloading the car, only to be stopped by a heavenly scent when I walked through the front door.

"What are you making?" I asked when I saw Grant hunched over the stove, stirring a something.

"French toast." Grant replied, looking up then timidly looking away.

"It's not a supper food." I said with a chuckle, "But it is my favorite food."

He gave me a little smile which made my heart clench with happiness, "I know, Greg told me and I figured you wouldn't want to cook after your day out."

I could now almost literally feel my heart melting in my chest, "Grant, that's so sweet of you." I murmured.

He shrugged his shoulders slightly, "I mean you opened up your home to me and you've taken really good care of me since I've been here. I felt like I had to repay you somehow."

"Don't be ridiculous, you're my mate, what's mine is yours. But, if we're being honest, I wouldn't mind it if you cooked me French toast every day. I'll just drop these bags off upstairs then I will be right back down, okay?"

"Sounds good."

I was basically jumping off the walls as I tried to shove all of my new belongings in my closet. I knew it was just French toast, but it still warmed my heart beyond belief. My mate was finally coming around, even if it was just in small, slow steps.

I bounded down the stairs, back into the kitchen with the biggest grin on my face just as Grant was setting two plates down on the island in front of some bar stools.

"I can't believe you made all of this for us." I murmured as I sat down. My French toast was piled high with an assortment of berries and topped with whipped cream and syrup. It looked beyond heavenly, my mouth was watering immensely. "It looks so wonderful, you must think the food I cook for you is absolute garbage."

Grant shook his head, already shoveling a fork full of food into his mouth. After he swallowed he began to speak, "You've been so kind to me Vienna. You didn't even have to let me into your house but I'm so grateful you did. You've honestly been such a blessing for me and I'm sorry that I've made this all so hard for you." He sounded like he was going to continue but then he shook his head and said, "But your food was great anyway."

"Thank you." I whispered, "That means a lot to me."

We ate the rest of the food in a comfortable silence and once all of the food was gone the awkwardness came back.

"Well, I guess I should go to bed." Grant said with a tense shrug and a choppy laugh.

"Grant." I said, grabbing at his arm. My eyes didn't miss the way he flinched away from my touch slightly, but my brain was already moving on to a more urgent topic, "I don't want you sleeping in the guest room." I blurted.

"Oh?"

I swallowed hard, "It's really gross and dingy, I should've never let you sleep down there in such bad conditions."

"I don't mind it, it's nicer than my old place." He countered.

I shook my head, frustrated with my plan not working so I finally blurted, "I want to sleep with you. I want you in my bed."

.67f:]