My good friend Jess-Sansom, who I go to university with, has published her very first book on Wattpad called: The Prince's Princess.

I highly recommend you check it out as she's a little nervous and would love to receive constructive criticism! If you enjoy it: vote, comment, and add it to your reading lists for updates! Jess is such a lovely person and would really appreciate your time!

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

- Sian

A month later, William was getting stronger as the days went by. Sometimes, he could even hop himself to the bathroom, though it did hurt his injured leg, and Sam was almost always around to help him with his struggles. William's leg was healing well, but just as predicted, the strength wasn't coming back like usual. It felt weak and trembled when he tried to put weight on it, then crumbled underneath him.

Today, he starts physio in hopes of regaining a little bit of strength, enough that he will start walking with crutches and then a walking stick when he is confident enough.

The idea of walking with a stick for the rest of his life was far from comforting, but a price William would pay countless times to save Sam.

He sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for Sam to finish cleaning his own room. William still hadn't set foot in the Beta wolf's territory, but he felt well enough to make the switch.

Over the weeks, the boys grew comfortable with their bond and familiar with spending every spare second together. Hunter gave Sam a few weeks off from the pack to spend as much time as he needed with William, knowing that it can be tough for a mate to cope if their better half is injured, especially if they are a new couple.

Moments later, Sam entered William's bedroom, a little out of breath.

"It was really messy," he chuckled, sitting next to his mate and holding his waist so he could help the human stand. "You can finally see the floor."

"You didn't have to tidy it you know," William chuckled, managing to limp down the corridor with the help of the Beta wolf.

"I did because you need a clear path to move around and it'll soon be our room, not just mine. It's a little inconsiderate to keep it messy."

William nodded, sneaking a peek at his lips, loving how Sam's smile softened his eyes.

"The last time I entered your room, I was drunk, and you kicked me out," he said with humour.

"That was your fault," Sam replied, stopping outside his bedroom and letting William lean against the door frame. "I won't kick you out again, I promise."

"I hope not." William held the door frame while Sam entered his room and stopped to watch his mate's feet. "Are you ready? Can I come in?"

"Yes," Sam breathed, trying to control his heart.

William took a moment, then hopped from the carpet onto the wood, and Sam got so excited that he changed into his wolf, howling with delight.

William laughed as Sam brushed himself against him, then flopped onto the floor and started rolling around, mixing his scent with his mates.

"This is the best day ever!" Sam thought.

"Can you take me over to your bed? I can't stand for much longer." William was like a flamingo, patiently perched on one leg.

Sam changed into his human form and swooped William up in his arms, grinning as wide as possible.

When William sat on his unmade bed, Sam turned into his wolf again, unable to keep it back. He climbed on the bed and nuzzled his nose into Will's neck, licking his skin, needing his taste.

"Sam!" William laughed when the black wolf pushed him onto his back and rubbed their faces together. The human didn't know it would be this stimulating for his mate, though he did expect Sam to be excited, it's his usual state of mind.

Sam changed into his human form once more, breathing heavy with twinkling eyes.

"Sorry, I had a moment."

William pulled him close and hugged him, loving nothing more than Sam being his happy self.

Only recently, the human has fully adjusted to this new way of life; loving Sam. It felt strange and very new to him, especially when he has always been a casual dater, and had to get used to the fact that he will be in a relationship with Sam for the rest of his life. The old William liked the idea of settling down with someone, and now that he admired the idea again, maybe the old William is breaking through his barriers. He can see that people care for him, and he has never been in the way because he's only human. It is daunting living in a house with supernatural beings who are much more potent than the human is, but he has found his worth. William has finally made it out of his depressed episode of self-loathing.

"This is a big step for us," he said when Sam lifted his head to look him in the eyes.

"Yep, and the next step is to move all of your stuff in here."

A loud knock interrupted their conversation. Hunter stood in the doorway with an intrigued grin.

"You finally made the switch then?" he said to William.

"He did!" Sam said, jumping off the bed and joining him at the door. "Did it feel just as good when Jacota entered your room?"

Hunter nodded and said, "It's one of the best feelings." He then straightened up, inspecting Sam with thoughtful eyes. "No more time off now. I need a Beta. Piper's great, but she's just not the same."

"Do I have to today? Please Alpha, can I join you tomorrow? Will has his first physio session today, and I want to be with him."

Hunter sighed and glanced at the human, then to his Beta.

"Fine, but tomorrow you'll join us nice and early for a workout, followed by a hunting session, then a pack meeting. Understand?"

"Yes! Thank you," Sam said as Hunter walked back down the corridor. "Love you!"

"Shut up." Hunter turned to smirk before entering his own bedroom. Jacota was lying on the bed, watching a film on Hunter's laptop. The werewolf stopped and tilted his head. "That is how I want to spend the rest of my day." He jumped on the bed next to him, snuggling into his side, giving himself a few seconds to lap up his scent.

Jacota put an arm around him, and they shared a kiss before turning their attention to the screen.

"How was your run?" The God asked.

"Good. I reached a personal record."

"That's great! What else happened on your run?"

"Not much." Hunter could feel Jacota's eyes burning the side of his face.

"Really?"

Hunter remained silent, and Jacota pulled up his t-shirt to reveal four deep scratches, certainly from another wolf.

"We ran into that white wolf on the edge of our territory. It hasn't been back for weeks until today, so we didn't expect to see it. I changed into my human form so we could talk, but it lashed out at me and ran before my pack could do anything."

"And the scent of the wolf is still familiar to you?" Jacota asked, examining the scratches.

"Yeah. It's familiar to Sam too, but not the rest of my pack."

"I wonder if it'll be familiar to me."

"Maybe, but the wolf will be bold to return. If I see it on the edge of our territory again, I won't want to talk." Hunter pulled his t-shirt down and took Jacota's hand. "I shouldn't have let it get away; I should have stood my ground."

"It altered your pride, didn't it?" Jacota said, trying not to smirk as he squeezed him tight.

"A little bit," Hunter admitted. "I want that pride back."

Jacota rested his chin on the top of Hunter's head and closed his eyes. He waited until the silence settled, and the film turned into background noise.

"Do you ever think about who will be on our side during the war?"

Hunter zoned in on his mate's thoughts.

"I do. I think your cousin is an interesting person to look at because Vic, Nathan and Kayla age like us, and they are almost close family. Well, Nathan and Kayla are, but Vic hasn't been to visit since that day in the sports hall when Will yelled at him. He obviously doesn't like us, and if the wrong side tries to bribe him in any way, he'll go running into their arms."

"I agree, but who is the wrong side? The angels have faith that we'll win, but who are we fighting? They talked about a great betrayal, and there's always two sides to every war. So what is the betrayal?"

"I have no idea," Hunter said, sitting up and running a hand through Jacota's brown hair. It was always a little darker during the cold seasons. "A betrayal between the God's? I don't know. When it does happen, we'll be ready and a lot wiser. I feel wise, and we've only been alive for thirty-eight years. Think about being thousands of years old and all the knowledge we'll learn and all the experiences we'll have."

"It sounds strange when you put it like that," Jacota said, playing with the back of Hunter's hair in return. The werewolf recently got it cut, leaving the top longer than the sides and back. Jay's other hand rested on the side of Hunter's face, rubbing his thumb against his stubble. "I aim to be as wise as my dad," he smiled, "or as wise as Jeronah."

"I want to be as wise as Nana." Hunter lent forwards, pecking his mate on the nose. "You'd think she is hundreds of years old with everything she knows."

"It wouldn't surprise me."

"She looks it too," Hunter shouted when he could smell her scent.

Flora quickly shuffled to their doorway, pointing a crooked finger at her grandson.

"Watch your mouth boy. Every wrinkle tells a story. If you want to be as wise as your beautiful grandmother, you better change your attitude."

Hunter laughed, and his Nana winked, knowing he was joking.

"Anyway," she continued, "You don't need to be thinking about this war just yet. You're still teenagers. Let the adults think about that, and you two have fun while you're young enough to get away with having fun. The world is too uptight for us oldies to do childish things. You won't have this much freedom forever."

"Wanna get drunk tonight then?" Hunter loved his Nana more than the world itself.

"You don't have to ask that twice," she grinned, beaming wider at Jacota, loving to see him out of his shell from time to time. "We can include young William now that he is off his medication."

"That's a great idea," Jacota said, enjoying the thought of living in the moment, instead of worry about the future or stressing about the past. He's going to miss the present if he doesn't stop to take a breath.

"I'll send that hybrid kid out to get us some alcohol, yes?" Flora winked again and left their doorway, completing her mission of changing their conversation to a cheerful topic.