Ring, Ring.

“Hello.”

“There has been news. The Lycan King has fallen.”

“Well, it was only a matter of time. Who killed him?”

There was a pause.

“Well….”

“There have been rumors.”

“What kind of rumors?”

“It seems he was killed by a hybrid.”

“A hybrid?”

“Yes, a girl. She is part witch, part wolf.”

“That’s impossible.”

“It’s what I’ve been told.”

“Find out everything you can about this hybrid. Where she’s from, who she’s talked to, what coven she belongs to, everything.”

“Yes, milady.”

They hung up.

Madeline drummed her fingers. “Philip!” she called out.

A moment later, a gentleman came to her office.“Yes, milady.”

“Gather my things, it looks like we’ll be making a trip to my old hometown.”

“Yes, milady,” he said as he bowed and walked away.

“A hybrid,” she said with uncertainty.

***

Amanda tossed in her sleep.

“You should’ve killed me when you had the chance. Say hello to your little wolf for me.” He pulled his head back as his fangs grew.

Fabian’s breath hitched as he pulled his head back down to look at Amanda and then down to his chest. Amanda’s hand was stuck in his chest and wrapped around his heart.

“Tell Kimmy I said hi,” she told him as she squeezed his heart until he breathed his last breath. She let him drop to the ground.

Amanda woke up screaming, she started to look around the room and realized it was just a dream. Just a horrible dream. Hudson came rushing into her room.

“What is it? Are you okay?” He asked as he looked around the room, ready to fight whatever was hurting his mate.

“It’s nothing, I’m fine. It was just a dream,” she told him as she ran her hands through her hair.

Hudson came and sat next to Amanda on her bed. He put his hand on her back and gently rubbed it.

“Same dream?” he asked softly.

She nodded and let out a breath.

“Do you think you’re really ready to go back?”

Amanda looked up at him. “To school? Yes, I think it will be good to have something normal in my life,” she told him as she got up from the bed and walked over to the window. It was still dark outside. She had been staying at the pack house since that day so that Hudson could be close by in case she needed him.

Hudson got up from the bed, walked over to Amanda, and wrapped his arms around her waist.

“Yes, that’s true. But, Amanda, this will be your normal. You just have to give yourself some time.”

Amanda let out a sigh and nodded.

“I know, it’s just been so much these last few weeks. I guess I haven’t given myself a chance to let it all sink in.”

Hudson nuzzled his head into the side of Amanda’s neck and purred.

Amanda giggled.

It felt good having Hudson close to her, and he was helping her to calm down.

“Have you talked with Ruby at all?”

Amanda froze.

She hadn’t talked with Ruby since before the kidnapping. She didn’t know where to start with her. There were so many unanswered questions. She knew it wasn’t Ruby’s fault her parents were dead, but that didn’t stop her from avoiding Ruby and ignoring her phone calls. She knew she wasn’t being fair. But it was still a lot to process on top of everything else.

She shook her head.

“No, I’m not ready to open that wound just yet.”

Hudson blew a hot breath onto Amanda’s skin. She smiled. She loved feeling the connection that she and Hudson had run between them.

“Hudson?”

“Hmm.”

“Will you stay with me for the rest of the night?”

Hudson lifted his head and turned her so she was facing him. He wrapped his hands around the sides of her face. “Of course.” He lowered his lips to hers and kissed her, then let out a slight growl when she pulled away from him.

“Just sleeping,” she said, pointing her finger in his face.

Hudson threw his hands up in surrender. “What? I didn’t say anything.”

“You didn’t have to,” she told him as she walked back over to her bed and slipped under the covers.

Hudson chuckled.

He walked over to the other side of the bed and slipped under the covers too. He pulled his mate against his chest and wrapped his arms around her.

Amanda let out a sigh.

“You know, it’s going to be a lot harder for us to do this when we are back on campus, unless…”

“Unless what?” she asked as she turned to look back at him.

“We have our mating ceremony and tell the school that we’re married,” he said with a smirk.

Amanda’s eyes widened. She smacked his arm as she turned back around. “Hudson, it is way too soon for us to do that. Can’t we just enjoy dating for a while?”

Hudson put his lips on Amanda’s shoulder and blew another hot breath onto her body.

She quivered with delight.

Hudson smirked at her reaction.

“You know it’s going to happen sooner or later.”

Amanda let out a heavy sigh.

“I know, but a girl dreams about being wooed by the guy that loves her. I was just hoping to get to experience that since I didn’t in ….”

Hudson groaned.

He knew what she was going to say. Since she didn’t get to in high school. He was never going to live that down.

“Alright, alright. I’ll be Mr. Romantic for you.”

Amanda squealed as she wiggled in the bed.

“Stop that.” he scolded her.

“What?” she giggled.

“You know what… Teasing me… Just. Go. To. Sleep,” he growled.

Amanda let out her last laugh. “I love you, Hudson.”

Hudson leaned in and kissed her head. “I love you.”

“Amanda? Are you done packing yet?” Hudson asked when he knocked on her door.

“Yep, all set.” She said as she closed her suitcase and zipped it up.

“Come on, mom is almost done with making us breakfast.” He told her as he grabbed her bag and pulled her out of the room.

They walked down the stairs and headed into the kitchen.

Cynthia was finishing up making breakfast with Martha, the pack cook. Cynthia turned when she smelled her son, and her future daughter-in-law walked in.

“Oh, I’m so sad to see you both go. But it will be good for you both before you settle into your rolls here at the pack. Now come and sit, you need to eat before you go.”

Hudson pulled Amanda over to the long table and pulled out a chair for his mate.

“See chivalry at its best.” He said with a wink.

Amanda rolled her eyes but smiled. She was enjoying the attention he was giving her.

Tabitha and Marco walked in shortly after.

“I see the lovebirds have finally emerged.” Hudson teased.

Tabitha looked at him and growled.

“You two, get to the table. You don’t have much time to eat.” Luna Cynthia scolded.

The table was filled with an arrangement of different foods. Amanda was still not used to having such an appetite. She didn’t want Hudson to think that she ate too much.

“Is that all your going to eat?” Hudson asked.

Amanda looked at her full plate.

“My plate is pretty full.” She told him and then looked down at her figure. Her figure had started to change since her wolf had emerged. Her figure had already been curvy after turning eighteen. She was worried about becoming too curvy for Hudson’s liking.

Hudson brushed her hair behind her and kissed her temple before he whispered, “You’re beautiful, no matter how curvy you are.”

Amanda felt the heat behind his kiss and words. Her body instantly relaxed.

“So… excited to be my roommate again,” Tabitha asked as she put a piece of bacon in her mouth.

Amanda laughed and nodded.

“It’ll be a nice change.”

Tabitha laughed and agreed.

“It will be nice to have some girl time again,” Tabitha admitted.

“It feels a little weird, though, doesn’t it?” Marco chimed in. “Going back without Noah and Foster.”

Hudson growled when he heard Marco say his two ex-friends' names. His father, Ben, gave them and his uncle an honorable pack burial. Hudson didn’t agree with his father’s decision. They were traitors to the pack. They deserved to rot in the ground with unmarked graves. His father explained that a good, strong Alpha forgives and doesn’t hold grudges against the dead. It also had been undetermined if they were disloyal to the pack or just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“I know you are still upset, Hudson, but they were our friends for a long time,” Marco explained.

Hudson stood up, grabbed his plate, and headed for the kitchen.

Marco looked at Amanda and Tabitha with a sad look.

Amanda sighed.

She never liked Noah and Foster, they were always cruel to her, even when Hudson wasn’t around.

“You guys finish eating, I’ll go talk with him,” Amanda told him.

Amanda picked up her plate and headed into the kitchen. Martha was at the sink washing the dishes.

“He went that way.” She said as she pointed outside and took the plate from Amanda.

Amanda smiled.

“Thank you.”

Amanda placed her hand on Martha’s shoulder and rubbed it before heading out of the kitchen.

Amanda stepped out the front door and looked around. When she spotted Hudson, she walked up to his side. She tapped his arm gently.

Hudson stood there for a moment with his arms crossed over his chest. He finally looked down at his mate. He rolled his eyes, uncrossed his arms, and wrapped one of them around his mate.

Amanda wrapped her arms around his waist and looked up at him.

Hudson was still staring out into the fields.

“Hey?” she said to him.

He grunted back.

“It’s ok to miss them and be mad at them at the same time.” She said softly.

Hudson’s shoulders dropped.

“It just doesn’t make sense.”

“You’re right, it probably doesn’t make sense to you. But remember, they were still not the greatest to me.”

Hudson’s grip tightened.

Was it always going to lead back to him and how he treated her? It seemed so long ago after everything they had been through, but it hadn’t even been a year.

He leaned down and pressed his lips against the top of her head.

“I’m sorry.”

“Hudson, I didn’t mean that towards you.” She tried to explain.

He turned and put his finger to her mouth.

“I know.”

He leaned over more and kissed her.

Hudson let out a sigh as he felt calm.

“Maybe you’re right.” He told her.

“About what?”

“Maybe we do need some normal in our life to get past the hurt we’ve endured recently.”

Amanda squeezed Hudson.

It hurt her to hear her mate sound so sad.

“Come on, let’s get Tab and Marco and get on the road.”

Amanda nodded, she turned to make her way toward the packhouse when she was picked up and thrown over Hudson’s shoulder.

“Hudson, I can walk, you know.” She yelled while she hit his back, which of course, didn’t phase him.

How about some help, wolf? She said to herself.

Thbbft.

That was what she got as a response.

Great, just great.

Ever since that dreadful day, her wolf took over and killed the Lycan king. She and her wolf had yet to get along. Her wolf buried herself deep inside her, only making noises when their mate was close or far away.

Hudson chuckled.

“Got to get out of this sour mood somehow.”

Amanda rolled her eyes and grumbled under her breath.

Her wolf purred at the touch of their mate.

Traitor!

Hudson put Amanda down once they got to the SUV.

Amanda crossed her arms and pouted at her mate.

“Don’t pout, love, if you’re good, I’ll take you out later.”

Amanda’s heart lifted when she heard this.

“Really?” she asked.

He lifted her chin and stared into her hazel eyes, “Only if you’re good.” And tapped her chin with his knuckle.

Amanda stared at him for a moment. She wondered what he meant by that.

Hudson chuckled as he watched his mate.

He then whistled very loudly.

“Let’s go!” He called out.

Tabitha and Marco came out of the house, followed by his mom and dad.

Cynthia walked over to Amanda and pulled her into a hug.

“We’ll see you before the next full moon?” She asked Amanda.

“I promise to be back for it.”

Cynthia then walked over to her son.

“Watch out for her and protect her.”

Hudson nodded his head.

“Don’t worry, mom, I will.”

Ben walked over to his son and shook his hand.

“Good luck, son, make sure you watch your back, you can never be too careful.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Hudson got into the back of the vehicle and pulled Amanda against him.

“Alright, Stan, let’s head back.”