Page 18 of Big Bad Wolf: B.B.W

Orion repositioned himself in his seat to better face me. “I asked your father if he would bless you segregating from his pack to join the pack that I belong to. Considering that you are my mate, I think it’s important that we be in the same pack.”

When I asked my father what he said, he smiled.

“I told him that I needed to talk to your mother about it. We talked last night, and I think that would be the best thing. You are there in North Carolina with an active pack that your mate belongs to. They can protect you better than we can here in Arizona.”

I had so many mixed feelings. All of these years that I had been in a pack with my parents, it never meant much to me. Now that my mother and I had our conversation last night, I wanted to be in the pack.

“Um, I don’t know, Daddy. I . . . I know that I’ve been in the pack with you and Mommy forever, but I never really appreciated it until now. I don’t want to lose that communication with you. I understand what you all are saying.”

My body turned toward Orion. I placed my hand over his. “Baby, I don’t want to diminish being in a pack with you. Um, can’t you join our pack? Is that an option?”

Yes, I wanted to be in a pack with my mate, but I also wasn’t ready to not be in a pack with my parents. It felt like I just got here. Like I was a new wolf who just joined a pack.

My mother cleared her throat. “Baby, we understand that. That came up in our conversation, and we figured you may think about that. We stayed up into the early morning thinking about the different options.” She giggled.

“I’m surprised that I was able to get up and cook this morning.

The solution that we came up with, that would possibly take a big life change that Chogan and I agreed with, is to join Orion’s pack. ”

Orion’s enlarged eyes matched mine. “Oh, okay. Is that what y’all want to do? If it is, I can certainly speak with the chief and pack leader about it. How would that work, though? Because they would probably want to meet you and have the ceremony.”

He had all of the questions that I had. One of the main points of pack life was for protection as well as family. If they joined the pack in Lumberton, they would be a part of a new family.

My father leaned forward on the table. “Your mother and I have missed so much of your life, and we don’t want to miss anymore.

We both are getting older, and I never want you to feel how you did when you found out that I was sick.

We’ve decided, if the tribe and pack will have us, to move to Lumberton. ”

I jumped up from my seat. Orion grabbed my chair before it fell back.

“What! Y’all want to move to North Carolina?” I felt like I had ants climbing up my legs because I couldn’t stay still. I looked down at Orion. “Can you call Thaddeus to ask? Please, can you?”

He stood up, then wrapped his arms around my waist. After his lips blessed my temple with a kiss, he let me know that he would make the call now.

He excused himself from the table. While he was away, my parents told me their plans for the house and my mother’s business if they did move.

My father was a mental health therapist, which was crazy if you considered his gift.

We were interrupted by a knock on the door. Orion told us that he would get it.

“I know you’re fucking lying!”

Orion’s outburst caused us all to hurriedly get out of our seats to get to the front door.

What the hell! Dyami stood there with a huge bouquet of roses.

“Dyami, what are you doing here?”

With a straight back and a smirk, he responded. “I came to check on Mr. Summerville. I wanted to make sure everything was going well with him.”

“Oh, so you brought those flowers for Pops? That’s such a nice gesture.” Orion snatched the bouquet out of his hands, then turned to hand them to my father.

My father took it from his hand, smelled it, then said, “No one’s ever given me flowers. I feel so smitten.”

When the hell did my father become so petty? When my mother, who stood next to my father, bent down to smell the roses, I almost lost my mind.

“Don’t they smell lovely, dear?” my father asked mockingly.

“Actually, those roses were for Elodie,” Dyami said as if it was alright. “I wanted to check on her too. Mrs. Summerville, are those your cinnamon rolls that I smell?”

Before I could make a damn move to stop it, Orion’s fist met the middle of Dyami’s face.

“I warned you in that fuckin’ hospital about playing with me. I’m not sure what you thought this was, but you will never disrespect me or my mate.”

Like I knew he would, when Dyami got his footing, he came back at Orion full force with a punch. The fight spilled out into the front yard. My parents’ house was on three acres of land, and the next house was more than four miles down the road. Those facts unlocked a fear that was all too real.

Orion and Dyami were going blow for blow, but my baby was getting the best of him. If I remembered Dyami’s ego, that would not be something he would be alright with. Just as my thought solidified in my mind, my fear came a reality. Dyami shifted into his beast.

“No!”

My father grabbed my arm before I could rush over. He pulled me to his chest.

“No. Let your mate handle his adversary.”

“Daddy, I don’t want Orion to shift. If he does, Dyami might call the rest of the pack!” The thought of it mortified me. “He won’t survive that!”

Dyami’s beast lowered the front of his body in an attack mode. When he growled, Orion laughed.

“You think your little wolf is supposed to put fear in my heart? Let’s see how you play with this.”

I closed my eyes in anticipation of what was to come. I only opened one eyelid because I was too scared to open both of them. Dyami had stepped all the way back at the sight of Orion’s centaur beast. I told my parents that Dyami was calling his pack. There was no way that he wasn’t.

“If they arrive, Chogan, you do not shift. You speak for Orion. Elodie and I will shift,” my mother said. Her instruction shocked the hell out of me.

I thought my father would refuse her instruction, but all he did was nod. What the actual hell! It took me less than a minute to realize that my father’s health may affect his ability to shift. Dyami had yet to attack Orion.

“Orion, baby, just shift back and come in the house. All of this is too much,” I urged. “Dyami, why the hell are you doing this shit? Carry your ass home or something.”

Orion peeked over his shoulder. “Elodie, you go in the house. I promise if he so much as growls at you, I’m going to snap his neck.”

I had never seen him as furious as he was at this moment, and I never wanted to see it again.

“What’s taking you so long, Dyami? Calling for reinforcements? Not sure what to do with my big ass?”

“Orion! He’s calling his pack! Please, baby, just come in the house.”

Tears left my eyes. I was a wolf that had never had to fight. Hell, I could count on two hands how many times I’d shifted in my life. I should have been ashamed of that, but it was what it was.

They’re here! I felt the wolves near. When I glared at my parents, I knew they felt them too. My mother reminded me of the plan. Seconds later, wolves came charging from the woods that were on the left side of the house.

It was instantaneous. My mother and I shifted into our beasts. I ran in front of Orion and let out a vicious growl. They would not touch my mate. I could tell that two of the wolves were females because of their size. Those would be the first I attacked if push came to shove.

My father stepped forward. “Dyami, why do you come on my land and disrespect it? Yesterday, you were told that Elodie is mated, yet you came to my land to disrespect her mate. How about you shift, young man, so that I can hear you. There’s no need for us to talk if I can’t hear you.”

There was a pause before the other wolves surrounded Dyami. Seconds later, he shifted into his human form. He promptly covered his dick with his hand.

“Chogan—”

My father cut his words off. “We are not friends, Dyami. You are not my pack leader, and you are on my land. You are talking to the leader of another pack and your elder. Respect me.”

He stared for a second before he addressed my father again.

“Mr. Summerville, I understand that this thing said he was Elodie’s mate, but he should not be. Especially now that we see he is a different kind of beast. What are you?” A scowl boldly sat on his face to accompany his question.

“What I am doesn’t matter in this conversation,” Orion said flatly.

“What does matter is that Elodie is my mate. I don’t give a damn about what or who you think is worthy.

If you’re worried about who isn’t worthy, take a look in the mirror, lil guy.

So while you’re over here pining over my mate, you better find one of your own. ”

If I was in my human form, I’d climb Orion’s tall ass and tongue his ass down. One of the female wolves reacted to his words, but I wasn’t sure why. I looked back at my father.

“Dyami, it seems like one of your pack members doesn’t take kindly to you pining over my daughter,” my father said with a low chuckle. “Why come after Elodie when you’re telling another that she will be your mate?”

Dyami looked confused. See, my father’s gift was not widely known. When he asked Dyami to shift so they could talk, it was simply a formality. The female got even more antsy. He turned around.

“Shut up!”

She growled at him and my father laughed.

“Daphne, I understand your pain, but my daughter has nothing to do with this. Tread lightly before it ends in tragedy.”

Yeah, Daphne could fuck around and find out if she wanted to.

“Mama, if she does jump, I’ll handle—” Before I could finish my mind speak comment to my mother, this bitch Daphne charged me.

My protective instinct took over. When she jumped, her legs came into my mouth’s reach. She cried out when my teeth clamped down on her leg. I heard another wolf in the distance cry out, but I wasn’t sure what happened to make him or her cry out. I was busy with the Daphne stupid bitch.

Daphne came at me again. She was able to get her teeth on my bottom jaw.

I maneuvered to release myself from her grip, then took a big, wholesome bite out of her stomach area.

This time, she cried out and went down. Seconds later, she transformed into her human form.

Her hand covered her bloody side. Her leg didn’t look good either.

She was no longer a threat, so my head was on a swivel to finally see what else was going on.

The only human face I saw was Orion, who had just thrown a wolf into a tree.

My father! Where was my father? I frantically looked around to see that he had shifted into his beast. He and my mother were fighting the same wolf.

From the corner of my eye, I saw the last wolf standing, who was a female, charge my mate.

Yeah, that won’t work for me. Just as she jumped toward Orion, I used my telekinesis gift to throw her ass halfway across the yard.

She cried out when her body hit the ground.

All these bitches do is cry. Seconds after she hit the ground, she shifted to her human form.

Just like I had never been in a fight of this kind, I didn’t think they had either.

The difference between me and them was that I was protecting someone that was worth protecting. Their pack leader brought them here to fight a fight that should never have occurred. Dyami’s ego allowed him to lose sight of what was important, which was not me.

The wolf that my parents fought lay on the ground lifeless. My emotions took over me, and I shifted. I never wanted anyone to die.

“Call Chief Ahiga now!” I spoke to the last bitch I took down. She was less injured than that Daphne bitch. “Tell him to bring your tribe doctors.”

“Elodie, go in the house. Bring out towels for covering,” Orion demanded. I forgot that I had no clothes on and was exposed.

Dyami was still near the tree that he’d been thrown into, but he was moving and was in his human form. The doctor needed a doctor. I rushed into the house and grabbed towels. Should I grab them for the others? No, fuck them.

Before I went back out, I put one of Orion’s T-shirts over my body.

When I got back outside, my parents were still in their beast form.

My mother was the first to shift. Orion grabbed a towel, put it around his waist, and shifted.

Once me, Orion, and my mother were in our human form, my father shifted.

He fell to the ground, and my mother caught him.

“Daddy!” I rushed over. “Why did you shift? You shouldn’t have shifted, Daddy.”

He smiled. “I’m okay, baby girl. I just need to rest. I don’t care how I feel. I will always protect my family.”

I looked at the two bitches on the ground, Dyami still near the tree groaning, and the other who I feared was dead. This didn’t have to happen.