Three Fated Hearts

Chapter 27

~Tia~

Goddess, it’s so warm right now. I wonder if my furnace is broken again. This happened once before, and I had to call the super to fix it. It was way too warm in my apartment, and I was walking around practically naked. I guess I will have to go through all that again. Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

I sigh and stretch; well, I try to stretch until I realize that I can hardly move. I open my eyes and remember that I’m not at my apartment. I moved out and am now back at Emeral Lake Pack. I can hear the soft hum of my mates breathing around me, and I settle back into the pillow. “Are you okay?” I jump a bit, not thinking anyone else was up with me.

“Landon, why are you awake?” Landon nuzzles his nose in my neck and tightens his hold on me. Lincoln is lying on my shoulder, sleeping away.

“I’m a pretty light sleeper. I felt you as soon as you woke up.” I start to turn toward Landon, and Lincoln wiggles next to me. He moves his head off of my shoulder, and I fully turn to Landon. We stare into each other’s eyes while he strokes my back.

Landon’s eyes glaze over for a bit then he refocuses. “Training calls, love.” I nod and kiss Landon sweetly before he gets out of bed. He leans over and smacks Lincoln on the head, causing him to growl and sit up quickly. I try to stifle my laugh as Lincoln gets out of bed, grumbling along the way. They both get dressed and kiss me goodbye.

I stay in bed for a bit before deciding to get dressed and head to training. I can’t hide in the room forever. I will have to deal with this pack, including anyone who doesn’t want me to be here. I put my braids in a high ponytail and throw on a sports bra along with leggings. I tie on a pair of athletic shoes and head out of the room.

I make it outside without running into Luna Kimberly, much to my relief. I make my way to the training grounds and find everyone hard at work. Lincoln and Landon are walking around, watching everyone spar. They are barking orders and correcting positions. I see Mark and Lynn sparing with people. I notice my father on the field, but he doesn’t look my way. I’m sure, at some point, we will cross paths, but I’m not looking forward to it.

I haven’t trained for a while and haven’t trained officially for years. I do miss being out on the field and fine-tuning my skills. I have never experienced training with a large group, but it looks like something I will enjoy. I will need to speak to the twins to see when I can start training. “You aren’t going to get out there today?” I turn to the voice, but I don’t recognize the man. He stands at 6’0 with piercing blue eyes and jet-black hair. He has muscles like the twins do, though a bit less defined. He has his shirt off and sweat on his brow. I don’t think he was training with everyone else, but he has clearly been doing some sort of workout.

“Uh, no. I’m just watching today. Why aren’t you out there?” He smiles, and I have to say it is a panty- dropping smile. I would be extremely affected if I weren’t mated to the twins.

“I just finished an overnight patrol. After that, I go for a long run and do some workout in the gym. I training midday, usually.” I nod in acknowledgment but say nothing. “I haven’t seen you for a long time. Where have you been?”

“Who are you exactly?” He throws his head back and laughs. I watch him with a keen eye.

“You don’t remember me? We were in school at the same time, though two years apart.” That doesn’t jog my memory in the slightest. I have no idea who this is or how we would know each other. “I take it by your silence that you don’t remember me. Neal Woods,” He says with his hand extended to me. I look at his face, then his hand, then back again. I reach out and shake his hand.

“I’ve been in school. I went away for college.” Neal nods and sits on the grass, looking up at me. I’m at a loss for what to do. I really didn’t expect anyone to reach out to me in any capacity, so I feel a bit lost.

“Are you planning to sit down, or would you rather just stand?” Neal chuckles a bit and looks up at me, waiting for me to do something. I decide to take a seat next to Neal, but far enough away so that my mates won’t go ballistic if they see us. “You know, I’m actually glad that you’re back. I regret not getting to know you when we were in school. Now I can remedy that.” Why in the world would he want to get to know me now? Does it even matter at this point?

“Why now?” Neal shrugs his shoulder.

“Why not now? We should go ahead and get to know one another, especially since you are back here. Let me make up for my lack of courage when we were younger.” I guess it wouldn’t be a bad thing to get to know Neal a bit. We are talking about me becoming Luna, and at that time, I will need to be fully aware of my pack members.

“I guess we can do that. Let’s get to know each other.” I’m rewarded with a huge smile, and I can’t help but join in. It will be nice to actually make friends, well, make more friends than I already have. Neal and I spend the rest of training getting to know one another. I have to say he is a funny guy, and I think I can see us having a lifelong friendship. It will be nice to have another ally in this pack because it will only be a matter of time before things get really crazy for me here.