Inevitably Yours

MICHAEL

Quinn didn’t answer the phone after I called her three times, which wasn’t normal for her. I was irrationally worried that she was just going to vanish on the precipice of my entire life being rocked from beneath me. I needed her to stay my constant now that I knew the truth about Lawrence and my parents. It had only been a day, and I still couldn’t fully wrap my mind around everything.

I was too wound up to sit still and wait for her to call, so I went for a run again. I spent hours and hours pounding my paws into the earth, running back and forth across the pack territory. I avoided Quinn’s house, not trusting myself to know what was going on with her and why she was ignoring me.

The confrontation with my mother kept replaying over and over in my mind. I couldn’t understand how it had never even been muttered about in my living memory that Lawrence challenged my father for Alpha. It changed my whole world, yet everyone else was living normally.

By the time I made myself return to the packhouse, I had a throbbing headache, and my body was aching, but I knew I couldn’t go to sleep.Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

I showered quickly then laid down in bed to check my phone. Almost as if she knew, Quinn’s name lit up the screen, calling me. “Hello?” I answered instantly.

“I am so so so sorry,” she rushed. “I put my phone on silent because we were supposed to go to the movies, then we didn’t, and I forgot to put it back. I just got home.”

“It’s okay,” I sighed, appeased by hearing her voice. “I’m sorry about earlier today with my brother and Mom.”

“I came over unannounced. That is my fault,” she said. “Although, your brother was pretty odd.” She sounded unsure of something.

“What’s wrong?” I asked her.

“Nothing,” she said too quickly.

“No, really, what’s wrong?”

She sighed. “Does your mom hate me for some reason? She looked so mad to find me sitting there, and I didn’t even get a chance to explain. I’ve never even met her before today.”

“No!” I said a little harshly. “No,” I repeated softer. “That was my fault. She doesn’t hate you; she just doesn’t know you. She is very stressed out lately, and a lot is going on.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” she asked softly. She was silent, waiting for me to respond.

Was I ready to talk about it? Did I want to taint the perfect world Quinn and I had with this disgusting mess? Did I want to bare myself to her like this when I wasn’t sure how I felt yet?

“You don’t have to,” she said before I could answer her. “I just think you should know that I will listen if you need that.”

“Thanks, but it’s nothing you need to worry about,” I told her. Quinn was good, and I needed that goodness more than I needed to talk about my biological father right now. “So, what were you doing? You said something about the movies?”

I got Quinn to tell me all about her otherwise typical night out with friends. While I felt a pang of jealousy at not being able to take her myself and scream to the world she was mine, I was happy she had a fun time.

I woke up the next morning realizing that I had fallen asleep while talking to her. I had a text letting me know she was going to go to bed, and she hoped to see me soon. I wanted nothing more than to run to her house and greedily monopolize her time, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to concentrate. Lawrence was paying more attention to me than I had originally thought, which was clear after Founder’s Day. I still had no idea how to find out anything about my biological father with him breathing down my neck.

The Moon Goddess must have been looking out for me, though, because as I entered the dining room for breakfast, my mom was chipper and humming. “Uh, good morning,” I said.

“Good morning,” she smiled. “Sit down. I have chicken and waffles with potatoes!”

“You’re in a good mood,” I said warily.

“Oh, well, it’s a nice day out today,” she said. “Your father left late last night, by the way.” She raised an eyebrow, telling me not to say anything. Tyler was sitting at the table, looking excited as well. Lawrence’s disappearance explained her chipper mood.

“Can I have a friend over?” I blurted out before I could even think about it. My mom stopped, surprised. I didn’t invite anyone over and stopped asking permission long ago. I knew she would be inclined to agree to whatever I asked for, though.

“Sure,” she said. “Usually, you go to your friends’ houses.”

“Just one friend,” I said, pulling a plate toward me. I busied myself piling it with food.

“Can I invite my girlfriend?” Tyler asked my mom.

“Is it the girl that was here the other day?” she asked him pointedly.

“Maybe,” Tyler said. I locked eyes with him and slowly shook my head. Not only was he too young for Quinn, and she was already mine, I knew he was confused about who he was.

“No,” my mom said. “You have some other things to do. And you will be leaving Michael alone.”

Tyler grumbled, but I was silently thankful. Now I just had to make sure Quinn would come over.

–

I texted Quinn right after breakfast, and she immediately replied, asking when she should come over. I told her as soon as possible, and she agreed to come directly from practice. I knew I should start going to band practice, but finding out my father was actually my stepfather and that he beat my father for the Alpha title before I was born sort of had shifted my priorities.

True to her word, Quinn was on my doorstep within a half-hour of band ending. She waved nervously as I opened the door. “Hey,” she smiled.

“Hey,” I said, relieved to see her. I grabbed her arm and pulled her into a hug. I only mildly cared about my mom seeing us. She was blushing when I let her go. “Come on,” I said, intertwining our hands so I could pull her along with me.

We passed Tyler on the way to my room, and his mouth fell open in surprise. I knew he would try to interrupt us now, but I didn’t care. I had Quinn here, and I was taking her to my room.

Her eyes went wide as we entered my room. She looked around curiously. “It’s so clean,” she said.

“Yea, my uh, parents are pretty strict about that stuff,” I said. I sat down on my bed while she looked at everything in my room.

“Wow,” she said. “You have a lot of trophies.” I smirked at her compliment. She was wearing shorts and a t-shirt, and I ached to get my hands on her soft skin.

“I thought we could just hang out and watch a movie,” I said as her eyes scanned my small bookshelf.

“That sounds nice,” she said, turning to me. “I didn’t sleep last night, so I’m not up for much.”

I frowned. “You didn’t go to bed after you texted me?” She just shook her head. I patted the bed next to me, and she came to join me, sinking down lightly onto the soft quilt over my bed. “Do you want to pick the movie?”

“No, you can,” she smiled at me.

“You don’t like to pick things, do you?” I asked. She shook her head, and I tucked that kernel of knowledge away for the future.

“I’m not too choosey,” she laughed.

I got up and threw something in my DVD player at random, not expecting to pay any attention to it anyway. I just wanted to be with Quinn. Before closing my door and giving us privacy, my mom appeared in the doorway.

“Oh, you have a girl here,” she said, catching sight of Quinn. Quinn jumped up immediately, bowing respectfully to my mom.

“Mom, this is my friend Quinn,” I said carefully. “Quinn, this is my mother, Luna Claire.”

“It’s so nice to meet you,” Quinn said in a quiet voice; she sounded timid.

“It’s nice to meet you too,” my mom said distractedly. Her eyes darted between us.

“That doesn’t look like that one girl,” she linked me.

“It’s not,” I replied. “Leave us alone.”

“Michael,” my mom warned.

“We were just going to watch a movie up here so Tyler wouldn’t be tempted to interrupt,” I said smartly.

“Oh right,” my mom replied, caught off guard. “Have fun. Be good.”

“Leave the door open,” she said as she walked away.

I waited until she was down the hall, then shut the door anyway. Quinn looked taken aback when I joined her. “You okay?” I asked. She nodded.

“I don’t think she likes me,” she whispered.

I laughed. “Trust me, it’s not you,” I said. I got up on the bed, sat back against the headboard, and pulled Quinn to sit with me. I grabbed the remote, hit the button to play the movie, and put my arm around Quinn. Her stiff posture relaxed a little.

Quinn looked up at me with a weird look. “What?” I asked.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” she asked.

“I’m a lot better now,” I said, pulling her a little closer. The pinkness returned to her cheeks as she nodded.

“I said door open, Michael,” my mom linked. I tried to ignore her. My eyes lowered to Quinn again as she watched the movie. Slowly, I brought my arm over her lap and pulled her legs over mine, twisting her to lean into me more. Her eyes widened, but she didn’t say anything.

I ran my fingers along her legs, noticing how the pale skin was tinted pink. I wondered if it was the result of all the time she spent outside between running and band. After a few minutes, she shifted, cuddling closer into my side.

This was exactly what I wanted. I wanted to be distracted from the train wreck of my reality; I wanted to consume myself in all the little things that made this she-wolf so perfect. If I was candid, I wanted to bury myself in her with how much she turned me on, but I knew she wasn’t ready.

“Michael, who is that girl?” my mother interrupted yet again.

“Leave us alone,” I said.

“That doesn’t look like the girl you were dating. Tyler was all over that one before,” she said.

“Don’t worry about it, Mom,” I said.

“What happened to the other one? Adrian or something,” she pushed. I ignored her again, trying to stay present with Quinn.

“Is something wrong?” she asked softly, looking up at me.

“No,” I said. “Nothing important.” I leaned forward and kissed the space right between her eyebrows. She closed her eyes and leaned into me slightly. I moved my head next to hers, my nose lightly trailing down the side of her face. When my lips were only a breath away from her ear, I whispered, “Do you want me to k**s you, Quinn?”

Her body reacted just the way I wanted. I could feel the shiver run through her, and the bumps raised on her bare flesh. Her breath caught as she nodded ever so slightly. I lightly kissed the side of her jaw, tracing it slowly with my lips until I reached hers. I pulled her even closer with the arm I had around her while my other hand began to knead the tender flesh of her thighs. My b***d sang with the idea of these thighs on either side of my face.

Quinn kissed me back enthusiastically, but not aggressively. She was pliant under my touch, only adding to my excitement. I shifted to my side, allowing me to lean over her better as we slid down the bed. Her legs stayed over mine as my hand crept up to the now exposed skin of her midriff. She giggled a little at my touch.

I pulled away from our k**s, teasing her stomach a little. “Ticklish?” I taunted.

“Please don’t!” she gasped, trying to contain her laughter.

I gave her a playful look. “Hmmm,” I said, pushing myself lower. Her eyes went wide as I descended to her middle. I pushed her shirt up slightly and planted teasing k****s along her soft stomach.

“What are you doing?” she giggled. Her laugh was pure music, and I wanted to hear it more.

“Seeing how ticklish you are,” I murmured into her skin.

“Michael, you better not have your hands on that girl under my roof,” my mom linked. She was going to make me snap.

“Leave us alone,” I replied, trying to focus on Quinn. My door flew open, and my mom glared at me. Quinn wiggled, trying to quickly pull her shirt down and untangle herself from my grasp.

My mom held my gaze for a minute before storming off. “I want to know what you are doing with that girl,” she demanded.

“I’ll tell you what I am doing with Quinn when you tell me where my father is,” I shot back, knowing it was the only weapon I had to shut her up at this exact moment. I sighed and dropped my head, making Quinn stop struggling out of my grip.

“Sorry,” I muttered. Quinn shook her head with a worried look. “I guess we should watch the movie.” I moved back up to sit against my headboard. Quinn moved her legs off me but then curled herself up next to me with her legs tucked underneath her. When I draped my arm back over her, she didn’t pull away.

“Sorry if I made your mom mad,” Quinn whispered as we resumed watching the movie. I squeezed her to me and kissed the top of her head.

“You didn’t,” I tried to reassure her. Without giving her a complete explanation, I knew Quinn wouldn’t understand why my mom acted like this. My mom and I still had some things to work out concerning this father issue.