The Mating Rules

Isaac’s POV

I run my fingers through my hair nervously as I stand outside of Raelyn’s room exactly one hour after I left her here, my mother’s gift clutched tightly in my left hand.

I’m not sure exactly what got into me, but as I dropped her off at her room, her honey taste still on my tongue and the mould of her breast forever branded into my palm, I couldn’t bring myself to leave her for the night. The words had fallen from my lips without thought and as she tried to come up with reasons not to come, the possessive side in me had needed to make her comply, to come with me.

Even with her agreement, walking away from her was still one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do, my body yearning for her as soon as I turned to leave. It took me a total of fifteen minutes to get ready, rushing through my shower as the need to return to the stubborn red head consumes me. I’ then ended up prowling around my room like a bear for forty five minutes waiting for the clock to tell me I can go back and see her.

Now I’m standing outside of her door again, and I’m trying to get a hold of myself. Fighting to reign in the side of me that doesn’t care she’s an Omega and I’m a Beta, the side that wants her so badly, I ache for her.

Taking a slow breath in and out, I raise my hand and knock against her door, taking a step back so as not to seem to be crowding her.

A few seconds pass and then I hear the distinctive click of a lock before it opens a few inches, one green eye peeking out at me before it opens fully to reveal the Omega to me.

My breath leaves me in a whoosh as I stare at her, and I’m vaguely wondering if I should place my hand under my chin as I’m sure my mouth has fallen open.

Raelyn is dressed in a simple summer dress that has small red flowers printed on the fabric, her hair is plaited into a French braid that falls over her right shoulder down the side of the spaghetti strap that holds the dress in place. Her legs are bare, a pair of red three inch heeled sandals gracing her feet which still doesn’t bring her anywhere near my own height.

Her face is devoid of make up allowing her natural beauty to shine through and I easily admit that I prefer her like this. She doesn’t need all that crap that some women cake on to their faces, she is stunning.

‘Do I look OK?’ she asks nervously, running a hand down the front of her dress and I realise I’ve been standing there like a fool who has lost the ability to speak.

‘Yes’ I rush out quickly, ‘you look amazing, beautiful . . uhh . . ‘ I rub my hand down the back of my neck, trying to cut off the words that seem to now not be able to stop falling out of my mouth. Clearing my throat I start again, ‘you look lovely this evening Raelyn, thank you for agreeing to attend my mother’s party with me.’

Raelyn’s cheeks flush as she steps out of her room, locking it carefully before slipping her small hand through the crook of my arm, sending tingles through me.

‘You look very handsome too’ she murmurs, glancing at me shyly, ‘and it’s a pleasure to accompany you Beta, thank you for inviting me.’

I want to wrap my arm around her, pull her against me but I don’t instead I give her a small smile as we make our way along the corridor and down the stairs toward the front door.

My vehicle is already parked outside, the keys waiting in the ignition as I had one of the warriors bring it out for me. Normally I’d just run to my parent’s house but that wouldn’t be acceptable with Raelyn accompanying me, so instead we’ll drive around the roads to my old home.

Opening the passenger side door, I wait for the she wolf to slip into the seat, tucking her dress around her before I shut it again firmly.

Jogging around to my own side, I slide the gift into the pocket of my jacket before climbing in behind the wheel and starting the engine.

Pulling away, I sneak a glance at the woman beside me, watching her as she stares through the side window, up at the lights that can already be seen from the pack house as dusk settles around us.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

‘I feel bad about turning up without a gift’ she murmurs softly, her gaze remaining outside, soaking in how the territory looks at this time of day.

‘You did get her a gift’ I reply firmly, ‘this is from both of us.’

She shakes her head, turning toward me, placing her small hand on my forearm in a familiar way that I love.

‘That is your gift for your mother’ she replies mildly, ‘you don’t need to add my name on to the end. I can maybe bake her some cookies or something tomorrow and give them to the Beta for her when I see him? I hope she won’t mind if I’m a day late.’

My heart clenches at the thoughtfulness behind her words, as though it isn’t an inconvenience to make cookies for a woman she’s never met before.

I remove my hand from the steering wheel, lacing her fingers with mine. ‘You don’t need to make her anything, you helped me pick this gift for her, without you, she would have definitely ended up with that peacock clock I saw.’

‘But I didn’t pay . . ‘ she starts to protest.

Boldly, I lift her hand to my mouth pressing my lips lightly against the skin as her words die, her eyes widening as she stares at our clasped hands.

‘Not everything is about money Rae’ I growl softly, ‘you gave your time and your ideas, that is worth more to my mother than a few dollars.’

The she wolf blushes even though she mutters, ‘I would hardly call four hundred dollars a few.’

I can’t help the deep rumbling laugh that bursts out of me, and I have to grip the steering wheel harder as I accidentally jerk it sideways, the vehicle wobbling slightly before I get it back under control.

‘Are you saying that my mother isn’t worth four hundred bucks?’ I tease.

Raelyn’s smile lights up her face as she releases my hand and pushes my shoulder gently. ‘I don’t even know your mother’ she scoffs, ‘but if I have to base it on her children, I’d say you underpaid for her gift.’

I feign shock, ‘did you just . . . compliment me?’ I gasp, ‘the sassy and stubborn Raelyn just paid me a compliment!’

Raelyn giggles, shaking her head, ‘no’ she scoffs, ‘if anything I was complimenting your mother and her exceptional parenting skills regarding your sister. I was also showing awe at the fact that she managed to raise someone as unbearably bossy as you.’

I growl at the woman beside me playfully, making her laugh more, ‘I’ll have you know that I was a very well behaved young pup’ I retort, ‘it all went down hill after me, I’m actually surprised they kept going after Bailee.’

Raelyn snorts, wrinkling her nose up in a way that is just adorable as she shakes her head at me in amusement.

‘You are full of baloney Mr Sparks’ she retorts teasingly, giggling to herself repeatedly until we are pulling up outside my parent’s home.

As her focus turns to the brightly lit house, all the humour leaves her body, replaced by nerves that radiate off her as she tugs at her skirt as though she’s trying to cover more of her legs.

Climbing out, I hurry around the front of the truck, open her door and hold out a hand, in which she places her own, allowing me to help her out.

Straightening up, she eyes me uncertainly, ‘are you sure that it’s OK for me to be here?’ she asks, her gaze drawn to the door that you can just hear the sound of laughter coming from the other side. ‘I can just walk back across the grounds, it’s not an issue.’

I shut the door behind her and do what I wanted to do from the moment she opened the door to me earlier. I wrap an arm around her waist and pull her into my side, reaching out to tuck a few strands of hair behind her ear that escaped her plait as she looks up at me.

‘My mother is going to be thrilled to have you here to celebrate with her’ I rumble. ‘She’ll probably be happier to see you than me if I’m completely honest.’

My words have the desired effect, and she laughs, leaning into me slightly as she rests her head against my shoulder almost instinctively.

‘I’m sure that she would be heartbroken if her big baby didn’t come over to see her on her birthday’ she murmurs.

My grip tighten on Raelyn’s waist slightly, enjoying the feel of her against me, ‘if I thought really hard, I’m sure I’d find a barb about me in there somewhere’ I reply, my voice lower than normal.

A shudder runs through the Omega that I’m sure has nothing to do with the cooler air and more to do with her reaction to me. The side of me that hates the rules, purrs in satisfaction at the way the woman beside me responds to me.

Clearing my throat, I reluctantly pull away, but unable to keep my hands to myself, I still link our hands together, smiling down at her.

‘Come on’ I murmur, ‘we’d better get in there before my brother eats all the cake.’

Raelyn raises an eyebrow at my serious expression, ‘not kidding’ I growl, ‘three tier birthday cake that dad had made, especially for mum one year. My brother was seven, snuck in the kitchen while mum opened her gifts and ate all of it. Kid was sick as a dog all night, we all had to listen to him alternate between crying and vomiting while mum sat with him on the bathroom floor.’

Raelyn’s eyes are like saucers, ‘surely he went off cake after that?’ she gulped, pulling a slightly horrified face.

I shake my head, ‘nope, still loves the stuff, hence why we all get to the house early when someone has a birthday. You turn up late, you are not getting any cake.’

Reaching out, I open my parents’ door without knocking, the sound of my family’s chatter and laughter hitting me like a sledgehammer. I can’t help but smile as I walk inside, pulling Raelyn with me, and shutting out the evening air before heading toward the kitchen where the noise is coming from.

Walking into the room, I find it filled with my family members, Mum is sat at the head of the table, some weird plastic tiara on her head and a sash inscribed with ‘it’s my birthday’ that I’m almost sure was bought by my youngest sister Lauren.

Caden and my father sit on one side of the table, heads bent together as they talk quietly. My sister on Caden’s other side and Hadley at the other end. Up the other side is my sister Lauren who has her head in her phone, her best friend Tyler is next to her, also on his phone but I can see the longing looks he’s throwing her way. Yeah pup, she still has another year before her claiming, looks like me and you will be having a word at the next training session.

My Brother, Philip takes up the final chair, his mate on his lap as he crams a huge slice of cake into his mouth. Missy is resting a plate on her very pregnant belly, taking tiny bites as the plate jumps periodically, making both parents to be chuckle.

Philip’s son, Paulie, is playing with Jamie-Lee’s kids, though he’s only three, the older ones are careful around him, including him in their game as he giggles cutely having no idea what the game is about but just loving being with his cousins.

As I walk further into the room, my mother looks up, the smile on her face widening for a second before her gaze moves to Raelyn beside me. Noticing the change in my mother’s body language, everyone else looks toward us, the whole room going silent as Rae fidgets slightly beside me.

‘Happy birthday mum’ I call out, striding over, my hand tightly clasped around Rae’s so she has to come with me. ‘I hope it’s OK, but I brought a friend with me, this is Raelyn.’

The Omega raises a hand self consciously, waving awkwardly at everyone, ‘hi,’ she murmurs, ‘it’s nice to meet you all.’