His Match

Chapter Ten

As a child, I never enjoyed stories of princesses. In fact, I hated the people who turned them into movies for the world to see. Why would they build up hopes in young girls, only to have them have their dreams torn apart in adulthood? The odds that a girl would become a princess were almost slim to none.

But, as I sat in the back seat of Ashton's car, I wished nothing more than to be Cinderella. I would rather be in a shining carriage with a handsome prince than in this car with Ashton. The bumpy road left me feeling nauseas, or perhaps it was the driver.

"Are we almost there?" I muttered more to myself than to him.

"Ten minutes or so," he said quickly.

I turned my head to see out the window. We were coming to a forest that was lined with thick trees. I wasn't sure if this was neutral ground or his territory, but I was curious. I needed to be able to plan my escape without running into trouble.

I had decided that I would run away. Ashton clearly wanted no part in this, and neither did I. This was a burden to both of us, and it would be better if we could forget each other completely. I didn't know where I would go, but I hoped it was far enough that I could leave without a trail.

My head turned to the window further away from me as a loud crowd was standing around a road. I groaned, assuming it was his pack. It seemed Ashton wasn't too happy either, as I heard him mutter incoherently under his breath.

"Remember what I said," he reminded me.

I nodded, "I know. Pretend to be Little Miss Sunshine who's madly in love, and then go back to hating you."

"I didn't put it exactly like that, but alright." A hint of humor tinted his voice, but I ignored it. I was not in the mood to respond sarcastically.

As we approached, the crowd came closer into view. There were people of all ages. There were children, men, and women. I felt a bit nervous, but tried my best to push aside the nerves.

The car came to a stop and the doors opened. We both stepped out and the crowd silenced. "I have returned," Ashton addressed the crowd, "and with my mate, Harley." After he finished, the crowd cheered loudly. I waved slightly and Ashton spoke more. I tuned him out and scanned the crowd. The people were all tough-looking, but beautiful. There was a certain grace to their strength.

Before I knew it, I was being led into a large room. Ashton was behind me along with a girl who looked to be a bit older than me. "I need to go and attend to some work, but this is Katrine. She'll be keeping an eye out for you." He promptly left the room with no further information.

"Hi, I'm Katrine," the girl smiled at me.

"Harley," I responded. It was silent for a minute. "It's quite beautiful here."

Katrine bounced a bit, "Oh isn't it? Have you seen the grounds yet?" I shook my head. "Well I must show you. While we do, we can talk more about you. I just would love to hear the story of how you and my cousin met.

"Ashton's your cousin?" I asked.

"Unfortunately so," she giggled. I laughed and she ran a hand through her ponytail. "Well, let's get going. I think you're going to love it here." She opened the door for us and I walked outside.

"That makes one of us," I whispered to myself.