The Beta

XLIX

*Faye*

In spite of Sarah's warning, Titus and Rian continually poked their heads in on our slumber party. Sarah had trapped me in the living room of the cottage she shared with Titus, and we had been watching romantic comedies since six o'clock. I pretended to be enjoying it for her sake. Romance movies had never really been my thing.

"If I have to threaten you one more time..." Sarah warned as Rian peeked in again.

"Just making sure my girlfriend hasn't died of boredom yet," he replied, flashing me a grin.

I rolled my eyes. "We are having a great time. Go do whatever guys do at slumber parties!"

"First of all," Titus said when he popped up beside Rian, "we don't call them slumber parties. We say we're hanging out. And secondly, Rian and I haven't hung out since we were teenagers."

"Then you have lots to catch up on." Sarah turned her back on the boys with a dismissive wave of her hand.

"Waving at me," Titus muttered. "I'll get you later for that."

"We'll see about that," she shot back.

My eyes flickered to Rian, and we shared a smile. He ambled over to where I was curled up on their sofa. His fingers slipped into my hair while he bent down to kiss my forehead. Instinct forced my head to stretch back, making my mouth accessible to his.

"That's it!" Sarah hollered. "You are ruining our sleepover. Out, out, out!"

Rian and Titus were ushered from the living room. I waited until the front door slammed to start laughing. A moment later, she leisurely strolled back into the room. She brushed her hands together like she'd just taken the trash out.

"Boys can be so annoying." She grinned at me. "Now, how does a mug of cocoa sound?"

"That sounds really good, actually," I said.

"Here, come into the kitchen with me. We can talk while I make it."

We made our way into their little kitchen. As she pulled out a pot and filled it with water, I leaned against the counter and observed. She moved fluidly, with purpose. It was quite fascinating to watch.

"So how long have you known Titus?" I asked.

Sighing, she answered, "Our whole lives. We grew up together. The anima kicked in a little over a year ago, though."

"That's...interesting. You can be neighbors with someone for years and never know you're soul mates?"

"In essence, yes. I always liked Titus. I hoped he would be my anima."

I didn't respond. My mind was too occupied with processing the complexity of that. I still hadn't wrapped my head around the whole soul mate thing.

"So...I don't mean to offend you or anything," Sarah said, instantly making my guard go up, "but why hasn't Rian claimed you yet?"

"I'm not exactly okay with him biting me," I replied coolly. The defensiveness in my voice made me grimace.

She smiled politely. "Maybe it's just because you don't understand what it means yet."

"Rian explained it to me."

"Did he tell you that if he hasn't marked you after a few weeks he'll slowly lose his mind?"

Was she serious? I couldn't tell. Lose his mind? That seemed extreme.

"It's a psychological thing," she continued. "Nature orders that animas be together, because the world is safer that way. The mark signifies the bond that seals you together."

"How long until his mind...goes?"

"It depends on the wolf. Some bonds are stronger than others, so the decay happens more quickly."

I sighed. The more I found about this wolf life, the more I wished I had appreciated my normalcy. My life used to be so normal it was boring. Now I craved the simplicity of ignorance.

Sarah poured the chocolate dust into the boiled water and stirred it before pouring the steamy liquid into two mugs. I smiled gratefully as she pressed a black ceramic mug into my hands.

"Sorry if that seemed pushy. I don't hang out with humans very often," she murmured with an embarrassed blush.

"It's fine. All the new info is just a little overwhelming."

"Well, I won't push wolf stuff on you again," she promised, affectionately taking my hand. "Let's get back to our party, shall we?"

Thankful, I grinned. "We shall."