Aspen County

Almost a week after Lovett is up and disappearing into Keene's house for the night, and on the first day of the Full Moon, I wake up to find my arms empty and remarkably cold. I sit bolt upright in bed and frantically look around the plain room. Laughter suddenly drifts toward me, and I skid out of the room, breathing heavily with adrenaline, only to find Louve safely standing in the kitchen next to her brother with Keene at the stove cooking fish. When I make my ungraceful entrance, everyone turns to look at me, but Keene's gaze quickly returns to breakfast.

"Morning," Louve says cheerfully, walking towards me to greet me with a hug and quick kiss. She pulls away slightly. "Why are you breathing so heavy?"

"You're up," I whisper, not bothering to answer her question. Her face is no longer paler than it normally is, her eyes are bright with life again, and she's up and walking around like nothing's wrong in the world. I grab her arms gently, looking her up and down. "How do you feel? Are you dizzy?"

"No, I'm fine. Why does everyone keep asking me that?"

I hug her tightly again. "Because you've been so out of it since all of that shit happened with Monique. I was so afraid that I'd lost you."

"We all were," Lovett adds, emphasizing the 'all' and reminding us that he and Keene are still with us. I quickly release Louve, resisting the urge to roll my eyes but not wanting to get on Lovett's bad side. Again.

"But I've been up the past few days," she protests.

"Only for short bursts, during each of which you always looked and walked like a zombie. But now look at you." I reach out and twirl the black lock of hair around my finger. "Beautiful—radiant."

"Again, her brother is right here," Lovett interrupts. Keene smiles at him and shakes his head.

I allow her to step back and jump up onto the counter to assuage her brother. 'Just because I've been out of it doesn't mean I haven't noticed how much you've been there for me the past few days. I promise to pay you back later.' She winks at me and turns back to Lovett and Keene who are exchanging playful banter, and my mind begins to race with just how she'll be paying me back.

As I watch the scene before me, it's so normal that it's easy to forget that we're all werewolves in some secluded village. It's just a brother and sister and the two people they've chosen to spend their lives with.

I approach Louve and wrap my arms around her, leaning my head against her shoulder and appreciating the peace for once.
* * * * *
After breakfast, Louve and I leave to go for a walk, and I know that Keene and Lovett don't mind. We hurry to the forest, hand in hand, to avoid the prying eyes of the villagers.

"Where are we going?" I ask, knowing that if we would've stayed in the hut, Keene and Lovett would've eventually left us alone.

"To find a new tree," she whispers mischievously.

I chuckle and follow her, remembering our tree in Pennsylvania that we would usually rendezvous under. Soon enough, we find one fairly similar to our old one, and she leans back against the rough bark, wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling me close.

"I really do appreciate how good you've been to me these past few days," she murmurs, her lips only millimeters from mine.

"I love you. I'll always be there for you."

"And thank you for finding me. I couldn't have gotten through all of this without you." She lowers her hand and clutches the hand that I had grabbed the cell bars with, running her thumb over the scar.

"Wouldn't you do the same for me?"

"You know I would."

"Exactly."

I lean down and softly press my lips to hers. She quickly returns the gesture, and it quickly turns into a full on make-out session with her back unsurprisingly pressed firmly against the tree. I take a moment to think about how lucky I am to have her and how I never would have imagined being in a real relationship or settling down with only one girl for the rest of my life three years ago. When we eventually pry ourselves apart and make our way back home, Lovett and Keene are gone.

"When do you think Lovett will be back?" Louve asks as we sit down on the couch.

"Sometime just before sunrise tomorrow."

Her eyebrows shoot up. "Wait—"

"Your big brother isn't as innocent as you may believe."

"Ew! That is so much more than I needed to know!"

I shrug. "Just gives us more alone time."

She shakes her head at me and straddles my hips, kissing me in an obvious attempt to replace the image of her brother and his mate with one of the two of us.

I finally have to pull away for air. "Wow. When you bounced back, you really bounced back."

She grins playfully at me and winks. She then bites her lip as her face scrunches up with thought. "Wait a second. What day is it today? Of the Cycle, I mean."

"Shit, it's the Full Moon tonight."

Louve laughs at my reaction. "Looks like Lovett and Keene won't be getting as much alone time as they'd hoped—in the village, the first night of the Cycle is spent with the Pack that you had originally chosen prior to your arrival. If you grew up here, you spend it with your family."

"Wait, what about the other two nights?" I don't want to waste my only three nights a month as a wolf in a big group as much as I love the Pack like a family.

"Third night you get to spend time hunting with all of the males while I get to just appreciate the Full Moon with all of the other women." She grins broadly at me.

"And the second?" I demand anxiously.

She kisses me quickly and wraps her hands tightly around my neck. "It's just you and me."

I growl with relief as our lips crash back together. We don't want to waste any time we have alone before we have to behave appropriately, and we don't.

We don't even make it to the bedroom.