She wore bright purple glasses and a matching purple dress that looked fairly new, and I knew she must have made it herself. She liked making her own dresses; a talent I wish I had at 13 years old.
I opened my arms out to her and pulled her into a tight embrace.
“What are you doing here?”
Corrine asked at the same time as my mother.
Ignoring both their questions, I asked a question of my own.
“Where’s your brother?”
She looked up at me and I could see the annoyance in her eyes.
“He ditched me to hang out with his dumb friends,”
she muttered. “He and his best friend, Justin, met these girls at school and they spend all their time with them.”
“Without you?”
I asked, raising my brows.
It was unusual for Flynn to uninclude Corrine; they might be growing older, and Flynn might annoy the crap out of Corrine, but they were always glued to the hip growing up.
“It’s been like that for a few weeks,”
my mother explained, placing a hand on Corrine’s shoulder. “But I tell Corrine that she should give some of the girls at school a chance. They’ve been wanting to hang out with her.”
“I’ve been busy training with Uncle Don,”
Corrine shrugged. “I don’t have time for meaningless friendships.”
“Friendships are never meaningless,”
I tell her with a small frown. “The right friends can make you stronger.”
“Besides, I’m sure Donovan wouldn’t mind if you took a break once in a while,”
my mother added, winking at her. “Did you finish your homework?”
“Almost,”
she said, stepping away from us. “I just wanted to grab a snack.”
“Then how about you grab a snack and finish your homework,”
my mother said to her.
Corrine rolled her eyes but then gave me a small smile before going toward the kitchen; I chuckled as I watched her leave.
Enzo soon walked through the door with Beta Aiden beside him. We saw Beta Aiden outside on our way in and they stopped talking for a bit while I went inside.
“Just let us know if you need anything. I’m sure Donovan wouldn’t mind spearing some gammas,”
Aiden was telling them as they approached.
“What’s going on?”
My mother asked with a worried frown.
“Alpha Enzo was just informing me that he’s having a witch from his mother’s village come to his pack this morning and he’s worried Paul and his men are out there lurking around still. He has gammas escorting her, but Paul still can’t be trusted,”
Aiden explained.
“I thought you weren’t worried about it,”
I said narrowing my eyes at Enzo.
“I don’t like that Paul is still out there and my warriors can’t find him,”
Enzo explained. “As long as he’s still out there with his army of rogues, nobody is safe. Especially after what happened to my mother.”
“How is your mother, Alpha?”
my mother asked, glancing at Enzo.
“She’s better. She just returned to her territory the other day. But with Paul and his army still out there, I’m worried for her safety.”
My mother looked at Aiden.
“Speak with Donovan right away and see if we can get some warriors out there to patrol the area,”
she ordered him. “I know Alpha Enzo has his own gammas in the area as well, but ours are specifically trained to protect Volana wolves. If he’s taking the witch from the village for the morning, they could use the extra protection.”
“Thank you, Luna,”
Enzo said, nodding his head.
Then, my mother frowned and narrowed her eyes at him.
“Is this why you came here, Alpha?”
She asked, and then she glanced at me. “Did you come here with him?”
I opened my mouth to speak, but only air came out.
Aiden cleared his throat.
“I’ll go speak with Donovan now. Good to see you, Alpha,”
Aiden said, nodding his head to Enzo before disappearing from the front room.
My mother kept her eyes on me, and I felt my face warming intensely.
“Yes…”
I finally said, trying to steady my rapid heartbeat. “We came here together… there’s something I have to tell you…”
She kept her eyes on me for only a moment longer and then she glanced at Enzo who stood in his place, not giving her any kind of expression.
“Should I get your father and we can sit in the living room?”
She asked.
I nodded, unable to speak.
Enzo and I went into the living room while my mother went to get my father. I tugged my fingers as we sat together on the couch.
I looked up at him and he gave me a gentle smile of reassurance.
It felt like were sitting there for about an eternity before my mother strolled into the living room with my father right beside her. He gave me a large smile and held his arms out for me which I happily stood and stepped into them.
“Lila Bean. What a wonderful surprise,”
he said, hugging me tightly.
“Hi, Dad,”
I breathed.
He released me and went to join my mother on the loveseat as I took my place beside Enzo on the couch.
They looked at both of us with small smiles and I remained silent, more nervous than before.
“Lila was saying that she had something to tell us,”
my mother explained to my father, glancing at him.
When I looked at them, it almost looked like they were exchanging knowing smiles, which confused me.
My father looked at Enzo and my heart fell into my stomach when my father winked at him and then looked at me.
What was that about?
I looked at Enzo who was stifling a smile of his own.
“Go on, Lila,”
my mother urged. “Tell us your news.”