The Traitor Panther

Chapter Three

Nate and Levi got along a lot better than I thought they would.

They shook hands after I introduced them. Then Nate asked him where he was from, then he started asking him about fighting styles. Now they're talking about the places they've both seen and common acquaintances they've made on the road.

"How are you feeling about all this?" I hear Willow whisper to me. I was still leaning against her shoulder and didn't plan on moving until someone pried me off. I didn't know a lot about Willow, and she didn't know much about me. But I could tell we both felt the bond between us growing, and I didn't plan on ignoring it. It had been a long time since I had a female friend I could bare everything to.

"I'm... not not happy. I know I'm extremely nervous about how all this is going to work. Ike and I are just getting into a comfortable routine, and this is definitely going to put a kink in that." I decided to leave out the part about Ike lying. It wasn't that I didn't trust Willow, I just thought this was something we should work out between ourselves. I didn't need the opinions of the entire packing riddling about in my mind.

She's quiet for a few minutes, watching Levi and Nate talk. "I think this will be hard for people to accept." I feel my heart clench. I knew she was right, but it sucks hearing it out loud.

"I'm hoping to be such a good Luna, it doesn't matter how many mates I have." Willow snorts, and I find myself smiling. That is a good attitude. We're quiet again for a moment before I speak again. "Did Ike really look mad?" I ask.

She shrugs, "Yeah, but he also looked sad. He looked like he was about to cry. I don't think I've ever actually seen him cry.... Or laugh." I shake my head at her last comment.

"Where did he go?"

"Towards the woods. He probably wanted to shift." I nod, and sigh. I needed to go find him. We needed to work this out before it got worse. "I can go with you, if you want." Willow was so intuitive.

"It's okay. It'll probably go better if I talk to him alone."
"Who are you talking to alone?" Nate suddenly asks me.

"I need to go find Ike." I say, wiggling myself out of the recliner I was wedged into with Willow.

"I'm coming." He says, standing up and reaching his hand out to me to help me up. I catch the look on Levi's face when Nate says this, and I feel myself rolling my eyes as I let my new mate help me stand. He was looking up at him with so much respect. I could tell they would be getting along.

"Whatever I guess..." I had planned on going alone, but I don't really care I suppose. Nate was a part of this.

"Good luck." Willow says once we're all outside. "Be good." She says to Nate with a pointed look before pulling Levi off towards their house in the opposite corner. Levi turns around and gives Nate a thumbs up.

"I like him." Nate says with a big grin.

"Figured that much." I mumble, walking off towards the trees across from us. I could smell Ike's trail going that way.

"Luna!" I pause mid step, turning my head to whoever called for me. I don't recognize them... but I think I've met them before. Shit. They're jogging towards me with a handful of papers. Please don't give me those papers. I won't know what to do with them. "Luna." They gasp out as they finally reach me. "I just need you or Ike to sign this saying it's okay for a last-minute Alpha to join us tomorrow." I look down towards the paper they have outstretched towards me with a pen sitting on top. Was I even allowed to do this? I wasn't actually Luna yet.

"Who is it?" I ask as I pick up the pen, my eyes scanning over the page. I was too panicked to even absorb any of the words.

"He's from a pack a couple of states away. He said he was sorry for not responding sooner, but he just now realized who would be fighting tomorrow." I furrow my brow. What does that mean?

"Uh..." I hesitate, my pen hovering over the paper. Fuck it. I sign, setting the pen down after scribbling down my signature and turning away. "Hope they don't kill us all." I mutter as Nate and I walk away.

"Who was that?" He asks. I shrug, shaking my head.

"No fucking clue."

We continued on towards the trees, Nate pressed against my side the entire time. Was he always going to be like this? Usually, the longer someone has been waiting for a mate, the more intensely they feel about them. Lucky me.

"So why is it that they call you Luna, but call him Ike?"

"I don't actually know the answer to that. Maybe they're just not used to me yet." I say with a shrug.

"I always thought it was kind of weird. How wolves call their Alpha's "Alpha." It's so formal."

"Yeah, it is a bit old school."

Finally, we break through the tree line. I pause and turn around to Nate. "I'm going to shift. You obviously can too if you want." He grins, and immediately peels his shirt off. Oh, sweet fucking Jesus. He is very yummy looking. His broad, muscular shoulders, strong looking arms with giant hands make me want to lick him all over. He had strong sex lines disappearing into his jeans that made my stomach tingle. 

"Hey. Eyes are up here." He says but when I do look up at him, he's smiling ear to ear and looks very proud of himself.

I shake my head and turn around, kicking off my shoes towards the tree line and pulling my shirt off over my head. I hear noises behind me and assume Nate is already shifting.

Once my clothes are off, I call my panther forward, trembling with the change and falling to the forest floor. With all the shifting I'd been doing these days; it didn't hurt nearly as much as it used to bring my panther out.

My panther rose up, immediately walking to Nate's panther and rubbing her face on his. We couldn't communicate through the mind link yet; we weren't mated or part of the same pack. But I could tell by the way Nate's panther was purring that he was happy with being rubbed against.

We need to get moving. I say to my panther. She sighs and backs away from Nate. I won't ever get alone time with him, will I?

My panther stuck her nose in the air, sniffing and looking for Ike's smell. What are you even going to say to him? She asked as she began sniffing along the forest floor and walking deeper into the trees. Nate was close behind. I'm going to ask him why he lied. You already know why he lied. To keep you to himself. Yeah, but I want him to say it. I want him to be willing to talk this through. Otherwise, what's the point? Don't do anything drastic over this, please. I won't. I'm not a total irrational idiot. Mm.

My panther stopped talking to me once she found a strong trail leading to Ike. We were jogging now, and I could tell she was enjoying herself. Nate was running beside us, nipping at her every once in a while, and trying to trip her. It wasn't mean though. I could tell by the silly thoughts running through my panther's mind that they were definitely playing.

So far, the main difference I could see between my two mates was Ike was incredibly serious about everything all the time, and Nate was laid back and casual about things. It made sense, though. Ike was an Alpha. It would be weird if he didn't take things seriously and if he goofed off all the time. Nate was just a nomad panther, and while there was nothing wrong with that, it didn't call for the same serious attitude being an Alpha demanded.

I hoped it wouldn't, but I could see it driving a wedge between them.

Ike is ahead. And he's with someone. Who is he with? You're not going to like the answer. I could feel my heart racing. Who was he with that I didn't like? I couldn't even think of anyone I didn't like.

But as we broke through the trees to a small clearing, I realized with one hundred percent certainty, there was in fact someone I did not like, and it lit a fire in my soul seeing Ike with them.

Angel.