The Stargazer's Alpha

Ch. 13: The Howls at Dawn

Tomorrow, I had to be perfect. Tonight, all that was left to me was to sleep, not worrying about tomorrow and the man who occupied all my thoughts. Easier said than done...

A text appeared on my phone.

Blake Villar: Celeste, is everything alright?

Of course. I was standing in the dark...Blake would be worried.

Celeste: Yes.

I flipped on the switch and looked around the room in the artificial light in search of a bed to crawl into, with a pillow to hide my head under.

The suite was like a glossy photograph of a place a regular mortal could only afford if they won some TV game show. The interior decorators dreamed up this living area and this bedroom with a canopied bed, and even this raised bathtub next to the window. It was super-pretty, but awfully impractical.

What was I supposed to do, enjoy the mountain views from the bubble bath? And in case I didn't go for iced peaks and long soaks, I could step out on the balcony in the nude, to stare at the geometric flower beds nineteen floors below? Then, once it gave me vertigo, I could catch myself on the floral arrangement the size of my car in the window nook?

Finally, I would cross the breadth of the bedroom to reach that walk-in closet...

"Blake!" I screamed, never doubting that he was still lingering in the hallway.

He confirmed it, by materializing at the entrance in an instant. After a polite knock, of course. He was Blake.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

I pointed at the hiking clothes...nay, hiking outfits...on the hangers in the walk-in. Below this finery sat my ratty duffel bag. "This is not mine. Well, the bag is mine, but this is not my room."

"Celeste—"

"There has been some mistake. A mix-up. It has to be!"

I hyperventilated, and Blake used this pause. "Celeste, of course, it's your room."

My head shook in denial. Like my bag, I didn't belong here. This room was fit for a princess.

"I manage this hotel," Blake said.

"So?"

"So, I know that this is your room. And your clothes, because as soon as the festivities are over, I'm taking you to the pack's sacred grounds."

I looked between Blake and the gorgeous jacket, pants, shirts, and boots. My mouth gaped. "S-sacred grounds?"

"There, you can start your journey in search of your wolf, as the tradition demands."

Tradition would have Blake and me exploring the gorgeous mountains, while his outdoorsy voice whispers wolfish secrets into my ear. A shiver of anticipation went through me. "What a wonderful tradition."

"I like it too." Blake grinned. "The clothes should be alright. Mie is our local fashionista. But if you don't like something..."

All those bags in Mie's hands, they were for me, despite her tough demeanor? My eyes watered. The room, the view, the clothes all belonged to me, at least for the moment. "I love it."

Blake drank in my joy with his gaze like it was the best wine. Like my pleasure was the most important thing in his life.

Encouraged by it, I gave into the demands of my heart and smiled at him bolder than ever before in my life. "But one thing is missing."

He leaned in, intent on delivering whatever I wanted.

"A stuffed toy to hug in bed." I batted my eyelashes, gazing up at him. "Like the T-shirt you left for me in the cabin."