Differences Aside, ✔

Chapter Seventeen

Maddox bowed slightly before walking off. I was still breathless, yet I turned around anyway and walked back over to Elijah and Isaiah. The room was still mostly silent, but it certainly didn't take long for all the guests to return back to their idle chats and gossip.

Isaiah raised an eyebrow, "That was something I definitely did not want to see."

"Sorry," I giggled, my brain fuzzy with adrenaline.

"You seem to be happy with him Lor, has everything been ok?" Elijah asked, his tone much more serious then I had expected it to be.

I paused, "I suppose. He's lovely, more than that, but he loves me, which is still something that I'm struggling to wrap my head around. It's so hard to understand how he feels sometimes, how all of them feel."

"He isn't forcing you into anything is he?" Isiah interrupted, his voice turning stern.

"No! Quite the opposite actually. But it's hard for him to understand that I don't love him yet. I like him a lot, enough that I feel comfortable enough to do all the relationship stuff. But I know that this period of not loving him isn't going to last long. Just because I'm human, doesn't mean I can't feel the mate bond or its effects." I mused.

"Well, it's obvious that the mate bond is affecting him," Elijah smirked, "You've got that wolf on a leash. He probably isn't even a wolf anymore, more like a house trained dog."

I snorted, "Don't let him hear you say that."

Elijah let out a laugh and shrugged, "It's true Lor, I've been watching him since he left, he hasn't let his gaze off you for more than a minute."

I sighed, "Humans are vulnerable. Especially in a room full of werewolves."

Isaiah's harsh expression softened, "It's clear that you're okay with him, but we're crediting that to the mate bond. I know for a fact that the only humans in that castle are the servants. Have you been coping alright?"

"Not for the first week or so. But then Zina, Callie and Peyton, their the Beta, Gamma and Delta's mates, they wanted me to talk to them.  We figured that the more human they appeared, the more comfortable I would feel. They got rid of their canines, all of the obvious things that would set me off. And then no shifting, not when I'm in the area. When they go on runs I stay in the castle looking after the pups and don't go out when I know that the Epsilons are training," I explained.

Elijah and Isaiah looked at each other, "And that's been working?"

I nodded, "Yep. I can hold conversations with them, talk normally, hang out with them."

"And what about when they think you're ready? What are you going to do when you see their wolves?" Isaiah questioned, his fingers tapping his leg in anticipation.

I paused, "I don't know. I'll probably see Maddox's wolf first, see how I react and then go from there."

"Well for your sake, I hope that works." Elijah cautioned, "But don't do it until you're ready."

I smiled and placed a hand on their shoulders, "Don't worry, I won't. Now, what's been happening with you two! Has everything been okay at home?"

I had no idea what had been happening back on the Humans side, I hadn't even seen it since Maddox's and I's first date, yet that seemed as if it was a million years ago.

"The bombing site still hasn't been fixed up," Isaiah pondered, "But in terms of us, neither of us are working anymore."

My eyes bulged out of my head, "What? What do you mean you're not working anymore? Were you fired? Was the mining closed down?"