Author's note: this is from Cristina's point of view

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Luca's face was veiled with concern as he observed my expression while I crumbled from the inside.

"Hey, hey… Uhm…" After stumbling over his words, Luca closed his mouth, obviously not sure what to say.

"Don't worry about it.", I managed to squeeze from my mouth while trying to keep my voice steady.

The truth was that my pride was hurt.

It's one thing if Luca has a girlfriend, but he is single, yet he rejected me. Sure, I wasn't making a move on him, that was only Zoe blabbering her mouth off, but he thought that it WAS ME and he rejected me!

I never scrutinized myself, but faced with this situation, my insecurities bubbled uncontrollably.

Is there something wrong with me? Are my lips too pouty? Are my eyes too big? Or my breasts too small? Maybe it's my clothes. Or is it the way I walk? It can't be something I said because I am the quiet one but then… what if Luca prefers chatty girls?

I was vexed that I allowed this to get to me instead of clarifying the misunderstanding.

Why am I upset if the guy I don't like doesn't like me back? Does that even make sense?

I could tell him that whatever Zoe said is not true, but I have no idea what she told him and no matter what I say, it would sound like a lame excuse in the face of rejection.

Luca's frown deepened by the second while observing my face that was changing with my thoughts. Who knows what he was thinking?

I didn't want to give him more time to come up with some crazy conclusions and I didn't want to explain myself, knowing that it can easily backfire. I decided to cut my losses.

"Let's just pretend that Zoe didn't tell you anything and that the last ten minutes didn't happen. OK? You go and team up with Ash for the scavenger hunt and we can continue ignoring each other."

Luca observed me for a long moment. "I'm not ignoring you. I am like this with everyone." He let out a long breath. "Ash and Zoe will go together. They already decided."

I felt the bitterness in his voice that came with those last few words. "You don't approve of Zoe and Ash?"

Luca glanced toward the crowd where Ash and Zoe were sitting next to each other. Zoe was feeding Ash with a big grin on her face. They were laughing and the mood was good, a total opposite from the gloominess that hovered above me and Luca.

When I noticed Luca's expression, the answer to my question was obvious. He doesn't approve. The only mystery was, why? After all, Zoe is his sister and Ash is his best friend. Shouldn't he be happy if Zoe and Ash end up together?

Luca's gaze moved toward the sea in front of us and he inhaled with difficulty before saying in a low, barely audible voice, "When Fynn takes us to town, guys only… Ash flirts with other girls."

It took me a moment to process what Luca said and to realize that the flirting he mentioned goes beyond winks and smiles. Ash is hooking up with other girls!

"I thought that Ash and Zoe are mates.", I blurted out.

I'm not an expert in the area, but I heard that mates feel attraction toward each other even before their wolves confirm it, and fooling around can be physically painful.

Luca moved his head ambiguously, but it was enough to confirm my suspicion. Ash doesn't know if Zoe is his mate.

I was aware that Zoe is only guessing based on her current attraction toward Ash, but shouldn't Ash know? He can shift and talk to his wolf. Sure, his eighteenth birthday is still a few months away, but if his mate is nearby, his wolf should tell him.

Actually, identifying one's mate is not an exact science. There are cases where one finds out before the eighteenth birthday and cases when it happens later. No one knows exactly what impacts this, and just like all other things that we can't explain, we say that it's the will of the Moon Goddess.

'You will tell me, right?', I asked Lana, only to get silence in response.

I know I'm just sixteen years-old, but I will be seventeen in a few months and it would suck big time if I am interacting with my mate and my wolf knows about him yet I'm clueless. On the other side, I'm too young and the moment I recognize my mate the bond will start forming, making it impossible to stay away from him.

My parents would flip if I show up with a guy and hearts in my eyes.

I forced myself out of those random thoughts. I should focus on the current situation because it seems that my best friend (aka Zoe) is sticking to a boy who is not treating her well.

Luca and Ash are best friends and if Ash knows who his mate is, and especially if it's Zoe, Ash would tell Luca because that should be good news.

There was also the possibility that Ash knows Zoe is not his mate, but considering how close they are, it would be cruel if he knows and is leading her on.

Even if Zoe is not Ash's mate and he is aware of that fact, he should tell her, and she should decide about dating him after knowing the truth.

Just sleeping around is not a big deal, most of the non-mated grownups do it.

However, serious dating among non-mates is a big deal because there is a chance that one of the partners will find his (or her) mate, and then the relationship will fall apart. True, not everyone finds their mate, and some wait for hundreds of years until they meet their other half, but it's still a common practice for non-mates to acknowledge that both of them are getting into that relationship willingly, aware of risks.

"Did you talk to Ash?", I asked.

Luca gritted his teeth. "Ash believes that after we are of age, there will be responsibilities, and this is the right time to enjoy life."

No wonder Luca doesn't approve of Zoe being with Ash.

Considering how Zoe is talking about Ash lovingly, she believes that he has eyes only for her while Ash is having fun with other girls and it's only a matter of time before Ash breaks Zoe's heart.

Luca is a quiet guy, and I don't know much about him, but I am confident that he cares about Zoe and this proves it.

After all, I have two brothers and if any of them found out that I am enamored with a guy who is seeing other girls while being with me, that guy would find himself in the ditch the next morning with several broken bones.

"Will you tell Zoe about it?", I asked.

Luca turned toward me in slow motion, and I could see the conflict swirling in his eyes that turned golden either because his wolf was clawing to come out, or because of the sunset. Maybe both.

"Would you?", he responded with a question.

Would I have the heart to tell Zoe that the boy she believes is her soulmate is fooling around? Zoe is in love with Ash, and she is at most a few months away from finding out who her mate is (or confirming that Ash is not). I wouldn't want to meddle.

I shook my head in response to Luca's question.

Luca gave me a tight smile that said, 'I thought so'.

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