We were twenty minutes away from entering Blood Walker's Territory and to say I was a nervous wreck was an understatement.

I was apprehensive, my nerves and anxiety raised at the thought of Gabriel meeting my family. They didn't exactly have an outstanding opinion of him or a favourable view on his character.

I had phoned them ten minutes ago, informing Reed that we would be within the border soon. He had sent wolves to help guide the car through to Julian and Grace's house even though I knew the route, he was taking extra precaution.

Reed had invoked our alliance with Blood Moon days after my rejection, Dylan was insistent. I knew that both Dylan and Reed were going to be the toughest to calm down, to reason with.

I hadn't forgiven Gabriel in the slightest, but I wanted to be open minded to the idea. To move on, holding onto hurt and anger wasn't going to change anything. It wasn't healthy for me or Kennedy.

"You realise how awkward this is going to be? You're not exactly my families' biggest fan." I said out loud, staring at Gabriel as he drove down the driveway, one hand on the wheel.

He chuckled at my words, his eyes meeting mine. "I've just got to swallow my pride and admit to my mistakes."

I nodded, his words sinking in. I turned slightly, watching Kennedy in her car seat, her body leaning to the side as her head hung low. The soft sound of her snoring filling the air.

My wolf was satisfied with his reply, our feelings mutual.

Wolves followed us through the territory, Gabriel had brought another vehicle with us along with four wolves including Eli. He had left Dan in charge of managing his pack for a few hours.

As we approached the driveway, Gabriel pulled in next to Dylan's Jeep. I jumped out the car, moving to the back-passenger door to grab Kennedy from her car seat.

She was wide awake now and smiling at the familiar space. She knew she was at her grandma and grandpa's house.

I carried her towards the door, Gabriel and his protective detail following closely behind. I had already noticed that Reed's vehicle wasn't in the vicinity and I was hoping he wouldn't arrive soon.

Simply because Dylan and Reed feed on each other's emotions, it was how werewolves work. It would be the same for Gabriel and Dan. Being Alpha and Beta wolves.

I knocked on the door, waiting patiently for someone to open it. I looked to Gabriel who surprisingly seemed calm and collected. He was the opposite of me right now and he sent me a smile for reassurance.

Grace opened the door, grinning happily as she greeted both Gabriel and me. Gesturing for us to come in as she grabbed Kennedy from my arms, showering her with love and lots of kisses. "Come in, Julian and Dylan are in the living room. Sophia is also here, hopefully Dylan will behave but you know how he is."

I nodded, rolling my eyes. I walked in first, my eyes landing on Julian and Dylan. Julian stood up while Dylan stayed on the couch.

His facial expression telling it all, and I knew that this was going to be an incredibly awkward and highly uncomfortable situation.

~*~

"At least it wasn't that bad, I must admit I was expecting Dylan to react much worse." Gabriel admitted once we were upstairs and away from my family.

I laughed at his statement. "I don't think Dylan's wolf left the conversation once. I thought he was going to attack you at one point."

Gabriel nodded, his eyes connecting to mine. It had been a heated conversation with Julian standing between both men. Gabriel had stayed composed throughout, he expressed his regret and remorse.

Dylan had calmed down once Gabriel had explained but his wolf still lurked behind his eyes.

The conversation ended when I indicated that I was open to the idea of a potential relationship. Grace had made it clear to Dylan that it was my decision and like always, they would stand by me and he would have to accept whatever choice I made.

Dylan was still unimpressed but forced a smile for my sake. They could all see that Gabriel wasn't the same eighteen-year-old boy. He had grown up, and his words spoke of his regrets.

I grabbed a few more clothes from my wardrobe, folding them into my suitcase. I would be flying to Texas tonight.

Kennedy would be in the care of Grace and Julian and they had agreed to make arrangements for them to take Kennedy to Gabriel's territory while I was away for two weeks.

I needed to finish some course work for college and then pack my belonging as I would be moving back to California indefinitely.

"Hopefully, I won't be there for the full two weeks, but I'll let you know if anything changes." I said before turning around to find Gabriel standing dangerously close. I could feel the hairs on my arms stand up from the sparks that rushed up my body.

He was much taller than me, his height towering over mine. He was staring down at me intently, his hand reaching out to grab mine.

I held his hand back, my eyes searching his. "Would you at least take two of my wolves with you? It would settle my mind and somewhat my wolfs."

I could hear the rumbling of his chest, sensing the concern and protectiveness from his beast.

I considered it for a moment before agreeing. He felt uneasy leaving me to travel alone and to be in a territory where he had a disagreement with the Alpha.

"Ok," I whispered, my heart fluttering at his instant smile. I couldn't help but be affected by my mate, it was natural and an unforced attraction. "Only two wolves."

"Two wolves. I'll send Eli and Jace to go with you." He confirmed, relief clear in his features.

We said our goodbyes at the airport, he had embraced me into a tight hug. It felt strange at first, my mind drifting into deep thoughts as I realised how much things had changed within the past 24 hours.

I embraced him tightly back, his alluring scent filling my nose as butterflies fluttered in my stomach. I gave him a smile as I pulled away, promising to call him once we had landed. He had also requested that I stay close to Eli and Jace.

I hadn't told Gabriel about Nate, the guy who I had been in a relationship with while I was in Texas. I had ended it just before I had left for California to visit my family. I knew he was enraged about it; he hadn't stopped leaving me messages and angry voicemails on my mobile.

I felt more protected knowing that Eli and Jace would be by my side and that Kennedy was in the safe care of Blood Walker's territory.

I didn't want to bring up the conversation to Gabriel yet, we hadn't spoken in depth about our personal affairs, I decided to wait until after my trip to speak to him about it.

The flight went smoothly with Jace on one side and Eli on the other. Eli had pleaded with me for the window seat, desperately wanting to look out the window, he whined that Gabriel always took the best seat on the plane.

I had laughed when Eli did a happy dance, his shoulders and head bopping in excitement. Jace chuckled when Eli marched straight to the window seat, his eyes exploring everything outside.

Hours had passed and we were close to Nightshade Valley territory, Gabriel had organised a rental car which we picked up from the airport. I had already mind-linked my Alpha, notifying him of our arrival. He had granted permission for Eli and Jace to enter his territory.

I was already missing Kennedy and couldn't wait to be home with her, I was even missing Gabriel.

While I was away, it allowed Gabriel to spend time with his daughter. Grace would be the one overseeing the arrangements and would stay near them both while allowing them to bond.

He understood why I wanted it to be supervised, not fully supervised but I wanted Grace and Julian to be at hand if he needed help. It was new to him and to Kennedy.

Once we had entered the pack house, my Alpha greeted us all and we had discussed my transfer to Blood Walker's territory. He had already signed off the documents and sent them to Reed for his approval.

Eli and Jace followed behind me as we walked along the hall to my bedroom, they both entered my room, dropping my suitcases on the bed before Eli laid himself down, getting comfortable. "Doesn't seem too bad here, this is only one of four packs that I haven't visited before."

Jace sat at the edge of the bed, his hand running through his dark red hair. "It's quite a small pack." He established which was a correct statement. The pack was small and located in a very rural part of Texas.

"It is. It's a pack of around 60 wolves, it's the territory that my mother was raised in."

My mother had met my father when he visited this pack with Alpha Jaxon. My mom had left with them, traveling to Blood Walker's territory. Within a year of their relationship, she had found out that she was pregnant with me.

The sound of the door opening had all our attentions on the entrance watching as my best friend Taylor busted through the door. "I heard you were back, why didn't you come see me." She demanded, faking annoyance.

I was about to speak when she froze abruptly, her eyes trained on my bed.

Both Eli and Taylor were in a trance, both their attention on one another sharing an identical infatuated stare. Completely bewitched as they both whispered.

"Mate."