"To err is human, to forgive, divine." - Alexander Pope

The sound of rain pattering against the small window on the roof woke me up.

Ethan was not in the room so I decided to take this opportunity to freshen myself up. I still felt quite sore from last night but fortunately, this time I had enough strength to stand up and walk.

Getting up from the bed, I almost let out a scream when my eyes met my own in the painting which sat by the wall - of my wolf and I. The greys and blacks cutting with flashes of brown and ambers.

I don't think I will ever get over how beautiful it was.

Once inside the bathroom, I found a new toothbrush, a towel and a white, floral sundress on the counter already waiting for me.

Where did he get all of this? Did he already knew this was going to happen or was someone else... no.

Shut up, Vivian.

After the shower, I went to search for mate which turned into me giving myself a tour of the small cabin. I finally found him out in the backyard, dressed in black sweatpants and a fitted black t-shirt, busy decorating a table under a shaded patio. Upon closer inspection, my eyes fell on the table and found an array of breakfast dishes resting on the table.

My mouth watered instantly.

There is no way he made all of that.

"Good morning, la mia luce," His voice effectively broke my staring contest with the table. When I turned to look at him, he gave me a smile and then gestured towards the table, "I...uh... didn't know what you liked for breakfast so I made... a little bit of everything."

My mouth dropped open.

"You made all of this? Like... today? Right now?"

He nodded, a confused expression on his face.

I walked closer to the table and let out a low whistle. Waffles, pancakes, bacon, breakfast sandwiches, fruits, French toast, cereal... you name it, it was there.

"You have got to be joking me..."

He stepped closer to me, worried eyes scanning the table, "Do you not like it?" he frowned, "I'm sorry, I told Aiden that this was not enough but that idiot said that any more food on the table and you'd be floating like Violet Beauregarde in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." He let out a loud sigh, "Never mind what that idiot said. Is there something else you want? I'll cook it for you. Just give me a few minutes and I'll-"

I shut him up with a kiss.

"That 'idiot' beta of yours is right. This is more than enough, Ethan. Thank you."

The confusion in his stormy, grey eyes vanished and turned into happiness.

"Let's eat," He pulled out a chair for me, surprising me with the gesture, and then sat on the opposite side of me.

It was a beautiful morning; the steady rain a peaceful backdrop to our breakfast. The summer flowers and leaves drooping under the weight of the droplets, the gentle breeze making the trees dance.

A slow smile crept on my face. Something about the rain had me more relaxed than I've been in days and I was in no hurry for the clouds to vanish, and for me to return to the harsh reality.

It felt nice to be alone.

Just the two of us.

"When did you get the time to do this?"

"I woke up an hour ago," he leaned back on his chair and the sight of him stretching almost made me drool, "then I mind-linked Aiden to bring me the ingredients and a sundress for you."

So, that's where the dress came from.

"Now that's a dedicated Beta; at your beck and call twenty-four seven." I replied, shoving a mouthful of waffles in my mouth.

So freaking tasty. This man has magic in his hands.

And last night was a testament to that.

Ethan popped a strawberry in his mouth, "According to Aiden, he couldn't sleep a wink last night because of his excitement for me and demanded that I gave him all the 'deets', whatever that means."

I chuckled at how uninformed Ethan was when it came to slang, "Aiden is a nice guy. Funny too."

"He'll be thrilled to hear that, especially since he worships you."

We continued eating our breakfast in silence after our small talk ended until I was moved to compliment his cooking skills.

He had literally outdone himself with the breakfast. I had never eaten breakfast this good and I am sure that even Uncle Levi would not take offense to that.

Maybe it was the mate bond or something else but whatever it was, my stomach and I were very thankful.

"You clearly have a hidden talent, Ethan. This is some five star breakfast, with exquisite presentation, I must add."

He grinned after hearing me praise him, "Cooking is one of my hobbies, along with painting. It relaxes me. Mom always wanted a daughter, so when the Moon Goddess gifted her with a perfect son instead; she decided to teach him everything."

I was shocked, "Your mom taught you how to cook?"

He nodded, "Now cooking feels almost therapeutic to me."

"Yeah... can't relate."

He chuckled, "Every Sunday, I help the pack chef with either lunch or dinner, depending when I am free. It has become sort of like a routine now."

My mouth fell open, "You cheat; you never told me you were a chef! That is why you won that pizza competition on our date!"

He shrugged, a boyish grin spreading on his beautiful face, "Well, you never asked."

"Um, do you not remember me asking you about your likes and dislikes or hobbies?"

He knew I was right.

"Alright alright, Miss Vivian." He chuckled, raising his hands in mock surrender, "As an apology, what would you like me to do?"

I thought for a while and then told him.

"I will ask you three questions and you have to answer them truthfully no matter what."

His face fell, "I was hoping for something else but no problem, I accept."

He crossed his arms, causing me to lose my trail of thoughts as now my mind was focused on those biceps of his which were just yesterday wrapped around -

Get a hold of yourself, Vivian.

"Okay, first question: why do you sometimes speak in a different language?"

Judging by the change in his expression, I realized he didn't expect me to ask such a question.

"It's Italian," he paused to take a sip of his apple juice. "You already know that my wolf went through a pretty hard time after the rejection. The loss of his mate was too much for him and it kind of ended up messing his speech skills. He wasn't able to communicate properly with me," he sighed, running a hand through his black hair, "Let's just say that he had a hard time speaking in English because it reminded him of the words said when he was rejected. If it were to him, he would delete that day out of his life."

I felt the pain behind his words and it made my heart ache. It felt like someone was eating at my chest, tearing its way to my quivering heart.

I placed my hand on top of his hand which was resting on the table and squeezed.

Ethan rested his eyes on our hands for a few seconds before continuing, "My wolf can speak some words, but putting the sentences in the correct order is still a problem for him. I soon realized that we both couldn't go on without communicating so we worked on learning a new language and... that was it."

"So all those times you spoke in Italian, it was your wolf?"

"Yes and no. Most of the times he does take over, but there are times when something was said which we both meant. Like calling you 'luce della mia anima'." Something flashed in his eyes as his gaze swept over me.

"What does that even mean?" I asked, trying my best to ignore how sexy the words sounded coming out of his mouth.

"The light of my life." He paused to take in my reaction, the corner of his lip lifting up a little. "My wolf chose that for you because you, my beautiful, rarity of a mate, resurrected a dead man and brought him back to life."

My heart skipped a beat.

Warmth flooded to my cheeks and tingles travelled down my arms.

So that is what it meant.

The light of my life.

"I am sorry, Ethan," I held his hand with both of my mine, "I don't have the power to rewrite the past but I'll do anything to earn you and your wolf's forgiveness for putting you through shit."

"Don't you see it, Vivian? You've already done it," His gaze held mine intently. "You've chosen us."

I felt tears pooling in my eyes.

"Can he hear me right now?"

"He never leaves when you're there."

His eyes turned black and I knew it was his wolf letting me know that he was there, listening.

I got up and his eyes followed me like a hawk as I walked over to his side and sat right on his lap. His eyes widened in astonishment.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and leaned my forehead against his.

Brown met black.

"I am never leaving you again. I promise."

He looked at me as if I was the answer to all of his prayers. His eyes darkened and he grabbed me possessively, burying his face in my neck.

"Mate," he breathed. "Forever."

"Forever."

We sat like that for a while with our arms around each other until his wolf was satisfied and let Ethan take control again.

"Hi again, mate." Ethan spoke, gently kissing the top of my nose. And then almost instantaneously, a lopsided grin framed his face.

"What has gotten you smiling like that?"

"You still smell like me," He claimed proudly.

"Yeah, about that..." I got up from his lap to sit back on my chair and saw him frown from the corner of my eyes. I chuckled to myself. He was such a child sometimes, "We need to fix this before I go back to my pack. For our sake, I hope Leia is still sleeping."

"Do you have a plan in mind?"

"I will head to the East-Moon Pack. Josh must know something, I'm sure he has some trick up his sleeve."

Ethan didn't hide his annoyance at the mention of Josh's name, even whispering 'pup' under his breath.

"When do you leave?"

"As soon as the rain stops; I want to make sure I am there before she wakes up."

"Hmm," he frowned as he observed the weather. The rain was almost coming to an end which meant I had to leave soon.

Feeling like I needed to bring a smile back on his beautiful face, my eyes fell on the table, specifically on the flowers sitting in the vase.

"By the way, you need to try harder if you want to guess my favourite flowers because they definitely aren't orchids. But the gesture was appreciated."

That brought a small smile back on his face because he realized that I noticed he brought me flowers.

"One of these days, Vivian, I'll get it right. And that is my promise to you."

The rain came to an end as we picked up the dishes and took them inside to wash them. Initially, a part of me felt guilty that the food would go to waste but I had clearly underestimated the intensity of the hunger we both felt. We had devoured the entire table within half an hour.

Midway through washing the dishes, Ethan went outside to clean the table. Feeling a little mischievous, I dropped a little water on the floor and watched him completely lose his balance and fall right on his ass when he returned.

I burst into a boisterous laughter, not imagining that he'd fall in such a funny way, with his legs up in the air.

Ethan looked at me with narrowed eyes, "Bad girl."

I stuck out my tongue at him, trying my best to hide the effect those words had on me.

He let out a low growl as he stood up and slowly walked towards the kitchen counter behind which I was standing.

His mouth curved into a lazy, sexy smirk, "Just wait till I get my hands on you, baby."

I wet my hand under the tap and flicked my fingers at him, causing water droplets to fall on his face.

"You can try, baby."

He fake-lunged at me and I let out a scream.

This turned into a full blown out chase in the cabin; him chasing me like a predator and me trying my best to run from him. He once almost caught me but I ducked underneath his arm at the right time and jumped on top of the sofa with a laugh, leaving him angry and growling.

"Oh, come on Mr. Big Bad Alpha, don't tell me you are tired. Do you want a time out or something?"

He stared at me like he wanted to eat me alive.

"That is something you'll be wanting when I punish you, mate."

I fake yawned, "You're all bark and no bite."

He lunged for me again but I skirted out of his grasp and quickly moved towards the other side of the room, laughing wildly.

However, that victory was short-livded because I soon realized that this time I couldn't escape. I was surrounded by walls and the front door was my only option but it was locked.

Damn it.

"Game over, mate." His voice sounded so dark and husky that I felt it down there.

I sensed him walking behind me, getting closer and closer with each passing second. And then I felt him. Felt him press me forcefully against the wall.

Fuck me.

"No matter where you run, I'll always be at the other side, tesoro." He softly whispered, his breath tickling my earlobe.

My eyes slowly closed as reality set in.

He was right.

I couldn't run away from him.

I was trapped.

He leaned forward and dipped his face inside my hair. Inhaling deeply, he let a low and possessive growl escape his mouth.

"Right now, all I want to do is tear your clothes off and take you right against this cold, hard wall." His hands squeezed the side of my hips and then slowly, dropped lower to lift up my dress. His finger lightly danced over my skin, leaving sparks in its wake. "Tell me, Vivian. Will you take me like the good girl that you are?"

I groaned, "Ethan, plea-"

The door opened.

"The greatest Alpha in the world, your favourite Beta is back! And I am ready to here all the deets, no excuses this - oh shit, I am early. Fuck, you stupid, idiot Aiden. You're a dead man."

I quickly pushed Ethan away and straightened my dress. Ethan cursed under his breath but it was loud enough for both of us to hear.

"I am so sorry. I didn't see anything!" Aiden had his back towards us now, his hand covering his eyes. "I am not here! You both continue fornicating or whatever you guys were doing because I definitely did not see anything."

"Aiden, it is alright." I replied once I was presentable, "You can turn around."

Still with his hand shielding his eyes, he turned around and then slowly peaked from between his fingers. When he realized the coast was clear, he lowered his hands.

"Hello, Alpha Vivian. You look as radiant as the sun after a cloudy day." He bowed.

I moved in to give him a hug.

"Um... I... um Alpha," he scratched the back of his neck, a faint blush spreading across his cheeks, "I was not umm... expecting a hug?"

He was adorable.

"Get used to it, Beta-"

"You've got to be fucking joking me..." Ethan interrupted from behind, and I elbowed him in response.

"-You'll get one every time you see me," I completed.

He leaned forward to whisper, "Was he that bad?"

I burst into laughter.

"Aiden!" Ethan snarled, his Alpha senses not betraying him. "Get the hell out of here!"

"Getting the hell out of here!" Aiden rushed out of the door before Ethan could obliterate him from only his death glare.

I turned to face Ethan, "I like him."

He rolled his eyes, "Please, for my sake, never tell the kid that."

"For a kid, you surely do trust him a lot." I teased. Walking closer to him, I placed a hand on his chest, "I think deep down you like him too."

He ignored my question and wrapped his arms around my waist to pull me closer to him.

"So I guess this is it?"

I frowned, "You're speaking as if I'm leaving you forever."

He sighed, disappointment evident on his face. His thumb traced my bottom lip which was pouting. "I wish you didn't have to go."

I leaned forward to embrace him, "Thank you for this, Ethan."

He groaned, "I swear on the Goddess woman, if you don't stop thanking me, I'll tie you to the bed and not let you leave until that word is permanently removed from your vocabulary."

"As you wish, sadistic mate of mine."

He laughed and his unrestrained laughter in return brought a smile on my face.

Leaning down, he pressed his lips firmly against mine.

----

Ten minutes later, I was standing on the border of East-Moon Pack. After getting the permission from the Alpha, I waited for Josh outside his house. Since it was early, thankfully there was no one around who met me on the way except for the border patrol guard who wasn't close enough to smell me.

Josh arrived, wearing only grey cotton sweatpants and completely shirtless - his eight pack on complete display.

I gulped.

It must be my lucky day.

"MV, is everything okay?" He leaned down to hug me, "Imagine my surprise when my dad mind linked me saying that you were looking for me this early in the morning."

"Good morning to you too, Josh. Why are you awake this early?"

"Running, obviously." He said as a matter-of-factly, "What? You think-" he paused abruptly and narrowed his eyes at me. His eyes trailed up and down my body three times before stopping at my face.

"Something is different about you."

With one hand on his chin, he began to move around me in a circle, his gaze not leaving me for even a split second.

Suddenly, his eyes widened and he grabbed my shoulders.

"You didn't... you didn't." He shook his head in disbelief and then a grin broke out on his face. "Oh, my Goddess... YOU DID!"

I turned around to quickly check if anyone had heard him but found no one there.

Kneeling down, he pressed his ear against my stomach.

"What the hell are you doing, Josh?"

"Making sure there isn't a little Ethan infesting your stomach."

"What?" I pushed him off, rolling my eyes. "Get up, you idiot."

He stood back to his height, a cheesy grin plastered on his face. "To be honest, I didn't think you'd last this long."

I crossed my arms, "Wipe that grin off your face, Josh."

"How was it? Best sex of your life? Of course it was, you little minx. You reek of him." His grin widened even further if it was possible, "What did you both do? Was it all vanilla? Role play? BDSM? Oh and is that a hickie?" He pushed back my hair to observe my collarbone.

"You know what," I turned around to leave but he grabbed me by the waist and brought me back to where I was.

"Alright, alright. I was kidding! It isn't every day that you get to hear an Alpha got railed by another Alpha. I mean... this is historic. The date should be written down for generations to remember."

"Are you serious...," I almost turned around to leave again but he grabbed my hand and pulled me towards him.

"What do you need me for?" I opened my mouth to speak but he continued talking once more, "He didn't satisfy your needs? I'm happy to help you but I must tell you that my best hours are between-"