== Enna’s POV =

After what happened in Collins’ office, Simon pulled me to the room we were to share during our stay at the pack house. It was spacious with a large king sized bed and en suite bathroom. Simon explained that they had prepared clothes for us because we traveled so light. I was honestly desperate for a shower and I didn’t even need to mention it. Simon went straight into the bathroom to draw a bath.

The bathtub was huge and Simon had filled it with something that smelt like lavender and made the water milky.

“You should relax a little, warm up. Then we can take a nap, it will be a while before we get to see everyone know. I’ll call for someone to bring us food in an hour or so. Take your time.”

With that, he left me in the bathroom. I heard him speak on the phone as I stood frozen in the middle of the beautifully white and gold suite. Simon got back a few minutes later.

“What are you doing?” he asked, his brows arching towards each other as if my attitude was baffling. “Enna, are you all right?” The mention of my name snapped me back out of my daze and I extended my hand for him to take it. He came closer, taking my hand in his. “What’s wrong?” he asked again, softly brushing a few strands of my hair away from my face.

I had just realized. I was his mate. Scratch that, I am his mate. Since we’ve met, not so long ago, I do agree, I gave him so little of me while he has been the most wonderful man I had ever met since my father. He was always there, always worried, always providing for me. I was more of an out-grown child freak that he had to log around all the time.

I pressed myself against him, burying my face in his large chest. He smelt so good, his smell was like comfort and security. It felt like home. “Enna, what’s wrong?” his chest rumbled with his question, a tint of worry in his voice. I lifted my head us to meet his gaze, his eyes searching my face, worried. There was this big ball of something in my chest, it felt like it burned and at the same time, it felt so good so right. I raised myself on the tip of my toes, softly kissing his lips as his hands snaked around my waist, pressing me closer.

I pulled back a little, to look in his eyes, his arms still holding me firmly against his body. I took a few breaths. “Simon…” I whispered. His features softened at the mention of his name, and he barely answered with a “ummhummh?”

“I love you”

My chest exploded metaphorically. I could see his eyes searching mine, his face going through a few expressions before his lips crashed on mine and he lifted me up against him, holding me so thigh, I could barely breathe, but I didn’t care. There was Simon, there was me, and the world could go screw himself for a little bit.

____

== Simon’s POV ==

I saw her lips moving but my mind couldn’t keep up with what she had just said. She knew I loved her, I had told her before, and it wasn’t just a mate thing, this girl was downright the most amazing person I had ever met, and every day was a new universe to walk into and explore with her.

But she felt the same.

She just actually said it.

I took her lips with mine, wanting to taste the softness of her words and drown in each other’s feeling. I unconsciously pulled her up, and I felt her wrapping her legs around my waist. It’s not like we had never been physically close before but not like that, she returned everything, every caress on her body, every kiss. I slowly made my way down her neck and her breath itched a little. I kissed her again, and again, playing with her tongue as hard as she was playing with mine. She was now stuck between the bathroom’s wall and my body, she pulled away a little, her eyes foggy with pleasure, her cheeks red and her hair messy. She looked so beautiful.

For some reason she giggled. Enna rarely laughed, giggling was even rarer, but it was the best sound I had ever heard of my life. “What’s so funny?” I asked, laughing as well. She didn’t answer straight away, she nuzzled her nose in my neck and sighed. “You make me happy” she said with a little kiss on my cheek. Then she found my mouth and we made out, but this time, slower, with much more softness before she pulled back again.

“Simon…” she started but I cut her off.

“On your time Enna, we’re on your time. I’m not pressuring you into anything, although I really want to mark you every time I see you, I’m not going to force you to do anything you don’t want to” I told her very seriously. She’s my mate, I could never treat her like crap.

She nodded with a smile, pecking my lips and saying a soft “Thank You” before letting herself slide down my body. I was obviously aroused but she didn’t really pay attention to it. She looked at the bath, then at me, her cheeks reddening a little more. “Do you want to take a bath with me?” she asked.

I think it was meant to seem confident but it came out more as a mumbled whisper. I couldn’t help but give her the widest brightest smile ever. Not only she was the cutest thing around, but she was also mine….and she wanted to take a bath with me.

I turned around. “Go in first” I said to her, trying to make her feel more comfortable. I heard her strip naked and get in the water. When I turned around, her eyes were closed, and she was fully submerged by the milky water except for her neck and head.

I joined her less than a minute later, laying in the water on the opposite side so we could face each other. That tub was really big.

____

== Enna’s POV ==

I heard him slide in the tub near me. I didn’t feel ready to give him more but we could enjoy each other’s company, plus it’s not like her could really see me totally naked in this water. It smelled really good and my skin instantly started to feel softer. I opened my eyes and he was already looking at me, a little smile on his face.

“I’m not going to do anything you don’t want me to, so just tell me if you don’t like something, all right?” he said with a genuinely serious but happy face. I nodded and said “you too”.

“I doubt there’s nothing you could do that I would dislike” he answered with a laugh. I threw water at him, feeling my cheeks redden to their tomato level. I’m sure I can blame it on the hot water though.

His only answer was to pull on my legs and turn me around so my back was to his front. I could feel him sitting cross-legged but he didn’t pull me any closer. I felt his hands on my shoulders, and I pulled my legs to my chest, scared to expose my breasts. But he didn’t want to go all kinky on me, next thing I knew, he was using a sponge to rub my back.

“Good thing about washing up with someone else, is that you can rub each other’s backs” he said while rubbing mine. Although I knew he was very strong, he was going softly on me, I wondered if it was because of all my scars, but I didn’t ask. He rubbed gently my shoulders, my back, down to my tail bone, but he never tried to be inappropriate or to push my limits.

“It feels really nice” I attempted.

He growled, giving one soft kiss on my shoulder. “I’m sorry, since I came here, there’s been a lot of mess. I wish we could just be normal…”

He chuckled at my remark. “As sad as what you had to live through makes me, it wouldn’t be you if you didn’t. I don’t care about a little bit of mess, Enna. I love you, I’ll take you with everything you are, every little scar is mine too, and you are just how I want you to be” he answered kissing the scars on the back of my neck. It made me giggle again. What had gotten into me?

“My turn” I said, taking the sponge from his hand.

He diligently turned around making big waves in the tub, before I did too. His back was massive and he was sticking out of the water much more than I did. I started rubbing it, almost studying it, taking in every inch of him as well. I traced a scar with my finger, feeling him tremble under my touch.

“How did you get this?”

“Training. James had just shifted, I didn’t want to hurt him but he didn’t control his wolf quite well. He was really apologetic afterwards but you can’t blame a young wolf” he chuckled.

“And this one?” I asked running my fingers along another one.

“Rogue attack. It is rare for us to get attacked, the packs are all so allied now, and we left clear paths the rogues could take along our borders but there are still some elements who just want to shed some blood. I was only 16 at the time, he bit really hard. That’s why I don’t like people attacking my pack…” he answered a bit bitter.

“And that one” he kept going, pointing at a scar on the top of his shoulder, “I got when I killed the rogue who attacked my best friend at the time. James, him and I were really close, like brothers. He died from his wounds…” he finished, a sad tone in his voice.

He had scars too, I had seen some others on his arms and torso before. It was another kind of scars but I couldn’t dismiss them, even if there were nowhere near the battleground that was my back. I felt bad for him, since he was a kid, he was raised for this. To fight for his pack, to protect his own, and so far, it seemed like he had done it honorably, even losing some of his own. I reached closed, putting my legs around him, I pressed myself against his back, encircling his torso with my arms.

“I’m sorry for your loss” I murmured, kissing his back softly.

______________________

Less drama, more love :)

Edit : I just saw that a day or two ago, we went over the 100k reads and over 3000 votes ! Thank you so much for all of this ! I really like to write this story and I'm so happy you guys seem to like it ^^

There's much more to come :D