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

- - -

​​

~ Italy, Lazarus's villa ~

After dinner, I spoke to Serina.

I thought that she will freak out with all the violence she witnessed, but she was unusually calm. I wondered if she coped with that already or is waiting for things to sink in. There is also a chance that she was distracting herself with the issue of three young werewolves who wanted Serina to lead them.

The amazing part is that her pheromones stayed within acceptable range through the evening. The efforts she put into practicing are showing results, and I was proud of her.

Our chat about dealing with the teenage werewolves didn't yield any results because she wanted to hear what youngsters want to do, so we parted ways for the night.

I found myself with nothing much to do.

When I'm at Lazarus's place overnight, I usually spend some time in the forest to sort out my thoughts, since he doesn't have a lab where I can keep busy. However, with the storm raging outside, going out was not an option, as I don't like to get wet and muddy.

I got my laptop and decided to sort out the data I collected so far about Serina's abilities.

Tonight, Serina froze werewolves into obedience. I'm quite confident that ability is not because I did something while reviving her. Is that a combination of some powers? Or was that hers from before we met? The more I find out about Serina, the more intrigued I was.

I was reading through the files, when I heard Serina's scream.

Without taking any time to think, I rushed to her room and I nearly bumped into Lazarus who had the same idea as I did.

It took me a second to realize that the scent filling the room is her arousal, and I could only imagine how bad it affected Lazarus.

Werewolves are creatures driven by primal instincts; the stronger their beast is, the more difficult is to resist the call... and Lazarus's wolf is strong.

I placed my hand on his shoulder, to stop him from approaching her.

"Out.", I said to Lazarus sternly in a low voice, careful for Serina not to hear me. Luckily, I didn't need to say it twice.

"You are fine with her having a man in there?", Lazarus asked when we got into the hallway.

I rolled my eyes and waved him to move away from the door. Serina might not have a super-hearing, but she is not deaf.

"How can there be a man in her room, in your house?", I asked Lazarus when we moved down the hallway.

Lazarus paused when he got my point. "There was an unknown scent in the room."

"You mean, besides her arousal?"

I didn't want to talk about Serina's arousal. Knowing Serina's personality, if she finds out that we sensed it, she will die of embarrassment. But it was obvious that Lazarus wanted to get to the bottom of it.

My question did the trick because Lazarus was visibly uncomfortable. Did he think I wouldn't notice he was turned on from the moment he stepped into that room? Werewolves are the worst in controlling their urges.

"Don't worry. There was no man.", I assured him.

"How can you say that with confidence?", Lazarus pressed.

"What did you smell? Something unknown? Do you know how each of her beauty products smells?"

"This was male.", Lazarus said with a frown, and I could see jealousy flaring in his eyes.

I was exasperated. What's with dogs and women? Serina is not his, and she can have a man if she wanted, but I didn't want to fan the flames. We were in Lazarus's house with plenty on our plates already.

I needed to make sure Lazarus doesn't pursue this further.

"Serina is unspoiled. She would never have a man in her room.", I gave him a meaningful look and it took a few seconds for Lazarus to sink in.

"You mean…", he paused. "She never…", another pause. "With a man… Never?"

"Serina is untouched, Lazarus. I know that you are interested in her and I said that I will not interfere. However, I expect that you will treat her well, with respect, or you will deal with her father.", I ended by pointing at myself. "And wipe that stupid smirk off your face."

The rest of the night was monotonous as I waited for everyone to wake up so that we can have breakfast, figure out what to do with young werewolves, and go home.

Sometimes I wish I can sleep like the rest of the creatures.

…

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

- - -

I was up early. The sun barely came out, but I was wide awake.

The night was eventful, for the lack of a better word. It started with a bloody outing in the forest, me adopting three teenage werewolves, and it ended with a steamy dream of Duke in my bed (so noisy that it brought Aldus and Lazarus into my room).

Actually, the night ended later than that, with me muffling my moans into the pillow.

The feeling of Duke's touch against my skin was vivid and it was making me heady.

I laughed at my folly because all my worries shrunk with Duke. He visited my dreams and overwhelmed me with love and care and passion and safety, making all my troubles go away, just how he always did.

I wondered, how will I feel when I meet Duke for real? Will I still act as an enamored teenager who is stealing glances at him while fearing his rejection?

Yes, I figured out that my massive crush during four years of high school remained a crush, covered up with a mask of friendship only because I was afraid to tell him how I feel. Is that why we parted ways after high school? Because I was a coward? We lost so much time and if he moved on, I have no one but myself to blame.

I didn't want to think about it. In order to retain my sanity, I needed to latch onto happy memories from high school, and on my dream from last night.

Unable to sleep, I got ready for the day and went downstairs. When we entered last night, I saw a massive double glass door opposite the main entry, and I wanted to explore that.

I pondered where Aldus is. He doesn't sleep so he must be around, but I was not sure which room was his, so I went along with my original plan.

I roamed the villa a bit before heading to the double door which opened to the terrace that overlooked the garden and the forest beyond it.

The chilly air smelled of rain that poured last night, but the bright blue sky with a few cotton-like clouds hinted it will be a sunny day.

I hugged myself to keep warm, regretting that I didn't have a jacket or a sweater.

The view was nice. More than nice.

Italian garden had several trails made out of light gray pebbles that formed geometric patterns through the evergreen foliage. A number of human statues, reminding me of the renaissance, were arranged systematically. It didn't take me long to notice that everything in the garden was symmetric. I was impressed.

A thin layer of mist hovered just above the ground, complementing the tranquility that surrounded me, and making the scenery almost magical.

I was lost in silence and the lush greenery in front of me.

Towering behind me was a massive cabin-style villa that was clean, comfortable, and luxurious at the same time.

It all looked like a fancy resort, a retreat where you can stare into space and allow the time to pass without a single soul disturbing you.

I would never imagine Lazarus living in a place like this. He gave me an impression of a guy who would live in a modern bachelor's penthouse with a great view of downtown; a place where wild parties are held, noisy, and close to the major nightclubs.

I could see Lazarus going to a nightclub to pick up girls and bring them to his fancy penthouse where he would ravish them and do all the naughty things that Duke did to me last night.

I felt the heat in my cheeks rising as memories of my dream resurfaced again.

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