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

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"Serina? Serina!?", Mona's voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

It seems that she was calling me, and I spaced out. It's not my fault, the masseuse is amazing, and I usually get lost when my thoughts wander toward Duke.

"Yes?"

"Are you OK?"

"Yes, yes. I was just lost in the massage. This is mind-blowing.", I hoped she will buy this. Well, I was not lying. "What were you saying?"

"I was asking about Luca's birthday. Did you figure it out, or do you want me to help you with planning?"

I smiled. Mona is very helpful. "I would love your assistance."

I didn't want to say that I never organized a party, and I really-really need ideas or Luca will be disappointed.

Mona pursed her lips. "Will that earn me an invitation?"

"Absolutely!"

Mona grinned excitedly. "What do you have so far?"

"Well…", I drawled. "It's three months away, and I still don't have a final guest list, but we will spend a few days in my father's villa in the South of France. It has a private beach, dozen of bedrooms, and it will be perfect."

"If you send me the location, I can check out nearby towns and I can suggest activities."

I approved. "Sounds good. But make sure there is time for lazing on the beach and bonfire in the evening."

Mona's eyes lit up. "We could invite locals and throw a beach party. I can see it! Bonfire, beer, DJ, strobe lights…"

"Hold off on that thought!", I had to dampen her enthusiasm. The mental image of a bunch of teens dancing and drinking on the beach didn't sound so good when I considered that some of them are werewolves. "I was thinking about something… less chaotic."

Actually, I was imagining Luca, Zoe, Ash, and me, sitting on the beach around a campfire and roasting something on sticks, and... yeah, I suck at planning parties.

"OK. OK. It was just a suggestion.", Mona said defensively. "My task is to give ideas, and yours is to approve or not before I start implementing them."

"Alright…", I agreed reluctantly. "But keep in mind that we will be there for a few days, and we can't have a big party every evening. We need a variety of activities or risk being drunk in the evening and curing hangovers during the day."

I can't get drunk, but I don't want our fun to be centered around booze.

Luca's birthday is coming in three months, and I'm planning to take my three teen werewolves on a vacation to celebrate.

All three of them have come a long way and they deserve time to unwind and relax. Since they started living with Fynn and his bunch of werewolves, my three skinny pups grew up beautifully.

Luca said that anything is fine for his birthday, but Zoe told me that they never went to a beach with sand and everything that comes with it.

Villa is on a large property with a private beach, so we can plan for activities there. If they behave well, we might go to Nice or Cannes for some fun in the town. But it seems that Mona's ideas are wilder. Or maybe that's normal and I'm not into parties.

Ash and Zoe are seventeen already, and in three months Luca will join them.

Fynn assured me that all three of my teens have a firm grasp on control of their emotions and are not shifting to their wolf forms randomly.

Other than learning werewolf-related skills, three teens got busy with academics, and they are currently completing high-school level courses online. I am proud of them.

Since they are staying with Fynn and his group, Zoe, Ash, and Luca had a chance to meet several other teen werewolves who belong to other packs that are on good terms with Fynn. Luca is still thinking if he wants any of them to join us in France to celebrate his birthday.

I hope Luca will decide to invite some friends because when it's only the three of them together, it's obvious that Luca is the one holding a candle for his sister and Ash.

Luca is a quiet, sweet boy, staying in the background and ready to help out without anyone asking. He is happy when he is included and doesn't complain when he sits on the side.

Zoe is the leader among the three, always responsible and thinking ahead. Most of the time, she puts Luca first. He is her little brother, and she is protective of him.

Ash is the carefree one, enjoying life.

Ash tends to get into trouble, but thanks to Zoe's planning and Luca's assistance, he manages to get out unscathed. They are quite a trio.

Lazarus also hinted that he might join us for our vacation in France, and I will be happy if a grown werewolf is nearby, just in case things run out of control. Lazarus is quite reliable.

I am eager to find out how many werewolves I'm taking on vacation. I feel like a teacher escorting kids on a school trip. Three or ten werewolves, I don't see much of a difference, as long as they don't start shifting in front of humans or end up breaking things.

Actually, Zoe still didn't completely shift into her wolf form. She can feel her wolf and has all the abilities a she-wolf should have, but her full shift where she would transform into a big wolf didn't happen.

Fynn told me not to worry about it because Zoe might not be ready, emotionally or physically, and sometimes it's the wolf who has her (or his) reasons.

Based on the information I found in books, most of the werewolves can shift by age of sixteen years old with some cases that go up to their eighteenth birthday. Anything beyond that is super-rare and it could be due to a curse or poison or some other underhanded dealings.

Naturally, delay in shifting usually happens when something is lacking in communication between two minds that are sharing the body.

Zoe assured me that everything is fine. Her wolf is not talking to her yet, but they feel each other's emotions and Zoe is confident that a full shift will happen soon.

The fact that her wolf is not talking is telling me that something is wrong. Both Ash and Luca can talk to their wolves and complete transformation, but I don't want to bring this up in front of Zoe because everyone is different and it's not fair to compare them.

Zoe is a beautiful girl, head over heels about Ash, and he is not indifferent toward her either. Well, no one is indifferent toward Zoe. Zoe is a blonde beauty with big sky-blue eyes, a bubbly personality, and a sharp mind, and the only one who can make her stumble is Ash.

Silly girl, Zoe is confident that Ash is her mate and that when her wolf speaks to her, she will confirm that. Her smitten expression reminds me of my high school days when I was sneaking glances at Duke, and I hoped that he won't notice I'm holding my breath whenever our eyes meet.

And… I'm back to thinking about Duke.

I can't believe that Mona is still chattering about her ideas for having fun in France. How many party ideas can one person have?

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