"What's for dinner?" Jake asked my mom as soon as we got home.

Mom glared at him, she looked like she hadn't slept in days, which honestly she probably haven't but at least now her family was whole and alive. At least until Daryl came to get me. I didn't know when that will be but until then I was going to enjoy the time with my family.

"Do you want to help?" My mother snapped at him. Just as my father and sleeping Ashley walked through the door.

My mom quickly followed my father into Ashley's room, though I wanted to talk to her and tell her I loved her I couldn't not if Daryl was going to come and rip me away from my family again. My mom came out of Ashley's room and began making dinner, tears in her eyes, I probably shouldn't have came home. I will have to leave again and it'll only hurt them again. Halfway through finishing making dinner, a knock came to the door. My father went to answer it, Hunter was at the door.

"Luna," he nodded his head as Daryl walked in behind him.

"Joyce."

My family doesn't say anything my mother keeps making dinner, my brothers all look at me, my father stands, but doesn't know what to say.

Daryl sighs, looking at my family as they try to decide how to not let me go without a fight. "May I join you for dinner?" Hunter turns to look at Daryl.

My mom drops the spoon she was using to stir the meat with. I had no idea what she was making just knew it had hamburger meat.

My father jumps up. "Alpha Daryl you are welcome to join us."

I knew my father was trying for me, they all knew I had ran away from my mate, from his pack to be with my family they all could see how much weight I lost in the weeks I've been away. They just wanted me to be okay to be happy. I didn't know if I could, if I would with Daryl.

Dinner was awkward, no one knew what to say. I didn't look at Daryl even though at one point this had been my fairytale, I didn't want Daryl. Not as my mate, not like this. My words to Rosemary came back telling me to get to know him before anything but how do you get to know a monster?

After dinner, Daryl helped with the dishes. I knew that he was trying. He's hurt me enough. Axel told me that I should go with Daryl and for once I didn't fight them, I went but not without saying goodbye, knowing I was missing a second chance to say goodbye to Ashley, but I didn't want to wake her.

I started to follow Daryl out the door when he turned to me. "I think you should stay." He said.

I stopped in my tracks was he really going to actually let me go? Was he finally going to take my rejection? If a werewolf rejects he or her mate, the person is allowed to choose their mate, as long as they don't have one. I already had someone in mind. I had hoped I would have been his mate, but I knew I wasn't going to be because his mate had been killed.

"I'll make you a deal." Daryl said when I didn't reply. "You stay a week, and on the last day I'll come back for you, and when I do you'll try to give us a chance."

I sighed. What he was saying sounded like a fair deal, but in all honestly I really didn't want to be his mate, I was kinda in love with someone else. "Okay, fine I'll see you in one week." I told him. It was either tell him yes and try, or get dragged back to his house and lock myself into a room for another 3 months.

Daryl smiles a little, and it looks cute on him. I don't think he's ever smiled. I smile back, maybe I could at least be friends with him. Not all mates got married, or even loved each other. A mate was just someone to breed with, or better terms a partner to help you through the hardships. I guess, we still take after actual wolves, we still need a partner, but we were also human. We loved who we loved, we hated, and whatever, it was harder being a werewolf then it was a plain human.

I watched Daryl get into his big black truck, which I didn't understand why he didn't just shift and run but that's whatever I didn't care, I was home, even for a little bit I was glad. I went back into the house Axel was sitting on the couch playing video games.

"Where's Leah?" I asked him.

Axel looks up from the game he was playing. "I thought you were going with your mate."

"Nah, he decided to see if he could trust me by leaving me here for a week." I said sitting next to him and putting my feet on the coffee table. Axel nods his head.

"Leah, is um is staying with her parents." Axel said.

I raised a brow at him, the one thing I didn't ask since the attack was about Leah, when I left she was a couple of weeks from her due date, of their first baby. "What happened?" I asked. Leah hated her parents couldn't have waited for her mate and to move far away.

Axel put his head in his hands, his shoulders shook. "We lost the baby," he said muttlefuled by his hands.

I gasp. "What?"

"She was born sleeping." Axel told me. "Leah won't come home, she can't look at me. I know she blames me for it, but neither one of us could have known."

I blink, I had tears in my eyes as well. We were all together the day Leah told us. They had us all come around to take a picture, and Axel had the camera and said "Leah's pregnant!" And took the photo of us all surprised. They held off telling us the gender until Leah's baby shower, where they made a cake and made mom cut it, she couldn't understand why the cake had been dyed pink for a little while, but then when she did she was so happy.

We were getting a girl. We were all happy. Leah and Axel moved into a new house on the corner, a couple of blocks down from our house. Leah painted the baby's room. They had named her Callie Kara.

"I'm so sorry." I said, which was true I was, we were like humans when it came to births and pregnancies, we could go through lost, and heartbreak. People forget we're human. They just think we're monsters that don't have feelings but we do.

*******

The week went by, I fell into my old habits, my walks around the pack, the drawings I saw my friend. He was sad I had a mate, we didn't think I had one, I was 21 most of us find them by 17. Nathan was 27, and I now noticed I didn't know how old Daryl was. I guess I could ask him. It was nice, Ashley loved having me home, and she has a new friend from school. A little boy my mom thought they'd be mates when they grew for how close they have gotten so soon.

True to his words Daryl was back a week later, my mom had just finished with dinner, and we were all sitting around the table I had gone and talked to Leah, I knew she needed to talk to someone so she came and talked to Axel and their working things out together, instead of alone.

Daryl ate with us and once again it was awkward like he wasn't trying to even get to know my family. If he was going to put it that way so was I.

"Jake, have you found your mate?" I blurred out. I was going to pretend I wasn't leaving.

"Not yet," Jake said looking around nervously.

"Oh, well you have to tell me if you do." I tell him.

"I'll let you know." Harry said clapping Jake on the back as if he knew a secret I didn't.

"Leave him alone, Joyce you know your brother's would tell us, just like Axel and Leah did and you." Mom said looking a little disappointed at me. I knew I didn't get to tell her about my mate, she probably thinks I just ran away with him.

"Mom . . ." I trailed off, but she put a hand up telling me not now.

Of course she wasn't going to want to talk about it. The ride back to Daryl's was quiet. I didn't talk after what mom said. I knew I hurt her, a lot. I went right up to Daryl's room when we got home, but before I closed the door, a girl screamed.

"Ah!" I cried in shock, she was naked, I was looking at another girls nipples. "Who the fuck are you?" I yelled as she tried to cover herself.

*******************

Stubborn Omega Protective Alpha

Riley Zavoni is an outcasted omega. Though he isn't like any other omega any pack has ever had. Riley's strong and defiant.

His pack has sent him on the most dangerous missions possible, hoping he'll just die on one of them.

Riley was the Alpha Kings son. When rouges came and murdered everyone in his family, the second in command betas family took the vacated head position. since then Riley has gone off on his own and made headway on killing any rouges that come across his path.

One day while Riley's hunting rouges, before he can come to kill the rouge he is beat by another pack.

curious on who they were Riley follows the team back to the main land of their territory.

when he is caught and brought before the Alpha King both their inner wolves know the second they see the other.

They were meant to be mates.

while Riley's Alpha wants to protect him, Riley is adamite he can protect himself. When Riley is attacked by a wanted rouge, he is harmed to the point he can no longer call for help.

Stuck in recovery for weeks for his own safety Riley comes to see that his Alpha is meant to be there through the worst of it all.

Slowly Riley becomes dependent on Maximus. Slowly he admits he needs him more than he ever thought he knew