*Adam's POV*

The week went by quickly. This Friday Anna didn't feel like going out so she spent time watching movies with me instead. It warmed my heart, knowing that Anna was willing to spend time with us. After what happened last week when I chased her and pinned her to the bathroom door, I had tried to reign in my feelings for her. People always told me how strong the bond would be, but I underestimated it. I wanted to be with her every second of the day. I wanted her close to me, to feel her touch, hear her voice, smell her intoxicating scent.

When she was at work Cade and I acted like a lost puppy. Just waiting around all day until she would return from work again. When she was grading papers we shifted just so we could place our head in her lap and she would pet us. I was still able to hold ourselves back from shifting so we could lay in bed with her, but who knows how long I'll be able to keep that up.

All the control I managed to build in my 26 years of life seemed to be out of the window when it came to her. I wanted her. We wanted her.

It didn't help that I was an Alpha either. It just made everything more intense. Usually, once mates meet, the mate bond will develop quickly. The male marks the female, solidifying the bond. After that the bond will start pushing the two to complete the bond fully. I heard that mates usually can't resist each other long after the marking, not to even mention heat.

Shewolves will go into heat a couple days after marking if the mate bond isn't completed. I don't think it will happen to Anna because she is human though, so that's good.

I groaned as I concentrated back on the sound of the shower. I missed her already. The bond is already pushing me to my limits. What will happen once I finally mark her? I'll go insane if she's not close to me at all times.

Cade has been pushing as well. I have to hold him back almost at all times now. I'm glad the marking has to happen in human form, otherwise he would have done it in wolf form already. I can't mark her without her consent. And she still doesn't even know she's my mate to begin with.

She can feel the bond though. I know she can. It has been developing slower than normal, which makes sense because she is human. But I can tell she feels relaxed and safe with me around, and when I'm close I can always see the blush on her face. It pulls on my control even more. Seeing her blush or bite her lip. God what I wouldn't do to kiss those lips of her.

Cade gave an approving purr, and I was shook from my thoughts.

Shit. Control yourself!

I adjusted my sweatpants. I guess I'll need a cold shower... again. Speaking of showers, I couldn't hear the shower anymore.

Another thing I've been thinking about is our living conditions. Anna has been kind enough to provide us with all these things like clothes, food and a roof above our head. Maybe I should get a job after all, I'm starting to feel bad about lounging around all day. What can I really achieve right now though? Cade wouldn't appreciate a job in a supermarket or retail store or something. Being ordered around isn't his forté. Working as a waiter would also result in me fighting for constant control.

I sighed, maybe I'll just start a dog walking service, that way I can bark around orders, literally.

I finally heard the door open, and our beautiful mate walked out of the bathroom. She was wearing simple jeans and a shirt, but she looked stunning nonetheless. Today her friends were coming over. Apparently, when they're not going out Saturday becomes their go to girl day. Can't wait to sit through hours of girl talk once again. I suppose I can cuddle up to her, since I'll be in wolf form the entire time.

"What time are they coming over?" I asked.

Anna checked the time, "In around 10 minutes." She then paused as she seemed to read a text, "oh, apparently Fred's boyfriend is coming too."

I frowned, "Isn't that awkward? One guy with three girls?"

Anna shrugged, "You tell me. We don't really mind. He often comes with to just hang out. He's pretty chill and with the amount Robin is talking, we usually don't have to say much anyway."

"True." I had to hold back the growl that Cade wanted to give her. Her complimenting another man didn't sit well by him. I wasn't going to be the possessive boyfriend though. That shit is toxic.

'As long as he won't touch her' Cade warned.

'Cade, I swear to the goddess. She will hate us if we start acting like possessive assholes. That's a dick move you know. Humans don't like it when they're being treated like an object.' I tried to reason.

'But she's ours!'

'I know she is but that doesn't mean she can't talk to anyone else ever again! She's going to have male friends and colleagues. We have to accept that.' I told him firmly.

Cade gave another growl, 'Can't we just mark her? That way males will know how to back off.'

'A mark won't help against other humans.' I explained.

'How do human males tell others to back off then?' Cade asked.

'They just tell them I guess. I don't know. I know they don't use marks.'

'Such weird creatures.' Cade spoke before receding into my mind.

I let out a sigh. "What's wrong?" Anna asked.

I smiled softly, "I tried to tell Cade to be nice to them today, but I'm afraid I'm out of luck."

Anna walked over and crouched down in front of us, making eye contact, "Cade, please be nice to my friends. They're all like family to me. If I had a human pack, they would be part of it. You don't have to get all cuddly with them. But please try not to growl at everyone you see." She pleaded.

Cade was silent for a bit, but our mate's puppy eyes were stronger than his resolve. We are so screwed.

'Fine. I'll try.' He conceded.

I smiled, "He'll try."

'But I want to sleep on her bed tonight!'

'Cade...' I chided.

'I mean it. Fix it for me or there will be biting!'

Shit.

I could see Anna beaming at me. I cleared my throat, "He has a request." I spoke up.

Anna tilted her head inquisitively.

"Can we sleep in your bed tonight? He likes being close to you." So do I, but I think that would still be considered creepy at this point.

Anna giggled, "Sure Cade, you can sleep in my bed tonight. As long as I'm not met with a naked man the next morning, at least put on some boxers!"

Does that mean she wouldn't mind me sleeping next to her in human form?

"We promise we'll be good."

Anna smiled, "Great!"

I was beaming with excitement until I heard the doorbell ring. I guess we'll have to be patient until tonight. I nodded to Anna and started taking off my shirt. Anna swiftly turned around and headed towards the front door. In no time I had hidden my clothes underneath the couch and I had shifted.

All was well until I smelt an unfamiliar yet dangerous smell come from the front door. Cade immediately started growling in the back of my mind as he stood up and headed towards the door. Anna was busy greeting her friends when Cade let out a loud growl. Anna immediately broke the hug she was giving Robin and looked at us in confusion.

My eyes were set on the man that was now shielding Fred. Another Werewolf. Now I recognized that smell on Fred from last week. She wasn't fully marked or mated yet, but the man in front of her must be her mate.

Fred placed a hand on his shoulder, "It's ok. He growls but isn't actually aggressive." She tried to calm him down.

I growled again. Anna walked over to us and crouched down, sitting on eye level with us. "Calm down Cade, they're my friends, remember?"

A mental battle was happening in our minds. We remembered the promise we made about being nice to her friends, but now that there was another werewolf involved things were different. We still smelt of rogue, which probably made the pack wolf in front of me on edge. From what I could tell he couldn't be a higher rank than Warrior wolf, which we could easily take. But there were other humans here, and Anna probably wouldn't be happy with me beating up her friend.

Eventually, we managed to give a shrug, telling her that we'd try to back off. She gave me a smile before standing up, "Sorry, he doesn't like other people."

The man gave a smile, "It's fine. Interesting dog you have there."

Another growl escaped Cade. The man clearly knew that we were an Alpha and he still had the audacity to call us a dog. Anna started petting our head, and the sparks immediately calmed our rage. Fuck that's good.

"Yeah... he'll be fine once we sit down." She spoke. I could hear that she was wary of the situation.

Robin spoke up, "Let's sit then! I brought brownies!"

Fred nodded and pulled her boyfriend around with her. "Come on Jas." She spoke softly, which calmed the man instantly.

Anna went into the kitchen to prepare drinks and Cade and I followed her around like a guard dog. Anna gave us a questioning look but we just shrugged. We couldn't communicate without the guy knowing because of his hearing.

When drinks were taken care of Anna sat down diagonally from the guy, making me slightly more relaxed. Cade placed his head on her lap and she immediately started petting us.

"So, did you get him at a shelter?" The guy asked, making us stiffen.

Anna gave us a comforting pat before she spoke up, "Yeah, he was apparently caught by a dog catcher and brought there."

Talk about embarrassing.

The guy hummed in response, "Has he been good to you? He seems aggressive."

"Jasper!" Fred scolded the guy. Ah, so that's his full name.

"He's nice to me, yes. Just protective over his pack." Anna spoke with full determination.

We let out a purr of pride over our mate. Standing up for us was incredibly sexy, not to mention it confirmed to us that she would be a great Luna.

I could sense that Jasper's aura lessened, clearly sensing the Luna in her as well. "I see." He trailed off, leaving Cade and I fully satisfied.

The rest of the afternoon went smoothly. Cade and I were mostly focused on the feeling of our mate's hand brushing through our fur, so we didn't pick up on the conversations much. Jasper was mostly quiet, much to our appreciation.

At around 3PM, they finally left. As soon as the door was closed I shifted back and put on some sweatpants. Anna didn't waste any time, "What was going on between you and Jasper?"

"He's a wolf. It put us on edge." I explained.

Anna's eyes widened, "Jasper is a werewolf?" I nodded in response. Anna frowned, "What is he doing with Fred?"

I smiled, "They're probably mates, if his protectiveness over her or her being able to calm him so easily told me anything."

"I didn't know a werewolf could be mated to a human." Anna mumbled mostly to herself. I smiled, if only she knew.

"They can, it's not that common, but it happens." I explained.

Anna smiled, "That's adorable. So Fred has a soulmate huh? I'm happy for her." She then frowned, "She's not in danger is she? And does that mean she knows about werewolves?"

I shook my head, "She's not in danger. Mates can't really hurt each other. Hurting your mate feels like you're being stabbed in the heart." Trust me, I know. When I had to cut her hand for the pack ceremony it felt as if I was dying. "And I'm not sure if she knows. The mating process wasn't complete yet, so he might be waiting for a good time to tell her."

"Complete? How does that work?" Anna asked.

I scratched my head awkwardly, "Uh... with mates there are a couple of steps. The first one is marking, the male marks a mate to confirm and accept the bond and to ward of any other males. The next step is mating. And well, that's having... sex."

Anna blushed, "Oh... how do you know whether they're mated or not?"

"She'll smell like him. Right now I can smell him on her, showing that they're close, but once they mate their scents become intertwined. He will smell like her and she will smell like him. I know it sounds weird for humans but it's completely normal." I explained.

Anna nodded, "Hmmm... It seems our little Freddy is still a virgin then." She suddenly said with a smirk. I scrunched up my nose and Anna laughed, "Sorry, it's just that Robin always talks about how Fred has a solid sex life but turns out they haven't had sex yet."

I rolled my eyes, "Sometimes I question your thoughts."

Anna pouted, "Says the one who is part animal."

I laughed and then froze as I heard footsteps outside her apartment. Anna was about to ask but I held up a hand, stopping her. We both looked at the door as the doorbell rang. Anna tilted her head in question and I walked over to her, "It's him." I whispered in her ear, making sure he wouldn't be able to hear me.

Anna shivered at my proximity, making me smile slightly, and nodded, "Do you trust me?" she whispered softly.

I nodded in return, "Yes."

Anna smiled, "Ok. I'll handle him."

The thought immediately put me on edge but Anna's determined face told me she'd be alright. If anything I can always come in when she needs me.

"Ok, be careful."

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Thanks for reading!