"Wanna know how I felt when you told me that you had a crush on me?" Chase's soft voice asked as he sensed me walk up.

"How?" More like "humor me" because I knew he couldn't possibly care that much.

"Guilty," he answered. I took a seat by him and felt his stare at me. "Because I knew that finally my mate liked me back...but it was me in the way of that. Again."

Liked him back? Was I supposed to somehow know that he liked me at all? I thought I was the one without reciprocation here.

"You said you didn't like me," I whispered.

"I lied."

I stood up and started to walk back to the house.

"Wait—"

"I don't know what you want from me, Chase," I started. "I can't take it."

"Neither can I..." he mumbled.

"Then why do you do it?" I shouted. This made no sense.

"Because I have to," he mumbled. "Or at least I thought I—"

"Obviously not," I said beneath.

"I'm doing this because I'm trying to protect whoever I can. And you're on the top of that list, Ali. I just—"

"Why are you worried about me? I know how to fight vampires," I interrupted considering it had been months and Wes was sure to teach me as soon as he could. I couldn't see past any much more danger.

"Vampires aren't the only thing that's dangerous to you," he muttered. "The most dangerous thing to you, is sitting right next to you."

I scoffed.

"I'm serious," he stated.

"Oh, I know. I'm fighting for my life by sitting this close right now," I managed to joke. He looked at me with dark eyes. I shut up.

"I can hurt you more than everyone else in this world and you're just joking about it," he said.

"It's because I know you won't."

He wouldn't hurt me. He'd made too many promises. Even though he does stuff that pissed me off, he always managed to get back to his promises. Even though he omitted some truths, he didn't exactly emphasize any lies so I trusted him.

"I'm not talking about physically," he whispered. "Mentally and emotionally, I've screwed everything up with you and that's why I don't want to be with you," he said. But I knew his words were a partial lie because his voice raised at the end. I played along anyways until he realized it for himself.

"Because you'll ruin us?"

"I'm bad at relationships," he assured.

"Well lucky for you, I've only been in one," I shrugged.

"What about Jackson?" I heard Chase whisper. I snapped my head at him.

"Jackson is...—"

"Exactly," he assumed.

"—my step-brother," I finished within a laugh.

"He didn't look like your step-brother when you were at the park..." he whispered even though he sighed in relief.

"Because we weren't back then," I explained. "We found out tonight that our parents are getting married."

"Then why were you all close and touchy at the house?" he asked with disgust like everything he knew was a lie.

"That's just how we are," I shrugged. And maybe I wanted to get you jealous.

"Well it worked."

"What?"

"You got me jealous," he informed as if I had said everything out loud. But this was Chase and he knew me well enough to know I almost always wanted to do something to ruffle his feathers. "I can't take it anymore."

"Not my fault," I replied.

"I know. It's mine. Because I suck at rel—"

"Bullshit," I noted. "That's not your real reason for not wanting to be with me and I know it. So just tell me."

"No."

"Chase. Tell me," I ordered.

"No."

"Fine. Then I guess you do want me to leave and not ever come back here," I bluffed.

"You don't mean that," he caught.

"Then tell me," I demanded. "Tell me why you act like an ass most of the time when you don't even want to. Or why you've reached your breaking point. It sure as hell isn't because you suck at relationships. So stop being a douche to me and tell me why!"

"Because I'm a f*cking Alpha!" he yelled. "I can't be with you!"

"Yes you can!" I shouted.

"No. I can't. Alphas have responsibilities other than their mate and that'd bring more drama and shit and—"

"What happened to the Chase that said a reason a werewolf lives is for their soul mate?" I whispered. He paused. "I want that Chase."

"You have no idea how it feels to hear you say that..." he muttered while looking away from me. I knew a 'but' was coming, so I continued to be silent, "but stop it."

"What?"

"I can't take it. It's teasing me," he stated.

"Teasing you of what?"

"Of how much I want you, but can't have you," he whispered.

"Chase, you can have me. I'm willing to try to be together because something inside me wants to," I started. "So be a man and do something about it."

"I'm not a man. I'm a werewolf," I thought I heard him mutter. But then he shook it off. "I have a question for you."

"Ask away," I sighed.

"After all of this within the past seven months, how do you feel about me? Because we're friends and then we're fighting and then we're aloof and then—I just want to know," he asked. I was thrown off because he knew himself what my feelings were but didn't want to be teased. Why would I put him through more of that suppressed suffering? But I also realized that I had never actually admitted to it and maybe it's what he would need to finally give up on his reluctance to date me.

"I feel like you're playing me, yet when I can swear to myself that I'm mad at you, I'm not," I started. "I'm always forgiving towards you. And you run through my mind the majority of the day. You truly are my friend and know me better than anyone else, even Jasmine, because you notice the little things about me. I keep saying I want away from the pack, but that's only because you're playing these games with me—like right now. I'm gonna tell you and ramble how I have this pathetic huge crush on you that I've never had for anyone else, and then you're gonna say 'okay' and continue to make excuses to not be with me."

Surprisingly, all of that took only a couple breaths. I looked to his eyes as he looked at the ground, to avoid me in silence. It only made me feel stupid and pathetic, but thankfully my phone buzzed for a calling Jackson and it took away from the silence.

"Dad called. Your mom wants you home," Jackson informed. "I just told them we went to the park, but can you somehow cover for me since I'm staying here for the night? Tell him I went to a friend's."

"Alright. Fine," I said tacitly because I was withdrawn from any conversation and also didn't want to be over involved in any conversation with someone Chase was already suspicious of. But that didn't stop Jackson from picking up on it.

"You okay?" As soon as he asked, Chase looked up with a frown as if noting that some else was addressing my aloofness.

"Not really," I had to be honest because maybe it would convince Chase to actually respond to what I confessed. He only looked over to me with unreadable eyes, "but I'll explain it to you at school or some other time."

"Oh okay," Jackson dismissed. "I have to go anyways. Your psycho ex is trying to give me a lecture."

At least that almost brought a smile to my face. "Wes isn't that psycho."

"We'll see," Jackson laughed. "I'll talk to you later though," he added before concluding the call. As soon as I hung up, there was a text from Wes saying that Jackson was a freak of nature. As soon as I defended my soon-to-be step-brother, Wes immediately chastised me for "wasting time" texting him instead of talking to Chase, but by then Chase already understood that I was engaged in another conversation and still refused to respond to me. So I put my phone down and looked at him once more now that his eyes had met the grassly ground.

I waited a few more minutes while hoping and praying I'd gain some ability to read what was running through Chase's mind, but I inevitably gave up and started to leave. I made it a good yard before he started speaking, but I thought I misheard him saying: "Do you love me?" and neglected to answer while finally leaving.

***

Sunday presented itself as the first full day of our almost-blended family aside from a grounded Halle. Eventually Jackson announced that he had to go though, even though we were all at the Scott house, taking up their living room while Halle was still up in her room like the anti-social teenage girl she was. I looked over at Jackson's hazel eyes that had adopted a silvery touch and knew where he'd be going.

"Where are you off to?" Zoey asked, now comfortable with being nosey into Jackson's life as a sign of welcome-to-the-family.

"I have a project for school," Jackson lied. "I need to go to my partners' house since it's due on Monday or Tuesday. I really don't know. Sometime this week I suppose? Because everyone else has theirs done for the most part—"

"Just go," Collin interrupted as I laughed at Jackson's rant. He placed a hand over his heart.

"Father, you say that like you want me gone," he dramatized.

"Go work on your project," Collin allowed. Jackson snickered.

"You want me to go with you?" I offered.

"Um no. I think my partner wants to work alone today and his brother isn't really inviting..." Jackson covered. I sighed and shrugged as he left. He meant that he would busy with Wes or Dane and Chase wasn't in a good mood. It pissed me off mostly because of what happened yesterday, but also because it was a full moon when he was acting like that, meaning I wouldn't even get to see him to even talk through all of this.

"I think I have to go too," Zoey announced. "Micah wanted to go out before it gets too late."

"In that case, I'm just gonna walk home since I still have homework to do..." I added.

"Which leaves you two a house by yourselves," Zoey said suggestively to our mom and Jackson's dad. I rolled my eyes as I stood. Before it got any awkward I began to leave, pulling Zoey with me in the process. When we were leaving though, it appeared we weren't the only ones giving the adults the house because Halle's slender figure was running across the street and slipping into the night.

Much like my mom and Collin, I was also left at home alone. When Mom texted me and Zoey to inform us that she'd be spending the night at Collin's (which was ew), Zoey was sure to text me saying she would be out later with Micah (also ew). So I prepared my night to be spent with the comforts of Roanoke until I was finished with my homework and finally headed upstairs to my room. There was a person standing there waiting like he had done at least a handful of times before, but it still startled me. My breath had completely stopped until I realized it was him.

"What are you doing here—"

Before I even finished the question, Chase Cane had been taking furious steps towards me. All of a sudden, his lips were pressed against mine, sending a shock throughout my entire body. I kissed back as his hands roamed my waist. His lips were perfect with mine and he was twenty times the kisser Wes was...which was saying something. With a slide of his tongue to my bottom lip, my lips parted in order for our tongues to dance. When he bit my lip, I shuddered at the cheesy weakening of my knees. My eyes slightly opened a quarter of an inch, but that was enough until I saw the bright white light coming from the dark night. I pushed Chase away from me as his bite on my lip got so hard that I was surprised he didn't draw blood.

I looked at his eyes and they literally glowed neon green.

"I—I'm sorry," he stammered. Sorry for giving me the best kiss in my life? That was hardly the thing I wanted him to be sorry for.

"Don't apologize," I whispered. "But what are you doing here? It's a full moon."

"I don't care," he dismissed before grabbing my waist and throwing me onto the bed beneath him. He started kissing me again with the same amount of passion—maybe even more—and I loved it. But then his grip tightened on my waist and traveled towards an area I wasn't entirely comfortable with no matter if he was my mate. "Stop," I told him.

He immediately flew back into the furthest wall from the bed at my command. He was out of breath.

"What is wrong with you?" I asked.

"Everything...You were right. I should've stopped," he rushed before diving out of my window and not giving me the chance to respond. I sat up in my bed, absolutely blown away.

Even though they had said the werewolves were the ones who imprinted, the kiss had sealed the deal for me. It didn't matter what happened because I knew for certain that I, Alicia Lindros, was in love with Chase Cane.