Kai looked hurt but brushed it off. “I forgot, I’m just your boyfriend,” he said before shutting the door.

I sighed. Great. I lay down and tried to sleep but it was hard. I tossed and turned thinking of the vampires, of being hunted, of my argument with Kai. I thought of Sylvia saying I had witch powers that she could activate. Finally I turned to look at the clock, 1 am. God, I really needed sleep. I chewed on my bottom lip, making a decision. I opened my door slowly and peeked out. All clear. I crept down the hall to Kai’s room. The second I turned the handle, he sat up quickly and stared at the door. His hair was ruffled and he looked adorable. He smiled. “What took you so long?”

I grinned, shut the door, and climbed into bed with him. The second his arms closed around me, my mind shut off and I slept.

The next morning was a mandatory weekly pack barbeque. Even the wolves that lived on the edge of our territory drove in for the event. I took time to get to know each wolf. Sammy was fifteen and our youngest wolf; he was best friends with Akash. Besides Emma, Anna, and I, there was only one other female and she was unmated. Her name was Oksana and she was Ukrainian. She lived on the edge of our territory with her boyfriend Dominic who was also in our pack but they weren’t mates.

Diya and Trent were really getting along well. You could see the romance budding between them and she looked genuinely happy. Trent looked head over heels in love with her already. He looked at her a certain way; his look said he adored her. It reminded me of the way Kai looked at me.

After we had eaten, Kai cleared his throat. “As you all know we had some vampires trespass on our territory and try to take one of our pack members. This deed cannot go unpunished!” He roared the last sentence letting some of his Alpha power leak through. The pack roared their approval.

“We know the Portland pack is behind this and so I have decided to challenge Dane for Alpha status of his pack and take over his territory.”

You could hear a pin drop. No one said anything but the more submissive wolves looked scared and the dominant wolves looked proud.

“I know merging our pack with new members will be hard at first. If you are currently fourth in the pack, you might be eighth after we merge. I have never been a wolf seeking out a big pack or a large territory. Dane runs a dirty pack as you all have heard. When I kill him and take over, some of his pack mates won’t want to stay under my command. Some will be relieved. I will run this new pack the same way I always have. Minimal fights, respect, and you will all still be family to me.”

I could see the packs facial expressions change. They trusted Kai. They would do anything for him.

“Aurora is special,” Kai finished. “A bigger pack and more territory also means we can better protect her against future enemies. The three vampires who came for her will not be the last. She has a beautiful gift that has already seen three of our pack members mated. Soon we will have small pups running around this mountain. There will be weddings. This pack will grow, but not because we are after numbers, because we want to grow as a family.”

Everyone clapped, and I felt tears in my eyes. It had been weird not to see any children around. It would be nice to see families grow.

The next morning Kai and I were silent over breakfast with his family. He had called Dane and requested a pack to pack meeting about the territory violation with the vampires.

“Do you think he knows what you are planning?” I finally asked out loud.

“Yes, he will be ready to fight,” Kai answered.

I swallowed hard. Kai’s mother put a hand over mine. “Do you know why my son didn’t stay in Delhi under my husband’s authority?”

“A little bit,” I confessed.

Kai cut her a look but she dismissed it. “Kai is more dominant than my husband. He could have fought him and taken charge of the entire New Delhi pack. He would have won, his father knows that. He will win this fight tomorrow and any other after that.”

I admired her confidence in Kai, but I was tempted to ask her if she knew about Dane’s silver teeth. I thought better of it. If support was what he needed, I could do that.

“I know,” I told her and looked at Kai with a forced smile. I just hoped she was right.

It took six cars but we all drove out to the Portland pack’s meeting place.  Emma and Devon stayed back to keep a presence in our territory.

As we pulled up to meet the Portland pack in the large open park area, I started feeling nervous. What if Kai was gravely injured like the last time? What if someone in our pack tried to fight him injured for Alpha status. Kai parked the car and leaned across the seat to grab my face. His mother, sister, and two brothers were in the back of the SUV, watching.

“I love you and I will be fine.” He gave me a passionate but chaste kiss and exited the car. I took a deep breath and got out of the car as well. We all walked in human form to the group of people standing in the meadow. I caught a whiff of cigar and after shave. Foreign Wolf. Dane’s pack was quite large. Twice the size of ours. The women were skinny and looked broken. They clung the men in fear and it made me sick. Dane stepped forward. “To what do we owe the pleasure of being able to gaze upon your delicious new female werewolf?” He licked his silver teeth and gave me a stare that made my blood run cold. I stared back tilting my chin up. If Kai didn’t kill this guy maybe I would!

Kai clenched his jaw but otherwise didn’t show that the comment bothered him. “I challenge you, Dane Hurst, for Alpha status to your pack and all of your territory. You sent three vampires after my mate, and you run a dirty pack. If I don’t get rid of you, then the council will, eventually.”