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“That was… surprising,” Mateas said quietly as he pulled on his shirt.

“Why?” Penelope asked, she was already dressed and working on tying her boots.

“I just… didn’t expect us to do…. that,” he replied.

“Sex, Mateas,” Penelope sighed. “We had sex.”

“Obviously,” Mateas stated.

“Well, since you seemed to have trouble saying the word, I wasn’t sure,” Penelope smiled sarcastically.

Mateas clenched his jaw in frustration.

“I just meant that we are not mates….” he said.

“Yea, well, I don’t put much stock in the whole mate thing,” Penelope sighed. “Ya know, since it drove my brother crazy and all?”

Mateas swallowed and looked away.

“If I ever find my mate, I will reject them, immediately,” she said, pulling the strings of her boots tight.

“Just because your brother ended up in a bad situation doesn’t mean you will,” Mateas said gently. He sat down on the bed beside her, licked his lips nervously, and reached for her hand. “And even if you don’t want your mate…. I do care abou–”

“Let me just go ahead and stop you there,” Penelope interrupted. She stood and faced him with a heavy sigh. “This was fun, but that’s all.”

“What?”

“I’m not looking to be your girlfriend, or your wife, or anything else,” she continued. “We both had an itch to scratch. No need to build unnecessary attachments.”

Mateas looked away with a pained expression.

“Got it,” he said with a shaky breath as he got up from the bed.

He grabbed the rest of his belongings and walked to the door.

“We will be leaving in an hour,” he said. “Don’t be late.”

He walked out the door without another word. Penelope closed her eyes and clenched her jaw with a heavy sigh.

***

Their mission was over. They had checked the obsidian deposits and were satisfied that they were perfectly intact with no signs of damage or disruption. So after checking in with Burning Ember and relaying the message to Winter, the scouting party stayed one night and left early in the morning to return home.

Mateas took his place at the front. He was quieter than usual, sullen. Wyatt couldn’t help but notice that instead of the familiar glances and smiles in Penelope’s direction, Mateas avoided looking at her.

For her part, Penelope had chosen to mostly stay in the trees.

“Well, that’s troublesome,” Saul said quietly beside Wyatt.

“What is?” Wyatt asked.

They kept their voices hushed as they spoke and continued to walk.

“Those two,” Saul replied, his eyes moving between Mateas and the tree where Penelope had concealed herself. “They have crossed the line of a teammate.”

Wyatt looked at Mateas again. There was a glance of his eyes toward the tree, and then he quickly looked away.

He knew that Mateas harbored feelings for Penelope, but he had not expected that they would have moved forward in their relationship. But then, he struggled with the idea that any wolf in Winter would move forward without the Goddess’s blessing.

Times were changing rapidly.

Wyatt sighed.

“They’ll work it out,” he said. “Whether it be between them, or simply for the good of the team, they will make peace.”

Saul nodded.

“To each their own, so long as it does not hurt the pack.”

Wyatt nodded. His mind wandered to the other woman that was fond of hiding in trees.

When Wyatt had learned about Alice, it was a tough pill to swallow. The idea that Axel had not only broken tradition by marking his mate outside of the full moon and before marriage but that she was a spy.

He and Corrine had argued about how to handle the situation. In the end, they agreed it was best for Corrine to talk with Axel. When she returned with news of who exactly Alice was, well, Wyatt was unhappy.

He immediately assumed it was a trick, a way to catch Axel in a weak moment and then attack Winter. But Corrine had been very convincing and helped him understand that even if it was a mistake, it was Axel’s to make.

By the time Wyatt found Alice hiding in the tree, monitoring the same rogues his team was, he had calmed his reaction. He approached her, planning to question her and find out if she genuinely cared for Axel.

Corrine had told him about her life, about all the treatments. It didn’t seem possible, and though he had told her and Axel that he understood and wouldn’t blame Alice, he knew that part of him was not convinced she wasn’t playing his son.

Until he saw it for himself.

The fear and struggle that filled her eyes, the way her entire body fought for control. He could see her, trapped within herself, desperately trying to speak.

If it was an act, it was a hell of a good one.

When he returned home, he told Axel what he saw and said that whenever Axel finally brought Alice home, Wyatt would welcome her with open arms.

“Is something wrong?” Saul asked.

Wyatt looked at his long-time friend and smiled.

“I was just thinking of the future,” Wyatt replied. “Of the day that Axel brings home his mate.”

Saul nodded.

“And is that day coming soon?” Saul asked.

Wyatt looked at him and narrowed his eyes. Saul gave a slight grin.

ɴ<0,>ᴠ,ᴇl “You know?” Wyatt asked.

“I’ve known Axel since he was a child,” Saul said. “I have watched over him, trained him, treated his wounds. I do not know the details, but I can recognize the change in him. His confidence and determination have become focused. He has grown into a fine man but a heartbroken one.”

Wyatt nodded.

“Whatever the reason, she is not by his side,” Saul continued. “It has not dampened the love he has for her, which leads me to believe she is not to blame for the separation.”

“It’s… complicated,” Wyatt smiled.

“That seems a common description of your family, Wyatt.”

Wyatt looked at Saul and smiled.

“Did you just make a joke?” he asked.

Saul smiled, and Wyatt laughed heartily.