Chapter 25: Chapter 25

~Talon's POV~

I was drawn out of my lust filled haze by a soft ring tone, Ana pulled out her cellphone and received the call,

"Ariana Ebere.... who's speaking?" She asked in a cold tone and I flinched, I had noticed this part of her as well.

Along with her fiesty, protective and extremely compassionate nature, Ana had a cold and detached side to her that admittedly scared me, it wasn't like I didn't find it attractive because damn...it was a huge turn on, but I couldn't help imagining myself on the receiving end of that, like the night she had rejected us, the thought of her reacting to me that way again scared me.

Everything was spiralling out of control, I knew it the moment she walked into that ball, I had begun questioning my reasons since and with each passing day, I was loosing my resolve, having other thoughts... perhaps It wouldn't end up as predicted, perhaps James had just been toying with me, playing with my insecurities to hurt me like I had hurt him.

I had taken away his only chance at salvation, despite how wrong his methods were, I understood him, he only wanted a chance at the love fate had cruelly stripped away from him, I understood him and yet I did it, I didn't regret it, I did what was needful to save my friend, he was hurting Kyle, his love for Kyle was true, I could sense it, but his selfish love would have killed my friend and I couldn't let that happen.

James lied to him, tricked him, took away the most precious gift a wolf could ask for....all for his own happiness, a happiness he felt Kyle could give him, Kyle did make him happy....the look in James eyes whenever he saw my friend was pure joy....he got his happiness for a short, deceitful while ....but at what cost?

I sighed, shaking off my thoughts at the sound of my mate's excited voice,

"really? Where are you?, I'll be at the airport in an hour Sky, sit down right there and don't move an inch." she said into the phone, a smile on her face, hanging up she turned to us,

"My friend is at the airport right now and I need to go pick her up, I'll be back Inna bit." she informed us standing up, she paused, her hand going to her abdomen as she winced slightly, we were both by her side in a flash.

Jay eased her back into the couch and sat at her other side,

"It's hurting again?" He asked in concern and she frowned cutely before turning to glare at the pack of chocolates left forgotten at the side Jay had pushed it off to.

"Perharps it's the sugar.. it happens this way sometimes, it'll only be brief and it's mostly bearable, I was just unprepared I guess." she said, smiling reassuringly and I sighed in relief, I didn't want to see her in pain again... ever.

"You can't go out like this." I stated matter of factly and Jay cut her off before she could protest,

"we're really worried for you Ana." he said softly, and I nodded in agreement grabbing her hand and rubbing softly, relaxing her. After pondering for a while she huffed in defeat,

"I'll give her the address and tell her to come over." she informed us and we both smiled, she returned the smile before picking up her phone and making the call.

While we sat waiting for her friends arrival, we stayed close to her in case of anything, she seemed to be more amused than bothered by our over reaction and for that I was glad.

Looking around, I realized we had both been so worried for her we didn't realize our close proximity, both sitting pressed up against Ana's side as she read a book, she was between us yeah but this was admittedly the closest we'd gotten in a while without a desk between us that is, her being between us rather than being a division seemed to make the position feel all that more intimate, Jay hadn't realized it yet, still distracted by his concern for Ana but he sure as hell wouldn't like it.

I didn't want to risk ruining the current peace between us so I immediately withdrew, scooting away from them both, my mate's gaze lifted up to me at my actions and she had a look in her eyes that had me feeling like a kid that was getting scolded, after staring pointedly at me for sometime, she re-positioned herself and lifted her legs to my lap, my eyes and probably Jay's as well moving to the exposed skin of her legs left uncovered by the shorts she had on,  I sighed, turning my gaze away before I lost my senses.... again, she once again was oblivious, going back to her book with her head on Jay's lap.

My eyes trailed from her up to Jay's, I knew he could feel my stare but he didn't react, I bit my lip slightly, he was softly rubbing Ana's temples to which she hummed softly in appreciation, he looked so sexy taking care of her like that, with his pupils dilated in his arousal that only I was aware of, I groaned, forcefully dragging my gaze away.

I knew what we had currently was no where near anything we used to have and it'd never be, I knew Jay enough to know that him doing this was because he had completely accepted our situation and my rejection, I wasn't a fool, I knew the only reason Jay detached from me completely was because he was giving me time, time to realize I wanted him... what he didn't know though was that I knew that, I had always known that.

Jay wasn't an impulsive person, the interest of his Pride always came first before his personal feelings, which is why I knew that him initiating a rilvary was because he still hoped, that somehow it'd trigger me to come to him.

What he was doing now, showed he had meant exactly what he said when he said he was letting me go, I understood him completely, I had hurt him too much, but I couldn't help the pain I felt each time he smiled at me now, because I knew what each smile meant, each laugh we shared whispered to me harshly "it's over Talon, I've moved on" and it hurt, badly, but I'd go along, because really... wasn't this what I asked for in the first place...?

I groaned internally as I felt my hurt spreading at my thoughts, engulfing me and crushing me slowly...I stood up suddenly, not being able to take being in their presence any longer, watching their affection that I would never be able to be a part of.... turning around, I walked out without saying a word.

~Ariana's POV~

I stared after Talon for a while, before standing up, Jay didn't say a word, knowing I was about to go after him.

I walked to the door, before turning back and walking purposefully to Jay, placing a soft kiss on his lips, he stared at me in shock for a moment, before pulling me to himself and rejoining our lips, he nipped my lower lip slightly asking for entrance and I moaned softly but didn't open, he growled lowly and I pulled away with a smirk,

"you're such a tease." Jay groaned in frustration and I laughed,

"patience is a virtue babe." I replied evilly, he glared playfully at me before smirking.

"soon love, I'll have you screaming my name as I take you up against my desk." he said, in a tone of deadly promise, I shivered visibly, groaning as I felt my body reacting to his words, he took a deep breath in and growled his eyes darkening, I walked up to him and whispered softly,

"oh baby, please, let that be a promise." I said, he cursed under his breath at my words and I laughed evilly as I left his office before he decided to make good on that promise.

I headed towards Talon's room. Getting there, I knocked softly,

"Hey Lon, you okay?" I asked, I heard shuffling before the door was opened.

"I'm fine." he replied and I sighed,

"why do you choose to hurt yourself so Lon?" I asked puzzled and he looked away without responding,

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay." I said before turning around and walking away,

"Ana, wait...?" He called after me, I stopped,

"are you mad at me?" he asked hesitantly and I shrugged,

"should I be Lon?" I asked, he didn't reply and I didn't expect an answer either, I walked away without saying another word.

I sat at the kitchen, chatting with Leo and Kayla, I didn't know where the twins were, Grey was at Jake's, Cain had gone to Crescent Moon territory for patrol and Luca hadn't returned since he walked away, I didn't try seeking him out, I knew he needed space, I was glad I hadn't sighted Claire either, I had had enough of her for one day.

I was worried for Talon but I tried not to think about it, there was only so much help I could offer to someone who was unwilling, what I was doing here was already out of character for me and I wasn't willing to push myself past my limits, hopefully, he'd come around.

I was drawn out of my thoughts when I heard the doorbell, grinning, I stood up and went to get the door.

The moment I swung the door open I was greeted by a soft voice,

"hey beautiful." the beautiful brunette at the door said with a smirk and I grinned,

"Sky... you're here" I said,

"yeah babe of course I'm here, I missed you so so much, now are you gonna give me a hug or do I have to beg first...?" She asked seriously and I laughed, pulling her into a tight hug.

She wrapped her arms around me and lay her head on my shoulder, sighing softly before placing a light kiss on my neck, I chuckled at her usual antics only to be cut off by two angry growls, I was pulled behind a muscular back and I rolled my eyes, weres and their possessiveness, Sky was my friend for heaven's sake,

"Jay, Lon, chill, before y'all creep my friend out." I said moving from my spot behind him to stand between him and Talon who were currently facing off poor Sky, surprisingly she didn't seem fazed, Jay's next words would explain this.

"Believe me love, we couldn't creep your friend here out if we tried." he said, still glaring icily at her, I raised a brow turning to him,

"what the fuck are you trying to say Jay?" I asked sternly and Talon replied,

"Maybe you should ask your friend over there what we're talking about." he stated, his tone and stance equally as threatening as Jay's, by now Kay, Leo, the twins and a few other wolves and lions had joined their leaders, each of their stances threatening as if my friend was some threat.

I knew they didn't react well to outsiders but considering I told Jay and Lon about her arrival, this reaction was a little too extreme and I wasn't liking it one bit, even the twins who had met her a couple of times before were now acting like she was some dangerous stranger.

"Would you all chill out for a sec and someone damn well tell me what the fuck is going on here right now." I said angrily, glaring at each of them, once my gaze got to Mia she replied.

"she's... like us Ana." she explained softly and I froze,

"you wish girl, I'm not anything like you and you know it, finally figured it out huh, I heard the leader of the pride had a peculiar sense of smell that could pick out any specie, even my kind that practically smell completely like humans apart from some little differences that only a few can identify, I get to see one of the rex leonum's outstanding abilities first hand, identifying my specie so easily, how impressive...." I heard Sky say, whirling around, I faced her a cold look over taking my features,

"Skylar... you had better start explaining what the fuck this is all about, what the fuck are you and why do you have my men reacting this way?" I asked coldly and a look of hurt flashed across her face at my tone, my expression softened instantly, this was my friend I'd know for the past three years, whatever she was, she wasn't a threat to me or anyone associated with me,

"I'm sorry Sky, just explain yourself." I said softly and she sighed,

"I'm not like them because I'm not a shifter...I'm a witch baby." she replied guiltily and I frowned,

"Then you must have known the twins were shifters and that I was aware...why didn't you tell me?" I asked, unable to keep the hurt out of my tone.

Why would she keep something like this from me when she was aware I already knew of her world, when I found out about the twins, I understood why they kept it a secret but I was still hurt, I avoided them for a while and if they weren't so persistent we probably would have long ended our friendship. In Jake's case I didn't have the right to be mad, we didn't know each other well enough to reveal something of that sort, having only met for the first time when he helped me with my bags at the grocery store.

In Skylar's case though, I had known her even before I met the twins, having met her only a few days after I arrived here from Nigeria, three years ago, she was the first to win my trust here after constantly pestering me, long before the twins came into the picture, we were really close although she travelled a lot, she was one person I knew was always on my side and willing to do practically anything for me, literally, she had even offered to kill a guy who was creepily hitting on me sometime ago, she had a really good laugh at the shocked look on my face, I had thought she was joking, but later she enlightened me that she had meant every word she said and I just had to say the word and she'd do it, I had decided then she was a psycho, but she cared that much for me and damn if I didn't appreciate her, she was one psycho I valued immensely.

She winced at my tone, reaching for me, I stepped back,

"baby I'm sorry..." She began but I raised a hand, stopping her, I turned to my mates who were still angrily glaring at her,

"she stays." I said, leaving no room for discussions,

"but.." Jay began and I cut him off, "she would never harm me or anyone close to me...she stays Jaylen, for as long as she wants." I stated finally, glaring at him, he sighed, giving in and sent his men away, leaving only himself, Talon and my friends, I turned back to her,

"The mansion is a bit full right now, since it was short notice, I haven't asked Jay to prepare a bedroom for you, you can use mine till he gets an unoccupied one ready, make yourself at home, the elevator is down that hallway to your left, my bedroom is the second door, fifth floor, I won't escort you up, I need to let out some steam." I informed her emotionlessly, handing her my key card. I turned to Jay

"I'll be in the gym." I informed him, he nodded and I glanced at Lon briefly before walking off.

I couldn't go up to change so my hoodie would have to do,  getting into the gym, I wasn't feeling any of the equipments, connecting my phone to the sound system, I put on an upbeat tone and began moving according to the beat.

Dancing was a sacred part of my life, it was really important to me, I started dancing when I was 13, although I had always loved it even before then, I was mostly into hip hop but I was good at all others as well, I never took it professionally though, like I said it was sacred.

I mostly danced for me, although I was part of a crew here in California but they were previously out of the country to register for an international dance battle, I still hadn't made up my mind if I would participate or not although everyone in the crew had tried convincing me. It wasn't like I hadn't danced on stage before, we did that a lot, but the platform of this dance battle was huge and I wasn't sure I needed that kind of attention or stress right now.

It was a hard decision to make though, the dancers in my crew were all damn good, most of them took it professionally, but a crew was a crew and me refusing to participate in the competition would draw them back a lot. Most people didn't know I danced, I always wore a mask when I and the crew had a competition, the crew called me frost, said I was an ice queen, the nick name stuck and eventually became my code name.

Frost was a well known female dancer here in California, the only other female dancer on the J crew, the other female dancer was unsurprisingly Skylar, she had kicked me into the crew the day she figured out I was a damn good dancer , the crew had accepted me with open arms, fully aware of my conditions which revolved around the fact that my major focus was my education, as such if they got too demanding, I would pull out immediately.

Sky being the leader of the crew helped my cause, as such my practice schedule was extremely flexible, I usually made sure to go at least twice a week though, although I hadn't been going for the past few weeks obviously because the crew was out of town, Sky's crew was one of the reasons she travelled a lot, they were actually really popular or should I say 'we' considering I was also a well known member, now that she was back in town,it means the crew probably would be arriving soon too.

As I moved to the beat, I knew I was being watched, and I think I knew who the unlucky bastards were, Jay and Lon would be needing another cold shower today. My method of dancing, although a bit different from Sky's due to it's African origin was similar to her's in just one thing, our tendency to be overly seductive in our steps, our dance videos on YouTube had millions of views, each fan had one curious question, why did we never get to see frost in any international event and who exactly was frost, the mystery behind my identity added to their already outstanding fame, Sky enjoyed the drama, she had always wanted me to take dancing a bit further but she understood and accepted my decision on the matter.

"I want to be alone right now please." I said, without turning to them, they hesitated for a bit before doing as I asked. A few minutes later I sighed,

"I said I wanted to be alone guys." I said still not turning. A pair of hands circled around my waist and a soft body was pressed to mine.

"Skylar." I said, she had the tendency to always be touchy around me, I had been bothered by it at first, but after a while, I got used to it.

"I know you wanted to be alone but I couldn't resist, it's been so long I saw you move that beautiful body, I've been away too long, dance with me." she asked softly, I rolled my eyes at her words, she had always been like this with me. I didn't reply, moving out of her hold and turning off the sound system.

I grabbed a bottle of water, ignoring her. She sighed coming up behind me,

"I'm sorry baby, I just didn't know how you'd react and..." She began but I cut her off,

"how I'd react huh, so you felt lying to me for three years was a better option...nice." I said sarcastically, she sighed,

"I didn't mean it like that." she said and I shrugged,

"Oh, I know quite well how you meant it, you believed I'd treat you differently once I found out who or what you were...that Skylar goes to show how much you trust me." I replied, turning to leave, she caught hold of my hand,

"I trust you baby, you know that, I just didn't have the courage... and after time passed, I feared you'd react like this, not because of what I am but because of how long I had kept it from you." she explained,

"I'm sorry my actions have hurt you, don't be mad at me" she pleaded and I sighed.

She was right, how exactly did you tell your human friend you were a witch, I chuckled lightly at my thoughts,

"how did you like the room?" I asked and she sighed in relief,

"it's perfect." she replied and I smiled nodding,

"I'll take a shower and then you can fill me in on your trip." I said, as we walked out of the gym and headed to my room.

~Author's Note~

New character alert , the game has gotten this far it's time to bring in all our players don't you think?, Btw something seems really weird about this Skylar, and our female lead seems oblivious (Again , come on Ana ) , what do you think is up with Sky?

Rex leonum means Lion King though

Thanks for your support so far y'all, your votes and comments are all deeply appreciated