C8 Blossoming romances.

The next few weeks flew by so fast; training had become more intense, but I was growing ever more confident with it and we were soon due to be finishing the whole course only 4 weeks left to push and me and Dad continued with our fighting techniques at home.

Heath had text me a couple of weeks ago and we had been exchanging messages every day since. which couldn’t have come at a better time considering I’d vowed to shut myself off from Layton. I still hadn’t heard from him and after spending the first week after the dance wanting to squeeze an answer out of him, a reason for why he kissed me, I checked myself, I knew I was obsessing and I had to move on.

Heath had asked me out for this weekend and I couldn’t help but say yes, I did still remember how gorgeous he was and I actually felt excited to see him again.

It was finally Friday evening and I was sat at my vanity table finishing off my hair for the date tonight.. the sun was still beaming so bright and it was still so warm you would think it was only mid day not 6 in the evening and as it was still so warm I decided to go with a light blue strappy tight bodycon dress and white flat strappy sandals.. he’d said he wanted to go on the beach so flats were best.

I heard the doorbell ring, springing up from doing my hair I quickly grabbed my bag and headed out to answer the door and when I opened it, there stood Heath in a tight short sleeved white t shirt and dark blue loose denim shorts, His legs looked so manly and strong, his arms were protruding out of his top making my mouth water at the sight of them.

His eyes were wide as they travelled all over my body as a grin slowly appeared on his face “You look”...he paused slightly shaking his head.. ”stunning... I remembered you were gorgeous but clearly I didn’t remember just how much” he was grinning from ear to ear and I couldn’t help but smile back

“well you look rather dashing yourself Heath” I said tilting my head and trying to look sweet and innocent.

“Let’s go then stunning little lady” he said, grabbing my hand he pulled me away from the house and down to the beach. We talked all the way and as we walked along the shore, still hand in hand, we’d taken off our shoes to let the shallow waves splash across our feet.

"So did your grandma enjoy her birthday and her present? I asked

"Oh, she loved it the painting I mean, she actually had a tear in her eyes” he said smiling. “her party she loved too especially the blues band we hired for her I even made her get up and have a few twirls with me" he laughed.

"Aww that sounds sweet” I said, thinking about how cute it would have been to see this big man dance with a cute little old lady.

"Well she deserves it and so much more" he said rubbing his jawline.

"You two must be very close”

“oh we are yes, she practically raised me actually, um, my dad was great when I was a kid but he worked all the time, id barely see him, but at least when I did see him he’d always make time to play sports with me, take me out and train me, he tried his best to make quality time for me.

Our house I grew up in was pretty big, so My gran lived with us, she was with me every day, cooked, put me to bed, taught me all the important life lessons that sort of thing. it was her I came home to every day after school and it’s always been the same since, although my father is home more now especially now gran is getting older and he’s hired help, so the house doesn’t seem so empty now when I go there”.

I looked at him thoughtfully as he talked and I couldn’t help but pry ” So...where um..where is your mum?” I asked hesitantly hoping he wouldn’t mind me being nosey.

"Uh well my mums not what you would call, maternal or selfless in any way.. My gran told me that when my father and mother met, they seemed madly in love and spent all their spare time together, apparently they looked absolutely smitten, they travelled, they wined and dined, he spoilt her rotten and one year later he proposed with this massive diamond ring, they were both even happier at that point, but my gran told me that once they were married my mother changed, they came back from their honeymoon a completely different couple.

My Father had told my Gran that while they were away My mother wouldn’t go anywhere or join him on anything apparently she just wanted to sit by the pool and sun bathe all day she wouldn’t even strike conversation, she just became quite cold toward him. My gran said that my father looked distraught when they came back, as if he was heartbroken.

That was it really my mother was quite distant, obviously they still made love sometimes which explains why I’m here” he nervously chuckled ”and would take trips every now and then together, but my gran reckons my mother put on a different personality and exaggerated her love for my father so that he’d marry her and she’d have a share in his money”.

“wow” was all I could muster as I listened intently

"yep, by the time they had me, she was never home, always at the spa or parties, lunching with her friends, or whatever shit she could entertain herself with and by the time I was eight, my dad found out she’d been having an affair so they got divorced”

"no way.. so after all that she still cheated, please don’t tell me she got entitlement to like half his money or something”

He chuckled ”actually no, my gran said she remembered my mother was too excited about the fact that she’d be marrying a rich man that she didn’t read the nuptial properly, so in the nuptial it said that she’d be entitled to a few million IF my father had chosen to end the marriage off his own accord.

So to her she obviously thought she’d have his money regardless, but in small print there were certain clauses to make sure she couldn’t just run off with any of his money. She was pissed about it for months after the divorce and kept turning up at the house demanding money, my dad told her it was her stupid fault for wasting time fucking other men rather than working to contribute to the family money”.

“Wow I can’t believe she turned out to do all that after leading him to believe she loved him..I suppose some people prefer money over conscience”

" You’re right, and it’s surprising just how many people are like that, they divorced over 15 years ago and he still hasn’t let anyone else get close to him and I don’t blame him, I think she ruined his trust for good”

"Poor man, that’s hardly fair. Some people are just fucking morons!”

He chuckled ”You seem too young and cute to swear, how old are you by the way?”

"I’m 18, and yes I might look little and cute but I’m not fragile or anything, I’m just tougher than I look, which is good in a way cause its always amusing when people underestimate me”

"tougher than you look huh? well that’s good to know.. what’s made you tough?”

"I’m actually training to be a pack warrior, I only have four weeks left and so far I’m excelling on every part”

"jeez wow, can’t say I was expecting you to say that, although that explains why you’ve got such a toned little body”

I laughed and playfully hit him on the arm “Have youuuu been checking me out Mr Lawrence?”

He laughed ”oh were back to last name basis, are we? and as a matter of fact I was checking you out the first time I saw you and if your going to wear a dress like that then I’ll check you out the entire time I’m with you" he winked at me.

I couldn’t help but to keep laughing to hide my awkward blushing.

"you really are stunning though....Miss Vanderwood" he chuckled and pulled away from me running off down the beach, I chased after him, enjoying his playful side and the fact that it could be easy like this already.

I caught up to him and jumped on his back, we laughed as he carried on running while I gripped onto him for dear life. He finally stopped as we were both worn out from laughing too much, he wrapped his arms under my bum as I wrapped my legs around his waist, still sitting on his back “come on you sexy little warrior let’s get something to eat and a drink, sound good?”

“perfect” I smiled as he made his way off the beach still holding me.

The evening with Heath went great, we talked more about our families and the kind of things we did in our spare time. It seems though that Heath is a man of money.. So his ventures are a bit more ..well.. fancier than mine, he’s travelled to many places, cruises, private islands, Jets and has all kinds of posh dinner parties and balls to attend, while mine consist of jogging, training in my back yard, reading, painting, sitting at Maz’s and attending frat style type parties.

I’ve barely travelled, and I’ve certainly never been to a grand ball or an evening dinner that consists of 500 people or more. But it all sounded interesting and rather dreamy in a way, even though he claimed he’s bored to death of them and has picked up on reading in his spare time and even though my life wasn’t as fancy as his I certainly loved my life and everything in it.

“you’ll have to show me your paintings sometime” he tried to persuade me as he sat back in the chair calmly.

I slowly sipped on my wine and grinned at him ”I haven’t really shown anyone my paintings, I’m not quite there yet but hopefully in a year or two I’ll be ready I just want to get my training done and go from there”

“that’s fair enough”...he paused ”what do you like most? fighting or painting?” he looked at me inquisitive

I raised my eyebrows at the question ”mmm that’s a tough one cause I feel I need them both, its two different parts of me, but I suppose if I had to choose then fighting”

“really?" he asked seemingly surprised

"Yes, I love that I can defend myself and the people I care about too”

“Well I for one would like to see these moves” he smirked with a wink. and I couldn’t help but feel flustered at the thought.

"well maybe one day you’ll be fortunate enough to see me in action, even in my little training shorts and little top” I said teasingly and his smirk rose into a playful grin..

"Well my little lady THAT I definitely will hold you to, that’s too hot to pass up”

ok so I might be feeling a little excited right now by the way he’s looking at me.. I decided to slow down on the wine as I could feel myself heating up. ”You Heath seem like a very naughty man, I’ll bet you have all the rich little women falling at your feet" I teased with my eyebrow raised.

He nodded ” I won’t lie, they can be like that, but they’re all the same, daddy’s money that they spend like a few thousand is just pennies to them, no real regard to how hard their dad’s actually work to foot the bill”.

"well, if they’re left to think its ok to spend all that money I suppose they wouldn’t know any different would they, so don’t you live off of daddy’s money?”

He laughed ”No, no I don’t Lelanna, my dad had chains of restaurants and bistros across the main city and a lot in other countries too mostly where wealthy people go to, most of them with too much money for their own good.

I on the other hand own private, secluded villas all over the place, which mostly are used by celebrities or big spending billionaires, I make a killing with those, they get used all the time cause their completely private, there’s no paparazzi, crowds, no one getting in their business just complete and utter privacy with use of their own beach too”.

“ok, that’s fancy" I nodded ”Mr big bucks, well you better make sure you have one airtight pre-nup before you ever get hitched you don’t want that money disappearing do you”.

"Oh don’t worry, I’ve got some of the best lawyers that would handle shit like that they’d put in whatever I want in and they’d make sure no woman ran off with half my money... anyway, none of that is even anything I need to ever contemplate”

“how so?”

"well… uhh... I have no intention of getting married, just no interest at all”

I would say I’d felt disappointed at that but it’s our first date and as great as it’s been with him I wouldn’t get that carried away already for it to bother me ”Well that’s your choice, if it’s one you’re happy with?”

" Yes, I am actually, anyway would you like some more wine?”

"Actually, I’ll need to get going" I’d looked at my watch to see it was 12.15am “I’d promised I’d spend tomorrow with a friend so I need to get my beauty sleep”

"oh is that how you’re so pretty then? all the sleep you get?” he chuckled

"well, I would say that’s the reason, but all this comes naturally" I purposefully batted my eyelashes and flicked my hair back playfully making us both laugh.

"ok come on then sleeping beauty, let’s get you home”.

We’d left the restaurant and walked to my house hand in hand which felt strange but nice when he’d done it earlier on the way to the beach it felt more playful than what it does now and I’ve never been like this on a first date I think apart from a peck on the cheek at the end of the night if I liked the guy but wouldn’t do anything else, and even though it was only hand holding it felt a bit too comfortable and personal for a first date.. not that I was complaining cause he was gorgeous and so far I’ve had a brilliant time with him.

We got to my door as he turned to face me and looked down at me, I saw his eyes flicker to my lips, so I quickly gave him a peck on the cheek to make it clear that’s all he was getting as I began to feel nervous.. ”Thanks for tonight Heath it’s been lovely”

"It really has, I’ve had a great time Lelanna and... I’d love to see you again, if you’d like to see me again?”

“Yes, of course, I’d like that” I smiled

He looked happy at that ”Great” he gave me a peck on my cheek ” goodnight then Lelanna”

"Goodnight, Heath” I let go of his hand and turned to go inside my house. It was quiet, everyone was probably asleep by now, I crept up to my room and got dressed into my pyjamas, I put my phone on my nightstand as I sunk into bed, smiling as I fell to sleep.

It was warm and sunny again today as me and Dakota were at an outdoor market with stalls filled with little homemade trinkets, some with rugs and tapestry, ornaments and food. The market was huge, lines of stalls lengthened down the huge greenery, a small band were playing in the middle on a raised stage. It was bustling with people all looking for a bargain or a rare collectible, some people had hands full of things they had bought.

Me and Dakota usually only came for the weaponry stalls, they would only consist of Swiss army knives and daggers, but we loved the different kinds and how some of the handles on them would be nicely engraved or decorated with colour and jewels, we never went home without a new one.

Dakota bought one with a metal handle decorated with red thorned roses and skulls, I bought one with a wooden handle engraved with the moon and outlines of wolves faces, it looked old but felt strong and slightly heavy in my hand. I then made my way to the book stalls, purchasing two really old books that smelt like a library. Even though we had a library in the village I couldn’t help but still buy some just to add to my already big collection.

Once we were done, we headed back to the high street for lunch and we stopped in a little Mexican restaurant, picking a small table in the garden overlooking the fields ahead, it was quiet and scenic and only three other tables were filled in the garden. We ordered our food and a cocktail and sat back in our chairs to let the sun glow on our faces..

“So have you heard from Layton since the dance”? Dakota asked looking at me thoughtfully

"No, It’s been weeks" I scoffed “and anyway I don’t care now, he obviously doesn’t want to make amends or he was too drunk to remember”.

"Well I think he remembers and is too embarrassed to apologise”

"Well if that’s the case then that just makes him a bigger ass than he already is”

“But”....she paused for a moment..

“What?”

"I just think...and I know your going to just batt off my opinion but I’m going to say it anyway... I think he tried to kiss you not just because you’re an attractive girl but because It’s YOU" she said gesturing to me.

“okayyyy”..I said, tired of going over this theory

"What I mean is what if he kissed you because he actually has feelings for you? I mean the way he is with you sometimes Lil’s, it seems like it’s more than him being a friend, he gets so protective over you sometimes or will literally hog you to himself when were all out....and sometimes I notice a certain way he looks at you, like....he’s mesmerised by you, he literally grins like an idiot every time he sees you”.

"Honestly D, apart from the mesmerised bit which I have to say I’ve never noticed, but all the rest of it, that’s just Layton being Layton, he’s known me forever, he’s going to be protective and we’ve always hung out loads”

she sighed ”I knew you’d just dismiss it. .but ok, I personally think he has feelings for you.. and just a heads up I will be smug about it when it turns out I’m right” she said giving me a mischievous grin.

I just shook my head ”Look, unless he tells me so himself, I’m not going to hope for it, or guess, or assume! I’m done, I can’t keep playing that game anymore and besides we haven’t spoken so It doesn’t matter either way”

It was nearing onto evening time when we started walking back to my house, we had decided to stay at the restaurant and have a few more drinks. Dakota was staying at my house tonight for a little sleepover to binge watch films together. We cosied up on my bed with our junk food as we selected our first film which was a horror and laughed at how predictable and typical the plot and ending was.

It was nearing on 8 at night by the time we had finished our second film, we were just in the middle of selecting our third when a light knock on my bedroom door got our attention.

“Come in" I called.. to then see Sam pop his head round the door.. ”Oh, hey Sam, you only just getting home from the Palace on a Saturday?”

"Oh, actually no, me and Layton hung out for the day with some of the boys, bit of lads time and all that...what are you girls up to” he said eyeing up the pile of food on my bed.

"Weeee are having a film night”

"Ah well I was just about to put on a film downstairs on the big screen if you wanna join.. you girls up for a horror?”

I could feel Dakota tense next to me, she always got nervous when Sam was around and I knew that she of course wanted to join him even though we’d already watched a not so scary film ”Yea course we are, we’ll be down in five minutes Sam”

“Ok girls see you in five”. He shut the door and I heard his feet retreating downstairs... when Dakota let out a little excited squeal, I turned to see her smiling

“Oh my gosh he’s so hot Lil’s” she said fanning herself

I laughed ”if you say so D, now... let’s brush your hair and put some light lippy on you to freshen you up" I knew she wanted to look and feel tidier. she jumped out of bed as I grabbed her a natural light pink lipstick just dabbing it on her lips to add a little colour while still making it look natural.

We headed downstairs and I made sure to enter the room before her, straight away I noticed Sam sitting on one end of the two seater sofa so I purposefully plonked myself down in the armchair next to it, leaving the only seat left that was next to Sam empty for Dakota. I wanted to give them an opportunity to be closer.. She sat down and I glanced at the corner of my eye to see she was practically on the arm of the sofa rather than the seat, clearly she was nervous.

I wanted to tell her to relax and that I knew Sam already had a thing for her. Sam played the film, which once again was just the same as all the others I had watched but I waited till the film was about half way through and let out a loud yawn and stretch to show that I was ‘tired’ ”sorry guys but I’m barely awake now so I’m going to head to bed”.

"do you want me to come?” Dakota asked as she was about to stand

“No, no its fine you finish the film, I’m super tired so Sam can keep you company”.. she looked at me with a little grin as she realised what my intentions were. I bent down to Sam on the sofa to give him a hug good night when I whispered in his ear ”now’s your chance”, I moved back and went up to bed, putting on ’bridesmaids” and grinning to myself at what might hopefully be an opportunity that Sam will take to ask Dakota out, or for them to at least talk properly without me or any of their friends around, they’ve never had time without prying eyes and nosy ears to hear their conversation.

I just hope Sam seizes this opportunity. After a while I couldn’t hear the film playing downstairs but I could hear laughing from both Sam and Dakota, must be going well then.. I so wanted to be nosey and listen in but I knew better than to invade their privacy, so I concentrated back on my film and let them have their chance.

It was one in the morning when I finally heard Sam and Dakota coming up the stairs, I could hear faint voices outside my door before it suddenly opened with Dakota and Sam whispering a ′goodnight′ to each other then she quietly shut the door, turning to me and running over to the bed excitedly with a quiet squeal and huge smile on her face.

She jumped on the bed and grabbed my hand ”thank you thank you thankyou Lil’s.. that was just the best night everrr”

“Tell me everything" I said as I sat up straight ready to listen

“well when you first left it was a bit awkward but then we just started talking about the film, then our favourite horrors and compared the horrors and I don’t know how but we got so carried away with our conversation that all of a sudden we were talking about life, what he does at the palace, what he wants to do in his future, what his favourite things to do are, and we spoke about me and he was just listening to everything I said Lil’s, I mean he was sat so close to me and didn’t take his eyes off of me once, it was so intense but felt so easy and natural.. you know what I mean?”

"D, I do, and I’m soo happy you guys finally got to have a chance alone to talk”

“I know.. but that’s not it....he’s asked me out on a DATE!! she squealed and held my hand even tighter, “I can’t believe I’m actually going on a date with Samuel fuckin Vanderwood!!”

I laughed ”D stop acting like it’s you that’s lucky when it’s not, he’s the lucky one.. its Sam going on a date with Dakota fuckin Haydon!!”

We both laughed then she just looked starry eyed.. caught up in how different tonight turned out to be.

"I’m happy for you D, I can tell Sam does actually like you, he’s never taken any girl on a date. .like ever!”

"Really?.. not one?.. there must be one!”

“Nope!, honestly D, girls just throw themselves at him he’s never needed to or been interested in any of them enough to take them out. .you are literally the first girl to go on a date with him...man there’s going to be a lot of jealous girls” I laughed

"Yeaaaa, dayyyam they’re going to be jealous" she joked in a sarcastic voice and laughed ”So Lil’s our date is this weekend and.. I mean I’m so nervous, what should I do?”

I thought for a moment, I did want this to go right for her.. for them both. ”well D first of all no pretences ok don’t put on an act or try to be something else just be you, he’s asked you out for a reason so always be you, but I suppose the only thing I’d say not to do is, don’t do anything on the first date, maybe a peck on the cheek at the end but that’s it.. in fact keep it that way for the first few dates”

“Well there might not be a few!”

"Oh D I can already tell there will be, but you have to take it slow on the physical stuff...I know Sam and to him all women are easy cause that’s what he’s experienced since he hit puberty. So, any time you feel tempted to kiss him or anything more just remember that’s exactly what he’s already had and none of those women ever went on a date with him, so if you really want to see where this can go make him wait”.

"Yes Lil’s” she smiled and nodded ”I’ll definitely do that, I get what you mean and I really don’t want him to think I’m just like the others, I’ve wanted this for too long to rush it anyway”.

“Good” I said squeezing her hand ”You’ll be fine D, anyway any guy that gets to go on a date with you is lucky and Sam is really lucky”.

She placed a peck on the back of my hand “thanks Lil’s you really are the bestest friend I could have ever asked for”

"awww, you too D, I don’t know what I’d do without you”.

We giggled and broke up the soppy moment tucking ourselves into bed.

It was Wednesday and my second date with Heath, I was sat at my Vanity table getting ready as I had Dakota on loudspeaker from my phone asking me what I might do on our second date, but I was adamant nothing was going to happen, he’d get his peck on the cheek maybe some hand holding and that’s it, I was a virgin and apart from kissing, I hadn’t done anything else with a guy and that’s how I wanted it to remain until I met my destined or chosen mate.

I was wearing a tight black dress that showed just a little bit of cleavage, black stilettos and my hair curled. I said goodbye to Dakota and made my way downstairs.

“Oh hey Lanny.. where the hell you off to looking all glammed up?” Sam called out to me as he came out of the kitchen

"I’m going on a date, Sam with that Heath guy I told you about!”

“oh..right..yea.. I remember, just you’ve not mentioned him since I thought he was kind of out of the picture”

"Nope actually this is my second date with him and so far he seems nice”

"ok well.. just be careful ok, you know make sure you don’t do anything rash"

I chuckled ”Sam, seriously? I like this guy but I’m not going to rush into anything" not when someone else still has my heart I thought.

"Ok, well have fun I guess and be safe"

"Thank you and I will"

The door knocked and I opened it to see a very dashing Heath in a tight grey suit and white shirt. ”Hey little stunner” he complimented me as he gave me a peck on the cheek, I smiled and gave him one in return..

“you’re looking rather handsome tonight Heath, where are we off to?”

"Well, there’s this little place just outside the village that has THE BEST Lamb.. do you like lamb”?

“uhh I love Lamb.. sounds great”

He held my hand as he led me to his car opening the door and closing it behind me before he got in. We pulled up to the restaurant that was a huge white roman styled building with four white pillars on the outside, it had roses cascading down part of the wall and as we walked in I couldn’t help but marvel at how beautiful it was.

The centre of the celling was risen higher in a glass shaped dome with twinkling lights decorating it, the place was huge and a large chandelier hung from each side of the lower part of the ceiling, all the tables were covered in pristine white cloth with a small glass bowl in the centre filled with water and lit tealight candles floating on the water. It all looked romantic and very posh and I felt even more eager to see how good the food was.

We ordered our drinks and the Lamb and already I could feel how hungry my stomach was feeling after another long morning of training and work this afternoon. Heath gave me a cheeky grin after the waiter had left..

“What?” I asked him

He shook his head ”nothing just… I’ve actually been looking forward to this all week, I actually wanted to see you sooner but I’ve been swamped with work and had to do a bit of travelling back and forth”.

“Travelling? where to?”

"ah nowhere important just had to see some family… well my uncle to be exact”

"Oh, your father and other family.. they don’t live here?”

"uh no actually, they live further down south, a few hours away, I got a flight there and back cause otherwise its a few days drive”

"oh so you live here and so does your Gran? anyone else here with you?”

"uh my best mate Trey, I’ve known him for twenty years now so he’s practically a brother so we moved here together a few months ago and were both close to Gran, we were always the ones that stayed with her and took care of her when my gramp died, my father tried but he’s away a lot so we knew it was best she came with us”

"ohh well that’s sweet, she has two big men looking after her, must make her feel safe, and very loved”

"well she deserves to be looked after"

" I can tell you love her you always have a nice smile on your face when you talk about her”

I had my chin resting on my knuckles while my other hand rested on the table which he then took and placed my hand in his, I wanted to smile at the action but I bit my bottom lip to stop myself.

"Well she’s done all the raising, even for Tre, his parents weren’t exactly around for him so he was at my house all the time he even had his own bedroom, he lived with us really, my dad loves him too always treats him like a son, which is good for Tre.”

“Wow so you’re just like brothers then?”

"yea he’s the man, best man I know apart from my dad”

"So you travelled to see your uncle.. you two must be close”

"um actually no I don’t know him all that well but he’s got no kids of his own and recently he’s wanted to get to know me, my dad has been visiting him too so all three of us had some time together when I visited which turned out to be pretty cool actually"

"Hmm that’s nice Heath, I’m glad you have such a loving dad”

"so, tell me more about your family, you all close?” he let go of my hand as our food arrived after waiting which felt like forever and I couldn’t wait to dig in

"yes were all very close, my mum and dad are really cool, my dad trains with me a lot and is always showing me new tactics and showing me how to use all sorts of different weapons. My two little twin sisters are adorable and cheeky, they’re going to be tough as nails when they’re older.

I’m mostly close to my brother Sam, we did everything together as kids and even now we still hang out a lot, he’s great, I’m lucky to have him as a brother.. in fact, he and my best Friend are going to have their first date this weekend”

"Wow.. won’t that be a bit weird.. your brother and best mate?”

"oh no not at all, the only thing I worry about is him hurting her, I know she wouldn’t ever hold it against me or anything if he did I just don’t want it to be my brother that causes her any hurt, but they’re adults they can date if they want and wherever it goes is up to them.. in fact I think they suit each other perfectly”

"well then lets cheers to them” he smiled, we raised our glasses and clinked them together as he toasts ”here’s to your brother and best mate hopefully having a very happy future together”. I smiled at his toast and sipped my drink.

We talked more... a lot more for the rest of the evening and on the car ride home we had the music loud both singing along. I felt more comfortable with him already and just as much as the first date... I really enjoyed tonight, if maybe a bit more and a part of me wanted to kiss him already.

He walked me to my door while holding my hand and I don’t think I’ll never get used to how tiny my hands feel in his giant ones. I usually feel tough but considering my small stature with him holding my hand like this I felt tiny and vulnerable. I turned to face him as he looked in my eyes and gave me a smile ”I’ve had a great time Lelanna, you know, your wonderful...I hope you know that”

I smiled widely as I blushed “Thankyou" I said, suddenly feeling shy again, “I’ve had a great time too, Heath thank you for such a lovely evening”

"You’re welcome” he said as he leaned down and gave me a long soft peck on my cheek, I felt heat rising through my body as his tall body hovered over my short one. When he pulled back, I cupped my hand round the nape of his neck and drew him back down toward me and gave him a kiss on the bottom of his cheek just next to his lips, letting my kiss linger for a little while before pulling away and taking my hand from his neck.

I turned and opened the door “goodnight, Heath” I smiled

"Goodnight Lelanna......WAIT...Lelanna will you go out with me again?”

My smile grew even wider ”of course Heath, most evenings I’m available”

"Great, Can I see you this weekend?..I’m free Saturday, I can pick you up at 2 in the afternoon?.. that’s if your free?”

"Yes I’m free, definitely, I can’t wait“.

“Great” he smiled at me and slowly moving backwards he gave me a wink “goodnight stunner”

“Goodnight”. I shut the door with the biggest smile and I felt like a giddy schoolgirl with a crush.. then it dawned on me apart from Layton no other guy has actually made me feel giddy.. or feel much of anything for that matter.. huh maybe I’m finally moving on or maybe having this distance from Layton will turn out to be a good thing for me, if I can’t see him or speak to him then I can’t hope for anything. But in my head I could hear and feel that my wolf was missing Layton, after all his wolf was a friend to her like Layton was a friend to me.

As I got to the Palace gardens, Florence was sitting in a large white egg shaped wicker chair at a large glass table planting flower seeds into colourful plant pots. She looked radiant as always in her long white and blue summer dress. She looked up from her flower pot and her smile grew wide as she saw me walking into the orangery..

"Lelanna" she exclaimed excitedly ”It’s so good to see you, I loved your last visit” she stood up to embrace me and gave me a peck on the cheek, I hugged her tightly

“I missed you already Florence, I loved it too” I smiled as we both pulled out of the hug and sat in the white chairs.

“So tell me Lelanna, how are things with you?” she asked as she poured us a pink fruit drink and handed one to me.

"Well training is going really well, but I have to work even harder now as we don’t have long left, so it’s exhausting but so worth it.. I just really want and need to pass”

“Oh you will, I know you will, Sam’s told me your doing extra training with your Father, that must be fun. .from what my father tells me, Mr Vanderwood was his best guard and warrior my parents always felt safe under his watch, he’s extremely skilled apparently”

I felt a surge of pride for my dear old dad ”Yes, he is skilled so I’m lucky I get to learn from him and from Galeb. Galeb’s son is very skilled too and he’s always giving us pointers and helping us to improve”

"Well, I’m glad to hear it, it’s reassuring to know that when me and Layton take over the kingdom for my parents that we’ll have excellent and fierce guards, it’s a relief to know we’ll be in safe hands"

"Well even now you have no need to worry, I’d slice anyone from head to toe that tried to come near you” I said with a serious look which caused her to laugh

"Ohh Lelanna, I am very sure that’s true, and I’d hate to think of the poor person that would come up against you"

I grinned and patted her hand ”Anyway Layton’s an excellent fighter so you have him watching over you as well” I reminded her “Now, enough of my training, how are you? how is it all going with taking on the kingdom duties?”

"Well I know Layton and Sam are purposely going easy on me which is rather frustrating, I mean I am capable of doing the work, I wish they wouldn’t treat me like a fragile child, I want to do my bit Lelanna, I want to be useful and put my mark on the Kingdom"

"I know Flo but I guess they just worry about you, they don’t want things to be too much for you”

"But I don’t like it, all everyone does is treat me like a piece of tiny little China, and I know why but I’m not as fragile anymore and I don’t like being treated like I’m too weak or too soft to be taken seriously, and like my view doesn’t matter, what I say doesn’t matter, my voice won’t be as important as Layton’s or even close to it, because as it is Lelanna I feel as though....”

"As though what?” I asked putting my hand on hers to encourage her to speak.

"Well as though the kingdom is already forgetting about me, they forget the Alpha and Luna have a daughter, all they think about is Layton the soon to be Alpha, but not little Florence who’s too weak and little to be of any use”

I held her hand tightly as she started to look downhearted ”Well, if that’s how you feel then change it.. it won’t be better overnight but it will gradually.”

"Change it how?”

"Speak up Florence.. don’t let them treat you or make you feel that way, if you want to be heard then speak up, be firm, be serious and don’t take any shit”

She laughed at that last bit ”Yes perhaps your right Lelanna I do need to be tougher for myself and not let them make my decisions for me" she said smiling with determination, we both giggled, and we started to plant the seeds in the flower pots together as we carried on talking.

I told her about Sam and Dakota’s soon to be date and I told her about Heath. She told me that the pack doctors were visiting next week to do some medical checks and meetings to decide if she could start venturing out of the Palace, see more people and eventually lead more of an independent life away from all the nurses and housemaids that constantly check on her.

We talked all afternoon when I looked at my phone to see it was time I had to leave for Dakotas, we hugged each other goodbye and i’d promised to see her again the following week. I quickly rushed through the palace hall and got out the doors as fast as I could in hopes that I wouldn’t bump into Layton. I hopped on my bike and rode straight to Dakotas, to see her nervously waiting at the door as I arrived.

“I’m so nervous, I’m so nervous” She rambled as she poured us a glass of wine each then we headed up to her room so she could finish getting ready.

“Calm down D, it’s just Sam!”

“Uh I know.. It’s fucking Sam Vanderwood, Lelanna, like I never thought the day would come when I’d be going on a date with him”

“Just pleeeeassee be yourself D, don’t bat your eyelashes at him or overdo the compliments, just treat tonight as if your both just at a party and casually chatting like you normally do when you see him, your always so calm and collected and funny so just be all that tonight.. ok?”

she let out a long breath ”ok, ok, I promise I’ll relax and just be myself”

"Good, cause if you do that then I know he won’t be able to resist you, cause you my girl are the best" I told her as I clinked my glass with hers

We finished her hair and makeup then put her outfit on, I felt so happy for her but even more so for Sam cause I know he’ll take one look at her tonight and will be hooked, she looked stunning. I checked my phone to see it was 5.50pm. ”D I’m going to leave now cause he’ll be picking you up in ten minutes but I’ll go down the side streets so he doesn’t drive past me on the road and spot me”.

“Ok” she smiled.

We hugged and I pulled away just about to leave her bedroom before taking one last look ”Your beautiful D, and My brother is very lucky to get to go out on a date with you tonight”! I reassured her

I quickly left her house and cycled home through the side streets. I got home to my mum and Dad asking me to watch a film with them and the twins. I quickly got changed into my pyjamas and we sat on the floor in front of the large tv with tons of different foods in the middle of us like a little picnic in the house, we put blankets around our shoulders and scoffed our faces as watched the film huddled together. When the film had finished I tucked Lily and Daisy into bed then snuggled in my own bed and sent Dakota a quick text telling her I wanted to hear all about the date, before I set it back down and fell asleep.

I spent all day with the girls at the beach as we lounged in our bikinis on the loungers as the blue waves rolled against the sand, we didn’t have long left of summer so we decided to get together before we missed the chance. We all spoke of all the things we had been doing since we saw each other last which was almost three weeks ago and we had so much to catch up on. Maisie had been on a trip with the accounting firm she works for and had been telling us that she’s working hard for a promotion to account management that will mean the better pay and as Jay proposed to her, she’s been wanting to save money for their engagement party and of course their ceremony.

Lola had saved hard so her and her two sisters could move from their parents’ house into their own three bedroom apartment on the high street, just outside of the village. She had also decided to stay on longer at university to further her education in Fashion Design. Lola made a lot of her own clothes or would add her own style to items she bought, people always complimented her on her outfits, she had great style and an eye for creativity, she was great at what she did and we all knew she’d be successful in the fashion industry.

Of course, we were all eager to hear Dakotas news about her first date with Sam, she had texted me Saturday morning telling me how great it went, but now we were all here together it was more fun to bask in the details together.

“We just couldn’t stop laughing" she’d keep saying ”the eye contact was there the whole time”... “He was such a gentleman”... “It was even better than I thought it would be” she literally could not take her smile off of her face not that I was surprised because since their date I had noticed Sam was constantly grinning from ear to ear all the time too.

I actually think Sam likes her as much as she likes him.. not that I’ll tell her that.. not yet it’s too early for me to get her hopes up like that just in case I am wrong and it doesn’t last for long.

I know Sam obviously likes her but he’s also a guy, and he’s a guy I’ve never seen in a relationship cause he’s never wanted one so I don’t know for sure yet if he wants this to go further or not, if he just wants to casually date her for a little while or if he already likes her enough to hope it’ll blossom into something serious and as much as I’ve just wanted to ask him, I also don’t want to be involved in their business. But I do love how much happier they both seem to be.

They asked about Heath and although I wasn’t grinning ear to ear like Dakota, I did feel happy as I talked about him and told them that we are going out again and what will now be our fifth date. I still wasn’t sure how I felt about him, I was definitely attracted to him that’s for sure, he was gorgeous, he made me laugh and so far, he’s been good to me on all of our dates.

After we had cooled off in the sea for some time It was nearing into evening time when we got out and decided to pack our things and head home. Just as we were walking through the village and parted ways, I was lost in my own little world mulling over thoughts as I slowly walked home when I heard a male voice call my name ”Lelanna!!”

I looked up and smiled to see it was Liam “Liam” I beamed “we haven’t caught up in a while, as soon as trainings done you just disappear! how are you?”

“uh well actually, Uhh I have some news" he said as he ran his hand through his brown hair.

“Ok well go on tell me!”

"Well I was visiting some family a couple of weeks ago and some of us went to this party and well...I found my mate!” he gave me an awkward smile, "I just come back from viewing a house cause she’s going to come here and live with me”

“OH WOW” I squealed as I gave him a hug ”I’m so happy for you Liam”

“Really?” he said as I pulled back from our hug.

"Of course! why?”

"I just.. I don’t know.. I guess I’m still in shock it all feels a bit surreal, like Bam my mate came along and everything’s changed.. but in an amazing way, ya know”.

I gave him a smile and nodded ”Yes Liam although I haven’t been in your shoes, I can imagine it must feel wonderful”.

"It does.. and thankyou Lelanna, I know I can count on you and the girls to make her feel welcome, she won’t know anyone here so it’s all going to be a big change for her, I’m just damn lucky she’s willing to move”

"Yes you are, so just make sure your there every step of the way" I said as I patted his arm.. ”But I know you will you’re a good guy Liam and I’m glad you’ve found happiness"

“Well I better go I promised her I’d call her as soon as I got home and let her know what the place was like”

"Ok well congratulations Liam" We had one last quick hug as we said goodbye and started to walk our opposite ways..

“LIAM” I called as I quickly turned back round to face him, seeing him turn his gaze to me..

"YEA” he shouted back

“WHATS HER NAME?”

“DANIELLE”

“GREAT I’LL BE SURE TO REMEMBER" I gave him a nod and we both waved goodbye.

I got home to my mum coming out of the kitchen looking happier than usual

Mum ”OH honey your home and just in time” she smiled at me

Lelanna “Just in time for what?”

Mum “Well we can all have dinner together, Sam’s home tonight, so quickly, come on, I was just about to dish up”

Dad ”Good evening little warrior, you look like you’ve been under the sun all day”

Lelanna ”well I kind of have been Dad” I chuckled “me and the girls spent the afternoon at the beach”

Mum ”Oh how lovely”

I joined everyone at the table and sat down as we all started to dig into our food

Lelanna ”So Lily, Daisy, would you like me to come with you and mum this weekend to get your outfits for your recital next week?

Lily/Daisy ”YES” they both squealed.

Mum ”oh honey that would be nice, were going Saturday afternoon we can go for some lunch then get their outfits if you like”

Lelanna ”sounds perfect mum"

Dad “So Samuel how have things been at the Palace? are things starting to get easier, you and Layton must be more knowledgeable on the kingdom duties now”

Sam ”Yea dad it’s getting there, the office hours are long but hopefully things will level out once we start officially taking over on certain things. Florence is sharing a lot of the load now which has helped a great deal”

Mum ”oh that poor girl, you must take it easy on her, you know"

Lelanna ”um actually Mum that’s the opposite of what she wants... she’s a lot tougher than people think she is”

Mum ”Is she”?

Lelanna ”Mum she’s my age, she’s not a little girl anymore, she’s very capable, she’s a young woman who wants to be taken seriously, and so she should”

Sam ”Oh yea me and Layton got that alright after she gave us a bollocking for not letting her be more involved"

I smirked a little at that, quietly glad at the fact that she took charge after our little chat.

After dinner I headed up to bed wanting to get an early night tonight ready for the brutal training this week.