Chapter 8 Building Friendships and Connection

Chapter Eight

First Person's Perspective

Belle

It was another night, and yet again...I couldn't sleep

"Fuck you Reign" I cursed under my breath

My body was exhausted but my mind wouldn't shut up. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw him. Felt his hands on me. Heard him say "this can't happen again" while his body told a completely different story

I gave up around 2 AM and grabbed a jacket, heading outside to the back gardens. The cool night air hit my face and I breathed it in, trying to clear my head

The moon was almost full, casting everything in silver light...at least this was soothing and calming

I found a bench near the fountain and sat down, pulling my knees up to my chest

I needed a plan and a real one this time

Reign had made it clear he wasn't going to help me. Which meant I needed to find another way to get what I wanted, another angle, another...

"Can't sleep either?"

I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sound of a voice

Wilde dropped onto the bench beside me, looking way too awake for this hour. He had two bottles of water in his hands and offered me one

"Jesus Christ," I muttered, taking it "You trying to give me a heart attack?"

"Sorry" He didn't sound sorry at all "Saw you from my window and figured that you could use some company"

"And what if I wanted to be alone?" I asked, rolling

my eyes

"Then you would've told me to fuck off by now" He grinned "See? We're already getting to know each other"

I couldn't help but smile a little at that "You're annoying"

"So I've been told" He opened his water, taking a long drink "So what's keeping you up? Jet lag still ? Or something else?"

I hesitated. Wilde seemed harmless enough, but he was also Reign's nephew. Whatever I said to him could easily get back to the Alpha

Then again, maybe that wasn't such a bad thing

"I need help with something," I said carefully "But I don't know how things work here. Like, if I needed business contacts or legal help or whatever, who would I even ask?"

Wilde raised an eyebrow "That's pretty specific for 2 AM"

"I'm just curious about how the pack operates"

"Uh huh" He studied me for a moment "Okay, I'll bite. What kind of help are we talking about?" Ah! Great, we we're heading somewhere

I shrugged "just legal stuff" he nodded

"From before I came here" I picked at the label on my water bottle "There's someone who screwed me over pretty badly, destroyed my reputation. And I want to fix it, but I can't do it alone"

"Ah!" Wilde nodded slowly "So you need connections and resources?? The kind of thing an Alpha would have access to"

"Yeah"

"And you're asking me instead of going directly to Uncle Reign because...?"

Because I already tried that and he shut me down. Because if I'm alone in a room with him again, we're definitely going to do something we shouldn't. Because I need a different approach

"Because I just got here and I barely know him," I said instead "It feels weird asking for favors from my mom's husband, you know?"

Wilde laughed "Fair enough. But here's the thing, Belle, Reign's the Alpha and he controls exactly everything, all the important connections, all the resources....so if you want real help, you're going to have to talk to him eventually"

"Great," I muttered

"But," Wilde continued, "there might be a way to make that easier"

I looked at him "How?"

"Go through your mother first. Tell her what you need and im pretty sure she'll bring it to Reign, and then he pretty much has to help you. Pack loyalty and all that. Plus it makes you look good-like you're trying to work within the family structure instead of going behind anyone's back"

That was... actually smart

"Would that really work?"

"Probably" He shrugged "Your mom's the Luna and she has a lot of influence over pack decisions. And Reign-" He paused, something flickering across his face "Reign cares about family. About doing the right thing, so If your mom asks him to help you, he will"

I turned that over in my mind. It made sense. And it gave me an excuse to talk to Reign without it looking suspicious.m

"Thanks," I said "That's actually helpful"

"Don't sound so surprised" Wilde bumped my shoulder with his "I'm not just a pretty face, you know"

I snorted "Debatable"

We sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes, listening to the fountain

Then Wilde spoke again, his voice quieter

"Hey, Belle? Whatever happened before you came here, whatever this guy did to you... I'm sorry. That must've sucked"

Something in my chest tightened "Yeah, It did and still does"

"It's okay, you're pack now. That means you're not alone anymore...In here, we take care of our own"

I didn't know what to say to that. So I just nodded

We stayed out there until the sky started lightening, talking about nothing important

And when we finally headed back inside, I felt a little less alone than I had in weeks

Maybe making a friend wouldn't be so bad after all