Chapter 2 No.2

"Goodbye, Jade. You will be missed, by me especially," Antonio called out as we walked away.

"Ignore him," I said to Dominic. "He enjoys getting people angry. It's why nobody likes him. Except for Brianna, of course."

"They deserve each other," said Dominic and I laughed.

We walked hand-in-hand happily, enjoying the fine spring weather, the bustle of people going about their businesses, and the squeals of little children running around and playing.

I couldn't remember a time in my life that I was ever this happy – it was such a blissful feeling and I couldn't wait for the next phase that would begin tonight once we reached Dominic's home. Our home.

"I was so restless and I came to Apex Woods to distract myself but I found my mate instead," Dominic mused with a smile on his chiselled face. "You must have drawn me here somehow."

"I wish I drew you sooner," I said and turned my face up for him to kiss me. When he did, my feet curled inside my worn-out boots and my body sizzled with anticipation.

We had run into each other four days ago at the community lake where I'd gone to be alone after another fighting episode with Brianna. We'd instantly smelled each other and known that we were fated to be mates.

I had wanted us to make things official there and then but Dominic had insisted that he wanted us to be properly mated in his home in the mountains. We've been kissing a lot and doing some heavy smooching but we hadn't fully mated yet and I was so eager to do it!

"How much longer will it take for us to get home?" I whispered against his lips.

"In human form, all day, but as wolves, three hours," he replied with a knowing smile. "You can't wait to see your new home, huh?"

"You bet."

"I must warn you though, it's nothing close to the gorgeous palace that we just left now."

"Who cares? I'd live under a tree with you, Dominic. I love you and I have you now, that's all that matters."

He smiled at me lovingly. "I love you too, Jade," he said softly. "And I can't wait to see how that love grows after tonight."

I laughed. "What's happening tonight?"

He looked away, grinning. "I'd rather not say. It's a surprise."

"I love surprises!"

"That's great. Come on, let's hit the road."

"I'll race you to the mountains," I challenged him playfully. "The loser will have leftovers for breakfast tomorrow!"

"You're on!" He replied with a laugh.

Our limbs began to stretch and fur sprung out of our skin as we began to shift into our wolf forms. Once we were fully transformed, we started running like a pair of pups tearing through the woods, laughing and yapping at each other.

As we ran towards the place that would become our forever home, I couldn't help but wonder what surprise Dominic had for me.

Oh, I couldn't wait for the next phase of my life. Something tells me that it's going to be very exciting.

Dominic's home was a rural settlement compared to Apex Woods which was more like a big city. Here, they had cute little houses located around the base of the Aldov Mountains.

Life looked simple here and the people welcomed us with bright smiles and cheerful greetings.

"Our cottage is right after the bend," said Dominic. "It's a bit far away from the rest of the village but I'm sure you'll like it."

"Sure," I said with a grin. I couldn't wait to see my new home. We had shifted back to our human forms and were walking hand-in-hand along the windy dirt road that led to our destination.

The cottage was a beautiful brown brick house with a high roof and wide windows. It was surrounded by hedges of colourful flowers, shrubs and trees.

"This place is beautiful!" I gushed.

"Thank you," said Dominic with a grin. "I'm glad you like it."

We followed the walkway lined with interlocked stones leading to the front door. I could already see myself living in this adorable house with my mate and raising our little cubs here. This was truly a dream come true!

"Home sweet home," Dominic said with what sounded like a nervous laugh.

"I don't care if the inside is a mess right now. I'm happy to clean it up and make it comfy for us," I assured him. I knew guys could be messy, so I totally understood his nervousness.

To my surprise, instead of grabbing his keys from his bag to open the door, he lifted his right hand and knocked on the door with a closed fist.

I giggled. "What are you doing? Do you have a resident ghost in your cottage or what?"

The front door swung open and I found myself staring at Dominic on the other side of the door. No, it wasn't Dominic, was it? He was standing beside me!

"What the –" I began to say but I swallowed the rest of my question when the door opened wider and another Dominic appeared beside the second one.

"No!" I screamed at the top of my lungs and ran away from the three Dominics as fast as my legs could carry me. In my haste to get away from the identical trio, I stumbled on a rock and fell head first on the ground.

**********

As I began to regain consciousness, I could hear the three Dominics talking in hushed tones near me. They were arguing about me, so I decided to pretend to still be unconscious so that I could get more info about my current bizarre situation.

"Why didn't you tell her?"

"I wanted to surprise her. Besides, I didn't want to freak her out."

"Well, you've done exactly that, so what now?"

Sigh.

"I don't know. What if she tries to run away when she wakes up?"

"Why would she? Is she not our mate?"

"She is, but – "

My eyes flew open. "What?"

They looked at me at the same time and the Dominic that brought me here took a step toward the couch where I was lying. "My love, you're awake," he said tenderly.

"Stay away from me," I said. "What did I just hear you say? That I am your mate? I mean, to the three of you? What is going on here, Dominic?"

"I'm sorry, Jade," he apologized. "I thought this would be an exciting surprise for you."

"Exciting?" I asked. My head was pounding because of my earlier fall but I was more interested in getting to the bottom of this weird turn of events.

"I am the oldest of a set of triplets," he began. "These are my brothers, Damian and Darius."