Sweet Caroline

Caroline felt her face heat as naughty thoughts swirled through her brain.

As if reading her thoughts, Andrew moved closer and put his hands on her waist. As he leaned in, she tilted her face up, and he kissed her. Her hands moved up, one going around his neck, while the other moved further up to tug at his hair.

Andrew moaned as he nipped her lip.

Caroline gasped, and his tongue slipped in to tangle with hers. She whimpered as he pulled her closer and lifted her slightly to give him a better angle. With his move, she took a chance to wrap her legs around his waist. Andrew groaned at her move as his lips left her lips to nibble down her neck.

“You make me want things, Doll, things I’m sure you aren’t ready for yet,” Andrew whispered in her ear.

Her reply to his words was to push harder against him as he once more kissed her neck. She could feel exactly how much he wanted her as his arousal swelled against her core. She gave a low moan as the feel of it caused her own body to heat up.

“We need to stop,” Andrew whispered as he pulled away.

Caroline opened her eyes to look at him and saw the lusty, glazed look in his eyes.

“How about that swim…” Andrew began only to be interrupted by the sound of the gate swinging open. He let out a growl as he put her down and pushed her gently behind him.

Caroline could have cried at the unfairness of it all when Reva, along with a couple of her girls and a couple of boys, walked in.

“Andrew, my man!” A blonde boy said. “Where were you at earlier? You missed practice.”

“Why are you here?” Andrew growled instead of answering.

The boys stopped, their eyes flickering over Caroline.

“Aw… man, I didn’t know you had company,” the other boy, a brunette, said. “Reva asked if we wanted to come over here, we thought—”

Andrew’s growl cut him off as he turned his narrowed gaze toward Reva. “So, you think you can just invite people to my house now? I’ve had to talk to the Alpha once about your behavior. Do I need to speak to him again about how little respect you show your future beta?”

Reva smiled, walking toward Andrew with an exaggerated sway to her hips.

Caroline figured Reva thought she looked sexy, but she just looked like she had a strange twitch in her hip instead.

“Oh, come on, Andrew! We always come over unannounced, and it’s never bothered you before,” Reva said with a pout.

“But it bothers me now, and you’ve been told not to do it anymore,” Andrew reminded her.

Caroline turned her head as the French doors opened, and a slightly familiar-looking lady stepped out. “Andrew, dear, is there a problem?”

Andrew never took his eyes off Reva as he said, “Just unannounced company, Mom. They were just leaving.”

“But Andrew!” Reva cried.

“Why are they leaving if they just arrived?” His mom asked him.

Andrew sighed. “Because Reva has done nothing but mistreats Caroline. I asked Caroline over so we could spend some time together with just the two of us. I don’t think she would be comfortable having to spend that time with—”

Caroline put her hand on his arm to stop his words. “It’s okay, Andrew. You don’t have to make them leave for me. They were your friends before….”

“Yeah, Andrew, you heard the girl. We’re your friends, so you should want to hang with us,” Reva said with a smirk.

Andrew snarled at her before he focused on Caroline, “No, they need to learn that you are my number one priority now. Caroline, you are my mate, mates and their feelings always come first. I won’t make you spend time with someone who bullies you.”

“Mate! That, that—she’s your mate?” Riva screeched.

Caroline looked over to find Reva’s face red in anger. It was actually quite comical to see.

“I’m sorry, Andrew, we wouldn’t have come if we’d known you were spending time with your mate,” the blond said. “We’ll go now. Oh, and congrats on finding your mate.”

Then he and the other guy, along with the two girls, left, leaving only Reva.

“Reva, dear, I think you should leave now also,” Andrew’s mom said. Then she walked back into the house after saying, “Supper will be finished in about an hour.”

“Why Andrew? Why would you even want a human mate?” Reva asked instead of leaving.

Andrew pinched the bridge of his nose and blew out an annoyed-sounding breath. “It isn’t really your business who my mate is, Reva, except to remember to treat her with respect.”

Reva wrinkled up her nose. Then she gave Caroline one last dirty look as if to say, “this isn’t over,” before she stomped off out the gate.

Andrew and Caroline watched her go silently. Then Andrew said, “Suddenly, I don’t feel like swimming anymore.”

Caroline turned to face him and softly asked, “What do you want to do then?”

“I want to snuggle with you,” Andrew replied.

Caroline nodded in agreement.

Taking Caroline’s hand, Andrew led her into the house and up the stairs. At the top, he stopped in front of a door. Opening it, he waved for her to go in ahead of him. The bedroom was done in dark brown and cream. His walls were cream, and so was his carpet, but his drapes, trim, and comforter were all done in dark brown.

Walking over to the bed, Andrew propped his pillows against the headboard. Then he lay down and tugged Caroline down on top of him.

“Andrew!” She squealed before laughing. Then she tried to roll off of him and onto the bed.

Andrew held her tight and buried his nose in the crook of her neck. “Please, baby doll, I need….” He took a deep breath and went silent for a moment before he concluded, “…I just need to be with you right now.”

Caroline repositioned herself so that her legs were on each side of him and lay still. After a few moments, she whispered, “Are you okay?”

Andrew nodded against her neck. “Sorry. Nobody likes to be disrespected, and Reva was so far out of line.”

“Perhaps you should explain things to me,” Caroline suggested. “You told her she should show respect to her future Beta.”

Andrew leaned back on the pillows, and his eyes met hers. “In every pack, there is the Alpha; he’s top dog, and what he says goes. His mate is our Luna or Alpha female, and what she says goes too. No arguments. My friend Darryl is next in line to be Alpha when his dad steps down.”

“So, the Alpha is like a boss?”

“I suppose you could call him that, except his word is the law, and you can’t just quit if you don’t agree with him.” Andrew huffed a soft laugh. “Anyway, nobody goes against him, and if they do, the consequences can be harsh. You see, wolves need strong leadership and discipline. Without it, we’d become wild and unruly going around fighting and killing for no reason.”

“Okay, got it.”

“Next is the Beta. I suppose you’d call him the Alpha’s right-hand man. He takes care of things if the Alpha is otherwise busy or gone.”

“And that’s what you are, or will be?”

“Yes. To disrespect either of those titles is asking for trouble. If it’s bad enough, it could land you in the pack jail. Reva has always pushed the envelope, but lately,” he shook his head, “she’s already been reported on, but she won’t quit.”

Caroline rubbed his shoulder, trying to relax him. “Anyone else?”

“Not really. The rest of the pack consists of enforcers, who are like security guards, omegas who take care of the pack, and everyday wolves. Our pack has roughly seven hundred wolves at last count.”

“That’s a lot of people for the Alpha to keep up with,” Caroline said with a soft whistle.

“Yeah, it is, but we have a good Alpha.”

“Kids, dinner’s ready!” Andrew’s mom yelled from downstairs.

Andrew got up, taking Caroline with him. “Ready to eat?”

“Yeah, but shouldn’t we change first?”

Andrew shrugged. “One pair of shorts is just as good as the next.”

Caroline glared at him and crossed her arms. “I do not wish to meet your dad in nothing but my swimsuit.”

Andrew took a good look at her, his eyes stopping at her cleavage. He softly growled. “No, me either.” So, he retrieved her bag and left her to dress as he waited outside the door.

When she finished, she walked out and smiled at him. Together they walked downstairs hand in hand to the kitchen.

“Hey, dad,” Andrew said.

“Son, who’s this lovely lady you have with you?” His dad asked with a grin.

Caroline couldn’t help but notice how Andrew had his dad’s smile and his mom’s brown hair and eyes. His dad was a sandy blonde with green eyes.

“This is my mate,” Andrew answered. “Dad, this is Caroline, but you remember her, don’t you?”

“Yes, son. I do, actually. She was a cute little girl who has grown up to be even cuter,” his dad replied.

“She’s pretty, Drew,” a little boy said from where he was seated at the table.

Caroline felt heat rush to her face.

Andrew chuckled. “I agree, she is. Caroline, this is my little brother Maxwell, but we call him Max.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Max,” Caroline said, and Max grinned.

“Alright, everyone, let’s eat.” His mom said. “By the way, in case you don’t remember our names, I’m Brianna, and this is my husband, Arnold.”

“I’m sorry. It’s been so long I actually didn’t remember,” Caroline softly said.

“It’s alright. You saw Arnold only two or three times and me not many more. Of course, you never met Maxwell, and I think the only thing you were interested in at the time was Andrew,” Brianna said.

Caroline glanced at Andrew, who winked. “Yeah, guess that’s probably true.”

“Let’s eat now,” Arnold suggested.

So, sitting down, that is what they did.

Dinner was pleasant with a lot of laughter. Caroline got to know Andrew through his parent’s eyes and got to know them and his little brother also. So, even with the drama of earlier, it ended up being a perfect evening.