#11 Meet Me in the Emerald Forest
Chapter 23

Lukas

With Clem tucked protectively under my arm, I led Mateo inside the house. I could feel his nervous and excited energy radiating off of him and his wolf, Collin. Caleb was sitting at one of the stools bellied up to the island in my kitchen while Garrick was standing on the other side. They each had a cup of coffee. Lily was leaning against the couch while Callie was playing with some of the toys she leaves here on the carpet. Heavy awkwardness was hanging in the air.

Everyone moved at once when we entered the room. Callie was the first to speak. She shrieked and tossed herself in my arms. I was forced to let go of Clem to pick her up and she clung to me like a koala.

“Uncie Luke!” Callie giggled, “She’s so pretty! Is that the Luna?” She was wrestling in my arms, reaching out towards Clem.

“Cal, you need to lower your volume and relax. Remember what I told you about her?” I said quietly. Callie pouted but stopped squirming around.

“Can you say hello to Clementine nicely?” I offered Callie and she grinned.

“Hi! I’m Callie!” She waved at Clem who smiled.

“It’s nice to meet you Callie, I’m Clem.” Clem reached over to shake her tiny hand, “And I think you’re very pretty, too.” She smiled.

“Callie, can you give us a minute? Uncle Mateo just met his mate, too, and they need a little adult time.” I said to her, setting her down. Callie nodded and ran back to her toys.

“Alright,” I sighed, taking Clem’s hand and turning back towards the situation, “How are you feeling, Caleb?” I began.

“Unsure.” Caleb’s one word answer was given through clenched teeth as he fidgeted with the coffee mug.

Clem sighed and stepped away from me. I reluctantly let her go and watched as she walked to Caleb’s side.

“Caleb, this is Mateo.” She made the introductions and Mateo came stumbling forward.

“H…hi.” He was bouncing up and down with nervous energy. Clem shot him a look that said to calm down and he immediately settled.

“Do you want to see him shift?” Clem asked.

Caleb looked between Clementine and Mateo with mixed emotions flashing across his face.

“You don’t have to if you’re not ready, yet.” Mateo piped up, eager to soothe his mate.

“No, I need to see for myself so I can stop denying it.” Caleb nodded, wrestling up all of his courage and jumping down from the stool.

“We can go in the backyard. It’s private there.” Mateo suggested and Caleb looked at Clem again, nervously.

“I’ll be with you the entire time.” She promised. Caleb finally nodded.

Lily stayed behind with Callie while the rest of us went out to the yard. Garrick was standing protectively by Clem’s side, already knowing what his duty was. Mateo walked across the yard and stripped, just like I had done earlier today. It was hard to believe that that was just a few hours ago.

Caleb stayed silent as he stared at Mateo, his eyes never leaving his face. Clementine remained beside her friend, rubbing comforting circles on his back. I positioned myself between Mateo and the others, ready to step in if I had to. I nodded once at Mateo who then locked eyes with Caleb.

“Are you ready? I want you to know that I won’t hurt you, okay?” Mateo looked as nervous as I had felt earlier.

Caleb could only nod.

Finally, Mateo shifted as carefully and smoothly as he could so as not to traumatize his mate. Caleb stumbled backwards, his eyes huge and his mouth hanging open. Clem gripped his arm as if she was holding him up and I watched Collin very closely. Collin crawled low to the ground until he was a few feet away from Caleb, then he dropped all the way down to his belly and rested his head on his front paws.

“That’s….he….werewolf….” Caleb couldn’t put together a complete sentence.

“This is Collin, Mateo’s wolf.” I introduced them.

“He has a name?” Caleb’s head shot towards me and I nodded.

“All their wolves have their own names and personalities.” Clem explained.

I was so proud at how well she was handling this. Clem had just learned a few hours earlier about all of this, but, here she was, walking her partner and friend through the very same situation she was unsure of herself.

“Why don’t you sit in front of him?” Clem suggested.

Caleb looked at her in slight horror, gulping before he looked down at Collin. He began nudging forward slowly. Caleb crouched down in front of Collin and reached out a shaky hand. When his fingers made contact with Collin’s light brown fur, he started to purr and wag his tail like a common house dog. Caleb seemed surprised by this and his body relaxed further. He sat down fully on the ground and allowed Collin to press his snout against his legs.

“This is so bizarre.” Caleb said to himself and Clem laughed.

She moved quietly away from Caleb and towards me, taking my hand willingly. I resisted the urge to celebrate this small victory.

“Will Garrick stay here and watch them if we go?” She asked.

“Garrick, stay here and watch them while we go.” I ordered him immediately. Clem giggled at me and shook her head,

“You’re impossible.” She said but I was already pulling her from the backyard.

“What did you have in mind?” I asked her eagerly.

“I have some things in Caleb’s car.” She said,

After grabbing her things from the car I asked where she wanted to stay. I gave her a quick tour of the house and was thrilled when she settled on a room on the same floor as me. She put her things inside and then yawned, looking longingly at the bed.

“It’s been a long day, my sweet mate, maybe you should rest. I can show Caleb to his house when he and Mateo are finished, and we can have the tour after breakfast tomorrow.” I suggested, rubbing my hands up and down her arms.

“Are you sure?” She asked hesitantly.

“Of course I’m sure. I’ll always do what’s best for you.” I promised, ducking down to kiss her lightly on the cheek. Her face broke out into a breathtaking grin before she turned her face and pressed her lips against mine.

“What time’s breakfast?” She asked breathlessly after pulling away. She had a mischievous look in her beautiful blue eyes. I chuckled at her, shaking my head,

“Whenever you’re hungry.” I replied instantly and she rolled her eyes.

“Seriously, Lukas.”

“Alright, alright. The community center in the middle of the grounds offers three meals a day. They set our breakfast between 5:00 and 10:00 AM, lunch from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM, and dinner from 4:00 to 8:00 PM.” I explained.

“When do you usually go?” She asked.

“I don’t have a usual schedule, Clem, my days are usually a mess,” I chuckled, “But, I’ll be completely yours for the next few days while you get used to being here.”

“You don’t need to change your schedule and avoid your duties for me.” She argued.

“I’m not, I’m doing it for me. I’m selfish. I can’t stay away from you, you’re too addicting.” I teased her, nuzzling her neck again. Her body shook as she laughed and I felt her shake her head.

“How about 9 since that’s when we usually meet up anyway?” I finally offered when I moved away from her neck. She nodded, her cheeks flushed.

“Help yourself to whatever you need and don’t hesitate to replace me if you need anything else. I’ll either be in my bedroom, in my office downstairs, or sitting outside your door.” I added with a cheeky grin. She playfully rolled her eyes at me but her smile gave her away.

“Creeper.” She laughed.

“Goodnight, my love, sweet dreams.” I said, kissing her passionately again before slipping out of her room.

In an attempt to distract myself, I went back down the steps and into the backyard. Collin and Caleb were still sitting on the ground with Garrick watching over them. I backed off and went to speak to Lily and Callie. I sat down cross legged on the floor to play with Callie.

“Where’s the pretty Luna?” Callie asked and I smiled at her.

“She’s had a long day so she’s resting upstairs.” I told her, picking up one of her dolls and shamelessly playing Barbies with her.

“I love her.” Callie said casually while combing Barbie’s hair. I looked at her in shock and then glanced up at Lily who just shrugged.

“I love her, too. It’s the Luna thing, I guess.”

“Lily, do you think you could maybe check in on her in a few hours?” I asked, feeling a little embarrassed. Lily laughed,

“Awh, big brother.” She gushed and I rolled my eyes.

“Never mind.” I huffed and she quickly shook her head.

“No, no, I’m sorry. Yes, I’ll check on her at dinnertime and bring her up some food. I’m sure she’s not ready to eat with everyone yet.” Lily offered.

“Thank you.”

I checked my watch and realized that it was 5:00 and I hadn’t even thought about her dinner. I kicked myself for being a shitty mate.

“Come on, Cal, let’s go get daddy and have some dinner so we can make the Luna a plate.” Lily said, picking up her daughter.

I followed them out to the yard and gave Garrick permission to go.

“Collin, Caleb, why don’t we get Caleb settled into a guest house?” I suggested carefully. Collin looked up at me and growled in warning. I backed off and allowed him to make the decision.

“I think that’s okay.” Caleb nodded and Collin relaxed immediately.

Collin jumped up and moved away from Caleb to shift. He got dressed quickly and ran back to Caleb who was now standing.

“Caleb, we have some guest houses on the property and we can set you up to one closer to Mateo’s house if that’s okay with you?” I asked. Caleb studied Mateo carefully before nodding.

“Where’s Clem?” He asked.

“She’s staying inside the house,” I nodded behind me, “And she’s resting now.”

“Will you tell her where I’m staying in case she needs me tonight?” Caleb said and both Mateo and I growled. Caleb’s eyes went wide and he stumbled backwards.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Mateo kept apologizing.

“What did I do?” Caleb asked.

“You talking about visiting another woman at night set Mateo off and the fact that that woman is my unmarked mate set me off.” I explained with a chuckle.

This was all a mess. Caleb just looked confused.

“Why don’t we get you to your house and then you can ask me anything you want to know?” Mateo offered.

“I do have a lot of questions.” Caleb said thoughtfully.

“Come on, then.” I said, leading the way to Caleb’s new, temporary, home.