Thunder (Alpha Love - a Paranormal Werewolf Shifter Romance Book 3) (17 page)

Ashton looks at her oddly. “Like I said, there are a lot of things that are special about it.”

“Right, but you said that it was a supernatural thing. So, what is it supposed to do to humans?” Sofie’s already started to come up with her own theories. It wasn’t unheard of for minerals to tap into the biology of one’s own body. People bought copper bracelets to ease their arthritis, iron vitamins help with anemia. There was no reason to think that whatever the mineral in this rock was, that it did something similar, just on an amplified scale.

“It doesn’t affect everyone in the same way. But I remember by mother telling me that it sometimes exaggerates people’s emotions. If they’re a little sad, they get depressed; if they’re a little annoyed, they get really angry. That kind of thing. Why do you ask?” He looks at her curiously, knowing that there’s something she’s not telling him.

“I’m a scientist. I ask questions!” She waves away his curiosity, wanting to concentrate on the question that’s bothering her. “You said that the necklace is only supposed to work on werewolves or other…supernaturals.” Her expression tells Ashton that she still can’t quite get her head around that particular concept. “So how is it possible for it to have worked on me?”

Ashton shakes his head. “Honestly? I don’t know.” Sofie narrows her eyes as if she doesn’t believe him. “I really don’t! The necklace was passed down between Alpha mates, since the First. Perhaps it was just a myth that it’s only non-humans that are susceptible to it, something that my mother told me to stop me from giving it away to the first human girl that I met.” He smiles cheekily, but avoids her gaze.

Sofie isn’t willing to let him get away with that particular evasion, no matter how cute it was. “You may not know for sure what the deal is with the necklace, but you have your suspicions. Why is it so hard for you to tell me what you know? What are you afraid of?” She reaches over to him, running her palm along his prickly, dark blond stubble.

“It would be easier to show you.” This isn’t what Sofie expects. She was waiting to him to stonewall her, like he usually did; but that’s not what happens, not this time. Ashton looks at her as if he’s asking for permission. She nods quickly, not knowing what she’s agreeing to, but too curious to care.

Ashton takes hold of her shoulders, pulling her round to face him. “It’s important that you don’t pull away, no matter what happens. We have to maintain contact at all times during the trip.” He cups his hand around her neck, keeping hold of her as he rests his forehead against hers.

“The trip?” Sofie squeaks out the words, suddenly nervous of what’s about to happen. “This isn’t the part where you tell me that you’ve secretly given me LSD, is it?”

Ashton’s deep laugh is a great sound to hear after the day she’s had. It’s an island of comfort in a sea of confusion. “No, this is a 100% natural trip. I promise.” He closes his eyes, concentrating on something, seconds pass and nothing happens.

Sofie starts fidgeting, like a little kid that’s been told to sit still. “What are we doing here?”

Ashton eyes fly open, and he gives her a look that tells her she’s not helping. “What we’re doing requires a lot of concentration and a little bit of quiet.” Sofie gives him an innocent look that forces a grin onto his face. “Fine, fine. But you scientists take the mystery out of everything!” He leans back, releasing her, succumbing to her need for knowledge, she doesn’t even have to push. “Lycans, have a number of…talents. You know about a few already – the transformation, heightened senses—”

“Devastating sexiness,” Sofie supplies helpfully, winking at him.

“Who could forget that?” Ashton sifts his hand through her hair, as if he can’t be close to her without touching. They both crave that connection; they both have that unquenchable need for each other. “Well, there’s one that I don’t think you’ve seen yet.” He looks at her mysteriously, the way a magician looks at his audience just before he’s about to perform a masterful trick. “Memory transference.” Ashton continues as Sofie looks at him blankly. “Werewolves can transfer—or more like share—memories. It’s a delicate operation and means that we can communicate our experiences to each other. Alphas from different packs use it before meetings. It’s way of saying that we have nothing to hide, that we want to be transparent with each other.”

Sofie is dumbstruck; she doesn’t have any clue what to say. Instead, she just looks at him.

“Well, that’s a first,” Ashton jokes.

“Give me a sec,” she quips back. “So is this something that only Alphas can do?”

Ashton shakes his head. “All werewolves have the ability to transfer, but Alphas don’t have to morph into wolf form to be able to do it. It’s one of the perks, I guess. So, you ready?” He holds his hands out to her, waiting for her to move closer to him.

“Ready to see inside that head of yours? I would say I’m more than ready!” Sofie leans her head forward, replicating the posture that he had put her in before she’d interrupted him.

“Good, but, just to clarify, I’m driving!” Ashton takes hold of her neck, supporting her as their foreheads meet.

“You’re the boss!” Sofie does a mock-salute.

“Right, well then the boss says to keep quiet so he can do this without frying your brain.” He looks at her sternly, and Sofie can’t help but be a little bit turned on by it. “And definitely don’t give me that look that makes me want to take you right here!”

Sofie squirms a little, excited at the thought of it. But she mimes locking up her lips and throwing away the key, telling him she’ll be quiet. Ashton closes his eyes, but Sofie keeps hers open. She loves to watch him. When she’s this close to him, she can see how long his eyelashes are, how his face is unlined, meaning that he’ll always look ten years younger than he is. She relishes the feel of his breath against her skin, the warmth radiating off of him. Then, suddenly his eyes fly open and, as if they’re working in perfect tandem, her eyes shut tight.

***

She feels like she’s falling, down a hole—a dark, black hole that’s swallowing her up and spitting her out the other end. She gets up and dusts herself off.
I guess I know why they call it a
trip, she thinks.

The sound of a kid laughing makes her turn around. She’s in the clearing of Ashton’s house. She sees a little boy, he can’t be more than four or five, and he’s running through the grass, his parents watching him indulgently as he goes. The blonde hair, the cornflower blue eyes, it’s not hard to tell that the little boy is Ashton almost 25 years ago. He’s running towards her, as if he can see her, but his parents look straight through her, as if she isn’t there.

His mother shouts out something to him, and he turns around laughing, missing his footing and falling face first down onto the ground. Sofie has to remind herself that she’s in a memory, what she’s seeing isn’t happening in real time. But it all feels so real. She can feel the sun on her back, the wind against her face, the smell of the grass.

She watches, an outside observer, as the beautiful blonde woman, Ashton’s mother, starts running after her little boy. She picks him up, clearly worried that he’s hurt himself. But instead of tears, little Ashton smiles at her, holding up a flower that he’s just discovered, clearly having forgotten about falling over.
Even as a kid, he was tough,
Sofie thinks.

“You baby him too much.” Ashton’s father is tall and handsome. He’s lankier than his son but the way he carries himself lets you know how strong he is, how powerful. He was the Alpha of his generation, and Sofie can see why—his presence alone is formidable. “He’s supposed to be the next pack master. He needs to toughen up.” His voice is gruff, as he looks at his little son who promptly stops smiling as his father’s words reach him.

“Our boy is tough, John. But he’s also not yet 5. Don’t force him to grow up too fast.” Ashton’s mother nuzzles her son’s cheek, her face lighting up with joy as he giggles. He starts playing with his mother’s necklace, the black rock on a chain. It sparkles in the sunshine, like a black diamond. Sofie’s hands fly to her neck, feeling the presence of the same necklace. She takes a step towards them, wanting to talk to them, to ask Ashton’s mother a question. But she can feel herself being pulled away already. She wants to stay, to see more of Ashton’s childhood, of his parents. She plants her feet, straining against an invisible force, but it’s too late, she’s already falling in the darkness again.

This time, as she falls she sees snapshots, moments from Ashton’s past. She sees him being reprimanded by his father for neglecting his studies on Lupo in favor of playing football with friends—while his mother looks on. She sees Ashton in intense conversation with his mother, asking why his father won’t let him date human girls from high school. She tells him that it’s because his father is strict, and he only wants the best for his son. However, fourteen-year-old Ashton is clearly not satisfied with this explanation.

In all of the images of Ashton’s mother that she sees, she’s wearing the necklace. Sometimes she’s playing with it, absently running it through her fingers. As soon as Sofie has focused on the rock, the shift occurs, and she’s transported to somewhere else.

She’s falling again, landing on a bed of snow. She shivers against the wind, hugging herself. It’s cold, so cold. She watches as a man dressed in clothes that couldn’t be more basic, made out of animal hide and fur, walks proudly over to a woman with long dark hair, plaited in a braid over her should that reaches down past her hips. He holds out something that glistens and shines, motioning for her to put it on. When she lays it over her head and holds it up to the light, Sofie sees the necklace, the same one that she’s wearing. The woman claps joyfully, looking so happy she could burst. She throws her arms around the man, speaking to him in a language that she doesn’t understand. But she can make out one word clearly. “Lupo”. Sofie gasps in awe. She’s looking at the original werewolf, the first. She’s witnessing the first time the necklace came into existence.

She feels the pull that is starting to become familiar as it transports her to another scene. It’s spring now and from the look of the clothes of the people around, it’s much later in time. There’s an older woman in the center of a circle of people, holding the hand of a younger woman. There’s a chant that goes up around the circle. It sounds like a song, and Sofie watches as the ceremony unfolds. The older woman is wearing the necklace, she dances around the younger woman, pointing towards her and a man who sits on the edge of the circle. The younger woman looks at the man with so much love that it’s clear he is her mate.

The older woman dances gracefully, telling a story through the movement of her body and, as she approaches the younger woman, she sinks to the ground, kneeling before her. Then, the older woman stands in front of the younger and takes her necklace off, laying it over the head of the kneeling woman. They clasp hands and a whoop and roar goes up among the circle of people.

However, the ceremony hasn’t finished yet. The older woman motions to the man sitting at the edge of the circle. He gets up off the ground, padding slowly and gracefully over the two women. The older woman clasps their hands together and steps away from the young couple and kneels before them. Her action is copied by all the other members of the circle as they all kneel before the couple.

Sofie feels tears prick at her eyes as she watches the beauty of the ceremony, but then she’s moving again, pulled away. Her vision blurs, and she finds herself inside a house this time. As she looks around her she recognizes elements of Ashton house. It’s the same place, but it looks so different. She follows the sound of voices, tip-toeing towards the room that used to be Ashton’s.

She sees his mother, talking to another woman. The two of them are sitting down on the bed. From the way they’re talking, they must be good friends.

“You love him don’t you?” The petite, dark haired woman asks, frowning.

“Of course I do, Jen. But we’re not teenagers anymore! We both know it’s not just about that. He’s the Alpha, you and I both know what that means.” She looks at her friend meaningfully.

“Yes, it means you get to be the pack master’s mate. What’s not to like?” Jen giggles gleefully, and her laugh reminds Sofie of someone, but the thought of who escapes her.

“Honestly? I don’t know if I’m cut out for it. I don’t know if I want to be the one that everyone looks to for advice, the one that’s supposed to be all wise and shit about stuff. I’m 23, I don’t feel very wise!” She throws up her hands in a gesture that reminds Sofie so much of Ashton that she has to smile.

“You’ll be perfect. Besides you’re the only one that can pull the stick out of Jackson’s butt!” Jen doesn’t even bother to stifle her laugh, and Ashton’s mother laughs right along with her. It’s then that it hits her, Jen must be Lindsey’s mother, they’re so alike.

“She hates me you know? Jackson’s mom. She’s done everything she can to try to get him to change his mind about me. What if she makes a scene during the handover ceremony?” Ashton’s mother’s voice doesn’t have any trace of bitterness; it sounds sad more than anything else.

“Oh Jackson’s mother is probably the most miserable woman on the planet. It’s not that she doesn’t like you, she doesn’t like anyone outside of her and her precious first born.” Jen rolls her eyes, and then sees that her friend isn’t laughing and is in need of some real comfort. She slings her arm around her friend’s shoulders. “She’s not going to do anything at the ceremony. She’s going to do the friggin’ dance, hand over the necklace and smile. She’s not going to risk causing a scene, not with the whole pack watching.”