Hudson clawed at the shelves, trying to find his way into the room where Amanda was hiding. He could smell Amanda’s heat wafting in the air. Every part of him was craving to be close to his mate.

'HUDSON HARLOW!' he heard his mother’s voice shrieking through his head.

Hudson’s claws slowly retracted and moved away from the bookshelves. A moment later, his mother, Luna Cynthia, walked into the room with a small group of females. Hudson grimaced as he took in their smell and covered his nose. “Mom, what are you doing here? And why do they smell so differently?”

Cynthia smiled widely at her son. “Amanda called me for some help. When your mate’s in heat, other woman’s scents tend to sour your nose. I’ve brought them to help keep your distance from your mate while I try to talk her through her heat,” she explained.

“I don’t want to leave her, Mom. She needs me. I won’t leave her to deal with this herself.”

Cynthia reached out and rubbed the side of her son’s arm. “I think it’s wonderful that you want to stay by your mate’s side while she deals with this, but I don’t think your head is in the right place, and your hormones might cloud your true intentions.”

“But isn’t this something that Amanda and I should be dealing with ourselves? After all, we are mated now and married,” he defended.

Cynthia understood where her son was coming from but still had Amanda’s feelings to consider. Amanda hadn’t been brought up in the pack or told about what happens when a woman goes through her heat. Cynthia at least wanted to give her the basics and assist her through the first day as much as possible. Then, it would be up to Amanda to decide what she wanted to do after that.

“I understand where you are coming from; you grew up in the pack and have seen women endure their heat. Amanda hasn’t. I only want to let her know a few personal details on what happens during her heat that you might not be aware of.” Cynthia informed him.

Hudson nodded in understanding. He wanted to do what was best for Amanda. “I’ll be outside on the porch,” he told her.

Cynthia watched as her son left the room; she waited until she heard the front door shut before turning around and calling Amanda.

“Amanda, it’s safe. Can you unlock the passage door?” Cynthia called out.

Amanda sighed with relief when she heard the all-clear. She waved her hand through the air, took down the barrier spell, and pushed open the secret opening.

Cynthia rushed in with the other girls and picked Amanda up from the floor.

“She’s burning up, my Luna. We need to get her into a cold bath quickly,” one of the pack women insisted.

Cynthia looked at Amanda with concern; her body temperature was running higher than a normal wolf in their first heat. She was worried that this would be a prolonged heat for her daughter-in-law.

***

Ruby woke up to the sound of laughter and stumbling down the hall. She heaved a heavy sigh as she pulled herself out of bed to help the late-night party reach their rooms. When Ruby opened her door, she was hit with the overwhelming aroma left over from the party the kids had returned from. The alluring scent filled Ruby’s senses and sent a warm feeling to her belly. What have these kids been up to? Ruby asked herself.

Ruby stepped into the hall to see Tabitha wrapped around Marco, attempting to make out with him right there.

Marco looked up and saw Ruby staring at them. There was a mixture of fear and relief sitting in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Ruby. I’m trying to get her back to our room as quickly and quietly as possible,” he explained.

Ruby noticed Colson and Gretchen huddled closely together; she could tell they hadn’t intoxicated themselves as much as Marco and Tabitha had. Ruby looked past them and saw that shadow figure lurking in the background.

“Logan stayed and kept an eye on us. Tabitha and Marco had snuck away from where we were hanging for the party. Logan was the one who found them and helped us get them back to the hotel."

Ruby mouthed a thank you to the dark figure, who nodded back in recognition before he disappeared.

Tabitha was heavily sedated by the night of fun she had with Esha and Marco; she opened her eyes and was surprised to see Ruby standing next to her. “Well, look who decided to come out and join the party,” Tabitha said with a slur. “Miss No Fun because she reunited with her mate—Miss Ruby herself. I remember when you used to be fun before Mr. Handsome Professor walked back into your life. Maybe you should return to your cafe on campus and leave us alone,” Tabitha rattled on.

“Ruby, don’t listen to her. She’s been talking like this for a while now,” Gretchen admitted.

Ruby was hurt by the words that Tabitha was spewing. But she needed to push her feelings aside and focus on what was happening right then. She extended her hand for Marco’s hotel card and opened the door for him.

Marco gave her a small smile as he carried his drunk mate into their room. Marco walked her over to the couch and tried to put her down. Tabitha whined at the disconnection from her mate.

Ruby walked over to the kitchen and pulled out a few bottled drinks of water. “You should get her to hydrate, or she may have a killer hangover in the morning,” she advised.

“Thanks, Ruby, and thank you for not being so hard on her right now. Tabitha does care about you. If she remembers this in the morning, she will feel guilty for what she said to you.”

Ruby nodded quietly. “Get some rest. I’ll see you in the morning,” she said before leaving the room and returning to her suite. Ruby sighed as she entered her room and headed back to bed.

“Everything all right?” Zachary asked when he heard his sweet walk in.

“Yes, the kids are home. I think Tabitha and Marco had too much to drink,” she confided.

Zachary turned over and opened his arms so Ruby could cuddle into him. He sucked in the sweet smell that was still lingering from her interaction with Tabitha and Marco. “You smell amazing,” Zachary whispered, delivering soft kisses down her neck.

Ruby closed her eyes as her body tingled with excitement from her mate’s touch. She didn’t realize how much she missed their thrill-seeking adventures of sneaking out and getting into trouble. She giggled loudly.

Zachary pulled back and put his finger over her lips. “Shh, we don’t want to wake anyone up,” he said with a devious grin before pulling Ruby under him and covering her mouth with his.