ARTEMIS' POV:-

　　A few weeks passed just like that. I was pretty lame when it came to men. But Tracy was a pro. Every single idea she gave me, passed like a pro. Not once I failed. Maybe Tracy was right. Men are puppies. I started being honest with Alpha Elijah. As I didn't want Alpha Elijah to find out that I was lying to him. The most painful truth of life is that someone you trust blindly, lies to you. I have been through that painful truth. And I was not blind. I could clearly see that Alpha Elijah trusted me blindly. Being trusted blindly by someone is terrifying. You are always worried about a moment when you have to tell them a lie to protect them from the truth.

　　Accidents like these happen to everyone's life. Some cross that bridge very early. But most of them trip over their own footsteps and fall deep under the ground. I was terrified that I would have to cross that bridge in my life one day. Tracy had told me everything about the mates and the mate bond. It was almost like the saying in humans. The couples are made in heaven. It's easier for the werewolves. They can easily recognize their better halves. Just a single touch or sometimes, they recognize each other with their scents. That was actually my case. Tracy told me why I liked to sniff his pillow while he was not around me. I never let him see that, though.

　　I didn't know if Alpha Elijah felt that too. If he felt that bond, that gravity between us. He never said anything. But that didn't mean I didn't know anything at all. According to his pack members, I was the first and only woman in this world who had stepped into his bedroom and he hadn't… well .. he didn't touch me that way. And I also heard how I was the only person in this whole world who could calm him down while he was angry or worse, furious. That was one time I saved all the pack members from Alpha Elijah. And I heard them talking later about that incident. That it was impossible for anyone to calm him down for days. While my single voice turned the tables.

　　I stepped out of the bathroom, wearing a bathing gown on my body. A long towel was wrapped around my hair. It was night time. And I just got out of the shower. I was not actually trapped inside his apartment. He took me out sometimes. Whenever he was free, he would take me out. Every morning, we went for a run together. When he gets back home in the evening from work, he would take me out to train me. Although I was practically never left alone, Alpha Elijah thought it would be better if I knew how to fight. He wasn't just teaching me self-defence. He was teaching me to take down more than one man at once.

　　I was already a trained martial arts student. It was not long when I started combating Alpha Elijah himself. To the other members, it was shocking. Alpha Elijah was trained by thirty greatest alphas of the werewolf kingdom. And the pack members couldn't even think about fighting a duel against Alpha Elijah. "I said do it! There are no risks in this one. And you don't have to say anything to him. No lies. No truths to be spoken." Tracy almost growled at me in annoyance. She had an idea to get me what I wanted but Alpha Elijah refused every single time I asked for it. I was practically as good at fighting as he was. According to Tracy, I was getting better than even Alpha Elijah himself.

　　I didn't understand why he would still not let me out on my own. It was not like I would be discovered as soon as I stepped out of his apartment on my own. All I wanted was him to let me complete my studies. I wanted to join school. And I was even ready to accept if he set any of his terms and conditions. "I don't know, Tracy. What if he still refused to listen? Or worse. What if he doesn't even realise that I was not talking to him? He is the only one who talks to me in this pack." I replied to Tracy in a low tone as I walked towards my wardrobe. I pulled a pink camisole out of my wardrobe and quickly slipped in it.

　　As Tracy heard me, she rolled her eyes in annoyance. These types of arguments were common between us. Whenever she has an idea, I usually go against it. But I do it anyway. And not even once have we faced failure. "Oh come on, Artemis. By now, you should be confident as hell about my plans. You know they always work upon Elijah. He melts like a vanilla ice cream in front of you. Just try it for now. If he doesn't notice by the time you fall asleep, ignore this plan in the morning. Happy?" Tracy spoke in an annoyed tone after hearing my excuses. Tracy was wild while I owned a mild personality. We were practically opposite of each other.

　　Maybe that was the reason why she was always calm and cool whenever she gave me a wild idea. And why I always panicked hearing her ideas. Even though I knew that her plans were going to work out fine. Taking a deep breath, I nodded my head. At least it was a play safe kind of plan. I didn't want to be stuck between these walls where no one else talked to me except for Tracy. Taking a deep breath, I stepped out of the closet. "Keep your eyes off of him. You can't look at him." Tracy instructed as I walked towards the bed. I did exactly as I was told to do.

　　I walked straight to my side of the bed and crawled into the bed. I didn't once look at Alpha Elijah. But I could feel his eyes on me. I pulled the covers over my head and closed my eyes. "I am setting the alarm for 5 O'Clock sharp in the morning. We will leave early tomorrow morning. So we can come back home early too. I have to be at an early morning meeting to attend." I heard Alpha Elijah's voice. It was definitely something new. He would never inform me when he was going to wake me up. In fact, the alarm was for him. He was the one who woke me up every single morning. I couldn't believe that Tracy's plan was working.

　　Tracy giggled as she heard Alpha Elijah's voice. I controlled myself as I was not supposed to make any noises. I was supposed to be pretending to be asleep. Tracy calmed my heart rate and my breathing to make it look like I was actually asleep. I felt the comforter being taken off of my face. I could sense his scent right beside me. I could almost imagine a confused frown on his face as he watched me asleep. His lips suddenly touched the skin of my forehead. His lips stayed on my forehead for a minute. He covered my face again with the comforter and walked away. I had no idea how Tracy was able to control my heart. Because I almost felt like my heart would break free.