Realization flooded me as I watched his form stiffen as he fought with his wolf. "Ohhhhhhhhhhh." I couldn't help it as I took a half step back. Arlo was from an Alpha bloodline and that meant his wolf was as well. The creature was probably more than impatient with me and it was a rather alarming thought.

"I apologize but I am male and you are a beautiful female. That thought was just a bit much for my wolf." His eyes were dark as he looked at me before he pressed his hand to his forehead once more and almost hunched forward.

I shifted on my feet slightly. "I'm sorry." I cursed myself for even bringing the subject up. I knew how tetchy his wolf was and I hadn't thought before I had spoken.

He slowly shook his head as he slowly seemed to relax, the darkness receding from his eyes. "Its not your fault." I wanted to argue but I knew Arlo wouldn't accept that. He could be stubborn when he wanted to be. I crossed my arms over my chest as I stepped off the front step, the move bringing me closer to him. My cheeks flushed heavily and I cursed myself as I resisted the urge to touch my cheeks to try and calm down the heat. "You really look nice." He said it quietly and the heat in my face seemed to grow worse as even my neck started to feel warm.

I felt really uncomfortable in the outfit but Linnette had picked it out and had threatened me into wearing it. It made me feel like I was playing pretend. "Thank you." I glanced up at him and tried to hold his gaze as I gave a small smile.

"Either you two kiss or get off the front lawn!" Linnette's voice came down from the upstairs window and I scowled and took a step away from Arlo as I looked up to glower at the female. She was hanging out the window with a shit eating grin on her face.

"Daddy can' kiss her, Ninnet! Ewwwwwwwww!" Maddy's voice made me smile as I watched as she stuck her head out beside Linnette's. She gave a big wave. "Hi, daddy!" She looked excited to see him before she looked at me and signed that she wanted to come too.

"Sorry, sweet heart. Not this time, maybe next time?" I accompanied the words with the signs I knew were appropriate. "Daddy is coming over tomorrow so maybe we can go out then?" At my response she gave me a dark scowl and crossed her arms over her chest with a heavy pout.

"I wanna now!" She was a demanding little thing and I felt a small smile creep up on my face as I looked at her. That attitude reminded me a lot of myself when I was her age.

"I don't like bossy little children." Arlo's voice rumbled from him as he gave Madeline a look that told me that he wasn't going to pander to her behaviour.

She gave an indignant little sniff in response. "I'm Alfa." At the sassy response I had to look away to hide my smile. She was quite the little female and I knew she would be a wonderful Alpha when the day came.

"I don't like bossy little Alphas." Arlo stressed the word and I once again looked up to see Maddy glaring at Arlo, her bottom lip stuck out as far as it could go and her small arms wrapped tightly around herself.

"Yer mean." She said it as if he had broken some unspoken code in her world where he was supposed to give into her every demand. I half wondered if it was simply her Alpha nature showing or if we were catering to her a bit too much.

"I'm your daddy. Its my job." The look he gave her made her deflate slightly before she looked down at him, her expression turning to a bit of hopefulness.

"We go 'morrow?"

Arlo nodded. "Yes we can, bug."

A bright smile lit up her face and she nodded happily. "Okaaaay! Luv you!" She blew us both a kiss before she disappeared from the window.

"Love you too. Remember to practice your speech, you are slipping a bit." Arlo called it out and I could faintly her Madeline making a disgusted sound in her throat that had Linnette laughing as she looked down on us.

"Now Sorrel doesn't have a curfew so you two can stay out for as long as you like." She gave me a wicked grin that had me pointing at her.

"Don't you dare!" I hissed the words at her and she merely chortled happily and threw me a look that said 'come and stop me' before a sickly sweet smile crossed her face.

"Remember to use protection, y'all. As much fun as we can have, we don't want to have babies out of claimed mating bonds now do we? The scandal it would cause. I do declare!" She shifted into an exaggerated southern bell accent before she quickly closed the window as I sputtered at her in anger. My face immediately felt flaming hot and I covered it with my hands.

"I hate her." For a brief moment I did. I hated her.

At the words Arlo gave a strained chuckle. "She is, what I would call, a brat." I risked a glance at him from behind my hands and he was glowering up at the window, his own face rather red. It made me feel a bit better to know I wasn't the only one who had been embarrassed by the display.

The sound of the window opening pulled my attention and Ollie stuck his head out. "Ignore her. You two have a good time and try to relax. You need it, Alpha." He gave me a pointed look and I gave him a small and grateful smile. "Don't think so much about it, just let it happen. Just get to know each other. Don't put emphasis on a relationship, let it happen naturally."

"Thanks, Ollie. Remind me later that we need to have drinks one of these nights." Arlo gave him a small wave and Ollie nodded before gesturing towards me.

"I will but focus on yourselves tonight." Ollie looked towards me and gave me a reassuring smile. "I'll see you later, alright? Have fun." He pulled back from the window and closed it, I looked towards Arlo at the same he looked at me. I swallowed and realized there was no other distractions for me to lean on to avoid Arlo and the date.

My heart lurched in my chest at the thought and he shifted on his feet. "We should probably head out." He gestured to the truck and I nodded, moving towards the rusty old thing. My heart was thudding in my chest as I climbed into the passenger seat. I was enveloped into Arlo's warm and masculine scent. It had a hint of something like leather to it and it seemed to make the soft warmth that moved through me that much more intense. My wolf sniffed at it delicately before settling down in my mind in an act that almost felt like she was basking.

It felt strange for me to feel so contradictory. Arlo got into the truck as well and I winced as the hinges squealed unpleasantly. Arlo winced, "Sorry." He started up the truck as I pulled on my seat belt. He pulled on his as well before he reversed out of the spot and headed down the driveway.

I looked out the window as we continued the drive. My nervousness was growing worse the longer the drive became. I fidgeted in my spot, the warmth that came from Arlo's scent enveloping me was growing worse and I couldn't control how I was responding to him. I had never truly been alone with him before so it was a rather nerve wracking and new experience for me. I honestly didn't know how to react to it all. My body was sending me mixed signals of I needed to run and I needed to stretch out and goddamn purr my appreciate of the male that was sitting on the other side of the truck.

The town came into view and my insides twisted suddenly with nervousness. I wasn't sure where in town he was taking me and the not knowing seemed to cause the most anxiety within me. I grasped the door of the truck and tried to even out my breathing and my heartbeat. The closer we came to the town the more I became aware that Arlo was glancing at me every so often.

We slowed down and Arlo turned onto the main street, I could see several restaurants but we didn't stop. We pulled up to a grocery store and I glanced at Arlo in confusion. He didn't look at me as he undid his seatbelt and pushed open his door. He finally looked at me and gave me a soft smile. "Well let's go in." He got out of the truck and the confusion still swirled through me but I slowly took my seat belt off and exited the truck. Arlo held out his hand for me once he came around the front of the truck and I took it, shivering at the feeling of warmth that surged through me at the contact.

He tucked his other hand in his pocket as we walked towards the main doors of the store. I tucked my hair behind my ear and looked up at him. I was becoming acutely aware of just how large of a male he was. I wasn't scared of that fact, I felt... comfort. I was comforted by the fact that he was larger than me. There was a part of me that liked the fact that if he were to embrace me I would feel enveloped and safe.

I couldn't explain why I had that feeling. I was a strong female with intense training, I held an Alpha position and I should have felt safe no matter where I was because I could protect myself. But there was that little piece of me knew he would make me feel safe if I ever ventured into his embrace. I had been fighting alone for so long that I guessed having someone that I knew I could rely on was what gave me that feeling. That if I ever needed him, he would be right there for me.

I looked up at him as we moved into the store, tracing the profile of his face. Arlo was not a demanding male, he was patient and kind. He had no want to dominate others and he had shown me no signs he would cater to the Old Ways. He showed me nothing but support for my position and a rather intense need to make sure I was okay and taking care of myself. Perhaps that was another reason, I knew he would take care of me after I had finished taking care of everyone else.

He pulled me into the deli section and pointed at the various smoked meats. "What do you like on your pizza?" He looked down at me, tilting his head just enough that a lock of his dark hair fell forwards and I looked at the deli counter.

"I thought we were going for pizza." The fact he was asking me what I would like on my pizza was rather bizarre because I was sure the deli counter mundane didn't make pizzas. I had been in the grocery store enough times to know that.

"Well you looked so terrified at the thought of going into a restaurant with me that I thought it would be better to gather everything we needed for pizza and just make one at the coven instead." He gave my hand a small squeeze before he gave me a smile that crinkled the corners of his eyes and made my pulse flutter wildly. "To make you feel more comfortable and secure. Is that okay?" I thought it over, making pizza with Arlo at the coven. It wasn't a bad idea. I loved going to the coven because it was my home away from Veritas and there would be others around if I needed them at all.

"I think I like that." I let his hand go to take a closer look at the various meats. I picked up a small tray of pepperoni before grabbing a tray of smoked ham as well. "Anything you want on it?" I looked at Arlo and he moved forward, grabbing a tray of slices salami before nodding his head.

"Lets pick out some cheese." He moved towards the cheese cooler and I followed him, reaching out and taking the salami from him so he could ponder over the various cheeses for sale. He quickly handed me several types and before I knew it he had taken me through the entire store, grabbing the various things we needed for the homemade pizza and giving them to me.

My arms felt a bit overloaded as we made out way towards the register. I made a small noise of protest as the top can of tomato paste toppled over and Arlo looked back at me. His eyes widened as he caught the can before it hit the floor. His face flushed as he looked at me. "I am so sorry." He quickly took a good portion of the items out of my arms and looked around quickly for a basket. He looked so flustered that it tugged my lips up into a smile.

I hadn't minded that he had used me as a basket because he had honestly looked so excited about his task. He had been so involved in doing it that it had been almost adorable and now the flushed pink on his cheeks was rather endearing as he rushed towards the end of the aisle. He returned with a small basket and quickly helped me put the rest of the items into the basket.

"I'm really sorry. I wasn't thinking." He grabbed the handles of the basket and held it tightly as he looked at me.

"Its alright." I gave him a smile, I felt a bit more relieved that he was just as nervous as I was about the date. Besides that fact he was flustered and it made him seem that much sweeter in my eyes. "Lets go to the till." I started towards the registers and I could hear Arlo following behind me as I did so.

There was a mundane teenager at the only open till and despite the fact she looked rather bored as we approached she flashed us a welcoming smile. "Did you two find everything okay?" I gave a short nod as I helped Arlo pull the groceries out of the basket and set it on the conveyor. "Looks like you guys are making pizza!" The teenager gave me another smile as I nodded. "I tried making one of the frozen ones once and I ended up burning it. I had forgotten about it in the oven." She gave a small chuckle that I echoed as did Arlo. "Its why I am banned from the kitchen at home. I could burn water." Her cheeks flushed slightly but she still gave a bright smile.

"I just started learning how to cook. It will come, you just need practice." Arlo flashed her a crooked grin as he set the basket in the holder and she gave a happy nod.

"I should start practicing. Going to have to leave home soon, university and all that." She started scanning the items and I moved to the bagging area, carefully placing everything in appropriate bags while her and Arlo chatted about what university courses she was taking. "So I don't see you around that often." The teenager was looking at me and I glanced up at her. "You and a bunch of other people live up on that private property right?" She looked intrigued and I could only imagine the rumors that the mundanes were coming up with.

"Yes." I set the cheese into its own bag and could hear the mundane's heart rate increasing as she continued to items through.

"You guys aren't... like a cult are you?" She asked the question with a low voice and I fought back a smile as I looked at her once again.

"No. We just have a different sort of... mentality towards certain things."

At that she looked even more curious as she slid me the cans she had just scanned. "Like what?"

I wanted to hesitate, I wanted to not say what I was going too but I couldn't pass up the opportunity. "Nudity."

Her eyes went wide and her cheeks flared a bright red. "Oh. Ohhhhhhhhhhh." She turned back to her scanning, her face bright red.

"Don't listen to her, she's teasing." Arlo's mouth quirked upwards as he glanced at me. "We are naturalists, we work in the forests in this area and beyond so we needed a big base camp." Arlo's lie was smooth and there was no hint that he was being deceptive.

"Oh. Well that's not nearly as exciting as the possibility of a nudist colony." She giggled, her face still slightly red but it was slowly receding.

"I doubt anything would be as exciting as that." Arlo gave another chuckle before he glanced at me and winked when I caught his gaze. My heart jumped at the action and I felt a faint blush crawling over my cheeks.

"I agree. Now your total is sixty-three dollars and nineteen cents." She taped a few things on her screen and Arlo pulled out his wallet and peeled off a few bills. I finished up bagging the ingredients as the sound of the register opening filled my ear. My wolf was growing tired with the brightly lit store and the feeling of being out of her element. I didn't blame her. We rarely left the territory so anything new wasn't fun for her.

"Keep the change." Arlo moved closer to me, reaching out and picking up two of the grocery bags.

"Are you sure?" The teenager had a five dollar bill in her hand and some random coins.

"Yeah, you keep it." Arlo grabbed another bag and I grabbed the remaining one. "Have a good evening." I headed for the doors after I gave the teenager a small wave of goodbye. I didn't want to seem rude but my wolf wasn't really in the mood to play nice. The air was cooler and my wolf curled up her lip, she didn't like the town. I got to the truck and got into my seat, settling the groceries on the middle of the seat as Arlo pulled open his door. "Ready to go to the coven?" The sudden question made me freeze up and swallow hard.