The Beta and His Runaway Werefox / ✔️

The softest tweet from a yellow bird caused a small smile to spread across her face. It was a calm day after the morning awkward incident, but she felt better. She felt like she belonged just a little bit.

Her loose clothes kept falling as she pulled at her shorts with a small huff. Bella wanted to go back to her home to collect the remaining clothes that fit her, but she did not want to upset Harvey with the request. Even the mention of the old Werefox territory caused him to get mad, and she did not like seeing that expression on his face.

So, instead of asking, she agreed to go for a walk with him. His request was odd but alluring as he did not tell her where he was taking her, but she was curious enough to follow him anyway.

Harvey was oddly quiet, his eyes never straying from her as she looked around and took in the fresh-smelling air. It was not hot nor cold, but she still felt the smallest bit of a hot flush that was coming on, which indicated that summer was around the corner.

“Where are we going?” She questioned aloud, a wide smile spreading across her face as a butterfly flew past her face. “This place is pretty!”

Harvey chuckled at her reaction, his eyes lighting up at the sight of her smile. “A surprise is something that is being gifted or shown without the other person knowing what or where the surprise is. That is the purpose of a surprise.”

She pouted and crossed her arms. “I might not know what all your fancy words are, but I do know when someone is being a smart-ass.”

He paused in his steps, a shocked look spreading across his face before he broke out into a laugh. “Did you just swear?”

“What is a swear?”

He shook his head, his wide smile only widening in disbelief as he synced with her on their walk. “This place is where my parents bonded the most. Where they could be alone for as long as they wanted and where they took Liam and me when we were kids as well.”

Bella felt her eyes betray her as she found herself staring at his flawless face. “I heard Grace and Sherry talking about being kids, was being a kid fun?”

He shrugged. “My life has not changed since I was a child. Liam has gone kind of nuts; however, but that is because he craves his mate and has not found her yet. Kyra was a surprise, but she is my little sister and as crazy as she is, I love her.”

Bella slowly nodded. Her understanding of what he had said sunk in, as she felt a little sad. “I was always on my own.” She admitted with a sigh. “I do remember a small memory, though.”

Harvey frowned as they broke through the trees. He went to speak, but her gasp of shock stopped him. She could not believe her eyes as the rushing water of the clear river reflected the sun into a giant rainbow-like glow.

If it were not for the sound and the smell, she would have missed the beauty in front of her. Bella allowed her fascination to take control of her senses as she ran towards the water and crouched down.

Her hand glided along with the rushing current as her reflection smiled back at her. It was so shallow that she could see her fox running along the water in a dazed-like state. Her eyes closed while her hair shined from being wet.

That thought alone made her want to shift into her fox and allow her to be free, but all of that stopped once she saw Harvey standing behind her in the reflection as well. It had only been three days, but for some strange reason, it felt like a lifetime. She barely knew him. She barely knew what a mate was or how a pack was run, but for once in her life; she was not worried about it.

He sent a sort of calm inside of her that she could not explain. All these years of being alone and scared had vanished all because she allowed herself to break the one clear rule her father had placed on her and allowed herself to talk to the mystery man that feels like a giant, cuddly teddy bear.

“The woman had white hair like me.” Bella suddenly spoke, crossing her legs so that she could continue to play with the water. “I remember seeing how happy she was to see me, her wide smile and the way her silver eyes would twinkle. But that is all I remember; I was only a baby, and my papa told me that it is all in my head, but...”

“She could have been your mother.” He finished for her with a small frown. “She could still be alive. She could be anywhere, even in the pack.”

Bella shook her head. “No, it is all in my head.” She spoke sadly. “I am okay with it. My papa always told me that I had a wild imagination.”

Harvey growled, the deep sound causing her to jump with fright as her wide eyes turned to look at him. “I do not like your father. For a man that claimed to love his child, he sure knew how to hide you from everyone!”

His angry tone shook her to her core as she felt her face heat up. Bella did not understand why he reacted this way, but she wanted to do something as she crawled toward him and wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug. Her legs wrapped around his waist as she felt his hands on her back in seconds.

The intense sparks surged through her body while she held her eyes shut as tightly as she could. “I do not like it when you are angry. Please do not be angry! I will do anything!”

She felt him tense at her words, a breath being released while she held him. “I am not angry with you; I could never be angry with you.”

Bella pulled back, their eyes meeting as she was confused. “Then why are you angry?”

His eyes softened, his mouth opening to speak just as his brown orbs, which she had grown to like, turned black. The sudden change made her jump as she wanted to get off him but failed because of his strong hold on her.

His face looked distant while she watched his facial expression turn from soft to blank to surprised. And then, just as quickly as his eyes had turned, they went back to their normal brown.

“We are going to have to call this date off early. My brother did something stupid.”