Alpha Raven | #1 in the Trueblood Series

Charlotte had read 3 out of 5 books Azraiel has brought. As she kept on reading, questions began to swarm in her little head. She had to ask one of the nurses to give her a pen and paper so that she could write her questions down. The books she had read till now were more of an introductory nature. She figured the voluminous books she hadn't dared to touch contained the important stuff. From what she could gather, the supernatural world seems more like a secret community that only a few humans knew about. For Charlotte, it was nothing new. Growing up, it has always been her uncle and a few of his friends. Yes, she went to school and college but her introverted nature made it hard for her to make close friends. She has always been content living on her own. So the fact that werewolves avoided interacting with people outside their pack didn't bother her much. Moreover, the Blue Orchid pack had a population of more than 4000, making it unlikely to have a lack of people to interact with. It was more than the cumulative count of people she had met in her entire life.

It was an eventful day for Charlotte. Besides getting a glimpse of the werewolf world, it was the first time that she had stepped out of this room. Dr. Humphrey was kind enough to let her go to the park inside the medical wing. The medical wing was a rectangular-shaped building with a small rectangular park in the middle. It was really beautiful. She could tell it helped in uplifting the patient's mood a lot. There were various trees full of fruits and flowers. Although she was in a wheelchair, she enjoyed the little visit nonetheless.

Charlotte has no idea why she felt so at ease here. She should be looking out for herself, for escape routes, but she wasn't. Instead, she somehow felt at peace here, something that she hasn't felt in a very long time. Moreover, she knew that both her heart and mind had decided to trust Azraiel and his pack long before she has realized it. So, instead of worrying about what all could go wrong, she has decided to go with the flow and focus on getting better.

She was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn't hear the first knock on the door. The second and louder knock startled her and so she uttered a hasty, "Yes?"

She watched with curiosity as Matt's head popped in. He gave her an unsure smile and asked, " Am I disturbing you?"

Charlotte's lips curved up into a smile as she shook her head and asked him to come in.

Matt entered the room but kept a safe distance from her. "How are you doing?" he asked, every bit of him concerned for his Luna, even more so after finding out what he did today.

Charlotte gave him a bright smile, "I am good. Thanks."

"I see you have done a lot of reading today". Matt spoke up while eyeing the books and papers sprawled on her lap.

"Yeah...alpha wanted me to read about the werewolves." Her cheeks beginning to flush at the mention of Azraiel.

Matt nodded his head but said nothing. He dropped his eyes down to the floor.

Charlotte could tell he wanted to say something but looked uncomfortable and hesitant to begin. Deciding to put him out of misery, she has just opened her mouth when she heard another knock on the door. Both Matt and Charlotte whipped their head towards the door. However, before Charlotte could say anything the door pushed open to reveal Alpha Azraiel.

Alpha Azraiel looked exactly like he did in the morning except that the lightness she had felt around him in the morning has disappeared. His face now looked unreadable. He wasn't even looking at Charlotte. He was staring...no more like glaring at Matt and Matt...well...he was looking at everything but his Alpha.

Charlotte could feel the tension in the air and she didn't like it. Before she could open her mouth Matt turned around to face her, "I'll see you tomorrow then. Good night." and then he stormed off like his tail has been set on fire.

Azraiel has now stepped inside her room but his mind didn't seem to be here. He was glaring at the floor now. Charlotte didn't know why but he looked angry. His jaw was clenched and his nostrils flared slightly. This was the closest thing to emotions she had seen him expressing openly. Otherwise, whenever he was in her room, he either behaved liked a businessman ready for negotiation or pulled his face into a blank canvas.

After a few seconds, he seemed to get a grip on whatever he was feeling. Charlotte watched as he looked up and his face fell into the classic poker face. He closed the door behind him and marched towards her. He paused near her bed and scanned the room. She wasn't sure what was going on in his mind but it looked like...like he was sniffing the air?

Charlotte didn't dare open her mouth. She quietly watched as he moved towards the windows and one by one opened them all. Once he was done, he came and took a seat on the chair. He leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees interlacing his fingers together. His upper body was leaning towards her, close enough to get a whiff of his cologne.

"So, did you read them?" Azraiel asked her, referring to the books but Charlotte was still staring at his interlaced fingers. He had long, nicely shaped fingers. His palm looked a lot fucking bigger than hers, she thought.

"Huh?" She absent-mindedly uttered.

"Did you read the books I gave you?" Azraiel's voice was louder this time and it brought Charlotte back out of whatever she was dreaming about.

Feeling embarrassed at zoning out on him she quickly muttered..."Yeah...not all...But I read 3 of them." Oh, God...Why did she always have to embarrass herself in front of him? She was internally groaning at what he could be thinking of her. If only she knew what he was thinking about her.