"I couldn't if I tried." I rubbed my cheek against each of them before crossing the line into Duskhill. Odin sat on the pack house's porch waiting for me along with the same female from last night. The woman wasn't what caught me off-guard. It was Odin. Sitting behind that desk, Odin looked taller, much taller. As he stood up to greet me, I realized that he probably was an inch or two shorter than me.

"What the hell are staring at so hard, Savannah?" he asked.

"You're short," I blurted out before thinking. The woman next to him burst into a fit of laughter while he glared at me.

"That's the best reaction I've seen yet," the woman said. "I like her Odin."

"Shut up, Vivian," he growled. "Yes, I'm shorter than the average alpha male. You have a problem with that?"

"Nope, not at all."

"Since it's obvious that he isn't going to introduce me, I will introduce myself. Hi, I'm Vivian, Duskhill's delta." She walked up to me and instead of shaking my hand, she surveys me. My wolf pear out, eyeing her. She didn't even make the effort to move from where she laid. This female didn't scare us. "She'll do," she said with a smile before pulling me into a hug. "Welcome to the pack."

"Okay, that's enough, Vivian. Savannah is probably exhausted." I was. I had been up for the pass 24 hours and even though I was a creature of the moon, we still needed our sleep.

"I'll show her to her room," Vivian volunteered.

"I'll have my wolves grab your things," Odin said, and I nodded. I didn't have much stuff, but at least something was better than nothing.

"You'll be staying in the pack house," Vivian said and I internally groaned. No matter the pack, pack houses were a pain to live in. They were always full of young arrogant wolves that didn't know anything about privacy. I was a new pack member, so I would try to suffer through it until I could find a home of my own. "You know, I was skeptical when Odin told me we had a new beta. He's never had a beta since became alpha. Even when the pack begged him to choose one, he refused. He interviewed several wolves for the position to appease the pack, but no one was good enough for him. I wonder why he chose you, an outsider he had never met. I'm sure I'll found out. Sweet dreams, Savannah. I'll come get you for dinner."

"Thanks," I said as she handed me my key and I opened the bedroom door. It looked generic like most bedrooms in the pack house. It was up to me to make the room my own, but I wasn't going to do that. I was going to bid my time until I could find a better arrangement. Right now, all I could think about was sleeping. Soon as my head hit the pillow, I was out like a light.

***

A knock at my door woke me up and I growled, annoyed that I was woken up from my nap. "Wake up, Savannah. Dinner is soon!" Vivian called, and my stomach decided to make its presence known. I wiped the drool from my cheek and opened the door.

"About time," she said. "Come on, we're eating with Odin." Odin lived in his own cabin far from the rest of the pack. I guess he liked his privacy. I didn't blame him. As we approached his house, I smelled them. I growled, and Vivian looked at me in confusion.

"Savannah, what's wrong?" I ignored her when they came out with Odin. I growled again, and their eyes widened.

Vampires, specifically the blonde one who electrocuted me.

Odin stood in between them with a smirk as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Alec and Noah, meet Savannah, my new beta."

"There's no need for that, Odin. They already know me," I said. "I'm sure Noah remembers electrocuting me." Noah gulped while Odin laughed.

"Keep her away from us, Odin!" Noah shouted, running behind him.

"I'm not the one who trespassed on pack territory and electrocuted a wolf. That was all you. I think a good beating will do you two good."

"Odin," Alec said with fearful eyes when I growled again.

"Don't worry, Alec," I sneered. "I only have business with the blonde." I stripped down and shifted into my fur. "Odin, hand him over."

"You aren't going to kill him, are you?" Vivian asked.

"No. I just want to rough him up." I knew he was scared then and thought I was wolf bent on killing him. I didn't blame him for what he did, but they were the ones who trespassed, and that shit hurt a lot. I was annoyed more than anything. With a smirk, Odin pushed Noah towards me and I charged forward. His eyes widened as we collided. He took my attack full force.

"Odin, are you insane?!" Alec shouted.

"You've been saying I'm crazy for years so possibly," he replied. I grabbed Noah by the arm and threw him. He landed on his feet, looking around for a way out. I didn't have any experience fighting vampires but fighting in my opinion was still fighting. I ran towards him again and he braced himself for impact, but instead of colliding with him, I shifted mid jump and a fist full of his hair and pushing his face into the dirt. I grabbed hold of his arm and pulled it behind his back. Vampires were strong, stronger than humans, so I didn't go easy on him. I pulled until I heard his discomfort.

"How does that dirt taste? Delicious, I hope." Odin and Vivian barked in laughter while Alec watched in horror. I got up and walked back over to where my clothes were thrown on the ground. Noah spit up dirt and glared at me. "I think we're even now."

"Are you okay?" Alec asked as he rushed over to Noah using vampire speed.

"Yeah, I'm fine. My clothes are ruined though."

"Let's go eat," I said as I walked up the porch steps. My intention was never to kill him or to beat him up like I did Ryder. Ryder was a delta and deserved it for being an ass, but these vampires hadn't really done anything wrong towards me. They were only protecting themselves, so I couldn't fault them for that and I couldn't punish them for trespassing on land that wasn't mine. That was David's job. I just wanted to scare him.

"Are you two coming?" Vivian asked as she followed me into Odin's house. The two vampires were unsure around me. They wouldn't take their eyes off me and I know they were whispering about me.

"So, your name is Savannah," Noah asked as we waited for Alec and Vivian to serve dinner. I offered to help, but Vivian shooed me away. Now Noah, Odin, and I sat at the table.

"Yep," I answered.

"And where are you from exactly?"

"Does it matter?" I asked. "I'm part of Duskhill now."

"I guess it isn't any of my business, but I find it odd that I see you in Blackhound one night and now you are Odin's beta."

"Well I am a beta wolf. If you must know, I was only in Blackhound until I could find a pack that suited me."

"And Duskhill suited you best?"

"I cannot deny the bond between me and Odin."

"Then it doesn't bother you that Odin is a leech lover?" he asked, and Odin spit up the water he had been drinking.

"Noah," he said.

"Answer me, Savannah," he pressed, leaning forward.

"I'm sitting here talking to you, aren't I? Vampires don't bother me as long as they don't electrocute me," I said leaning forward to challenge him.

"Didn't I already apologize for that?" he grumbled.

"No," I told him. "No, you haven't."

"Fine, I apologize for electrocuting you."

"Thank you," I replied, relaxing in my seat. He looked at me expectantly as if I owed him something. "What?" I asked.

"Isn't there something you want to apologize for?"

"I can't think of anything," I said, and he glared.

"How about making me eat dirt?!" he shouted, and I rolled my eyes.

"You deserved that," I said while Odin chuckled through his glass.

"Glad to hear you two getting along," Alec said as he and Vivian walked in holding bowls and plates of food.

"Are you sure I can't help?" I asked, and Alec waved me off.

"We got it. Noah, come help us bring the food in."

"I thought you just said you got it."

"With your help we do," he said, and Noah got him with a deep frown.

"So how are you settling in," Odin asked.

"Good. So, you live here alone?" I asked,

"Yep. My father and his beta built this house meant for me and my beta to live in together. That's when they assume my father's beta's son would be my beta."

"Interesting," I said. "Why didn't you let them be your beta?"

"He was a huge prick. We grew up together and I never liked him. He was too damn entitled for a wolf who hadn't gotten the position yet. He assumed that I would make him beta because of who his father was."

"I bet he was surprised when you didn't make him beta."

"Oh, he was pissed."

"Odin broke his nose," Vivian said as she and the two vampires walked back over to the table.

"He wouldn't shut up," Odin said. "He kept demanding that I make him beta. He dared to bring my father into it, saying that it was my father's wish to make him my beta." Odin tightened his grip on his glass. "My father may have preferred that he be my beta, but my father wouldn't want me to choose someone just because he wanted it. I knew my father." Tension filled the air. Vivian and the vampires looked to each other in concern.

"This guy sounds like an a-hole," I said.

"He is."

"I'm sure you'll meet him soon," Vivian said. "When the news gets out that Odin finally has a beta, he'll be the first to make some noise."

"He's been eyeing that beta seat for some time and it isn't like he hasn't tried to butter Odin up," Alec said. "Remember when he brought you a bouquet of flowers?"

"What am I? A woman?" Odin growled as we started to fill our plates with food.

"My favorite is when he tried to give you a massage," Noah said. "You almost killed him then."

"When will you be announcing me?"

"Tomorrow at the pack meeting," Odin said. "After that, we'll start getting you acquainted with the pack. Finally, I'll be able to get some things off my plate."

"I've been telling you that for years," Vivian said, and he acted as if she didn't know what she was talking about.

"Where do you two fit into the mix?" I asked referring to Alec and Noah. "Like I said, I don't have a problem with you being vampires, but why stay here in Duskhill. I assume you belong to a coven, right?"

"We do," Alec answered, "but we both decided it would be best to leave that life."

"Vampire covens are filled with a bunch of politics that we rather not bother with," Noah said. "It's always all about who you are and what abilities you are born with. They'll look down on you because of who your maker is and it makes me sick."

"I'm sorry for bringing up a touchy subject."

"No, it's alright," Alec said. "I get the feeling that you haven't hung around vampires much."

"You two are the first vampires I've seen actually," I admitted. "Vampires aren't welcomed where I come from."

"We aren't welcomed in most places, but Odin's father didn't think like the others. He saw as creatures of the moon like you. He's the only reason why're we're able to come here. Duskhill has been a safe haven for vampires for some time now."

"Unfortunately, that means the other alphas are automatically against Odin," Noah said. "They call him leech lover and other names."

"Who cares what they call me?" Odin asked as he stabbed his plate with his fork. "I can still put them in the dirt any day."

"That maybe so, but what about alliances?" Vivian asked. "When it comes time for war, we will be alone."

"Why is there talk of war?" I asked. "And from what I hear, the vampires seem grateful to Duskhill. If we are their safe haven, then it would be safe to assume they'd help us in time of need, right?"

"Right," Alec said. "Owen wouldn't let anything happen to Duskhill."

"Owen?"

"Odin's brother," he explained.

"You probably won't meet him for some time. He's away on business," Odin said. I nodded, and the conversation turned away from serious topics. As much as I was ready to hop back into my role as beta, it was nice to talk to them like friends. I wanted to be friends with them. I wanted to get along with them because this was my new home. I wanted it to feel like home.