Rejection on the Full Moon (Rejection Series) Chapter 23

"Thank you." I manage to say before slipping out of his arms and standing. Being beside Dominic was a breath of fresh air, making me feel so alive again.

"Want to come to my place for some birthday cake?" I ask with a grin, extending the offer and my hand out to him.

"Sure." Dominic smiles up at me, a smile that nearly takes my breath away for a moment. Whoever ends up as his mate will be one lucky she-wolf. Standing up and taking my hand, Dominic and I walk hand-in-hand through the forest towards my house. Along the way, I point out different wild herbs and vegetables his wolves can keep an eye out for to help them in the future. I couldn't believe it when he told me that no one in his pack was trained in survival knowledge, as no one had ever turned rogue in his pack. He figured his pack wouldn't need it, and I call him an idiot for it—which he agreed he is and stated that everyone would be starting survival training as soon as possible.

We stop walking when my property comes into view. Dominic's face is in awe as he stares ahead at what I call my home, which I have been slowly renovating over the last few months. The house is enormous: a three-storey, two-thousand square feet property with a portion of the forest within the perimeter of a silver-plated fence. The fence was something I had completed last month as an extra security measure for myself, living in neutral territory with many rogues and Soulless in the area. The building itself is a mini-mansion made to look like it belonged in the woods, with most of the walls being glass panels to allow in as much light and view of nature as possible.

The first floor is open concept, with each "room" in plain sight. I had renovated it so that the dining area is to the left of the kitchen, taking in the view of the backyard as it's furthest from the window. The living room is closest to the wall of windows, allowing in more light during the day. The door to a small powder room is situated by the front entrance, as are the door to the garage and the mudroom that led to the greenhouse. The large, extended structure is my absolute pride and joy, housing many plants in a space just half the size of my house.

The second floor held four bedrooms—each with its own bathroom and small walk-in closet—, and a library and study area. This space held more floor-to-ceiling windows to let in the most natural light possible as I work on my store paperwork and business deals, as well as have a cozy place to read my precious books.

The top floor is one that I deemed my favourite and personal space. The entire floor held one master bedroom with two large walk-in closets and a full bath, complete with a shower fit for two people, a large clawfoot tub perfect for soaking in, and a his-and-hers vanity sink set. I left one closet empty and closed for the day I am granted a second-chance mate.

The final touch is the large basement I had put a lot of effort into renovating. When I first bought this place, the basement was nothing but bare concrete flooring and unfinished walls and ceiling, with a laundry area that held a washer and dryer, furnace, and hot water tank system. At the time, I figured I needed specific areas for when winter hit or if I decided to start my own pack, so I started with the basement as one of the first major long-term home renovation projects, along with my greenhouse. What was once a boring, cold basement soon held a bright and clean laundry room with state-of-the-art equipment for clothes washing and a station for clothes ironing, lined with shelves of cleaning products and extra linen, in case I decided to have guests over. Next to the laundry room is an area taking up half the basement which I took great pride in designing: a large home gym, complete with free weights and exercise machines, to help keep me in shape when the snowy winters make it hard to workout. I always loved working out, and knowing I would need a place for both my wolf and skin form, I knew the basement would be the best place to create said space. Finally, the very far end of the basement housed a large walk-in fridge and freezer as a storage area for food and other goods I could keep in bulk. As a werewolf, the amount of food I needed to keep up with my fast metabolism sometimes tripled or quadrupled that of a human. Having a large storage space made it easier to maintain a healthy supply of extra food and even store fruit and vegetables from my greenhouse.

Since it is summer, the garden is full of flowers in bloom, and the new pool that I had built last month reflected the various plants and berry bushes. The swimming pool is something I loved spending time in when I wasn't running around by a lake or river, as it was shaped to be a natural pond with a deep end and shallow end. The filtration system flowed through an area where large aquatic plants filtered the particles through their roots, leaving my pool crystal clear and clean, with no chlorine treatment needed. And as a werewolf with a strong immune system, I am more than happy with a pool that fits in with the surroundings. The idea came to me one day in January when the area I lived in faced a brutal snowstorm. I was cozied up on the couch watching Animal Planet when Pool Master came on.

A wraparound porch snaked around half of my house, starting from the front of the house, along the wall of windows, towards the back where the pool is. Just steps from the pool, the end of the porch gave way to a large, wooden gazebo fitted with furniture I had made in my four-car garage during the winter. Only one car sat in the garage, the Mustang convertible my father left to me.

"For a rogue, you're doing pretty well for yourself." Dominic states as his eyes scan the property as best as he can from where we're standing. He continues walking towards my property, his hand still clasping my own, and I couldn't help the proud smile that spreads across my face.