460: FOURTEEN YEARS OLD (11)

FOURTEEN YEARS OLD (11)

Hope widened her eyes in surprise when she watched Kace getting down from the car before waltzing across the yard that was filled with roses.  0

Well, it was indeed a sight to behold watching him do so and Hope found herself busy gawking at his broad back when she was supposed to run after him and drag him back to the car before he frightened the poor family.

When her consciousness returned, Hope rushed to Kace, who was now standing tall on the patio of the siblings' house.

Ethan was standing frozen before his mother while Ian was standing one step ahead of his siblings, protecting both. 

On the other hand, Kace stood with his arms crossed, only five steps away from them. At such proximity, Hope highly doubted that Ian and Ethan would stand a chance against him if Kace decided to lash out in his beast form. 

Hope had seen Kace fighting in his beast form. He was, by any means, was fierce and brutal, even feral while his beast's size was enormous.

"Kace, what are you doing?!" Hope shrieked as she threw herself in front of Kace and hugged his body, hoping this was enough to restrain him if that silly thought of attacking her friend's family ever crossed his mind. "Let's go home!" 

Hope's heart dropped when she noticed the way Kace smirked as he tilted his head to catch a glimpse of the woman behind the twins. 

He did not spare Hope a glance. 

"Stand down pups, you don't know who you are challenging." Kace's voice came out very relaxed, and was laced with unconcealed amusement. 

"GET OUT OF OUR HOUSE!" Ethan snarled at Kace and this made Hope's heart jump out of her chest. She had never heard Ethan snarling at anyone before. Even though he hadn't been as friendly as Ian, but Hope didn't think he was someone who would take out his frustrations on someone. 

Kace freed one of his arms from Hope's tight hug rather easily, as Hope thought he would jump into action from being shouted at. She then saw Kace placing his big palm on the back of Hope's back, caressing her long hair in soothing movements as if he were trying to calm her tensed nerves and provide some comfort.

"Move boys, you don't talk to our guest like that."

All of a sudden, there was a sweet and stern voice came from behind Ethan as a woman tried to make her way out through the protection barrier built by her sons, but they didn't budge at all.

"Mom, you don't know him!" Ethan tried to hold back her mother, who was glaring at him now. "He is dangerous!" 

Kace chuckled upon hearing that. "Well, do you know me mutt?" 

Honestly speaking, Ethan and Ian didn't know the man before their eyes. They acted the way they did now, just because they felt an immense power and authority that radiated out of Kace. And the feeling of being intimidated never settled well with a werewolf, especially with a rogue, as they were used to live all by themselves and didn't follow the hierarchy of their kind.

"Don't talk to my children that way Kace, I will beat you up." The woman, finally managed to get out of her son, Ethan's cage and stood beside Ian.

She looked like a woman in her late twenties, but it would be impossible, because she wouldn't have children who were already as big as the twins. 

But Hope remembered, that shifters aged differently.

However, the things that shocked Hope wasn't how young the woman looked, but the fact that the woman talked that way to Kace had startled her.

"Hi, Sophia." Kace grinned from ear to ear as he waved his hand at the woman. 

Apparently, it wasn't only Hope, who was in great shock, but Ian and Ethan as well. Both of them threw incredulous looks at their mother and Kace in turns. 

"Do you know him, mom?!" Ian shrieked with wide eyes. 

"Do you know them?" Hope raised her head to look at Kace, ignoring the fact that the big bad wolf was messing with her hair. "Kace!"

Hope was frustrated because Kace was laughing hard upon seeing his little mate's stressful expression. "I know her." He finally admitted when he watched the woman walk toward him with a sullen expression. "Hi, Sophia. Long time no see."

The woman named Sophia didn't seem pleased with the way Kace greeted her, she still had this stern expression on her face. "This is how you greet your old friend after years of meeting? By insulting their pups?"

Sophia was still upset because Kace called her child a mutt. 

On the other hand, Kace raised both of his hands. "They offended me first."

Sophia sighed and shook her head. "Still very childish."

"Oh, I can smell you, you brat!" A loud voice boomed from inside the house as a man as tall as Kace stepped out of the threshold, followed by a scared Rossie who was clutching her father's shirt tightly.

Kace let out a guttural laugh as he freed himself from Hope's arms and gave Sophia a hug. 

Everyone's eyes were bulging out of their sockets and the man growled angrily. "Hands off of my mate, you brat!"

Sophia didn't look surprised by the sudden proximity. She just looked annoyed and when Kace moved to hug the man, he stepped away to avoid him.

"Don't touch me!" The man grumbled loudly. 

"At least give me a welcoming hug, you heartless wolf." Kace complained as he opened his arms widely, but all he got was only a pat on his shoulder. "You are still very tactless, Sterling." He followed the man into the house, leaving the teenagers with jaws dropped open in shock. 

"Mom, do you know him?" Rossie was hugging her mother's arm while looking at her father and Kace, who was walking into the house in front. Her beautiful eyes were laced with concern and curiosity.

"I know him." Sophia confirmed with an affirmative nod. "Ian, stop snarling. Ethan, brew some tea for our guests and Rossie, help me in preparing dinner." Sophia distributed her orders to her children as she grumbled. "This Lycan will gobble up our entire food storage in one meal."

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