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Damon walked to the edge of the lounge and looked at the scene below that was still unfolding.

Talia was chatting and laughing, and she was beautiful and enchanting, like a fairy. His fairy.

Damon enjoyed the sight of Talia\'s smile, but he was irked that her smile was not directed at him. Yes, they were touching only her hand, but that was more than what he was touching, damn it!

Those rascals from the soccer team are warriors, and Damon was determined to punish them for getting so close to Talia. Extra drills will do the trick. Maybe he can send them on a survival training in the mountains for a month.

.

\'Don\'t worry\', Caden\'s voice sounded in Damon\'s head through the mind-link. \'Travis is there. With the good doctor nearby, nothing bad will happen to Talia.\'

Only then Damon realized that Travis was sitting on the bench next to Talia.

Damon was not sure if that was a good thing or not.

Why didn\'t Travis stop that madness? Travis knows that Talia is new in the pack and that she was abused. Why did he allow a bunch of guys to swarm around Talia? Or is Travis part of that circus? Is Travis the reason why Talia was down there?

The more Damon thought about it, the less he liked Travis.

Damon wanted to be with Talia, and this… just what was this? Why was he stuck in this lounge with a bunch of people he didn\'t want to be with?

The only girl he wanted by his side was down there, surrounded by guys who were worshiping her!

…

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The Dark Howlers team won their first game, and they had a break until their next one.

During breaks, teams went into the building that was next to the sports fields. It had one massive room with long tables and benches, and every team had space reserved for them.

Snacks and drinks were provided, and there were restrooms and dressing rooms with showers.

Travis huddled in the corner and within seconds he was sleeping. Talia admired his ability to sleep with all the chaos around him.

Talia was sitting at one table among the players of the Dark Howlers team, and she helplessly let them hold her hands.

Well, at least they were not kissing her hand. That was reserved for before the game starts.

"Are they bullying you?", Maya\'s voice sounded from behind Talia, and Talia\'s face lit up.

"Do you think I would let anyone bully our team spirit?", Keith asked before Talia could respond.

Maya waved at Talia to join her. "Let\'s take a walk." Maya glanced at players who were frowning. "Don\'t worry, I will return your team spirit in a bit."

Talia stood up and scurried after Maya out of the building.

As soon as Caden returned after his chat with Damon, Caden told Maya through the mind-link that Damon caved in and spilled the secret. Now there were three people who knew that Talia was Damon\'s mate. However, for Maya, that didn\'t change anything.

Until Damon comes clean with Talia, Maya will treat him the same.

"You look cute with those."

It took Talia a moment to realize that Maya was talking about black wolf ears on her head.

Talia raised her hands, to show fuzzy fingerless gloves to Maya. "It\'s all part of the costume. Go Howlers!" She did a fist bump in the air.

Maya stifled a laugh. "It seems you are having fun."

"I had no idea that this is how things will turn out when I came here this morning."

The truth was that Talia was uncomfortable with all the attention players were giving her, but at the same time, they spoke with her jokingly, and the mood was good. It made her feel like she is one of them, accepted, useful, definitely part of the team. It was a good feeling.

"Maya…", Talia paused and glanced around to make sure no one is nearby to overhear her. "Do players believe in things like good luck rituals?"

"Is that why they are kissing your hand before they go out in the field?"

Maya was laughing at Talia\'s explanation, "Liam told them that he scored a goal after holding my hand, and now they think it brings good luck."

"They will believe in anything. It\'s mental stuff. Every werewolf has speed and reflexes, and sometimes it\'s just about the right mindset.", Maya said. "If it\'s bothering you, tell them to stop. Or do you want me to do it for you?"

"No, no. It\'s not a problem. I\'m glad I can help.", Talia admitted.

Even with all the skinship, everyone was polite, and they were kissing the fluffy glove anyway, so she didn\'t hate it.

If she ignored the awkwardness of holding hands with people she barely knew, Talia was having a good time. It was the first time for Talia to be surrounded by so many people and no one was looking down on her.

Talia knew that Maya is busy, and she felt guilty that Maya came to see her.

"Thank you for coming to check on me. I am doing fine. The players are treating me well and Keith and Travis are like big brothers who are making sure no one is disrespectful.", Talia said. "You should spend your free time with Caden."

Maya understood that Talia doesn\'t want to be a burden. "You are very considerate, Talia. I hope you put yourself first when it counts, or people will take advantage of you. Do what you want without caring about others."

Talia thought how that\'s easy to do for someone with power. Maya is a Beta and other than the Alpha, no one else can stand against her. As for Talia, one careless word or action could lead to a punishment.

Sure, since she arrived at the Dark Howlers pack, people were friendly, and other than her conflict with Cassie, no one raised a hand on Talia, but Talia believes that she was not bullied because she made sure to stay out of everyone\'s way and not attract attention.

Seeing that Maya was leaving, Talia wanted to ask how are things in the VIP lounge, but she swallowed those words before they could form in her mouth.

If Maya mentioned that Damon was enjoying with one of the women who are up there, Talia would be sad.

Just by thinking about that possibility, there was an inexplicable longing that created a gaping hole in Talia\'s chest, and she wished for a time machine so that she can return to earlier that morning, in Damon\'s office, when she was sitting in his lap and leaning into his embrace, basking in his warmth and the scent of the forest and dark chocolate… and she would use that same time machine to stop the time and never come out of that office.

Talia let out a long breath and admonished herself. Why the heck was she thinking about Damon?

Talia decided to go back inside. She welcomed the distraction that was provided by rowdy players who were squabbling about who will hold her hand next.

…

Game after game passed with breaks in between and the Dark Howlers team found themselves in the finals.

Talia learned the rules, and other than the hand-holding-and-kissing ritual before each game (and at halftime), she was in charge of holding hands of injured players. Talia was quite busy because the number of injuries increased with every next game.

It was silly, but Talia never felt so useful, like her presence was really making a difference, and players looked at her like she was important.

Talia even got to watch up close as Doctor Travis stitched a busted shin of one player, and Travis was explaining what he was doing while examining and treating players who came off the field with injuries, so she learned quite a bit.

Keith was always in Talia\'s visual range, and during few breaks when Keith was a referee, Liam and Pierce made sure to stick close to Talia (because Travis was sleeping). Lulu and Sandy were also always close.

The final game was between the Dark Howlers and the Midnight Guardians.

The game was an exciting nail-biting affair that ended with a tied score. 3:3.

Instead of returning to their rest areas, each team huddled around their coach on the field.

Talia and Lulu were standing on the field line and Talia had no idea what to expect.

Lulu was flustered from excitement, and Talia could feel it. The win was almost at their grasp, but then the game was over.

"What\'s going on?", Talia asked Lulu.

"Coaches are choosing five players to take penalty kicks. A coin toss will decide who goes first, and teams will take turns in kicking the ball from the penalty mark into the goal. The team that scores the most goals is the winner. Every kick counts."

"What if it\'s a tie after everyone takes turns?"

Lulu paused. "That never happened before, but in theory, they will continue kicking until one makes a mistake. Uhm… coach wants you there."

Talia understood that Keith mind-linked Lulu.

"Me?"

"Yes, you.", Lulu said and gestured toward Keith who was waving at Talia to come.

Talia swallowed a mouthful of air. Why on earth was Keith calling her to go to the middle of the soccer field? She had a bad feeling about this.

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