I'm really excited to share this chapter with you!

The next update is Monday. If you're looking for something to read until then, check out my other Teen Werewolf Romance story! It has a shirtless guy on the cover, so it's pretty easy to find.

This chapter is dedicated to vatnievelyn16. Thanks for reading Sold to a Wolf Pack! And for liking pizza! 

Note: I went back and edited the last chapter. The only thing that's changed is that Logan, Zara, Jasper, Jess and Kaitlyn worked at Joe's Pizza last summer and they're the ones who made the menus. It's not really important to the story, I just felt kind of stupid for not writing it that way the first time. #AuthorRegrets

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Logan

"Logan, can I ask you something?" Saf leans toward me in the booth.

"Anything." I shift forward in my seat too.

Saf looks so serious that when she starts to speak, I actually hold my breath... and let it back out since Lee chooses that exact moment to show up with our Sodas. She sets them down in front of us, probably realizes she interrupted something, and rushes back to the counter. When she's finally gone, I turn to face Saffron. "What is it?" I ask.

"Nothing," Saf whispers, staring down at her hands. "It's stupid."

"Whatever it is, you can tell me. I promise."

"It's just..." Saf looks at me, hesitates, and then looks away, "never mind. Forget I said anything."

I wait for her to change her mind again and tell me what's bothering her, but she doesn't. For a few minutes, the two of us sit quietly sipping on our sodas, and my mind begins to race. What just happened to my happy, carefree mate? Does she not want to be here? Does she wish she was still in the cafeteria with Amaryllis, reading a book or whatever it is Omegas do? Was she going to tell me that she wants to leave?

"Saf, do you..." I lean across the table, so our fingers almost touch. My heart starts to race, but I can't seem to force the words out. I'm afraid of her answer, afraid I won't like it. I almost change my mine, like she just did, but I have to know. "Do you like it here?"

"Here? You mean at Joe's Pizza? Yeah, it's awesome." She grins, her happy, carefree mood back. "It's so awesome that you got to work here."

"No, I mean..." I hesitate, "here, in Mapleton? With our pack?"

"Oh, um..." Saf's happy grin disappears and I feel a sharp tug in the vicinity of my heart.

"You hate it here, don't you?" I whisper. Saf's a Rogue and an Omega. She must hate pack life.

"I don't hate it here, Logan... I just..." Saf sighs and stares down at the menu. Her gaze drifts to the pizza we named, You're Grounded, but she doesn't even crack a smile.

"Do you want to go home?"

"Home?" Saf looks up at me in surprise.

"To your old life? With your dad?"

"What? No," Saf responds a bit too loudly, and a few people turn to look at us. My mate doesn't even notice. "I never want to go back there," she insists. "Ever."

"You don't?"

"I don't have a home anymore." Saf lowers her voice, so the other diners won't overhear. "I thought I did, but I don't. My dad sold me... he actually sold me. If I ever see him again, I swear..."

Saffron growls and her eyes blaze, like she's about to turn right in the middle of the diner. I grab her hands and for a second I think I feel fur, which is obviously impossible. We can't half-shift. We either shift, or we don't—there's no middle ground. Of course, there are legends of Wolves who could, but those are just stories in books. They're not real.

"Take a deep breath," I instruct, rubbing Saf's hands until she starts to relax. "It's okay. Everything is okay."

"It's not okay." Saf shakes her head and looks like she's going to cry. "My dad sold me. Like a piece of property."

"I'm sorry." I whisper, fighting the urge to shift myself. My wolf chimes in, demanding we make her Dad suffer for hurting our mate, and I have to take deep, calming breaths too.

"Do you know what living with him was like?" Saf asks, eyes blazing. She doesn't wait for an answer. "I had to do everything—work, hunt, cook, clean—and it still wasn't enough. He never even said thanks, not once, and he never cared about me... he sold me, Logan."

"I'm so sorry," I whisper, sliding out of the booth and into the seat next to her. I wrap an arm around her, and she rests her head on my shoulder.

"I'm not." She whispers. "I'm glad he did it. I'm glad I don't have to live there. I'm tired of broken bones and—"

"Broken bones?" I growl, pulling away so I can look at her. "What did he do to you?"

"He... he hit me. Every single day. I know he was training me, so I could survive Rogue attacks, but..."

"Training you," I spit. "Yeah, right." Now that's the biggest piece of crap I've ever heard. There haven't been any Rogue attacks in over a decade, not since my grandparents were killed. I was just a baby then, but I know those Rogues mounted an attack to try and take over our pack. They wouldn't have bothered going after Saf and her Dad. What could they possibly have to gain?

"I had to learn to fight," Saf defends her father, "but... Dad doesn't always know when to stop. And sometimes... sometimes he just hits me because he's mad, or bored. Sometimes, he'd wake me in the middle of the night because he's itching for a fight."

"I'm so sorry, Saf," I whisper, wrapping an arm around her. "I'll never let anything like that happen to you, ever again."

And we'll murder murder the bastard, my wolf adds.

"I'm glad I'm here," Saf whispers.

"I thought you wanted to leave," I admin. "When you said you wanted to ask me something."

"No," Saf shakes her head. " I was just wondering..." She picks up her soda and takes a sip. "Do you think I could get a job here?" She points to a sign in the front window that says Now Hiring.

"Really?" I grin. "That's a great idea." An awesome, amazing, wonderful, why-didn't-I-think-of-that kind of an idea.

Omegas don't have jobs. If they do, they probably shelve books at the library or file papers in some quiet basement. They don't work at a social place like Joe's. Working here, Saf would have to talk to people. She'd greet them, take their orders, and deal with complaints. She'd become more confident and maybe one day, she could even get over her past and stop being an Omega.

"Do you think..." Saffron pauses nervously. "Do you think your dad would be okay with it?"

"Father? Of course!"

"He would?" Saffron sound surprised.

"Father always says that hard work builds character," I tell her. It's what he's said every time I complained about spending my summers working or training while all the other Wolves got to relax. Or the times I had to do extra Wolf Studies homework just because I'm Alpha.

"He does?" Saffron still looks worried.

"Hard work can tell you a lot about a person, Logan," I say, straightening my shoulders and intentionally deepen my voice to imitate Father. At first, Saffron looks confused, but then she starts to giggle. I have to hold back my own laughter and fight to keep a straight face as I continue. "Hard work builds character. It gives you a backbone. You'll get nothing if you sit around on your butt all day."

Saffron laughs, but I notice she still looks a little nervous. "You sure it's a good idea?" she asks, holding her breath. I can tell that she really, really wants this, and that makes me want to howl with joy.

"Definitely," I tell her, and slide out of the booth, heading for the counter.

"Hey, Logan." Lee looks up from filling a metal napkin holder. "Can I get you something else?"

"Lee, I need a favor."

"What's up?"

"Saffron's new in town and she wants to apply for a job here."

"Does she have any experience?"

"She'll work hard and she can learn." I know it's not really an answer, but I can help Saf get good at the job. When Zara and Jasper unstick their lips from each other's, they will too.

"Okay," Lee rounds the counter and heads toward Saffron. She slides in across from my mate and asks point-blank, "why should I hire you?"

I'm about to run to Saf's rescue, but she straightens her shoulders and transforms into a Luna in front of my eyes. It's so shocking, I stay rooted in place, and just gape.

Saf doesn't just meet Lee's gaze point-blank, she speaks with utter confidence. "I worked part-time at the diner in Oakburg," she says, "full-time in the summer. I started as a server, got promoted to cash, and then last year I became assistant manager. You can call them if you need a reference."

I can't quite hide my shock. Who is this girl who's suddenly replaced my mate? And why would someone promote a sixteen year old high school student to an assistant manager? Lee's eighteen and she had to get her diploma before she got promoted, and she's only a supervisor. The assistant manager, Joe's daughter, is at least in her thirties.

Except there's something about Saf right now, something that's unlike any girl I've ever known. She reminds me of a Luna—not a Luna in training, but a real, honest-to-Goddess Luna who's been running a pack for years.

She describes her duties, including serving tables, supervising the other staff, and even opening and closing the place in the summer. When she's done, Lee looks so impressed, she's speechless. She just nods, sort of in a daze, and then heads back to the counter. I'm pretty dazed too, so I don't move until after she's grabbed an application and handed it to Saffron to fill out.

"Just give this back to me when you're done," Lee says, handing over the piece of paper and a pen. "As long as your references check out, you can start Monday."

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Are you happy Saf finally opened up to Logan?!?!

Any guesses as to what's going to happen next?

BEST PIZZA NAME CONTEST: If you went to Joe's Pizza and ordered a pizza from Saf, what would it be called? And what would be on it? I just feel like you guys could have come up with much better names than I did! 

I can never decide on my favorite pizza, so my friends and I always get a bunch of medium pizzas with different toppings on each half. That way each person gets at least 4 different kinds of slices! 

♥ Vote if you liked this chapter. Comment if you didn't.* ♥

*I always wonder if anyone reads these requests... probably not, huh?