Beyond Beta's Rejection

(Harper’s POV)

“What?” I ask in disbelief. Did I just hear Colton tell me I wasn’t allowed to go to university?

“I said no!” he growled. “And that’s final.”

“Whoa!” Louise exclaimed. “She’s your mate, not your property, and she has been working for this for years.” She was getting angry, and so was Colton. The pressure of being sat between the two was almost unbearable.

“If you are worried about me going away, then I got accepted at Leeds University. It’s only an hour’s drive from here, and I was planning on traveling to and from every day anyway.” I smiled at him, hoping to smooth his fury. He just glares at me and tightens his hand on my thigh until his fingers dig in, and I wince with the pain. He leans in close to me as I feel tears line my eyes.

“I said no!” he said slowly over pronouncing every word. A tear falls down my cheek and he wipes it away with his other hand before leaning in and kissing my cheek. I lower my head, trying not to let the other tears fall, knowing that everyone is currently watching us. Colton, finally satisfied, leans back in his chair.

Everyone sat in awkward silence for a minute or so, and when I looked up, I met eyes with Colton’s mum, who smiled sadly at me. Finally, the Beta coughed and smiled as if nothing had happened.

“Anyway, child, we thought that after you finished school, in what two weeks is it?” I nodded quickly. “Well, when you have finished there, then you could go and work with your father for a while, let him show you the ropes around the pack finances, so you are able to take over when he retires, that should give you plenty of time to start the next generation.”

I felt sick! My whole life was being planned for me. I didn’t want to work with my father. I wanted to study childcare and become a teacher.

“Well, before we even get to that, we have the announcement to arrange,” the Luna said, and I stiffened. I saw Colton’s mum perk up.

“Oh, of course,” she chirped and then looked at me. “We will need to plan your dress and your makeup, of course.” I looked between her and Colton, confused.

“I don’t understand. What announcement?” There were chuckles around the room. Colton leaned in and kissed my cheek again. He moved his hand from my thigh and onto my back. I could feel his fingers trailing along the skin on my lower back as he slipped his hand in under my top.

Colton’s mum smiled, “Why your engagement, of course, Eric dear, what was the timeline again?” The Beta grinned and leaned over to caress his wife’s hand. I smiled at the obvious love in their eyes. I glanced at Colton, who was watching them too. He saw me looking and smiled and leaned in again, pulling me closer to him. His nose rubbed my neck, and I felt tingles running through me.

“I believe we agreed upon an official announcement at the pack meeting on Wednesday and then the engagement party on Saturday,” the Beta said to his wife and then turned to us, “So I suggest that you have your public official, unofficial date tomorrow evening.” I started to feel overwhelmed, there seemed to be a lot going on, and I was starting to feel very hot, and like I couldn’t breathe. Everything started feeling like it was far away, and my eyes were blurring.

Then I vaguely thought I had heard my name but couldn’t tell where from. Everything started to move, and I was beginning to panic. I felt hands on me, and everything was getting darker until it all faded to black and silence.

When I woke up, I was laid on a soft bed. Even before I opened my eyes, I could feel Colton laid next to me stroking my arm, the sparks travelling up and down following his fingers. I opened my eyes and saw that he held his head up with one hand and watched me. My eyes met his, and he smiled.

“Well, hello there, Strawberries,” he cooed, leaning in and grazing his lips against mine. “You gave everyone quite the scare.” At this point, I noticed we weren’t alone in the room, and I looked around. Louise was sitting on the end of the bed, and the Luna, and Colton’s mum were standing at the end. Lastly, Doctor Roberts stood next to the bed, looking down at me and smiling kindly.

“Hello, Harper dear,” he said gently. “Do you feel like you can sit up?” I nodded, and with the help of Colton, I got myself into a seated position against the headboard. I was able to see the room from my new position.

Much like the rest of the pack house, it looked like a room from a luxury hotel. The bed I was on looked to be a king-size four-poster bed with a deep red cover that looked to have gold threads sewn into it in an elaborate oriental style. The walls were a dusky pink with a subtle gold mottled effect, and the curtains, which were currently closed, were the same deep red and gold pattern as the bedding. All the furniture looked to be dark wood with an antique style, and there was a sofa in the same dark red which pointed towards a wall with a big television on it. There were two doors, one which was open and looked to be a bathroom. And the second one was closed, which I assumed led into the hallway. I could see that my suitcase and things were by that door. So I guessed that this was probably my room, or at least my temporary room.

The doctor started to examine me, look in my ears and eye, and do all the usual things doctors do. He asked questions, like when I last ate, had I fainted before, could I be pregnant. Despite only losing my virginity yesterday, I still panicked on that last question. Everyone being werewolves meant that they embarrassingly heard my pulse quicken, and the doctor pushed for more information.

“When was the last time you had s*x?” the Doctor asked, and my skin flushed, and I glanced at Colton. It was enough for Colton to chuckle, and he answered the doctor.

“It was last night, doc,” he said, a tint of pride in his voice. I just flushed even redder since his mum and the Luna were both listening.

The doctor clicked his tongue and nodded. “Okay, and before that?” Everyone looked at me, and I kind of shrunk into myself.

I shook my head and whispered, “Never.”

The doctor smiled. “Well, we can rule out pregnancy as the cause,” he said. “That’s not to say you’re not pregnant if it was unprotected,” he mused to himself. “Make an appointment with me in two weeks, and we will do some tests and discuss contraceptive options. They are limited for werewolves but available.” I nodded quickly, hoping he would get off this conversation sometime soon.

I got my wish when he turned to Colton’s mum and the Luna.

“I think we just have a case of overwhelm, mixed with the weakening that the rejection and subsequent actions cause to her wolf.” Both the Luna and Colton’s mum shot a disapproving look at Colton when he said that.

“Plenty of rest and fluids until her wolf fully heals, and I believe the fainting will be an isolated incident.” he looked back at me and smiled. “I will check on you next week just to make sure, but for safety, no shifting, okay?” and I nodded my head again.

The doctor then excused himself, and the Luna saw him out. Colton’s mum smiled at me.

“We have brought everything from the car to your room, dear. Make yourself at home, dear. And there is a set of keys for you on the dresser.” She then tapped Louise on the shoulder and headed for the door. Louise smiled at me and patted my leg.

“Get some rest,” she said and then glared at Colton before leaving the room and closing the door.

Colton nuzzled against my neck, whispering, “Finally, we are alone.” I didn’t know why, but his tone sent shivers straight down to my lower region, and I fought to keep my breathing even. Colton pulled my face to him and grazed his lips against mine again before adding pressure and pushing his tongue into my mouth. My body responded to him by instinct, and he used it to pull me back to a laying down position. He laid beside me, and his free hand that wasn’t holding him up began to roam my body. He slipped his hand under my top and into my bra and began palming my boob. The feel of his hands on my body felt so good and awakened a heat within me. I m****d into his mouth and felt him grin in response. He broke apart from the k**s and began kissing my neck while rubbing his pelvis against my leg. I could feel him hard in his pants as the scent of my excitement began to fill the room.

“Baby girl,” he whispered against my neck. “I have been desperate to be alone with you all day.” He rolled my n****e between his fingers and grazed his teeth against my neck at the same time. I couldn’t help the m**n that came out.

“That’s it, baby girl,” he grunted, and his hand left my bra and slipped into my pants.

Suddenly memories from last night flooded my mind, and I froze. I started panicking and pulled away from Colton.

“Colton!” I cried, “I don’t feel well.”

“Oh, don’t worry, Strawberries, I will make you feel real good real soon,” he chuckled in my ear.

“No, Colton, stop!” I pushed him away from me, and he glared at me.

“What the hell, Harper?” he asked as I jumped off the bed.

“I’m too tired, and I don’t feel well,” I said and headed towards the door to let him out.

Before I knew what was happening, I was slammed against the wall, and Colton pushed himself against me.

“I didn’t say you could walk away,” he growled in my ear.

“Colton, please,” I begged, and he leaned in.

“Let’s get one thing straight right now, Strawberries,” he hissed. “You belong to me. You are my mate, which means that you are mine, mind, body, and soul. And I will do whatever I want to what is mine, do you understand?” Before I could respond, there was a knock at the door. Colton growled before throwing the door open.

“What!” he growled. I glanced around to see Louise standing there.

“I thought I would help Harper settle in since the doctor told her to rest,” she smiled sweetly at Colton, who just growled again.

“Fine,” he said and opened the door wider, Louise came in, and Colton leaned into me. “Get some rest, Strawberries, because I will have you alone tomorrow night.” He glanced at Louise before walking out through the door.

I took a deep breath and mouthed a thank you to Louise. She smiled and nodded. We quickly began our impromptu girls’ night with movies and face masks.

I was just beginning to relax when a sudden wave of pain washed through my body. I cried out, unable to move. Louise looked at me in anger. But the anger wasn’t at me. The anger was because she knew who was causing the pain and what he was doing to do so. I screamed again as more pain ripped through me. Louise pulled me into a hug as I spent the rest of the evening crying in pain.