Inevitably Yours

MICHAEL

“Nic?” I whispered. She was frozen to the spot. I looked around, trying to figure out who she was talking about. The grocery store was on the border of the pack that butted up to a human city. From the moment we entered, I could smell a mix of wolves and humans in the store.

Nic gripped the diapers and baby wipes she held, and her head turned to the end of the aisle. Someone stepped around the corner, a tight look on his face. He stormed toward us, anger falling over his features.

“Get away from her,” he growled, and I raised my eyebrows. Nic snapped out of her trance.

“Don’t speak to him like that!” she barked. I grabbed a pack of diapers for my Belle and stepped back.

“It’s cool, Nic; I’ll let you two talk,” I told her, turning away. I didn’t bother to nod to the guy; he and his wolf were probably in overdrive at the moment. We could be formally introduced later.

I headed to the deli section, where there were individual packages of sandwiches and other things. While Nic was occupied, I thought I would bring Q a lemonade or something. I took my time and got something for both Quinn and my brother, not wanting to rush Nic. My mom found me and asked why I was still hanging around when Nic was outside.

We quickly took the stuff through the checkout and went outside to find Nic leaning against the car. She looked conflicted as she chewed her nail while leaning against the car. “Sorry I lost you,” I laughed, trying to keep from asking her aloud about it.

“It’s fine. I should have just texted you or something. Let’s get back to the babies. We still have a long drive home,” she said. My mom looked at us oddly but accepted it as we climbed in the car to return to her apartment.

“Okay, tell me,” I linked her as I drove us back. I connected gazes with her in the rearview mirror. My mom chattered away, telling us about things around town as we drove; I felt terrible for not listening, but Nic was the most important at the moment.

“He… has a human mate. Well, he fell in love with a human and was just picking up something on his way to a party with her…” she told me.

“Ouch, Nic. I’m sorry,” I told her.

“I gave him my number. We’re going to talk more… Michael… Goddess, I wanted to rip my clothes off and attack him. I wanted his teeth in my skin. I still do,” she sighed.

“Just because he has a human girlfriend doesn’t mean he won’t choose you,” I assured her.

“I don’t have a good track record of people choosing me,” she argued.

“You’re his mate,” I told her. “Hopefully, he will make the right decision.”

She was quiet, turning to look out the window. “I don’t know if breaking that girl’s heart for a stranger is the right decision.”

–

Nic was quiet on the way home. She sat in the back of the car with the pups, texting. Quinn sat in the passenger seat with a notebook and her phone, trying to answer emails and make a list of things to do or add to our calendar. I felt guilty that she was always working, whether it be school, managing the pack house, or taking care of all the financial aspects of our business – billing, payroll, taxes, and expenses. She took care of our pups and occasionally Diane on top of all that.

When we got home, Nic disappeared to her room with Diane. Quinn took our pups so I could go train for a while. It had been a long day, and I felt things were about to get rough with Nic.

QUINN

I was relieved that Michael’s mom was coming around to me. Before we left, she hugged me and told me she was so grateful that I had found her son. Although she spent the majority of the time talking with Nic and playing with Junior, Diane, and Belle, it made me feel marginally better about my position with her. She was our former Luna, so not having her approval felt wrong.

Thanks to our surprise trip, I lost a whole day of work, leaving me stressed and frazzled. As usual, I picked up my book for all of three minutes before one of the pups was needy. I’d been trying to read the same book for months but was barely two chapters into it. On the car ride home, I tried to be as productive as possible from my phone.

Nic was acting weird, but I didn’t question why. Michael would tell me eventually; he loved Nic too much not to know what was happening.

It was late when we got back. I took the pups upstairs. Belle took her bottle and went right to sleep. I put Junior in the bath, letting him play and splash for a while before trying to get him to bed. He fought me, so I put on a movie and let him play in our small living room while I worked from my laptop on the couch.

After the movie, he was still protesting bedtime, but Michael returned from training and came to the rescue. Junior always listened to his father; it had to be the Alpha authority he naturally had. When Michael got him down, I still had a few things I wanted to finish. He tried to lure me to the shower with him, but I had to decline. Hot soapy water falling over me while Michael rubbed my back sounded heavenly, but I knew better. If I didn’t catch up on our billings, we wouldn’t be able to keep things going.

The following week was rough. Nic was anxious and snappy. Diane was also giving her a hard time, as her first teeth were coming through her gums, making her irritable and hard to soothe. Michael even struggled to calm her, and he was our baby whisperer. Judy seemed very confused by Nic’s mood but did her best to help or stay out of the way.

One afternoon, we were feeding the kids lunch when Diane threw mushed peas right onto Nic’s white shirt. I could tell she was already in a sour mood, but she snapped unexpectedly. “Can you handle her?” she lashed out at me.

“Uh, sure,” I said, unsure how to take the outburst. When Nic was gone, I linked Judy to bring me some wipes. Thankfully, Junior could handle his lunch on his own, so I laid Belle in my lap and held her bottle with one hand while using the other hand to feed Diane. I wanted to give Nic the benefit of the doubt for having a bad day or even week, but her rope was shortening by the day.

Judy came into the dining room with Michael, who looked worried. As Junior was almost done, Michael got him down and let him go with Judy. She occasionally brought him around and let him “help” her around the packhouse. Next, Michael took Belle so I could deal with Diane.

“Okay, something is going on. It happened while you were gone with your mom. Why is Nic ready to explode?” I asked him, no longer willing to wait for the explanation.

“She found her mate,” he sighed. I froze, and Diane protested the interruption of food traveling to her mouth.

“What did you say?”

–

Michael explained what happened when they went to the store. I couldn’t believe Nic had found her mate. She had to be so torn up inside. Not only was he in a committed relationship, but she had a pup now. It was messy.

“So he’s coming here tomorrow?” I confirmed.

Michael nodded. Arabelle was over his shoulder as he gently patted her back to get her to burp. “I think they have been talking some,” he said.

“Has she told you anything else?” I questioned. M shook his head.

“I don’t know how to help her right now. With you, I can feel it, and I usually know exactly what to do to make it better. With Nic, I need her to tell me. As her best friend, I really don’t know what to do,” he confessed. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I didn’t want to add another thing to for you to worry about, on top of everything else.” I felt how conflicted he was. I also felt like a lousy mate; I was so busy with the kids, school, and work I hadn’t noticed how stressed he was.

I wiped up Diane and pulled her out of the messy high chair. I stood with her, knowing movement would chill her out. “Maybe we should offer to keep Diane tonight and tomorrow, or I could see if my parents would take Junior and Diane for the night? I know they aren’t her grandparents, but they would still treat her the same.”

“We should be around tomorrow for whatever goes down,” Michael said protectively. I gave him a soft smile.

“Giant, fuzzy Alpha heart,” Sapphire cooed.

“Always been that way,” I agreed. “Okay, I’ll call my mom. If I drop Junior and Diane off, then we just have Belle. I can stay up late tonight, so I am not so busy tomorrow. If I take my quiz and finish the time sheets tonight, I can be ahead for tomorrow,” I told Michael.

“You are an angel,” he said. “Do you have the stuff to make any of Nic’s favorite foods? Just in case we need comfort food tomorrow?”

I saw his line of thought. If everything ended in rejection, Nic would be hurting. “I can talk to Judy,” I assured him. He stood with our tiny baby girl on his shoulder, then bent down to k**s me. It was funny to watch my tall, broad mate with a small diaper- and pink-tutu-covered pup resting on his shoulder. She was a bean compared to him.

“I’ll take her to my office with me,” Michael smiled. “Thank you for the help, my love. Hopefully, this will resolve soon.”

Watching my mate walk away with our little pink bundle was stirring things inside. I couldn’t wait to be cleared by the doctor. Diane pulled my hair, sharply reminding me she was still in my arms. “Alright, ma’am. That was rude!”

–

I stayed up very late. Judy ran to the store for me to get some last-minute groceries. My mom couldn’t pick up the pups until the morning, so we handled Diane for the night. Nic disappeared for a few hours after Michael offered, and he was worried until she came back. After doing all the school work and other stuff I could possibly manage, I dragged myself into the kitchen to prep some food. Nic loved to eat in general, so I had a few options ready to go, along with some of her favorite snacks.

By the time I was flopping into bed, Diane was waking up for the morning. I sighed and crawled right back out of bed. Michael helped me get the pups ready to go to my parent’s house when he and Junior woke up. Together, they got Belle up and prepared for the day, Michael instructing Junior on how to be a good big brother to his baby sister. Junior was ecstatic to see his Mimi and Grumpa but less so when he realized Diane and Belle would also be leeching their attention. I thanked my parents a hundred times for taking all three pups for us even though I insisted we could keep Belle.

“He should be here anytime,” Michael said, looking down at his watch.

“Should I go find her, or do you want to?” I asked.

“Maybe I should,” he sighed. I nodded, squeezing his bicep.

“I’m going to make some tea or something,” I told him. He pulled me close and kissed me sweetly.

“I’ll come find you shortly,” he said, letting go. Michael left to find Nic, and I went to the kitchen where Judy was making something.

“Good afternoon,” I smiled at her.

“Oh, Luna Mommy. So tired. You sleep!” she fussed.

“No, that’s okay. I’ll be alright,” I promised her. She was mixing up meat and vegetables in a bowl. “What’s that?” I asked her.

“Dumplings. We freeze. Cook later. Fast and easy,” she nodded.

“You’re so sweet, Judy. I bet they’ll be delicious,” I told her, making some tea.

“Babies keep Mommas busy. Quick dinner,” she reasoned. Once I had a cup of tea, I sat at the island, drinking it slowly and chatting with Judy. I felt so bad that she lost her mate but hoped she felt like family with us at the packhouse. Andrea joined us shortly after I sat down; whenever we had visitors, she was there to watch me.

Andrea looked at me after a while and nodded. Nic’s mate was about to arrive. We excused ourselves and found Michael and Nic in the hallway. Nic’s eyes were almost bugging out of her head; I could feel her stress as soon as we were in the same room. Michael was calm and composed. When the bell rang, he nodded at Nic, letting her answer it. We stayed back, giving her space.

Nic blocked my full view of the guy, but that didn’t really matter. She opened the door, and two seconds later, the two were entangled. I gasped softly, not expecting that reaction. I tugged on Michael’s arm. “Um, maybe we should give them a second,” I linked him. I looked at Andrea, who nodded, already on the same page as me. I pulled Michael with me into the large front living room.

“That was…” I struggled for words.

“Fast,” Andrea chuckled.

“Unexpected,” Michael frowned.

“Hey, they are mates,” I said. “Let’s just give them a moment. Maybe this will all work out nicely, and we are stressed out for nothing.”

“He hasn’t met Diane. She said he wasn’t very communicative after she told him about her pup,” Michael said.

“They still have a mate bond. Let’s just see,” Andrea shrugged. We all waited impatiently for a few more minutes. I was tempted to peek my head out the door and see what was happening, but I also didn’t want to intrude. Michael sat on the couch, but I was afraid I would fall asleep if I did.

“I ACCEPT. GET THE f**k OUT OF MY PACK!” a shout erupted from the hall. We all connected eyes for a brief second, then Michael crashed into the hall. Andrea went ahead of me as we followed him.

“I’m sure you are wonderful-” the guy tried to reason with her.

“I SAID I ACCEPT THE DAMN REJECTION. I, NICOLE REYES, BETA OF STARY PACK, ACCEPT YOUR REJECTION. NOW GET OUT!” Nic screamed at him. Her shoulders were rising and falling fast. Michael stepped up behind her, but Andrea put her arm out, keeping me back.

“You have a pup and -” he tried again.

“She accepted. Leave my territory now, or my warriors will do it for you. You won’t like the latter. Go,” Michael said, his Alpha voice coming out now. It always sent a cold shiver down my spine, even though it didn’t affect me.

Nic’s mate left, and Michael pushed the door closed. Everyone stood still for a long, tense moment. Then Nic fell to her knees, weeping. Michael leaned down and picked her up. Rage was searing inside of him. Whether or not he approved of the guy, he hurt Nic, which pissed Michael off.

Michael stormed past us, headed toward Nic’s room. I was left a little shocked. When they attacked each other, I thought things might have a chance, even if there was a show on our foyer floor. It seemed like neither of them could really resist after knowing they were mates for over a week.

The front door opened again, and we spun around to find Jacqueline. “Uh, I need Alpha,” she said.

“What’s wrong?” I asked quickly.

“Well, we had an incident on the new contract….” she said. She had a phone in her hand, and someone was shouting on the other side.

“He’s a little busy,” Andrea said delicately.

“Can I help?” I asked. Jacqueline looked conflicted, but Michael would not be available for a while. Finally, she nodded.