Some Mate You Are...

“I have come up with the greatest idea!” Kiara chirped, jumping up from the couch.

“What is it?”

“We should take a girls trip!” Kiara cheered, clearly excited about this thought.

I had to agree, it was not a bad one.

“I could use a trip.” I admitted.

It had been a month since Enzo and I spent the night together. We had successfully avoided each other since. But the ache in my chest was something that I could not ignore. The pull of the mate bond was screaming at me to be near him, but I would not give in. I refused to be the weak one in this situation.

“We should go to the beach! When was the last time that we went to the ocean?!”

“It has been too long.”

I loved going to the beach. We had not gone in several years. Now did seem like the perfect time to take a little trip and spend some time relaxing on the shore. I could definitely use the time away from the pack, specifically Enzo. My only hesitation was the reminder that the smell of the ocean would bring. Would it be too painful to deal with? After all, Enzo's scent was that of an ocean breeze. I shook away the thought, I could not allow him to rule my life that way.

“We should have Aida ask Tyrus to get us permission to visit the Blue Moon Pack.” I suggested.

The Blue Moon Pack was an ally pack that was situated right on the coast. We had stayed there before when we had gone on a trip to the beach. It was the safest way to travel, rather than risk staying in neutral territory and the run the risk of possibly having to deal with rogues.

“That would be great!” Kiara beamed. “I could look for my mate there as well.”

She wiggled her eyebrows, suggestively. Causing me to bust out in laughter.

“Ugh! I cannot believe that you have not found him in our pack!” I exclaimed, falling back onto the couch.

“Maybe he will be lower ranked in his pack than I am.” She suggested. “Then I can convince him to join us.”

As a Lambda in the pack, Kiara was not very high ranking. If her mate turned out to be a Lambda or higher, then he could force her to stay in his pack, if he chose. Everything in the wolf world was about rank and power. If a male wolf is the same rank as his mate or higher, then she has to move in with him. All we could do was hope that Kiara’s mate was of a lower rank.

“I’ll talk to Aida about the plans when her and Tyrus get back home.”

“Great! I’m so excited!”

Kiara started doing a little dance in her enthusiasm. I chuckled at her ridiculous behavior and rolled my eyes for dramatic effect.

It was the day of our big trip, I was checking over my luggage one final time before lugging the bag downstairs. I was fairly certain that I had everything that I would need, but there was no harm in double checking. My father's motto was "be prepared" and daddy did not raise no fool.

I was distracted from my mission, by the sound of a knock on my door. I did not bother looking as I assumed that it was Kiara or Aida. Figured that they were checking to ensure I was ready to go. I invited them in, so that I could keep my focus.

“Marvel?” Enzo’s deep, gravelly voice entered my ear.

I stiffened at the sound. I should have known better. I did not smell anyone coming. Not to mention, Kiara and Aida never knock. Damn my distracted self!

“What do you want, Enzo?” I managed through gritted teeth.

I could not, for the life of me, begin to imagine what in the hell he was doing here.

“You are going to the Blue Moon Pack?”

“Yes.” I continued staring at my luggage as if it were the most interesting thing in the world.

I did not want to risk looking into his eyes. Every time that I did, I found myself growing lost in those enticing green orbs.

“Uh…well…be safe, I guess.” He grunted.

I could swear that I could hear an emotion trying to convey itself in his voice, but I could not decipher what it was. It was one that I did not recognize coming from Enzo.

“We will. Do not worry, Alpha.” I spat the last word with a sarcastic emphasis.

I had never used his title, not once in our lives. I had always called him Enzo because that is who had been to me growing up. Not some authority figure, but my friend and constant companion. Now that I had, it put a distance between us that had not been there before. I had erased the familiarity between us with one word.

He did not say anything more. He got my meaning from my words. He did not want me, then I would give him exactly what he desired. Maybe I was being a little harsh, I did not know. All I knew was that I was in pain and he did not seem bothered at all. I was being tortured by our distance. But he seemed the same as ever, he did not feel the bond the way that I did. I had to punish him somehow and the cold shoulder seemed the best way to do it. I huffed before hauling up my bag and carrying it downstairs. I needed to get away from this place for a few days.

This trip could not have come at a better time.

“Ready to go?” Kiara asked, as she leaned against the black sedan that we would be taking.

The car belonged to the pack. Very few pack members owned their own vehicles, there was not much use for them, so it was a waste of money. But the pack owned a few different cars and trucks for members to use at the Alpha’s discretion.

We almost had not been able to get access to a car. My father and Alpha Griffith were unsure about the three of us traveling so far by ourselves with one of the pack's vehicles. For this reason, Alpha Griffith had only allowed us to take the car if we were taking Tyrus with us. Tyrus’s presence kind of ruined the whole “girls weekend” plan but he had promised to hang back at the pack house with the Blue Moon Pack and allow us to enjoy ourselves.

I did not mind Tyrus’s presence really. He had always been a really nice guy and he was a wonderful mate to Aida. I enjoyed hanging out with him. He was often fairly serious, but he could also be really funny when the mood struck him. Plus, I knew that having him with us would make the trip easier on Aida. If he had not come, then she would have spent most of the trip thinking about him and missing him.

I climbed into the back seat with Kiara, and we took off. Tyrus was driving really slow and proper whilst we were in pack territory, but really put his foot on the gas as soon as we left the pack’s land.

“So, this is why Alpha always let’s Tyrus take the car.” I noted, realizing that Tyrus must have fooled Alpha Griffith into thinking that he was an overly cautious driver.

I would have to try this trick out for myself sometime.

Several hours later, we arrived in the Blue Moon Pack territory. We made our way directly towards the pack house to meet the Alpha and thank him for allowing us to stay on his territory. When we pulled up to the pack house, I was surprised by how normal it looked, not really remembering it from our earlier trip. While our pack house was clearly a large, stately manor. This pack house, while lovely, was smaller and much more understated.

A handsome young wolf came walking out of the pack house. He approached us with a warm, if slightly crooked, smile plastered on his face as he waved in greeting. His blond hair was, carelessly, swept to the side. His bright brown eyes held a joy that I did not see in many Alphas. Certainly not in Enzo’s. Enzo’s eyes were a complete mystery and the depth that he held within them made me fear that I would not ever come out once I dove in.

“Hello! Welcome to the Blue Moon Pack! I am Alpha Timber. We are so happy that you all have come to us for a visit.”

His eyes locked with mine and I could have sworn I saw a flash of an emotion. I knew that emotion well…lust. I squirmed a little at the thought. I did not want to give this handsome, young Alpha the wrong idea. I had a mate and…

“Wait…”

What in the hell was I thinking? Enzo did not want me. I was free to do whatever I pleased. That did not mean that I was going to do anything with Alpha Timber, but I could not make decisions based on my connection to Enzo. He did not want to be my mate. I was, for all intents and purposes, a single woman. Just as he was a single man. We could, both, do as we pleased; even if the thought of him with another did create a strange knot in my gut.

“Thank you for allowing us this brief visit, Alpha Timber.” Tyrus spoke up. “We all really needed to get away for a couple of days.”

“It is my honor to have you all here! We are happy to share our pack house, as well as, our beaches with you. As a matter of fact, I hope that you do not mind, but we took the liberty of setting up a small welcome party tonight. Nothing much, just a bonfire on the beach.”

“That sounds awesome!” Kiara cheered as she jumped up and down.

“You didn’t need to go to so much trouble, Alpha.” I informed him, not wanting to seem ungrateful but also not wishing to put him and his pack out.

“Nonsense! Any excuse to throw a beach party, right?” He teased.

“Well, thank you, Alpha. We appreciate it and very much look forward to it!” I assured him.

“As do I.” He offered with a wink.

I gave him a weak smile in return. I was not certain how to feel about his flirtatious behavior. I found him attractive, of course. But I could not shake the sense that any interaction between us was wrong. I really needed to pull myself together.

Alpha Timber turned on his heel and bid us all to follow him. He showed us into the pack house and offered us two rooms for our stay. Aida and Tyrus would share one, of course, and I would share a room with Kiara.

“The party starts at sundown. So I’ll meet you all at the front entrance at eight o’clock.”

“Sounds great.” I agreed with a nod.