Sarah Everson had a dark childhood inside the Clear Lake Pack, but has finally reached a perfect life and feels stronger than she ever has. She works at the pack's bakery doing what she loves and is surrounded by her hand-chosen family. She doesn't...
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Kristy ^
"I saw him yesterday as he was leaving the training gym and, goddess, he was only wearing shorts and he was so sweaty, and YUM! I'd bottle that sweat and bathe in it!"
Gross.
My friend Kristy and her mom Katherine were waiting at the door as soon as we opened. Katherine is a top accountant for Clear Lake Holdings, overseeing a lot of the money that all of the pack's businesses bring in, making her an important member of the pack - a gamma. Iris, as the technical owner of the Sweet Tooth, is also a gamma. A good bit of the profits of all the businesses go back to the pack. I have no idea how much. I am beyond uninterested in that kind of stuff.
Katherine and Iris have been good friends their whole adult lives, so Kat comes in to visit and grab her coffee and breakfast almost daily. Most of the time, she brings her daughter and my closest friend - other than Iris - with her. And with that comes all the latest gossip.
Kris is sitting at a stool, next to the pick up counter, as I pack up breakfast to-go orders.
"So I heard Alex is going to be taking over as Alpha in the next few years, so Alpha Jeffrey is involving him in everything now and, goddess, I wish I was the mate of that sexy beast," she daydreams.
Unlike me, Kristy is dying to find her mate. At age 18, the moon goddess blesses us with the ability to scent and sense our mate when they are near and it's been a long 4 years for Kristy - having the ability to find her mate and not being able to.
She'd immediately be snatched up in the human world. She's gorgeous. Long, dark red hair, big baby blue eyes, creamy skin, a perfect hourglass figure. Then, once you talk to her, you learn she's charming, well-traveled, and can hold her own in any conversation. She also has a dirty mind, like Iris, which has entertained me to no end, and has nudged my personality that direction as well.
Though, as many sexual innuendos we throw back and forth, she's still a virgin and will remain that way until she finds her mate. It's rare for young unmated wolves to have sex, before finding their mate. Your mate can scent your purity or impurity - both males and females. To not wait for your mate, hurts them deeply. No one wants to start their relationship that way. Most wolves don't even date for fun in their younger years, knowing they wouldn't want their mate doing the same. Our wolf makes us very possessive.
Kristy is dying to find her mate, though, and he's not going to know what hit him. I'm thinking she will mark him and mate within about 5 minutes of finding him. It goes without saying, but I'm obviously a virgin too. I've never noticed any guys enough to be attracted to them.
"You've been near him a million times, Kris, you know he's not your mate." I tell her, as I fill up some coffee cups.
"Well you know what they say," she trills, "The moon goddess..."
"Has her own ways," I finish. "I know I know. I just doubt she's going to change an age old tradition that she's given us, just so you can have Alex for a mate."
"When are you going to start venturing out more to find your mate?" She pouts at me, changing the subject. She's always trying to get me to go to parties or weekend excursions with her family. "The more you branch out, the more likely you are to find him!" She singsongs to me.
I roll my eyes. We have this conversation every week. And every time, I tell her the same thing. "Pass," I say indifferently.
And every time, I feel my wolf pace just a couple of steps, before settling again. She doesn't agree with my indifference and really wants her mate.
While I love for my wolf to feel happy and fulfilled, I dread the thought of anything pulling me away from the perfection that is my life now. What if my mate wants me to stay at home and not work? What if he wants me to get a different job to pull me out of my omega status? What if he's from a different pack? I cringe internally, because he could actually be in this pack. I don't travel around the compound very much - sticking to essential trips, running paths that are out of the way from the main ones, and just coming here to The Sweet Tooth.
My thoughts shift to my very unpleasant past, pulling up my worst fears about finding my mate. What if he's cruel? What if I can't escape him? Although, I was a defenseless child and not the capable adult that I am now when I experienced cruelty, I'm scared to put myself at risk. No. No mate. I'm good.
Then, that small part of me rears its head, and I picture all of the cartoon princes, doing whatever they could to get to the girl. Saving her and defeating all the dangerous things that came up against her. That used to be me. I used to be in danger every day at the orphanage. Now, though, my life is the opposite. I saved myself. I'm safe and happy now.
I hear Kristy starting to speak again, and pull myself out of my own head.
"...really looking forward to seeing some of the wolves from the Wind River pack from Wyoming. I met the hunkiest guy last year at a conference my mom took me to. He was from that pack and if they make them all like that...Mmm mm MMMM!" she finishes, rolling her eyes back and twisting a lock of her red hair.
"Calm down, man eater. Are a bunch of wolves coming with the visiting Alphas, then?" I ask, not truly caring about the answer.
"Well, the Alphas' guards are, of course, then Alpha Jeffrey is trying to also link up with some of the other pack's companies, so the heads of those will be coming as well. Scratching each other's backs and whatnot." She waves her hand around. "Can you believe the Ice Moon Pack is coming? Eek. Hide your pups!" She shudders.
"Oh no, I can't believe it!" I say distractedly. "Who's that?" I ask, still disinterested, packing up some muffins.
"Are you kidding me, Sarah?!" She practically shrieks, slamming her hands down on the counter. "The Ice Moon Pack! The number one threat to every pack in North America?? Their warriors are like the elite of the elite. And the Alpha?" For a second, her eyes flash with genuine fear.
"What about the Alpha?" I ask, my interest actually piqued. I don't think I've ever seen Kristy afraid before. As wolves, there isn't much that we need to be afraid of. Our elevated senses and strength give us the power to easily take out the average human or animal.
"Sarah!" Iris whisper-shouts, interrupting us. She points with her head to outside the shop toward an approaching group of suited men.
"Alpha! Gotta go!" I leave Kristy to make sure I'm at the ready, if Iris needs me to do anything. Kristy goes to sit at one of our bistro tables that her mom has been occupying for the last few minutes. She and her mom look so similar, same hair and eyes. Same outgoing personality. They simultaneously give me thumbs ups, as if they planned it, and we all have a quick laugh. Then, the little bell on the door tinkles again.
