BOREALIS ☽ Leah Clearwater ✔

Chapter 40... Finally

"Jake!" I called after him, pushing through the fracturing crowd. I grabbed his shoulder and twisted him around. "What the hell?"

Jacob just laughed. "I knew you were going to react like this."

My head was still ringing from Sam and Jacob's surprise announcement that Josh and I would be taking over as Alphas. They had said more after naming us as their replacements, but I had been too stunned to listen to much else...

"How could you just drop this bomb on us? You should've said something—"

"If I said something to you beforehand, would you have agreed?" Jake said, still chuckling.

"No!" I shouted back. "Of course not!"

"Exactly," Jake said, smirking like he was so clever. I had half a mind to punch him.

"Yeah, so, what's stopping me from saying no now?" I said.

Jake nodded his head behind me. I turned and looked over my shoulder. Josh was standing with Joshua Sr., Joel, Sam, and Emily, and all of them talking happily. From afar, it all seemed so easy. Josh had already accepted the position of replacing his brother Sam, without hesitation.

"He seems fine with it," Jake said.

I growled. "So, what? Let him do it. He can be Alpha for both packs. They can become one again, like before."

Jake sighed, his humour gone now. "Dammit, Leah, don't you see? It's supposed to be you—both of you. It was always supposed to be you and Josh. I didn't see it until you were together, but it makes so much more sense this way."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"You're special, Leah," Jake said, his tone suddenly serious. "You're the first female werewolf, ever, descended from one of our greatest bloodlines. That's unique enough. But then you met Josh—Sam's brother and another werewolf, and you both imprinted on each other. That's even more unique. And, then, on top of that, you're the first werewolves to have children together. That's the most special thing of all! Don't you see it, Leah? Your kids are our future. You and Josh are the leaders of the next generation."

All my smart-ass remarks slipped out of my head. Damn. When Jake laid it all out like that, it suddenly made sense. All this time, I had figured I was a freak, a fluke, an accident. But now I saw it: Josh and I were truly the perfect match. The perfect stepping stone to lead our family, our people, our packs, into the future. We'd lead them, teach them, protect them... together.

It was a lot of pressure.

"B-But," I sputtered, "I'm not ready!"

Jake's serious tone slid away as a smile broke across his face. "I know. But don't worry. As I said, I'm not going anywhere just yet. This is just preparation. I'll stick around long enough for you to get the ropes." He patted my shoulder. "But I think you'll pick it up fast enough. After all, you're a Clearwater."

Hearing my family name made me think of my father and thinking of him made me realize even more how right Jake was. Dad would have agreed with him. Clearwaters always took care of the tribe. He had served on the tribal council before he passed away, just like his own father had, and his father before that. Now it was my turn.

"I guess we'll see," I said, though I knew exactly how this was going to go. After all this time trying to escape this place, I knew it was where I was meant to be. "But how'd you convince Sam?"

"Convince Sam?" Jake said. "It was his idea."

My eyes went wide. "He suggested this?"

"He saw it before I did," Jake said. "I think that's why he was so bent out of shape when Josh arrived and he found out you imprinted on him. But if you want to know, why don't you go ask him?"