Being Saved By The Alpha

Chapter Twenty-Four

Jack sighs, and pulls me to his chest. "It's not your fault." 

"I know that." I insist. "But I feel like I've intruded here." 

"Rosy, you haven't intruded into anything. You're a welcome member of the pack, and you need to realise that."  

I nod, though I don't believe him. I only joined the pack last night. A wolf is supposed to contribute to its pack, but there's nothing I can do at all.  

I'm not strong, or fast, and no matter how much Ashton argues with me, I know deep down that I'm not worthy.  

I'm starting to feel older than I should be. 

Sighing, Jack stands up and reaches for his keys on the coffee table. "I'm going to head to work. You'll be ok until Ashton wakes up?" 

"You work on a Saturday?" 

"Sometimes. With the training going on in the pack at the moment, they need as many doctors as they can get." He chuckles. 

"Yeah, I'll be fine." I nod, thinking hard. Training? Maybe I can do that... 

Jack kisses my forehead, before leaving. I hear the front door shut behind me. 

Slouching against the sofa, I tuck my legs under me and think of something to do.  

Amy is out doing something with her friends, Jack is at work, Linda is out shopping, and Ashton is asleep. I think I need to make friends.  

Sighing to myself, I resign to watching Tom and Jerry on the Saturday morning cartoons.

It's about an hour later when Ashton stumbles down the stairs, yawning. I bet he was up really late last night.  

He doesn't notice me until he comes into the lounge room with vegemite toast. Blinking lazily at me, he walks over and plonks down next to me, eating his toast quietly. He yawns when he finished, placing his plate down on the coffee table. A moment later and he idly flops over so his head is resting in my lap.  

"Are you tired?" I ask, tilting my head to the side as I run my fingers through his black strands. They're surprisingly soft. 

He nods, eyes closed. "A little." 

"Were you up late last night?" 

Again he nods. 

"Why?" 

"I had more work to do than expected." He sighs, rolling over and hiding his face in my stomach. His breath makes a warm spot on my skin.  

"Oh." It's all I can think of to say. I want to ask him about my parents again, but something feels wrong about it. I honestly don't know if I want the answer. Maybe I'll ask Jack later. He should know, right? "What are we gonna do today?" 

I feel Ashton smile a little. "How about we gather everyone up and go to the beach?" 

My mind flashes to the last time we went to the beach, just the two of us, and I can't help but grin. "Sure! I'll go find Amy!" 

Ashton chuckles, sitting up as I bolt from the room. 

It doesn't take long to gather up several people. There's Ashton, Amy, Mandy, Jack, Linda and Joshua. Linda is bringing along her friend, Rihanna, who's the same age as her. Joshua is also bringing along two friends, the twins Alex and Sage, who are twenty. 

Overall, it's a fairly big group.  

The beach is really sunny when we get there. A lot of human families are already around, but it doesn't bother anyone. We find a spot large enough for all of us, and then get to having fun. 

Linda and Rihanna set up chairs and umbrellas, chatting. Jack and Mandy go off to find food for everyone, while Amy and I head straight for the water. Ashton, Joshua and the twins are further down the beach, tossing a football around. 

The water is cold, but welcoming. Amy paddles around me in circles, looking bored. I flick water at her, grinning.  

"What's up with you?" I question as she stands up, brushing water out of her eyes. 

"Nothing." She grins. "Just wondering when I'll find my mate, is all." 

"He'll pop up sooner or later."  

She hums in response. "Jack and Mandy seem happy." 

"Yep." I say, nodding. The two were always holding hands and smiling. "Mandy's really nice." 

"Yeah. I'm glad he finally found his mate. Jack's the best doctor in the area, you know." Amy says, looking at me. 

"Yeah, I know." I grin proudly, swishing my hands through the water. It comes up to my chest. "What was he like before he met Mandy?" 

"Before he met Mandy, and before you showed up, he was pretty quiet." Amy says. "My Mum took him in when he was ten, after he showed up on our territory. He and Ashton got along really well." 

"What happened when he appeared on your territory?" I ask curiously.  

"Well... not much that I remember." Amy frowns a little. "I was pretty young, but I remember that it had been really quiet. I still don't really know what happened before Jack came to our pack." 

"Oh." I answer. "So you don't know what happened to my parents?" 

"Maybe you should ask Jack." Amy answers swiftly. 

"But-" 

"Rosy! Amy!" A voice calls out. I turn around to see Jack waving me and Amy to shore, while Mandy stands to the side waving at the guys. Guess the food is here.

The rest of the day went pretty smoothly. Ashton didn't question my nightmare, and I didn't bring my parents up again, to anyone. Once we all got home, Ashton, Amy and I went for a run before settling down and going to sleep.  

The next morning I wake up before Ashton once again. I find myself sitting with a bowl of cereal, my eyes watching Tom and Jerry race around the screen.  

I think I have a cartoon addiction.  

Ashton wanders down a little while later and sits down next to me, yawning.  

"What are we gonna do today?" I ask in between bites of cereal.  

Ashton smiles a little. "Whatever you want. It's Sunday, but tonight we have something on, so try to think of something to do that won't clash with that." 

"Um... I don't know." I admit with a shy grin. "What's happening tonight?" 

"Just something." He yawns.  

"Alright." I say, hiding my curiosity. 

"Why don't you go out with Amy for the day?" Ashton suggest, sitting up.  

"Huh?" 

"You guys can have a girl's day out." Ashton continues, oblivious to my confusion. "Let me go talk to her." 

And just like that, Ashton has left the room. I thought that we were going to do something together, like always. Well, I guess I can't always rely on Ashton, and hog his attention.  

That thought sends a pang running down to my heart. The thought of another girl having Ashton's attention wants to make me cry. I quickly shake my head, dismissing the thoughts. I'm with Ashton, not another girl.  

Focusing on the television again, I try to let the colourful cartoons take my attention away from worrying about my parents, and about Ashton's strange actions. 

Amy wanders down the stairs a little while later, after several episodes of cartoons. We end up going shopping, where Amy squeals and coos over everything in every shop we pass. I can't focus, though. 

What is Ashton up to?