"What?" I ask, still not fully believing that he wants to take me anywhere with him.
"If you want to come, of course." He gives me a small nod.
"Is that even a question? I'd love to come!" I smile, my mood ten times better than a minute ago. I had no clue what changed his mind or what we were going to do but I didn't question anything because I couldn't risk him changing his mind again. I had too much to lose, waiting for this moment ever since I accepted my fate of staying here.
My first instinct was to hug him - this is how happy I was - but I contained my emotions, because after all we're not that close and I don't particularly enjoy his presence as much as other people's.
"Okay, grab something to eat and change into something formal then meet me in my room." He looks pleased with my reaction to his offer as he has a kind look spread across his face, unlike the one with Enzo earlier.
I go straight upstairs to see Alice, completely unaware of what 'formal' wear was needed for his 'Alpha duties', considering I had no clue what those consisted of either.
"Remi? Seriously? It's seven in the morning..." Moans Alice as I interrupt her sleep.
"I know, I know. I'm sorry." I sit on the edge of her bed. "But I need you."
She sits up after I tell her this, giving me her attention.
"Daniel said he would take me with him today for some duties." I spill, knowing I have little time.
Alice's eyes widen. "He did what?" Then she frowns. "Are you sure?"
"I know, I was shocked too. But anyway, he said to wear something formal but I have no clue what to do. He didn't say what we're doing."
"Meetings." States Alice like she's known the answer all her life. "Meetings with other Alphas. Come on, I'll help." She then pulls me over to her closet.
She goes through many outfits until she takes out a knee length bodycon that doesn't look like the tight type.
"Here, take this. I bought it a few weeks ago but it's a little too tight on me and will fit you better. And with this wear a long coat and some heels. You'll have those in your own closet somewhere, Jason made sure you didn't have to walk around naked here." She grins.
"Thank you so much... You're a life saver!"
"Oh I know." She laughs. "Now go, you don't want to be late."
And with that I'm back in my own room changing into the white dress from Alice. Sure enough, it fits perfectly and even though it hugs my body, it looks very formal.
I find a black trench coat in the closet along with the same coloured heels that tie around your ankle like ballerina pumps. I try keeping my make-up fast, and finally only brushing my already straight hair.
Feeling ready and satisfied with my look, I make my way along the hall to Daniel's bedroom.
I knock twice and walk in after hearing his voice asking me to come in.
He's facing away from me but I'm already struggling to form sentences in my head after seeing he's wearing a formal shirt with some black trousers and elegant looking shoes.
"I thought we could-" He turns to me and then looks me up and down, taking every detail in. "You look perfect- ly dressed for where we're going."
"I'm glad, I had a little help from Alice."
"This early in the morning?" He laughs. I'm still not used to him being so carefree and not Alpha-like around me. It's something he's started doing only recently.
"Yeah, she sacrificed a lot for me." I chuckle.
"She cares about you a lot, she sees you as family." He goes a little more serious now.
There's a few seconds of awkward silence as we both possibly think about the fact we're not one. Daniel certainly doesn't see me as the part.
"Let's go." He quickly changes the subject and I follow him to the car.
I don't feel like talking to him during the journey. I take the time to check him out once in a while and find his concentration face quite attractive. His jaw clenched from time to time and as he breathed in, his muscles just about showed through that shirt. I had imagined my hands on his chest too many times by now but before I internally slapped myself.
And I'm not anymore.
Daniel glances at me, and notices me looking at him. I expect him to say something sarcastic or cocky, only wait for it to leave his mouth but instead he gives me a smile. It didn't look sarcastic and it reaches his eyes. He was happy for some reason.
I wanted to look away, but I didn't. I can't make myself, and my lips curve up a little instead.
When did this happen? Since when do we actually, possibly enjoy one another's presence, even only a little?
He snaps his eyes back onto the road as he realizes we're heading for the direction of a tree in the distance, and swiftly turns the car back on track. That's when I let myself look away from him, but as I did, my body was showing me signs of the effect he has on me and my wolf. I was undeniably attracted to him.
Was he to me? It felt like I'd never know.
We drive in silence for the rest of the journey, yet the car was filled with very good energy. We were both in a good mood, both smiling to ourselves. And I loved that, even though I wanted to hate it.
We arrive to a pack house I've never seen before and park next to an already formed line of cars. It made me wonder if everyone was already here, only waiting for us. But Daniel didn't rush to get here and didn't at all act as if he was late for some important event, so I assumed we were quite early or on time.
We are greeted by a couple of pack members. From the vibes I was receiving and their body language, they seemed to be quite highly ranked - but not Alphas, possibly not even Betas. It's always clear who is who in the werewolf world, everything is a giveaway.
Finally, we enter a large room with a table in the center. There were two men sitting by it, both dressed smartly who looked over at us.
"Look who decided to show up. Finally." Says one, seeing Daniel first. His eyes follow behind to me and he looks stunned for a second. In fact, they both do.
"Who's this?" The same blonde one asks.
"This is Remington, my mate. She wanted to be here today and I didn't see an issue with it so I encouraged her to come." Daniel explains. Mate. The way he addresses me, stirs my wolf.
"Your... Mate?" He checks. "How lovely to meet you." He looks me up and down quickly but not in a bad way, just to really get a good idea of what I look like.
Daniel however, wraps his arm very lightly but possessively around my waist, leading me to a chair next to him. My whole body tingles at his touch.
"Let's begin, shall we?" Asks the other Alpha, who I roughly recognize. He was middle aged, and had a short beard that only made him look more serious.
"So, I gathered you here today to form an alliance." As the man who spoke second starts explaining, I take a moment to look around and study the present Alphas.
The middle aged man who is currently the speaker seems awfully familiar to Alpha Randall. He is someone I've seen a couple of times, just not really in person. More through photos and descriptions that formed an image in my head. The other had very light blonde hair. This was definitely Alpha Cory Underwoods, that I could tell right away. His signature light hair was a common trademark for his pack, yet I doubted any members beat him when it came to the paleness. He seemed to be in his early or mid thirties - the most common age of the current generation of Alphas, I find.
"An alliance? I don't do alliances, I have friends, not allies... Who I select carefully anyway." Speaks Daniel. I was surprised that he was so outgoing already.
He smiles. "And I consider myself as one. Wouldn't you consider yourself as mine?"
I would be lying if I said that Randall's way of talking didn't intimidate me a little. He was the oldest here and definitely showed it through his way of talking and the way he acted, yet something about him made me feel like he should be trusted. He came across as wise and responsible.
"I would." Answers Daniel after a long pause. "You're a better friend than enemy." He adds, smugly.
"Well that's for sure." Muses Randall.
"So why do you need this... Alliance?" Asks Cory. He had boredom laced in his tone.
"I am planning a war." Announces Randall.
I tense a little, not liking the sound of it. Why did he have to involve anyone else into his own ideas? Why did he want a war in general?
"With who?" I can't help but ask. I wasn't sure if Daniel wanted me involved in this meeting, but I didn't think twice about it.
"With the Southern Mountain pack, Remington." He answers me politely, not hesitating.
"Why?" Asks Alpha Cory.
"Because they are holding my wife captive."
After he said that, many thoughts ran through my mind. The Southern Mountain pack was isolated. As the name suggests, they live in the mountains. They don't integrate with others, generally speaking.
I was also wondering why Randall was so calm about this whole thing. Sure, he sounded angry when he told us but a man without his mate goes crazy. Hell, even Daniel didn't sleep or eat when I was gone apparently and our bond wasn't even strong then - it still isn't.
"Underwoods?" Asks Randall, expecting Cory's answer.
"Count me in. But I expect your pack to be the first to interfere if mine ever needs it." He says.
"Very well." Nods Randall. "And you, Anderson?"
I look at Daniel who doesn't look convinced. He's concentrating and has the same face as when he's really focussing on the road while driving. It was hot buf at this moment, I was praying that he was going to say no.
"Alright." Daniel nods. My heart sinks. "But I expect the same from you too, if needed."
"Brilliant. It's good making deals with you men. And Remington, what a pleasure it was to see you join us here too. Please, join me all for a meal as a token of our new allince." He says in a friendly and composed manner.
Everyone agrees and stands to leave the room. As soon as Cory and Randall are in front ofus leading the way, I tug onto Daniel's sleeve.
"We need to talk." I hiss.
♡ ♡
Wrote this in a little bit of a rush because I wanted to publish this chapter for you even though I have exams so soon 🙃🙂 so it may include spelling mistakes.
Next update will be after my exams so bear with me, I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate you all so much and I want to thank you for reading!
Love every single one of you!
PS. Welcome new readers!
-A ♡