The Alpha's Mate (Werewolf Romance) (3 page)

“Oh, thanks,” I mumbled. I appreciated Jana’s support, especially since I really didn’t know what I was doing. I’d gone on instinct in the post office, trying to keep my anger in check so I didn’t do anything really stupid. I didn’t even actually know what the test of blood was, but I wasn’t about to admit that in public. I would ask Jackson about it later.

She waved me forward, leaning over the counter to quietly say, “I remember when Cal took his mate. It wasn’t much easier for her, but she got through it in the end.”

“Really?” I couldn’t keep the surprise from my voice. I would always remember Cal’s wife as a woman no one ignored. Everyone had listened to Betty without question.

Jana nodded. “Give it time. The pack has to know they can trus
t you and they’ll test you until they’re sure.”

I blinked as her words sank in. I hadn’t thought of it like that
. Maybe all this friction was normal, part and parcel of being the alpha’s mate. If so, I needed to toughen up and fast. “Thanks, Jana.” I smiled at her, grateful for her kindness.

She smiled back. “Any time.”

Taking my package, I hustled out of the post office, keenly aware of all the eyes watching me go. Now that the tension of my confrontation with Vicki had dissipated, they, apparently, felt free to openly stare at me. The gossip I’d provided that morning would fuel them like caffeine, their jaws flapping non-stop as they recounted the latest exploits of the alpha’s ill-chosen mate. It made me want to crawl into a deep, dark hole and never come out again.

I silently
cursed companies that required a signature for their deliveries. Yes, the crystal champagne flutes I’d ordered were very expensive and fragile, but they’d left the much more expensive wedding band for Jackson on my porch no problem. From here on out, I vowed to only work with companies that wouldn’t force me into town to pick up their goods.

Outside
, I blinked as the sun’s brilliance hit my eyes. The day was cloudless and cold. The generously late Indian summer had faded over a week ago, and it now appeared the weather was fixing to grace us with the first snow of the season. I dropped the package off in my truck and then headed to the bar, wanting to order something to eat before I undertook the drive to Nashville.

I was just about to open the door and step inside when
the loud squeal of tires made me pause. Looking over my shoulder, I saw a red corvette roaring down the street. Frowning, I let the door to the bar go and stepped back onto the side walk.

No one in Huntsvi
lle drove a sports car. We were pick-up truck people. Fancy cars were beyond our pay grade. We weren’t poor by any means, but our economics were limited to working in town or helping to administer the pack land.

We
owned over five hundred acres, most of which was reserved for us to run. The edge of our property housed cabins that we rented out to the public. We also leased the mineral rights to a big mining company. They operated a coal mine in a gulley that was too steep for us to access in wolf form. The pack split the profits, which made for a comfortable existence, but not an extravagant one.

As I watched, the corvette zoomed through the town square and then jackknifed into a parking spot right in front of me. I held my breath, expecting the car to jump the curb and hit me, but the driver exercised the precision of a professional and the vehicle shrieked to a stop just before hitting the curb.

The noise attracted notice. Anyone outside stopped same as I had, riveted by the corvette’s progression. The car purred, the sound anything but content, and then the driver turned it off. The sudden silence rang in the air like an alarm bell.

I waited, curious to see who the driver was and ready to direct the stranger t
o Hudson, the nearest human city about twenty miles down the road. We weren’t so barbaric as to run humans out of town, but, if they insisted on eating at the bar, the service would be terrible and the food either undercooked or burnt. No one came back twice if they could help it. Not unless they belonged.

To my surprise
, the driver who emerged from the corvette’s interior, was a woman. Given the crazy driving, I’d expected a young, cocky guy. Instead, a striking redhead stepped out of the car, sharp stilettos clacking on the concrete.

She
stood tall as a super model and svelte as one, too. Her red wrap dress and designer stilettos spoke of money and her scent identified her as a wolf, just not one from Huntsville. Checking out the front plate, I noted she was from Louisiana.

Funnily enough
, so was Jackson.

Lifting her sunglasses to the top of her head, she quickly scanned the area with bright green eyes. Zeroing in on me, she sniffed and said,
“Are you the bitch who thinks she can have my mate?”

Her voice carried in the quiet pre-winter air to the point where people inside the bar came out to better hear her.
Wolves can smell anything, especially good gossip fodder.

Chapter Three

“Excuse me?” I asked, utterly confused.

She stalked toward me
and leaned down until we were eye-to-eye, the gesture making me feel very short and very fat in comparison. She narrowed her eyes into emerald slits and repeated her question. “I said, are you the bitch who thinks she can have my mate?”

“Your mate being?” I asked
, although I had a sinking feeling who it was.

“Jackson Swift,
” she said with a tight smile that showed off her sharp, pointy canine teeth.

“
Kelsey,” came Jackson’s voice before I could respond. We both turned to see him coming down the sidewalk, a wide-eyed look of surprise on his face.

He greeted her with a warm hug. “What are you doing here?”

Kelsey laughed and the trilling sound made my hackles rise. “Just checking up on you.” She looped her arm through Jackson’s and looked at me. “Making sure this town is doing right by my best friend.”

Seeing the confusion on my face, she smiled at me. “Sorry, um, Chloe is it? I was just having some fun with you.
Jackson’s mom showed me a picture, and, when I saw you, I just couldn’t resist the temptation to pull your leg.”

I pu
shed out a fake chuckle while giving Jackson a ‘WTF’ look. Seriously.
What. The. Fuck?
“You didn’t tell me she was coming.”

He shrugged and gave me an equally ‘WTF’ look. “I had no idea.”

“I swore your mom to secrecy. You know she can’t tell me no.” She snuggled up to Jackson, which made me want to rip her face off.

My hands
curled into fists, the nails breaking the skin of my palms. “What are you doing here?” I cleared my throat several times as I spoke to keep my voice from coming out in a hostile growl. My wolf was practically frothing with anger. Vicki had already put her on edge and now Kelsey threatened to push us both over. If I wasn’t careful, I would change right here, right now and it would be a blood bath. The arch look Kelsey gave me suggested she knew exactly what effect her appearance had on me.

“I’m an event planner
on the side and when I heard Jackson was hitched, I thought I’d come help out with the wedding.” She scanned the town, taking in the few paint worn buildings lining the street and wrinkled her nose. “You know, help you make it an event to remember. The Swift pack likes to celebrate with class.”

Jackson smiled at me weakly. “How about we grab a bite to eat, ladies?”

So we all traipsed into the bar, Kelsey laughing lightly as if she didn’t have a care in the world and constantly touching Jackson. For his part, Jackson looked happy to see her although from the concerned looks he shot my way, he seemed to have picked up on the fact that I wasn’t as thrilled. I trailed behind them glowering, fighting the urge to start a bar brawl. The entire bar fell silent, acutely aware of our entrance and straining to hear every word.

Great.

We all ordered beer and burgers, the waitress staring at us with open curiosity. While we waited for our food, Kelsey smiled at me brightly. “How ever did you two meet?”

Jackson put a protective arm around me and pulled me close. He’d been su
re to sit with me, and I found that small gesture reassuring. Under the table, I gripped his thigh with one hand, staking my claim. Even though she couldn’t see it, the contact made me feel better and less likely to leap across the table at her.

“I knew she was the one the first time I laid eyes on her,” Jackson said. “She took a little convincing though.” He smiled at me.

I returned his smile, remembering the night he’d shown up on my doorstep with the promise to ‘make me howl.’ I’d doubted him, but he’d been right. Jackson had brought my wolf.

“I heard you were a null, Chloe.”
Kelsey unwrapped her silverware and smoothed her napkin into her lap.

I shrugged.
“Not anymore.”

“They say nulls are weak and infertile.”  Her lips smil
ed, but her eyes shone with malice.

“
Kelsey,” Jackson said, a note of warning in his voice.

At the s
ame time, I said, “Try me.” I’d face her down same as Vicki. As for having babies, who knew, but I wasn’t overly concerned about it because, no matter what everyone thought they knew, I had never been a true null.

She put a hand to her chest, an innocent expression on her face
. “Oh? Have I said something wrong? Sorry.”

I looked at Jackson and was surprised to see he accepted her blatantly false apology. This bitch knew exactly where all the buttons were and had no problem pressing them. Surely he could see that? But from the warm expression on his face, I could tell he was blind.

“What was it you said to Chloe outside?” Jackson asked, aware enough to at least know he should change the subject. Unfortunately, the topic he chose added fuel to the fire instead of establishing neutral territory. “The look on her face was--“

Kelsey
cut him off with a giggle. “Priceless, I know. All I said was, are you the bitch who thinks she can have my mate?”

At Jackson’s shocked expression, she paused. “Too much?”

He nodded. “Yeah, that’s a little aggressive.”

She grimaced. “Sorry. You know me, all action and no thought.”

I sipped my beer, my glance ping-ponging back and forth between them. Did Jackson really buy her brainless ditz defense? How could he miss that her apology was directed at him and not me. She wouldn’t even look at me. How could he not smell the desire that permeated her scent? It was faint, but I hadn’t missed it.

Wanting to remind her I was alive, I cleared my throat and asked,
“How do you guys know each other?”

Kelsey
waved a hand. “Jackie and I go way back.”

Jackie?
I sputtered as my beer went down the wrong pipe.

Jacks
on pounded me on the back. “We grew up together.”

“His momma
practically raised me. I didn’t know my daddy and my momma, well...” Kelsey trailed off and her facade of good cheer faded a bit.

Jackson reached
across the table and took her hand in his. “Her loss, Kels.”

My eyebrows went up at the exchange. It sounded like there was some painful history there. A pang of sympathy went through me for Kelsey. I knew what it was to have a shitty
childhood without the parents you deserved. Of course, the tiny pang I felt wasn’t enough to eradicate my irritation with her behavior so far. Things had never been easy for me, either and I’d managed to avoid becoming a badass bitch. It could be done, if you worked at it. The fact Kelsey had, apparently, chosen not to, spoke volumes about her character. Or lack thereof. At least, in my opinion.

Kelsey
nodded and then blew out a big breath. “We got into a lot of scrapes growing up. Remember the frogs in the toilet?”

Jackson laughed
and released her hand, much to my relief. “As I recall, that was your idea. I thought momma was going to skin us alive for that.” To me he said, “We put a bunch of frogs from the creek in the toilet the same day momma was hosting a Junior League luncheon.”

“We stuffed them in and put the lid down,”
Kelsey added. “Made for a nice surprise just when you wanted to pee. All the ladies of our pack screamed like little girls and ran scared in their Sunday best.” She snickered and pretended to clutch her pearls. “You’d think they’d never torn out a rabbit’s throat with their bare teeth.”

“What about the time we dumped the sugar and replaced it with salt?” Jackson asked
with a chuckle. “That was also your brainchild, although momma didn’t believe me.”

Kelsey
made a face. “Ugh. She made us drink that lemonade too. I haven’t drank it since. What about you?”

Jackson shrugged. “It’s okay in small quantities, but yeah
, I can never quite shake the taste of salt and lemon from that day.”

She leaned over the table, eyes focused on Jackson as if I didn’t exist. “Oh hey, remember when we swore we’d be each other’s mates?”

I gasped and stared at her, stunned by her brazenness.
Who
acted like that? Wolves looking for a fight, that’s who.