by Sara Summers
“What’s going on?” I repeated the question, stopping and pulling away from him. “I thought we were being honest with each other, and that we’re being equals now. If we’re running a pack together, you can’t keep secrets from me.” I folded my arms, worried.
If he was going to go back to keeping things from me, I couldn’t keep being his mate and falling further in love with him. I couldn’t live with him, and I definitely couldn’t sleep with him. I’d have to get away; I couldn’t stand for equality if my own mate didn’t treat me as an equal.
Ty scratched his head.
“I’m sorry, I promise that if it was important, I’d tell you. There are more important things going on, namely the males in the pack. I’ll explain everything to you when it’s over and done, and you’ve got everything figured out with the classes, okay?” he checked.
“No, I’m not settling for not knowing everything. Tell me what’s going on.” I demanded.
“It’s really not important, Leah.” Ty brushed his thumb against my cotie, filling me with calm and peaceful feelings. “I promise I’ll tell you when it’s over.”
I warred with myself. I could keep pushing the matter, but Ty clearly didn’t want to talk about it. It had him upset, so it must be something important. If I kept pushing, Ty would get defensive, and that would hurt our relationship.
Hurting our relationship would hurt the equality we were finally starting to build within the pack, and that wasn’t worth it. So, as much as it killed me, I reluctantly agreed.
“Fine. The second it’s over, though, you’re going to tell me everything.” I warned.
“I promise.” Ty agreed, pulling me close for a kiss. “I love you.” He said softly, as his lips brushed my hair. It surprised me to hear him say it; we’d never exchanged those words before. Despite the fact that we were mates, we still hadn’t known each other for that long.
“Thank you for understanding.” He whispered. “And for trusting me. That means the world to me.” He said.
“No problem.” I pressed a kiss to his cheek, though I was still upset that Ty was keeping something from me. “I have a schedule to plan, I’ll see you in a little while.” I gave him a small smile before heading toward the townhouse.
Despite my attempt at a smooth escape, I saw the confusion in Ty’s eyes. I knew he was sad that I wasn’t completely okay with letting him take the reins, but there was nothing I could do about it. He didn’t want to trust me, and I wasn’t ready to give him every ounce of trust I had.
Trust was something that had to be earned, and keeping secrets didn’t get him any points in my mind.
Still, I sat at the computer in Ty’s little office, typing up a schedule like my brain wasn’t straining to figure out what Kyle could possibly be discussing with the Rocky Alpha.
Chapter 19
That night was the first relationship training meeting, as I’d decided to call the meeting where I attempted to teach the men about women. We tried to meet in the Alpha house, but there were too many people.
So we gathered outside on the lawn, all of us wearing big coats. It was freezing outside, being the beginning of December and all.
I started the class by explaining how unfair it was that women were expected to leave behind their family and dreams when they met their mate. We proceeded to talk about a bunch of the ways it could be difficult for her to accept that, even five or ten years after it happened.
A handful of men contributed to the conversation, bringing their own stories about how they had worked through things with their mates. With the added discussion, the class seemed to fly by.
All throughout the lesson, I had a growing seed of worry inside me. Each of the men who contributed had told stories that made it seem like they were trying, and they were trying hard. I couldn’t help but wonder why their women left if they were trying so hard.
When class was dismissed, I noticed Ty coming my way. We hadn’t talked since early in the afternoon, when he refused to tell me what was going on with the Rockies, and I didn’t want to have another argument. He obviously wasn’t going to change his mind, and neither was I.
Luckily, Harris was still close by. Though I didn’t want to talk to the guy who had tried to kidnap me, I really didn’t want to talk to Ty.
“Hey, Harris.” I called out. He turned around and walked the few steps over to me.
“What’s up, O?” he asked.
I wrinkled my nose. I still wasn’t the hugest fan of being called the ‘Omega’.
“Please don’t call me that.” I complained. “Listen, I was wondering if you had a few minutes to tell me what your relationship was like. I don’t want opinions, just facts.”
“Sure.” He nodded, his face softening. “Skye and I were—are—best friends. We spent as much time together as we possibly could, only being apart when she hung out with Holly or I was at work. She did—does the cooking, and I do the cleaning. We stay up late most nights talking or watching movies.
“I always make sure she has a warm towel waiting when she gets out of the shower and that there’s plenty of food in the apartment. Honestly, she always seemed like she liked being around me. I’ve done everything I can to make her happy since the first day we discovered we were mates. That’s why I was so confused and upset when she left, but I guess you didn’t want to know that.” He brushed a hand through his hair.
That seed of suspicion had blossomed into a flower over the course of his description.
“Will you text me her phone number?”
“Sure, but I doubt she’ll answer. Every time I try to call, it goes straight to voicemail. And the voicemail box is full.” He added the last sentence sheepishly.
“Don’t worry, I’ll figure something out.” I assured him. I gave him my phone number, and he texted Skye’s to me.
Ty was in front of me almost the moment Harris stepped away. He folded his arms.
“Look, I know you’re mad at me, but I promise I’m not keeping anything from you that will hurt anyone.” He tried to reason.
“If you’re not going to tell me, don’t bother making excuses.” I headed back to the townhouse, but Ty didn’t follow me.
Walking inside alone was a little sad, but I reminded myself why I was being stubborn. I was not going to be some mate or Omega who just followed the Alpha’s every command. I was independent, and if Ty wasn’t going to treat me as an equal, he would get the same treatment.
Since he wasn’t home, I figured it was an okay time to try and call Skye.
I held the phone to my ear, listening to it ring. It rang a bunch of times before going to voicemail, but then told me the mailbox was full, as Harris had said.
Worry ate at me.
I tried again, and got the same thing. No answer.
After a quick debate, wondering if it was creepy or stalkerish to call three times in a row, I went for it. I needed to talk to her.
Once again, it went to voicemail.
I sighed and walked over to the fridge, wondering what the heck I would do. I’d sent all the women away, and I had a lingering worry that none of them would answer their phones, not even Holly.
I was digging in the fridge for something to snack on when my phone rang, and I hurried to answer it.
“Hello?”
“Um, hi. Who is this?” a woman’s voice asked.
“Oh, it’s Leah. Is this Skye?” I checked.
“Yep.” She said, and I noticed she was speaking really quietly.
“Are you okay?”
“Um, kind of.” She sighed. “I have to whisper. I’m hiding in the trees away from everyone else, because we’re not allowed to talk to anyone. If someone runs by in wolf form…” she trailed off.
“Not even me?” I raised an eyebrow.
“No.” she sighed again.
“Okay, I’ll keep it short. I’m teaching the males how to treat women, but your mate has already been treating you great. Why did you want to leave?”
“Everyon
e else was doing it, and I worried that he would eventually turn into what their mates were. Now that we’re here, I wish I’d trusted him more.” She admitted. “I miss him a lot.”
“You aren’t the only one who left to prevent their mate from changing, are you?” I asked.
“No.” She confirmed my theory, and the seed of worry inside me that had blossomed into a flower grew like fifty feet.
“Eff.” I growled, surprising myself. Apparently my wolf was not thrilled with what was going on. “Can you get back here?”
“Yes, but I won’t.” She said, and her voice shook a little. “Harris won’t want me back now that I’ve left.”
“No, I talked to him just twenty minutes ago.” I tried to convince her. “He’s dying to have you back again. He misses you like crazy.”
“Really?” she whispered.
“Really.” I nodded, even though she wasn’t there to see it.
“I don’t know if I can get away without someone catching me.” She worried. “Holly leads this place like some sort of dictator. If she catches me running back to you…” She trailed off.
“Then I’ll bring Ty and Harris and a bunch of other males, and we’ll come get you.” I told her bluntly. “I’m still the Omega, and Holly can’t stand against me.”
“Alright. I’ll have to leave the stuff I brought here, though. Can I come straight to your place to get cleaned up?” she checked.
“Yeah, of course.” I nodded again. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Thanks, Leah. You’re a good Omega.” She whispered, then hung up the phone.
The next hour and a half was spent waiting nervously, flipping through the Omega book I had already read twice to try to keep myself busy.
When I heard a wolf scratch against the door, I rushed to get it open. A slim, blonde wolf walked in, and I closed the door behind her.
Having already gotten clothes ready, I pointed to the bathroom.
“There are clothes waiting for you. Go ahead and shower if you want, there’s a brush and some hair ties in there if you want to use them.” I gave her a small smile, and her wolf nodded at me, pushing the door to the bathroom open.
The shower was going when Ty walked in a few minutes later, and he froze as the door shut behind him. He stiffened and then snarled, stalking toward the bathroom.
“You brought a man home?” He demanded, and I lunged to put myself between him and the bathroom door. “I can’t believe you would do this to me in my own house. I’m only keeping things from you to keep you safe.” He snarled again, his shoulders big and broad as he towered over me. I could feel his dominance rushing out at me, though it wasn’t targeted at anything in particular.
“Yeah, sure, I found an idiot in the pack who was willing to use me as a replacement for his mate. Who wouldn’t be okay with cheating on the Alpha with the Omega?” I growled at him, surprising myself yet again. “Of course it’s not a man. What kind of person do you think I am? You might be a lying idiot, but you’re still my mate.” I glared at him, and his gaze softened.
“Who’s in our shower, then?” he asked, still on guard.
“It really doesn’t matter. I’ll tell you when it’s over. I don’t want to distract you, and you should trust me enough to let me make all the decisions.” I snapped, pushing Ty into the kitchen and going back to my seat on the couch.
Ty sighed, letting his dominance dissipate.
“I know you’re tired of hearing it, but I really am sorry I can’t tell you.” He said. He brushed his thumb against my cotie, washing me with apologetic feelings, but I slapped his hand away.
“You can either go upstairs or leave. I’m not going to pretend that everything is good and fine and happy.” I told him, folding my arms over my chest.
“Come on.” He protested, grabbing my wrist. “Be reasonable.” He pleaded.
“I am. You tell me everything, and things can go back to the way they were. Keep it to yourself, and we’ll continue to grow apart. It’s simple.” I cocked one hip to the side.
“Fine.” Ty growled. I sat back down and pretended to focus on my book as he made his way up the stairs.
It hurt me that he would rather let our relationship fall apart then tell me about whatever was going on with the Rockies, but there was nothing I could do about it. I was stuck.
Chapter 20
Skye came out of the bathroom a few minutes later, her dirty blonde hair combed to the left and shaved on the right. She grimaced when I raised my eyes; it hadn’t been shaved when she left only a week ago.
“I was rebelling. Don’t ask me why, because I don’t have an answer.” She sighed and sat down on the couch in front of me, putting her feet up by mine and pulling her knees against her chest. “I guess you want some information.” She figured.
“Yeah.” I nodded.
“Well… Holly never planned on coming back. She said she did before we left, but when we all got out there, she told us that her dad, who is the alpha over some other pack, would be coming to get all of us in a few weeks.” She began.
“Shoot.” I grimaced, and she nodded.
“None of us knew her plan. When she told us about the panther’s land, she made it sound like there were houses or something, but when we got out there, we all had to live out of tents. There was one little cabin, where Holly and this other lady lived, but the rest of us slept in the cold and snow.
“We had to rotate charging our phones, so it’s a miracle I was able to talk to you when I was. If you’d called any other time, I couldn’t have. Once we settled into our tents, Holly announced that we’d be living off of the land, showering in ice cold streams and rivers, and eating animals in our wolf form.
“A few of us tried to argue, but she acted like she was our new Alpha. She got to decide what was best and if we argued, we would be shunned.” She gave me a bitter smile. “I guess that kind of punishment only works in an all-woman pack, huh?
“When a few people asked if they could go back to their mates, she told us that we would be hated. From there on out, she made it sound like we’d done something terrible, and none of the males would forgive us. I know Harris better than that, but it was a problem for a lot of the women, who never really got to know their mates after settling down with them.
“So we stayed, even though it was miserable. There have been more and more women arriving there every day, some of them saying they’ve been living out of tents for years. Apparently we’re not the only pack to rebel against our mates.” She shrugged.
“Wow.” I shook my head. “This is ridiculous. I’ve been teaching the men, and for the most part, they’re willing to do whatever it takes to get everyone back. If the women don’t want to come back, we’re going to have issues.”
“Definitely.” Skye leaned her head back against the couch. “It feels so good to be back.” She admitted. “There’s something really comforting about being with the pack again.”
“I’m glad. Listen, there’s something you should know.” I took a turn, and she gave me her attention. “Harris is Ty’s new third.” I told her.
She raised her eyebrows.
“What happened? Dean left?”
“He kidnapped me and tried to give me to the Rockies.” I admitted.
“Holy heck.” Skye’s mouth parted. “He and Holly have serious issues.”
“Seems like it.” I agreed. “The thing is, the pack is changing. Me and Ty are becoming equal leaders, and I need a second and third too. Since Harris is third…” I shrugged.
“You want me to be your third?” she asked, pulling her hair out from behind her neck. “Wow. That’s an honor.” She said. “I would love to do it.” She nodded, giving me a small smile.
“It’ll probably be just the two of us until Kyle finds his mate, but I think we’ll manage.”
“Yeah. Holy cow.” She shook her head. “Can I go home? Am I good to go, or do you need me here?”
“You’re good. I’d like to walk you home though, just in
case any males see you and go all crazy because they want their woman back.”
“Probably a good plan.” Skye nodded, and we laughed together as we pulled on coats.
We chatted as we walked to her apartment, and I told her about mine and my friends’ YouTube channel.
“We just want to teach shifters and humans about what it really means to be a shifter, you know? Hardly anyone out there understands it, and we really think we can make a difference.” I explained.
“That’s cool.” She agreed. “I’ve never met anyone who didn’t have a question about the way we work.
“Exactly.” I nodded.
We continued to talk as we walked, and I was a little disappointed when we got to her apartment. When I went back to the townhouse, I’d have to talk to Ty, which I was not looking forward to.
“Can I make you some hot chocolate for your walk home?” She asked.
How could I resist hot chocolate?
“Harris?” Skye called out as we walked through the door, biting her lip and looking around. He didn’t answer, so I figured he wasn’t home. “Darn, I was hoping he’d be here.” She sighed, but I followed her to the kitchen.
“I’ll wait with you until he gets back.” I assured her. She didn’t want to be alone, and I didn’t blame her. Sleeping in a tent in the cold must’ve been pretty lonely.
“So, why did you leave your pack anyway? We all heard about the drama where you didn’t want to join our pack, but how did you end up in Glacier?”
“Oh, it’s a long story.” I smiled wryly. She handed me a cup of hot chocolate, then wrapped her hands around her own mug for warmth. We sat on her couch, and I told her the story about being forced to leave.
“I always wanted to do something important. I didn’t want to be just some shifter, some werewolf.” She grimaced at the ugly term. “I want the world to be a better place because I was in it.”
“I understand.” Skye nodded. “But did you ever think that maybe, you can make the most difference as an Omega? Obviously, the world sees Omegas in the wrong light, but I bet you could change that if you tried. That would make a difference for every shifter woman in the next however many years.” She pointed out.
