Filed to story: The Alpha’s Pen Pal Book
“But why French?”
“It’s the language of love,” he says with a shrug, his cheeks tinting pink. “I figured it would be a surefire way to get the attention of the ladies.”
“Does it work?”
He lifts his sparkling, crystal blue eyes to mine. “You tell me.”
“My lips are sealed, Cookie Monster Beta,” I say, zipping my lips with my fingers.
“Oh, Goddess, I can’t believe that’s the username Seb gave me,” he groans, lowering his head to the table. “It’s so embarrassing.”
“Hey, it’s better than Tearin It Up.”
“At least yours makes sense!” he says, sitting up again. “Taryn Campbell. Tearin It Up,” he says, moving his hands from one side of his plate to the other. “Not embarrassing, and it fits with your actual name.”
“How is yours embarrassing?” I laugh. “I think it’s cute.”
“It’s embarrassing because it’s Seb, and he didn’t give it to me thinking ‘Oh, this is cute.’ He did it with malicious intent, just like everything else he does. Making fun of my love for toasty warm cookies fresh out of the oven,” he says under his breath. “Everyone knows they’re the best that way.” I laugh again, and he blows out a sigh, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose. “Can we please talk about something other than my cookie obsession?” he rushes out.
“Yes,” I say, nodding.
“What do you do?” he asks. “In Silver Ridge.”
“I’m training to be a warrior. I was in the top ranks of the training program in Sunrise Canyon—my old pack—but I had to start at the bottom again here and prove myself.”
“Why? Why didn’t your alpha give you some sort of… like a trial period or something?”
I pinch my lips together and look at my hands in my lap, fidgeting with the edge of my dark brown corduroy skirt. “I suppose it has something to do with my wolf,” I admit, meeting his eyes again.
“Your wolf?”
I nod. “She’s… smaller… than most other female wolves. That’s why I’ve worked so hard in training sessions since my first shift. I didn’t want to be judged by the size of my wolf alone. I wanted everyone to take me seriously and see that wolf size isn’t everything.”
“There’s nothing wrong with a small wolf,” he says. “A small wolf is agile and can hide easier or sneak through small spaces.”
“Yes, and Beta Dawson agrees. But I think Domi—Alpha Dominic also let his feelings get in the way. Even though he claims it was all just fun between us, that it wasn’t anything serious or ever going to be anything serious, I think he was trying to protect me, that he didn’t want to put me in danger by making me a warrior for the pack.”
“Hmph,” he grunts, his eyes darkening. “That’s stupid. A smart alpha would use every warrior available to them. We’re werewolves. Danger is part of our lives.”
“Like I said, it’s only a guess. He never said any of that to me, but I got the feeling those were his reasons, even without him ever confirming.” I shrug. “Maybe once he accepts that things are over between us, he’ll see he was being unreasonable.”
Claude approaches us from the kitchen, pushing out a cart with two covered dishes on top, and he gives me a polite nod. “Pardon my intrusion,” he says.
“It’s no trouble.” I wave his apology away. “You’re bringing us food. We can’t be angry about that, can we, Reid?”
“Not at all,” Reid agrees, laughing, the dark look in his eyes gone. “What do you have for us, Claude?”
“For you,” Claude says, lifting the lid from one dish and handing it to Reid. “Your favorite—the coq au vin.”
“Fantastique,” Reid says, rubbing his hands together in excitement.
“And for you, Mademoiselle Taryn, I have made the sole meunière,” he says, lifting the lid of the second dish and setting it in front of me.
The delightful scents of butter and lemon fill my lungs, and my mouth waters, ready to enjoy the delicious fish.
“This smells wonderful,” I say. “Thank you.”
“Enjoy,” he replies with a smile and another nod, wheeling the cart back into the kitchen.
I place my napkin in my lap, and across from me, Reid does the same. He picks up his knife and fork, both poised and ready to cut into his meal, but then he pauses, looking at me and waiting.
I’m very aware of him watching me as I cut into the flaky, fresh fish, inhaling again as all the scents mix and float into my nose, teasing me with the hint of how it will taste. I try to ignore his eyes on me as I take my first bite and chew, savoring all the flavors as they combine to create a symphony in my mouth.
“Good?” he asks, and all I can do is nod in response, still chewing the delicious fish. “Good,” he repeats with a laugh, diving into his own meal now that I’ve begun mine.
“You know, if you ever want a fresh set of eyes or some pointers on your fighting form, I would be happy to help,” he says as we eat. “Seb and I have been running the warrior training at Crescent Lake for over five years now, and not to toot my own horn or anything, but we’re pretty damn good at it.”
“Thank you,” I reply, wiping my mouth with my napkin. “I’ll… think about it. But I don’t want anyone from Silver Ridge to think I’m cheating or getting a leg up,” I add.
“Well, the offer is on the table. If you change your mind.”
He smiles at me, that same killer smile he gave the server earlier, and I return it without a thought. He may have a reputation as a player, and I can’t say I don’t see why females are so willing to crawl into his bed, but he’s also kind and funny and smarter than he lets on.
Someday—when he realizes he wants to settle down—he is going to make some lucky she-wolf very happy.
REIDOnce our date is over and I am back in the truck, I lean against the driver’s seat, my head tilted up to look at the ceiling.
“What the fuck do I do now?” I ask the air.
I hid my confusion, wrangled control of my wolf, and pushed both to the back of my mind for the remainder of the date so I didn’t look like a complete fool. I’d put on a mask of confidence and acted like my normal charming and flirty self so she wouldn’t be suspicious. But now that it was done—now that I’d paid the bill, we’d said our goodbyes, and parted ways—now it was time to face the truth.
She didn’t feel it. She didn’t feel the bond or scent me as her mate. I’m not sure why. I know she’s old enough—her profile said she’s twenty-two, and no one can feel the mate bond until both mates are twenty-one or older.
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?