Filed to story: The Alpha’s Pen Pal Book
I clench my jaw and nod, biting back my remark. I haven’t decided how I’m going to tell Reid. Or when I’m going to tell him. I know I will have to, but the uncertainty of his reaction sets both my wolf and me on edge. We want our mate, but we also have a pup to think of, to protect.
I blow out a breath through my teeth. “And how long before other wolves will scent the pup or hear its heartbeat?”
“Not until around your second trimester—twelve or thirteen weeks. Your mate may sense it sooner, though.”
“But none of this information will be told to him, correct? Doctor-patient confidentiality and all that?”
She nods. “Of course. He’ll only know when you tell him.”
My shoulders sag in relief. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I don’t have any other questions right now,” I say. “I’ll look over the pamphlets and let you or Dr. Russo know if any come up after I read them.”
“Yes. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you need anything. We’re here to help you in whatever way we can.”
“Thank you,” I repeat.
She hands me the clipboard and I sign the paperwork where she indicates. Then I’m walking out of the room and across the frozen, snowy grounds to the packhouse, where Luna Haven waits for me.
“Hey,” she says as I approach the front door. Her arms wrap around me, and I return the embrace with one arm. “How are you?” she asks as she pulls back.
“Tired,” I tell her.
“Me too,” she admits, leading me inside. “Wesley and I got a few hours of rest just after sunrise, but with this storm about to break, we needed to be up and at it again as soon as possible.”
“Hopefully it’s not a long one.”
“The outlook isn’t good,” she says, shaking her head. “But you don’t need to worry about that. We’re taking care of it. Here”—she reaches for my bag—“let me show you to the suite you’ll be staying in.”
“Actually,” I say, clutching the bag to my chest. “I was hoping to speak with Alpha Wesley? I have a question for him. If that’s all right. If he’s not too busy.”
She blinks at me and then nods, changing direction. “Of course. He’s just double-checking the list of names Beta Dawson gave him against the list of verified Silver Ridge pack members in the registry. I’m sure he’ll be fine with a brief interruption.”
She raps on a door, and we wait for a second before it’s flung open, and Alpha Wesley stands there, staring at Haven, exhaustion lining his face.
“Oh, Sugar Plum, why didn’t you just—” He glances at me and presses his lips together, then starts over. “What can I do for you, Taryn?”
“I want to become a Crescent Lake pack member.”
His eyes widen and he steps back from the doorway to let me enter. I walk in, Haven follows, and he closes the door behind us as I sit in a chair across from his desk. I catch the lingering scent of snickerdoodles and Christmas trees, and I close my eyes and breathe it in deeper, letting it soothe my nerves.
My wolf sighs, and some of the tension releases from my body. It’s not enough, though. The subtle hint of Reid’s scent isn’t the same as him being present and next to me. The bond tugs at me, urging me to find him and stay with him.
“So you want to become a Crescent Lake member?” Wesley asks.
I open my eyes, yanked from my reverie. He leans back against his desk as Haven walks behind it, his arms crossed. His commanding form and aura dominate the room, even with him dressed so casually in jeans and a T-shirt. But it’s a comforting dominance, a protective dominance. I am safe in his presence. He is someone to be trusted.
“I do,” I confirm.
“Have you talked to Reid about this?” he asks. “Not to ask permission from him, I just mean—“
“I know what you mean, and no, I haven’t. I haven’t talked to him since he left the hospital a few hours ago.” Wesley nods, and Haven comes back around the desk, carrying a slim wooden box with the Crescent Lake crest stamped on it. “I was hoping maybe my Aunt Gigi could join the pack, too?”
“I can’t force her to join.”
“No, I know. I just want to tell her I am joining, and see if she wants to join, too.”
He nods again. “I’ll go bring her in here,” Haven says, setting the box on the desk. “I just saw her chatting with Cookie in the kitchens.”
She leaves the room and Alpha Wesley and I sit there in silence while we wait for her to return. I glance around his office, taking in the large picture windows overlooking the whole of their pack lands and the rustic interior design with a fur rug beneath his desk. Photographs of Haven dancing and of the two of them over the years hang on the walls and sit on the shelves behind his desk, and two wrinkled and faded wallet-sized pictures of them as elementary-aged kids are tucked into the edge of a framed photo of the two of them at the beach.
A smile tugs at my lips, seeing the proof of their story laid out in Wesley’s office.
“Normally, we’d have a big, over-the-top ceremony to welcome you to the pack since you’re a ranked member’s mate,” Wesley says, drawing my eyes back to him.
“Well, I’m not sure what—I mean, we can always—” I clear my throat and shake my head as the door opens again, and Haven and my Aunt Gigi enter the office. “I want to join now. I can’t stay a Silver Ridge member any longer.”
“Why?” Wesley asks.
“Because Dominic commanded me to leave the reception last night against my will, and he almost alpha commanded me to be his luna, but the rogues crashed his car before he could finish.”
Wesley inhales, his nostrils flaring and his eyes flashing.
Haven’s head snaps towards me, her hands clenching into fists. “That is… That is not what my…” Her blue eyes darken and I swear she almost growls. Wesley pulls her in front of him and wraps his arms around her shoulders, burying his nose in her hair. She closes her eyes and grabs his arms with her hands. “That is not how a lycan alpha is supposed to behave,” she says, shaking her head, her voice low.
“No, it’s not,” I agree. “Which is why I can’t be a member of his pack anymore. I have to protect myself.” I swallow, steeling myself to tell them my secret. “I have to protect my pup,” I add, placing my hand over my stomach.
Their eyes widen, and Haven moves her hand to her heart. “Dominic’s?” she asks.
“Yes,” I reply. “That is why I have to leave Silver Ridge. I have to protect my family. I know it’s not ideal, and I understand if you say no since an alpha-blooded pup who is the potential heir of another pack could cause problems for you down the line. But it didn’t seem right for me to ask you to let me join without you getting all the information.”
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?