Mated To The Wrong Alpha
Chapter 32

Ava spent most of her drive to work thinking about Arthur. His childhood explained a lot about him now as an adult. As Helen had pointed out, not having a stable home or a real pack while growing up, made him fiercely protective and loyal of what he had now. And his consideration of her as a new member of the pack made sense too. How many times had he experienced that awkwardness, moving somewhere new and trying to fit in? Then there was his speech about ‘moments of great disappointment’. She kept coming back to that, but it could have any number of meanings. At one time, she thought it might have referred to Marla, or it could be about his brother turning on him, but now she wondered if it was his mother leaving him behind, or possibly even his whole childhood.

The more she thought about it, the more she realized that Arthur was a very complex person, with one foot in the past—dealing with the ancient traditions and animal instincts of a male werewolf and pack Alpha—and the other in the future—trying to follow modern cultural norms and expectations. She imagined that the two extremes often fought for dominance inside him, requiring a great deal of self-control. On top of that, he had experienced more than his fair share of difficulties growing up, yet despite it all he was still one of the nicest men she’d ever met.

Did Arthur take after his mother or his father? Probably the former, if Helen and Carrie’s recollections of Carter were to be believed. The man reportedly had a nasty, uncontrolled temper and while Arthur had shown his anger on a few occasions, it seemed to be kept on a leash. Carter also had—how had they put it—a ‘roving-eye’. Had Arthur and Ryne been aware of that? And if so, had they followed the man’s example?

Her arrival downtown ended her train of thought. A quick glance at her watch showed she only had a few minutes to park the car and get to the Grey Goose for the start of her shift. Pulling into a parking spot, she moved to turn off the engine only to pause when she noticed a warning light was lit up on the dash. Darn! Supposedly a mechanic had checked the car over thoroughly, but something must have been missed. Well, she didn’t have time to worry about it now. After work, she’d stop by a garage she’d noticed the other day and get it checked out. Locking the car, she ran across the street and hurried into the restaurant.

When one o’clock finally rolled around, Ava breathed a sigh of relief; her shift had been a busy one. Taking off her apron, she hung it on her hook and grabbed her coat, thinking longingly of sitting somewhere quiet and putting her feet up. As she rounded the corner towards the door, the sight of a tall, sandy-haired man brought her up short.

“Seth!” Joyfully, she launched herself across the remaining few feet and jumped into the open arms of her childhood friend.

“Ava!” He spun her around and then kissed her cheek. “It’s so good to see you.” He smiled down at her, his hazel eyes warm and welcoming.

“Same here.” She slid down from his arms and stood gazing up at him with what she knew must be a ridiculously happy grin on her face. Impulsively, she gave him another bear hug. Behind her, someone cleared their throat and she suddenly remembered she was still in the restaurant, no doubt making a spectacle of herself.

Stepping back, she glanced over her shoulder and saw her boss frowning at her. “Sorry, Mr.

Mancini. This is an old friend of mine, Seth. I haven’t seen him in a while.”

Mr. Mancini raised one brow and her grin faltered. Apparently, her boss didn’t appreciate his employees hugging friends in the entryway. “Er… We’ll go somewhere else to talk.” Mr. Mancini folded his arms and nodded.

Ava grabbed Seth’s arm and led him outside. There was another restaurant down the road, where they could sit and talk. Turning to the left, she started to lead the way.

“Who was the grump?” Seth asked as he casually put an arm around her shoulders.

“Mr. Mancini? He’s my boss. Usually, he’s really nice. When I applied for the job, I didn’t think he’d hire me, but after he thought it over, he did. Since then, he’s helped me learn the ropes, given me good shifts, and generally been really great. I’m not sure what was wrong just now.” She considered the incident, then gave a shrug. “We were really busy today, so maybe he’s tired. I know I am.”

They arrived at the restaurant and sat down. Under the cover of the table, she slipped her shoes off and wiggled her toes, sighing in relief. Seth noticed and playfully reached down, grabbing her ankle. She gave a squeak and jerked her foot back while Seth grinned, looking entirely too pleased with himself. She couldn’t help but laugh. Gosh, but she’d missed him.

“So, how have you been?” Seth reached across the table and took her hand. His expression sobered. “Has that Alpha been treating you okay?”

“His name is Arthur,” she gently reminded. “And yes, he treats me very well.”

Seth looked disappointed. “Yeah, I supposed he would. Much as I’d like to hate the guy for taking you away, everything I’ve heard about him tells me he’s all right. I think a part of me wanted him to be a rotten thug so I’d have a reason to beat him up.” He shrugged and smiled sheepishly.

“Male ego, I guess.”

Thinking that Arthur would likely wipe the floor with the younger man, she made no comment. Instead, she turned the initial question back on him. “And how are you? And I mean really, not the politically correct ‘fine’ that people always give.” She studied his face carefully. The last time she’d seen him, he’d been bitter and angry, almost slinking away after Arthur had warned him off.

Silence stretched between them. Seth was staring intently at their entwined fingers, his thumb tenderly caressing the back of her hand. She waited, letting him gather his thoughts.

Finally, he looked up. “I’m all right. I spent the first few days in an angry funk and then another couple wandering around feeling sad and lost. But now I’m okay. I’ve actually been doing some thinking—”

The waitress arrived to take their orders, interrupting whatever Seth had been going to say. He chose a burger and fries while she picked the soup and salad luncheon special. As they placed their orders, Seth started searching in his pocket for something. When the waitress moved away from their table, he pulled out a crumpled piece of paper and held it up triumphantly for her to see. “Here, before I forget. Sarah sent her recipe for squash soup. She said you’d been talking about it.” He made a face. “Who calls to talk about soup?”

She laughed. “We do. I was telling her about Helen, one of the members of my new pack, and how she likes to cook. Sarah said that she was making squash soup when I called and then I said that Helen told me she’d never made it before and…” Catching the look on Seth’s face, she giggled and snatched the paper from his hand. “Never mind. Just tell Sarah thanks.”

“Sure.” Seth stared at her, a smile on his face. “You know, Ava, when you laugh like that you have to be one of the prettiest girls I’ve ever seen.” He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear with the ease of familiarity and let his fingers trail down her cheek before allowing his hand to return to the table top where he fiddled with the cutlery.

Feeling inexplicably uncomfortable with the gesture, she picked up her napkin and arranged it in her lap, keeping her eyes down. “Thanks, Seth. That was a nice thing to say.”

“No, it wasn’t a nice thing to say. It’s the truth. I’ve always thought you were pretty and when you laugh, your eyes get all sparkly. Plus, you’re sweet and always trying to see the positive side of things.”

She shifted in her chair, suddenly nervous. What was Seth getting at? He’d never gone around spouting her virtues like that before. Surely, he wasn’t still thinking that they—?

The arrival of their meal cut into her line of thought and they both waited silently for the waitress to place the food on the table.

Once the server was gone, she cleared her throat. She had a bad feeling that Seth was going to ask her to run away with him or some such thing and she wanted to head him off. “You know, Seth, I am bonded to Arthur.” “I know that. I—”

“And it wasn’t a normal bonding. It was part of a political alliance to keep peace between the packs and ensure that we all have enough territory to roam. It’s binding for life.”

“Right. That’s why—”

“And Arthur is an Alpha, so—”

This time, Seth interrupted her. “Ava, are you happy with Arthur?”

Was she happy? Two weeks ago, she’d thought her world was coming to an end but now… It didn’t take her long to come up with an answer. “Yes, Seth. I… I like him very much and I’m happy.” She reached out a hand in anticipation of comforting him but paused in surprise when she heard his response.

“Good. That takes a lot off my mind. As I was saying earlier, after you left, I did a lot of thinking and… Well…” He hesitated and then spoke in a rush. “After seeing you again today, I’ve come to realize that while I still love you, I think it’s more of a brother-sister kind of love. We’ve known each other all our lives and we drifted into a relationship but after you left, I found that I wasn’t as devastated as I thought I’d be.” Seth seemed to be apologetic and was holding his breath, waiting for her response.

She blinked. That wasn’t what she’d been expecting at all and yet it mirrored what she’d been coming to suspect. A self-deprecating laugh escaped her. Here she’d been thinking he wanted them to run away together and instead he was letting her down easy!

“So you’re basically ‘breaking up’ with me?” She smiled at him so he’d know she was teasing but even still, he squirmed looking uncomfortable.

“Yeah, I guess I am. Have I hurt your feelings?”

“No. I was coming to the same conclusion myself. We shared some great times but now we’ve grown up and moved beyond the ‘puppy love’ stage.”

Seth g*****d. “Puppy love? Oh, Ava that’s a really bad joke.”

“Well, what else would you call it? We were puppies and we thought we were in love.” She defended herself with mock indignation. This was what she’d always enjoyed about their relationship, the friendly camaraderie, the teasing and bad jokes. They grinned at each other then Seth’s stomach growled, sending them both into a fit of laughter again.

As they ate, they talked about old times and Seth questioned her further about her relationship with Arthur. Strangely enough, she found it helpful to talk to someone from outside her new pack. Helen, Carrie, and Julia saw Arthur not only as their Alpha but also as a much beloved friend. Seth had very few preconceived notions and she felt he’d be able to interpret things in an unbiased fashion. By the time they had finished eating, they’d reached the conclusion that she was definitely falling in love with her mate.

“After all,” Seth said as he walked her to her car. “What’s not to love about the man? He’s done everything he can to make you happy and except for sticking you with Marla, he hasn’t made a wrong move, has he?”

“No, and even Marla isn’t that bad anymore. I think Arthur and I will have a good future together. He seems to like me and maybe one day he’ll… Well, who knows?” She turned to look at Seth, placing her hands on his chest. “Thanks so much for listening to me ramble on about Arthur. It was really good to see you again.” She paused, realizing something. “You never did say why you were in town.”

“No, I guess I never did. I…” He shifted uncomfortably. “Don’t take this wrong—it’s nothing against your father, I swear—but I’m thinking of heading out and seeing a bit of the world, maybe even forming my own pack one day.”

“Really? Your own pack?”

“Yeah. I… I think I have it in me to be an Alpha or at least a Beta someday, though not for a few years to come. There’s this feeling that’s been growing in me for a while now, but I always ignored it because I knew, or at least I thought I knew, that my future was with you. Now that you’re gone, I’m starting to realize that I want more out of life and the chances of advancing in our pack are really limited. It’s too big, with too many other wolves in line.”

“But your own pack? You don’t have the money to buy land or even a house. What will you do?”

“I’ve heard rumours that there’s another wolf who also wants to strike out on his own. I’m in town to see him and maybe we can work a deal.”

Seth shrugged nonchalantly but there was an excitement about him that she hadn’t seen before, as if he couldn’t wait to start a grand new adventure.

She stared at him then reached up and brushed his sandy brown hair from his eyes. “I hope it works out for you, Seth.” Standing on tiptoe, she pressed a gentle k**s to his lips then took a step back. The boy she’d known was turning into a man and she was proud of him.

“Thanks. If this meeting goes the way I hope, I’ll be on my way before the week is out. There are a few things I have to wrap up and naturally I won’t leave the pack without saying goodbye to everyone. And of course I have to explain to your father.” He made a face and she laughed.

“Good luck with that.”

“Yeah.” He rubbed the back of his neck likely anticipating the awkward exchange. “Listen, if I’m heading back this way, could we meet again?”

“Sure. I’d really like that.”

Seth gave her a quick hug before opening the car door for her. “Okay, I’ll give you a call in a day or two.”

“Great. I’ll be waiting.” She started the car and pulled away. As she left, she rolled down her window and waved.

“Bye, Ava. Take care. Love ya!” Seth called after her.

“I love you, too!”