Chapter 51: Stirring the Alpha's Ire

Aurora

We walked into the alpha’s office and found Max, the elders, and Wolfgang, who was seated at his desk.

He had pulled on some trousers, but was still shirtless. His amazing muscles flexed with his every movement.

I must have been looking for too long, 'cause when my eyes met his, I saw that he had a smirk plastered on his face.

I couldn’t help the blush that crept up my cheeks; I quickly turned away, only to be tackled in a big embrace.

“Rory! You’re back!” Max hugged me tightly, as if we hadn’t seen each other in ages instead of only a week.

“Just got back. Um, Max, you’re kinda crushing me here,” I said.

He laughed and loosened his grip to hold me at arm’s length.

“How’d it go? He didn’t harm you? Did he upset you in any way?” he started questioning, but we both turned at the sound of a deep growl.

Wolfgang was standing with his hands balled into fists as he glared at us, or to be more precise, at Max.

“I’m pretty sure my mate has nothing wrong to say about our trip together, Beta Barone. Now, I suggest you refrain from touching her,” he growled.

I couldn’t help but notice how Max and everyone else lowered their eyes as they felt the powerful alpha’s aura emanating from him. But somehow, I didn’t feel it.

I marched up to his desk and stood before him, glaring back. “What the fuck is wrong with you? Max was only welcoming me back, and worried about my well-being,” I growled.

“He had nothing to worry about. You were with me,” he snapped.

“All the more reason to be worried about me, then,” I snapped back. I regretted my words immediately as I saw a flash of hurt in his eyes.

The room fell into an awkward silence, then Remus cleared his throat.

“I believe we are here to discuss the matter of our missing pack members,” he said.

Wolfgang quickly masked his emotions and put his stoic face back on as he sat back down. “You’re right. There are more important matters.”

I couldn’t help but feel guilty as I withdrew myself from before his desk and went to stand in the back, leaning against a wall.

“Remus. Fill me in on everything. Where were our warriors and seekers last seen?” Wolfgang asked his gamma.

“They all were patrolling the boundaries of our land, sir,” he answered.

“Beta Barone, you were the alpha in charge while I was gone, did you have seekers sniff the area or identify the kidnapper?” he asked Max.

“Yes, alpha, but so far we haven’t picked up anything. We believe they have masked their scents with some witches’ brew,” he answered stiffly.

Wolfgang nodded, linking his fingers over the desk. “What do the other packs in the vicinity know so far?” he asked to no one in particular.

“They believe it could be vampires who are snatching our kind. They are all fiends, who carry no type of scent whatsoever,” Remus said.

Wolfgang nodded once more. “That’s true. Get intel to look deeper into the areas where our members were last seen. There must be something, anything to track them down.”

His eyes narrowed. “Also, notify the villagers that it is forbidden to roam the woods until further notice. We must avoid exposing ourselves as much as possible. Those patrolling will go in groups of five: three warriors and two seekers.”

His voice became a growl. “No one should walk into the forest alone, understood?”

Everyone bowed their heads as they all answered, “Yes, alpha.”

“You are all dismissed,” he said with a sigh, turning back to his papers. I was about to head out behind the elders when Aspen linked her arm with mine.

“You have so much to tell me,” she said. I rolled my eyes but stopped walking as Wolfgang called me back.

“Not you, Aurora. You stay,” he said, not lifting his gaze from the papers.

Everyone else filed out, Max last. The door closed and I turned to look at my egotistical mate.

“What is it now? If it’s about my outburst, you had it coming,” I said, exasperated. All I really wanted was a warm bath, a home-cooked meal, and to lie down on my bed.

“I’d like you to move back into the mansion. I’d feel more relaxed knowing that you’re here, where I can make sure you don’t go roaming around, getting yourself into unnecessary danger.”

I could feel a pounding begin at my temples.

“Thanks for the offer, alpha, but I am more than capable of taking care of myself, so I’ll refuse your offer,” I answered.

He suddenly raised out of his chair, his calm demeanor gone.

“Enough of this attitude. You’re my mate, like it or not, and right now we have this unidentified danger lurking around, threatening our kind. We don’t know who it is or what it’s capable of, and I want to make sure that nothing happens to you ever again!”

He shouted this all in a breathless rush. “I wouldn’t forgive myself if they hurt you ever again. I couldn’t live with myself knowing that I had failed to keep you safe once more.”

I was dumbfounded for a moment. My heart raced as my mind reproduced each of his words over and over again.

~“This is it, Aurora. This proves how sorry our mate is,”~ Rhea cooed in my mind.

She was right. It did seem like guilt was consuming him.

Still, it wasn’t Wolfgang who’d had to go through the torture that I’d had to go through.

“Once again, I thank you, alpha, but I can take care of myself. There is nothing to worry about. I will not roam the forest, and I’ll avoid using my shift until our enemy is captured,” I said.

“So if there is nothing more to discuss, I’ll be taking my leave.” I turned and headed out the door, leaving no room for further discussion.

I left the pack mansion and headed straight home. After all, I was only wearing an oversized shirt, with nothing else underneath.

I got home in less than five minutes, and marched straight to the bathroom to run a bath. My aching muscles needed it.

After all, I’d spent the last forty-some hours running in my wolf form.

Once I felt I had cleaned myself properly and thoroughly, I stepped out, then put on some snuggly pants and one of my dad’s large shirts.

I headed downstairs as a heavenly aroma invaded the air. It smelled so delicious that I forgot for a moment that I was completely alone at home.

I dashed straight to the kitchen, and almost lost my balance as I came to an abrupt stop.

None other than my mate was standing over my stove, stirring something.

“So much for being able to take care of yourself. Do you know how easy it was to pick the lock on your door and get in?” he asked with a smug look.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I asked him.

“Well, since you refused to come back to the mansion, I decided I’d come and live here with you,” he said.

I felt all the color drain from my face as Rhea did somersaults in my head, howling in excitement.

This could not be happening right now.