Chapter 12: Left Unsaid

Chapter 12: Left Unsaid
Silas
I want to make her smile again. “I don’t know. You seem to know how to kiss pretty well.”
There is my sweet mate shying away, hiding her blush from my gaze. “Shut up; we have to get going.”
Her hair is over her shoulder, exposing the back of her neck, and it’s turning a lovely shade of red. There’s an innocence about her when it comes to her and me. It just makes me want to tease her more. Her reactions are so cute. I hope that never goes away.
“They are all ours. Thora is beautiful and powerful, the perfect Alpha female, and she’s only mine.” Bram was pining for his mate, and so was I. This whole day was a storm, and I just wanted to relax and spend time with her.
“I couldn’t agree more. I don’t mind walking behind her. Look at that ass and those legs. So perfect I want to sink my teeth into them.” It was a perfect view. She might find all her pants cut into shorts. I mean, we are werewolves. We didn’t get that cold. At least all lounge pants are cut into shorts or no pants!
“I want to mark our mate as soon as possible.” Bram was still excited from our run and make-out session. I was too.
“I do too, buddy, but I think we will need to work our way there. She’s never been touched, and as soon as we get her to let down her guard, something causes her to put it back up. We have time. We only found her today.” I will chisel away at that wall and cut all her pants into shorts.
“Our Mate is lonely. She has no family. No one is on her side.” There had to be at least one person, right?
“What do you mean?” She was the Alpha. She had her ceremony. She had to have supporters.
“That’s all I could get from Thora. Our connection is not that strong yet.” We won’t be fully connected until we mate and mark. Our mate-bond was like thin threads right now.
“Yeah, we will need to work on that. This just feels right to be by her side, but I don’t like going to the White Ridge pack. There are still some there that were complacent in what happened.” I believed in Sydney, but her pack not so much.
“I agree. We will need to watch our back and our mates back as well.” Syd said she had gotten mate proposals right before she came. They were just going after her for power.
We make it to my room, and Syd waste no time. Sydney goes in and grabs her bag. She didn’t unpack much, just a few toiletries, and she’s done.
“I’ll meet you downstairs in 13 minutes, or I’m leaving you here.” I could tell there was no slowing her down.
“You know you would miss me if you left me here.” I give her a wink, and she turns away, quickly hiding her face. I guess that’s a yes.
Sydney
I go down to the SUV and let Silas pack. We would have to come back later for the rest of his things. I get in the back seat. One of Gideon’s men is in the driver’s seat already. I guess he didn’t unpack much either. My head is a mess. All the different scenarios run through my head. I just hope no one was seriously injured.
I was so lost in my thoughts I didn’t even notice Silas and Gideon get in the SUV. We started moving and looking around, and Silas looked back at me. He had this look that just said, ‘are you OK?’ I didn’t know the answer to that question. I just turn and look out the window.
I feel a hand gently take mine; I look over at Silas. He leans over and whispers, “It’s going to be OK. I have your back now. I’ll always be by your side from now on.”
I feel tears well up and blink them back. I squeeze his hand back, and just mouth thank you. I know if I let out even the slightest sound, the flood gates will open. Silas didn’t do this for anyone else. This small kindness was just for me. I know I’ve been snappy with him, and he’s done nothing wrong I just can’t help being on guard. Maybe I can let him in. If I did, would I still feel this loneliness? I look back out the window at the pitch-black night—a bit of light from oncoming cars illuminating tress or the occasional fence post. I was so tired of this feeling.
Maybe I would always feel this lonely since mom is gone now. She was the only one who ever comforted me. I don’t remember my father ever comforting me. No, he pushed me harder even as a child. When I was seven, I remember he was teaching me basic boxing skills, and I hit the bag too hard and started crying. He said, “Betas, don’t cry. They keep fighting. Now hit it again.” Maybe that was his way of comforting me. When we got home, and my knuckles were black and blue, I let my tears flow, and she just held me and scolded my dad. Funny, it’s a happy memory now.
Could I have that again? A Family of my own? Was I even worthy of having my own family? Hell, was I even worthy of running my pack? Would everyone be doomed depending on me?
“The goddess chose us. She knew one day you would take over the pack. You were born to do this.” Thora was more confident than me.
“I don’t know what I am doing at all, and neither do you.” Thora needed to hear it. I wasn’t the only one ill-prepared.
“No, but mate does. The goddess gave us help in the form of our mate. We need to respect her gift.” I knew she was right, but I didn’t know if I was ready.
“The elders will try and make him the Alpha; you know that right.”
“It doesn’t matter. Our mate is not like those other wolves. We can trust him.”
“Remember what dad would say. Trust is earned, not given.” He was referring to new warriors, but I felt it applied.
“If you don’t accept him, you will weaken us and our position. An Alpha without their fated mate is weak, and their bloodline weakens too.” She wasn’t wrong. I had suspected that’s what happened with the Tarlo bloodline. It’s not that chosen mates are bad, but for an Alpha, it was usually for political power and greed, not love, two traits that poisoned the bloodline.
“I didn’t say I wouldn’t accept him.” I wouldn’t do that to my descendants.
“Not trusting him and the goddess is as good as rejecting him. We can’t do this alone. No true Alpha can. Remember what Gideon said.”
“Just give me time. I just met him today, for goddess sake! Why does everyone keep acting like I’m going to reject him?” I was so annoyed. I had so much on my plate even my wolf was questioning.
“Because you keep pushing him away. You’re right; you just met him, and you’ve already insulted him multiple times. I don’t want to lose my other half because you are being stubborn.”
“What did you want me to strip naked and lay down for him the moment we met? I am trying to help us learn how to run a pack so our people don’t die. I’m sorry I didn’t give up our virginity the second we found our mate. Cut me some slack. I didn’t stop him from coming. I want him here too. I just don’t want the damn elders pushing for him to replace me or being overlooked because he has all the answers. I want to run the pack the way the goddess intended with my fated mate. I just need time.”
“Time is not a luxury we have.”
The SUV slows, and we are soon in front of the White Ridge packhouse. Beta Luas is outside waiting for us along with the elders. This already extremely long day was going to get much worse.