Her Alpha Mate 51

Freya:

I ran after Betty as fast as I could, dodging pack members. When I was a few feet away, I called her name and she stopped. She turned and waited for me to catch up.

"Hey Betty, I don't think we've met. I'm Freya," I gasped lightly and reached out to shake her hand.

She took it hesitantly and gave me a small smile, "Luna?"

I smiled and nodded at her, "Do you want me to help you with the bags?"

She shook her head, "It's okay. They're not that heavy."

As we started walking again, I took note of our surroundings, "You live in Sector 1? "

"Yes."

"Near Chance?" I asked, trying to steer the conversation in that direction. Although I wasn't exactly subtle about it.

"Luna, look. I don't want to burst your bubble, but not everyone has a life as happy as yours," she snapped at me. My eyes widened at her hostile tone, and my wolf rose with a growl at the disrespect.

'Calm down. Let her speak. Remember that she's Chance's mate.' I told Aurora.

'She doesn't deserve Gamma.'

'We don't know her side of the story. Don't jump to conclusions.'

My wolf growled more softly this time and slowly sat back down.

Betty wasn't finished, though: "Not all of us have the privilege of being the adored daughter of an Alpha, or of being blessed by the Moon Goddess."

I ignored the rest of what she said and studied her body language. She was worried about something. Her fingers trembled as she played with the ends of her t-shirt. The look of pure confidence on her face didn't match the rest of her body language at all. It was as if she was forcing herself to say these things. But her eyes gave it all away. After all, the eyes were the windows to the soul.

She was broken. Somehow. At some point.

I guess she noticed me staring at her, because she swallowed hard and quickly walked away.

"Luna, why were you talking to her?"

I turned around and saw one of the pack members staring at Betty's back.

I frowned at him. "Is something wrong?"

"You don't know her, Luna. She's known as the pack bitch."

My mouth dropped open in shock, "Excuse me?"

The pack member looked slightly nervous at my reaction, "Uh yeah. She's sleeping around."

My chest suddenly burned with anger, "Do you've any proof of that?"

"I..." he stuttered, noticing my stiff expression.

"Freya!"

A pair of hands gently clasped my waist, and I felt Zack's warm breath on my neck.

"Calm down," he whispered, stroking my arms soothingly. I let out a sigh and watched as the pack member scurried away.

"What happened?" he asked softly, "I felt the anger about the bond and ran over to see what happened. Did he say anything?"

I turned in his arms and looked him in the eye, "Tell me. Did you know that your pack members call her the pack bitch?"

"The what?" Zack's face was as dumbfounded as mine.

I shook my head with a grim expression, "That's what he said. I suppose they don't say things like that around you."

"I-like-what? I've never heard anyone use that term before. Especially not to Betty," he said softly, as if still processing everything.

I nibbled on the inside of my lip, "Has Betty always been this closed off?"

Zack shook his head and looked back, stunned, "Not that closed off. That changed when her parents and brother died in the rogue attack. After they died, she asked me if she could become a tracker abroad, and I let her go."

At his words, my heart broke.

Betty had no one.

She must've felt she didn't deserve anyone. That's why she left Chance.

"What's on your mind?" asked Zack, burying his nose in my hair and kissing me warmly on the cheek.

I explained everything I'd observed, and his face turned into one of confusion, "Chance would never abandon Betty. He already has feelings for her."

"But she doesn't know that," I said.

He scratched his stubble, "True. Then how are we supposed to get them together?"

I pursed my lips and ran my fingers along the neckline of his hoodie, "I'll figure something out."






***






"How about this? Are you a keyboard player? Cause you're just my type."

I stifled a snort and tried not to laugh as Chance continued to randomly spout pick-up lines.

He'd decided to try to approach Betty again, but this time he'd use pick-up lines instead of flowers.

I wasn't quite sure if that would work, but at least Betty would know that Chance wasn't going to give up on her.

"Chance, you need a pick-up line that will make her drop her panties immediately," Peter said, "Take it from me."

Pearl snorted, "Is that why my underwear stayed up after your pickup line?"

Peter kissed her on the cheek, "You're an exception to all my rules, babe."

Chance moaned, "I don't want her to drop her underwear. I just want her to like me.
The panty dropping can come later, when she's comfortable around me."

I moaned softly at his words.

He was too cute.

"You know, a guy once said this cute pickup line to me," Pearl said, turning to Chance. "It was, 'Roses are red and violets are blue, there's nothing in the world more beautiful than you.'"

Peter growled, "Where is that wolf now?"

Pearl rolled her eyes and kissed him on the cheek, "Far away from my jealous little mate."

Peter snorted and pulled her onto his lap,
"He'd better be. And I am not little."

I noticed Chance eyeing Peter and Pearl with a longing look, and patted him on the back, "Just be yourself, Chance. She'll like you just the way you are. It's impossible not to."

"I hope so," he sighed, staring down at his second bouquet. I prayed to the Moon Goddess that Betty would be more accepting this time.

I looked around the kitchen and snapped my fingers, "Why don't you take her some cookies?"

His head lifted, "Do you think she'll like them?"

"Absolutely. Here. I'll wrap them up for you."







***






Chance:

With a nervous smile on my face, I stepped out of the house.

Hopefully this would work out. I mean, Freya even wrapped the biscuit jar with a little bow.

As I walked toward Betty's house, I felt my heart pounding in my chest.

Would she like the flowers? Was she allergic to cookies? Why didn't I check her chart before doing all this? What if she was allergic to flowers? She could be having an allergic reaction.

My wolf rolled his eyes at my train of thought and sat down proudly. 'Mate will accept us. Mate is scared, that's all. Do not be afraid to talk to your mate. Have some courage.'

Obviously, my wolf was suitable as a motivational speaker.

I stood outside her door, took a deep breath, and tried not to panic.

With a shaky hand, I reached over and knocked softly on her door. But to my surprise, it opened slowly and creakily.

Why had she left the door unlocked?

I entered slowly and looked around for signs of her presence.

An empty plate was on the coffee table in front of the couch. I frowned and felt the wrinkled spot on the couch. It was still warm, so she must have just gotten up.
I made my way down the hall and called her name, "Betty?"

There was a strange noise behind one of the doors, and I slowly approached her.
It sounded like someone was choking.
It felt like someone punched me in the stomach. Swallowing hard, I reached for the doorknob and turned it.

At the sight of it, I felt my heart drop into the pit of my stomach and a sudden pain filled my chest. My wolf whimpered at the sight of his mate.

Betty stood frozen in front of the toilet with her fingers half in her mouth. She did not look at me, but she knew I was there.

My vision suddenly became foggy because I could not stand the sight in front of me. If it was possible for my heart to break even more, this was it right now.

"Betty?"