It had been 45 minutes, and Jasmine still hadn't replied to Alex's text. So instead of resting in his room, Alex came to Jasmine's place, in her room. Her room is warm and welcoming when he walks in and kicks off the uncomfortable shoes that make his feet smell weird. He sighs loudly and does exactly what Seth said to do, changing into some sweats. When he enters the bedroom, the bed is still unmade, and sitting on the dresser is Jasmine's cellphone. That would explain why she never answered, Alex thinks. The phone buzzes, and Alex wonders who could be texting her while she is at work. Curiosity gets the best of him, and he glances at the lock screen. Are we still up for tonight? I miss your face, and lunch isn't enough time to spend with you. Everything in Alex sinks to the floor, and his stomach feels like it has been punched repeatedly and multiple times. He recognized the name, Jace, and knew it was another one of the Alphas of the neighbor pack. Jasmine told him about her and J
Although he doesn't want to, Alex remembers their first meeting. He remembers Jasmine piling up money in a jar labeled "For Children's" that he didn't even want. He remembers being forced to go attend some meetings near Starlight Pack, although he had no prior clue to what the place looked like other than a crappy screenshot his mother had gotten off of G****e. He remembers walking down the beautiful forest in his wolf form, seeing the woman's face, and having his heart beat faster than ever before. The beautiful, scruffier-looking woman, with stubble coating the lower half of her face and her hair style up into a slick, had taken her hands in something and given him a polite smile; he remembers that smile. It sickeningly resembled something along the lines of "I don't want to-be-here or "Put me o-of-my-misery. The first meeting was the worst part. No one was leading up to it other than the words hello, as he e rememberedTheir packs had a bad history, but for Alex, it doesn't matter;
Once everyone's seated again, Ashly wipes her nose with the back of her hand and then takes a deep breath. "My heat is coming," she blurts. Alex whips his head up to look at her, eyes wide. Ashly looks right back with an apologetic look on her face, wishing she hadn't said that without telling her mate first. Jenny gasps, holding her hand to her heart. She gets up again so she can scurry to the other side of the table and hug her daughter, kissing her cheek. "Oh, Ashly, baby, it's ok, we are not pressuring you for pups; you guys can take your time," she exclaims, becoming the clearest voice among all of the others. "Did you still take your pills, love?" Brandon asks; he understands that maybe both Alex and Ashly need some time. Well, they married each other out of peace, not because of love. Ashly has lost count of the days already; she doesn't even know when she takes her pills. She's been too busy worrying about what Alex and Pack are doing; it's hard to keep track. "No, I think,
Ashly and Alex walk for five minutes in complete silence. Ashly doesn't even realize it when she walks them around the same area twice. "I have to rest already," Ashly sighs. The Alpha looks over at his unoccupied hand and notices that it's slipped underneath his jacket, pressed against his arm. Maybe he shouldn't be making Ashly walk this much. But he also wants Ashly to have some fun; maybe next time he will insist she change her wolf form so they can go into the forest. Speaking about wolves, Alex never saw his mate wolf. Only five minutes later, Ashly spots the Shadow Pack house and begins walking toward the driveway, dragging Alex behind her. Before they go in, Alex stops her and reaches up to wipe the tears off her rosy cheeks, warming her up in the process. Alex can see how Ashly is shivering because of the cold; he feels bad making her come out here with him when it's so cold. When they open the door and walk in together, the family is eating again. The married couple doesn
The two end up looking each other in the eye again. Alex now holds his mate's face with both his hands, and he leans in and kisses her again and again, making Ashly feel like she is in heaven. It gets even better when they separate and their faces are still only a few centimeters away, and Alex's gaze switches repeatedly from his mate's eyes to her lips and backs up again. "Let's take this slow, okay? We need to know each other better for now, as Ashly and Alex, not as Alpha and Omega," he admits. Ashly didn't say anything; she was not in the right state of mind to say anything. She still smiles until her dimples show, which makes her even more beautiful. - The next day, Alex holds Ashly's hand at the hospital. Or just say Ashly grabs her partner's hand in the middle of a checkup and digs her nails into his palm so hard that they bleed, but Alex doesn't care because he can heal in just a second. When they go back to the pack house, both Rose and Seth welcome them and ask them about
When everyone met up that night at the dining hall of the hotel for tea, Alex looked irritated, and Ashly made sure to steer clear of him. As Ashly was putting salad on her plate, giving the chips a sad, longing look, a sharp jab in her ribs made her jump and yell, nearly dropping her plate in the process. She turned to give the culprit an irritated glare and found herself face-to-face with a smirking Alex, but the smirk didn't hide the anger in his eyes. Ashly sighed in resignation. "What, Alex?" Ashly asked her Alpha, her voice full of annoyance, as she turned back to the buffet to continue filling her plate with healthy food. She tried to eat healthier because, when they were on the plane, she tended to eat a lot of crap. "You can't just call me a liar and then walk off, Ashly," Alex said angrily, poking Ashly's side harshly again, making her plate tip and a bunch of lettuce fall from her plate. Ashly half growled and half exhaled. "Fuck it," she muttered, moving over to the chip
The local club was humid and full of bodies of Alphas, Omegas, and Betas. Ashly could feel skin all around her as she moved in time to the beat, the crowd grinding on one another and not noticing the omega smell in their midst. Monika had wandered off to get a pint, chatting happily with some red-haired lass at the bar when Ashly had last looked over. Ashly took a long pull from her glass of juice before pressing the cold glass against her forehead in hopes of some kind of relief from the heat. She sighed when it didn't work and quickly put her hands to the bottom of her vest, tugging it up and off of her body to the sounds of catcalls and cheers from both men and women around her. She grinned, feeling buzzed and liquid from the five glasses of juice with a drop of alcohol mixed on them; she'd already downed in quick succession. When a fit man came up behind her and slid his hands to Ashly's hips, Ashly rolled her eyes and ground back against her, enjoying the feel of someone else's b
As Ashly expected, Monika and Rose were still waiting anxiously outside her door. One look at her furious and red lips, and they yelled in shock, both of them running up to his to check her face, and Rose shot worried looks at the room door until Ashly rolled her eyes. "I didn't kill him, Rose. Go check on him if you're worried; he's probably standing like an idiot," Ashly said sarcastically, and Rose rolled her eyes and smirked but quickly went into Ashly's room to check. "Can I use your shower?" Ashly asked Monika calmly, but even Ashly heard the simmering anger in her own voice. Monika nodded silently and led the way back to her room, where Monika handed Ashly a towel before leaving her alone in the shower. She slipped off her clothes and stepped into the shower, turning the water hot and taking a deep breath. Ashly stood and let the water drench her, her hair trailing down her neck and over her face in a curtain of straight brown that she didn't have the energy to push back. A st