ALPHA DARREN'S OMEGA MATE

New home

AMELIA

Once Annabelle and I were in the SUV with Beta Michael's men, I finally allowed myself to breathe. We were safe now. I may not know these men personally, but if Bella trusted them to come and get us, then I knew we would be safe.

Annabelle and I had eaten and changed clothes before we left, so we would need to take a nap soon. One of the warriors, Jake, was driving while Gamma James sat in the front next to him. Johnson, Peter, and Paul were sitting in a row in front of Annabelle and me.

The closer we got to our new home, the more I seemed to calm down. I couldn't wait to see Bella, and I couldn't wait to not feel alone anymore. I was pulled from my thoughts by Annabelle gently shaking my shoulder as she stirred from her sleep. I checked the time and realized we had been on the road for an hour already.

“Amelia, there’s a diner about five minutes up the road. Would you like to stop for something to eat?” Gamma James called from the front of the SUV.

Honestly, I didn't want to stop; I just wanted to get to Bella. But Annabelle was awake now, and she was hungry, as was I. We needed to take a quick break from the car.

“That would be great, thank you, Gamma James,” I replied politely.

“Just James is fine. We’re family now, and there’s no need for formality outside of pack business,” he said, flashing me a warm smile through the rearview mirror. I nodded in agreement.

Hearing him say we were family before we even knew each other meant a lot to me. Bella had told me many times that everyone was family there, and I think I was starting to understand what she meant.

I began to stir from my sleep to the sound of Paul’s voice gently flowing through the car.

“Amelia, we will be arriving soon on our pack lands in just a few minutes,” James said.

I slowly sat up, leaning over Annabelle’s shoulder to check on her, but she wasn’t next to me.

“What the f**k?” I shouted, louder than I probably needed to, instantly panicking.

“She’s fine, Amelia. She’s right here with me—look.”

I turned to the other side of the car seat, and there was Annabelle giggling beside Gamma James.

A wave of relief washed over me.

“I’m fine, sister. Don’t worry! I woke up twenty minutes ago. I was bored here, so James saw that since you needed sleep and was just telling me his old stories from when he was growing up,” Annabelle said, still giggling a little.

I could tell James already had a soft spot for Bella—not that it's surprising. That girl has everyone she meets wrapped around her little finger in seconds, including me. And she's just seventeen, but has a baby face that captures everyone's attention.

“Annabelle,” he said, turning to her. “Oh, Noah is going to love you.”

“Who is Noah?” Annabelle asked James.

“Oh, he is my mate. You’ll meet him when we arrive, and I know Miss Anna here is going to melt his heart the minute he lays eyes on her baby face,” James said, looking at Annabelle gently.

“Wait, your mate is a male? I’ve never met any same-gender mates before; that’s cool,” I said, giving him a genuine smile that I had managed to hold all day.

“Weren’t there any same-gender mates in your pack?” James asked kindly, not wanting to upset us.

“No, not that I knew of anyway, but I can’t wait to meet Noah,” I replied to James.

His beaming smile returned as John announced our arrival from the front of the SUV.

Talking to James kept me distracted for a moment, allowing me to forget the gravity of the situation. But as soon as John announced our arrival, I instantly tensed up.

I couldn't wait to see Bella, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't scared. This was a new pack, a new life, and I didn’t have a clue what I was doing.

James stepped out of the SUV, and as soon as I did, Annabelle followed. I kept my head down, looking at the floor as we made our way around the SUV toward the pack house entrance.

I looked up, expecting to meet Bella’s face, but instead, I found the most beautiful green eyes staring back at me. For a moment, I got lost in those eyes until things grew awkward, and I forced myself to look away.

Then my wolf said the one thing I didn’t want to hear ever again in my life.

"Mate."

"No, girl, don’t get excited. The minute I get a chance with him, I’m going to reject him," I told my wolf, Nancy.

"Don't you dare!" she growled at me.

"Don’t say I didn’t warn you," I replied, and she moved to the back of my mind, whining.

But then, finally, there she was—my beautiful sister—standing in the arms of a very large man whom I could only assume was Beta Michael.

It felt like we’d been looking at each other for hours, but I knew it was only seconds. As if on cue, we all ran to each other, and I slowly felt myself crumbling. All the tears I had held back, all the pain I felt, screamed through my veins. The realization that we were not alone anymore was all too much.

As Annabella wrapped her arms around us, for the first time since my mother woke me up, I finally felt safe and relaxed. That realization encouraged the tears I had been holding back to surface and spill uncontrollably down my face.

Annabella tightened her hold on us, one of her arms wrapped around my back while her other hand rested on Annabelle.

After a few minutes of just holding each other, Bella released us and placed gentle kisses on both mine and Anna’s heads.

"I’m so glad you’re safe, both of you. I always knew we were a strong family, but getting you and Anna out of there… well, I’m incredibly proud of you two. I know Mother, Father, and Mrs. Meyer would be too," she said, trying to hold back her tears as she spoke to us, but I could see she was struggling.

"Amelia, I’m Beta Michael, but please call me Michael. I’m so glad you’re both here with us! I hope our men looked after you?" he said, moving closer as he spoke to me.

I expected him to maybe shake my hand, but instead, he pulled me and Anna into a gentle hug. I would have thought it would feel awkward, but it didn’t. It felt safe and reassured me that everything was going to be fine.

"It’s lovely to finally meet you, Beta… I mean, Michael. Thank you for sending your men for us and for taking us in. Are you sure this is okay? I don’t want to cause any problems. I know I’m only eighteen, but I’m happy to take Anna and raise her if it’s going to cause any trouble for you. Your men have been amazing with us since the moment they arrived at the motel," I assured him.

Because I was being honest.

"Amelia, we are family. And me, Annabella, and every member of this pack are more than happy to have you here with us. From what Annabella has told me about you, and the strength you’ve shown in the last twenty-four hours, I have no doubt that you would be more than capable of raising Anna on your own, eighteen or not. Right, Alpha?"

Hahaha.

“Come on, baby girls, let’s get you both inside and settled,” Noah said, wrapping his arms around Annabelle and me as he started leading us up the steps. Bella soon joined him, reaching the other side of me.

As we made our way inside the house, I couldn’t help but notice that Beta Michael and the guy I made eye contact with earlier—my mate—seemed to be mind-linking each other, both looking pretty tense. It was none of my business, so I chose to ignore it and continued following Noah and Bella as they led me up the stairs.

“Michael, I’m going to take Amelia and Annabelle to see their room,” Bella shouted at her mate, Michael.

“Okay, baby. I just need to check something with Darren quickly, and I’ll be with you,” Michael replied, and they exchanged a loving smile.