Warring Twin Wolves

Chapter Fourteen

Gabby’s POV:

          I was feeling good.  We had gotten through dinner, and we got to the hall, my dad made a speech to the pack, and then it was time for a toast.  I know I volunteered to do it when I was told he turned down the invitation to toast the couple, but I was planning to insist on giving them my own toast anyway.  The hall was decorated beautifully.  Twinkly lights in all the potted trees that line the walls and a big banner reading ‘Congratulations Cooper and Jaycie’ hung over the table where the couple would be sitting, if they so choose.   The lights were dimmed with some kind of filter that made the lights turn everything into shades of blue.  It looked magical.  

          A pang of sadness made its way into my heart.  I could not help but wonder what my own party with my new mate would look like.  I immediately shook my head a little to quickly dispel that thought from my head.  I will not wallow or let myself sink into despair.  This will make me stronger.  I am out of my comfort zone by acting a bit more extraverted.  It turns out it takes a lot of energy to be outgoing.  At least I will be exhausted tonight. 

          Tessa was next to me talking animatedly.  Is she talking to me?  I looked over, and saw she was speaking to another one of our friends.  Whew.  I have been lost in my thoughts, and I need to snap out of it.  Gamma Gregory came over to say hi, so I concentrated on carrying on a conversation with him, and I saw care and concern for me in his eyes.  I’m just glad he hasn’t been avoiding me since the party because of that embarrassing moment when we danced.  Oh yeah, a moment I have forgotten because I promised to forget.  Oops.

          Gregory let me know that he hadn’t found his mate.  I think he was trying to hint for us to get together, but I told him his mate would not appreciate that.  I told him he would find her, and be happy.  Why I’m lying like that, I don’t know.  I don’t know what’s going to happen.  Who am I to encourage someone to wait for their fated mate?  Look how that worked out for me.  Also, I won’t let myself even to entertain the notion because there’s always a possibility his true mate will show up, the mate bond would take any happiness we had away, and I could not survive that again.    

          I remembered what happened the last time Gregory and I were mingling at a party, and scanned the room where I saw Danny being claimed by one of the pack’s, um, social young ladies, Jackie.  That is the nicest way to put it.  She was accompanied by her minions all wanting to attract his attention as well.  I can’t believe how shameless they are, trying to bag him while in my presence in my pack.   My not accepting his rejection means the bond is still in effect, and keeps growing every time we are near each other, so I’ll admit, I was jealous.  I might have called her a name in my mind, and imagined some bad things happening to them in my mind.  Blame the mate bond.  I also noticed that he was trying to rebuff their advances.  I am not comfortable with the satisfaction I felt.  I am above this crap.  

          It was announced that it was time for the toast.  So I went up and started confidently, “When we were little, the fact we are twins was mentioned to us.  I remember that we looked at each other, and we both started crying”.  They were laughing as I continued to regale them of a childhood memory of Cooper and I being boy/girl twins.  We both liked being twins but I wanted him to be a girl, and he wanted me to be a boy.  So I continued the story, “When our parents asked us each separately why we cried, I answered with, ‘But he’s a boy!’ and Cooper yelled out, ‘But she’s a girl!’”.  I turned serious, and looked for a certain pair of eyes.  I found them as I was in the middle of my statement, “We didn’t understand then what a beautiful gift we had been given”.  Danny looked like he was thinking of bolting, while eyeing the exits.  He stood still, and I saw something flicker in his eyes, maybe regret, or self pity, I’m not sure. 

           I averted my gaze back to Cooper and his new mate, and I started to tear up as I thought about how happy I was that they had found each other.  I congratulated the couple and raised my glass to them, followed by everyone else mimicking my action towards them.  Everyone was grinning, and started to converge on the couple to give them personal congrats.  I got out of the way because I was just about done with being around so many people.  My introvert inside was screaming to hole up somewhere, but I would have to fight her and not run away.  I cannot let my fear conquer me.

          I realized how late it was getting, and I was just filled with dread.  My father said something to his beta, Beta Wyatt, who started to gather Danny’s parents, and Danny.  My father mindlinked me, ‘How are you doing sweet girl?  Are you okay to attend the meeting?’.  I really did not want to go, but I refused to back down and let this whole situation beat me.  ‘Don’t worry, Dad.  I’m right behind you.  Lead the way’.  I looked back at him, and he nodded at me, letting me know he supports me.  

          Every footstep I took, I was trying to decide exactly how I was going to handle things.  I will not cry.  I will calmly accept his rejection, and then shake hands, leave and then cry myself to sleep all by myself.  My mother asked me this morning what outcome I wanted from this meeting.  I wasn’t sure.  I didn’t want any of this.  

          It’s funny, we are told our whole childhood and adolescence about how we will come to meet the other half of ourselves, and become whole.  That our mates would never want to hurt us (yeah, right).  We were never told what would happen if we never found our mate or were rejected.  It didn’t seem like there were other possibilities.  I think little pups should hear the whole story; not just the good parts.  The mate bond is indeed strong.  When a mate dies, the other feels the bond snap and experiences horrific pain.  I guess that might convince some pups to never find their mates, but I think we should have been given full disclosure.  Just so I wasn’t such a stupid, pie-eyed, unsuspecting little girl whose whole world crumbled just because the boy she was supposed to spend forever with.

          I was almost to my Dad’s office when an arm shot out and pulled me in.  I pushed away from whomever it was, and got into a defensive stance.  As my eyes focused on the body in the hallway, I relaxed, “Tessa, what are you doing?”.  She was wringing her hands, “I just wanted to talk to you before you go in and make sure you’re okay”.  She looked up at me with curiosity and worry, so I assured her, “I am fine.  I promise”.  She nodded her head and looked down with a furrowed brow, like she wasn’t sure I was telling the truth and looked back up at me, “Fine.  I will be waiting for you in your room”.  I knew I could tell her I didn’t need to give her a post meeting blow by blow. 

          She went into my room while I turned towards my father’s office.  I walked in and was greeted with the sight of my parents, Danny, and his parents.  All eyes were on me.  I entered the office and closed the door while taking a deep breath.  This is going to be intense.