Two Mated Alphas

I’m Fine

Mason’s POV

I woke up early the next day and it felt like my veins were full of lead. I felt uneasy after witnessing James and that Alpha, and my chest gripped with pain when she looked at me with sadness and told me to go away.

She looked so sad and defeated, something I’ve never seen in her before. I couldn’t move from that spot outside her door. It was about a minute after she closed the door that I started to walk to my room. After I took my first step was when I heard it: her sobbing.

My heart wrenched as I kept walking, knowing she did not want anyone around. James never cried, at least not in public, and hardly even in front of those closest to her. Forcing one foot in front of the other, I walked down the hall towards my room, the sounds of her crying echoing in my mind.

James has only let me see her cry twice. The first was when her mother died, and then when we decided to end our relationship.

When her mother died, her sisters were sobbing during the entire funeral while James remained stoic. She stood by her father’s side the entire time, not even breaking her composure when her sisters clung to her. She wrapped them in her arms and looked forward. I stood behind her, on edge waiting for her to crumble. Even when the howls of the pack filled the night sky as her mother’s body was burned to be reunited with our ancestors, James didn’t shed a tear when even her father did. She remained composed until the moment we were behind closed doors later that evening.

When the door closed behind us, she threw herself into my arms and sobbed for hours. She raged and cursed, and tears fell down her beautiful cheeks in angry streams. I held her close while she showed to me her vulnerable side: the young woman who loved her mother more than anything, and grieved deeply losing her too soon. The pain washed over her in wave after wave, until she finally exhausted her body. She fell asleep in my arms, gently hiccuping in her sleep.

The next time I saw James cry was when we faced the reality we weren’t mates and decided to end our relationship. It was a little over a year after losing her mother. We were in her mothers garden and I could tell immediately that something had shifted. She didn’t glow when she smiled, and her doe eyes were filled with sadness.

“We’re not mates” she whispered sadly, taking my hands in hers “and it’s not fair to keep pretending we are”

“James..” I started to protest, but her eyes cut up to look into mine. In them I saw tears, and a lone tear trickled down her cheek. In my gut I knew she was right. But I loved her so much I didn’t want to face the truth.

Those were the only times I’ve ever known James to even cry. Remembering those moments and hearing her pain now sat like a rock in my stomach.

I shook my head and decided I needed to clear my head. Sparring would have been perfect, but I’d have to settle for the weight room at this hotel.

I got out of bed and slipped on gym shorts and a t-shirt and my shoes. I then made my way down to the weight room. I needed to lift something and get rid of this agitated feeling. Unsurprisingly, Wren was already in the hotel weight room.

“Morning” he said while doing some push-ups.

“Hey” I said shortly, reaching for a set of hand weights.

“Someone’s having a rough day already” Wren said with a slight smirk as I began furiously pumping the weights.

“Shut up, asshole” I muttered. Wren was my best friend and could read me like a book. He knew what I was thinking, half of the time even before me.

He sat back and looked at me for a long time, studying every inch of my face. He inhaled and said “Look, I kind of get it. If I’d been through all the s**t you’ve been through, and I saw what happened last night after the Alpha meeting, I wouldn’t be doing so good”

I cringed at the mention of what happened after the Alpha meeting. Wren seemed to notice. He didn’t know what I saw at the elevators, or what I heard from James’ room.

“I’m fine man” I reassured him “James and I have been over for a long time. She is our Alpha and I’m behind her no matter what. I just can’t begin to imagine what she’s feeling, being mated to another Alpha. You know how she feels about her birthright.”

Wren pursed his lips and nodded his head.

“Yeah, this can’t be easy for her”

I looked at Wren and contemplated telling him what happened last night.

As her Beta, he should know. Our Alpha is struggling and we’re her support system.

I decided against it because I knew James didn’t want to be seen as weak by crying. Plus, I’m fairly confident Wren already has an idea of how last night went.

I took a deep breath.

“I don’t like the guy, but the fact is, he is her mate. But she has made it clear for years she will reject him. And we have to stand by her, whatever decision she makes. She’s our Alpha”

Wren looked at me long and hard and shook his head in agreement. He knew the unwavering loyalty I felt towards James. He felt it too. We were her Beta and Gamma and she was our Alpha. We would give our lives for her. But he also had a front row seat to our relationship and our breakup. Always the serious and silent type, Wren quietly supported us through both.

He took another deep breath “You know she can’t reject him though. We need our mates to be at our strongest. I know that it’s not ideal…. I don’t like him. But he is her mate and we have to get her to see that” he paused, reading my expression “He is her mate” he reiterated.

I nodded. It still didn’t change the fact that it hurt. A dull, aching pain. I guess I always thought, and hoped, that she and I would just never find our mates since we weren’t each other’s. Wren could sense that I had used that rationale to cope with the pain. He nodded once more and continued his workout. We finished our morning workout in silence, as well as our elevator ride up to the 14th floor.

I made my way to my hotel room and showered and dressed for the day. I threw on jeans and a long sleeve tee, and combed my long blonde hair, pulling it back into a ponytail. I figured our pack would be meeting for breakfast soon and decided to take the stairs down to the hotel restaurant.

As I walked into the restaurant, I immediately noticed James. She was radiant. She was wearing jeans and a baggy sweater, her hair falling recklessly around her face. She carried herself with grace and confidence. She was laughing with her sister while eating a piece of bacon. Her dark chocolate eyes were shining with joy. She was truly stunning.

Something had changed between the last time I saw her and now. My mind immediately flashed to what I saw in the elevator, and it started running off with images of her. Remembering what it was like to kiss her and love her. My stomach twisted.

I gulped and shook the thoughts from my mind, burying the emotions that bubbled up from deep within. I knew, for an absolute FACT now, that she was not my mate and she had found hers. I couldn’t think about her this way anymore, even in my own head. I would always love her, but now it is different. It has to be.

But, it was nice to see her so happy and carefree. For a while now, she was always so serious and brooding. All about work. The James I grew up with was serious too, but she would also play hooky to go swim in the lake at the beginning of summer, and play pranks, and lived a life full of love and laughter. I was glad to see her genuinely laughing with her sister, like when we were kids. She’s always had a carefree spirit deep down and it was good to see it had returned. Even if that asshole was the reason.

I walked over to the gourmet buffet and loaded up my plate. I sat myself beside Wren and caught up on the conversation that was happening. My father, along with Wren’s and James’, watched on as the next generation of the Blood Moon Pack enjoyed a joyful breakfast.

My eyes met my fathers and he smiled at me. He nodded his head and I heard his voice through the mind link:

Everything will work out son. The Goddess knows what she’s doing. I heard my father’s voice in my head.

I know Pop. It’s just hard, but seeing James this happy is worth it. I’m fine

Good son. I’m proud of you