Once Upon a Bad Boy Beta's Redemption

Sixteen - Ezra

It wasn't long until we had to set off for the party and Molly was still upstairs complaining to herself about the dress that Grayson bought her. Something about not wanting to wear pack colours to the alpha's house but I didn't catch her reasons. I didn't know what her problem was, loads of women wore pack colours to these kinds of events. So why was she acting like wearing this dress was the end of the world?

I am sure that Molly wouldn't be quite so upset about the dress if she knew her mate had bought it for her. We had to tell her it was from dad because of alpha Ward's orders and I am sure that was half of the problem. Molly was strong willed and didn't want to be told what to wear by her family. If she knew it would make her future mate happy then surely she would have jumped at the chance.

I would do anything to please my future mate. If she bought me a pretty designer dress then I would wear it with a smile on my face, knowing I was making her happy. Although my friends might have a thing or two to say about it.

By the time that Molly finally emerged in the controversial dress, we were already running late for the party. We had told Grayson when to expect us and that time had already passed, and now dad was worried about what Grayson would do. He had been pacing the living anxiously for the last half an hour, it was never a good idea to get between an alpha wolf and his mate.

Dad quickly ushered us out of the door and over to the alpha's mansion next-door. I watched Molly very closely as we walked in. Her wolf noticed the presence of her mate immediately and pushed her way forward, claiming Grayson as hers. I watched her, expecting her to run into his arms and kiss him in a way that would make me need to look away quickly but that wasn't what happened.

Molly's eyes went wide with what looked to be fear as she tried to take a step back. Dad held her in place to stop her from fleeing. I cringed, I know she probably wasn't thinking clearly but fleeing from an alpha? Did she want to be marked in front of the whole pack? That really wasn't something I wanted to witness. Yuck!

Everyone's attention was on the new couple so it wasn't that difficult for me to slip away and go in search of my friends. Being careful to move around the outside of the room so I wouldn't get pulled into the unfolding drama, I made my way towards the back of the house.

My friends were standing in a group near the kitchen. Nick and Jack were busy talking about some football game as I walked up. Henry on the other hand was watching the party unfold, he was probably looking for his next victim. Henry’s womanising made me look tame by comparison.

“Is it true that Grayson has found his mate?” Nick asked as I approached them. He was almost able to hide his excitement, but the tone of his voice ultimately gave him away. Nick’s excitement wasn’t just for Grayson’s sake, he wanted his mate as much as I wanted mine but unlike me, he didn’t care who else knew about it. Henry noticed Nick’s excitement and rolled his eyes.

“Why would anyone want a mate?” Henry grumbled. Each of us were looking at him in stunned silence. I knew that he was a player but I didn’t realise that he was against the idea of having a mate. That sort of attitude was almost unheard of.

“Don’t look at me like that, do you really want to be stuck screwing the same woman for the rest of your life?” He asked

“Of course we do.” Nick replied.

We all nodded our heads in agreement.

“I can’t believe this. Ezra, you can’t possibly want a mate, you can’t even date the same woman for a whole week without getting bored.”

I rolled my eyes and turned away from Henry withouting even acknowledging his question. I wasn’t that bad and besides it had nothing to do with getting bored, I just didn’t want my future mate to deal with a jealous ex. That meant I couldn’t let any of them stick around for long enough to think that I might have feelings for them.

“What happened to Laura, weren’t you meant to be coming here with her tonight?” Jack asked, changing the subject.

“We weren’t working out.” I replied.

The truth was, we were getting on fine until I went to pick up Molly. Now I couldn’t get her roommates' smell out of my head and I couldn’t stand the thought of being touched by anyone else. I couldn’t tell my friends about any of this. It was bad enough that I was infatuated with a woman that I had never even seen before but her being my sister's best friend complicated things.

Not that it would stop me from claiming her. There was nothing that would stop me from being with my mate but I was going to have to play this carefully so I didn’t upset anyone. I might even have to do something completely new for me and take our relationship slowly.

“So does that mean you are single again?” Nick asked. He was smiling at me eagerly and I knew exactly what he was thinking. Usually when I was single I would spend a lot of time hanging out with Nick and Jack. It wasn’t going to be like that this time, I had to find some way of meeting Molly’s roommate and somehow make it look natural. I couldn’t waste time playing computer games or watching films.

“Not really,” I replied cautiously.

“What the hell does that mean?” Nick sounded appalled.

“It means that he was cheating on Laura,” Henry replied, smirking at me. I shrugged my shoulders, it was pretty good as far as cover stories go and I didn’t even have to come up with it. Having a secret girlfriend would give me an excuse that I can use if I have to go away for a while to find my mate.

“So who is this mystery girl? She must be pretty hot to make you cheat on Laura.” Jack replied, trying to hide his irritation. He, like Nick, wanted to wait for his mate. He'd had a few relationships but they were just for companionship as far as I could tell.

“I don’t want to share that with anyone yet, I don’t want to cause any more drama.” I replied.

“That doesn't sound like you.” Henry said, laughing at my expense. I know what he was trying to say but I didn’t put any stake in his words. He was the one who had all the drama surrounding him, not me.

“Don’t laugh. The two of you are going to pay for all of this once you meet your mates, I wouldn’t be surprised if you both end up getting rejected.” Nick replied.

Now that wasn’t a pleasant thought. I had always assumed that my mate would be another werewolf and she would understand where I was coming from. Sure she might have been upset that I didn’t wait to give her all my firsts, but she would appreciate that I saved all of my heart for her. My mate being human would definitely complicate things. I didn’t even know if she would feel the bond we would share or if that would only happen after I mark her.