Safe

FIVE

    MATE! MATE! ELISE, OUR MATE!! Kyra started shouting in Elise's head. Elise grimaced, both at the sheer volume Kyra was shouting at and the thought of actually finding her mate tonight. All she wanted was to eat the food she had so happily gotten from the buffet tables. It was her birthday after all, why shouldn't she be able to eat to her heart's content. 

    Elise quickly mindlinked Sophie, telling her that she needed someone to watch her food while she took care of something real quick. She then shot back a few oysters while she waited for Sophie to get there, hoping to calm her nerves and lighten her mood. As apprehensive about becoming Alpha as she was, finding her mate was ten times worse. Now she not only had to navigate taking over the pack, but she also had to nurture a whole relationship. Sophie quickly walked up to the table, a look of concern covering her face.

    "What's wrong, what's happening?" Sophie basically yelled at Elise as she approached. 

    "Nothing! Nothing. Rylan and Kyle just made up, I want to go check in on them and make sure Dad didn't end up killing either one" Elise quickly lied. She wanted to tell Sophie what was happening, but she also wanted time to process what was happening first. Not that that made her feel any better about lying to her best friend. 

    "Okay, hurry up and go then! I'll watch your food but I really want to go back to looking for my mate!" Sophie exclaimed as she pushed Elise out of her seat and quickly sat down in her place. 

    Elise nodded grimly, trying, and failing, to plaster a smile on her face to hide the anxiety that she was feeling. So much for those oysters calming me down she thought to herself as she made her way through the crowd, sniffing the air for that salty, peppery smell that she knew was her mate. She stopped by the drinks and grabbed a flute of champagne, hoping that he was maybe amongst the crowd there. As she took a sip and scanned the clearing full of people, she caught a whiff of that sea salt and tobacco smell again. She followed her nose, making her way through the crowd, greeting people and smiling as she diligently looked for the person who was supposed to be her life partner. The scent finally started getting stronger as she approached her dad, who was talking to a VERY large and very beautiful man. 

    Elise's dad saw her walking up to them and smiled at her, motioning for her to come join the conversation.

    "Elise, come meet Alpha Russell, from Fire Sun pack! He was just telling me that his Beta and Rylan have reconciled and we're trying to figure out how to best handle the situation since they're both Betas!" he dad exclaimed, oblivious to what was about to happen. 

    Right as her father finished what he was saying, Alpha Russell turned around to face Elise, letting out a deep, rumbling growl. 

    "MATE! MINE!" He said with a ferocity that silenced the room.