Rise of the Underdogs: (Book 1) COLTON

Chapter 6

Round and round we go, where my mother stops, no one flipping knows.

I glared at Neil as he busted a gut laughing at me. Once again, I’d gotten into trouble at school. My blissful two weeks of not getting sent to the office for my sarcastic sense of humor were over—just like that.

Except this time? I’d busted John’s nose when he got a little too close to my girl.

Daisy, as I’d learned from all the time we spent hanging out, was a shy beauty. Pushed just the right way, though? She was verbally lethal and loved kicking my ass as needed.

Not that I minded—I swear I didn’t. I actually loved getting schooled by her. It gave her confidence. It let her feel stronger knowing she could do whatever she wanted to me, and I’d just roll over and play dead for her.

“And what’s this I heard about you paying attention to girls at school? Have you no shame, Colton?” my mom snapped, the heat in her voice making me sink lower in my chair. “Books before babes, sweetie. You don’t need to be knocking up some little slut before you find your Mate.”

I kept quiet. She was still railing about me getting suspended for the rest of the week, so there wasn’t much chance I could slip a word in without getting torched.

I glanced over at Neil, hoping for backup. Nope. He looked ticked off too.

Yup. Now would be a great time to speak up.

“Mother, please,” I tried. “Can I just, you know, slip a word in sideways here?”

My dad's eyes went wide. “You got a death wish, son?”

“The shovel’s in the back,” Mom noted dryly. “He can dig his grave himself if he’s hellbent on pissing me off today.”

I winced. I was really going to hear it once I came clean. My mother was going to want to meet Daisy. Dad was going to want to “talk” to me, and my best friend still wanted my head.

I knew that there was nothing anyone could do about the last one. Like I said, our numbers were too low for anyone to be picky over who they were Mated to.

“She’s not just any girl, Mother. I swear that I’m being perfectly serious right now, too,” I said as I got ready to run. The floor creaked under me, like even the house didn’t trust my timing.

My father paled. “Oh boy. He found her.”

“What?” Mom, as usual, took a minute longer to catch on.

Five whole minutes passed in dead silence. The kitchen clock ticked so loud it felt personal. Then she stared at me with watery eyes.

“Oh my Goddess, my baby found his Mate!” Her voice jumped three octaves. “I’m gonna call Cece and get that veggie casserole recipe off her. This is cause for celebration!”

Shit.

While Mom bolted for her phone like she’d just won the lottery, my dad turned to me with his serious face locked in. Even his slippers seemed tense, like they were bracing for impact.

He started questioning me. Dad-level grilling—soft tone, sharp eyes. What was she like? Was she from around here? Was she aware of what being a Mate even meant?

I didn’t have the answers he wanted, so I looked at Neil, silently begging for backup.

“Mr. Brake,” Neil said smoothly. “Colt’s only just met her, and she’s a pretty shy girl. Please, give him time. I’m sure my father should be brought in on this too, but I’m asking for you and your Mate to let them work it out without pressure.”

Thank the Gods for small favors.

John messing with Daisy had flipped something in Neil. These days, he watched John the way a hawk watched a mouse—quiet, twitchy, calculating. The shift was subtle, but the tension clung to his posture now.

“You sound like you know her personally, young Alpha,” Dad said, voice calm but still digging.

“Well yeah, she’s his maternal cousin and all that jazz. It’s why I beat that i***t to a pulp.”

I didn’t. Not really.

I just liked tossing spice on my story—it made my friends laugh. Truth was, I landed one punch, put him on his ass, and walked away like it was nothing.

The living room light flickered overhead like even it wanted to get in on the drama.

Now I had a new nickname at school: One Hit Wonder. Mostly because everyone was still trying to figure out how I managed to knock out a guy twice my size with a single punch.

Here’s a hint. Do not mess with my Mate.

Male wolves are protective. Fiercely protective. When it comes to our females, we do not just guard them—we give them everything. We submit without hesitation. As our Alpha always says, the women in the pack are our center, our strength. Without them, we are completely lost.

Neil handed me a small gift box as we walked out of my parents’ house into the cloudy soup that passed for weather. The yard looked soaked in fog, and the wet bark smell from the pine trees made everything feel like it had just woken up groggy.

“Here,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I know I haven’t exactly been the most supportive friend lately, and I’m sorry. I felt bad that I didn’t get you anything for your birthday the last few years, so... yeah. This is for you.”

I was seriously tempted to give the box a good shake. I didn’t.

He actually apologized. That never happened.

“Neil, I get it. You were drowning in stress, so it’s fine.” I lifted the lid and immediately felt glad I hadn’t gone with the shaking option.

Inside was his old phone. No, it wasn’t high end or glossy or anything close to fancy. But it was something I didn’t have yet, and my parents couldn’t afford one.

Surprise—my folks are classified as the lowest ranking members in the pack.

I was the first one in my family to get close to someone like Neil. And yeah, I might’ve used Kaden a little to get in the door, but it worked. Making friends with the younger guy ended up changing everything. Once he told me I was going to be his second-in-command, things flipped fast. Envy poured in from every direction.

Most wolves with my background hated me for it. But the real reason for the shift in status? Dreson.

The guy could talk his way into anything. He had influence, and he used it like magic.

“Dude, thank you!” I said, grin breaking across my face as I turned the phone over in my hands.

Neil gave a lazy shrug. “It’s just my old one, but you were the only guy in the crew who didn’t have a phone.”

I shook my head, still smiling. “Man, you could give me scraps from the bottom of a drawer and I’d feel like royalty. No joke—this is perfect. Does it come with a plan or am I just gonna stare at the screen forever?”

“Yeah, I talked to Dad. He got it set up for you since I’m set on giving you the Beta spot.”

“Best birthday gift ever,” I said, already thumbing through the contact list like a kid in a candy store.