Darcingtowne Wolves: The Misfits (Book 1)

Chapter Fifteen: Dangerous Liaison

Ryan was already blending up one of his healthy smoothies when Penelope loped into the alpha suite’s kitchen, feeling both tense and refreshed all at once. The two opposing feelings rubbed together inside her, creating a friction that made her fidget around even after sitting down on one of the stools at the large island.

“Good Morning Alpha,” Ryan said in a tone far too cheerful for how early in the morning it was.

“No titles, please. It’s too early to be Alpha.” Penelope muttered, rubbing at her eyes. She was feeling sleepy again now that she’d gotten off, but knew that even if she tried, she wouldn’t be able to fall back asleep.

“Want a smoothie?” Ryan asked. “I ran to the store earlier, so we’re stocked up now.”

Penny sighed, knowing that Ryan - a health freak - had probably stocked up on nothing but ‘the good stuff’ as he liked to put it. They’d have to go shopping again in order to keep Sebastian and Carrie from losing their s**t. Sebastian wouldn’t eat anything green, and though Carrie wasn’t quite so bad, the girl needed a steady supply of sweets in order to keep the hanger away.

“Sure, I’ll take one.” Penny replied after Ryan eyed her. “Sorry, just ...uhm…”

Penelope looked up at Ryan from under her lashes. He was her best friend, closer to her than either Sebastian or Carrie - though she loved them all. She could tell that he knew something was up.

“I found my mate last night, right before everything blew up.” Penny admitted.

Ryan blinked a few times, then decided to rummage around in the refrigerator to give himself time to think of an appropriate response.

“I suppose congratulations are in order,” he finally said, as he started loading chunks of pineapple, strawberries, yogurt, and ice into the blender.

Penny smiled, and Ryan smiled back, mirroring her. It was the perfect response; calm, no squealing or awkward questions.

“So, when are you going to throw the poor bastard over your shoulder and drag him back to our pack house?”

...Ah, there was the awkward question she’d been expecting. Damn it. Penny’s expression flattened and she averted her gaze as the blender whirred to life.

Once the loud, grinding pulses died down, she said, “I’m not that kind of Alpha. Seriously, is that what you think of me? I thought you were supposed to be the nice one. If I wanted to hear bullshit like that, I’d have told Sebastian first.”

Ryan chuckled a little, and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Penny. You’re right of course. I’m sure you’ll kindly, but firmly, demand that he return with you to our pack house once you find him again. No barbarism involved at all.”

Penelope rolled her eyes, “He could reject me you know. I might come home from my barbarous mate hunt devastated, barely functional, and you won’t be laughing then.”

“You’re right, the only thing I would find funny about that is how much a fool your mate would be if he rejected you.” Ryan said, his tone turning serious. “...And if he is that much of a fool, I’ll hunt him down and laugh as I beat him to the brink of death for hurting my best friend.”

Ryan poured the finished smoothie into a tall glass for Penelope as continued, a dark expression distorting his normally friendly face, “Not my Alpha, my best friend.”

Penny blinked, and sat up a little straighter. She’d never seen Ryan’s face scowl like that before. It was actually rather intimidating.

“What would you do to him for hurting your Alpha, then?” Penny asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

“Nothing. My Alpha can take care of herself.” Ryan said, giving her a knowing smile. “She’d probably find a better mate in no time, and leave that loser’s sorry ass behind with nothing more than a ‘have a good life’. She’s that kind of Alpha.”

“Mmm, you always have such smart answers for everything. No wonder you’re going to be a doctor.” Penelope said, laughing lightly. 

Privately, Penny hoped Ryan found his mate soon, too. Although no one had said anything the night before, it hadn’t slipped past her notice that Ryan had come home with several hickeys on his chest. She wasn’t about to ask what he’d been doing at the party before the s**t hit the fan, but knew that if he’d found his mate he would have said so. She didn’t judge him for having a little fun; she’d been the one encouraging it, after all. But, after knowing what the mate pull felt like, she now hoped that all her friends found their mates - and that the Moon Goddess had chosen wisely for them as well as Penelope herself. She wasn’t a true believer persay, but Penny felt that her friends deserved the true love that the matebond promised.

Soul mates; that’s what she was hoping her mate would be to her, though there was always a part of her that held itself back, refusing to let the hope settle into her heart. Her father had raised her to be practical, and see things for what they were - not for what she wanted them to be. She didn’t know anything about her mate; it was all just conjecture at this point. Conjecture, and a few frisky mental images. What if he really didn’t want her? She’d never really given her mate much thought, and now that she’d come face to face with him she couldn’t help but feel equal parts excited and terrified.

Soul mates. Those two life changing words echoed in the far recesses of her mind. She shivered a little as she took another sip of her smoothie, and not from the cold slush that danced across her taste buds.

Tobias grunted as the trainee struck at his crossed forearms, and gave the lad a nod of approval. He was assisting the Beta with warrior training this morning, as he had for most mornings since he’d come up age three years previous. Although his first duty was to defend Princess Francesca, as it was his older brother’s duty to protect their Luna, he felt that he would soon grow bored if all he did was train on his own and guard Chessa. So, Toby put himself forward to assist with training the pups and young warriors.

Unlike his father, who had retired to a life of academia after his eldest son became the lead Gamma, he’d never been very interested in books. While Lucas Oriano hadn’t managed to instill his love of books on his sons, he had managed to impart a love of learning on Tobias - learning and teaching. Just because he didn’t want to spend all day in a stuffy library didn’t mean he thought others shouldn’t; he wanted everyone to have the chance to achieve their potential, whether it be through books, hands on training, or a combination of both. It was part of the reason he’d fought so hard to get Francesca’s pig headed parents to agree to her attending university.

Now, of course, he was going to have to give up his regular training sessions in favor of attending University. It was the only way they’d let Chessa attend; he had to be on campus to guard her, and decided he might as well do something other than stand around outside her classroom - such as get a degree of his own.

So, he’d chosen a major that hopefully wouldn’t bore him to death - sports medicine with a focus on rehabilitation - and hoped for the best. He knew he was going to struggle with the science aspect, but figured he could just switch majors if it didn’t end up working out. What mattered most was sticking out the four years it would take so that Francesca could get her political science degree. The ambitious young Princess wanted to apply for law school after getting her bachelor’s, and Tobias hoped that by then her family would ease up a little.

Tobias finished out his sparring match with the young teen, Jett, that he’d been working with the past few weeks and gave the lad a pat on the back.

“Good job, pup. Do a few cool down stretches, and don’t forget to drink plenty water.” Tobias waved the kid off, then went to take his own advice, using a nearby wall to stretch his calves before hitting the mat for some deeper leg stretches. Once he was done with his cool down, he grabbed his oversized bottle of room temperature water and started to take slow sips as he checked his phone.

Beta Daniel came over then, a towel draped over his shoulder. He was an older man with a deep, jagged scar over his left eye running down almost to his chin.

“You busy after training today, Tobias?” Daniel rumbled quietly as he sipped his own water.

“I was thinking about going for a run, but I can always do that later.” Toby replied easily.

“Good. You’re coming with me, then. We’re going to pay a visit the new Promenade liaison officer, welcome him and what not.” Daniel said, grunting a little as he headed toward the showers.

Tobias’s brows furrowed a little as he trailed after Daniel. “Doesn’t the Alpha usually invite them here for a feast…?”

“The Alpha felt it would be unwise to bring the new liaison here. They have some bad blood between them.” Daniel replied easily. The man never seemed bothered by anything, doing his duty with an mildly good natured kind of detachment that Tobias always wanted to emulate. “Does the name Mason Silvius mean anything to you?”

Tobias shook his head a little, but Daniel was unsurprised.

“Didn’t think it would. You’re too young to remember. Let’s just say, Mason’s sister died. He blamed the Alpha for her death, or...Prince Reginald anyway. Even filed a formal complaint with the council before he left the Alliance.” Daniel said, stripping away his tight fitting training shirt and shorts. The man was wide, with thicker hair on his chest than on his closely shaved head. “Alpha thinks they hired him as the new liaison to send us a message. Apparently they’re concerned about Brenton taking over the pack; they think he’s...Mmm. He’s Brenton.”

Tobias knew what Daniel meant without him having to spell it out. Over the past decade or so, the council had grown progressively more, well, progressive, while the royal family - and by extension the Twilight Promenade pack - had by and large remained as it always had been. No one embodied that unchanging rigidity than the pompous crown prince.

“All right. Anything else I should know?” Tobias asked, stripping down himself.

“He’s an Alpha in his own right. Oh, and your mother was his fated mate. Bit of a sore subject, seeing how she rejected him. Maybe don’t bring her up.”