The Beta's Inner Alpha

Chapter 3

As I continued my descent towards my version of hell, I couldn’t help but feel like Donovan was the Grim Reaper, waiting to escort me to my fate.

I knew that I would be seeing a lot of him today, but wasn’t prepared to see him just yet. I expected him to be at the front door with the rest of my family and the Gamma family, preparing to greet guests that should be arriving any minute.

As I drew closer to Donny, I could tell he worked really hard to polish himself up. He's always been an objectively good-looking guy but tends to have basic fashion, often wearing tee's and blue jeans. Although, I constantly hear the girls around me gushing about how hot he is, so I guess it's working for him.

He had his short dark hair slicked back and had on a well fitted black suit with green accent pieces. The green really made his eyes stand out, and those eyes were currently piercing through me.

His fan girls would have a field day. They can already be pretty graphic in their descriptions of what they would let him do to them. I don't think my innocent ears could handle what they'd say if they saw him now.

I stop on the last step, not wanting to leave their safety. I don't want to accept that I have to leave Ash behind, but what other choice do I have.

He gave me the biggest grin I can remember seeing on him since his father’s passing. It briefly made me feel happy and like it would all be okay.

“Aishling, you look breathtaking. Dad would be so happy to see you in his color.”

Hearing him call me that name brought me back to reality. This wasn’t a meeting with my long-time friend, this was a formal event for my Alpha. I also couldn't correct him, as the words caught in my throat when he mentioned his dad.

It made me remember the argument we had the other day regarding me wearing a dress. I couldn't shake the thought that he said it that way on purpose so that I wouldn't argue with him.

I made the decision to take my final step, as I know I can't stand here forever. Though I'd gladly become a statue to decorate these stairs if it meant not attending the ceremony.

As I stepped forward, I saw Donny's hand come out for me to hold. I was used to this so thought nothing of it, expecting it to be more of an etiquette move on his part. What I wasn’t prepared for was him kissing the back of my hand.

I was so shocked that I froze again. I was aware that he had to act differently towards me in front of guests, that I wouldn’t be treated like the little kid that always hung around him, but not this. It honestly made me want to gag, as it felt like I was being grossly pranked by one of my older brothers.

He continued, telling me “Give me a little spin, I want to see the whole outfit.”

Without waiting for a reply, he lifted my hand over my head like he was jestering for me to start turning, like I was a ballerina on show.

I feel unsure of what to do, so I start turning. It wasn’t a graceful turn but enough to satisfy him. He kept talking about how gorgeous I look and won't let go of my hand. My brain starts to short circuit and I'm lost on what to do.

Soon, I see my family walking over. They had all been at the front door and had come around to the stairway to see what their Alpha was gushing about. They all look a little shocked when they see that it appears that I'm the talk of the town, but quickly recover.

“Ash, I was starting to get worried. I thought I was going to have to go find that hole you were talking about” my dad laughed as he walked over to grab my hand.

I saw Donovan slightly flinch when dad called me Ash, but he pulled me closer to him when he saw dad coming over.

Dad stops in his tracks and looks back and forth between myself and Donovan.

Before dad could ask any questions, Donovan had linked our arms together before declaring, “I think it would be best for Aisling to stay by my side while greeting guests. After all, we don’t often have many events here, and it will be a good chance for her to connect with more of our partnering packs.”

And again, without asking my opinion, I felt him tugging me towards the front door, with me on his left hand side.

I was so stunned that I became like a ragdoll, just being dragged along beside him.

This wasn’t the plan at all and I had not calculated what to do in this situation.

As we got in line to greet our guests, I started to feel alone. Even with Donovan to my right, the emptiness to my left feels crushing. I'm used to standing between my second eldest brother and my younger sister. We never strayed from this lineup, as we were always told to stand in birth order. Now, with just Donovan by my side, I feel exposed and unsafe.

It's an eerie feeling, as of all people to feel safe with, I should feel the safest with my Alpha. Not only is he the strongest of the pack, but he has consistently shown that he will protect his pack and it’s members at all cost.

I barely registered the first car pull in. Out walked Elder John with several other Elders that I had seen pictures of but had never met in person. I was pretty sure their names were Robert, Paul, and Simon, but the pictures hadn’t been updated in years, and these men were much older than the pictures I had seen of them.

Elder John started eyeing me from the moment he walked out of the car. I assume he was questioning why I was standing next to Donovan rather than my family. However, the other Elders all walked up to Donovan with big smiles to ask who I was and if I was his mate.

Donovan laughed, stating, “This is Aisling, the eldest daughter of Beta Nathan.”

I noted that he did not clarify that I wasn’t his mate. I was about to say something when dad stepped forward.

“Yes, I am the proud father of Aisling, or Ash, as she prefers to be called. Ash is currently only 14 years old, so she has not had the pleasure of discovering a fated mate at this time. Alpha Donovan has always been a good friend to our family and treats Ash like a sibling. I’ve always been grateful for this and hope they continue their friendship for many years, just like myself and the late Alpha Bronach. He would be so proud of the man who stands before us.”

Dad said this all with the look of a proud father while also shutting down any potential rumors.

I feel immense gratitude at this moment. I don’t like hearing myself being referred to as his daughter, but he didn’t overly emphasize my gender, which is such a relief.

I looked to my right to send him a look of thanks but was unable to after looking at Donovan.

He was giving off this dangerous vibe, like he would ripe off the next person’s head, regardless of what they said or did.

He excused himself and walked back into the packhouse. We looked at each other, unsure what to do, but more guests started to arrive and we had no time to speculate.

With Donovan inside, I feel off standing in front of dad, so I move to my usual spot between my siblings.

Instantly, I can feel myself calm down, and muscles I didn’t even realize had gone rigid started to relax.

About 6 other cars had driven up with different families and pack members in them before Donovan returned to his spot back at the front of the lineup. We had told the guest before he came back that he had been called to deal with an issue regarding the ceremony and would be back out to greet guests once that issue was resolved. No further questions were asked, and we had a good flow going.

With him back in line, I can feel him eyeing me at almost every spare moment. If he isn't greeting guest, he is boring a hole into my side. I wonder if he is mad that I moved, but I don’t feel it's appropriate. I’m neither his blood relative or his fated mate, so I have no reason to be up there even before he walked off.

It took about 30 more minutes for all the guests to arrive. I feel so done with this day.

So many people asked about me, saying what a beautiful young woman I was growing up to be. Some even asked if I was seeing anyone, telling me about their ‘amazing’ sons, grandsons, nephews and that I should date them. My parents were good about shutting this down each time it came up but it came up so often that it became easier to keep up with who didn’t ask me about dating a boy they know.

It didn’t help that I could always feel Donovan’s eyes on me. I felt like if I made one wrong move, he would lose his cool and it would somehow be my fault.

I had already been prepared to dread this day, but it was going worse than I could have imagined.