The Shifter in me

Sarah   Just a few days and my best friend, Shana, will be married to a wonderful guy. At least I know he's wonderful from her stories. I am on my way to her hometown, Santa Fe, to attend their wedding. I still don't get it though. They've been dating for 8 years but she only told me about him when it's almost her wedding? I'm disappointed, I admit. Of all the things she hid from me. Last week, she sent me an invitation via email that she'll be getting married in 11 days so I booked a flight down South. It's a good thing that it is summer vacation so i have lots of free time to spare. As the plane landed at the local airport, I prepared my speech for her and her groom. I know that as soon as I see I would not be angry anymore. She's the kind of person that lights up the entire room with her jokes. But then again, I wonder why she's friends with just a few people. Shana is secretive as well. As the flight attendant announced that we landed safely and it's safe to unbuckle our seat belts, I hid my phone in my bag and stood. The airport is little but it's chairs look comfortable. The concierge and the check in area looks luxurious. This must be a rich little town. At the entrance, I saw a tall guy holding a placard saying, "Sarah, the Best friend from New York." Wow, well that is not too obvious. Mayne there are other Sarahs who are from New York? Yeah right. I approached the guy and talked to him. "Uhm hi?" I told him. "Are you Sarah, The Best friend from New York?" he asked. "Yep, I'm her. Could you lower the placard maybe?" I asked out of embarrassment but he doesn't seem to notice. He lowered it and got my suitcase. "Thanks," I told him, "so where's Shana?" "Wedding," he replied. "Uhm wedding? I thought her wedding was on the next day?" I was confused. The date I remember is next week. What is he saying? "No, not wedding, she's preparing," he gruffly said. "Oh alright," I replied. Okay so he is not friendly. And he is not happy to be the one picking me up. He must be wanting to go somewhere else. We went to his car and put my things. On the way to Shana's house, I tried to strike a conversation with him. I still don't know his name and if he's a friend of Shana, I should be good and polite to him. "Hi! By the way I'm Sarah Oakley. I've been friends with Shana since college. Although, I am still studying. How about you?" I asked him. I am genuinely curious about him. He doesn't smile but he is not disrespectful either. "Matt, Shana's brother," he answered. "Oh wow, nice to meet you Matt. I didn't know Shana has a brother," I told him. But then again I didn't know a lot of things about Shana's background, We spent our time talking about the wedding on the way there.   *** Levi   This wedding is giving me a headache. We shouldn't invite outsiders but this is what me beta requested and he's been so loyal to me as a friend so I can't say no to their request to invite her brides college pals. I've been making appointments outside the pack territory for their accommodations. Surely, they can't say anything since I booked rooms in a 5 star hotel. Santa Fe is known for it's luxurious airports, hotels, and restaurants. It is famous for it's wonderful scenery of mountains and beaches. A perfect place for shifters. My pack is not only composed of werewolves. There are other animals as well. Some decided to settle because of the area, some are rogues who want to settle. And others are just finding a place to relax for a while. I extend my protection to other creatures since it's my responsibility as an Alpha. "I don't even know why I'm here booking their rooms when I should be going around the town looking for a mate," I sigh. "Looking for a mate? Don't tell me you're that desperate," Dylan said. Dylan is my other beta. He usually stays in town to gather information if a rogue or a suspicious tourist that came to their town. "Not really, but the elders are amazingly consistent in requesting me to find a mate," I told him. "Yeah right, like you can actually turn someone into a mate. That's something that we should wait for. They're silly," he shakes his head as he looks at the information of the outsiders attending the wedding. "Do you have other information on those people?" I asked. "Nah, they're normal. Just regular humans. They're gorgeous though. Shana's sorority girls?" Dylan asked interestingly. Yep, that's another thing about him. He loves women. "Don't do anything stupid," I warned him. We can't make any connections with humans except if it's for business. So I am upset with Shana, my cousin, for making a lot of human friends and inviting them over.  "There's only a few of them, come on, are you still mad at her?" Dylan asked. He always knew what I was thinking. "Just disappointed, no one is allowed here," I told him. "Yeah we know, that's why the wedding will be held in that 5 star hotel that they'll be staying, right? Don't be so grumpy over it Alpha," Dylan said, "besides, you don't know maybe you'll find your mate there." "Yeah, I hope so," I just replied. I've been waiting for my mate for a lot of years. The idea of not finding her frustrates me especially since my brothers are all with their mates. "But of course, this wedding and it's security is our top priority," Dylan said. Standing up, he brought the files with him and stepped out of my office. "Let's just hope that these humans won't cause any trouble for the pack. "Of course. Are you going somewhere?" I asked him. "One of her friends, Sarah, is on her way to the hotel. Just want to gather information," Dylan told me, smirking. Yep, he'll gather information alright.