The Golden One

You've Got Some Explaining To Do

For the third time today, I wake up in the spacious four poster bed. The pain has subsided slightly but seems to have been replaced by a guilty ache pulsing through my body.

I keep my eyes closed as I can hear angry whispers coming from outside the now doorless doorframe.

"You don't even f*****g know her. She’s my girlfriend, my Alpha!" Michael tries to keep his voice to a whisper but the anger in his voice has it at a level I can hear clearly.

"She's my mate. She needs me now." The husky voice of Christopher sounds strained with anger and sadness and although I don't want to admit it, I feel bad for him. 

Michael hisses at him and I hear Alpha Carl chime in.

"Listen Chris, I know this is difficult but I think it's best Michael speaks with her. He's her Beta and her boyfriend. I think she needs someone familiar right now. She didn't exactly recognise you as her mate and I'm not sure what to make of that."

There's a crash that sounds like a fist through a wall then stomping and swearing as someone, presumably Christopher, storms away.

I take that as my cue.

"Michael?" I call out.

"I'm here, baby." He enters fully dressed, thankfully, and walks up to sit next to me on the bed, a strained look on his face.

This was his nightmare, mine too to be honest. I really thought I would spend the rest of my life with Michael, pups and all. This certainly makes things a little more complicated.

Alpha Carl pokes his head round the door.

"Uh, hi... Hey—" He waves awkwardly from the space where the door used to hang.

I chuckle at such a big man acting so nervous, he looks like the type of man to take anything in his stride. After our chat last night I feel really at ease with him. He could become a good ally and a good friend.

"Come in Carl, awkwardness does not suit you." I try to keep the tone light, but underneath it I'm feeling all sorts of negative emotions.

He shuffles in the room and walks over to us.

"I'm sorry for my brother’s behaviour..." My smile falls as he speaks. "He will apologise for himself but I thought you might want a break from him until you process this."

His eyes fall on mine and I can tell he feels bad for this whole situation. After our chat last night, I'm not overly surprised at Christopher's behaviour. In the stories he seemed to run hot and let his passion take over; definitely not someone to remain calm and in control in the heat of the moment. I was disappointed I didn't even have a bedroom door for my stay now though.

I look at the door and roll my eyes.

"Oh, I'll have that fixed today." Carl says reassuringly. I nod and sigh. Michael's eyes are fixed firmly on the ground and I reach out to rest my hand on his. He flinches away from it and I wince at the act of rejection. He's hurt but there's nothing I can do to fix it.

"He said he's my mate?" I say, still confused at what has happened. "But I didn't feel anything. No pull to him, no love, only pain."  Michael looks up at me in disbelief while Carl's brows knot together in a frown. We all knew this isn't how meeting your mate should feel. Although there was a little flutter, it was an attraction to his deep voice and stunning looks; nothing uncommon for people who appreciate a sexy man. Maybe Christopher is wrong.

"I think the pain you felt was his. He came in and immediately caught your scent. I had to explain your situation to him and he literally fell to his knees like I'd punched him full pelt in the chest." Carl's eye's dance around as he speaks, never landing on mine for fear of my response.

Guilt. That guilty ache surges through me again. I ruined this man's experience of finding his mate, a sacred experience for wolves; not just a feeling love or lust but a feeling of being bonded, sharing your soul and becoming one with each other, forever.

"He came up here immediately after and well— yeah." He finishes with a sigh.

I look down at my hands and play with my own fingers thinking back to the encounter this morning. I think about staring into his deep green eyes while my hand absentmindedly wandered to reach out for him. He is attractive that's for sure, but that doesn't mean there's a mate bond. I find Michael attractive and we both know the bond isn't there.

"Are you ok?" Michael sighs, clearly concerned by my silence.

"Yeah, yeah. I mean I'm just a bit confused. We're told about this precious mate bond our entire lives and now this is— well it's not what I thought it would be." I sigh returning to playing my hands. Michael's eye line returns to the floor with a similarly heavy sigh.

Minutes pass as we are all consumed by our own thoughts.

"I need to talk to him." I say bluntly. The thought of having to deal with his anger again is difficult but I owe him a conversation. 

"He's out for a run and he'll be out for hours to blow off steam I’m sure. The other Alphas will arrive at lunchtime. Maybe they will be able to shed some light on this seemingly one sided mate bond." I nod and Carl turns to leave. Michael stays still, looking utterly defeated.

"Our training starts in twenty minutes if you guys need to blow off some steam too." He says from the doorway. I nod again and he waves as he walks down the hall. 

My eyes fall on Michael. I hadn't seen him like this since Liana's funeral. It feels like he's already given up on me. I wanted to pull him into my arms and hold him tight but that would benefit me more than it would him. I know what he needs.

"Wanna go out and spar?" He nods slowly at my suggestion and moves to put on some comfier clothes. I follow suit, changing into a burgundy leggings and sports bra set, then shove my hair into a messy bun to rival Carl's, a few golden locks hanging down to frame my face. I go to the bathroom and splash water on my face, take a deep breath and walk out as if everything was normal.

Michael follows behind and we don't speak as we make our way to the training fields we drove past on our way to the house yesterday.

Groups of pack members have already started training as we make our way to an empty circle. They whisper between each other, eyes following us as we walk. They no doubt heard about our awkward arrival yesterday and people were definitely woken by the dramatic encounter this morning. We are clearly the hot gossip here.

We stand opposite each other and bow our heads, a sign we were both ready to start. Michael stands ready to fight but I can tell he's not really giving it his all.

I take a tester lunge at him and he half-heartedly swipes me away. We bounce around the circle, mirroring each other's moves. His eyes avoid mine and my heart aches. I decide to take control.

I run at him, jumping on him and use my weight to pull him to the ground almost instantly. He barely puts up a fight and I am now straddling him, gazing down at the man I love. He continues to avoid my gaze and stays silent, choosing to stare up at the sky instead. I lean forward and place my hand on the side of his beautiful face, brushing my thumb against his cheek. I lean further forward giving him no other choice but to look me in the eye. I run my hand up to his hair as I continue my decent to his face, my lips puckered ready to kiss, desperately hoping he'll reciprocate.

His hands move to my hips and I know he wants to kiss me back. My lips are almost on his when I feel the now familiar stab in my chest and roar through the air.

"She's MINE!" He bellows from the other side of the field.

Everyone turns to watch yet more drama unfold. Michael and I jump to our feet to watch Christopher sprinting towards us in a rage.

"Oh hell no." I whisper, with balled fists by my side and my jaw clenched. Michael smiles at my comment, he knows I am not bending to the will of this beast and his attitude problem. There's an appropriate way to deal with s**t and this isn't it.

Christopher now stands right in front of us, full of rage and hurt.

I mind link Michael to leave the circle. He doesn't move for a minute. I remind him this is an order from his Alpha and not a request from his girlfriend, he whines slightly but leaves the circle giving a death stare to Christopher as he does.

"Aw, is he scared?" Christopher whines in a baby voice so as to irritate Michael. Michael growls in response but doesn't move, obeying my orders.

I begin slowly walking around Christopher in the circle, stalking my prey, a menacing look in my eyes. He scans my face and is unsure but follows my body with his own, his eyes never leaving mine. It's time he learns his place, mate or not he will be courteous and respectful of me and my friends.

"Let me be clear..." I say, my voice dripping with power. I am going to enjoy putting him in his place.

"I asked Michael to leave the circle for your protection, not his own." Christopher scoffs at the comment. I take a second to look over him, he is taller and more muscular than Michael but that was not a sure sign that he could beat him. He smirks at my wandering eyes, but I snort in disapproval once I'd finished looking over him, hopping my disgust would wound his ego. His face changes slightly and I know I've achieved my goal. 

I’m not disgusted at all, in fact I am quite intrigued about what hides beneath those clothes, but I couldn't let him and his oversized ego know that. His physique doesn't faze me though, I know what Michael is capable of and I know what I am capable of.

An audience forms around our training circle. I notice Carl run from the pack house and try to enter the circle, he is stopped by Michael who whispers something to him and smiles. He is clearly looking forward to watching me deliver Christopher's ass whooping. And honestly, I would enjoy delivering it myself. I am no man’s property and he needs to learn that.

"However, you should be equally, if not more, afraid to share this circle with me." I snarl and flash my red eyes at him, a colour reserved only for reigning Alphas. His own eyes flicker from black to green to black again. He was uneasy with this exchange. It felt good knowing I was inside his head.

I stop walking and stand straight, ready to engage. He also stops to face me, his eyes desperately scanning my own. He takes slow, measured steps towards me then drops to one knee, tilting his head to the side; a sign of submission.

Fuck. No ass whooping today then.

Michael rolls his eyes in annoyance, Carl sighs with relief and everyone else murmurs with disappointment at the lack of a show.

"We need to talk." I growl as everyone begins to disperse.

I turn on my heel and march towards the pack house. Christopher follows behind, surprisingly obediently.

I turn to look at him and catch him with a look of misery across his face. I snap my head back to where I was going. It's easier to be mad at him when he is just an asshole.

I make my way up to the bedroom with Christopher close behind me. I still feel his sadness but try not to look at him. Guilt radiates through me. This is my fault.

As I make my way through the doorway I hear a rumble come from deep within his chest.

"No!" He shouts and his sudden change in demeanour causes me to spin around in surprise. This man’s emotions are like a damn yo-yo.

Although his voice was filled with rage, when I run my eyes over his face I see the same misery that was there before. His chest is heaving up and down trying to regulate his breathing as his eyes fall over the bed Michael and I had shared. The bed we had s*x in.

"Not here. P-please." He whimpers, begging not to have this discussion in the same room I shared my body with another man less than twelve hours ago. The scent of our sweaty, intertwined bodies still lingers in the air.

I nod and he glances one last time at the ruffled bed sheets then turns and walks down the hall. I follow, my shoulders dropped, silently cursing myself. I'm an i***t.

We reach the ground floor again and he gestures to an ornate door on our right. I walk through first into a beautiful study. A large, oak desk sits at the left end of the room with papers and books scattered over its red leather top. The wall behind it is floor to ceiling bookshelves, filled with old and dusty books. I squint at the books, I don't even recognise the languages some of the titles are written in. My head moves to the right and I am met by an oversized stone fireplace, a small fire crackling away and filling the room with pleasant warmth. In front of the fire, two brown, leather, wingback armchairs face each other. The leather is well worn, clearly many a conversation has taken place in them.

Christopher gestures towards them and I make my way over to sit, still looking around taking in the room’s grandeur. As I sit, I take a deep breath inhaling the scents of the room. I smell the crisp burning wood from the fireplace along with the sweet scent of scotch and... Christopher. This is his room; his sanctuary.

He lifts his head to look at me, a soft expression on his face. I mirror the gesture. We are both ready to talk about this like the mature adults we are.

"You've got some explaining to do." He snarls at me, his eyes blackening as he speaks.

I roll my eyes so hard I could have strained them. Maybe not.