Chosen by the Goddess

Chapter 9

The door is already open and Rhys leads me into a big hall filled with people. Most of them are holding drinks, this is clearly a celebration of some kind. When we enter, everyone turns to us and the noise fades. I notice them staring, and whispering. This is the moment I am thankful that Rhys is standing slightly in front of me. I want to hide behind his broad shoulders. There are not many times in my life when I wish to be small, but this is one of them. 

I don’t have much time to debate on the pros and cons of my height any further. A man in a suit was making his way down the stairs on our right and coming in our direction. He is tall, probably in his late twenties, extremely handsome with an air of authority surrounding him. The crowd parts to make room for him to pass. 

“So, I see you brought my beta back” He says with a warm smile, looking directly into my eyes. I only nod. I assume that is the right answer. Beta? From the corner of my eye, I see a grin creeping up on Rhys’ face. 

“Well good, took him long enough.” He chuckles, before turning his attention to my escort. There is a moment of awkwardness where neither of them seem to know what to do, but I think I am the only one noticing. They pat each other on the back, in a kind of half-hug. 

“Delta, this is our alpha, Kane.” Rhys introduces us. I extend my hand to greet him. I figure if I cant get a word out, at least be polite, which I regret the next second as I hear a loud gasp from the surrounding audience. The whisper grows louder. Kane gives Rhys a look, that I cant quite identify, before turning his attention back to me, and shaking my hand. 

“It is a pleasure to meet you Delta.” He smiles at me, before turning around, to face the rest of his pack. 

“I thank all of you for coming out tonight on such short notice-“ Kane starts his speech. Rhys pulls me away from the door, and moves us to the side of the room. We are now standing next to another tall handsome man, I am beginning to see a pattern here. They bump their fists quickly, before turning their heads back to the alpha.

“-I am glad to welcome my beta back home and I have another announcement to make. Tonight, I am very pleased to announce to all of you, that I have found my mate, your luna.” Before he can finish the sentence the crowd starts cheering. I look up to see Rhys’ face beam with joy. I don’t quite understand the significance, I figure the boss has a girlfriend now, but I clap along anyway. 

“Come down my dear, meet your new pack.” Kane says while extending his arm in the direction of the stairs that he came down earlier. I hadn’t noticed her before, but now coming down was a girl, maybe twenty years old, maybe even younger. She is not very tall, her blonde hair is braided to the side, and she is wearing a red, shoulder free, dress. Stunning, I think to myself. She looks shy and not more confident than I did a couple of minutes ago. She joins Kane and he pulls her close. I can see the joy in his eyes as he looks our way and I cant help but smile too.

“This, my dear friends, is my beautiful mate, Sophia.” Seeing them next to each other like that, she sure seems a whole lot younger, I plan to inquire on that later. The alpha doesn’t take his eyes off his mate while speaking, as if he was afraid to lose her if he only looked away for a second. She has the same look in her eyes. It is so obviously clear that she is head over heels for the man next her. I doubt there is anything that could tear these two apart. It doesn’t seem like she would ever let go of him. 

I look up to Rhys, only to catch him gazing down at me. I barely notice the crowd around us cheering out their happiness anymore. Because now it hits me. This is what he was trying to explain to me, this is what he feels when he looks at me, and this is what I am unable to return. 

I feel a lump in my throat. I feel sorry now, sorry that I cant give him that, sorry that he has all this love for me and his only way to show me are occasional kisses on the forehead, or a pat on the knee. I wrap my arms around his body, he doesn’t hesitate to pull me closer, and rest his chin on my head. I notice him taking a deep breath in, while am pressed against his chest, with my hands resting on his strong back. For a second, I wish for this moment to stay forever. I blink away the tears that have filled my eyes. This is not the setting where I want to be seen crying. 

I pull away when I notice the commotion settling down. The alpha and his luna are making their way into the crowd to mingle. 

“You two sure seem cozy.” The man who is standing next to us, but had been quiet this whole time, had finally spoken.

“Delta, this is Cian, our gamma, and also one of my best friends” Rhys introduces me again, smiling proudly. I am not sure if that is because of me, or because of him. He looks so friendly. 

“Hey, nice to meet you” I say shyly. 

“Oh I am so glad to hear you speak, I was starting to worry-” He notes with a big smile, then he leans in and continues “-by the way, we are not really big on this whole handshaking thing. I am telling you now, because your mate clearly failed to mention that.” He winks at me, before circling around and disappearing into the crowd. 

I turn to Rhys, my eyes filled with horror. 

“What did I do? How bad is it? Why did you not tell me?” I whisper, with a mix of dread and anger in my voice. 

“You didn’t do anything, it is not bad at all, I didn’t tell you because I simply forgot. Some customs are normal for humans that we did not adopt, it is simply unusual here to shake hands. But that is fine, no one can expect you to be an expert on pack traditions yet.” He says that in a mild, calm voice and I believe him. 

“Lets get you something to eat, the whole pack can hear your stomach grumble” Rhys says, laughing. I put a hand on my belly. He is right, I have been hungry for quite a while now. 

“Not sure I am comfortable with everyone being able to hear what my body does.” I mumble, before following Rhys to the buffet. 

I had found a couple of things to eat, mostly bread and fruit, which didn’t sound great at first, but turned out to be quite useful as it meant I would not get drunk as quickly. I decide to celebrate that I had gotten over the anxiety and stress of the day with white wine. There is quite a selection here and I am determined to find my favorite. As I am during my third glass, I notice a disapproving look on Rhys face. He had not left my side all evening. 

“Maybe you should go a little easy on the alcohol there.” He sounds concerned. I nod. 

“Yes, maybe I should.” I respond, before taking another sip. He stares at me for a moment, then grabs my arm and pulls me towards he glass door. He pushes it open, only to reveal a dim-lit patio. The floor is made of light sandstone, and it is raised a couple of feet above the ground. On its edge, there is a metal railing, with stone pillars every couple yards. 

I tale a deep breath and feel the fresh air on my warm face. I set my glass down on one of the pillars and turn around to Rhys. He is leaning against the doorframe, his eyes attentively fixed on me. The light shining from inside illuminates his dark hair and his sharp features. I can see the lining of his muscles under his light sweater. Right in this moment, I am not sure if I have ever seen another human being look so beautiful. 

Abruptly, I realize the tension surrounding us and it starts to make me uncomfortable. He must have noticed the shift in my attitude. He wonders over to me. 

“Have you noticed, that I am severely underdressed?” I ask him, somehow trying to lighten the mood. After all, the dress code seems to be black tie, and here I am in jeans and an oversized band shirt that had been lying on the floor in my room for quite some time. He shakes his head, but doesn’t say anything. 

“Everyone in there is so elegant, and even you look absolutely amazing after spending the day on the road in the same outfit you wore yesterday.” I mumble. 

“No Delta, I have not noticed. It doesn’t matter what everyone else is wearing. To me, you are always the most beautiful person in the room.” My breath hitches. How come I try to make smalltalk and he does this. 

I can feel my head spinning and close my eyes, I try to focus on my breath, when a wave of an amazing scent hits me. I open my eyes again, only to find Rhys standing only inches away from me. His body almost touches mine. I look up to meet his eyes, they are darker than I remember. 

I give a quick thought to escaping to the side, but push it away as I realize that this is exactly were I want to be. It feels like he was just giving me enough time to figure that out, before he takes my face into his hands, bends down and, without wasting another second, crashes his lips into mine. 

I grab on to his shirt to pull him closer, while my other arm travels around his waist to get a hold on his back. He growls with pleasure as our tongues meet. His hands make their way down to my thighs, and before I know it, I get lifted up into the air, forcing me to wrap my legs around his waist for stability. The idea that we are very much not alone, and that there are people a couple of feet away from us inside the house, has slipped to the back of my mind. All my attention is focused on him, his smell, his kiss, his hands on my body, when he suddenly pulls away.