Fated Mates: The Alpha

Wyatt: Chapter Seven

Wyatt

Ro was kicking my ass. I growled as I shouldered him and tried to get him to drop his gaming remote, but the asshole just laughed and shouldered me back.

I furrowed my eyebrows and elbowed him as he crowed in triumph over his win in the game. I threw my remote across the room and growled.

"You cheated."

Ro laughs and shakes his head. He rakes the ring on his tongue over his teeth and leans back on his hands.

"No. I'm just better at it than you are. Just face it, I'm a champion and you suck."

I laugh and throw a punch at his arm. He raises his eyebrows the twin rings on the right side, rising with them. He punches me back and we begin rolling around the ground, wrestling.

A knock comes to my bedroom door and I pin Ro down, grunting as he punches me in the kidney.

"Open!"

Ro sneaks a punch to my face and I feel the crack of my nose. I groan and rear back, feeling the blood run down my face as he laughs raucously his face painted with some of my blood.

My door opens as I pinch my nose and grab a tissue from my bedside table. Salem pokes her frizzy head in and raises her auburn eyebrows at me before she scoots into the room, followed by Paisley Jones, Ro's sister, and Holden Hendrix, Evie, and Maddy's brother.

Holden grins as he enters the room and jumps onto my bed, kicking his shoes off. Paisley tsks loudly as she assesses my nose and Salem shuts the door.

"What's up?" I wince at the pain in my nose and stand up to look down at my annoying little sister.

"Holden's mom is here."

Ro stands up next to me and places his hands on my face. I shrug at Salem and grunt as Ro cracks my nose back into place and then slaps me. I growl and chase after him across the room as he laughs hard. Holden joins him and both of the girls are looking at us in disgust.

"So?" I tackle Ro and we crash against yeh bathroom door, splintering the door jamb.

He punches me hard in the ribs and I laugh as he tries to fight me off.

"They're talking about you."

Ro and I stop fighting and I look at Salem.

"About what?"

"Mom's convinced you're the one taking Dad's powers." Holden grabs one of my motorcycle magazines off of my nightstand and raises his eyebrows as he looks at the centerfold.

My stomach drops and I look at Ro.

His smile fades slowly and he looks at Paisley. "What have they said? What are they talking about?"

Paisley purses her lips and pulls her dark hair into a ponytail. "They kicked us out. But...we stayed for a bit in the hall and heard her ask Jocelyn what she knew about your birth dad."

I frown, stuff my tissue in my nose, walk to my bedroom door, and open it slightly. I strain my ears to see if I can hear anything from upstairs, but...nothing.

I look at the three thirteen-year-olds in my bedroom and sigh. "Salem, you're tiny, sneak in there and see what else they say."

Salem frowned and shook her head. "I love you but...no. Mom would kill me if I tried to snoop on their business."

Holden raises his hand as if he's in school and I snort and nod at him. "What?"

"I can do it."

I look at the almost six-foot-tall pup and shake my head. "You're the worst candidate for the job, Holden. You can't stay quiet to save your life."

He grins and shrugs. "Yeah, you're probably right."

I look at Paisley and she shakes her head before I can even ask. Ro sighs and nods for me to follow him.

"I'm doing this for you, but you don't tell anyone I can do this, you understand?" I raise my eyebrows at Ronan as he leads me quietly to the stairs and presses his hands to the wall. He scrunches his face hard as light pours through his hands then places his ear against the wall.

He motions for me to do the same and I lay my head against the wall, wondering what he was doing.

I raise my eyebrows at him as I hear both my mom's and Luna Elena's voices, clear as day as if we were in the room with them.

"What the f**k?" I ask him and he shakes his head and points at the wall.

"The wood. It used to be a part of a tree. It...it's complicated. I explain later. Just listen."

I nod and close my eyes to pay attention.

"I don't understand why you want to know so much about Danny all of a sudden. What brought this on?"

There was a pause and I could hear a sigh. "Joss, I...I have reason to believe that Wyatt is...That Wyatt is..."

"Goddess, what did he do now? Did he knock up one of the twins? Please tell me he didn't."

Elena pauses again and snorts. "Goddess, I hope not. Are they having s*x?"

My face burns as I open my eyes and see Ro smirk at me and wriggle his eyebrows.

"I don't know. All I know is that he's gone through a box of condoms in like two weeks and he hangs out with the girls more than anyone else."

"Oh...don't tell Matt. He would flip his lid. But...no. Not that. I...Wyatt is getting bigger. Like...a lot bigger than the last time I saw him at his party."

"Yeah. He's a growing wolf. So what?"

"Has...has he been exhibiting any changes with his...does he have an aura?"

My mom is quiet and I look at Ro, wondering if his power cut off. But his hands are still glowing against the wall.

"Why?" My mom asks quietly.

"Because Matt is...Matt is losing some of his. And he doesn't know what is happening. But...Wyatt is getting bigger and I wondered if his father was...was his father an Alpha?"

"Danny was a rogue. I...I mean he had an Alpha aura, but...he never led his own pack."

"It's not usual and it hardly happens, Joss, but I think that when Wyatt turned eighteen, his body began priming itself to become the next Alpha. I mean, I can't be sure. I may be wrong, but Matt started feeling off around the same time that Wyatt turned eighteen."

My mom snorts and I frown. "Lainey...my son can't be in line as the next Alpha. He...he's not even related to Matt. He knows nothing about it and...no. I'm sorry, but I think you're wrong."

"Well, I hope I am, but that's why I came to you before speaking to Matt. I wanted to maybe talk to Wyatt and see if...well if his aura is getting stronger or even if he has one."

"He does." My mom said quietly. "I...It's been getting a little out of hand here lately. If he gets upset it's all over the place. But...that doesn't mean anything."

There's a long sigh from Luna Elena. "Can I talk to him?"

I look at Ro and he raises his pale eyebrows at me. I bite my lip and wait for my mom to answer.

"Well...hold on. What...what would happen if he is, Lainey? Holden and Ronan should be the next Alphas of this pack. If...what would Matt do if Wyatt is taking his powers?"

There's a long pause and Ronan looks over my face and frowns.

"I don't know, Joss. I...I want to hope that he would just let him happen but...it's not something that happens. He's not supposed to be next in line. I don't think Matt would want to give him the position."

"If...If Wyatt is getting his powers, wouldn't he have to?"

"He could challenge Wyatt before he loses all of his power. And...and if Wyatt doesn't submit, then they would have to fight. I...if this is what I think, Joss, we have to make Wyatt submit. It could get bad and I love Wyatt. I wouldn't want to see anything bad happen to him. Especially because I know it would devestate you and my girls."

My mom snorts and I can hear that it's one of those laughs she gets when she's about to start getting mad. My stomach clenches and Ro bites his lip. He knows my mom's irritated laughs all too well.

"What makes you think that Wyatf couldn't take Matthew? What if he turns out to be an amazing Alpha? Why would I ask my son to submit? If the Goddess chose this path for my son, why should he give it up just to make your mate happy?"

"Joss," Luna Elena says in exasperation. "I'm not saying Wyatt is incapable. He honestly could be a good Alpha. But this could be bad. I don't know what Matt will or won't do, but I don't think he will take it in a good way."

"Why? Because he's Danny's son?"

"In all honesty, yes. I think he will be against Wyatt being the Alpha because of that. That's all I'm saying. I don't want this to be a whole issue. I just...can we talk to Wyatt?"

"If you're going to spout bullsh*t about him submitting to Matt, no. It's my son's choice on what he wants to do. If Matt doesn't like it, then we can challenge him. If he loses we will leave the pack and let bygones be bygones."

Ronan frowns and he looks at me with worry. I feel worried too. My mom made her life here. She had her own diner that she named after my late father. My dad had a job high up in the packhouse, training everyone with firearms. And all of our family was here. I couldn't imagine trying to make a life somewhere else.

"Joss, look we don't even know if he's got it. It's just a theory of mine. If he does, we will go from there."

"If he does, are you going to go running to your mate after you leave here and tell him who's taking his powers?"

"Goddess no! I want to keep Wyatt safe. I want for all of this to stay as quiet as possible. If Matt finds out, it's because he found out on his own. Not because I told him anything. If...if anything, I want to help. If...if Wyatt wants to be Alpha, then I can help him learn. I know I'm just the Luna, but I know the paperwork more than anyone else around here. I can help his study and maybe all of us can talk Matt into it in the end. But...we need to find out first."

My mom sighs. "Okay. But...I'm trusting you, Lainey. Don't stab me in the back."

"You have my word, Joss. He's my family too."

"Wyatt!"

I cringe at the volume and Ro nods for me to go. He keeps his ear to the wall and I take a deep breath and square my shoulders.

I don't know what is going to come from this conversation, but I need to be ready. And...I'm glad Ro was here so that it wasn't just sprung on me out of no where.

"Coming!"

I run down the stairs and grin when I see Luna Elena. My acting skill are on point because she smiles at me widely and stands up to hug me. I tower over her as I hug her and then nod at my mom.

She's looking at me like a stranger, eyeing me up and down as if she could see the differences Luna Elena pointed out.

"Hey, baby, can we talk to you?"

I raise my eyebrows and pick my hands up in the air by my shoulders. "Whatever it is, I didn't do it. And...My bathroom door broke out of nowhere. It wasn't my fault."

My mom frowns and stands up from the couch. She plucks the tissue out of my nose and raised her eyebrows.

"What happened?"

I look at the bloody tissue and wince. "Okay, so Ro and I were playing a little hard. But...I did get him good."

My mom smirks and rolls her eyes."Sit. We have some questions."

I bite my lip, feeling nervous even though I knew what this was about.

"Okay. What's up?"

I sit down in dad's recliner and lay back, not wanting to come off too tense. But as I watch Luna Elena grimace and my mom clench her fists and close her eyes, I realize I f*cked up already.

I reel in my aura and pretend like nothing happened. But they both share a look and I swallow hard.

"Wyatt, have you...do you notice that your aura has been coming out?"

I look at Luna Elena and shrug.

"Sometimes I notice. But not all of the time. Why?"

My mom presses her lips together and then looks at Luna Elena. The Luna bites her bottom lip, looking so much like Maddy and Evie, I have to look away.

"How long have you noticed it coming out?"

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Since my birthday, but...I've noticed I've had it since before then. I just...never tried to bring it out."

She nods slowly and looks at my mom. "And...have you used it on anyone intentionally?"

I raise my eyebrows and think of that night at the stream. I shake my head slowly. "No."

"Do...have you given a thought as to why you're starting to feel it come out more?"

I look at my mom and then at the floor. "No. Not really."

"Wyatt..." My mom says quietly. I look up at her and see her quirked eyebrow. I wince because she knows I'm lying.

"Okay, so I have maybe put some thought into it."

"And...?"

I huff a sigh and roll my eyes. "I...it doesn't make sense to me. I dont...I don't know why it's been happening and I don't...I'm not leaving the pack. I won't do it."

I look up and clench my jaw. My mom repressed a smile and Luna Elena takes a deep breath and nods.

"So you know that it means that you could be the next Alpha?"

I swallow hard and shrug. "I don't know anything about that. I know that I'm growing and I can't control my aura. I know that I've been getting a little territorial and I'm eating more. Scarr is getting bigger and his senses are sharper. That's it. That's all I know."

They're both quiet for a beat and I look at the both of them. My mom is frowning and looks a little sad. I hate it when she's sad. Luna Elena looks contemplative.

"Wyatt...why didn't you tell me? I...We could have talked about this."

I shrug and look at Luna Elena. "I didnt want to be the reason why we get kicked out of the pack. I...I want to be normal, but...the thought of anyone challenging me sets me on edge. I...I can't stand to be around the Alpha anymore either. Its...Scarr wants me to challenge him every time I see him. But...I don't want to hurt anyone."

"And you won't submit?" Luna Elena asks. My mom whips her head around to look at her, her lip curling.

"It's...when I think of submitting, it feels wrong. I won't submit."

Luna Elena nods slowly. "Okay...so...we need to prepare you then. If you won't submit, then you need to start learning how to be an Alpha to this pack. Do you want to do that?"

I look at my mom and she smiles at me. "It's whatever you want, Wyatt. We can leave and start new somewhere new or...you can train. It's up to you."

I swallow hard, feeling nervous as all hell. "I...Will I have to fight the Alpha?"

Luna Elena cringes and shrugs. "I don't know. It depends on him. But...we have to move forward with the possibility that there will be a fight."

"Will you hate me?"

Her face softens as she looks me over. "Wyatt...I could never hate you. It's in our nature to fight for what we believe in. No one will blame you for doing what comes naturally."

"Not even the twins?"

She shrugs and sighs. "I don't know. But...this is about you. Not them."

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Okay...I'll do it."