Alpha's chase

Chapter 3: O'Christmas Tree

~Austin Jade's POV~

Christmas was rather uneventful this year. My parents were traveling the world and Olive was at her dad's house. She begged me to go but honestly, her dad is kinda a grumpy old man so I'd rather just sit here at the house by the fireplace and watch the Christmas Baking Championship of Food Network, stuff my face with these bomb-ass raspberry pastries that I made, and drink all the eggnog I can stomach.

Austin: Lyla, how are feeling about this mate thing?

Lyla: I know he is our mate, Moon Goddess would never be cruel to us!

Austin: I know but we are rogues, it's unheard of for natural-born rogues to find a mate!

Lyla: Yeah but maybe there is something we don't know. We have to try to find this mate of ours, we aren't getting any younger!

Austin: Aye!! I'm not sure I want to settle down just yet! What about my career! What if this guy is a loser!

Lyla: And what if he isn't! Our Mate will be perfect for us regardless of what he does, or his means we will love him!

Austin: Wanna get out for a while?

Lyla: YES! YES! YES! PLEASE!

I stripped down and put on my robe, I slipped out the back gate and took a few steps into the bush, hung my robe in its usual spot on a branch, and quickly shifted into my wolf Lyla. She was just itching to hunt so I let her. After about three rabbits, she decided to head to the lake to get a drink! It was mostly frozen because it was wintering here in Colorado. Lyla had to break through some ice with her paw. We had to be careful in this area because it was near a pack's territory. I didn't feel like dying today.

Eventually, we made our way back to the backyard. I shifted and quickly put on my robe. I decided I would end my night with a hot bath and a cup of chamomile tea. I lay there soaking in the tub while sipping on my tea. I tried to think about the desserts that I wanted to make this coming spring but honestly I mostly just daydreamed about what my mate would be like! I never imagined in a million years I would find my fated mate as a rogue. Hoped? Definitely! I started to drift off to sleep in the tub but Olive's loud ass woke me up before I drowned!

"I'M HOME!" She yelled up the stairs.

"OKAY!" I yelled back as I pulled myself out of our tub! I took my time getting ready for bed. Applying my favorite lotion, doing my nightly skincare routine, putting on my favorite pair of joggers, an oversized t-shirt, and my favorite wool socks. I fell heavily onto my awaiting bed. Olive came in and plopped down beside me.

"How was your dad's house?" I asked.

"same ol' same ol'" She pouted. "Dad is talking about moving to Texas. He says he is sick of the cold and how hard it is to live here. He says he wants to retire also."

"He is only 52!"

"He says he has enough money to buy a big piece of land, build a small cabin smack in the middle, and go fishing day in and day out." She said and she seemed lost in thought.

"Maybe he'll meet a woman! It's been eight years since your mom passed. It might make him less grumpy and alone." I said eagerly.

"Hell, I don't know if he will leave the house if he goes through with this. My mom could never get him to go out and do things, even when they were young!" She laughed.

"Hey, what do you want to do tomorrow afternoon? I have to go into the restaurant to get started on a few desserts for some upcoming parties but I should be done around two."

"Well, we could hit up Echo Mountain for a little halfpipe action, maybe hit the terrain park, or if you're feeling real ballsy we could go straight backcountry!" She said excitedly.

"Ooo! Let's go back country!" I said. "On that note, I'm gonna go to bed, gotta be fresh for the slopes!" I said.

"Goodnight!" she said as she made her way down to her room. Sleep came easy tonight. The run was just what we needed to help us get some internal peace. Maybe our mate will recognize we are here or who we are because I'm at a loss for how to find him.

~Ryker's POV~

I woke up later than usual with a pounding headache, no surprise there. Luckily our Pack's Christmas celebration wasn't until one in the afternoon. I like to give each family time to relax in the morning with their pups. The warriors had the day off from training so they could sleep in.

I took my time in the shower under the high-pressure jets, washing away all of the filth and stiffness from the night before. Wren mind-linked me last night just after we left saying there were about five she-wolves who matched the profile we were looking for. It was just up to me to do the digging. I put on a nice pair of dark-washed jeans, a cream-colored cardigan, and my nicest wristwatch. It's different from my usual look but I like to put in more effort on special occasions.

I sat in my office looking over the file. Five girls who fit the profile. One of these girls is my mate! The file Wren put together was pretty substantial. It included screenshots of the videos from last night and a few other angles of the same girl. They were a little grainy but they should do the trick. I started searching f******k, Twitter, **, and even t****k. the first three girls were very beautiful, and different in each way but they weren't her. I typed in the fourth girl's name on f******k, and Twitter and got nothing back.

No profile and not even a mention, but at soon as I typed it into ** my mind was blown! It was her! Her name was Austin Jade, or at least that is what her profile said. She was a pastry chef at one of the top restaurants in Boulder. It was on the Michelin Guide for up-and-coming restaurants. I knew this because I built it, and I liked to keep tabs on all of my past projects. It never hurts to have a portfolio for expansion. I kept scrolling through Insta and also found out that she likes to snowboard and she is pretty good it seems. I saw that her favorite park is Echo Mountain. I did a little more digging on Jade to see how I could meet her as naturally as possible. I don't want to look like a stalker.

At twelve-thirty, I made my way down to the gathering room where the families were starting to arrive. Charlotte made her way over to me with Wren in tow.

"So, Wren tells me you might have found your mate! How exciting!"

"Well, I'm not sure but I have a strong feeling that that is the truth."

"Did you look at the file I put on your desk?" Wren piped up.

"Yes, I recognized one of the girls. I'll let you know more when I decide to go after her. Until then, this stays on the down-low. Don't go blabbing to anyone else." I ordered.

"YES ALPHA!" They replied at the same time.

"What are you ninnies gossiping about?" Tate jokes as he walked in.

"Just the Alphas current situation, the one that is forbidden to talk about. You know from last night." Wren carefully implied.

"Oh yeah... You okay man?" He asked me.

"Yeah, I just need to be cautious with my actions regarding you know who," I said as I slapped his back. We all headed into the gathering room where the Omegas were passing out presents. The pups were bouncing around just chomping at the bit to get started. I made my way to the front of the room to welcome everybody.

"Hello, all, and Merry Christmas! I hope this year has been nothing too good to you all as it has been for our pack. Business is thriving and our numbers have never been better! I know you are all excited about the festivities of today so after presents, we will feast. Once again Merry Christmas, you may begin!"

It was like a tornado went through the pack house. The gift wrap was flying, pups were screeching with excitement, and the parents were beaming with pride and joy, especially when opening the gifts from their children. It warms my heart to see the love in the room. I just sat back and watched with a stoic look on my face so I didn't appear to be going soft. If only they knew just how soft I was for kids. I couldn't wait to find my mate so we could have this. After the presents and feast, I wandered back up to my office to meet with Tate and Wren.

"So I have found some information on this mystery girl." Told them. "Her name is Austin Jade. I'm not sure if that's a middle name or the last name but regardless her name is Austin. She is the pastry chef at MELT. She loves snowboarding at Echo Mountain and clubbing. She drives a desert sand-colored jeep wrangler. As far as her appearance she has long straight blonde hair and hazel eyes, and she looks on the taller side. We all know pictures are deceitful sometimes but that's what I got from her ** profile." They both just stared at me a little dumbfounded. Tate was the first to speak up.

"She sounds like a total badass! How are you planning on finding her? There are so many options."

"I know there are. I'm thinking I could have our patrols keep an eye on Echo Mountain for her since it is parallel to our territory, or maybe she will go back to Rhym for New years. I could buy her table for her." I replied.

"You could do both!" Wren said excitedly. "I'll tell Marco to put her on the VIP list, and we can increase patrol to look for anyone who might match her description boarding on the back county side of Echo Mountain. If they find anybody they can report it to you and we can go from there. That way it can seem like you can meet as naturally as possible. Divide and conquer bro." Wren pitched.

"You know, I knew I made you my gamma for a reason! Set it up! Now get out of my office!" I commanded.

"Yes, Alpha!" They replied and left.

I spent the next few hours in my office looking over some pack business and checking in on James to make sure he was adjusting well. I set up patrols for Echo Mountain for the next week or two. Once I wrapped up all of my business I hit the gym before going to bed. The next few days were gonna be filled with a lot of uncertainty.