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I LOOKED ACROSS THE dining table and watched as Kya drank her coffee. She was nervous. I was just as nervous. I sensed we were all feeling anxious. I’d sent Hawk into town earlier to use the rumor mill to get the word out I was holding a town meeting today at eleven. I hoped people would open their hearts and minds to her.
I blamed myself for the way things had played out yesterday. If I had met with the pack first, I could have made this easier. I could have done it the right way. Instead, I’d made a decision without letting anyone else have a say. They needed to trust me to be fair, just like my dad. Although my dad always made the final decisions in anything we did, he gathered input from the pack first.
It was a rookie move. I would apologize. Then I would ask for forgiveness. Then I was going to ask them to accept Kya as one of us. I was asking for a lot, but I was going to cash in on some of my father’s goodwill.
“You guys make me feel like we are going to a funeral instead of a town meeting,” I said. I was trying to lighten the mood a bit.
“If I’m going to be a problem, I won’t stay,” Kya said.
“You are not a problem. This is on me. I should have talked with the pack before I extended the invitation. I jumped the gun.”
“Is there some kind of process I was supposed to go through?”
“Yes,” Ares answered without elaborating.
“I’m going to get ready. I want to be early. Hopefully, I can talk to a few of the early arrivals and get them to soften up a little.”
“Good luck with that,” Berrion scoffed. Radolf slugged his shoulder.
I left the table and got ready. I put on a pretty blue dress. I wanted to look older. I wanted to look kind but also professional. I couldn’t wear my normal jeans and a T-shirt. They were concerned I was making irresponsible decisions because I was young. I needed to separate myself from my old image. I wasn’t the dead alpha’s daughter.
I was the alpha.
The seven of us walked into town. We got a lot of looks as we made our way to the covered stage in the park. I was nervous, but I refused to show it. I had to look confident.
“Thank you all for coming,” I started when the bulk of the pack was within earshot. The quiet conversations became muted, and I was given their full attention.
“I want to start with an apology first. I am not going to make excuses, but I hope you can all understand things have been a little hectic lately.”
“What happened with Decker?” someone called out.
I took a deep breath. “Decker jumped me while I was in the forest. I was alone and not paying attention. He had twenty or maybe thirty men from the Ironclaw pack. They attacked. I managed to fight most of them off, but it left me spent. I was weak, and Decker took advantage. He attacked and would have killed me if it wasn’t for Kya. She saved my life that day. My sister saved my life.”
There was a quiet rumbling through the crowd. “Who is your sister?”
I pointed to Kya, who was standing to my left. “She is. This is my mother’s daughter.”
“Your half-sister!”
“Blood is blood!” I said firmly. “She is my sister. She is my family. I expect her to be welcomed into the pack.”
“Lone wolves don’t get to walk in and become full members,” I heard someone say.
“No, but in this case, they do,” I said. I kept my voice even. I didn’t want to show anger, and I would never show weakness. “I extended the invitation. She didn’t ask.”
“I heard she tried to kill you,” someone said.
I was hoping that little tidbit of information wouldn’t get out. I wasn’t sure it had gotten out. It could all be a bluff. I refused to believe anyone from my pack let that information slip. And I didn’t want to think Nia could do something like that.
“Kya and I had some words. It was a misunderstanding. Ultimately, she has declared her loyalty to me and our pack. We share a mother. She is my sister. I am asking you all to please accept her as one of us. She will be an asset.”
There was dead silence from the crowd. I didn’t want to throw my weight around, but I would. I would absolutely insist my wishes be honored. There was a little something to be said for being the alpha. Their support would be nice, but it wasn’t required.
A man stepped forward. I knew him. He was a carpenter who often worked with my father. He looked at me, quietly asking for permission to come on the stage. I nodded once. He walked to Kya and extended his hand. “I’m Caden,” he said. “I’d be more than happy to show you around town. I accept you as one of use and as Azalea’s sister.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Caden.”
“It’s my honor.”
I saw the way Kya was looking at him. I had a feeling she was thinking it was her honor. Caden was a little older than I was. He was very good looking with the whole tall, dark and handsome thing going on. He was a stark contrast to Kya’s pale coloring.
“I am not going to say anything more on the subject,” I said to the crowd. “I have told you how I felt. I would appreciate your support. We are not totally out of the woods so to speak. We need to stay strong. I’ll be around for a while. If anyone wants to talk to me, I’ll be around.”
I stepped back and was quickly surrounded by my council. Hawk put a hand on my shoulder. “You did well. They’ll come around. Give it time.”
“Thanks.”
I looked over at Kya, who was still talking to Caden. “Should I look into that one?” Ares asked.
“No, I know him,” I said. I appreciated he was looking out for Kya as well.
“Azalea?” I heard my name.
I turned and found several women of the pack standing together. I looked at my council. “I’ll be back in a minute.” I stepped off the stage and walked towards them. “Hello, ladies.”
“Can we talk for a minute?” one asked.
“Absolutely.”
“Your mother walked away from you and your father a long time ago. Just because this girl is your mother’s child, it does not make her your sister.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Um, that’s exactly what it means.”
“Technically, yes, but your mother is not welcome here. She abandoned your father. You. You were so little. Kya is stained by her mother’s sin.”
“It was my mother’s decision. Kya had no say in the situation. Please don’t hold her responsible for my mother’s choices. That isn’t fair. We all make bad choices. That doesn’t mean we can never be forgiven. Kya has made some bad decisions, but she is sorry for them. I want her in my life. I want to get to know her.”
“Where is her father?”
I was not about to let that cat out of the bag. That was idle gossip and served no real purpose. “I’m not sure that matters. We are discussing Kya joining our pack.”
“We deserve to know her lineage. Some wolves go mad, and that is a hereditary trait.”
I frowned, shaking my head. “That is a load of garbage that has been passed down as fodder for gossip. Kya is not mad. She’s my sister.”
“It’s dangerous.”
“She’s an eighteen-year-old young lady with no family. She has no one in the world. We are her pack, by blood. It doesn’t matter what my mother did. My mother is still part of the pack as well. Even if she walked away, her ancestry makes her one of us.”
They didn’t look happy, but I wasn’t going to back down. “Well, I guess we’ll have to see.”
“I’m asking nicely,” I said. “But if I need to, I will enforce it.”
That earned me a few sourpuss faces, but they didn’t push it. “We’ll keep an eye on her.”
“Thanks. If you’ll excuse me, I need to talk to Nia.”
I walked away and beelined for Nia. I took her by surprise. “Woah,” she said when I grabbed her arm and started to walk away. “Was the firing squad that bad?”
“You saw that?”
“Yep. I was ready to jump in if I had to, but I would have been like fifteenth in line. You did well. It was them testing you. You passed with flying colors.”
“Thanks. Although I don’t feel like I did very well. Am I totally sucking at this alpha thing?”
She laughed as she looped her arm through mine. We walked away from the crowed. “I can’t properly grade you considering it has been one wild ride these last few weeks, but I don’t think you are totally sucking.”
“Gee, high praise.”
She burst into laughter, nudging my shoulder. “I’m kidding. You are doing fine. This Kya thing is just a bump in the road. They are questioning you, but that does not mean you are doing a bad job. It’s going to be okay. Now that you’ve got Caden on board, you’re golden. That man is very persuasive. Everyone loves him. With him on her side, she’s going to be fine. Add in you, me, and the guys, and everyone else will get on board. It might take some time, and they might give her a hard time, but don’t we want that? If it’s too easy, everyone will want to be part of our pack.”
“You’re probably right.”
We stopped walking and sat down in our usual spot by the water. “How are things going with the guys?”
“Fine.”
“No hard feelings after the Kya juju nonsense?”
I made a face. “Radolf and Hawk made them stand guard outside last night.”
“What? Why?”
I cleared my throat. “They were inside. With me.”
“Uh, I’m guessing you guys weren’t making cookies.”
“Nope.”
“Wow. Both of them? Together?”
I was a little embarrassed but reminded myself it wasn’t anything to be embarrassed about. “Yes. It isn’t the first time.”
Her mouth fell open. “Seriously?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“Wow. That’s impressive. Is that a thing with them?”
“I have a little confession.”
“I’m almost afraid to ask.”
“I was with the other three a few days ago.”
I was worried her eyes were going to pop out of her head. “I don’t even know how that works. Wow. I know I told you to go for it. Please don’t take my reaction as judgment. I’m not judging you. I’m just surprised you actually did it.”
“Me too.”
“How are they taking it? It sounds like Radolf and Hawk are a team, but is that how it will always be?”
“I have no idea.”
“Don’t they get jealous?”
“Not that it seems like. I don’t pick up on it if there is.”
She shook her head. “Don’t you think there might be some competition?”
“I don’t know. I guess that sounds reasonable, but they don’t act like it. Radolf and Hawk are kind of in sync. Everything is very fair, if you know what I mean.”
“I have an idea, but I don’t need the details. Don’t you favor one over the other? Isn’t there one you like more? One that is better in bed?”
I thought about it. “There is something different about each of them. Berrion is fun and flirty. Radolf is feral and dangerous. Ares is so serious and has an intensity about him that draws me in. Hawk, I can’t explain that one, but we have a very deep connection. And Sky, it’s like our souls dance together.”
“So you have the perfect man. It just takes five men to make him.”
“I guess so.”
“Have you had a conversation with any of them about how you feel?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Have you asked if they are okay with the situation? Men of our species tend to be possessive once they find the woman they want to spend the rest of their lives with. You know how many men have been killed because of jealousy?”
I nodded. “I know. It’s crazy, and I have no idea what’s going to happen.”
“I think the situation is unique. I don’t think you have to abide by all of the rules put out there by human society, but I think you have to think about your guys. How are they each feeling? If one of them is feeling jealous, you might have a problem. If one of them is feeling like they aren’t getting enough attention or maybe they are not okay with the way things are going, you have a problem.”
I groaned. “I don’t want anyone to be hurt.”
“No, of course not. I think you need to talk with them and make sure everyone is okay with the arrangement. Hell, if they are, you might be aptly rewarded with a really good time.”
I laughed. “I’m not sure I would survive.”
“You are seriously one lucky lady.”
“Thanks, and thank you for the advice. I’ll talk to them. If any of them wants out, I’ll let them go.”
“Good girl. I know you care about them all. It won’t be easy, but it is the right thing to do.”
