Chapter 2.

Lucas rushed through the swirling crowd, his heart pounding like he’d just sprinted, ran a marathon, and then shifted. All at once

He’d never felt like this before. He could barely breathe.

“Lucas. The Borough Gammas are over there. Go give them their jobs.”

Alpha Bill, one of his pack’s Alphas, pointed towards a large group of fit-looking wolves.

“Thank you.”

He made his way over to the group of small males and females.

Two of the men stepped forward, approaching him in a way that the Gammas in his pack wouldn’t do. Their backs were straight, their heads high. Their faces showed a pride he didn’t see in many of the Gamma level.

He gave them a smile and introduced himself. “I’m Lucas. Beta of the Robinvale pack.”

“Tommy.” “John.” The two men in front of him bobbed their heads as the others gathered around.

He handed them the printout he’d spent weeks organising. “Great. Nice to meet you. Here is your roster. All four packs have two meals to cater over the weekend. You do all cooking, serving, and cleaning up, then you have the rest of the time off. That work for you?” he asked, handing them the roster.

Terry grinned. “Of course. Thank you.”

He pointed to the centre of the circle made by people’s tents, tables, and chairs. “All the food is set up in there, so please help yourself. You’re on for dinner tonight.”

They smiled but didn’t say anything else, and he said goodbye. He needed to see how the other packs were settling in. His job for the weekend was keeping the food going and coordinating the deliveries, the Gammas, and the wash stations.

Not an easy job, or a small one, but he was used to that. The Alphas always gave him more than anyone else.

As he moved through the crowd, his mind began to drift to the Alpha-born female he’d run into when rushing through the cafeteria area.

He could still feel the heat of her skin on his hands, the smell of her sweetness in his nose. Despite himself, a part of his wolf was screaming at him to go back and claim her. Which was… insane. He was a Beta. She was an Alpha-born. She was destined for an Alpha. No one else would be strong enough for a woman like her.

A woman like… Megan.

Her voice, her name. They kept going around and around his mind, making it impossible to focus on anything else.

“Lucas!”

A groan rolled through him as he turned around to face Kellie, one of the Alpha mates from his pack.

“What are you doing, standing around like this?” She put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot.

A bit ridiculous. She probably thought that her pointed shoes would actually make that annoying tapping noise here like they did back home.

Luckily, they didn’t.

“I was just assessing the situation, Kellie. I’ve met with the Gammas from the Greensborough pack…”

“So you need something to do? Good. My mate needs help with some of the supplies. Go to the food storage and help him.”

Translation. Her fat and lazy Alpha mate couldn’t be bothered doing the work himself.

“Sure, Kellie. I’ll go right now.”

He turned and trudged off, wondering, not for the first time, why he had been saddled with such an odd pack.

The Alphas were not good leaders, nor were they kind or helpful. He’d heard rumours that some of the other packs had better Alphas, but his own pack kept him so busy at these festivals, he barely had a moment to talk to anyone else.

He took the long way to his destination, enjoying the chatter of the people around him: the wolves and their mates, the children they’d brought.

The point of the weekend was mostly socialising. Wolves, by nature, were social creatures, yet very few liked to travel. Staying close to home was more the norm.

He bumped into a solid wolf moving across the path.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” He immediately apologised, dipping his head rather than looking up into the face of one of the other pack Alphas.

He was well over six foot tall.

“No problem. How you doing? I’m Reagan.”

The tones weren’t right and as Lucas lifted his gaze, sparkling blue eyes stared back at him.

He sniffed, a horrible scent wafting towards him.

The blond guy extended his hand and Lucas forced himself to shake the offered hand, although everything in him told him not to touch the guy in front of him.

He must have cringed, because Reagan was soon the one apologising.

“I’m sorry. I smell bad, don’t I?”

Reagan crinkled his nose, and Lucas cocked his head. He couldn’t smell it?

“Ah…”

Reagan grinned, his straight, white teeth speaking of a world outside of the one Lucas had known.

He’s human. Wow.

Reagan went on. “It’s okay, I know I do. Megan said I smelled bad, but I promised Grayson I wouldn’t wash it off. Not yet anyway… I’ll see how many people can’t stand being near me first.”

Lucas could only nod. He hadn’t seen many humans before, and this one seemed strong and happy.

And covered in Alpha cum scent.

Reagan cocked his head. “What’s wrong?”

“I… ah…” How could he put it? “You’re human.”

“Yep. And the mate of Grayson Nox, Alpha of the Greensborough pack. Nice to meet you….?”

“Um, Lucas. Lucas Noll. Beta wolf of the Robinvale pack.”

Reagan leaned forward, a twinkle of mischief in his eyes. He actually wasn’t over six foot; he was similar to Lucas’s own height. He just seemed bigger.

“Tell me, Lucas. I was afraid to ask before. What do I smell like?”

Heat flushed up his neck, blooming all over his face. “Um… you smell like… an Alpha mate.”

Reagan leaned back. “So you can smell his spunk, huh?”

A laugh simmered on Lucas’s lips. This guy was nice. And confident. And happy. And an Alpha’s mate. Amazing.

“Ah, yeah, I can. It’s meant to warn any other wolf off you. But that’s a good thing. Your mate must care for you a lot.”

Reagan’s smile changed, softened. “He does.”

Then the penny dropped, like someone had smacked him in the head. “Did you say… hang on. There’s an all-male Alpha pairing in Greensborough?”

“Haven’t you heard of us? I’m surprised you haven’t, since we killed all the Rogues and stuff. There’s three now. Grayson, who’s my mate, Aaron, and Brad.”

His mouth must have been hanging open because Reagan leaned forward and tapped him on the chin.

Lucas shook himself. That went against what he’d heard. “Ah… no. We hadn’t been told that. About any of it. The Rogues… we were told were just taken care of by the Alphas.”

Reagan’s laugh had a bitterness to it. “Of course. Stupid wankers take the credit for everything.”

Part of Lucas wanted to high-five Reagan for saying such a thing; the other half was trembling. The beating he would have copped for saying such a thing…

“Yeah… well... it was nice to meet you, but I really must be going.”

Lucas backed away and practically ran off. He had the feeling someone like Reagan would get him into trouble with his own pack. His wolf shifted inside of him, restless and pacing. There was change afoot, and that Reagan character had something to do with it.

“Alpha Raymond, I was asked to come over and help.”

Raymond grunted at him, out of breath exerting himself for once. Lucas took over, moving boxes and organising people, just as he had been asked.

He spent his life in service to his pack, and although he could not imagine a better way to live, he noted the lack of appreciation and respect his Alphas handed out to the Betas and Gammas that served them.

Something told him things would be very different in Greensborough.

****

“Time for the meeting address, Megan.”

Megan looked up from her book and nodded, stretching her arms above her head. “Okay. Time to get this show on the road, I guess.”

Her belly was quivering with nerves. Tonight, she was going to socialise with the Alphas from the other three packs.

Then tomorrow, her parents were going to raise the issue of her mark, and see if any of them had identical matches. That was how she would know her mate. Fate gave each of their males a birthmark at birth. When their female mate turned twenty-one, she would develop the matching one so that they knew who they were destined to be with.

She had hers now, and since no one in her own pack had the matching mark, her parents had assumed it would belong to one of the unmated Alphas from another pack.

However, she wasn’t sure exactly how she felt about it yet. Looking at her brother, and her parents, she knew that a great match would be possible. In fact, she had total faith that Fate would choose an amazing mate for her. But how would that change her life?

Would she have to move away from her parents? Her pack? Would she be able to keep working? She’d managed to finish her drafting degree, and she loved working with all the builders in the Borough.

“I’m a bit nervous, Mum,” she confided as they walked outside.

“Me too!” her mother cried. “But everything will be fine. Have faith.” She smiled and took Megan’s arm, and they made their way through the crowds to where the makeshift stage had been built.

On stage was a man with a huge belly and a double chin.

She frowned. What wolf looked like that?

“Hello. I’m Raymond, Alpha of the Robinvale pack, and I want to welcome you all to our Spring Festival.”

There was a round of applause and Megan leaned closer to her mum. “Who’s that? He looks like he’s going to drop dead of a heart attack.”

“Don’t be unkind, Megan,” her mother snapped back.

Unkind? Wolves were strong, healthy beasts with such high metabolisms it was almost impossible for them to gain weight. They should not be, and were hardly ever, overweight or unfit. This man was both. And it made her wonder what sort of Alpha he was, not to be moving enough to keep his weight down.

Her gaze was tugged to the left of the stage as the Alpha on stage droned on.

Awareness flared inside of her.

There he was again. The man she’d run into at lunch, clipboard in hand.

His eyes were on the Alpha until he turned towards her, unerringly locking gazes with her as though he’d known she was staring at him.

Tendrils of heat curled inside her belly, awakening a lust inside of her she hadn’t known she possessed. The spot between her legs pulsed, and her nipples tightened beneath the lace of her bra.

“Has anyone caught your eye yet, Megan?”

With great difficulty, she tore her gaze away to look towards her mother.

“What do you mean, Mum?”

“I mean, you know. We think your mate will be here, right now. Have you felt an attraction towards anyone? I knew it the moment I saw your father who he was to me. That twist of my belly when he looked at me, not to mention the smell.”

That got her attention, because she’d already been feeling something very similar for the clipboard Beta.

“Smell? What smell?”

Why hadn’t she paid better attention in the past to these discussions?

“The smell. Your mate’s scent is the most delicious thing you will ever smell. You’ll know as soon as you meet him... or her.”

Megan rolled her eyes. “Mum. You know it won’t be a woman. I like men.”

Her mother grinned. “Your brother thought he’d get a female mate, and look what happened to him.”

She dismissed her mother’s words. “Ah. Don’t worry about it.”

But her heart was pounding harder and she looked back towards the stage, searching for the young man who’d smelled so sweet to her.

He was gone.

A shiver coursed along her spine.

Who was he? Now that her mother had pretty much confirmed what she’d partly worked out herself, she’d have to find him.

“Enjoy the festivities, and let’s make this Festival the best yet.”

The Alpha on stage finished up his speech, and the crowd cheered and clapped.

Well, that Beta was the best lead she had, and since the main reason she’d come to the Spring Festival was to find out if she did have a mate in one of the other Victorian packs, then she may as well start the hunt.

“I think I’ll go mingle, Mum. Anything else I should look for?”

Her mother shrugged. “You’ll know with that first kiss, but since you already have your mating mark, you may as well just put a bikini top on and show off your belly, see if your mate comes to you.”

“Mu…m!”

Why did her mother always joke about it in that way? She’d like some sort of introduction before she met the person she had to marry. Why couldn’t she have both?

Megan stomped off into the fray, pushing past small Gammas and larger Betas. There were people everywhere.

Mostly strangers, although some of her pack were camped around the fire, chatting.

What did that guy say his name was?

Damn, she didn’t think he had introduced himself at all.

What could she remember about him?

A sense of the man himself came into her mind. A strong, good person, and she didn’t even know his name.

Fuck!

The Alphas were standing near the stage, and she took a breath, gathering her wits. Was it time to expose her mark and charge around asking who her mate was?

No. She wasn’t quite ready for that yet. She’d rather know who he was first. Although she loved their legends and the idea that Fate would choose someone perfect for her, she wanted him to like her on her own merits. Not just because Fate said she was the right one.

Maybe she was being silly, but still. She wanted that for herself.

She moved closer and nudged her way into the circle.

“Hi, I’m Megan.”

The Alphas turned towards her, and she gave them what her mother termed her super wattage smile.

The overweight Alpha nodded at her.

“You’re from the Greensborough pack. Welcome.”

“Thank you. It’s great to be here. I was wondering if you could help me. I met someone earlier, and didn’t grab his name. He was a Beta. Short brown hair, had a clipboard.”

The Alpha began to nod. “That would be Lucas, a member of my pack. Why do you need him?”

The Alpha in front of her narrowed his eyes, and she had the feeling that if she said the wrong thing here, Lucas would be punished.

She straightened to her full height and stared him in the eye. “My dad has asked me to meet people from other packs, to learn from them. We can always take away new ways of strengthening our pack, and I’m sure Robinvale is a great place.”

The man nodded, but didn’t say anything.

“Is there a reason I can’t speak to Lucas?”

“He’s busy.”

This was not appropriate behaviour for an Alpha. To be so cagey and rude. Despite the litany that sprung to her tongue, Megan bowed out, her parents’ reputation foremost in her mind.

They’d only just arrived. She didn’t want to cause trouble already.

“Thank you for your help. I’ll go socialise with people who aren’t busy, then.”

She gave them a small smile, swivelled on her heel, and walked away.

What was with that Alpha, anyway? Just as she’d suspected, he was an arsehole.

She made her way through the crowd, spotted her parents and gave them a wave.

Where would Lucas be? He was obviously an organiser of sorts, so where were they?

She moved through the eating area and walked around the back to the storage areas and trucks.

There she found him, and she froze, staring as he hefted huge boxes of food, her heart pounding with the steadiness of a bongo drum.

Wow.

This was it.

She swallowed hard and continued to watch him.

He was a Beta, not what she had expected, but she pushed away any twang of disappointment. Aaron’s mate was a Gamma, and a more loyal, hardworking member of the pack you would never find.

He was her height, just.

Perfect for kissing.

She walked closer, her gaze running over the strength in his shoulders, the strong angle of his jaw.

As though sensing her, he turned, his brow furrowing as he straightened and twisted to face her.

“Megan. What are you doing here?”

He wiped his sweat-dotted forehead with the back of his hand.

His tone was strange, as though he weren’t happy to see her. Which he should be, shouldn’t he? If they were mates?

“I’m sorry, I felt really bad about our run-in before, and needed to apologise properly, and introduce myself, too. I’m Megan Nox.”

She stuck out her hand, and he stared at it without moving.

She waited, counting her heartbeats while she stood like an idiot in front of about twenty other men.

“Lucas Noll.” He extended his hand and their skin connected, frissons of electricity pulsing into her arm.

His eyes widened, and he pulled his arm back so fast he knocked her off balance. She toppled forward, and he reached out to steady her. A delicious groan rumbled out of him as his hands touched her arms.

The sound vibrated in her mind, pulling at her core and making her melt.

“You need to go.”

She shook her head. “No. Please. I need to know what this is.”

“No. You don’t. I have my job. I must do it. I’m a Beta, you’re an Alpha-born. Go meet some other Alphas.”

That wasn’t fair. “But, Lucas.”

“Go.” His voice deepened, and the growl behind the words would not be denied. She bowed her head and backed away.

Not even her father had made her drop her eyes like that. Ever. What sort of secret Alpha power did he have lurking behind all that submissive talk?

She moved back into the crowd, her head spinning. She’d met her mate. She was sure of it. And he didn’t want her. What was she going to do now?