Becoming Alpha

“That’s enough. Go.” Chris backed his words with so much power that the hair on my arms stood on end. Imogene growled as she stormed off.



“You’re more dominant than her?”



“A lot of people are,” Chris said. “She just likes to act tough and annoy the crap out of most everyone.” His eyes were still glowing.



“What’s with that?” I asked.



“Sorry.” He closed them, and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, they were back to normal sky-blue.



“Why do they change?”



“Wolf. Power. Magic. Take your pick.”



“Cool.” I had no idea what that meant, but from the short answer, it didn’t seem like he was up for chatting about it. I took a bite of my sandwich to keep myself from asking any more questions.



We started walking from the cafeteria to the class building. I noticed he was limping. “Hey, are you okay? Shouldn’t you be in bed?”



“Nah. I’m fine.” He tapped my bandage. “Quite a scare you gave us.”



“You’re telling me.” I shuddered. “That thing was no Brad Pitt.”



He reached toward me but hesitated. “Listen, you’re going to have to face this whole thing before too much longer.”



“You mean Imogene?”



He nodded. “She wants Dastien as her mate. They’re family friends, and their parents have been trying to get them together ever since they were kids. Everyone’s wondering what you’re going to do.”



“I honestly don’t know.” I took a giant bite to give myself time to think about what I was going to say. “I’m having enough of a time coming to terms with the possibility of going furry. Add in the whole choosing a guy for the rest of my life…that’s a lot of pressure on a girl.”



He grabbed my hand. “In the beginning it started with mated pairs. Meaning that the mates were two halves of one soul. It was easier then. You saw each other and you just knew. You were drawn together like magnets. If one died, so did the other. But that’s legend now. People fall in love and if the wolves accept each other, then you’re good to get married. But there’s still no divorce for us. So be sure.”



I knew exactly how that whole magnet thing felt, but that was crazy. I had my own full soul, thank you very much. “That sounds intense. How can I possibly figure out who I want to spend the next fifty years with?”



He laughed. “It’s a lot longer than that. Try hundreds.”



Chris had to be joking with this. The bell rang, and I was happy for it. “I gotta get to class.”



“Dastien’s my friend, but since you haven’t decided yet…”



I didn’t have time to move. He swooped down, and brushed his lips against mine.



I really want her to like me. She’s so pretty and nice. And so much stronger than she thinks. I hope she doesn’t pick Dastien. Please don’t let her pick him. I know I could make her happy. She smells good.



My mind raced by the time he pulled away.



“Just something to think about. You have options.”



He walked back down the stairs before I could remember to breathe.



I leaned against the lockers. My visions had changed for sure. Instead of seeing something that had happened to the person, I read their minds. And I heard things I didn’t want to hear.



As much as I might have wanted it, I didn’t feel for Chris what I felt for Dastien. And I couldn’t read Dastien. Even if Chris was easy and fun and sweet, I craved Dastien. Chris’ full-on kiss left me a little breathless, but Dastien’s stupid barely-there kiss on my cheek shattered me.



Christ. This had just gotten way more complicated.



I banged my head against the lockers a couple of times. Why didn’t I dodge the kiss? Or at the very least, why didn’t I push him away? I’d never felt so guilty in my life. I wanted to upchuck the sandwich, but forced myself to finish eating it instead.



I wished Dastien hadn’t left this morning. It’d be amazing if we could have an actual talk about what he wanted from me.



I needed a distraction.



Imogene walked past me with a devilish grin on her face.



I nodded at her. Distraction taken care of. I wasn’t much for skipping class—I was already behind—but from what I’d put together from the little snippets of visions I’d had, that girl nearly got me eaten by vampires. I grabbed Meredith before she went into class. “I need to talk to you.”



“Now? Because if it’s about making out with Chris, then maybe it can wait.” She waggled her eyebrows at me.