Chapter Twenty-Seven
Conrad
All of the discomfort I had pertaining to the unmated alpha fell to the wayside as Samson confessed his longings.
“How did I not see that?” Jasper clapped, his face smiling broadly. “How does your kind know?”
“You mean gorilla?” Samson’s face turned bright red. He’d been very tight to the vest on his animal. I knew from the rumor mill that was beta life that everyone had their theory on his animal, but the guy was somehow able to mask his scent from being figured out, and since he never went on pack runs, no one, save possibly Travis knew for sure. I’d honestly never thought gorilla. His magic was strong.
“Yeah…that.” Jasper smiled, not looking as shocked as I felt. He was having too much fun with this, and if playing little matchmaker/advice columnist made him this happy, bring on the single folks.
“Shall we go to the kitchen for tea?” Because as much as I trusted Jasper, and Samson for that matter, having another alpha in my bedroom annoyed the daylights out of my tiger. Also, finding out the mating signs of anyone felt too personal even if it was pertinent.
“Yes. Tea is perfect.” Jasper leapt up, probably faster than he should, given the size of his belly. We settled into the kitchen, me making the tea and Jasper plating some cookies he’d made earlier in the week.
“This is— You don’t— I didn’t mean for this to be a big deal.”
“Samson, this is a huge deal. A mate—a true mate—is the biggest gift bestowed upon a shifter. If you have found yours, cookies and tea are the bare minimum needed to celebrate.” Jasper took a huge bite out of one of the cookies before placing the plate on the counter we were all standing around.
“Alex doesn’t want a mate. Ever.” He looked down. Poor guy. I remember being right where he was, and it is a crap place to be.
“Samson, if you had talked to me when I first arrived in Distance and discovered Jasper, you’d have heard me saying the same thing to myself. Jasper wanted it to be him and Owen against the world.” And yet, somehow, he saw through the pain and hurt and accepted me as his. Luckiest alpha alive. That’s who I was.
“It’s true.” Jasper grabbed another cookie before sliding the plate to Samson in a very not-subtle move. “I wanted no part of life with an alpha, for obvious reasons. And then Conrad came and stole my heart.”
“How? I don’t understand.” Poor alpha.
“Alex and I have very different histories. I made a choice to be with a monster. Therefore, I needed to forgive myself enough in order to trust I would never make such a mistake again. Jasper was patient and let me do that on my own, being there for me when I needed it even when I didn’t know he was there.”
I could see by the look in his eyes, Samson didn’t get it, but Jasper wasn’t only talking to him, he was sharing a part of his heart with me I hadn’t seen before, and it gave me a new perspective on our courtship, for lack of a better word.
The entire time I thought he didn’t trust me and he probably didn’t, not really. What I hadn’t realized was he hadn’t trusted himself. I reached over, needing to feel his touch, sliding my hand under the back of his shirt.
“It’s true, I was a creeper, and that’s probably not something I’d recommend.” I chuckled slightly at the memory of sleeping under his window each night.
“What he means is his tiger protected me each night, sleeping under my window, making sure none would do me harm.” He leaned his head into me. “It was romantic or would’ve been had I known.”
“Not creepy,” I teased. “Not even a little bit.”
“Fine, creepy but sweet.” He glanced up and I stole a kiss, not caring about our audience.
“I—I—I did that when he first came. I was walking home, and I could hear him crying out in a nightmare and my animal took over. I usually can control him, but not with our omega in such distress.” And now his face was the color of a fire truck, which he quickly tried to hide with a sip from his tea cup.
“Because he is yours to protect even if you are not his,” I more asked than told.
“Yeah. I never went back, though. I’m not pack. The alpha would skin me alive if he found out.”
“Travis isn’t like that. And if you think he doesn’t know who has been sleeping on his property, you don’t know him very well.” Nor had I before becoming beta. I’d assumed he stumbled across me on accident, when he had just waited for the right moment. He was so different from the stories his brother-in-law told of his early days as alpha. He truly grew into his role.
“I still should be careful. But I want to pursue Alex at the same time. It’s a conundrum.” He took another sip.
“Just be patient. That’s my best advice. If he is your—”
I was cut off with a snarl.
“Since he is your mate,” I corrected. No sense pissing off his animal. “He will come around when the time is right. For now, just be there if he needs you and make sure you tend to your animal. He seems a little bit forceful right now.” Understatement. Of. The. Year.
“Is this what you think, too, Jasper?”
“Samson, patience will get you far. And, yes, you need to figure out a way to be patient while controlling your animal. Maybe ask to join the pack. Having an alpha sometimes helps.”
“Our kind isn’t like that, and Alex isn’t pack. If he chooses to go back, I don’t want to be tied here.”
I nodded in understanding. The last thing he would want to do was accidentally isolate himself from the object of his affection.
“Alex will never go back. His pack didn’t even look for him, and there is no way no one in pack sensed the lie. They abandoned him. That more than anything has his wolf in such a state.” Jasper took a deep breath. “While we both were victims, the crimes were very different. I was abused and left for dead by the one who should have taken care of me the most.”
I growled, and Jasper elbowed me in the side in a not-so-gentle command for my tiger to pipe down.
“Alex was abandoned. Yes, he was held prisoner, but not the crime that hurt him the most.”
And this time, Samson growled.
“I can’t even with you alphas.” Jasper shook his head. “We are stronger than you realize.”
“You, my omega, are the strongest male I know.” I wrapped my arms around him from behind, my fingertips not quite touching.
“And at that, I will bid my farewell.”
“Thanks for the house call. It is nap time, and Owen gets grumpy if we wake him.”
“I get that. I get grumpy if people wake me, too.” Samson smiled, his posture more relaxed than I’d seen it before. “And thanks for listening.”
“Anytime.” And I meant it, too. Being new to a pack, an outsider, especially one not of the same animal, was rough. Doing so with your true mate there, but not with you? Excruciating. But was all worth it, something I hoped Samson would soon discover.
Samson left, the door barely clicking closed before Jasper had my hand in his and was all but dragging me down the hallway to our bedroom.
“Get naked,” he demanded two entire seconds before we heard Owen’s little I’m up cry.
“I’ll get Owen changed.” I kissed his forehead as he rolled his eyes.
“Later you’re all mine.” He put his fists on his hips in false indignation.
“No, my sweet omega. You are wrong. I am always yours.”
Truer words were never spoken.