Carter sat dumbfounded for just a few moments before throwing a wad of bills on the table and sprinting after Brand. Carter burst out of the restaurant just in time to see Brand's car peel out of the parking lot.

What the hell had happened? Carter's first though was that he'd done something to upset Brand, but he quickly realized that was self-centered of him, though it could possibly be true. He pulled out his phone to call Brand as he opened his car door, then simply sat while he waited for him to pick up.

It rang and rang before going to voicemail. Carter felt his skin starting to itch, his wolf screaming to take over, to chase down their mate and make sure he was okay. But Carter held back. He didn't have that right yet, no matter what his body and wolf told him. He was Brand's, but Brand wasn't his.

Carter tried calling again, but no luck. He considered driving to Brand's office to see if he could catch him, but that sounded completely pathetic. And if it turned out that he had done something to scare Brand off, that was the exact wrong thing to do.

He didn't feel comfortable driving until he had his wolf under control, so he sat in the car for another fifteen music, music on, trying to distract himself enough to calm down and drive. Finally, he started the car. But he couldn't imagine going back to his empty home, dwelling on the failed lunch and wondering if Brand was okay for three hours until Jax got home. But where else could he go? For the last two years, his entire focus had been on work and Jax's recovery. Aaron had always been the one to make friends. When he had passed, people had brought meals and took care of him, but as the immediacy faded, Carter did nothing to feed those relationships beyond slogging through a pile of thank you notes.

He needed to talk to someone who could give him some sense of reassurance. The only person who came to mind was Sean. It seemed ridiculous that the only person he could think of to turn to was a seventeen-year-old whose words had turned his world upside down two days ago. He wasn't even sure how he could contact Sean.

He wanted to smack himself in the head. There was someone else he could turn to. Someone he should turn to. Alpha Williams. And she would know how to contact Sean.

Other than Jax's accident, Carter had always hesitated to lean too heavily on Alpha Williams. White Falls was a big back, and Carter was a self-sufficient alpha. Until now, he'd been able to handle almost everything life had thrown his way with minimal assistance from others. And he'd never had to ask for that assistance.

He opened his emails and scrolled to the reminder for the full moon gathering. There was a contact number at the bottom.

Before he could talk himself out of it, Carter dialed the number. A voice answered on the second ring.

"White Falls. Dare speaking."

Carter felt a small sense of relief that he hadn't gone directly to Alpha Williams, but also that a stranger hadn't answered. He and Dare weren't close, but they were definitely not strangers.

"Dare? It's Carter Schoenfeld. I was wondering if I could talk to your mother?"

"She's in a meeting right now. Is it urgent, or can I take a message?"

"Uhh… It's not… I guess I could… It's hard to talk about over the phone…"

"Tell you what. If you're free, why don't you head on over to the house? She'd love to see you."

"I don't want to be a bother. I can just… wait. Maybe you can make me an appointment?" Carter was regretting the whole idea already. What was his alpha going to do other than tell him to man up and stop acting like a lovesick teenager?

"Your appointment is this afternoon, for whenever you get here." Dare's voice was heavy with command and for once in Carter's life, it was a relief to submit to someone's orders.

"Yes, sir. Thank you."

"See you soon, Carter." Dare's voice was back to normal as he said good bye.

"See you soon."

Carter took his time plugging his phone into the charger, buckling his seat belt, and adjusting his mirrors. The last was unnecessary when no one else drove his car, but each step helped him calm further. He was still anxious about talking to Alpha Williams, but Dare's command helped him let go of some of that. Dare was going to be a good pack alpha someday.

* * *

The Williams' mansion was intimidating outside of pack events. The hustle and bustle of other people distracted from its size and grandness. Carter pulled up in front of the entrance and stood awkwardly outside his car for a moment. Maybe there was a side entrance he was supposed to look for? It felt a bit…much… approaching the looming front doors.

Carter didn't have long to wonder, however, because the door swung open and Dare stepped out to meet him.

"Carter, great to see you. Come on in."

Carter was pretty sure Dare was working some super alpha magic, because Carter felt his emotions calm drastically in his presence. And that was the difference between an alpha and an Alpha.

"Really, if it's inconvenient, I can come back another time," Carter said. And by another time, he meant let's just forget this whole thing. Carter felt like Dare could read his mind as Dare gave him a knowing grin.

"Nonsense. Mom just wrapped up an appointment and she has the afternoon free." Dare lead him down a hallway and rapped on a thick, wood door, not waiting to open it.

Alpha Alice Williams was already on her feet, headed toward the door. "Carter! So good to see you." She embraced him in a hug that reminded him of his mother's hugs, though there was no forgetting that Alice Williams was all alpha, even with her motherly embrace. "Come sit. Dare, would you mind sending in some iced tea? Or would you prefer lemonade, Carter?"

Carter almost said iced tea, but switched to lemonade at the last moment. He didn't need any caffeine right now.

As the door closed behind Dare, the Alpha lead Carter away from her desk to a corner with a small couch and several comfortable chairs.

"How is your boy doing? I saw him romping around with a crew of youngsters Friday night."

Jax was an easy topic. "He's doing great. Dr. Tyler is pleased with his improvement and he's fitting in at school a little better this year." All thanks to Brand.

A softer knock, much more timid than Dare's, echoed in the room and Alpha Williams stood to take the tray of drinks and set them in front of us.

"So how can I help you?"

Carter twisted his glass in his hands, unsure of how to explain himself.

"Is it something to do with Jax?"

Her question startled Carter. "No, no. Jax really is doing great. Better than ever, really. It's me."

The silence stretched as Carter tried again to find the words he needed.

"Would it help if I twenty-questioned you? Are you ill?"

Her teasing smile made Carter laugh. He'd never spent enough time with Alpha Williams to get much of a sense for her personality behind her position.

"I spoke to Sean Friday night," he said finally, and Alpha William's smile faded as she nodded understandingly.

"I take it he… gave you a bit of a shock?"

Carter huffed a half laugh of agreement. "You could say that." And then he found himself spilling the entire story to her. About realizing Brand was his true mate while he was with Aaron. How the grief and the guilt kept him from approaching Brand for so long. Brand's rejection, Carter's plan to pursue him gently, and finally Sean's words.

"I feel like I'm going crazy," he admitted as he wrapped up his story, feeling emotionally drained, but like a giant weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

"You're not crazy," Alpha Williams said with a reassuring smile. "Though I'm sure your wolf is driving you up the wall."

Carter nodded.

"I'm afraid I can't offer you any new advice. You're completely right in trying to hold to your original plan of romancing your mate, waiting for him to be ready. And if Sean said he will come around, you can trust those words. They may be the truest words you've heard in your life."

Another piece of anxiety broke and crashed to the ground at those words. "How can he…? What is it that he does?"

Alpha William's eyes were guarded and Carter felt as if his very soul was being weighed and balanced in that gaze. "You realize that Sean is special, and the fact that he trusted you enough to say something is very unusual."

"I gathered that from the talking to Luke gave me after Sean left."

Mentioning Luke seemed to settle a question in her mind. "He's a seer. They're very rare, and there are creatures and people out there who will stop at nothing to take control of one."

I couldn't help but shiver at the dark edge in her voice. "I would never put anyone in the pack in danger. Especially a child."

The Alpha's gaze drifted to the window. Her voice was soft as she said, "He won't be a child for much longer." Carter could tell she was talking to herself, so he didn't respond. She shook her head and turned her focus back on him after a moment.

"I appreciate your discretion," she said.

"Of course, alpha."

"In the meantime, the best thing you can do is stay the course. But let your wolf out as much as possible. I know you don't have a lot of protected land near where you live, but you know that pack land is always open to you. If you'd rather not be driving back and forth so much, there's a guest cabin off the back entrance to the forest if you'd like to stay overnight, with or without Jax. I'll have Dare email you the code to get in."

She stood, signaling their time was over. "Thank you, Alpha."

"Oh, pish. I've done nothing more than lend a listening ear. And what good is an alpha who doesn't have time to listen to the problems of her pack?"

"And what good is a pack member who doesn't appreciate the work of a good alpha?" Carter countered.

She walked Carter out to the front door and he waved farewell to Dare, who was working at a desk in an open room as they passed.

Alpha Williams embraced him once more. "Best of luck, Carter. I look forward to celebrating your mating with you, whenever it happens."

Carter felt lighter than he had since before Aaron's death. He trusted Alpha Williams when she said that Sean's words were true. With that uncertainty gone, his wolf had grudgingly settled, frustrated that he had to continue to wait, but appeased by the fact that he would get what he wanted in the end.