by Tami Payton
I look around and can see the disappointment and frustration on a lot of the guys faces. There are a lot of guys that seem like they don’t really care and it seems like that they are the unmated guys. I mean that seems reasonable, why should they? The mated guys are just pissed that they are losing their side pieces now. If you’re mated to your soul mate that should be enough for you, I know I don’t want anyone other than Cammie. I hear Bruce yelling at Olivia, telling her it’s time to leave but she’s having fun with another girl and tells him she will be home in a little bit. I smile at the thought of him at home waiting for her. Maybe things can make a change around here? The pack has lived in the old ways for so long and I just haven’t seen it, having Cammie come and bulldoze her way in could be a good thing.
I walk up to her and plant myself between her thighs and burry my head in her neck. “I’m so sorry sweetheart. It’s been this way since before I was born and I only realized tonight when I walked in how bad it really was. When I was sitting here with your dad and Cameron and you weren’t here, I realized that it needed to change. It wasn’t right and we were trying to figure out how to make the changes happen.” She pulls on my hair and I look up at her. “Mason, a lot of things are gonna have to change. That whole ’women are to be seen and not heard’ thing? Yeah, you brought the wrong girl here for that.” I laugh as she waves her hand at that motion. “Um, yeah don’t I know that one.” Hey, not funny.” I flinch, acting hurt as she smacks me. “I’m serious, Mason. This pack is living in the past and it’s got to change. These women deserve to be respected and I won’t be disrespected.” I smile at her. “You are just the woman to make those changes babe. I love you and will stand by you, no matter what.” I pull her to me and kiss her. Thankful that she kisses me back.
“Well that was one hell of a show out there Cammie. Made me want to jump in on the fighting but then made me want to beat Brucey boy’s ass as well.” Cameron slides onto the bar next to Cammie. She rolls her eyes and bumps her shoulder into his. “Shut up Cam. Why are you still here? Didn’t I tell you to go home to Sarah?” He nods. “I will, I just wanted to see how things were gonna end, besides I don’t like seeing people throw up.” He shivers and she laughs. “Well, you better get use to it. You’ve got a lot of that ahead of you. Now go see Sarah. NOW!” He looks at me funny before he jumps down and I shrug. Cammie leans over and gives him a hug, I hear her whisper in his ear. “Congrats big bro.” He still looks confused as he walks out of the door. I look at her as she has the biggest smile on her face. “Um, what was all that about?” She looks at me and then over to Sam, who has just walked up next to us. “Is there a reason Cameron just walked out of here looking like he’s lost?” Cammie laughs. “Well, I may have just told him Congrats and he has no reason why.” She shrugs and I look at Sam and he seems just as confused as I am. “Cammie, what’s going on?” She smiles. “Oh, Sarah’s pregnant.” Sam and I just stare at her and she grins even bigger before she shouts. “I’m gonna be an Aunt and your gonna be a Grandpa!”
CAMMIE
Waking up in Mason’s arms has become one of my favorite things, the feel of him wrapped around me is the best feeling in the world. I snuggle into him and his hold on me tightens. “Morning sweetheart.” He whispers in my ear and I moan, I will never tire of the sound of his voice. I turn and seek out his mouth and melt into him. “Good morning.” He looks down at me and it amazes me at how much love I see in his eyes for me. I can’t believe I almost gave this up. I sigh at the thought of it. “So, what is on the agenda for today?” I roll away from him and manage to get out of bed even though I would rather stay with him but I know we have a lot to do. “He grunts as he follows me. “Well, I’ve been gone for awhile so, I have to get caught up on all of the pack’s business. We have the meeting with Johnson this afternoon to go over your training but I would like you to be with me to go over everything with the pack. I want you to understand everything we do.” I smile at him, loving the fact that he wants me beside him instead of in the background. “I would love to be involved in the pack’s affairs. I will help anyway I can.” I wrap my arms around his waist and reach up and kiss him. He smiles as he kisses me back.
We head towards his office after I have enough coffee in me to function, Jacob is already there sitting at his desk. “Hey, I didn’t expect to see you guys this morning. What can I do for you?” He looks up at us and I swear he looks like he doesn’t want us here. I shake it off and smile. Mason smiles. “Well, I ‘ve been gone and thought I’d just check in and see how things have been going. I also wanted Cammie to just see how things ran and get an idea on how things went. I want her to be involved as much as possible with anything she wants to be able to.” A shadow flicks over Jacob’s face but he quickly pulls it in but I managed to catch it. He nods. “I understand, I mean as your mate you want her involved in the packs business.” He looks at me. “Cammie, is there anything specific that you think you would want to handle? Anything specific that you want to take on? We do handle a lot of charities.” I think about it for a minute and then remember that Jenny comes and does all the inventory for the pack. “Well, I would like to start with the inventory and sales. I mean math has always been my thing so I can start there. I have a knack for it. That should be simple for me. I know Mason mentioned that there was a problem not to long with deliveries due to a mix up with numbers or something so I would love to handle all that.” I smile and Mason squeezes my hand. “I think that would be great. I know I suck at numbers and Jacob you’re not all that great at them either.” He laughs and shakes his head. “Hey, I’m not all that bad and that mix up wasn’t on our end. I think it was their fault.” He nods. “Ok, we can start you there and see how you do. Zander is sending someone out next week we can get you started on paperwork tomorrow.” Mason nods. “If you have time and feel up to it maybe you can go over the books and just make sure everything is up to date as well.” He shrugs and I nod. “Sure, no problem.” I glance at Jacob from the corner of my eyes and see the odd look on his face and a chill runs through me. Something is throwing me off. I will need to keep an eye on him, maybe look into that.
After going over everything with Jacob, Mason shows me his office and the area next to his where I will be working. It’s nice and cozy and makes me smile. He has me next to him and I love that. We head over to the warehouses next and I meet some of the workers and get familiar with everything over there since I will be handling the inventory. Everyone is nice and it seems like I’m not gonna have any problems with the employees. We grab some lunch before we head over to meet with Johnson, the trainer that is supposed to train me. Sam meets us at the dinner as well as Cam and Sarah. I stand up and hug her as she gets to the table. “Hey, how are you feeling today?” She smiles. “Better. I’m not as sick and I finally kept down some eggs.” I laugh and look at Cameron. “I hope you made those eggs?” He laughs and nods. “Yes, I did. I made her stay in bed while I did.” Sam laughs. “I can’t believe I’m gonna be a Grandpa. This is amazing and I’m so happy.” I can’t stop smiling, I’m so happy for them. We order and I can’t help but notice that Cam is hovering over Sarah as she orders and is making sure that everything, she eats is ok for the baby. I can’t hold back my laugh. “Cam, just stop. Her body knows what she needs. She’s gonna crave some really weird things, so get use to it now. Things are gonna be really weird from here on out you’re just gonna have to roll with it. If you keep hovering over her, she’s gonna end up killing you.” I shake my head and Sarah and Sam laugh. “She’s right son, I remember when your mom was pregnant with ya’ll. I was out of my mind with the cravings and my god. The mood swings were crazy.” He shakes his head. Cam’s eyes go wide as he looks at all of us and it makes us laugh even more. Mason looks at me and smiles. “How do you know all of this?” I shrug. “I volunteered at a clinic when I was in school. I saw a lot of teenage pregnancies, it’s sad how many young girls got into that situation and had no one to help them out.” He rubs his hand up and down his
back to soothe me.
An hour or so later we’re done eating and Sarah is ready for a nap. After a lot of arguing that she’s quite capable of doing that by herself she sends Cam off with us and we head over to the gym to meet with the trainer. I walk into the gym and gasp, it’s huge. “Wow, this place is amazing.” Mason places his hand on my lower back. “Yeah, we just had it redone a few years back. It’s been upgraded with the newest equipment, everything you can think of and need. Come on, Johnson is over by the ring.” I walk over to the padded ring and see two huge guys sparring in the ring. I take in their form and see that they are actually really good. I’m itching to get in and spar. Sam looks at me and grins, I know he can see it too. A timer goes off and they stop. “Ok, that was good Tom, next time you need to work on your sweeps and your footing.” The other guy, Tom, nods. “Thanks Tom. See you tomorrow.” He drops out of the ring and nods at Mason and heads towards the exit. “Hey Johnson.” Johnson looks up and realizes that we’re here. “Alpha.” He jumps down and nods. “I would like to introduce you to my mate, Cammie, her dad, Alpha of the Hallow Pack, Sam and her brother Cameron.” Johnson nods. “Cammie, it’s an honor to meet you and let me welcome you to the pack. Sam, Cameron, it’s great to see you again.” He nods to all of us. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Johnson.” I nod back at him; I still can’t get use to all of this nodding and crap. “So, what can I do for you, Alpha?” Johnson wipes his face and neck with a towel. Mason shakes his head. “Please, it’s Mason. I came today because we wanted to see about some private training lessons for Cammie.” Johnson looks at me and eyes me up and down. “I’m not sure I follow. Alpha’s mates don’t really interact in battles. Why would Cammie need to be trained?” Sam steps up then to explain. “Well, that’s the thing. You see Cammie isn’t just any wolf. Cammie is also an Alpha Female.” Johnson’s eyes go wide at hearing this and look at me again. “I’m sorry, did you say an Alpha Female? Wow. That’s. I mean there hasn’t been an Alpha Female in a while. Ok, have you had any training before?” He looks at me for answers and I nod. “I’ve had years of boxing, wrestling, karate, and MMA training. I can stand on my own in a ring or in a fight. I do however, lack when fighting in wolf form.” He nods as he takes in what I’ve told him. “Ok, I would like to start with what you do know and go from there. If you don’t mind me asking, where did you receive your training from?” I swallow as I look at Mason and Sam. I hear a low growl come from Mason. I straighten. “A former friend was a street MMA fighter, he was also a shifter, I was not aware of this. He took me under his wing when I was younger and taught me.” He looks at everyone and decides that he doesn’t need to know anymore right now. He just nods. “Ok, I can work with you in the afternoons. Say starting around one? Just eat a light lunch before you come in.” I nod. “Thank you.”
We head out and I feel good about how things are gonna go with him. I didn’t get any weird vibes from him. “I think he’s gonna do a good job. I want to hang around for a while and see how it goes. If that’s ok with you, Mason?” Sam looks at Mason for permission. I shake my head and hold back a laugh. “Of course, I figured you would. I expect you to do the same Cameron?” I look to Cameron and see him smile. “Yeah, can’t have my little sister getting crappy training. I have to make sure she’s getting the best.” He winks at me and I slap him on the back of the head. We all laugh and head home. The rest of the day is spent just relaxing, hanging around and settling in. Mason let’s me know a little bit more about his pack and I learn more about how things run. I ask about Jacob and how long he’s known him. “Jacob has been here forever; he was here when my dad was Alpha. He’s kinda like an Uncle to me, I’ve always been able to go to him with anything. I know he’s got the pack’s best interest in heart and if anything comes up and I have to leave I can trust him to handle things. He’s a great Beta.” I smile and nod. “I’m glad that you have someone there for you.” I snuggle up to him and hide the feelings that I have towards Jacob. I don’t want to say anything unless I have concrete evidence but something is bothering me and I always follow my gut.
We all gather for dinner and just as we sit down there’s a knock on the door. I look at Mason and he shrugs, as he answers I hear Jacob laughing. I frown as I walk over. “Hey Jacob. What’s up?” He smiles at me. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you guys were eating. I came to invite the guys out for a beer. It’s been a while since we’ve had a guys night and thought it would be nice to just hang out.” He shrugs and looks at Mason, who in returns looks at me. I shrug. “Well, I mean we were just sitting down for dinner. Why don’t you join us and we can have drinks afterwards?” I look at him and smile. Yeah, I’m on to you. Mason smiles a huge smile. “That sounds great. You will love Sarah’s cooking.” Jacob raises his eyebrows at me but smiles. “Ok, if you’re sure you don’t mind?” I smile and nod. “Of course. There’s plenty.” I move to the side and let him in. I need to keep him close and this seems to be the perfect way. I smile as I follow him to the table.
“Hey everyone, Jacob is gonna join us for dinner.” Sarah smiles, the generous person that she is. “Please, sit down. There’s more than enough to go around. Let me get you a plate.” Cameron looks at him and smiles, it doesn’t go across his whole face. “Hey, Jacob. How’s it going?” Jacob nods. “Not so bad. I came to see if ya’ll wanted to grab some drinks and didn’t realize ya’ll were eating. Cammie instead invited me in for some home cooking and drinks. Seems like I got the better deal.” He smiles at me and I nod. He turns to Sarah, who arrived with his plate and he thanks her. Cam looks at me with a question on his face and I shrug. He narrows his eyes at me and I shake my head but I know we will revisit this subject again and soon.
MASON
It’s been two weeks since Cammie has moved into my home here at the pack and she’s adapted great. The females love her and she’s even formed some groups for them and they are having so much fun. The training that she’s been doing has been rough but she’s been keeping up with it. She improved in her skills and I couldn’t be prouder. Sam left a few days ago, Sarah and Cameron are still here. I shake my head at the way Cameron is trying to split his overprotectiveness between Cammie and Sarah. He seems to think because he missed out on so much of Cammie’s life that he has to make up for it. I mean, I understand but it irritates her. Then with Sarah it’s a mate thing and with her being pregnant it’s even worse. I can’t even imagine how I would be if Cammie was pregnant. Sarah is keeping busy helping Cammie with the groups that Cammie has organized for the females, both mated and not mated, now that they have set up business and have things to do instead of sitting at home, they are so much happier. Sarah has talked about doing something like this at home and Cammie is more than happy to help her as well. Cameron has been supervising Cammie’s training, I guess you could call what he’s doing more of watching. I go and watch every now and then and catch Cameron just sitting to the side and taking notes. It makes me laugh.
“Hey babe, how’s things been going at the office?” I snatch Cammie around the waist as she comes out of the kitchen, careful not to spill her precious coffee. She squeals and holds her cup out so it doesn’t spill. She slaps me on the arm. “You could have spilled it.” I laugh and bite at her neck. “I would never endanger such priceless property like that.” She laughs. “You better not, that’s punishable by death.” She glares at me and then smiles before she places a quick kiss on my lips. “Things are going good. I have a meeting this morning with the rep from Zander’s pack, it got put off from last week. Hopefully everything is in order on their end, I know it’s good on our end, I’ve been over everything. I mean, the paperwork was a mess. I don’t know how the warehouse worked.” She plops down on the couch and sighs. I laugh and sit next to her. “I’m sure you figured it all out. If anyone could it would be you.” She sets her cup down and that’s my cue, I grab her and pull her on my lap. She wraps her arms around my neck and nips me. “Of course, I did, now everything is perfect.” I smile as I kiss her. “Jus
t like you.” I devour her mouth and get lost in her taste and just like that we’re both late to the office.
We finally make it to the office and head to our different areas, I smile as she winks at me and closes her office door. I shake my head as I sit at my desk and take in the stack of papers in front of me. My responsibilities never end, there are times I wish that I didn’t need to worry about any of this but it’s what an Alpha does. I have so many people depending on me so, it’s time to get to work. I’m going through some of the budget plans when I hear some yelling outside of the office. My door opens and I see Jason, one of my young wolves who Bruce took under his care walk in, I groan and rub my head. “Mason, we need to talk.” I look to Shelly, my assistant who looks terrified and nod at her. “It’s ok Shelly, I will see him.” She nods and closes the door behind her as she hurries out of the room. I turn to Jason and I know he can see how pissed I am that he’s barged into my office because he winces. I sigh. “Look Jason, I know that you’ve had some issues about how things have been going lately and I understand. A lot of members of the pack, especially the older members aren’t use to change but barging into my office is not the way to handle it. I will listen to you today but if you ever decided to do this again, I will not be so nice and calm about it. Do you understand me?” I look him in his eyes and use my Alpha authority so he understands that I’m not joking around. He lowers his head and swallows hard. “Yes, Alpha. I understand. I’m sorry, I am just upset and wasn’t thinking.”