Same Time Next Year (Tundra Wolves Book 1)

by Maggie Walsh

  Caleb,

  It’s time. I will see you tomorrow. Happy Birthday.

  -R

  ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

  Caleb sat on the couch of his parents’ home dressed in his best pair of black slacks, a midnight blue button down, and black loafers. His knee bounced up and down out of control as the nerves raged inside him. It was mid-afternoon and he had been sitting there since eleven that morning.

  He had trouble sleeping, which surprised him. Usually after a pack run he was exhausted and ready to sleep for eight to ten hours, but after he got home and read the latest letter, which was more like a note, Caleb’s mind couldn’t rest. There were just too many questions rolling around inside him.

  He was able to fight the need to get up until eight, then spent over an hour in the bathroom. He had no idea what to expect, or where the day would lead him, but he wanted to be prepared for anything. He shaved, showered, and primped. Plucked a few wayward hairs from his brows, checked his nose for any stragglers, used his favorite moisturizer all over his body, making sure to pay extra attention to his dry, calloused hands. He couldn’t get all the grease stains off, but he did manage to get most of them. Caleb trimmed his groin hair, and even made sure he was clean inside, using an enema. As he did, Caleb thought he was being ridiculous and fought against it, but something inside him told him he needed to be prepared for anything.

  He ran down to the kitchen for breakfast and his family had all given him the eye. When he asked why, Dell had mentioned his time in the bathroom being wasted if he was just going to come down dressed in his usual dirty, greasy jeans and tee he wore for work, along with his black combat boots. They thought maybe with today being... special, he would dress more appropriately.

  He originally thought of getting gussied up, especially after the preparation, but then a moment of defiance took over and he said, “Screw everyone.” They had all been tight-lipped to him all these years and he just accepted it, so screw them. He was going to dress the way he wanted. But after Dell’s comment, he just wanted to rush upstairs and change. So, after breakfast he did just that after another quick shower. He didn’t want the lingering scent of the oil and grease that never seemed to come out of his clothes to cling to him. Then, he threw on some of his favorite cologne for good measure.

  Now here he sat, dressed like he was either going to church, or out on a date, in his good clothes, perfectly cleaned and groomed, smelling fantastic, with his short light-brown hair brushed back, not a hair out of place.

  The clock on the mantle struck three, and as the last bong rang, the doorbell chimed. Caleb jumped slightly and held his breath. Was this it?

  Caleb stood and brushed down his slacks, then the front of his shirt, as he saw his father go for the door. He heard whispers in the foyer and he turned to face the doorway as he slid his hands into his front pockets.

  His father stepped into his view, followed by Dell, and then the most gorgeous man he had ever seen. Caleb’s breath caught in his throat and his heart seemed to stop for a moment before it began to beat at an accelerated rhythm from the realization of who had just stepped into his life. It was the Adonis from the bar that night. The one who had tried to buy him a drink. The man he had been fantasizing about for four years. He was here, standing in Caleb’s home, and looking even hotter than he had four years ago. The guy’s hair was longer than it had been and was now almost to his waist, his muscles looked bigger, and those amazing green eyes looked even more intense, and they were staring right at him with want and hunger.

  Caleb swallowed hard. He had never had anyone look at him like the man before him was looking at him now. Something inside him was pushing for him to drop to his knees and expose his throat to the man, then beg to let him suck the man’s cock. A heat was building inside him that Caleb just couldn’t control. His need to submit fully to this man gripped him and he had to fight hard to control it. He wouldn’t embarrass himself, or his family in front of this stranger, but gods, someone needed to do something soon, or Caleb would lose the fight and drop his pants, then bend over and offer himself for the man’s taking.

  “Caleb, this is Alpha Ridge Heart. Ridge, this is my son Caleb, as you already know,” his father introduced.

  The guy, Alpha Ridge, smiled brightly, showing perfect white teeth and took a slow step into the room. Their gazes remained locked as Caleb took an unconscious step forward.

  “I know you,” Caleb whispered, as he took another step closer.

  “You do?” His father asked in surprise.

  Caleb nodded absently, as he replied, “Yes. We met at the bar on my twenty-first birthday. He offered to buy me a drink, but I said no, then he was gone.”

  “So that was you?” Dell said, with a slight growl.

  “Yes. I’m sorry, Mark, Dell, but I just couldn’t stay away another minute. Now that he was over twenty, I wanted to see him face to face,” Ridge replied.

  “I understand, Ridge. It’s fine,” his father answered.

  “I know it went against our promise, but it’s been hard all these years. I’m truly sorry.”

  Caleb’s dad placed a hand on Ridge’s shoulder and smiled. “It’s okay, son. I understand. Why don’t Dell, Jag, and I go into the kitchen and give you two some time to talk alone?”

  Caleb was a little confused by his dad’s announcement of another man, but then realized there was another guy standing on Ridge’s other side. Caleb looked to the guy and saw that he was pretty hot himself, and something inside him snapped. Anger and fear consumed him from the thought of another man standing so close to Ridge, then he felt his teeth elongate and a low, deep growl came out, shocking him.

  Ridge’s smile widened as his father, brother, and the other stranger started to laugh. “Well that’s a good sign I would say. Come on, boys, there’s a fresh pot of coffee on in the kitchen and my lovely mate has made us an apple pie. I’m sure a slice won’t ruin our appetites for dinner,” his father said.

  “Wait, what is that smell?” Caleb asked.

  Everyone turned their full attention to him, as Dell asked, “What smell would that be, bro?”

  “It smells... it’s like rain on a summer day. It’s... I can’t describe it, it’s... it’s so... so…”

  “Intoxicating? Makes you want to roll around in it? Hold onto it forever?” Ridge asked, as he stepped closer.

  As Ridge now stood only a few feet before him, the delicious scent increased and Caleb just wanted to... roll around in it and hold onto it forever like Ridge had said.

  “It’s more intense now, isn’t it?” Ridge asked.

  “Yes,” Caleb whispered.

  “It is the scent of a true mate, Caleb. It is the most alluring scent there is to our kind. We cannot fight our draw to it. We can’t ignore it. It’s what tells us that we have found the other half of our soul. It is the scent of your true mate, Caleb. It is my unique scent to you and you alone,” Ridge explained gently.

  As the words penetrated his mind, Caleb was shocked to find that he instinctively knew that what Ridge was saying was true. As he heard the words, he was filled with a sense of understanding, and suddenly, his wolf howled happily inside him. His beast began to scratch and claw within him, wanting to claim what was his and to roll over and expose his belly. His wolf was getting into position, lowering the front of his body and raising his rear high, offering himself to his dominant mate.

  “Fuck,” Caleb whimpered.

  Ridge stepped closer, stopping only a few inches before him, then reached up and cupped his cheek tenderly. Caleb whimpered again and closed his eyes from the contact. He felt a rush of power from an alpha wolf press into him and fill him. The dominant beast licked his wolf, accepting his submission. The larger, more powerful wolf wrapped himself around his beast, pressing him down, showing his beast who he belonged to, who he submitted to for life, who ruled over his body, and Caleb and his wolf couldn’t be happier.

  He opened his eyes and stared into those beautiful green orbs. �
�My wolf fully accepts and submits to you, mate. He wants your dominance and your partnership. I’m confused,” Caleb admitted.

  “Why is that, mate?”

  “Because... because, I don’t even know you. I mean, I know you are my true mate, which in itself is a shock, but we just met and already…”

  “Already what, beautiful? Say it. You can trust me with anything and everything, mate. I promise you.”

  CHAPTER 5

  Shit, could he really tell this man, this stranger, everything that was going on inside him? Every fear, every want, every need? Looking in those amazing green eyes, Caleb felt safe and like he could completely trust Ridge. Somehow he knew he was safe. He took a deep breath and swallowed, then looked at Ridge, and replied, “Even though we just met, and my wolf’s reaction to you doesn’t feel wrong, his reaction and instinct feels... so right, but how? I mean, we have only just met, so how is it he feels that way already? And… you are an alpha, why would he look to you for partnership? You are our true mate and an alpha, a dominant, so he must be mistaken.”

  “He is not, Caleb. Yes, as an alpha I am a dominant, just like all alphas, but you are my true mate, not just someone I chose to mate, which means we have a soul connection. We instinctively know what each wants, needs, and desires. You, as a beta with gamma tendencies, are the perfect match to my alpha.”

  “But, I’m a beta, not a gamma,” Caleb argued, but at the same time he stepped closer, pressing his body against Ridge’s and rubbed his cheek on the man’s large hand.

  “You are a beta, mate, but you do have gamma inside you as well. It is because of your mother's genes. Your father is an alpha and when they had Dell, most of his alpha genes helped to create your brother, that is why he was born an alpha, but you are a second born, so you received some of his alpha genes, but the majority of your mothers gamma genes, making you a beta-gamma. If they were to have had another child, I am certain that child would have been an omega. It is the way of our people. Do you know why your parents are the perfect match, even though they are not true mates?”

  Caleb looked at him in confusion and shook his head no.

  “Because the best matching for an alpha is a delta, a gamma, or an omega. Rarely do an Alpha and beta mate unless that beta has an overwhelming amount of delta or gamma genes. And for an alpha to take on an omega as a mate is even more rare, because most alphas today understand that their mate, their love, is their partner in life, not their slave. Only extremely dominant alphas will choose an omega as a mate, because of their extreme submissiveness. They balance each other. Although I am dominant, especially in the bedroom, I am not a total Dom and do not wish to have a sub or slave. I want a partner, an equal, someone to share my life with. Someone who will give themselves to me freely in the bedroom no matter what I desire, but who will also be my other half, my partner out of the bedroom. Someone who will help me lead my pack. Be my advisor, my conscience. The person I need to answer to, so I don’t make mistakes for my people. Someone who will keep me grounded and slap me upside the head when I need it. That is what a beta-gamma mate will do. That is why your parents are so perfect together and why we have been matched, Caleb. Fate knows we are the perfect match and that we will make each other happy for the rest of our lives, as we care for one another, as we fulfill each other’s every need and desire.”

  “How did I not know?” Caleb asked in distress, as he pulled away and turned.

  “It is the way of our kind, Caleb. Surely you have seen the relationship between not only your parents, but the other mated wolves in your pack,” Ridge said, and Caleb could hear his confusion.

  He spun around to face his mate. “Of course I know that. How could I not growing up in a Tundra Wolf pack? As you said, it is the way of our breed. All alphas are dominant and each member is less dominant and more submissive the farther from an alpha gene they are born, and we all live sexually in some kind of Dom/sub relationship. Of course, I have seen each level of it growing up, because of all the different mating’s we have here. It is normal and natural to us. It is all just second nature to our kind, like breathing. It is where I am sure the humans got the whole BDSM thing from. Someone, somewhere came upon our breed and saw how our kind live and that lifestyle was born, but it is not a lifestyle choice for us, it is who we are. What I meant is how did I not know I was a beta-gamma? My whole life has been about me being a beta.”

  Ridge came to him and took Caleb’s hand in his. “As you know, none of us, except for an alpha pup, know what we will truly be until we hit eighteen. Only an alpha pup knows from birth. Our parents can tell the strongest part of who we are before we are eighteen, but the full coming together of our exact genes is not until then. Tell me, Caleb, did anyone in your life ever tell you after you turned eighteen that you were a beta-gamma?”

  Caleb shook his head. “No. No one ever said a word, but... right after my sixteenth birthday, I noticed my family stopped referring to me as Dell’s beta when he takes over our pack.”

  “I don’t think they knew about the gamma then, but they did know about me, and knew that I would come for you someday, Caleb. They also knew that as my mate that meant you could not be beta here, because you would be coming to my pack. But, you will be one of my betas there, Caleb. You will not only be alpha mate, but part of the alpha couple even though you are not an alpha. Because of your beta genes and all your training, you are perfect to be my mate and help me lead my pack. Our pack.”

  “So, they have always known about you? That’s why all the letters every year on my birthday?”

  Ridge smiled as he brushed a lock of hair from Caleb’s brow. “Yes, mate. Twenty-five years ago yesterday, my father and I, along with his betas, traveled here to meet with your father about our two packs forming an alliance. Neither my father nor your father was particularly thrilled with the idea, but we all know how rough it can get this far north, and to have allies would help immensely. Then there are the other two Tundra Wolf packs that are not too far from here. As you know, both packs believe in the old ways and live by them. They do not allow women at all into their packs and are disgusted with us for having even the small number of females we do. There have been many times that they have each threatened to go to war with us to take over our lands and change our ways.”

  Caleb moved back and walked to the couch, then dropped down upon it. “Yes, my father has taught me all about it.”

  Ridge sat beside him. “So you see, an allegiance between our packs would be the best thing for both of our people, but our fathers were still being a little stubborn about it. When your father refused to a meeting between our lands, because his mate was close to giving birth to their pup, we agreed to come here for the meeting. We sat right here in this room when your mother cried out from upstairs in her room. Soon the healer came down to tell your father that you were ready to be born. We all paced the floor with him that day, and when the midwife returned holding you in his arms I scented you, and knew immediately who you were to me. I told our fathers, and after a long talk with both of them, they immediately signed a treaty between our packs. They took your birth and you being my fated mate as a sign for the future. But, I couldn’t claim you until your full maturity at twenty-five. Both our fathers agreed and insisted that we not have anything to do with one another until your twenty-fifth birthday. They both believed you needed the freedom of youth that we all get as we grow. They were afraid that it would take something away from you if you always knew you had a mate waiting for you. I agreed with their thinking. You did need to grow as we all have and be allowed to have those same life experiences without expectation like that. The one thing I did insist on though were the letters, and that they would not be given to you until you were at the very least sixteen. If they could hold off longer, say twenty or so, that would have been better, but they wanted you to start getting used to the letters in the hope that by the time we made it here to this point, you would be more accepting of our union.”

  “So, that’s
why both packs purchased that land together? But why didn’t I scent you in that bar?” Caleb asked.

  Ridge chuckled. “Because, you had not fully matured, Caleb. You could probably scent something about me, but it is only because you are now twenty-five that you and your wolf can scent who I truly am. And as for the other question about the purchase of the land, yes, it was a way for our packs to join and become sister packs, but still be separate. I would lead my pack once my father either stepped down or passed, and Dell would do the same with your pack, but we would be together. But then, five years ago when our fathers were just about to purchase the land, one of those other packs attacked. They left my father broken and bloodied. They were trying everything they could to keep our packs apart, because they know that if we joined it would essentially make us the largest Alaskan Tundra Wolf territory in the world,” Ridge explained.

  “That’s what your letter meant when you said you had a year full of changes, but handled it. It was your father's passing. I’m so sorry for your loss, Ridge,” Caleb said in comfort.

  “Thank you, mate, and yes, that is what I was talking about in my letter. It was a very rough year, but I was fortunate enough to have people around me, as well as your father, to help guide me.”

  “But, my father just told me that Alpha Heart passed away five years ago,” Caleb said in concern, and placed his hand on Ridge’s.

  Sadness filled Ridge’s eyes. “Yes. The attack left him too weak and our healers couldn’t save him. Before he passed, he sent for your father and they agreed that we couldn’t let it get out that he was to die. We needed to keep it a secret until after you and I mated, because if the other packs knew my father was dead, they would have struck my pack at its weakest, as we mourned and I was thrust into the alpha position. So, both our fathers wanted to give me time to find my footing as leader, which would also give you time to reach maturity. Our mating was also kept secret in fear of those packs finding out and coming after you to kill you, in hopes of destroying both our packs.”