by J C Gordon
Jared looked at his beta in surprise. Rafe was quoting pack etiquette, as if he’d been with the pack all his life. It was coming out naturally, and he could see Caleb was right. Rafe was ready to come back to the pack. This time he would come willingly and become fully integrated. He smiled with contentment. He had managed to do right by Rafe and the rest of the pack, and it had come to a satisfactory conclusion.
He saw Millie watching him intently, and he shot her a wicked smile. He stepped closer and pulled her into his arms, dropping a quick kiss on her upturned mouth before he turned back to Rafe. “I’m calling a pack meeting tonight. I would like you to attend. Will you have an issue with that?”
Rafe shook his head. “I was waiting for Annie to come home, and then, I was going to head over to the compound anyway. I thought I’d hang with Aaron for a while, if he wasn’t busy.”
Jared’s smile widened. He barely recognised the man in front of him; he was so much easier in himself. Little Annie really was a miracle worker. Maybe he should take her to the pack meeting and see if she could settle down all the angry wolves tonight.
The object of his internal musing suddenly appeared through the front door, her vampire firmly attached to her as if they were joined at the hip. Her face lit up when she saw her friends, and she gave Millie a quick hug before she turned to her brother. A long silent moment passed between the siblings, and then, Rafe was scooping up his little sister and hugging her enthusiastically.
“You’re about ready to go home, aren’t you?” Rhianna smiled, happily.
Rafe nodded. “I am. Jared’s just been telling me there’s a pack meeting tonight, so I need to attend that. I think I might stay there tonight and see how it goes with a view to staying full time. You’re okay with that?”
“I’m okay with whatever makes you happy, Rafe. You know there’s always a place for you here, if you need it.” She turned to look at Caleb, who smiled his agreement.
“No, I’m pack now, sis.” Rafe smiled. “I’ll still come by for a visit, though, and I’m sure Jared won’t mind if you come visit the compound either.”
“You’re welcome any time, Annie, but leave Caleb at home,” Jared laughed. “He’d only try to start another war, if one of the pack ventured too close to you by accident.”
Caleb frowned darkly at the Alpha and then smoothed out his expression when Rhianna tutted lightly at him. “Fine, you can go by yourself,” he grumbled, irritably, “but she’s your responsibility when she’s there, Jared.”
“Caleb!” Rhianna rolled her eyes and stepped into his arms. “You really need to work on this over protectiveness, love.”
Millie watched the way Caleb and Jared squared up to each other, her eyes narrowing. “So, if you’re not a Were, Caleb, what exactly are you?” she suddenly asked. All heads turned to look at her, and Caleb stiffened noticeably.
He looked at the dark haired woman for a moment, and then slowly relaxed. She was going to find out anyway. “I’m a vampire, Millie,” he answered and watched her blue eyes grow huge in her head, as she took an unconscious step closer to Jared.
“Werewolves and now vampires, too?” she gasped. Millie swallowed hard. Her gaze turning to Rhianna, who was watching her reaction with a slight smile on her face, “You’re okay with this, Annie?”
Rhianna laughed. “My brother’s a werewolf, Mills. Having a vampire as a boyfriend is really a moot point after that.”
Millie stared at all of them, her face turning pale and a slightly wild look coming into her eyes. Jared frowned down at her with concern on his face, feeling her stiffness against him.
“Mills, why don’t you come and help me make some coffee?” Rhianna said quietly, watching her friend intently. “Jared, you can let go of her. She’s not going to vanish into thin air.” She shot the Alpha a pointed look and their eyes locked for a moment, before he slowly released his grip on his mate with a slight nod of his head.
Rhianna threaded her arm through her friend’s and led her out of the sitting room and into the kitchen. She chatted lightly about how beautiful the Botanical Gardens were as they walked, her friend relaxing as her words washed over her.
“Annie, how can you be so calm about everything?” Millie asked when they were finally alone. “Rafe is still alive, but he’s a wolf. Jared’s a wolf, too, and Caleb is a vampire…why are you just accepting all of this?”
Rhianna smiled at her, trying to project reassurance as she sat down at the kitchen table, waiting until her friend sat down beside her. “Mills, I know it’s a lot to take in. Believe me, it was all a bit of a shock to me, too, at first. I forgot how to breathe when Caleb revealed himself to me. The very same night I found out about Rafe and Jared, so I kind of got hit with it all at the same time like you have.”
Millie ran her hands through her black curls and met her friend’s eyes. “It doesn’t seem to bother you, though,” she said, almost accusingly. “How can you just accept it without batting an eyelid?”
Rhianna gave her another smile. “Because, I refuse to allow myself to become hung up on labels, Millie. I love Caleb more than anything in the world. I don’t look at him and think ‘he’s a vampire’. I look at him and think of how much I love him, and how much he loves me. With the wolves, it’s the same thing really. I look at Rafe, and I see my big brother, and he’s not dead anymore, so it doesn’t matter if he’s a part time wolf. He’s still Rafe. He’s just got a little extra part to him now. If someone had asked me if I could have my brother back just slightly altered, I would have jumped at the chance. I wasn’t asked, but I got that miracle. I can’t very well freak out about it, can I?”
Millie stared at her friend, hearing her words and trying to take them in. She watched Rhianna rise and head over to the coffee machine and begin to make coffees. Her thoughts turned to Jared, and how he had swiftly become important to her. She’d been running from him for weeks, knowing instinctively that the moment she surrendered to him things would never be the same again. She just had no idea they would be so extreme.
Could she be as accepting as her friend? What Annie said made a certain kind of sense. Could she look past the labels and just see the people involved? Jared wanted to change her into a wolf, too, yet Rafe’s change had been so horrific. He’d barely managed to survive it. What if something like that happened to her? What if she agreed to it and she didn’t really want it? What if it didn’t work?
She looked up when Rafe wandered into the kitchen. “Caleb’s keeping Jared entertained for the moment,” he said with a warm smile for her, as he sat down. “You’re having a bit of a hard time about all this, Mills. It’s understandable.”
“I’m scared, Rafe,” she swallowed hard. “You’re one of the gentlest people I know, and this wolf stuff almost killed you.”
He smiled and reached out and took her hands in his. “It’s because of my nature that I found it so hard, Mills. You’re a lot stronger than I am. You’re feisty and tenacious, two very good attributes to make a perfect wolf. The only question you really have to ask yourself is do you love Jared enough?”
Millie looked at him and then turned to look at Rhianna, as she headed back to the table and sat down on her other side. She reached out to clasp her own small hands around their joined ones.
“Who would have thought we’d get the chance to sit like this together again,” Rhianna said with a small smile. “Our lives have changed so much in the last few months. Just because things are different, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad thing, Millie. You’re still in control of your life. You still get to make the decisions on how you live it. There are just a few new variables you get to mull over as you decide what you want to do.”
She smiled at Millie before she turned to her brother. “Did I tell you I was opening a bookstore, Rafe? Well, I was supposed to be until you turned out not to be dead. Jared gave me a lot of money, like an insurance policy. I was going to use that for the bookstore, but I suppose I probably should give it back to him now.�
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Rafe laughed and shook his head. “The money’s yours, Annie. You were never meant to know I still lived. It is what the pack does for the bereaved families. Just because you know the truth that doesn’t negate the pain and heartache you and Millie have both been through. Jared won’t accept the money back, so you go ahead with your dream, sis. You deserve it.”
Rhianna smiled a big smile and nodded at Rafe before her keen, lavender eyes turned back to their troubled friend. “Millie named the bookstore for me. Why don’t you tell Rafe what you named it, Mills?” Her tone was light and full of innocence as she regarded her friend.
Millie blinked at her very slowly, and then, looked back at Rafe before her head swung once more in Rhianna’s direction and a slow smile started to curve her lips. “Create your own Happiness Bookstore,” she finally said in an awed tone, as she looked at the petite redhead, whom she’d once thought was the most fragile woman on the planet, with a completely new level of respect.
Rafe laughed, his brown eyes twinkling, as he looked at his two little sisters, because Millie would always be his sister just as much as Rhianna was, no matter what Jared said about lack of shared bloodlines. Rhianna was sitting there with an expression of carefully cultured innocence on her face, and Millie was staring at her with such a stunned expression on hers.
“What?” Rhianna asked, with a shrug when no one spoke for a long time.
Millie suddenly laughed and threw her arms around her friend. “Oh, you are so good, Annie,” she laughed. “Sitting there like little miss innocent, pretending you didn’t just lead me by the nose right to where you really wanted me to go.”
Rhianna hugged her friend back warmly. “I only helped you get there a little sooner than you would have, Mills. You would have done it yourself, once you got over your natural tendency to overthink things.”
Millie sat back and reached for her coffee, taking a long sip as she looked at her family. Rafe was a wolf now and Annie…well what was Annie going to be? “Annie, are you going to become a vampire?”
Some of the light died from her friend’s eyes though a smile remained on her lips. ”Caleb and I have discussed it today, so yes it is open for debate. It won’t bother you both if I do? I mean…all this Weres and vampires don’t like each other crap?”
Her brother and sister stared at her in shock for a second, and then, both reached for her hands. “You’ll always be our Annie, no matter what choices you make,” Rafe answered for both of them.
Rhianna sighed with relief, knowing that at least one hurdle was crossed. Smiling, she rose from her seat. “Best get back to the boys then; they’ll be wondering what’s keeping us so long.”
Rafe headed out of the kitchen after gathering up the coffees on a tray, leaving Millie and Rhianna to follow behind him.
“Thank you, Annie,” Millie said, quietly. “You’re turning into a right little Sage with your words of wisdom.”
“I just like fixing things,” her friend laughed, as they re-entered the sitting room.
Jared was immediately at Millie’s side, staring down at her with concern for a moment, and then, slowly relaxing when he saw her untroubled expression. “You okay, baby?” He hugged her close to his side.
Millie nodded. “I just had a few things to work out. Everything is fine now, Jared.”
He smiled his relief and kissed her on the top of her head. “We need to get moving. There’s a lot to be done before the meeting.”
Millie gave Rhianna another quick hug and then slipped back into Jared’s embrace, because she really had no other choice. The man couldn’t seem to keep his hands off her.
Rafe left with Jared and Millie to head over to the compound. His Alpha and his mate were sharing loaded glances every now and then, and he felt a growing sense of unease the closer they got to compound. He had no idea what the proposed meeting was about, but he had a feeling it was going to be something important, and he could tell his Alpha was worried about it.
“Jared, you want to clue me in about this meeting?”
“I’ll tell all the betas together. I’m going to need you all at my side tonight, Rafe. I know I’ll have your support on what I want to discuss. You’ll understand why after I speak to the betas. In the event things get ugly, I want you to get Millie out of there, as quickly as possible. I know you’ll keep her safe.”
Rafe’s unease grew, as Millie turned to look at Jared. “I’m not going anywhere without you.”
Jared sighed, the sound deep and loaded with exasperation. “Millie, if things turn ugly the last thing I’ll need is to be worrying about you. If I tell you to leave, you will go with Rafe immediately.” His tone was firm and brooked no argument.
Millie was going to argue with him, but his face was set hard, and she knew she would be wasting her breath. One glance behind her told her Rafe would be just as immovable. He may not know what was going on, but her safety would be as paramount in his mind, as it was in Jared’s. She sighed in resignation and folded her arms crossly over her chest. Stupid macho male crap!
~~~~~
Jared watched his betas’ faces, as he concluded their briefing as to why he was calling the pack meeting. There were ten men crowded into his large study. Millie was sitting in his office chair with himself on one side and Rafe on the other. To say the betas were stunned was an understatement. Each man wore a shocked expression, but he couldn’t detect any outright disapproval. He slowly roamed his eyes over them and waited for some response.
Pete was the first one to speak. He was the shortest man in the room at just five foot nine, and he was overly sensitive about his height. His stocky build made up for his lack of stature when in wolf form. “Boss, the old timers are going to go ape shit,” he said, doubtfully. “I was amazed they voted yes to Rafe’s sister being allowed to know about us. This might be a step too far for most of them.”
There was a murmur of agreement around the room, as the betas looked from one to another. Aaron seemed to be the least worried, but then he always seemed to find something to smile about, no matter how dire a situation was. “It might not be so bad. Half of them have never mated, and this would give them the opportunity. They may surprise us all.”
Jared sighed. “That’s what I’m hoping for. I’m going to need you to fan out around the room and stick close to some of our less tractable friends, just in case any of them lose it. The children will be present, and I don’t want any of them accidentally hurt. I take it none of you have any issues with this proposal?”
Each beta gave him their support. He looked to Rafe last. The tall man was deep in thought, but he smiled widely when his Alpha’s eyes met his. “You know I don’t have any objections.”
Jared frowned slightly. “Rafe, you do understand this cannot apply directly to you and any of the others who have technically ‘died’,” he asked with a touch of concern.
Rafe nodded. “I know that, Jared, but it will only be for a while, maybe a generation or so, and then I can once more go out among humans again. Millie will be here, and I can visit with Annie any time I want to. That’s enough for me.” He took a deep breath and looked at Jared intently.
“Rafe Armand is dead, as you’ve pointed out. It’s my wish to take the pack name if you have no objections?”
Jared blinked slowly in surprise. Did Rafe know what he was asking of him? His eyes swung to Aaron, who had been the big man’s teacher in all things pack related. The stunned expression on the blond man’s face echoed his own and, then, his head turned to look at his Alpha, and he shook his head, signalling that Rafe had no idea what he had just asked for.
Jared turned back to Rafe and pursed his lips thoughtfully. He had always liked the big man, right from the very first moment he’d met him. He had worked hard to keep him sane, until he could come to terms with his new life. He supposed Rafe had been the start of the changes to pack life, too. For some reason, Jared had connected with the big man in a way, which had forced his hand to make decisions he would n
ever have made.
Rafe had no idea what he was asking of Jared. He had no idea that he was unconsciously going to elevate himself into a position he probably wouldn’t want. The question was, did Jared want the change in status? Rafe was Millie’s brother and the bridge between the pack and the less militant local vampires. He was most definitely an asset to the pack in many ways.
Jared stared at him a moment longer, and then, he suddenly smiled broadly. “Welcome home, Rafe Hanlon,” he said quietly and the slight tension still in the room evaporated, as the betas welcomed Rafe back to the pack with obvious pleasure.
“Okay, let’s go get this meeting over and done with,” Jared announced, and they all filed out of his home and down to the meeting room.
The betas fanned out among the gathered community with Rafe following Jared to the front of the room. Jared positioned Millie to his right, which was closest to one of the exits. Rafe stood to her other side and ran his eyes carefully around the room.
There was a lot of murmuring going on. The meeting was unscheduled; therefore, it was attracting a lot of speculation. A few of the females were eyeing Millie up speculatively, particularly Loretta who was probably the closest to an Alpha Bitch the pack had without actually being one. She had been Jared’s preferred bed partner, and therefore Rafe marked her as one to watch when the meeting started.
The room quickly settled down, when the Alpha stood to talk. “I’m glad to see everyone could attend,” Jared began with a smile. “I know you are all curious as to why I have called this impromptu meeting.”
“Does it have anything to do with the human woman?” Loretta asked, her tone cold. “Has the Alpha finally decided to mate?”
Jared’s cool blue eyes locked with hers and a muscle jumped in the side of his jaw, his teeth clenching at her snide tone. “This is Millicent Cooper, and yes, Loretta, she is my mate.”
There was a ripple of voices around the room, and all eyes turned to stare at Millie intently, which began to make her feel uncomfortable. Now, she knew what it was like to be an animal in a zoo.