by J. L. Wilder
“Really?” Alex said. “I never imagined...I mean, thank you. Of course I want to help nominate people for the pack.”
“Why don’t you put together a list of names?” Jonah suggested. “We can talk about them together, and then we’ll start inviting people. I’d like to have that squared away by the end of the semester so that we can spend our last semester at school preparing as a group for the real world.”
Alex nodded.
Then he hesitated again. “Have you thought about what people are going to say?” he asked.
“What do you mean?” Jonah asked. “Which people?”
“Well, for you to end up with Grace Foster...you’ve got to admit, that’s surprising.”
“So what?” Jonah was a little taken aback by how defensive he felt, but he had to admit that it pleased him, too. It was good to know that he had this side to himself. “Are you saying I shouldn’t be with her because of what people will think?”
“No, of course not,” Alex said. “But it’ll make it harder for us to build a pack.”
“Why would it?” Jonah asked.
“Because everyone’s expecting you to choose Aubrey,” Alex said. “You know they are. And she has a lot of family over here. She has brothers and sisters among the beta class, and she has a brother who’s an alpha too. Those people are going to be pissed. They’re going to take this as a personal insult.”
“Aubrey never wanted anything to do with me,” Jonah protested. “She made that abundantly clear.”
“Well, that’s her personality, isn’t it?” Alex said. “She acts like she’s better than everybody. She acts like she wants nothing to do with them so that they’ll feel like they have to earn her love. But that doesn’t mean she didn’t actually want you. I think she absolutely did.”
Jonah thought back to the way Aubrey had reacted when she’d seen him with Grace at Field Day. “Maybe you’re right,” he said. “But do you really think that’s going to matter? I mean, okay, maybe her siblings aren’t going to want to join our pack, but I don’t think we would have chosen any of them anyway. That would be way too awkward.”
“Right,” Alex said. “But that family’s powerful. It’s not going to be enough for them to distance themselves from you. They’re going to want to trash your reputation. You might have a hard time getting anyone to join your pack once word of this gets out.”
“You’re overreacting,” Jonah said. “Everything’s going to be fine.”
“Maybe so,” Alex said. “I hope so. I’m just saying that you should be prepared.”
JONAH HAD THE OPPORTUNITY to put Alex’s theory to the test later that very evening.
The two of them had gone to the dining hall together and taken their plates to sit at one of the long tables beside the windows. As was usual, a group of alphas and betas came over to sit with them and talk quickly turned to the events of Field Day.
WALLACE, A FELLOW ALPHA, regaled them with a story of his victory in the two-mile race. Then he turned to Jonah. “I noticed you didn’t compete in anything,” he said. “Were you on the injured list or something?”
“Nothing like that,” Jonah said. “I wasn’t in the mood.”
“He was with a girl,” said Paul, a beta who was known for dominating the weight lifting events. “I saw them on the bleachers.”
“Aubrey?” Wallace asked.
“Not Aubrey,” Paul said. “Some other girl. I didn’t know her.”
“Her name is Grace,” Jonah said. “She was my date to the event. No big thing.” Telling Alex the truth was one thing, but he wasn’t ready to talk to everybody about his bond with Grace just yet. That could wait.
A girl who was seated beside Alex put her fork down. “Are you talking about Grace Foster?” she asked.
“You know her?”
“She’s my sister’s roommate,” the girl said, and Jonah realized that this must be Heather Morales, the girl Alex had mentioned. “She’s kind of...”
“Kind of what?”
“Well, I heard she wasn’t very smart,” Heather said. “Isn’t she at the bottom of her class?”
“Oh, shit, it was that girl?” Wallace asked. “My omega’s told me about her. She’s a joke. None of the omegas know how she got into school. She’s really bad at everything. Some people say she must have had rich parents or something.”
“No, she doesn’t,” Paul said. “I heard she was raised by humans, and that’s why she doesn’t have any shifter skills. They probably thought they’d be able to teach her something when they brought her here, but it hasn’t paid off.”
Wallace nodded. “It’s kind of embarrassing,” he said. “Having someone like that associated with the school, I mean.”
Jonah felt a flare of anger. “How is it embarrassing?” he asked. “How does it affect you at all, Wallace?”
“It doesn’t affect me,” Wallace said. “It’s just, you know. I like people to think of these schools as places you need skill and talent to graduate from. If they give that girl a diploma, they’ll give one to anybody. A rock could do what she does.”
“For fuck’s sake,” Jonah said. “You don’t even know her. You’re talking out of your ass right now. Everything you’re saying is completely based on rumors you’ve heard from other people. You don’t have any idea what she’s really like, or what she’s capable of.”
“I heard she can’t shift at will,” said a girl from down at the end of the table. “Who can’t do that? She must have some kind of, I don’t know, brain disorder. Some kind of malfunction.”
“That’s a little harsh,” Paul spoke up. “I mean, I don’t know. If she was raised by humans, where would she ever have learned how to shift?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” the girl said. “How about in the three years she’s been at school? It’s not like it’s hard. I learned how to do it when I was seven years old.”
“Learning new skills is easier when you’re seven years old,” Jonah said. “It’s harder when you get older.” He fixed the girl with a pointed look. “I thought everybody knew that.”
She flushed and looked down at her plate.
Ian Price, Aubrey’s brother, spoke up. “Listen, Jonah,” he said. “I know that girl too. I’ve seen her at socials, and my sister and my omega have both told me about her. She’s a mess. Apparently, she’ll do anything to get the attention of an alpha because she knows nobody will ever claim her. My sister has warned me never to be alone with her. She’s the kind of girl who’ll take off all her clothes, and then if you don’t give her what she wants, she’ll run crying to the professors and say you attacked her.”
Gasps went up around the table.
“Oh my God, are you serious?” someone said.
“Who does that?” another voice chimed in.
Ian nodded righteously. “I know Aubrey has talked to her,” he said. “She’s too kindhearted for her own good, really. She’s tried to warn that girl to stay away from socials, from occasions where she might have to interact with alphas. Aubrey doesn’t want to see anyone get into trouble.”
“Aubrey’s lying,” Jonah said before he could help himself.
Ian’s eyes blazed with anger. “Excuse me?” he barked. “Are you calling my sister a liar?”
“I’m not calling her anything,” Jonah said. “But that story you just told wasn’t true. Grace never did anything like what you described.”
“And how would you know?” Ian demanded. “What were you doing with her anyway? Were you two sneaking around together?”
“Of course they weren’t,” Alex said loyally, and Jonah felt a burst of gratitude for his friend’s presence. “I was with them the whole time. They just sat and watched the events, just like everybody else.”
“Why would you take her to Field Day in the first place, though?” Veronica Price asked. “I thought you were going with Aubrey.”
“Aubrey didn’t want to go with me,” Jonah said.
“Well, you shouldn’t go asking other girls
out,” Veronica said. “You’re going to make Aubrey look bad.”
Ian cocked his head at Jonah. “You won’t do it again, will you?” he asked. “You didn’t know. Right? You didn’t know who this girl was. How bad her reputation was.”
Jonah looked around the table. Several of Aubrey’s other brothers were sitting there, looking as though they wouldn’t say no to a fight if he offered them one.
Alex would stand by his side, he knew. Maybe Paul would do the same. But he didn’t want to see his friends dragged into a brawl. Not if it could be avoided.
Besides, there were no more socials. Not until the claiming ceremony. So he could answer this question truthfully.
“No,” he said. “I’m not going to take Grace on any more dates.”
The tension around the table eased a bit.
“You should probably write an apology note to Aubrey,” Veronica said. “I’ll bet she’s pretty pissed off at you for going to Field Day with someone else.”
“Yeah,” Jonah said. “I’ll definitely do that.”
Alex got to his feet. “I’m done eating,” he said. “You want to go to the library, Jonah? I’ll show you that book I was telling you about?”
“Right.” Jonah picked up on his friend’s cue. He stood up, pocketing the rest of his sandwich to eat later. “See you guys,” he said, turning to follow Alex out of the dining hall.
He felt Ian’s eyes on him until they had left the room. Neither he nor Alex spoke. It wasn't until they were outside that Alex broke the silence.
“He’s really pissed at you,” he said.
Jonah nodded. “I wasn’t expecting it to be that bad,” he said.
“I warned you.”
“People really did think I was going to end up with Aubrey, didn’t they?” Jonah said. “I mean, everybody really believed that.”
“Didn’t you?”
“No,” he said. “I mean, I hoped for it. I wanted it. But the way everyone’s talking, it’s like it was a foregone conclusion.”
“Well, yeah,” Alex said. “I think that’s what people thought.”
“Is that what you thought?”
“Kind of,” he admitted. “It’s what made sense. You’re the top two ranked in our class. If you look back through history, the top alpha and the top omega almost always end up paired together. In cases where they don’t, it’s usually because of some extenuating circumstance, like their being brother and sister, or one of them being mated since freshman year.”
“God,” Jonah said. “Do you think Aubrey’s really been...expecting that she and I would end up together all this time?”
“That’s what I’m saying,” Alex said. “I think she’s probably been counting on it. She’s been pushing you away so that you wouldn’t feel entitled to her. But yes, I think she always planned to give in to you eventually.”
“My God,” Jonah said. “I can’t believe she’d play with me like that. Grace was right. She is a bitch.”
“You’re not sorry that you imprinted?” Alex asked. “You’re not feeling like you missed out, now that you know you could have had her?”
“Hell, no.” Jonah shook his head vigorously. “If anything, I dodged a bullet, wouldn’t you say?”
“It’s not for me to say,” Alex said.
“I want to know what you think,” Jonah said.
Alex regarded his feet for a moment. “I think that as long as you’re happy, that’s all that matters,” he said. “Does Grace make you happy?”
Jonah nodded. “Happier than I would have imagined possible, to tell you the truth.”
“Well, then she’s the right choice for you,” Alex said simply. “That’s all there is to it.”
“Thank you for sticking up for her back there,” Jonah said. “I know that must have been difficult for you to do, arguing with Ian in front of everyone like that.”
“Grace is my packmate,” Alex said. “That may not be public knowledge yet, but that doesn’t make it any less true. As the second of her pack, it’s my job to defend her.”
Jonah felt a rush of happiness and pride. “Thank you,” he said again. “It’s really good to have you on my side, Alex. I couldn’t have asked for a better second.”
“It’s like I said, though, isn’t it?” Alex asked. “It’s going to be really hard for us to find any more members for our pack.”
Jonah nodded. “Anyone who joins up with us will know they’re standing against Ian.”
“What are we going to do?”
“We’ll take who we can get,” Jonah said firmly. “And even if we can’t find anyone, even if it’s just the three of us in the end, that’s still the best pack I could have dreamed of.”
Chapter Thirteen
GRACE
Aubrey caught up with her the next day.
It was Grace’s own fault. She had let her guard down, relaxed after the events of her time with Jonah the previous afternoon. She had been wandering campus, thinking vaguely of going into the woods and practicing her shifting on her own. She’d gotten a lot better in the time she’d been working with Jonah. The night shifting had all but stopped. But it still required several moments of effort for her to shift each time she tried. She wanted to improve her skills and surprise him with her progress.
But Aubrey and her friends were waiting in the woods, almost as if they had known that Grace would be coming.
They caught her by the arms and dragged her into a clearing. A hand was clapped over her mouth, stifling the cry for help that Grace tried to let out. They pressed her back up against a tree, and Aubrey stepped into view.
Grace was almost relieved to see her. As intimidating as Aubrey was, there was really only so much she could do. There were scarier things that could happen when an omega on her own was dragged into the woods.
She looked to the left and right and saw that she was being held in place by Whitney and Deanne, two girls who seemed to follow Aubrey around like puppies and hang on her every word. Although they were both mated and had been for years, Grace tended to feel sorry for them. It was clear to her that they had no minds of their own.
“What is this?” she asked Aubrey, ignoring the girls who were holding her, ignoring the pain in her arms where they gripped her.
“Field Day,” Aubrey said shortly.
“What about it?” Grace asked though she was certain she knew.
“I thought we had an understanding that you weren’t going to come to any more of those kinds of events,” Aubrey said. “I might have been willing to overlook it if you’d competed. But you weren’t competing. You were flirting. There’s no excuse for a girl like you to be flirting at a social event.”
“I wasn’t flirting,” Grace said. Her heart felt as if it was going to beat right out of her chest, but she did her best to keep herself composed. She didn’t want Aubrey to see how nervous she was.
“People are talking about you,” Aubrey said. “Everyone saw you making a fool out of yourself that day. Hanging on Jonah Jackson. As if someone like him would ever be interested in someone like you.”
Grace wished she could tell Aubrey the truth about her relationship with Jonah right then and there. But of course, she couldn’t. For one thing, there was no way Aubrey would believe her. She would assume that Grace was making up a lie, that she was so pathetic that she had to pretend someone actually cared about her.
For another thing, if Aubrey did somehow believe her, both Grace and Jonah would be at risk. Aubrey wasn’t like Skye. She wouldn’t accept whatever story Grace told her and leave the matter alone. If she suspected that Grace and Jonah had been breaking rules together, she wouldn’t rest until she had proof. And she would use that proof against them.
As much as it sucks right now, it’s really for the best that she thinks I’m too pathetic for Jonah to give a damn about me, Grace thought. She’ll know the truth in the end. Eventually, everyone will know.
So she said nothing.
“Well?” Aubrey said.
&n
bsp; Had there been a question? “Well, what?” Grace asked.
“What do you have to say for yourself?” Aubrey asked.
“I don’t think I have to explain myself to you,” Grace said.
Aubrey looked taken aback. That made sense, Grace supposed. After all, she had certainly never stood up to bullying so directly before. She wondered if anyone had ever stood up to Aubrey quite so firmly.
But knowing that she was loved, that Jonah wanted her, had made her feel bold. Whatever Aubrey might think of her, she knew now that it wasn’t true. She wasn’t a disgrace. She wasn’t an embarrassment. And she hadn’t been humiliating herself, or anyone else, by spending time with Jonah at Field Day.
She was worthy of his attention.
She was worthy of his love.
She closed her eyes for a moment, remembering the way she had submitted to him just yesterday beside the river. It had been a frightening prospect to turn herself over so completely to the will of another person. But every order he had given had been aimed at providing her pleasure. He had used his power to care for her, to make her feel good. No one had ever treated her that way before.
“What the hell are you smiling about?” Aubrey demanded.
She certainly couldn’t divulge the truth. “I was just thinking about what a nice time I had at Field Day,” she said. “I’m sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy yourself, Aubrey.”
“No one could have enjoyed themselves,” Aubrey said. “Not with you making a mockery of every omega at this school. Acting as though someone like Jonah Jackson could have any interest in you when you know perfectly well that he never could. That no alpha ever could!”
“Well, he was interested in going to Field Day with me,” Grace said.
“He pitied you,” Aubrey said. Her teeth were bared, and Grace was suddenly aware of how much she resembled a wolf, even though she was in her human form. “There was nothing more to it than that. He felt sorry for you. We all feel sorry for you.”