Wereball Series - Along Came A Mate

Chapter 11

I had not heard from Rudolph in a couple of weeks and I did not care or expected him to contact me. Why would he have to? Our interchanges, as much exciting and annoying as they were, were nothing more than an unnecessary distraction. 

Plus, I would never meet the brute in the real life.

Tiziano had informed me that the forbidden website would take some time to approve and load the new profile ... not that Rudolph could believe I was the cause. Heaps of people must hate him considering the extreme quantities of rudeness and barbarity that that person produced.

Also, I was too worried about the upcoming wereball match against the Golden Fur pack to think about the mysterious guy with the huskiest voice in the world. Although the match wasn't against Dark Diamond, I painfully knew Lachlan was going to get hurt, as usual.

Besides, I had felt slightly sad and down in the dumps, like I was missing something important. My need for sweets grew proportionally. On top of that, the discomfort inside my chest continued; it was always an annoyance, sometimes as painful as a bunch of mosquitoes that stung my heart. As I was the doctor of myself, I decided that the reason was because I was stressed by my massive load of daily work between study, volunteering, and classes.

My solution was to take a day off and go on a date.

"Hey Dad!" I greeted the big man who had to bend a lot since he is over 6.5 feet tall. It was like looking at my male version, only three times larger and a little older. In his late forties, my old man looked ten years younger. Too many people thought that Richard, Alpha of Comet, was just an older brother rather than a real father. 

As he held me in his tattooed arms, squeezing some of my gloomy mood out, I felt at home.

While it was obvious Father was overjoyed to spend a full day with me, leaving the pack in the capable hands of his Beta and Gamma, he seemed restless for some reason ... 

"Where's Mum?" I investigated with a hidden smile, after kissing him on the cheek. Unlike him, I could not return the lung-cutting hug with which he had welcomed me.

The furrows forming on his forehead proved my theory to be correct: it was something to do with Mother.

"She and Uncle Andrew have returned to Inverness." He grunted, looking away, still leaving a heavy arm around my shoulders.

"Oh really? I didn't know they were planning a trip to Scotland!" I rummaged in the back of my mind, trying to remember if Mom had told me about the event.

"Yes, Giulia's third or fourth child, I forgot the number, is shifting and obviously your Mother have to be there." He rolled his eyes as he spoke, and I laughed at his semi-childish expression.

My Father was a mighty Alpha, respected and feared, terribly intelligent and competitive, but when it came to his mate, he was a teenager all over again. Often, in the past, I had to step in and pacify my fiery parents, who had heads harder than concrete and levels of stubbornness that those of mules would pale in comparison.

"How about Uncle Andrew? Why did he have to go too?"

Mother and her twin, my closest uncle, were physically inseparable. So much so that he had moved to the United States with her ... that was one of the many conditions Mother demanded before leaving her pack in Scotland to move with Father.

"Tsk, you know how those two are. He has to be with her all the fuck-" He glanced at me with a frown. "Err, I meant all the time." He corrected, making me smile.

"Dad! You aren't jealous of Uncle Andrew, are you?" I asked with mocked surprise.

"Who, me? Tsk! Of course not!"

"Don't tsk me! Why didn't you go with them if you miss Mom so much?"

I knew Father. And I knew he was not happy to be separated from his mate.

Unlike him, my Mother could be separated from her mate, mostly to bother him. She knew her mate couldn't spend a day without her. I shook my head at her evilness.

"The Highlan-, I mean, your brother, plays next week. I can't miss one of his games-" He trailed off before snorting, "Besides, your Mother didn't want me to go with her." He admitted grumpily.

I couldn't contain the laughter at his pout. But I understood why Mom didn't want him around in her native land... Dad would behave all "Alpha mate": super possessive and unnecessarily protective. Coming from a small town, Mom knows everyone, and everyone knows who she is, and every single person loves her. And as much as Mother loved Father deeply, the lady did not have enough time in Scotland to take care of a jealous husband.

"Dad, how about going to Luigi's for dinner? Just you and me?" I decided to change the subject. This was our all-time favorite restaurant and the owner was a friend of Father and a former player of our wereball team.

"Of course, Hon!" He gave me a genuine smile, looking down at me. Dad always claimed that Mom and I were the precious jewels of his life. He only let me go to college after solemnly promising him that I would come back to visit every week and make time for our father-daughter dates.

"How about going for a run first? I bet you missed it this week." He winked at me; the old man knows how hyperactive my wolf, Zelda, is.

Soon, familiar excitement and anticipation coursed through my veins as my wolf surfaced. My eyes flashed and fangs began to invade space in my mouth.

"Great idea Dad!" A growl climbed my throat as he barked out a laugh, "Let me go to the bathroom first."

"Sure Hon, I'll wait for you right outside." Saying that he shifted into his massive black wolf, not caring about the clothes ripping everywhere. Probably he would send a picture of it to Mom since she hates when he breaks his clothes during phasing.

His wolf was the largest I had ever seen, even bigger than my grandfather's, the Alpha in my pack in Scotland.

Once in the bathroom, my phone rang from the front pocket of my jeans. Without checking who it was, with the phone tacked between my ear and shoulders as I removed my shoes, I answered in a cheerful but hasty tone.

"Yvaine speaking!"

"You seem happy for someone who has committed a crime," A familiar, deep voice growled, instantly scaring the beat out of my heart. A mixture of guilt and fear overwhelmed me.

The site must have already approved Rudolph's application. 

And judging by his reaction, he did not sound to like the idea of having a Master... And judging by his accusatory tone, he must have had a strong idea of who created his profile...

'Ops'