Rejected

Chapter 19

Kole's POV

During the afternoon training I couldn't seem to focus. My mind was always straying, wandering off on me. It dragged on for what felt like forever and I was getting frustrated with the teens I was training, they weren't paying attention and they weren't picking up the skills we were going over. Training Alex was so different than training these wolves. Alex was smart and had a desire to learn the techniques, these adolescent wolves were clumsy and not at all interested in learning the skills needed to protect the pack. I had just about had it when Alpha Blood walked up to check on the progress.

"How are things going here?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the group of teens in front of me.

"Could be better. They're sloppy and lack motivation." I could hear many of the teens scoff at my honesty, one even cursed at me under his breath.

"They lack respect as well." Alpha Blood frowned as he singled out the teenage boy with the smart mouth. "Why don't you take a break for the rest of the day." It wasn't a question, I just nodded and walked away. "Alright, since you children think it's funny to screw around why we don't do one of the more advanced combinations." An evil smile crept up my face as I walked away. The advanced combinations were difficult for the wolves that were skilled enough to complete them, those teens were going to die today.

~

The next few weeks Alpha Blood was still kicking the teen's ass in training, he told them that this would continue until they could either finish the advanced combinations or one of them died from the workout. My extra time was dedicated to training Alex more than usual. She was determined to become the best she could and her drive was contagious. She had gotten better in the few weeks we had been one on one, I have no doubt that she could take down Tyler and Zack, though not both at the same time, and she'd have a fighting chance against Myles.

"Good, now throw that combination again, but this time try clustering your hits in a concentrated area." Alex nodded and tried the same combination again, over and over until the punching bag we were using split open. Her eyes widened and she smiled. I chuckled and stood back to examine the bag. "Well, I guess we can call it a day."

"Oh come on Kole, I can go longer." I raised an eyebrow at her, she had grown significantly in the few weeks she's been here. She hadn't gotten any taller, but she was a healthy weight and more confident around people she saw every day. "Let's go for a run, it's been a while since we've had a good run." She was right about that. The two of us couldn't really get a good run with the wolves. We were faster and could go longer than they could.

"Alright..." her smile grew and her eyes lit up. She grabbed my hand in hers and tugged me out of the room. She had gotten significantly stronger as well, she was actually pulling me outside when we broke through the door.

"Why are you always so slow?" she asked with an exasperated sigh. I just smiled casually and shook my head. I wasn't slow, I just enjoyed teasing her. We had both gotten more comfortable around each other. Most of our time was spent together, and we had even decided to move her bed into my room. Seeing as how she was having nightmares more often than not as well as the joy of feeling her bastard mate with his chosen woman almost every night, Alpha Blood had gotten sick of repairing the door to Alex's room after I broke it off its hinges, it seemed like the smart thing to do. Now I don't have to bust down a door to comfort her as she works through a nightmare or is woken up by the pain from the bastard and his whore. The shelves all along the walls in our room are lined with Catnip and the balcony is a short drop from the ground that any shifter could easily manage, then it's just a quick dash to the treeline.

When we were out in the trees she let go of my hand and disappeared behind a tree to shift. I followed her lead and found a tree to undress behind. When I was shifted I shook my mane out and lumbered over to where Alex left me. She came out seconds after I did bouncing on her paws as she walked up to me. Her shoulders rising and falling as she strode towards me. When she got to me she rubbed her side against mine, a greeting most wolves won't dare attempt with me, but she didn't have a problem with it. She let out a purr and I responded by rubbing back against her and sending out a few vocal puffs of my own. Then she bolted, quickly disappearing from my sight. I gave another shake and took off after her. She was quick, and her slightly smaller size helped with her agility, she was also silent. Something I could never quite master as well as she had. Her footsteps were completely undetectable when she wanted them to be, nothing gave away her position. The one thing I have that she doesn't is size, which translates to power in the animal world. My size is what makes me so dangerous in the eyes of the wolves. The wolves have numbers on their side, and with enough they could easily take me down, but a lone wolf wouldn't attempt something so bold or stupid.