Alpha

Chapter 5

Joey and Alec had selected a bar that sold finger food as well. We'd managed to find a large booth, ordered a couple of platters of food and left everyone to decide their drinks.

Jackie found us, joining the group to chat about what life was like in West River. The group had splintered slightly, forming into groups that were oddly gender-based. I would have thought that they'd want to talk to the new girl but it seemed like the male wolves were too busy discussing the games that the resort was hosting.

Jackie didn't seem too concerned. She was busy talking to the other women that had joined us, as well as the pack members. That was another thing that was common at the mate summit, pack hunting. It wasn't just about finding a mate. Sometimes it was about the pack.

I understood why the Betas wanted me here. A strong leader would draw in more members, which was always wanted. The larger the pack, the greater the strength.

Hearing a lot of giggles, I snapped out of my thoughts and returned to the conversation.

Erin, Gus's youngest daughter, had joined us for the summit. I liked her. She seemed okay though we never really talked. Gus would probably like that to change, and I figured he would constantly tell her to become my friend.

She has spoken to me, but I think she was trying to avoid being seen as another Shelly. All she had to do was keep her hands off my mate, and we'd be cool.

Erin leaned in, her grin wider than anything I'd ever seen before.

"There are so many hot wolves here."

"This is the first year that every pack is represented. It hasn't been like this for decades."

"Maybe they all know that there's an Alpha on the prowl."

They all turned and looked at me.

"I'm not on the prowl. Just here to be seen, nothing more, nothing less."

Erin chuckled, almost like she didn't believe me. It's okay. I didn't believe me either. Not when I scanned the room, checking everyone that came close enough.

Was I looking for a mate, or was I looking for him?

Upending the drink, I dumped it on the table with a sigh.

"Going for a walk."

Shifting out of the seat, I climbed out of the booth in an unladylike manner. A little inebriated? Yes, I was.

"You could ask," Alec said dryly as he helped me not fall over and break my ankles.

"Yeah, but there's no fun in that."

I was a bit wobbly in the beginning, but I got my bearings quickly. Killer pumps had never been my thing, and neither had the short and tight dress that Joey insisted I wore tonight. It was metallic gold, shimmering and showing off far too much.

As I walked through the bar, I looked at the electronic board over the doorway. They were everywhere, as if this place thought that I needed a reminder. My name was at the top of the West River section, and beside it was a capital A. Alpha, naturally. For all the wolves to see, it was there in black and white.

With a frustrated huff, I continued through the bar while ignoring the stares. It was like I had a neon sign over my head, constantly following me around. Alpha. Available. Clearly, no one was interested, which I knew was always going to happen. No male wolf wanted to be placed below his mate. It was a sexist world that we lived in when it came to dominance and here I was trying to find a male that would bow down to me. It was never going to happen.

Pushing through the door to the women's restroom, I listened as the chatter turned to silence. The women turned and looked at me, then returned to reapplying their makeup. I said nothing as I walked to a stall and closed it behind me.

The whispers began, followed by sniggers. I didn't want to go out there while the women were still there, and I was grateful that I heard the clicking of their heels on the tiles. Slowly the door creaked shut, but I was not alone.

Slow footsteps moved through the room until a pair of highly polished shoes stopped in front of my stall.

"Hello, Megan."

My heart slammed against my chest as my body froze. It could not be possible. Not again. He wasn't supposed to be here. The board said so.

My hand was shaking as I flushed the toilet. Warily I opened the door and saw Konrad. He smiled through the crack between the wall and the door.

"We should stop meeting in the bathroom."

"Why are you here?"

"I was ganged up on, just like my beta. He's here too. We were both made to come, and neither of us want to be here. I'm guessing that you're the same too."

I nodded, opening the door further. Konrad's eyes slid over me easily, his smirk increasing.

"I gotta say, Megan, you never fail to impress. You look stunning."

"Thanks," I murmured. "Your name wasn't on the board."

"I was late. The board changes hourly, so it will be up there soon enough."

As I washed my hands, I looked in the mirror. Konrad was behind me. His amusement hadn't died, but the smile was a lot less than it had been.

"I'd like to start again."

Taking a couple of paper towels, I turned to face Konrad as I dried my hands.

"I struggle to accept your actions, Konrad. I understand that you were facing a lot of issues with your pack and what my father was throwing at you, but you crossed a line. There would have been another way, but you didn't search for it. You expected me to accept whatever you said and let's face it, you would have continued screwing Shelly if I'd ignored what happened with dad and Stephen. Your actions and choices have consequences."

"And I have paid for that. Every time I wake up and see the empty side of the bed, I think about you and what I lost because of the path I chose to walk. I came here to,"

"You knew I'd be here." I interrupted.

Konrad sighed heavily as he jammed his hands into his pockets. His jaw clenched tight as he looked away.

"How did you know that? A detective, a spy, or have you managed to find another snake to serve your needs?"

"I don't have a snake, and it was obvious you'd behere. If my elders were breathing down my neck about finding a mate here, don'tyou think I'd assume yours were too? We're both in the same position here,newly placed Alphas who are unattached and in desperate need of a mate to turninto a Beta. It doesn't take a genius to figure out the obvious, Megan. Stopmaking me out to be the enemy. I'm not that guy. You might have thought that Iwas, but I wasn't. I never was."