The Strong Alpha

14. Your Mom Would Be So Proud

Another week has passed. The medicine seems to be working exactly as the doctor said it would. It makes most of the pain go away, but there's always a dull throb to my body. James has only left my side once and it was only because his pack needed him for something. But other than that, we've been attached at the hip. This morning during breakfast, James told me we have dinner plans which surprised me. He didn't specify to dress fancy or comfy so I'm going to go with both. I take a shower and do all the necessary and usual shower duties. When I get out, I look to my phone to see that it's 5:20. That means I have a little bit less than two hours to get ready. About an hour and 40 minutes to be exact. I wrap my robe around my wet body and towel dry my hair. I walk out into the hallway and head to Sienna's room. "Hey Chicky. You want to come hang out with me while I get ready for a date?" I ask and give her a sweet smile. She looks at me with bright eyes and nods her head with a happy smile. We head back to my room and she sits in my computer chair while I sit at my vanity. I let my hair out of the towel it was in and let it finish air drying. 

I decide on doing a natural eye look so I apply a brown, nude, smokey look before putting mascara on my long lashes. Sienna and I talk about her and school while I work on my makeup. Next, I apply a little bit of concealer under my eyes to keep the natural look. I grab my bronzer and put a little bit in the hollows of my cheeks. Then I grab my blush and put a nice rosy color on my cheek bones. Last, I grab a natural and not so flashy highlighter and put it above the blush. I turn and smile at Sienna and she returns my smile. "You look perfect, Sis," she says. I giggle and move from my seat to give her a hug. I get close and wrap my arms around her but don't actually touch her. I get up again and head to my closet. "I'll be right out, Si," I say and disappear into my closet and shut the door behind me. 

I change into a matching black bra and underwear set and slip on a pair of comfy socks. Next, I go through my closet to find something cute and comfortable to wear. I settle on a pair of blue jeans with a rip on both knees and a long sleeve white shirt with a high collar. I roll up the bottoms of each pant leg and slip on a pair of tan ankle boots. Not wanting to be cold, I look through my jackets and find a forest green cardigan and slip it on. I roll the sleeves up enough so the white shirt underneath shows through. I smile at the outfit I made and grab a long necklace and put it on. Once I'm finished changing, I step out of my closet and look at Sienna. Her eyes widen and she gives me an enthusiastic nod. "It looks good?" I ask. "Amazing," she says to give me the confirmation I needed. I give her a happy smile and turn to my reflection in the mirror. My hair has dried into natural waves so I get some hair shine in my hands and run it through the curls. I spray on some perfume and put on deodorant and Sienna and I leave my room. I look at the time on my phone and it shows 6:57. I hang out with Sienna for a few minutes while I wait for James.

After a couple minutes of talking to Sienna about her school and grades, there's a ring at the doorbell. I go downstairs and open the front door to see James standing there. He's holding a small bouquet of blue roses and baby's breath. I let out a little giggle and take them from him, letting him follow me inside. I go to the kitchen and put them in a vase with some water. "You ready, Honey?" he asks once I'm finished. I turn and look at him and nod. I take this minute to admire his looks. He's wearing a pair of black jeans and a black v-neck shirt that clings to his biceps and shoulder muscles. He has his hair styled in a purposeful messy look, showing off his jawline. I bite my lip and make eye contact to see him staring straight into my eyes. "Uh, I'm ready," I whisper and let a blush fall over my cheeks. 

He smirks at me and grabs my hand, leading me out the front door. We get into his truck and he starts driving. "So where are we going for dinner?" I ask as we pull out onto a more main road. "The diner," he says with a small smile. I nod my head and turn on the radio. Some older pop rock song comes on by Avril Lavigne and I start singing along to it. I glance over at James a couple times to see him biting his lip from nerves but shrug it off and keep singing. After another five minutes, we pull into a parking spot and he turns the ignition off. I'm led inside and we find a booth and order milkshakes instead of our usual sodas. After about an hour, we start trailing off into a weird topic. "I'm glad I found you Juniper. I've spent the last 5 years in agony searching for you and I could never find you. I was so miserable without you," he says the last part with a sigh. "I'm glad I found you too, James. Is everything ok? You seem off tonight," I ask, concerned.
"Juniper, I've never said this to anyone ever. I've always been so afraid of falling for someone who was destined to be with someone else. I mean, you only get one mate in your life. I'm so lucky I got partnered with you. I have never met someone so true to their values and morals. I haven't wanted to tell you any of this before because we met a month ago. Juniper, I can't keep this from you anymore because we've come a long way in a few short weeks and I don't want to ever lose that. Juniper, I love you. I've been in love with you since you brought me home with you the first day we met. This isn't how this usually happens. Most of the time, mates get to know each other before they announce it. But you're different. You've always done the last thing I would expect and I love it. You keep me on my toes, Juniper, and it's driving my wolf wild," he pauses. He gets out of his seat and moves to the floor, getting on one knee. "With the permission of your father, I'm here asking you to be my wife. Juniper, would you please do the honors of wearing this ring to represent the strong love I have for you. And to promise your future to me?" he asks with a huge grin. I sit there in shock with my hands covering my mouth. I glance back and forth between his eyes and the ring he holds for a solid 30 seconds. I let my eyes settle on his and nod my head. "Yes James. Of course. Yes," I say over and over with enthusiasm dripping from every word.

He gets a big smile on his face and pulls the ring out of the box and slips it onto my small ring finger. He stands up and I follow suit and engulf him in a hug. He squeezes my small waist tight into his arms and nuzzles his face in my neck. I come to when I hear applause all around us. I pull away from James and look into his eyes as a single tear of happiness rolls from my eye. "I love you so much James," I whisper and get on my tippy toes to kiss him. We kiss for a minute until we hear people cheering and then we pull away. "I love you too Juniper," he says and pecks me on the lips. We sit down and enjoy the rest of our dinner in a peaceful chatter. Once we finish dinner, we go back home and fall asleep in each other's arms.

When I wake up, the sun hasn't quite risen yet, but I can tell it's morning. I slide out of bed and take a quick shower to freshen up. I brush my teeth and throw my long hair up into a messy bun. I don't bother to put a towel on when I leave the bathroom since James is still asleep. When I leave, I head to my closet and put on a bra, underwear, spandex and a baggy shirt of mine. I leave my room without making noise and close the door, heading downstairs. When I reach the kitchen, I turn the lights on and see the bright light of the oven shining 5:30. Hence why the sun hadn't started shining. I start prepping to cook and spend a long, tedious hour and a half making food. I'm finished when I've made pancakes, waffles, sausage,muffins, eggs, and some bacon. Just as I finish, Father and Sienna come down the stairs, talking to each other. "Something smells good. Is this some special occasion?" Father asks as he rounds the corner. "Yes but I can't tell you guys until after breakfast. I'm gonna take some to James and we'll be down in a little bit to tell you," I say with a bright smile. I stack up two plates with a little bit of everything I made and carry it upstairs to my room. I set the plates on my nightstand and crawl on my bed, straddling James' waist. I lean down and peck his lips, "Honey, wake up." He groans and turns his head to the side, opening his eyes. "Good morning Beautiful," he mumbles out in a groggy, husky voice that causes me to bite my lip. "I made breakfast," I whisper and lean down, kissing him again.

Once we're finished eating, I let James go freshen up and get dressed while I go downstairs and rinse our dishes. I sit beside Sienna and Father at the table and wait for James. A couple minutes later, he comes downstairs in blue jeans and a tight white shirt. I get a bright smile on my face and watch James while he sits down then look over at Father and Sienna. "We have news," I say with a proud smile. "And?" Sienna asks with a bit of urgency. "What's the surprise Jay? Your sister may explode any second," Father says with a small chuckle. I smile and turn to look at James and he looks at me. We ask each other through mind link who should do it before Sienna lets out a small growl. James and I laugh and look back at them. Instead of saying anything, I hold my left hand out in front of them so they can see the ring. Sienna jumps out of her seat and starts jumping up and down with excitement. "I'm finally getting a brother!" she screams and hugs both of us. Father only gets a proud look on his face, but still looks kind of distant. "Daddy what's wrong?" I ask and move towards him, sitting in the seat right beside him where Sienna was. "Your mom would be so proud, Sweetheart," he says and pulls me into a tight hug. I hug him back as tight and feel my shirt getting wet from his tears. "Group hug!" Sienna yells and runs into us, wrapping her small arms around me. James immediately joins in and wraps his arms around all three of us.

"Can I help you plan the wedding Jay?" Sienna asks after we've all separated. "I thought you'd never ask," I say with a big smile, crouching down to my heels and give her a big hug. She grabs my hands once we've pulled apart and starts dragging me to my office. I hardly get enough time to peck James on the lips before being yanked away, leaving Father and James to do guy talk.