Nodding miserably, Heath mumbled, “He laughed at me when I told him he was my mate.”
Reeve couldn’t fathom any shifter reacting that way when told the news—unless Heath was mistaken. But even then, it was a cruel thing to do to his friend. Regardless of his promise not to kick the shit out of the shifter, he’d be paying a visit to teach that fucker a thing or two about the right way to let someone down. “Who’s your mate?”
“I don’t know…I didn’t stay around enough to find out. What’s the difference? He rejected me.”
“Where did you meet him? Back home? Maybe your parents would know who he is.”
“No…in your office. I don’t know what he was doing there, but he was sitting at your desk when I came in.”
Reeve’s jaw dropped.Holy fuck!“Tristan is your mate?”
Looking up, Heath asked, “Who’s Tristan?”
“Josiah’s eldest son. He showed up while you were gone, ready to fight his father.”
“I thought Kahn was the eldest.”
Shaking his head, Reeve said, “No one knew about Tristan. His mother, who was pregnant with him at the time, was kicked out of the pack by Josiah when he took Elenor as a mate. Tristan’s mother never told him who his father was, but after she died, he found his birth record. Grieving for his mother and pissed at his fatherfor leaving them, he showed up the day you left and, mistaking me for Josiah, issued a challenge.”
“Holy fuck!”
“That about sums it up,” Reeve said.
Suddenly, a thought hit Heath, and he growled, “You didn’t hurt him, did you?”
“I should smack you for even thinking I would.”
“Well, he did challenge you and I’ve never known you to back down from one.”
“Did you not hear me…he thought I was Josiah!”
“Yeah…so whatdidyou do?” asked Heath.
“Fed him and asked if he wanted the Alpha job,” Reeve said, grinning. “He did and that’s why he was in my office last night while my mate and I were elsewhere getting better acquainted.”
“Holy fuck!”
“Yup, your mate is the new Alpha of the Silver Point Pack. Congratulations, Alpha Mate.”
Heath smiled, but it quickly turned into a frown when the memory of his mate’s reaction to his announcement came back. “You forget…he rejected me.”
Setting down his empty mug, Reeve said, “Tristan is a good guy…there’s got to be another explanation. I’m sure it’s a simple case of misunderstanding. I was going to head over there after lunch but I’ll go now. It’s better to get this straightened out right away before it gets worse. Gimme a minute to tell Kahn I’m going.”
Hope bloomed in Heath’s chest at the possibility that Reeve was right about it being a mistake.An Alpha as my mate…Mom and Dad are gonna be so proud!Afterdrinking the rest of his coffee, Heath rinsed his mug and set it in the sink while waiting for his friend to return.
~/~/~/~/~
Jackson looked up at Mystia as she appeared in his study. “Thanks for coming. How’s Jimmy?”
“Missing his grandpups, especially Max,” she said, smiling. “I’ve convinced him to hire some extra help.”
“And he agreed?” Jackson asked, surprised.
“Only because I pointed out how much he’s missing out on since they’re growing up so fast.”
“Clever.”
“I can’t take credit for it,” Mystia replied, smiling. “Oracle told me she used the same reasoning on Maximus when Steel and Slate were small. Now, what do you need?”
