“My pack doesn’t respect me,” I say after a while. “So, I’d say, the way you are now would be perfect. You give off strength and dignity, unlike me. I am perceived as meek and slow, so someone sharp next to me is exactly what would do my image good.”
She nods. “I was thinking the same,” she admits. “But it’s your pack, and I need your verdict on things.” She looks relieved. “Obviously, it’s going to be easier for me to bemethan anyone else. I will need to try and be warmer, though,” she says. “Tell me when I come off as too icy.”
I nod. “I will.”
“Oh, right, I almost forgot.” She taps a finger against her lips. “I think it would be a good time to contact your beta and tell him to pick us up in an hour, so we’ll be on time.”
“Right,” I agree. “I will write him a message.”
“Do you know his number by heart?”
I nod. “I thought it would be good to always know the most important numbers.”
“I agree, especially in the case of an emergency.” She waits for me to send my message before continuing the conversation. “Is there anyone in your pack you trust?” she asks.
I feel my cheeks heat up in embarrassment. “No.”
“Don’t feel ashamed, I had no one either,” she mutters, frowning. “What about your future beta or gamma?”
“I don’t know my future gamma,” I admit, feeling how my cheeks heat up again. How embarrassing to admit that? “Because I don’t have one.”
Rosea, however, just nods thoughtfully. “And the beta?”
“Martin… seems to be okay. We had a moment when we had a beer together, last night, and I felt like… maybe he could be genuine, but I am not sure.”
Again, she gauges me thoughtfully. “You said your gut feeling told you Jordan was full of bullshit.”
I nod vigorously. “He made my skin crawl.”
“It’s proof that your gut feeling is correct,” she adds. “We can keep an eye on Martin and try to pull him to our side.”
I can’t remember the last time someone trusted inanythingI did or said.
“Is there anyone in your pack your parents have an issue with, someone they don’t seem to like for whatever reason?”
I ponder her question, trying to think it through. To my surprise, once again, she neither interrupts me nor pushes me, but she lets me think. That’s new for me. Her reaction relaxes me immediately, and then all of a sudden it comes to me. “Wait…” I blurt. “Yes, there is someone. Griffin! I found it weird back then, but ignored it.”
“Who is Griffin?”
“Our current gamma has a brother, who lives with his mate in another pack. They have a stepson, who they sent to live in our pack years ago. Their reason was that they wanted him to go to school here.” I pause. “Not sure if I buy that excuse.”
“Yeah, me neither. He probably didn’t fit in their new life.”
“Exactly. He stayed and started college here. He was incredibly capable in his warrior training. We talked sometimes when he was new to the pack. You know, we are of similar age, and I have difficulties making friends. He was new, and we just clicked.”
Rosea furrows her brows. “Your parents didn’t like him?”
“They didn’t.” I brush through my hair in exasperation. “I don’t even know why. First, I tried to do my own thing and ignore them, but I was weak, and soon we didn’t hang out witheach other anymore. Unbelievable. As an alpha, I should have been so much more confident and stuck to him.”
I am really such a doormat.
“You were just a teen,” she says. “You were pressured by your parents.”
“I should have been stronger.”
“I don’t know about that.” Again, she furrows her brows. It makes me wonder how she would look if she weren’t worried. She mentioned that she was a smiley, happy teenage girl before she met that asshole. “After what your parents did, I wonder how manipulative they were during your whole upbringing.”
“I just don’t get it. He lived with the gamma, a ranked member! Okay, so, he and the gamma weren’t really close, but still… he was a very good fighter.”
