Kudos to Martin for being someone who catches on quickly and doesn’t ask unnecessary questions. Although I am not sure if he bought the spontaneity of our little intervention against Lissa. Sure, Ben is here too, and obviously, the kid has no clue about what’s truly going on, or why Rose and Forest were onto Lissa’s case to begin with, but still, Martin isn’t an idiot.
If hewerean idiot, he wouldn’t be in line to become the next beta.
He knows there is more to it.
I know that he knows.
And he probably knows that I know he knows.
He doesn’t ask any questions, though. The man has a sense of timing.
“This can’t go wrong,” I mutter when I watch how Ben is walking towards a small cottage. It’s a deserted one, too far away from the center of the pack to be of interest to anyone to live there. Which makes it perfect for hooking up in secret.
Martin frowns. “A bit late to have doubts.”
“I am not having doubts,” I say. “Just stating a fact.” And then. “Don’t be prissy.”
“I am not—” Martin takes a deep breath. “Not the right time.”
“True,” I agree. “You are a surprisingly reasonable man.”
“Weird thing to say right after you agree that it’s not the right time to argue.”
“I meant it as a compliment,” I say.
He shakes his head. “You have a strange way of complimenting someone.”
“I am just saying that, for someone who was initially picked by Forest’s parents, you are quite the positive surprise.”
Martin is quiet for a while. “Do you think Alpha Forest sees it the same?”
“I think he does.”
“I really want his approval,” Martin admits. “I want to prove myself to him, but it’s hard. Like you said, his parents chose me, but unlike you, he didn’t know me from before.”
“If Forest hadn’t seen your potential, he would have kicked you out of his team already,” I point out. “He and the luna both refer to you as the future beta, all the time. They wouldn’t do that if they disliked you.”
“But they don’t trust me.”
“Yet,” I add. “Give it time. Trust is earned.”
He sighs. “It’s true that my parents and Forest’s are friends and that my parents are the same type of elitists, but it’s also true that they see me as a failure. Forest’s parents pushing for me to become beta was the first thing that earned me their approval.”
I am surprised to say the least. “I didn’t know that.”
“No one knows. And my parents never show it. After all, they always wanted to kiss up to the alpha family. They can’t possibly show their disdain towards me.”
Funny how he shares this type of upbringing with Forest. Just that Forest’s parents showed their disdain very openly; by constantly talking down to him, by belittling him and by making him look bad to everyone. They did it to secure their power over him. Martin’s parents probably did all that behind closed doors, while pretending their son was awesome, to the alpha.
“I was so glad when I realized that Forest is a decent man,” he admits. “For the first time, I feel that I am doing something worthy and that I belong somewhere.”
“Why don’t you tell him?” I ask.
“Wouldn’t that be odd?”
“Not really. You said you wished he would trust you. Why not show him your trust first?”
Martin furrows his brow and nods after a while. “Maybe you are right.”
