Whose Baby?

C H A P T E R - T W O

CARLA

Of course it was Mint.

I wouldn’t forget the face of my fated mate even in a thousand years, would I?

I wish it wasn’t though, but it was him.

The only reason I ran away, the only reason I couldn’t sleep at night, the only reason I hated myself so much that I lost the will to live.

Coming all the way here was the only way out and now, I was stuck. How the hell would I live here with him?

Dear Goddess!

How did I not know he was the one coming here? How did I miss such a vital information, surely Emma must have known right? Oh s**t! She wanted to tell me but I was too stuck up with my situation to hear her out. I even left the pack without saying goodbye to her so our parting would be less painful.

I couldn’t say a word, I just gaped at him, shrinking back, wishing I could melt into a puddle and slip out of the door.

“You followed me here? What more do you want from me? Do you think coming here would change anything?” he lashed out, walking towards me like a menacing giant hulk.

I took steps back till my back was against the door, I could feel air leaving me, the room suddenly felt too small and claustrophobic.

“I had no idea…” I struggled to say with a withered voice, but he just kept advancing till he was few inches from me.

“Well let me make it easy for you.” He started. “I, Mint Dyson, Alpha of Green Forest Pack, reject you, Car—” A loud bang on the door made him halt, causing me to jolt from the side of the door so whoever it was could come in.

I wondered briefly who would dare bang on the Alpha’s door that way, but somehow, I was grateful to the person. I knew getting rejected was inevitable, but I wasn’t ready for the heart ache and burn it would cause me.

I was going through enough at this point.

Mint, sorry, the new Alpha called the person in without bothering to send me another glance. I stood there, quivering with anxiety as the person outside came in. It was his younger brother, Alec. The one who was now his beta.

I remember him from the dinner we had back at the Castle. He was kind enough to give me water when I started choking on my meal even though he didn’t know me. I kept my head bowed as he breezed into the room, looking all pumped with a smile on his glowing cheeks.

“Hello, brother! Oh, pardon my blasphemy, Alpha.” He jeered playfully going to smack Mint on his shoulders. He looked totally different from Mint with his light brown curly hair, and what looked like a catish kind of brown eyes.

“You may go.” Mint said to me with a detached tone, before taking back his attention to his brother.

I was about leave when Alec said, “Wait, you look like… no, you’re her right? The Luna’s friend, the girl who choked on her food during the dinner we had at the Castle?” He pointed at me with a knowing smile, while I nodded with a polite smile.

I just wanted to leave this place this instant, please, don’t be friendly with me, I begged in my head with a clenched teeth.

“I almost didn’t recognize you.” He continued, to my chagrin, “This gown made you look so different, but why would the Luna’s friend come to work as a maid in a lesser pack?” He asked, staring at me as if I had suddenly become more interesting.

“Uhmm, personal reasons, I guess.” Came my faltered reply, letting out a low nervous laugh. I was itching to leave here, so badly.

“Anyways, you are the only familiar face here asides my brothers of course, so let’s be friends.” He grinned at me, waving.

Friends? Oh no, I really don’t want to be friends with anyone, I thought as anxiety washed over me.

“Why are you here, Alec?” Mint snapped at his brother with his authoritative voice that made me wince.

“Jee, sorry, I was totally caught up with this beauty here.” Alec chuckled, now facing his brother, “Mother, father and granpa want to have dinner with you before they go back to our pack, sorry, their pack. This pack is mine and yours and Zeus’ now.” He informed Mint and took out his classy looking phone from his pockets and started clicking on something.

Did he just call me beauty? I laughed in my head at his joke. Alec was really a kind fellow.

So Mint’s family came here to support him, I guess. They were actually the richest family in the whole werewolf realm after the royal family of course. His family came from a lineage of doctors, so it was no surprise that they would all be here for him.

How do I ever come close to that? I had no family, no inheritance. The only family I had died when I was barely 10 years old with no information of who or what my parents were.

Even if Mint accepted me, his family would never. I was sure they would be preparing one of the alpha’s daughter for him or a female from a high-ranked wolf family, with of courses, a wolf.

The mere thought of my mate being with someone else caused a searing pain to pierce through me. He would have rejected me few minutes ago, I shouldn’t be calling him my mate anymore. But I don’t know what would become of me and my stay here from now on.

“I’ve heard you, Alec, now you ALL can leave.” He demanded, putting enough emphasis on the ‘all’.

Thank goodness, I mentally sighed in relief, turning the door knob to step out when Mint called Alec back and told him to tell the head maid to come to his room as soon as possible.

I guess I was really in trouble this time. Would he tell that grumpy female to send me back to Red Forest? What about my school? Should I go and beg? No, no, that would definitely make things worse.

He already believed I came here because of him, so there was absolutely nothing else I could say at this point that would make him believe differently.

I ambled out of the Alpha’s apartment with slumped shoulders, to think I was having so much expectations for my first day in this new place. Anyway I wouldn’t let that stop me, I thought as I made my way to the pack’s administrative office to fill the form for the courses I wanted to do and lessons I would be taking.

Before coming here, I had decided to go for one of the quickest and most lucrative field of study: Anesthetics Technicians. It would take me two years after my GED and then I can start working in any hospital, located at any part of the realm. Helping people with pains and living a more fulfilled life.

My grandmother died in pains because I couldn’t take her to the hospital, I believe I would be helping helpless people ease their pains at any point of their lives.

That was what I had planned for my life before coming here. Mint’s family had a teaching hospital back at Red forest where I could have trained but I knew it would be impossible to do anything worthwhile in a place where he was always present, a place where he could even be one of the lecturers.

But I was wrong, I simply ran straight into his face again, like I was doing a rat race. Why did he have to be the new Alpha? Why not Curt, or, or, someone else?

……………..

MINT

Her provocative smell numbed my mind. I froze as I heard her voice, causing the wet towel in my hands to drop on its own.

I felt my whole body go stiff for a moment, as I gazed at the person I have been longing for and loathing at the same time. It was Isabelle….No!

Carla!

Hades, my wolf howled as he perceived her smell.

My heart beat accelerated as the memories came flashing back, the memories I wished to bury forever, the memories that gave me sleepless nights and the same memories that drove me to an unfamiliar place.

Rage surged through me, I could feel steam leaving my body. How dare her come here? How dare her show her conniving face in front of me? I felt nothing else for her except revulsion.

I have never abhorred a person this much in my entire life.

But I didn’t want to see how pitiful she looked, how scared and shocked she seemed as she saw me. It was obvious she didn’t know I would be coming here.

I left my pack and the place I have grown attached to because of her, but here she was again, standing before me in the last place I ever expected to see her.

The Goddess was playing a cruel joke on me. First she gave me a rankless and deceptive wolf for a mate and now this.

I groveled at her, feeling my self-control slip from me. “I, Mint Dyson, Alpha of the Green Forest pack, reject you, Car—” a loud bang on the door stopped me half way.

I clenched my fist, cursing whoever it was that was behind that door. It was my little brother, Alec, he came into the room in his always merry mood, telling me that my parents wanted us to eat dinner before they left, as they came all the way here to support me.

That was all I heard and wanted to hear. Alec was trying to befriend her and it pissed the hell out of me. None of my family knew about me and her, and I would love it to remain that way forever.

I sent them all out, hoping to get another chance to reject her properly so I could move on with my life. I wonder how that would be ever possible with her sharing such a close proximity with me.

Brushing that out of my mind, I started to get ready for the dinner. Since it was mandatory in my family to dress corporately for dinner or any family gathering, I put on a white long-sleeve button up shirt with a black suit pants, slipping my legs into the new Italian shoe my mother got for me as a parting gift.

I made my way to the pack house dining room to meet everyone seated waiting for me. Salivating dishes were arranged across the table but I had lost my appetite as soon as I saw that female few minutes ago. My granddad patted the empty seat beside him, so I sat down and stared at the faces of my family. They were all so happy for me, my mother who was always smiling and brimming with energy, my father, the diplomatic one, Zeus, my elder brother who was quieter than everyone in the family.

Although Zeus was older than me, I was faster, my wolf was bigger, I was taller than him and even better looking according to the majority. We weren’t close while growing up because I somehow felt he was resenting me for how I was. But I later realized he was just being himself, quiet and laid back. I literally grew up with Zyk and Curt all through my childhood so I didn’t understand Zeus quickly enough.

Alec on the other hand was the kindest and warmest among us. And he was more than happy to be a beta, my beta.

“Hello, son...” my mother greeted coming to kiss my both cheeks before going back to her seat. She had the light brown short hair which Alec took from her, while Zeus was jet black like my father’s and my granddad who was my best friend (aside Zyk and Curtis) had a grey hair since childhood and I took some of dad.

I watched as my dad gazed at my mother lovingly and realized it was exactly the kind of mateship I have been longing for. They both were so happy, so in love and at peace with each other, and their wolves were inseparable. Although my mother wolf was stronger and she bit my dad’s wolf a lot. The thought made me laugh for a moment.

I was the Alpha now, how the hell do I take a mate who doesn’t have a wolf? How would I cope with her here, and what would the elders of this pack see me as?

“Hello mum.” I replied, wanting this dinner to end so I could be alone.

“You don’t look too happy, is anything the problem?” my mum asked and everyone else turned to stare at me with curious eyes.

“I’m okay, mum, just missing our pack.” I sighed, it wasn’t entirely a lie though.

“It’s normal, but you’ll get used to it here, soon.” My dad spoke up, “Let’s eat, we don’t have all day.” He continued curtly and started digging into the chicken salad in front of him.

My mum still continued to look at me with a creased eyebrow before nudging my dad who paused eating and nodded at her.

“Your father and I were thinking about your mating situation.” my mother started with her fork in the air. “And we believe you should find one before the elders of this pack start pestering you. You’re 24yrs old already, I don’t think finding your mate would be possible anymore, now.”

I stifled a frustrated sigh. It annoys the s**t out of me when my parents try to butt into my business, seriously.

“Don’t worry, mum, I’ll take care of that, for now, I have enough on my mind as it is.” I retorted, hoping they would drop the damn subject.

“But you said the same thing some time ago back at the bar that you found your mate, right?” Alec cut in, making me want to snap his fvcking neck. I turned my head to where he sat, sending him daggers with my eyes.

He laughed nervously and faced his food.

“That was a slip, I. Do. Not. Have. A. Mate.” I stated between clenched teeth, stabbing the already fragile laps of the chicken in my plate.

Zeus stared at me doubtfully and then forked broccoli into his mouth. My granny Lucas who’s a vegan stopped eating his vegies and tapped me lightly on my shoulders as if he could understand my situation.

“Oh, dear, then we can find one for you! In fact, your father and I sent a word to the Alpha of Blue Forest pack, you remember them right? The pack you helped when that crazy epidemic almost wiped them all out.”

“Yes, I remember,” I sighed, knowing where my mother was taking this to. Why do women talk this much anyway? She has been the one talking since we started eating and doesn’t seem to get tired of it. Urrrrgh!

“Well, their daughter just turned twenty and she haven’t found a mate yet. When asked, she was more than happy to be your Luna. Isn’t that fabulous?”

“I don’t know, at least, you guys would have informed me before making such move, don’t you think?” I shrugged, totally uninterested with any female at the moment. I have been burned by one, I had to be careful of them now.

“She’ll be coming next week after her exams. I’m sure you’ll love her, just give her a chance, please.” My mum pushed and I realized I was done with this dinner.

I sighed and nodded and then turned to Zeus. “Zeus, will you please help me keep an eye on the former Alpha’s family? I don’t want to chase them out, but I still want to be cautious.” I told my brother and he nodded with a mouth full.

“Good idea, son. They don’t necessarily have to be like the former Alpha, besides, the youngest daughter is barely seventeen, I don’t think sending them away will be good for her.”

I smiled at my mother for making the best point I heard since we started eating. That was settled then, I trust Zeus to take care of that.

The next on my list would be making sure Carla don’t ever step foot in my room, ever again. I have to see that head maid.