Rejected Protector

SELESTE

It’s finally the end of the day and I am so happy to be out of school. Talia, Rose, Mona and I are going to the mall to get outfits for the big pack birthday party. The party is this weekend. It falls on my birthday. I am so excited. We like any excuse to have a party. Eighteen years ago, our pack had a big baby boom. Ten of us were born days apart. Ben, the future beta, and I were born on the same day. The future alpha was born 2 days before us. His birthday is on Thursday. Nathan’s birthday is Friday. Ben, Rose, and my birthday are this Saturday. All the ranked wolves had babies close together. It must have been something in the water that year.

The girls and I head to the mall to shop for our dresses for the big birthday party. Every year the party is a major fashion event. Everyone is dressed formally or semi-formally. It’s the one time of the year that the pack gets to see me all dolled up.

“Rose, you should try this dress. This shade of blue looks good on you.” I say, holding the dress up for her.

Rose is Ben’s twin sister. She is also a high-ranking warrior. Although Ben is the next beta, Rose also has the strength of a beta wolf. She is smart, funny and an amazing cook. Rose looks at the dress I held up. It is strapless with a cinched waist. Rose is mocha tan, with curves in all the right places. She can wear just about any style, but this dress will look amazing on her. Rose is tall for a female. She is about 5’10. She is the tallest in the group. Talia is next. Talia is about 5’9, with long wavy hair. She has medium tan skin. The boys say her skin is sun-kissed; whatever that means. Mona and I are about the same height. We’re about 5’6. All of us are fit. Mona is not an elite warrior, but she can hold her own. She is my cousin, so she has Gamma blood in her. Mona is more a diva than a fighter, but we love her just the same.

We went through almost every store in the mall before all of us found what we were looking for. I wanted to dress differently from my everyday tomboy look. I chose a teal off-the-shoulder tea-length dress. Talia chose a red and cream short dress that looks amazing on her. Mona chose a royal blue dress that looks tailor-made for her. It was a one-shoulder number with pearls embedded in the neckline. Of course, the diva had to have a little sparkle.

We shopped until we were ready to drop. We all have different styles and tastes. I think we visited every store in the mall, some twice. I lost count of how many gowns I tried on.

“Girls, I can’t believe it took that long to find what we wanted. For once in my life, I am not looking forward to training in the morning. Shopping was a workout in itself.”

“So true,” Rose answered. “Let’s stop by the diner and get a bite to eat on the way home.”

As we enter the diner, we see the boys sitting in the back. Most of us have been friends all of our lives. I was contemplating going over when I saw Trevor looking at me with a scowl on his face. I can’t believe he is still not over me beating him in sparring. It’s been a year already.

“Look Seleste, there are the boys. Do you want to go over?” Mona asked.

“No, let’s get our own table. Trevor looks like he will have a fit if I sit with him.”

“Who cares what he thinks,” Rose replied.

“I don’t. I just don’t want any trouble tonight.”

“Ok,” Rose answered.

We walk to our table on the opposite side of the diner from the boys. Just as we are getting comfortable, Ben gets up and storms away from the table. Shana and the crew walked in as Ben was leaving. From the look Ben gave Shana, you can tell that she is not his favorite person. It’s not surprising. Ben hates stupidity. Ben should have been born alpha.

“Look at Trevor, he is practically running over himself to get the STD crew to sit at his table.” Rose says as she shakes her head.

Like her twin, Rose has a low tolerance level for foolishness. Mona looked at Trevor and the crew with disgust.

“I can’t believe Trev asked that plastic barbie and the other matchsticks to sit with him.” Mona said.

“Maybe Shana is his mate. He could be feeling the pull towards her since it is close to his birthday.” I stated.

“I hope not,” Mona stated. “Can you imagine that airhead being the Luna of our pack?”

“OMG, I can’t even imagine. I think I would have to transfer to a different pack. I pray to the moon goddess that if Shana becomes Luna of this pack, my mate is from a different pack so that I can move.” Talia stated.

“Guys come on; It won’t be that bad,” I stated. “We still have a great beta and an awesome Gamma to keep the pack running, not to mention the Elite 12. The Luna can’t change that, some things work outside of the alpha couple. We all know that our pack is respected because we make it that way.”

“Seleste, always the peacekeeper,” Mona says. “You are taking up for the person who disrespects you the most, but you wouldn’t be you if you did anything else.”

Little do they know; I feel the same way as Talia. I pray that if Shana is our Luna, please moon goddess, let my mate be from a different pack so I can transfer.

“She is NOT my Luna,” Tamaska says.

“Come on guys, let’s just eat our food and enjoy the rest of our night,” I say.