Alpha's Bullied Fox

Hangover

Nathaniel

Loud knocking jolted me awake. My head pounded, and my mouth tasted like vodka and orange juice. The knocking continued, and I growled. “What?!” I shouted, and the door opened, and my younger brother Justin waltzed in.

“Hey Nate, I was just seeing if you were still alive,” He says and plops onto my bed beside me.

“Go away, Justin,” I mumbled and turned over.

“You know you were supposed to be a training like a half an hour ago, right?” He chuckles and gets off of my bed.

“f**k,” I sit up slowly, and the room spins. “I just got to sleep,” I looked at the clock. “I think.”

Justin snorted. “Henry and Zach dragged you in about three am,” He slaps my back. “Better, hurry up before Dad comes looking for you.”

I rolled my eyes and slowly got to my feet while Justin left my room. Yesterday was my twentieth birthday, and I spent it drinking with my two best friends Zach and Henry. Zachary is my cousin and will be my beta when I become Alpha next year, and Henry will be the next Gamma.

I stumbled into my bathroom and turned on the shower. I strip out of my smelly clothes and step into the hot water. My mind was in shambles. It has been two years since I turned eighteen, and I still haven’t found my fated mate. Both Zach and Henry have found theirs, as well as our other friends. It was starting to get to me. My wolf Neo became more and more sullen the longer we went without finding her. I ended up spending my free time drinking too much as the pain of not finding my mate was becoming too much.

I finished my quick shower and sauntered out of my bathroom and into my closet. I threw on a pair of workout pants and a tank top and ran a comb through my medium-length brown hair. I stared into the mirror, and Ice blue eyes stared back at me. I rubbed my growing unkempt beard. Sighing, I walked out of my room. I heard laughter coming from down the hall and walked into the kitchen. My younger sisters Molly and Carrie were sitting at the breakfast bar with our cousin Hailey.

“Oh look, he’s alive,” Molly giggled. She and Carrie are twins and just turned fourteen. Hailey is Zach’s twin.

I ignored my sister, walked over to the coffee pot, poured myself a mug, and added vanilla creamer. I was about to take a sip when I sensed someone behind me. I didn’t need to look to know it was Dad.

“What are you doing, Nathaniel?” He nearly growled.

I turned to him. “Drinking coffee, Dad.”

“Did you just now wake up?” He folded his arms and glared at me with his hazel eyes. I could feel his wolf trying to surface. I brushed past him and sat at the counter with my sisters and cousin.

“Yes,” I sipped my coffee.

My Dad looked at his watch. “You are forty-five minutes late for training. That is the third time this week that you have been late.”

“Ooh, Nate is in trouble,” Carrie giggled.

Our father gave my sisters and cousin the look, and they scrambled out of the kitchen. He stepped towards me. “Nathaniel Devin Brody, you are to become Alpha in a year. I need you to start focusing on your training. I want to be confident that you will be able to fulfill your role as Alpha of this pack.”

“I’m sorry, I am such a failure, Dad,” I drawled.

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Nathaniel, I know you are upset that you haven’t found your mate yet.”

“What do you know? You knew Mom was your mate before you even turned eighteen. I see Zach and Henry all happy. Hell, Zach is already expecting a pup. And here I am-“ I trialed off.

Dad patted my shoulder. “It will happen, Nathaniel. Trust me.”

I brushed him off and slammed my mug on the counter. “Yeah, right,” I stood up. “I better get down to training,” I growled and walked away. I nearly collided with my mother.

“Good morning. Nathaniel. I see you finally made it out of bed,” She laughed.

“Don’t start with me, Mom,” I snarled at her, and she flinched.

Dad growled behind me. “Do not speak to your mother like that,” He stepped towards us.

“It’s okay, James. I can handle my pup even if he is bigger than me.” My mother smiled at me and placed her hand on my cheek. “Don’t give up hope, Nathaniel. Your mate is out there waiting for you.”

I couldn’t help but smile at her. My mother always knew how to make me feel better. I leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Thanks, Mom.” I turned to Dad. “Bye.” I walked out of the Alpha suite and down the stairs. On the way down, I ran into Zach and his very pregnant mate Bella.

“Hey, cuz,” He patted my shoulder.

“Thanks for dragging me home last night,” I told him and smiled at Bella. She was rubbing her huge belly. “How are you this morning, Bella?”

She smiled sweetly. I couldn’t believe my cousin was mated to such a sweet woman. Bella is the daughter of the head doctor in our hospital. She is the quiet and introverted type, and Zach is loud and obnoxious. They were complete opposites, but the moment they discovered they were mates, they fell in love. I almost hated Zach for it. “I am doing good, Nate.”

“Are you coming to training?” I asked Zach even though he was clearly dressed for training.

He nodded. “Yeah, my Dad just about kicked my ass this morning for being late.

“We tore up the town last night,” I laughed as we started down the stairs. He kissed Bella and waved at her. “I didn’t think that I got all that drunk, but-“

“Dude, you were f****d up.” Zach laughed. “Henry and I found you with a hooker behind the bar.”

“Oh s**t,” I mumbled.

We reached the ground floor and headed out of the packhouse. We rushed to the training ground and were met with two very angry werecats. The head warrior Frederica Love and her mate Gavin Clay were waiting for us. Everyone calls Frederica Freddie. She is a formidable warrior, and we are relieved to have her on our side. It was almost unheard of for werecats to reside in a wolf pack, but my grandfather had been friends with Freddie’s father.

“You are both late,” Freddie stepped towards us. Her yellow feline-like eyes nearly glowed as she scowled at us. “I had things I need to show you, and I don’t have time to waste waiting for you to crawl out of bed,” She circled us. “Give me one hundred push-ups and a hundred laps.”

I groaned. “Oh, come on, Freddie. It was my birthday yesterday, and we went out to celebrate.”

She growled at me. “I don’t give a f**k. It is Gavin and my job to get you two dumbasses ready to become the leaders of this pack next year. Now get your asses in gear before I kick them.”

With a sigh, I dropped to the ground and began my push-ups. Zach was beside me, huffing and puffing. Freddie walked a few feet away from us. Henry was already on the field, sparring with Freddie’s son Caleb. After the push-ups, I ran the laps. When we were finally done, we stood in front of Freddie and Gavin.

The werecats grinned wickedly. Gavin came to our pack when he found out that he and Freddie were true mates. He is a tall man with tanned skin and black hair and brown eyes. He shifts into a large jaguar while Freddie shifts into a golden lion. “Okay,” Gavin clapped. “Since you two are late, we are going to be extra tough on you.”

An hour later, after extra tough training, Zach and I limped away from the training grounds. I was bruised and bloodied but not as bad as Zach was. I may be hungover, but I could still kick ass when I needed to.

“Sorry, Zach,” I patted his back.

“Man, Gavin was really rough on you two,” Henry said as he trotted up to us.

“How did you manage to get up on time?” I asked my future Gamma.

Henry laughed. “I wasn’t nearly as drunk as you and Zach.”

“Asshole,” I mumbled.

We got back to the packhouse. Dad was waiting for us along with my Uncle Tim, his beta, and Tony, his Gamma. “Looks like Gavin and Freddie went extra hard on your guys,” Dad chuckled.

“They deserve it,” Uncle Tim glared at Zach.

“You guys act like you never got drunk on your birthdays,” Zach responded.

“We did, but we were responsible about it,” Uncle Tim told him. “You are with me, Zachary. We are going on a perimeter sweep.”

“Dad!” Zach protested. “Can’t I shower and change my clothes first?”

“Nope,” Uncle Tim replied while emphasizing the p. “You were late, so you get to work while smelling like ass. Let’s go,” He beckoned Zach towards a black pickup truck.

“See ya, Cuz,” I waved as he was dragged away. I looked at Dad. “What terrible task do you have for me?”

Dad growled lowly. “This isn’t a joke, Nathaniel. We have work to do. Let’s go,” He turned and stalked into the house. I looked at Henry, who was being lectured by his father. I waved at him and then followed Dad into the house. We reached the office, and I was directed to a table while papers were plopped in front of me. “Look through these and find any mistakes or typos.”

I scoffed as I stared at the stack. “You really should have a secretary for this stuff,” I mumble.

“I do,” Dad said from his desk. “You,” He smirked and turned on his computer.

My eyes drooped as I got to the last paper an hour later. Most of it was treaty stuff, and I found no glaring errors. Dad was on the phone with someone. I hadn’t been paying attention.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then, Patrick,” He spoke into the phone and then hung it up.

“Was that Uncle Patrick?” I asked.

Dad nodded. “Yep,” He replied. “By the way, we are going to the Star Valley Pack tomorrow. It is the future Alpha’s birthday. But we are going to negotiate an alliance with them.”

I sighed. “Do I have to go?”

“Yes, Nathaniel as my son, you need to go. Besides, there will be other alphas in attendance,” He explained.

“In other words, you hope I find my mate,” I rolled my eyes. I folded my arms and leaned back in my seat as Neo woke up in my head.

Dad shifted in his seat. “It would certainly help your attitude. But you need to learn about forging alliances and maintaining them.”

“Will Uncle Patrick be bringing Brian?” I asked about my other cousin.

“Of course. He is in training to be the next Alpha of Hell’s Canyon,” Dad responded.

Uncle Patrick is the Alpha of Hell’s Canyon. A notoriously strong and ruthless pack. My Aunt Wendy is his wife and Luna. Their son Brian is another one of my closest friends. He is a couple of years younger, but we have fun together. I was looking forward to seeing him. The pack we were going to is somewhat secretive. They are just now trying to forge alliances as they need cash, or that’s what Uncle Patrick said. Dad wasn’t a fan of Alpha Dean, but he was sucking it up for business.

I turned my attention back to the paperwork. For some reason, Neo started acting up the moment my father mentioned Star Valley. “Dad, does Alpha Dean have any daughters?” I asked with mild hope.

“No, son. He has just one son. Why?” He retorted.

I shook my head. “No, reason.”

He chuckled. “Is your wolf acting up?”

“How did you know?” I asked.

“I’m your father. I had a hunch.”

“Yeah, he started whining the moment that you mentioned Star Valley,” I told him.

“Hmm,” Dad snorted.

I stood up and grabbed the papers. “I am done with these. Can I get some lunch? I am starving.”

Dad nodded as I set the papers on his desk. “Yes, just be back after. I have more work for you.”

I sighed and walked out of the office. Neo was pacing in my head, mumbling. ‘What is up with you, Neo?’

‘I sense something,’ He replied.

‘What?’ I asked, but he didn’t say anything more. I shook my head and rushed to the dining room to get some food. My stomach was in knots. I hoped it would settle once I ate something. Zach and Henry were already in the hall when I entered. They both had their mates with them. I didn’t feel like watching them be all lovey-dovey, so I made myself a plate from the buffet and sat alone. Moments later, my brother sat with me.

“So, how much trouble are you in?” He asked while biting into a french fry.

I rolled my eyes. “I am not in trouble, Justin. Sorry to disappoint you.”

Justin scoffed. “Whatever. Dad looked ready to ream you a good one this morning.”

“Why aren’t you at school?” I asked him.

He shrugged. “Half-day. We got out early.”

“Joy,” I said as I picked at my food. I was starving but didn’t feel like eating. Neo was acting up, and I needed to get outside and run off his anxiety. I stood up. “I’ll see you later, Justin.”

“I’ll be on a date,” He smirked.

“Oh really?” I lifted an eyebrow at him.

“Yep, I finally asked Christy out.” He stated. He had a crush on the most popular girl at our school. Christy is human, but Justin suspects that she may be his mate. He won’t know for sure until he turns eighteen.

“Well, have fun. Try not to scare her away with your ugly face,” I smile at my brother, who glares at me.

“I’m better looking than you,” He declared and ate another French fry.

“Whatever,” I picked up my plate of food and then tossed it in the trash. I walked out of the dining hall and out of the packhouse. I walked to the tree line before stripping and then shifting into my dark brown wolf. I let Neo take over, and we ran into the woods.