My Mate is an Alpha

Chapter 7

SASHA

There was something about the lights shining through the tiny windows of the little cottages that made me feel warm on the inside. It was so…welcoming. The sun had set at the beginning of our journey, leaving us to ride in the darkness. Yet the second we crossed the borders of my new pack, the world suddenly lit up again.

Ninebark had a rustic vibe, which was a huge contrast from my former pack. Since our former Alpha had graduated in architecture, he applied his studies into designing very modern houses, including the main building. I liked the change though. Despite having grown up in Diamond Tempest, it had a colder atmosphere. Weirdly enough, Ninebark instantly kind of felt like home to me.

“Here we are. Home sweet home!” Lyall stretched his arms behind his head, opening the door before the driver could do it for him. Only then did I realize that the car had come to a stop.

Cedar climbed out right after him, promptly offering me his hand to help me out. “Come on, ma chérie.”

As soon as I hopped out of the limousine, a few of the wolves who were walking around the main square stopped to look at me. Curiosity got the best of them as they tried to figure out who I was, but they averted their gazes the moment our eyes met. Obviously, they weren’t expecting their Alpha to come back with a woman.

“You will be officially introduced to everyone during lunch tomorrow,” my mate whispered to me, reading my thoughts. “I wanted to do it at dinner this evening, but I figured you might wanna have one last uneventful night before you become the talk of the pack.”

My heart skipped a beat at his thoughtfulness. Cedar’s patience and kindness still took me by surprise. We had only met a few hours ago, yet he always seemed to have my well-being in mind.

“I think I’d like that.” I tried my best to ignore the stares as he led me towards the pack house. “Does anyone know?”

“About you?” he asked, though he didn’t bother waiting for a reply. “My sister, who also happens to be my Delta. My parents are out of town, so you get another couple of days before they start pampering you in an overbearing manner.”

“I can’t wait to meet them,” I said sincerely despite his warning. “Wait. You have a sister?”

He smiled at me. “Caitlyn didn’t tell you?”

“Neither did you!”

“Well, now you know. And she’s just as eager to meet you as the entire pack will be as soon as they learn about you.” He made a brief pause, turning to face the path in front of him. “So eager that she insisted on being the first to welcome you.”

When I looked in the same direction as him, my eyes landed on a young woman who seemed to be around my age. Her resemblance to Cedar was striking. She had the same glistening, straight obsidian hair, and it fell all the way down her back. The blue in her eyes was of a slightly grayer shade, but other than that, she was a faithful female copy of my mate. A bright smile lit up her face when she noticed me standing beside her brother, but she waited for us to be introduced in silence.

“Sasha,” he called, glancing at me before waving at his younger sister. “This is Sophie. Sophie, this is my mate, Sasha Stone.”

“I used to be a Delta, too,” I told her as I stretched out my hand to greet her. “For a short time, but still.”

“Ah, a fellow Delta!” My observation seemed to double her excitement, causing her smile to grow even bigger. She shook my hand with both of hers. “It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

“The pleasure is all mine,” I replied.

“If you need anything at all, please let me know. I’ve been dying to meet my brother’s mate since I was 13, and I wanna make sure you feel welcome here.”

Sophie was genuinely sweet, just like her brother. Was his entire family this kind? Alpha-blooded wolves tended to be more reserved, and it wasn’t uncommon for them to be ruthless. I guess Caitlyn wasn’t lying when she told me that Cedar wasn’t like most Alphas.

“Thank you, Sophie. I already feel welcome.” I showed her a sympathetic smile.

“That’s wonderful to hear!”

“I’m sorry, Sophie, but I have to escort my Luna to her chambers before the pack starts talking,” Cedar chimed in, resting his hand on my back. As much as I wanted to chat with her sister for a while longer, I knew it would be best to lay low until it was time for me to be officially presented to the pack. “Is everything ready for the event tomorrow at lunch?”

“I’m working on it. I’ll make sure everything is perfect.” She winked playfully at me. “Rest well, Luna Sasha. See you tomorrow!”

Sophie bowed her head politely before excusing herself. Once she was gone, Cedar continued to lead the way towards the pack house. It was a fairly wide, two-story building, which consisted of two large houses connected by a small bridge. Its rustic exterior was mainly made of wood with a few stone pillars and chimneys. Tall, well-placed windows conferred a lighter touch to the heavy architecture.

My Alpha explained that the first floor was a common-use area. A number of entertainment facilities - such as the sauna, the game room, the cinema room, and the snack room - could be found there, which was why pack members were allowed to circulate freely. The top floor, however, was designated to ranked members only. The Alpha, Luna, and Beta chambers were all located on the right wing of the building, while the Gamma and Delta chambers could be found on the left wing. It was possible to transit between wings by crossing the bridge, which was only accessible through the second floor.

“This is my room,” he announced as he opened a normal-looking door at the end of the hallway.

The second he turned the lights on, illuminating the entire room at once, I was lured inside by the cozy atmosphere.

Cedar’s Alpha suite was quite expansive. It had the same earthy color palette as the rest of the pack house, making it feel warm despite the snow falling outside. The dark brown wood door and window frames contrasted with the orangey-cream walls. The same colors were present in rugs, pillows, nature paintings, and furniture.

The entrance led into a high-ceilinged living area with a long couch and a couple of chairs organized around a stone fireplace, which had been built against the farthest wall between two huge windows. A narrow, yet long balcony could be accessed through glass doors right beside each window.

Two rooms with slightly shorter walls were connected to the living area. To the right was the master bedroom, which had a king-sized bed placed in front of a second fireplace. To the left was what seemed to be a small cinema room, with more couches, built-in bookshelves, and a huge television.

“Too rustic?” Cedar’s voice brought me back to reality. By then, I was already standing in the middle of the main area with him right behind me.

“Definitely. I love it.” I turned around to face him. “What do we do now?”

“First…” He holds out a silver dagger that he had probably gotten from one of the chests of drawers while I was too absorbed in studying my surroundings to notice. “Allow me to officially make you a member of Ninebark. The emptiness you’re feeling will go away then.”

“That’d be great.” I sighed in relief, offering him my hand.

His thumb caressed my skin before slowly stretching out my palm. He looked into my eyes one last time before his attention fell on my hand again. He breathed in, seemingly more nervous than me, and raised the dagger to draw a line along the center of my palm as gently as he could. I took deep breaths to help distract me from the latent burning caused by the metal.

Once the simple ritual was completed, I drew a sharp breath as I felt my soul being magically tied to every single one of the almost three hundred members of Ninebark.

“How do you feel?” My mate’s crystal blue eyes darkened with concern.

“Much better,” I reassured him, watching as he immediately relaxed.

“Good. Now, back to your question…” He guided me towards the couch, gesturing for me to sit down before doing the same. “I was thinking we could have dinner here to grant you a little more privacy. I can show you around first thing tomorrow morning.”

“I’d love that.”

He showed me a soft smile before pursing his lips together. His fingers tapped his knee in a sign of hesitation as he remained silent for a moment. Not knowing what was on his mind, I couldn’t help but feel slightly nervous too. Thankfully, he spoke again before the feeling started eating me up.

“I’ve had a separate room be prepared for you. The Luna Chambers,” he let me know. “You don’t have to sleep here with me tonight if you don’t want to.”

“Of course, we want to!” Topaz whimpered inside my head. “Tell him, Sasha! We should also mate with him! I can’t wait to tear him off his clothes and lick his muscles… I wanna lick all of him!”

My wolf’s remark had me fantasizing about what his body looked like underneath all the heavy clothes he was wearing. My cheeks burned at the thought and I quickly shook my head to rid it of Topaz’s dirty ideas. I didn’t want to sleep with him on our first night together. I mean, I wanted to, but-

“Sasha?” Once again, my mate’s voice pulled me from my daydream. I felt bad when I noticed the hurt in his expression.

“Sorry.” I smiled apologetically at him before averting my gaze. My hand squeezed his as I gathered the courage to confess, “Actually, I don’t know anyone here except for… Well, you,” I finally stared into his eyes again. “I’d rather be in your company.”

A joyful grin played on his lips. “You have know idea how happy I am to hear that.”