Blue Collar Alpha

Dad's Old Friend

“Edward Livingston,” I hear my mother say from behind him. I turn, and she glares at the other man. “What in the Goddess’s name are you doing here?”

“Hello, Elizabeth,” Edward grins at my mother. “You are looking beautiful as ever.”

Mom hmphs, “Get him out of here, Jack.”

“Oh, I met your son last night,” I nod.

“Yeah, you did. And you made quite an impression on Caleb,” Edward claps his hands. “Which I wouldn’t doubt from Larry’s son.”

“You aren't welcome here,” Mom spats and glares at me.

“Mom,” I sigh. “Let me handle this.”

She growls at me and then storms into the house.

“What is that all about?” I wonder out loud. “Why don’t you come inside,” I point at the house. “It’s not much, but-“

“It’s lovely, Jack,” Edward smiles.

“Your men are free to roam the farm. Sorry, we don’t have an army of omegas to cater to them,” I say as I lead Edward into the house. I take him into the living room, and Steven stands by the couch.

“Steve,” Edward extends a hand to him.

“Well, look at what the cat dragged in,” Steven grunts.

“You haven’t changed a bit, Gamma,” Edward laughs.

“You have put on some pounds, Ed,” Steven snorts

“I have,” Edward laughs while patting his stomach.

“You can have a seat,” I gesture to the couch. It’s a large couch, enough for a few people to sit on. It’s old but clean. Isaac and Ray remain standing as I sit across from Edward. “Can we get you something to drink?”

“Sure, got any tea?” Edward asks.

“I’ll go get you some,” Ray responds and leaves the room.

“Damn, I can’t get over how much you look like Larry,” Edward stares at me.

Ajax is acting up as I get the faintest whiff of jasmine. It seems to be coming from Edward. “So, why does my mother seem to hate you? Caleb said you and my Dad were good friends.”

Edwards sighs sadly. “Poor Liz thinks I am the reason Larry is dead, along with your pack. But-“ he trails off as Karlena walks into the room with a pitcher of tea and some glasses. She sets the stuff down on the coffee table while eyeing Edward. “Karlena,” Edward acknowledges her. “You look good.”

Karlena says nothing while pouring Edward and me a glass of tea, “It’s sweet tea,” She mumbles.

“Well, bless your soul,” Edward chuckles as he takes the offered glass and sips it, “Delicious.”

Karlena hands me some tea and then walks out of the room. I notice my mother standing in the doorway with her arms folded. She is glaring daggers at me, and I gulp down the tea.

“So, why does my mother think you got my father killed?” I ask Edward.

He takes a deep breath, “Oh, Jacky, it is complicated.”

“It’s not complicated,” Mom yells. “You made a deal with that arrogant asshole, Deacon Sullivan, and then the next thing I know, he attacks us.”

“I didn’t know that was his intention, Liz,” Edward stands to face her. “If I had known that was his plan, I would have ripped his head off.”

“But you didn’t cancel the contract with him,” Mom yells back. “He murdered my mate and countless others, and you still did business with him.”

“I couldn’t just cancel the contract, Liz,” Edward argues.

I sit quietly as they go back and forth.

“You could have attacked him back, Eddie!” Mom stomps her foot. “You are a spineless coward just like every other alpha.”

“Liz,” Edward huffs.

I get in between them, “Let’s calm down.”

“Liz, I cried for days when I heard Larry was dead. He was practically my brother. Then you disappeared and-“

“I didn’t disappear,” Mom glares at him. “I took what was left of Jupiter Moon to my brother’s pack.”

“I am so sorry, Liz,” Edward pleads. “I would have helped-“

Mom shakes her head as tears fall down her cheek. “Mom?” Emily walks into the room and looks at Edward. “Who is he?”

“No one,” Mom mumbles and walks out of the room.

“Jack?” Emily looks at me with her hands on her hips.

“He is an old friend of Dad’s,” I tell her.

“Didn’t sound like it,” Emily shakes her head, “I am going to go comfort Mom.”

Edward turns to me, “Your sister looks just like your Mom.” He sits back down and picks up his tea. “Look, I didn’t come here to upset your Mom. I came here because I wanted to reconnect and-“ He trails off. “Caleb told me that you work as an electrician,” He states.

“Yeah,” I respond with more suspicion.

“Don’t be suspicious, Jack. I came here to ask you if you do a job for me. My mate, Louise, is insisting on remodeling part of our pack house, and well-“ He claps his hand, “The last guy we hired to put in some lights and other things bailed, and everyone is booked.”

“You drove all the way here to ask me to install lights?” I lift an eyebrow.

“No, I was on the way to another pack and thought I’d stop,” Edward chuckles. “Your uncle told me where you guys were.”

“Great,” I roll my eyes. “Mom is going to kill him.”

“Look, I’m not going to broadcast your location. I’m sorry that Deacon caused Jupiter Moon’s destruction. But you have to believe I had nothing to do with it.”

“I believe you,” I sigh. “When would you need me for the job?”

“Next week, if you can,” Edward replies. “Louise is a very discerning woman and wants what she wants,” He laughs.

“I have to go check my schedule,” I say and stand up. “Excuse me,” I gesture, “I’ll be right back,” I mumble and head to my office. I sit behind my desk and look at the schedule.

“You aren’t going to work for him, are you?” Steven asks from the doorway.

“I am checking the schedule, Steve,” I say with my eyes on the calendar.

“You can’t work for him, Jack,” Steven stomps towards the desk.

“Why?” I look up.

“I have a bad feeling,” Steven states.

“He seems decent enough, Steve,” I huff. “We need the money.”

“Not that bad,” Steven snorts.

I write down some dates and stand up, “Everything will be alright, Steve,” I touch his arm and walk out of the office. Edward is on the phone when I step back into the living room.

“No, you can’t have a Ferarri, Priscilla,” Edward mentions that name, and my whole body tingles. “Because you already have a brand new Porsche,” Edward glances at me and puts up a finger. “I don’t care if Cora got one,” He sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. “I know your mother promised you a Ferrari, darling, but-“ I hear someone yelling on the other end.

Ajax is in my head, listening to her voice and purring like a cat.

‘What the hell is your problem?’ I ask him, but he says nothing. I look at the paper in my hand while waiting for Edward to get off the phone.

“I have to go, Priscilla,” Edward growls and hangs up the phone. “Kids,” He huffs.

“Oh, so you have a daughter as well?” I force out as Ajax is acting up in my head.

“Yes, Priscilla, the apple of my eye,” Edward responds. “So?”

I tremble slightly as I look at the paper. “I am available in two weeks. Sorry it’s not sooner, but I have been working on a house in town.”

Edward nods, “That works for me.”

“Your mate won’t get mad?” I laugh as we stand up.

“Of course, but I can handle her,” He winks. “Do you have a mate yet, Jack?”

I shake my head, “Not yet,” I mumble.

“Hopefully, you will meet her soon,” Edward pats my arm. “I have to get going. Anyways, I’ll call you later to finalize the details, alright?”

“That works,” I hand him a business card. I walk him out of the house towards his limo. His driver opens the door, and he pauses before getting in.

“It was good to see you, Jack. You have done well here,” He looks around.

“It’s not much,” I shrug. “And my mother is the one that really got things off the ground.”

“Liz was always the tenacious one,” Edward chuckles. “Anyways, see you soon, kid.” He slides into the limo as the warriors all pile into their SUVs.

I watch the vehicles drive away as Ajax paces in my head. “Priscilla,” I say aloud a few times as I walk into the house and head to my office. I sit down at my desk, “Priscilla,” I repeat and get to work.

Two weeks later, I am in the truck with Isaac heading towards Diamond Lake Pack. We finally finished the Murphy house and I felt relieved as Bruce Murphy had been getting more aggressive with me.

“I can’t believe we are going to Diamond Lake Pack,” Isaac whistles.

“It’s not a big deal,” I mumble. My head hurts as Ajax has been pacing and acting like a fool since I woke up this morning. “It’s just another job, Isaac.”

“We can finally get a new truck with the money we make off this job,” Isaac remarks.

“We have other things to fix first, like the furnace in the house and the leak in the barn,” I reply.

Large golden gates with a large guard house loom ahead of us. It reminds me of visiting my family at Battle Lake; this gate is far more elaborate. We pull up to the gate, and a man in a black uniform steps out of the guard house.

“Name and purpose for visit?” He asks robotically.

“Jack Watson, I am the electrician Ed hired,” I tell him.

“Ed?” The guard lifts an eyebrow.

“Sorry, Alpha Livingston,” I laugh.

“Who is he?” The guard points at Isaac.

“Isaac, he is my assistant,” I explain.

“Isaac, who?” The guard grumbles.

I must refrain from rolling my eyes as I glance at my gamma, “Isaac Fox.”

The guard says nothing and steps into the guard house. I drum my fingers against the steering wheel while waiting. The guard finally walks out of the building, and the gates open.

He hands me a map, “Go on in. Follow the map to the packhouse and Gamma House will meet you out front and show you where to go.”

“Gamma?” I question.

“Yes, Alpha Livingston is not here at the moment,” The guard replies.

I nod, “Okay.” I hand the map to Isaac and drive into the pack.

Isaac whistles as we drive past the houses, which are all practically mansions. The lawns a neatly manicured, and everyone seems to have a BMW parked in the front. “This place is like Beverly Hills,” He remarks.

“No, s**t,” I agree. We drive past posh little boutique shops and a few fancy-looking restaurants. The packhouse itself is at least ten times the size of our packhouse.

“God damn,” Isaac whistles again. “This place makes the White House look like a shack.”

We stop in front of the massive five-story packhouse, an omega comes forward to open the door, and a man in a blue suit steps towards us with his hand out. I feel underdressed in my nice jeans and blue denim work shirt.

“Alpha Watson?” He says to me.

“Jack,” I reply and shake his hand.

“Gamma Howard House, you can call me Hal,” He replies. “Alpha Livingston regrets not being present, but he had business to attend to. I will take you upstairs, and Luna Louise will show you what needs to be done.”

I nod as I look around. “This place is nice,” I breathe out, and the gamma laughs.

“Ed tells me that you come from a small pack north of here,” Hal states.

“Yes, that’s right,” I respond. “We are called Hope Springs.”

“Cool,” Hal walks us towards a set of elevators that appear to be made of marble. They are trimmed with gold.

“This place must have cost a fortune,” Isaac mumbles from behind me.

Hal stops at the elevator and presses a button. “Ed and his family have the top two floors to themselves.”

“Wow,” I snort.

Ajax starts pacing in my head as we wait for the elevator to open.

‘Dude, settle down,’ I snarl at him, but he gets more frantic. The elevator door opens, and the scent of jasmine hits me full-on as I gaze at a woman. She is wearing a tight white dress that hugs her slim body. Long blonde hair cascades down her shoulders. Sparkling blue eyes look right at me as Ajax roars in my head. I find myself lost in the moment and forget everyone else but her.

“Jack?” Isaac squeaks behind me.

I stare at the woman as my heart pounds in my chest. I sense she has the same inner turmoil.

“What the hell are you staring at?” She snarks.

“Mate,” I finally manage to speak.