My Mate Is An Omega
Chapter 43

Caitlyn POV

Early Monday morning, Lance called an important meeting in his office. He even requested the former Beta's presence, since this was the first major decision he would be making. He spent most of the night sitting at his desk in our room carefully planning each and every detail, determined to make the whole thing work. It was heartwarming to see him so dedicated to his idea; I was so proud of him. In an attempt to support him, I sat down beside him and tried to stay up for as long as I could, but I ended up falling asleep sometime around two in the morning. Judging by how I woke up in our bed, I imagined he had carried me after I passed out on the chair.

Once we were all gathered at his workplace, he explained his project to everyone; how he wanted to hold an event later on today where all of the pack members could come together to help build a community bar outside. He offered James the papers he had prepared so the older man could have a more detailed understanding about it while everyone waited patiently for his verdict. When he dropped the file over the table, he was as impassive as always; apparently, hiding his emotions was an old habit he just couldn't shake.

"So?" my mate asked expectantly.

The old Beta took a good look around the room before his eyes landed on Lance. "It's amazing," he finally said, making me release a breath I didn't even know I was holding. It would be devastating if he didn't support the project. "Events like this one are great to strengthen the bond between pack members. The timing couldn't be more perfect either; we all need a little bit of hope and a good distraction now."

A bright smile lit up Lance's face. "Can we do it then?"

"You're officially Alpha now. You don't need my approval," James reminded him. "If you feel like it's a good idea, go ahead and make it happen. That's why Dario chose you to lead us after all." He winked before turning around. "I'll let you handle the preparations. Link me if you need anything."

As soon as he was gone, my mate beamed at me; I saw hope twinkling in his green eyes. He immediately jolted up from his seat, taking me in his arms and spinning me around in a small gesture of celebration. I hugged him tight, not because I was afraid to fall, but because I too couldn't contain my excitement. This was a huge step for him as a leader, and I couldn't be prouder.

"Alright, love birds. How are we doing this?" Jasper was the first one to speak.

Lance quickly put me down, keeping his hand on my waist as he turned to his friends. "The trickiest part will be organizing everything by the afternoon," he observed, back to his serious posture. "I'll make an announcement in two hours. Sasha, I'm counting on you to gather all of the pack members at the town square by then. You won't have much time, but I know if anyone can do it, that's you."

"I won't let you down, Alpha." She saluted him playfully.

"Jasper, I need you to check our timber stocks and separate the materials we will be needing for building the bar."

"I'm on it." The Gamma nodded.

"I hope you won't make me sit out." Luke crossed his arms in front of his chest, a playful smile on his face.

"Of course not." My mate returned the gesture. "You're my right hand man, and I would like you to be my partner in this project. There's a few more details I would like to discuss with you," he revealed before turning his attention to me. "Since you have been learning about party organization and Megan has experience as a bartender, I thought the two of you could go over the planning for the event."

"Who would have thought we would ever be working on something so big together, babe?" My best friend wrapped one of her arms around my neck. "Just like in the good old days, but with a sprinkle of royalty!" she joked.

"We do have great synergy," I laughed.

"Let's get to it then." The Beta clapped his hands together.

With the tasks distributed, the Delta and Gamma set off to take care of their missions, leaving only Lance, the Beta couple, and I at the office. It felt as if we were working against the clock to get everything done on time; considering our current situation, we couldn't afford to waste a single minute. As rushed as it was, it also felt... natural. My instincts of protecting the pack, my pack, and assisting my mate seemed to have kicked in, making me feel unstoppable. I was certain this would change everything.

We did as much as we could before Sasha linked my mate to let him know the members had been gathered together at the town square - the time had come. Luke and Megan left to allow us a few minutes on our own before we too had to go downstairs. My Alpha was visibly nervous, looking out the huge windows in an attempt to remain calm while I fixed his tie. After making sure he looked presentable, I rested my palm on the side of his face, grabbing his attention.

"You can do this," I reassured him, staring deeply into his eyes. "Your idea is amazing. I'm sure everyone will agree."

He sighed, placing his hand over mine. "Yeah. I'm just getting butterflies in my stomach," he confessed with a shy chuckle.

I couldn't help but smile. With every day that went by, it became easier to see why he would be an amazing leader. He was firm, but humble. He earned his respect through love, he didn't conquer it through fear. And much like he used to do back when he was a warrior, he put his family before him.

This incredible man was my mate. We had climbed to the top together because we weren't afraid to fix our own mistakes. Nothing could stand in our way.

I crashed my lips against his without warning, giving in to the intense magnetic pull between us; the more time we spent together, the stronger it got. He was surprised by the gesture at first, but it didn't take long for him to return my kiss. I could feel him closing his eyes, allowing his tongue to wrestle against mine while his hand traveled to my lower back, slowly bringing me closer. When we broke apart to collect our breaths, the hesitation in his semblance had been replaced by confidence.

"Thank you, beautiful," he whispered against my mouth. "As long as I'm with you, I can do anything. You're my anchor, Cait."

A small smile crossed my face. "As you are mine." I interlaced our fingers, facing the door. "Are you ready?" "Now I am."

As soon as we stepped out of the pack house, hundreds of eyes immediately turned to us. Most of the pack members were standing outside, but for the first time, their presence didn't intimidate us. I noticed the way my mate held his head up high as the crowd made way for us. Our ranked members were standing right in front of the stage; we exchanged nods and smiles as we climbed up.

I stood by my mate's side as he prepared to make his announcement. His eyes scoured through the crowd, trying to eye every single one of the wolves. He never let go of my hand; it had become a habit ever since his first day as Alpha, and I found it incredibly sweet. He cleared his throat, straightening his posture right before he started.

"Dear members of Diamond Tempest, I'm very sorry to call you here with such short notice. Thank you all for coming." He made a brief pause, taking a deep breath. "I would like to invite you to participate in a public event. We will be building a community bar right here at the town square. Once it is done, everyone will be allowed to enjoy the inauguration party regardless of having taken part in the event. However, I would really appreciate your help with this project. If you wish to give us a hand, all you have to do is come to this exact spot at 3pm. Of course, you will be excused from work if you decide to join us." He glanced over at me, silently asking if he had forgotten anything; I nodded to let him know he hadn't. "That will be all. Thank you for your time."

The silence was soon broken by whispers of the members discussing the news. We watched as they started to disperse, and I turned to my mate. "Now we just wait."

***

Lancaster POV

After the announcement, Caitlyn and I went back to our room. We ordered lunch so I could go over some papers with my mate's assistance. As monotonous as the task was, it helped distract me from the anxiety I was feeling due to the upcoming event. The only thought that kept me calm was knowing how blessed I was for having such an amazing support team with me. My Gamma and Delta were working together to ensure everything would be ready on time, while my Beta took care of the necessary documentation with the help of his mate.

It was impressive how fast Megan had adjusted to her new life. Much like us, she went from being a simple Omega to occupying a very important position, yet it seemed natural. The female warriors had improved a lot under her tutoring, and she was always ready to deal with any issues that were thrown at her. It probably helped that her mate was the only one from our trio who had actually been prepared, but Caitlyn insisted her best friend just had this strong-willed, unstoppable spirit. She didn't have good grades in school, nor could she think fast; however, she was street smart. Even when she had no clue what to do, she was good at improvising.

The time we had settled for the event came quicker than I was expecting. When we made it to the spot we had picked to build the bar at, right next to the open stage, I felt a little apprehensive noticing only my friends were there. I waited a few more minutes, but I couldn't hold back my need to voice my concerns.

"If no one shows up, the whole idea will go down the drain," I whispered to my mate as I held her from behind. I instinctively squeezed her tighter, hoping it would make the stress go away.

"It's not even three yet, Lance." She sighed, gently rubbing my arms with her hands. "They will come. Just be a little more patient."

In an attempt to keep myself calm, I rested my head over hers, burying my nose into her chocolate waves to inhale a deep breath of her sweet and spicy scent. As always, it brought me inexplicable peace. Not too long after, I spotted our first helpers - a group of five males, among which were some warriors I knew. My eyes widened when I recognized Charles, the wolf who had confronted me not long ago, among them. He seemed to notice my confusion, judging by how he was the first to approach me.

"Now that I can't fight, I have a lot of free time." The young man shrugged. "Thought I could make myself useful here."

A small smile lit up my face as I let go of my mate for a brief moment to shake his hand. "Welcome! Your assistance is very much appreciated."

"How can we help out, Alpha?" Another one of the warriors asked, catching my attention.

"I believe the Delta has a list of goals and tasks," I observed. "If you're ready, we can get started while we wait for the others to arrive." "Sounds good to me." The man bowed respectfully.

Although we were only eleven when we began working on the project, there were more than a hundred wolves helping us. Honestly, it was way more than I expected; almost all of the pack members who weren't too old or too young had gathered together to build the newest entertainment facility of Diamond Tempest. Even a few teenagers decided to join us. With those numbers, we managed to finish the bar by dusk, soon after the sun had completely hidden behind the tall pine trees. It was a lot of work, but incredibly fun; judging by the smiles on everyone's faces, I guessed they had a good time too.

Now, all we had to do was fill our new bar with drinks and get our grand-opening party started.

As Delta, it was Sasha's job to stay behind and supervise the other wolves while the rest of the ranked members and I went back inside of the pack house to fetch the alcohol in Dario's liquor storage, which was located in the basement. I had only been here twice - on the day following the latest attack, when James insisted on showing me everything owned by our fallen leader, and in the morning of the ceremony, when I took a bottle of tequila to pop with Caitlyn later.

Sonorous gasps echoed through the room when my friends' eyes landed on the dozens of shelves storing hundreds of various kinds of alcohol - whiskey, vodka, rum, you name it. The collection was composed of different top-shelf brands as well, all of which had been bought during his five decades of life. Some probably even belonged to his father. We stared at the wide variety of products in front of us for a while before Megan finally broke the silence. "This is some very expensive stuff. You sure you wanna just share it with the pack?"

"Well, there will still be a lot left after we take what we need for today." I shrugged, hesitantly approaching one of the shelves. I grabbed a bottle of Grey Goose Ducasse to inspect it. "Besides, I don't see a reason for keeping all of this to myself. There's no point in celebrating anything by myself."

In the end, we selected fifteen bottles, placed them in the shopping cart we had brought, and returned to the town square. As we stored them in the bar, Sasha organized the pack members in line. The Beta Female gladly volunteered to prepare a few drinks, but most pack members helped themselves to their own shots of spirits or glasses of champagne. I spent the first few minutes of the party with my friends, but I couldn't allow myself to enjoy it just yet - there was one last thing I needed to do.

After grabbing our own glasses of champagne, Caitlyn and I climbed back to the stage right next to the new bar. I was filled with pride as I analyzed the establishment we managed to put together thanks to a crazy idea and the hard work of our pack. Now, I could only hope they would also buy my next plan. I wasn't nervous anymore though; considering the success of the event, I was much more confident.

"May I have your attention, please?" I asked, trying to speak louder than the noise of the crowd. Their heightened senses seemed to pick up the sound of my voice, as they quickly went silent. "Thank you very much for your cooperation today. It shows why us wolves are stronger than most shifters; like Alpha Dario used to say, we rely on our pack for support. Together, there is nothing we can't do." I made a quick pause to glance at my mate, who was smiling brightly. "This event showed how much we can accomplish, and for that reason, I would like to ask for your help one more time. As many of you know, Diamond Tempest doesn't have a lot to offer to other leaders. We aren't notorious for any skills or services. I would like to change that." Surprised gasps and whispering could be heard from the crowd, but I went on. "Considering our main resource is wood, I want to invest in the development of a building company, which my Luna has named Timber Wolf B.C.," I flashed a quick wink at Caitlyn, who giggled in response.

"It'll be a lot of work, but I'm sure we can do it," I continued. "Today, I paid attention to all of you, and I have identified some of you who have shown great aptitude to work in our future company, whose names I have written down. You will be called into my office and offered a job proposal starting tomorrow. Of course, I would also like to invite William and Benjamin, my fellow lumberjacks," The two men whistled from the crowd, and I waved at them in response. "However, everyone is welcome to apply for a position at our company. Feel free to address my Luna or me by the end of the week. Once again, thank you for your hard work, and let's enjoy the party!"

The crowd cheered as we stepped downstairs, side by side. I was about to take a sip of my champagne when Caitlyn stood on her tiptoes, startling me with a quick peck on my lips. Once my surprise was gone, I didn't hesitate to kiss her passionately until we ran out of breath. I wouldn't have been able to do any of this without her. In fact, I wouldn't even have survived had she not been by my side through it all. I couldn't be more grateful for her presence in my life.

"You're amazing, Lance," she said sincerely, running her hands through my wild light brown hair. "I'll never say that enough."