The Alpha and The Fool
Chapter 17

After my training and shower, I sat outside, despite the chill, letting my mind process everything that had happened when Dean found me. "Hey," I said, running my hand over my head, vowing to cut my hair. It had grown out during my shifts and at about three or four inches long, was too long for my tastes. "What did your dad want?"

"The usual, what about you? Anything new?"

"No luck with the laws so far, but Sade has an idea. What is the usual? Does he want you to convince me to be a good girl and stop making waves?"

Dean gave me a half smile. "The usual is him complaining I'm not like my brother. He isn't against you leading, Nic. He believes it's going to be impossible." "So does everyone else it seems."

Dean shrugged. "Usually I'd say it doesn't matter what people think."

"But?" I asked, glancing over at him. He shifted in his chair, looking uncomfortable. "Go ahead and say what you got to say, Dean."

"It's just..." he started. "What if they're right?" Dean quickly raised his hands. "Not that I'm saying they are or you should stop trying. It's only..." he sighed and looked even more uncomfortable. "We haven't known each other long, but things are a mess, and being what we are means I'm part of it too. Only, I'm not sure exactly how much or what is expected of me?"

"So basically you want to know where we stand?"

Dean nodded with a grimace. "Yeah. I don't want to push you, Nic. I get this isn't what you planned for or even wanted..."

"Not even close," I admitted then offered him a grimace of my own. "But apparently, that's life. If things were different..." I shook my head. "But they're not so there is no point in even thinking about it." I blew ou a breath. "I can't accept you as my mate right now," I told him and quickly added, "It's not you or anything you've done, the fact that I'm even considering this says a lot about you."

He laughed and gave me a lopsided grin. "It's cool. I get it. We just met, and already it seems as if we should fall in together like we'd known each other for years. Like you said, we're friends, and that's a good start...because we are friends, right?"

I returned his laugh. "Yeah, you've more than earned my friendship."

"But still for everyone else, what should I do? Should I act as your mate or only as support? Is me fighting the douche in the list of possibilities?"

I grinned. The douche. I was definitely going to start using that. "I'd rather you didn't fight the douche as of now. Both of you are unknowns to me. I don't know anything about how either of you can fight. It'd be a risky bet, and if you lose, it's over. That's it."

His expression pinched. "Hey, I beat your dad."

I grimaced, afraid I'd offended him. "Yeah, but he's old and has a bad knee..."

"Okay, got it, you assume I'll lose," he replied, sounding a little bitter.

"Sorry Dean, I'm just trying to be honest here, okay? Besides, I got the feeling you don't really do fights."

His pinched expression eased. "I don't, and honestly, I'd rather not fight the douche," he admitted only to add, "But I could do it, fight him. It wasn't just your dad's age and bad knee the only reason I beat him, capisce?"

Again, I found myself grinning. "Yeah, I got it. How about I tell you Sade's plan, and we figure out how to go from there." When he nodded, I explained her idea of using his father's manipulation to our benefit. "I sounds like a good plan, but it brings right back to the same problem - putting you in a position you never wanted to be in alpha, but also one who has to fight for it."

He scratched the back of his head, expression thoughtful, and didn't say anything for a long while. It only confirmed my suspicions - he didn't want this. Dean didn't want the weight of alpha on his shoulders. Even in name only, he was weighed down with responsibility, and I didn't blame him for not wanting it. The only ones I blamed were Father, Douche, and all the alpha's that let these old rules stay in place. "There has to be a way around this," Dean said after a while. "I can't believe I'm going to say this, but my cousin, Mike, is right."

I looked at him curiously as I pulled my legs to sit crossed legged in the chair. "What do you mean? Right about what?"

"I asked him why he wasn't with the other alphas and he said why should he when Alice, his mate, was better at that stuff than him. He's right, why should he? Why should I fight when you're the better fighter?'

"Because-"

"They accepted her," he said, cutting me off. "She was in the alpha meetings all week long, and Mike wasn't. They accepted her and her alone to speak for her pack."

He had a point. I frowned. "But Alice wasn't fighting or facing a challenge."

"They say the challenges are alpha to alpha, and I have to issue a challenge or accept it, but do the rules say I have to fight out the challenge?"

"Well...I have no clue, but Dean, we still have the same problem. You don't want to be alpha."

"I don't want to be my uncle who held his pack under the heel of his boot, and I don't want to be like Dad, making rules or doing things without people's consent because I know what's good for them. Again, I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I prefer to be more like my cousin. Alice and Mike apparently share alpha duties," Dean said, again looking thoughtful.

"And how exactly would that work? You don't like anything about being alpha," I said, surprised he was even suggesting this.

"I didn't until you used my patients to explain how you feel about your pack," Dean replied. "I'm not a leader, but I can be a caretaker. Just like my patients, I can care for the pack. While you can be the ass kicker."

I stared at him in surprise. "And you'd really be okay with all of that?"

"Yeah, because it wouldn't be me deciding the fate of the entire pack. One wrong decision wouldn't lead to death and mayhem if I have you there to check me, or at least that's the plan," he said, giving me a cheeky grin. "And I wouldn't have to be super serious and bored to death listening to old men rattle on and on."

"Wait a minute," I said, narrowing my eyes at him. "Why do I have to be the one listen to old men rattle on?"

"Because you want to be the leader, obviously," Dean said and then with another cheeky grin added, "And I'm alpha I say so."

"Oh, really?"

"Yep."

"And what am I? Chopped liver?" I demanded, strangely fighting a smile.

"You're the little lady, obviously."

"Little... Dean, you call me that ever again and I promise you levels of pain you've never experienced before. I am the alpha."

"Again, rough stuff has never been my thing, but I'll keep an open mind," he said winking at me.

"That's totally not where I was going with that," I argued.

"Yeah, but I prefer my way. It's so much better. Wanna come here and see." Dean wagged his eyebrows at me.

I shook my head. "Yeah, how about no. We've got a lot of work to do. Let's see if this idea of yours, you accepting the challenge and me fighting the challenge is even possible."

"We'll replace a way for it to be possible," Dean said, standing with me.

Right, like it was that easy. "I also need to see if the others found out anything about Brandon."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean is this is an annual meeting of alphas. How did Brandon get here? Who did he come with? I mean it's just all too convenient he's here now," I replied as we walked into the house.

"The who he came with is easy. We have lists of every alpha and who they brought with them. I'll talk to our records keeper and replace out. If he's not on the lists that mean he didn't come here officially," Dean said.

Why didn't I think of that? "And if he didn't come here officially it means he was already planning to do something," I said, my thoughts running a mile a minute. "Thanks, Dean." I took a few hurried steps when Dean stopped me with a hand on my lower arm. “Yeah?”

He gave me a sly grin. "Well seeing as I'm super helpful and everything, I could possibly deserve some kind of reward."

"Reward," I said, giving him an incredulous look.

"Yeah, but hey, I'm an easy, laid back guy so something like a kiss would be more than good enough."

I let out a dry bark of laughter. "Wow."

"I know. I'm amazing," Dean said, running a hand through his hair and wagging his eyebrows at me.

"You're something alright," I said then took his hand and kissed his knuckles. "There a kiss."

A look of pure disappointment overtook his face. "Seriously?"

"Of course," I said and shrugged. "You just said you wanted a kiss. Not my fault, you didn't specify. Now come on. There's work to be done."