The Beta's Daughter
THREE | COMPROMISE

I groaned as I made my way downstairs for breakfast. My alarm had gone off at 5:30am as usual,and I'd immediately regretted my decision to attend training despite having been given the Alpha'spermission to skip it.

I'd dragged myself out of bed and over to the mirror. I never bothered with makeup until after ourmorning workout, so I pulled a brush through my hair and scraped it up into a high ponytail.

The brush made my beachy waves wispy, so I raked some coconut oil through my long brownlengths using my fingers. I rubbed the remnants of it into my forearms, the deep caramel of my skinsoaking it up, before pulling on some gym shorts and a boxy, cropped tee.

It was a brisk morning, the air sharp with a bitter chill, but the sort that promised a sweltering heatlater in the day. I waited in the pack kitchen for Jacob and The Twins, anxiously bouncing on theballs of my feet.

I'd spent most of the night tossing and turning, replaceing that every time I shut my eyes all I couldhear was Jake saying, “I would reject my mate for you, Arienne.” As such, I hadn't slept much, andthe prospect of running the perimeter of the grounds in a few minutes was less than appealing

The Twins came downstairs first, and it was the first time I'd ever been relieved to see them beforeJacob. They stepped in sync, and came to a stop in front of me. “Happy Birthday, Ari,” they saidtogether.

Save for their different genders, they were identical. Ayon was the female version of Aron, and Aronwas the male version of Ayon. They both had pin-straight blonde hair, cropped short around theirfaces: Ayon’s in a neat pixie cut, and Aron’s a short back and sides.

They had pale eyebrows and eyes, too, both a glassy shade of ice blue. Sometimes, Ayon wouldwear dark mascara and fill in her eyebrows, and the difference was astounding. She looked beautifuleither way, but I personally liked how striking she was naturally, with her pale skin and pale hair.

As Gammas, they were both muscular and lean. Ayon’s figure was more boyish than mine,something I often envied. Nobody ever belittled her for being short or feminine, but I knew therewas strength in my womanhood, and I was proud of my physique, too, as much as I sometimeslooked wistfully at hers.

Aron too was masculine, his body a mass of slim, toned muscles. They were matched in appearancedown to their high cheekbones. I often thought they looked elfish rather than wolfish, but they wereboth fierce, determined fighters — clearly, they were wolves in their blood.

“Thanks,” I smiled, stifling a yawn.

"Have you seen Jacob yet?” Ayon asked, her eyes flittering across the room and up towards thestairwell. I nodded, feeling my heart drop at her implication.

"We aren't mates,” I said quietly, trying to be discreet. Their reactions were identical: small, shockedgasps and widening eyes, so identical, in fact, that they would have been laughable had thesituation been different.

“But — you're meant to be,” she said, her gaze roving over my face sympathetically. I shrugged.

“The Moon Goddess must have other plans for us,” I said, just as I heard Jacob's loud footstepsclunking down the hallway. He smiled at me when we made eye contact, and then let his eyes dropto the ground. We walked to the training grounds in near silence, broken only by Ayon’s small talkabout my birthday plans. We were immediately split into different groups when we arrived, which Iwas grateful for.

Training had been less difficult than I'd expected. I think Jacob's dad took pity on us, suggesting thatwe skip the perimeter run for today. I sent him a grateful smile, and he shot me a quick wink. Mostof the warrior wolves stayed behind with the Lead Warrior to run after the session, though, whichKele seemed pleased about.

My exhaustion seemed to really hit me when I was in the shower, lulled by the hot water and warmsteam. I stood in there for longer than usual, just enjoying the heat, turning occasionally to let itwarm my back. I stepped out eventually, wrapping myself in a thick towel before flopping down onmy bed and lying there for a while.

I let my thoughts flick by lazily, dismissing them as they came to the surface to try to hold on to thenewfound sense of peace the shower had given me. My stomach was starting to rumble, though, soI dragged myself away from the bed for the second time that morning and over to my desk.

I moisturised quickly, deciding to let it soak in as I did my makeup. I didn’t often wear foundation, asI was usually so active throughout the day, but as today was my birthday I decided to put a little bitof extra effort in. I ended up with a natural but glam look, with a deep, chocolate brown eye shadowand a good coating of mascara on my lashes.

I'd put my hair up in a bun when I showered, and decided that it looked fine so I left it there. I did,however, pull a few carefully selected strands out to frame my face.

I dressed in a similar outfit to before: another clean pair of tight gym shorts, a cropped t-shirt, gymsocks and a pair of converse. My wardrobe was pretty basic, and consisted of mostly gym clothes,oversized sweatshirts, and a few pairs of jeans. For functions my mum would take me shopping, andI usually donated the dresses to other girls in the pack or thrift stores after I'd worn them.Remembering the chill from earlier, I pulled a large olive-green sweatshirt from my wardrobe. It wasa little faded — it was my favourite, and I'd worn it too many times for it to retain its original colour. Itied it round my waist, as I was still warm from the shower, and began my descent down thestaircase.

I was met by a loud chorus of Happy Birthdays as I rounded the corner and stepped foot in thekitchen. Most of the pack were there, smiling broadly, some waving their hands in the air, someclapping, others wolf whistling and cheering. I curtsied jokingly, bowing my head to the packmembers as though they were my royal subjects.

"Happy Birthday, darling,” my dad beamed, making his way through the crowd.

My mum was right behind him, standing on her toes to wave at me over his shoulder. They scurriedover to me, and enveloped me in a warm hug.

My parents both looked a lot like me. My mum's hair was a lighter honey brown, and my dad's wasthe same chocolate tone as mine. They both had darker tanned skin, and my mum had a smatteringof freckles across her face. She also had a small nose, which I'd inherited, whereas my dad had astrong, straight one, not unlike Jacob's.

We all shared dark eyebrows and lashes, and large, pouty lips. I often wondered if they'd grown tolook more alike over time when I was younger, but photos of them as from when they were youngersuggested otherwise. I used to flip through their photos in awe, yearning for a love like that.

It hurt to think I'd found one, but not the right one. I shook the thought away, pressing my face intomy dad's shoulder. They smelt stronger than usual, like fresh hay bales and cut grass. I inhaleddeeper.

As I moved closer to my mum there was something else, another scent, lighter and sweeter. Shesmelt like berries, ripe in the autumn, plump and juicy in the hands that had picked them from abushy green hedgerow. Their scents swirled together in the air, like dust particles dancing in thesunlight. I felt comforted as we moved to take our seats next to one another, close to the head ofthe table.

Jacob was sat opposite my dad, with his parents both sat at the head of the table, as our packsAlpha and Luna. When fewer wolves were in attendance, the seating policy didn't have to beadhered to so strictly, but it was just easier for everyone to have an allocated place around the gianttable. Jacob smiled at me, keeping his eyes low. I ducked my head to catch his gaze, bringing hiseye level up from my chin.

I wanted him to know that things were okay between us. It had been a bit too fresh this morning,and the workout and shower had helped me to clear my head. There was no rush for me to makemy decision. I wanted to mate, of course, but I'd gone eighteen years without doing so. I could go alittle longer.

The Omegas began to bring out our food. The air was thick with delicious scents: fresh strawberriesand jam, scones, waffles, and pancakes. They laid the table in front of us, and I smiled gratefully upat them, mouthing “Thank you” over and over as they placed plate after plate of incredible breakfastfoods in front of us.

I felt a squeeze on my shoulder. I turned. Stood behind me was my favourite of the Omegas, John,and he bent quickly to whisper in my ear. His scent was stronger, too; it was light but comforting,orange zest and cinnamon buns. It perfectly matched his kind face, with his wide hazel eyes andgentle smile. I'd been able to smell it before, but my sense of smell had improved drastically. Even ifI hadn't found my mate in Jacob, being eighteen was turning out to be fun so far.

"Happy Birthday, Ari. I've got something special cooked up for you this morning. It's a bit of anexperiment, so forgive me if it's not as nice as I'd hoped. Here,” he said, and placed what looked likea small pile down in front of me.

I cocked my head. There was a single candle protruding from its middle, and the top layer lookedlike a large waffle. I prodded at it with my fork, and unveiled multiple layers inside: one a waffle, onea thick, American-style pancake, one a croissant, and one —

“John!” I chirped. “Is that a cake?”

He laughed, a low, kindly rumble. He was a dad to five young pups, and his demeanour radiatedfatherhood. He rubbed my shoulder and gave it one last squeeze, whispering “Enjoy” in my earbefore he stood from his half-crouch to serve the others.

“Thank you!” I called out after him.

He turned and smiled, bowing his head slightly, before moving away. I turned my attention to themountain of food on my plate. I cut down the middle, pulling out a slice that had every layer intact.I stabbed my fork through it, careful to get every filling, and forced my mouth wide to fit it all in. Iheard a snort from in front of me, and looked up just as Jacob took a photo of me with my mouthfull.

I laughed around my food, struggling to chew. The flavours were incredible — I didn't know howthey worked together, but they did. The cake tasted like blueberries, and the waffle oozed withsyrup. There was definitely cream in there, too, and strawberries, and the combination was divine.

I hope my mate can cook this well, I thought, and then caught myself guiltily. I'd never consideredbeing with anyone other than Jacob before.

He couldn't cook, and certainly not as well as John could, but he tried. He'd knocked on my dooronce wearing an apron, and the tips of his hair, the point of his nose, and his chin had been dustedwith flour. His entire front was coated in it when I stood from my desk to look at him fully. I'dwanted to giggle, but his eyes beseeched me to withhold my teasing.

He'd taken my hand and pulled me upstairs to the small kitchenette on the top floor. The room, too,was covered in flour, and I looked up at him. He towered over me, but he seemed to shrink in onhimself as he'd admitted: “I wanted to bake you a cake. A great big chocolate cake.”

I scanned the room for any sign of the cake itself. There was flour, and when I looked closely, cocoapowder coating every work surface. There was even some on the cheese plant in the corner of theroom, in front of the window, and as I squinted against the sunlight I could see the same dustinglining the windowsill.

“Where is it?" I asked, turning in place as I surveyed the room. My eyes came finally to the bin. Heshrugged.

“It didn't exactly go to plan,” he admitted, letting his eyes land on the bin, too. I stepped closer andpeeped inside. A large, chocolate-brown mush sat atop the otherwise clean bin liner, and I frowned,peering closer. It seemed burnt at the edges, yet still wet in the middle. I stepped back, and let myeyes meet his.

“You made that for me?” I asked, my tone light and jokey. He nodded.

“Thanks, Jake,” I said. I left it up to him to decide if I was grateful or teasing.

Inside, though, I knew I thought it was sweet, and my heart seemed to swell inside my chest. He'dtaken the time to try, and no matter the outcome, that warmed my insides in a way only he could.The sentiment was lost seconds later when he'd grabbed me and pulled me in for a hug. No matterhow strong I was, he was still an Alpha wolf, and much taller than me. I squirmed as I felt the flourrub into my hair, then against my face and clothes.

Eventually he'd released me, and I'd stood back, looking down at my previously clean clothes andbody unhappily. The beginnings of regret were blossoming on his face, along with some semblanceof an apology in his eyes, when I'd grabbed a handful of flour from the countertop and chucked itat his chest. He'd laughed, then, half amused and seemingly half relieved that I wasn't really upset.My reprieve didn't last for long, though, and soon we were both covered head-to-foot in bakingingredients.

I smiled at the memory, finally managing to swallow the enormous mouthful of food. I began to cuta smaller slice when Liliana, our Luna, rose from her chair and began to speak.

"Good morning, Silver Crescent wolves,” she smiled. Everyone was immediately captivated, and weput down our knives and forks out of respect. There was silence when the Luna spoke. Our packdepended on her, so we in turn demonstrated the utmost level of respect when she had somethingto say.

“First of all, it is of course our Arienne’s birthday today. I hope you will all join me in wishing her wellon this special day.”

I blushed at this, but rather than ducking my head as I would have liked to, I met her gaze andgrinned sheepishly. She returned my smile as an excited hollering broke out amongst the crowd.“Thank you, thank you,” she continued, waving her hands to regain their attention. They quietenedquickly, and I was glad that the attention was taken away from me.

“I do, however, have another important announcement to make. As most of you know, of course, itis almost time for a long-standing tradition within our pack to take place once more. The annualMating Ball,” she said, taking a pause to allow this news to sink in. I swallowed heavily.

“Four of our closest allies will be joining us in a week's time,” she continued. “We come togetheronce a year to allow our new adult wolves the chance to expand their mating pool, as it were.Although we hope that your mates are to be found within this pack, none of us can predict what theMoon Goddess has in store for you. By inviting four other packs to join us in a celebration, theopportunity to mingle with wolves you may not otherwise meet increases your chances of replaceingyour mate. This tradition goes back decades, and also provides the occasion for us to let off somestream and revel in our accomplishments for the year, as well as deepening the bond between usand our neighbouring packs. I hope you are all looking forward to this most exciting event, and ifyou have any more questions, please direct them to me.” With one final, beaming smile, she tookher seat once more.

Breakfast was teeming with excited chatter about the upcoming Mating Ball. I'd attended the lastfew, once I'd been deemed old enough, but until you turned eighteen it wasn't a matter of greatinterest. It was good fun, of course, and interacting with other young wolves was exciting, but itdidn't hold the same weight that it did once a wolf matured.

I knew it would be coming up soon, but I hadn't realised it would be within the next week! Thismeant that I had to make a decision about Jacob, and much quicker than I would have liked.

I felt a mindlink coming through. Meet me outside after breakfast. Nice waffle, by the way. I lookedup, and caught Jacob looking straight at me. He dipped his eyes to my plate, and then raised hiseyebrows. I smirked back at him, and nodded.

I wasn't sure that I'd be able to get away from my parents, as I didn't know what they had plannedfor the rest of the day, but they were understanding when I said I wanted to talk to Jacob. “Ofcourse, honey,” my mum smiled, and pulled me in for a tight hug.

"We'll see you later,” my dad added. “Alpha Kele wants to discuss extra border patrols surroundingthe Mating Ball, and I'm sure your mother has a lot of planning to do.” He winked at me, and Igrinned.

“Thank you,” I said, giving them both a quick hug before I scurried outside to meet Jacob.

“Hey,” he said, patting the spot next to him. He was sat on an overturned log at the edge of thegardens. Some of the warrior wolves had filed down the top so that it was flatter, and morecomfortable so that it could be used as a seat. There was a small, howling wolf engraved on theright hand side. I jogged over and took a seat next to him.

“Happy Birthday,” he said as I settled myself down.

The morning's chill had started to ebb away, the sun rising above the line of the trees behind us andcasting a long shadow back towards the pack house. The air was less cool, but the shadow stillcarried a cold bite with it. We didn't feel the cold as much as a human would, but I pulled my greensweatshirt from around my waist and yanked it over my head before I got too comfortable.“Thanks,” I grinned once I'd managed to get my head and (now messy) bun through the head holein my sweater. “Exciting news at breakfast, wasn't it?”

He hummed in agreement, seeming distracted.

I continued speaking, feeling nervous even though I wasn't sure why. “I wonder which other wolveswill have turned eighteen this year. If any of our old friends will be coming back. Do they get tocome when they've found their mates? I know Sharone did last time. He met that pretty she-wolffrom the Silver Shore pack, do you remember? The one with long black hair and a scar across hereyebrow. She was so cool,” I said dreamily.

“Yeah,” he mumbled, half-listening. I frowned.

"What's wrong?” I asked. There was no point beating around the bush with Jacob; you had to getstraight to the point. Otherwise, he could mope all day if left to his own devices. He sighed, hiswhole body heaving.

“It's just — what if you replace your mate there?” His voice quietened the more he spoke, as though thewind was leaving his lungs.

“You could replace your mate there, too, Jake,” I said, shifting in my seat so that I was facing him. “Wealways knew this could happen. That's why we never-" I ducked my head, embarrassed. “You know —we never mated.”

“l know.”

He took my hand in his much larger one. It was calloused in places, and radiated heat.

“I just thought this wouldn't happen. I was happy to wait. I always thought it would be better if wehad sex once we were proper mates, anyway, and I was happy to wait for you. I've been waiting foryou for eighteen years, and now you've been taken away from me.”

He pulled his hand away and turned his head. I gently pried it back round to face me, and saw thatthere were tears brimming, his eyelids struggling to hold them back. I took his face very carefullybetween my hands; he blinked, and as the tears fell I caught them with my fingertips, gently wipingthem away.

“I've not been taken away,” I murmured, my lips brushing the tip of his nose. He shivered. I leant myforehead onto his, feeling his warmth against my skin. “I know this puts a little more pressure onthings, but nothing has to change between us.”

“But I want it to change,” he said defiantly, bringing his hand up to clasp my chin. “I want to beyours, and I want you to be mine.”

He grazed his fingers along my jawline, slowly dragging them back towards my earlobe. I imaginedthey were his lips, pressing soft, fluttering kisses along my jaw and down my neck, brushing over mymarking spot, his canines lengthening and biting down, hard. I trembled at the thought.

"Give me a week,” I said, the words springing from my mouth without forethought. “If we don’t replaceour mates at the ball, then we'll commit to each other. Fully, in every way.”

“You mean that?” He asked warily. I nodded, though I myself was unsure about my decision.

Oh Goddess, I thought. What have I done?