Not just the Beta (Oriana and Slade) novel Chapter 212

Slade

He’d watched Clay make a call to Vanessa and invite her to the pack the day after the former leadership of Highland Hills had been removed from his pack. He’d been in contact with her and her family, ever since Slade had come home, and he’d learned the truth about everything.

He’d been made by the Wolfen Council to take that moonstone ring off even though he didn’t want to, had been told everything had to go back as evidence. He couldn’t keep it, and Austin had assured him that Slade would likely grant him a bond with Vanessa.

Though Slade had stated “How do you know she’s not your Goddess-Gifted, if you have been wearing that the entire time, you could well be. You do have a child together, the Goddess may grant you a bond, for the way you protected not only Vanessa and your son, but that entire pack as well.”

Clay had sighed and muttered “I love her and I don’t want to scent out a Goddess-Gifted Mate from some other pack later on in life if Vanessa wasn’t it

Austin had intervened, “Now son,” he’d stated all Alpha, “You’ll be taking it off, or I’ll be removing it. The choice is yours as to how it is removed. The hard way or the easy way.”

Clay had stared at Austin and watched him crack his knuckles and huffed and taken it off. “I’m only mating to Vanessa.” Had come out of Clay as he’d handed it over to Austin.

“I’ll grant that if I see that is what she wants, and both her parents also agree to it.” Slade had told him “If she is not your Goddess-Gifted come the full moon and everyone is in agreement, you can both relinquish your Goddess-Gifted Mates back to the Moon Goddess and claim each other. I’ll not stop that, if everyone involved agrees freely and willingly.”

He stood on the front of the packhouse steps with his unit, their suits had been decided upon, and the design had gone to the pack tailor. She and her assistants were working on them, to have them ready for the full moon. All other jobs had been put on hold for their suits. So they would be worn on the full moon.

He’d stood there and watched as the very first official pack visitor arrived inside his pack. Alpha Harlan of the Twin Rivers Pack, along with his daughter Vanessa and his grandson Mason. She was pretty strawberry blonde with caramel-coloured eyes and a slightly distended belly.

His eyes moved right to it as he heard Clay gasp “Ness?” And she’d chuckled softly, and nodded at him as his brother had rushed down there to greet her, had picked up his son and hugged the two of them together “You didn’t say.”

“I know, was going to surprise you on your next visit” She smiled at him. “It’s a little girl.”

He could see the love there between them, smiled at them and moved his eyes to Alpha Harlan, the man just smiled at his daughter and Clay. Clearly understood there was real love there between them. Stepped up the stairs to greet him officially.

They had never met before, he’d been gone when Clay had been off to Alpha College and met Vanessa. Likely been wearing that ring the entire time, and it was from what he was seeing it was likely they were also Goddess-Gifted Mates. He shook the man’s hand and introduced his unit to him.

Thanked him for coming and being so very patient and understanding around Clay and Vanessa. Harlan’s words were, as he looked at them still standing together, “I always felt something was off. Even my Mate, Evie, thought they were bonded, but couldn’t understand why they weren’t gifted to each other.

“We put them together a lot on the full moons. It was very frustrating for not only those two down there, but my mate and I as well.” he shook his head “They are a little odd on the full moons, get all heated and crave each other like nothing I’ve ever seen before.”

He’d sighed as had Austin “Likely their bond trying to break the boundaries of the witchcraft that is imbued into the ring he was wearing, to stop him and her scenting each other out. We’ve removed that now.”

“Good.” Harlan had nodded “Either way, Evie and I will not stand in their way, we should go inside and start working on the Mating Alliance for them.”

Slade had nodded “It will be simple and clear. If you would like to have a pack alliance as well?”

He watched Alpha Harlan smile “Yes, with my daughter here, of course I will want one. I, however, will want Alpha Austin in the room. You can understand why Alpha Slade?”

“Yes, of course I can.” He nodded “Please do come inside. I can meet your daughter later. They need time alone, I think.” his eyes were on Clay and Vanessa, who were now kissing each other, all deep and slow even with their son right there between them.

Mason was handed over to Harlan, and he watched the two of them walk from the room quite calmly and knew it was only because Vanessa was pregnant. If not for that, they’d probably have been all over each other down there at the car claiming each other without hesitation.

One bond sorted out, he saw Harlan to a room on the first floor and organised for Vanessa’s things to be brought in but not taken into Clays room that would interrupt Marking and Mating, so had them put in neatly in the hallway near their room.

He looked at Austin as a thought struck him. “Why haven’t Dariah and Art reacted like this?” he asked

“It is a curiosity,” Austin nodded “I’m certain they are a gifted pair from all I’ve seen.”

“Agreed.” He nodded and thought about that. “Ah, Dariah ended their relationship when she was 18, never slept with him after that full moon came and they weren’t gifted to each other,” he thought about it. “Maybe they still haven’t been together. Maybe Dariah doesn’t want to in case they aren’t gifted to each other.

“It is possible.” Austin nodded “Though I believe they are sharing a room nowadays.”

“Hmm they are, as far as I’m aware.” He sighed. She was so stubborn, wasn’t willing to mate herself to him even now, after all she heard, and he knew why, because what if she wasn’t his Goddess-Gifted, she still wanted that for him; to find his Fated Mate. They were, he realised, up there together, likely sleeping in the same bed but not actually being intimate, because she wouldn’t do that to herself. It would cause her pain to sleep with Art only not to scent him out, and have to give him up once more.

“She still wants to wait and see. They are together but not fully at the same time,” Slade stated, and Austin nodded.

“She’s trying to protect herself and Art, from the added heartache if they’re not.” Austin agreed with him, then sighed, “She’ll not take him as a Chosen in other words, regardless of how much they love each other.”

“No.” Slade sighed heavily “Goddess-Gifted or nothing.” He also knew she’d leave and likely go live in Obsidian as well. Have Alpha Braxton initiate her right into his pack, so she had no reason to come here, and have to see Art as he moved on.