Chapter 28: Arrangements
"Well, everything appears to be in order, Mr. Shaw. You have a clean bill of health," Dr. Henderson said.
"So does that mean I can go?" Rory asked.
"Yes, I just have to grab your discharge papers."
Dr. Henderson left and Rory looked down at his clothes. He was in a black long sleeved shirt and dark gray slacks. As he was putting on his suit shoes, he looked over at his mate Amara. He felt bad for keeping her in the dark about him being an Alpha and having been rejected by his first mate, but he was grateful that she wasn't mad.
Still, he could feel her anger towards Skye and Malcolm through the mate bond. If only he could get her to calm down, to see that it really was no big deal...
"Oh, but it was a big deal," Darragh pointed out. "You were devastated for weeks, Rory."
Darragh did have a point. "Okay, fine. It was a big deal but what's done is done. It no longer matters and in my opinion, I got a much better mate out of it," Rory observed.
Darragh chuckled. "That you did. Did you see how angry she got with them? It was kinda hot how she defended you like that."
Rory smiled a little at Amara. "Yes, it was."
"You should retake the role of Alpha and make Amara your Luna," Darragh blurted out.
A huff of air escaped Rory. "Darragh, we've been over this. Malcolm is the Alpha now."
"But he never wanted to be Alpha and you know it. And don't you miss Graham and Ewan?"
Rory frowned at the mention of his Beta and Gamma. He did miss Graham and Ewan. He'd have to give them both a call one of these days.
"Rory?" Amara said.
"Hmm?" Rory responded.
"We um, we have a meeting with the Elders on Wednesday. About, you know..."
He inclined his head in understanding. "I'll take time off that day. What time is it at?"
"Nine A.M."
"Hmm, okay." Rory noticed how uncomfortable Amara was looking and blinked. "Something on your mind?"
"What are we gonna do about your family? We could let them stay for a few days. I could ask Gabriel to allow them to stay."
Rory cocked his head to one side. "What about Skye?"
Amara narrowed her eyes at him. "What about her?"
"Look, I know you're angry with her, but-"
Amara yanked herself up quickly. "Angry? No, I'm friggin livid! She put you through the pain of rejection!"
"And it was for the best." He stood up and walked over to her. "Besides, now I have you. I'd say it was a good deal."
Amara's forehead crinkled up and she looked at her mate playfully. "Well, when you put it that way..."
Rory chuckled and wrapped her up in his arms, kissing the top of her head. "There's no one I'd rather be with than you, mo caraid."
Amara burrowed into his chest. "Rory?"
"Hmm?"
"Did you love her?"
Rory looked down at his lovely mate and smiled. "No. It was just the mate bond that made her more like a...mild obsession."
"Mild, my ass!" Darragh interjected. "You were completely obsessed with that woman!"
An eye roll is what Rory did as a response to that. Amara raised her head to glance up at him with a smirk.
"Am I just a mild obsession?" she asked.
"Absolutely not," Rory answered without hesitation. "You're my dream woman."
A blush formed on her cheeks. "Such things you say..." she whispered.
He smiled. "You're kind, loving, strong, and so very bonnie and I count myself lucky to have found you, mo caraid." Rory lowered his head and laid a soft peck on her lips. "And when we get home, the first thing I'm going to do is make love to you."
Amara's cheeks went even more red. "Rory," she said with an amused giggle.
He burst out laughing. "I love how bashful you get. It's cute."
Amara smirked mischievously. "Oh shut up," she said, smacking his shoulder flirtatiously.
Rory lifted her up and kissed her. "Mmmm..."
Amara moaned, sending chills up Rory's spine. Every sound she made, every time they touched, every expression she gave him was enough to make him turn into putty in her hands. The joy of having a mate who actually wanted him was almost too much to bear. It made his eyes water and he sniffed, caressing her black locks in his hands. Amara looked up at him with a frown.
"What's wrong, mo caraid?" she asked.
"I'm just so happy, baby," he said, holding her close to his chest. "So happy that you actually want me."
Amara frowned and cupped his face. "Of course I want you. Luna Skye was a friggin idiot to let you go."
Rory chuckled lightly. "Maybe, I dunno. I should tell you the circumstances as to why she rejected me and chose to be with Malcolm instead."
"Please do. It might make my urge to rip their heads off less. Might."
Rory laughed loudly and nuzzled her nose with his. "Darragh is right. You'd make a good Luna."
"...Are you going to go back to being an Alpha now that you have a mate?"
Rory shook his head. "No. I couldn't uproot you from your home. Besides, Malcolm is Alpha now."
Amara shrugged. "I wouldn't mind living in Scotland."
"You wouldn't?"
"No. Besides, I was trained most of my life to be Alpha anyway, so how different could it be from being Luna?"
Rory tilted his head to one side. "You were going to be the Alpha of your old pack?"
"Yeah. I was an only child." She cleared her throat. "Now, as for the circumstances of your rejection..."
"Right. Well, she was already Malcolm's girlfriend since high school. They both love each other very much. So when we found out we were mates, well, she took some time to make her decision, but she ultimately chose Malcolm over me."
She frowned. "You still seem sore about it, though."
"I am. It was...difficult to deal with the rejection, but I had to accept. The rejection made it hard for me to remain as Alpha, so...I stepped down and gave the role to Malcolm. They marked and mated, she became Luna, and...I left."
"So this was quite recent?"
"Yes. A little over...two months ago. After stepping down, I took a globe and twirled it, then my finger landed on Casper, Wyoming. I decided to move there."
Amara blinked a few times. "So...you got to Wyoming based on chance?"
"Or fate."
This made her smile. "And how did your family take you leaving?"
"...Not well. My father thinks I shouldn't have stepped down. A part of me agrees. I liked being Alpha. I was a good one, at least I thought so. But...ever since the rejection, my mind was consumed with grief and I found it hard to lead the pack. My mother was devastated. My brother, he wasn't happy to be Alpha to begin with but me leaving made him less happy. And Skye, well...honestly, I could give two shits about what she thought. Anyway, none of us separated on the best of terms and I hadn't spoken with any of them since."
A frown formed on his mate's face and she cupped his cheek. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. So, when Malcolm called..."
"That was the first time in almost a month that anyone tried to contact me. I don't know why he called, though. Perhaps I should ask him."
The door opened and Dr. Henderson walked in, handing Rory some papers. "Here you go, just sign here," he said, giving Rory a pen.
Rory signed his signature on a few pages then the doctor gave him a copy. The couple thanked the doctor and he left. They both looked at each other before grabbing their things and leaving the room. Amara got her phone out and looked at her mate as they walked.
"So, should I call Gabriel to have your family and Skye stay for a few days?" she asked.
"Sure," Rory said with a smile.
Amara nodded and dialed Gabriel's number. He answered when they got in the elevator.
"Hi Gabriel," she said. "We're just leaving now. I wanted to ask you something, though. Would it be a burden if I asked his family to stay in our territory for a few days?" Amara paused. "Uh huh. I haven't asked them yet. I wanted to clear it with you first." Another pause. "In our house? Um...well, uh...I'm not sure that would be the best idea. You see, the Luna is with them and..."
Rory tensed up a little, knowing that Gabriel knew all about what happened. Amara tipped her head to one side, eyeballed him when the doors opened and they walked out.
"I see, so...yeah. I...guess it would be fine? I'm not so inclined to beat the crap out of her now, so I can be...civil," Amara said.
The statement made Rory chuckle. He loved how protective his mate was. It filled him with pride and he wondered if Skye would have ever acted that way.
"I doubt it. Skye doesn't have Alpha blood. Amara does. You know full well how possessive and protective an Alpha-blooded individual can be," Darragh said.
"So, how is, um...Benjamin doing?" Amara asked sheepishly. A growl escaped Rory and Amara blinked at him. "What?"
"Why do you care about how he is doing?" Rory snarled.
Amara rolled her eyes and brushed him off. "I see. Well, maybe I should avoid him for a few days by not being at home? No, I'm not trying to get out of being grounded."
They got to the hospital doors and exited the building. Rory's family, Skye, Tom, Henry and some guy were waiting for them.
"Okay Gabriel, I'll talk to you later." Amara hung up the phone.
"Who's that?" Rory asked.
"That's Alpha Jason, the leader of this pack," she replied.
Amara and Rory both bowed their head to him. "Alpha," they both said.
"I'm glad your mate is doing well, Amara," Jason said.
"Yes. Thank you for your hospitality in our time of need, Alpha Jason. We owe you a great debt."
Jason crossed his arms with a smile. "It was my pleasure, Amara. I might take you up on asking for a favor in the future as payment," he said with a wink.
"Of course," Amara said, her cheeks flushing a little.
"I don't like the way he said that," Darragh snarled.
"Me either," Rory said.
"Thank you again, Alpha Jason," Rory said. "But we should get going."
Alpha Jason shook hands with Rory then with Amara before taking his leave. Amara then walked up to Rory's family.
"If you would like, you could stay with my pack for a few days. Visit with Rory and all that," she said.
"That would be delightful," Douglas replied. "Malcolm, what do you think?"
Malcolm nodded his head. "I agree. Getting here was a wee bit tiresome. Where will we be staying?"
"At my house. We have plenty of guest rooms to accommodate you," Amara responded.
"Sounds good."
As Amara and Malcolm started talking about flying arrangements, Rory glanced over at Skye. An all too familiar tug on his heart happened when their eyes met, but it was barely felt. The rejection was still fresh in his mind, but now he had his second chance mate to help with his feelings. Did he still feel a stirring for Skye? Yes, but it was extremely suppressed now. Still, it bothered him that it was there at all. Shouldn't the bond have been severed by now, though? After all, Rory had accepted the rejection so why was there still feelings present?
He realized they'd been staring at one another so he looked away towards his other mate. He was extremely proud to have Amara in his life and he couldn't be happier. This was the right thing. And yet he still missed being Alpha of the Oceans Howl Pack. Amara had expressed some interest leaving her home and becoming Luna. Had she been serious, though? And he knew Malcolm had not wanted to be Alpha in the first place.
"Rory?" Malcolm said.
"Hmm?" he said, directing his attention to his younger brother. "Yes?"
"Would you mind driving with me? I have something to discuss with you."
"Uh oh," Rory thought.
"Sure," he said, wondering what could be so important. "You don't mind, do you Amara?" he asked, looking at his girlfriend.
"Not at all. Tom, Henry and I can return the rental and meet you at the air field. We're taking the jet," she said excitedly.
Rory nodded and people started piling into their cars. Rory sat shotgun with Malcolm, Skye opting to ride with Malcolm's parents. Rory was relieved for that. As they drove away from the hospital, he realized that Malcolm looked a little nervous.
"Alright, what's this about?" he asked his little brother.
"You have to come back and be Alpha," Malcolm replied.
"What? Why?"
"Because I was not meant to be Alpha. The pack has very little respect for Skye and me. They question my decisions at every turn. Even Graham and Ewan question me. They aren't happy at all that I'm Alpha. Dad's been helping me learn but it's not enough."
Rory sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Malcolm, it's just growing pains. You have to make them respect you. Prove yourself as an Alpha. Rome wasn't built in a day."
"Yeah, fine, but did you have any of these problems when you first became Alpha?"
"A little, but it eventually died down."
Malcolm sighed. "Some of the pack has asked for you to come back, though, like all the fucking sub leaders. They don't approve of how I run things and they are all very upset with Skye for rejecting you."
Rory hadn't realized things were that bad. He sighed and looked at his brother. "Alright, look. I don't know about regaining my title, but I can at least...come back and hold a meeting with all our sub leaders. I will tell them that this is all for the best."
Malcolm growled. "You're not getting it, Rory!" he shouted. "I don't want this! I'm miserable and Skye is miserable!"
"Then appoint Graham as Alpha."
"Rory, please. Just...just think about it. Please," Malcolm pleaded.
Rory rolled his eyes. "Fine. I will think about it, but you know this means that Amara would become Luna, right? Don't you think people would have a problem with an American being our Luna?"
"They'd still treat her better than they're treating Skye."
Rory frowned. There was also the fact that Amara was a black wolf. "Malcolm. I need to tell you something about Amara. And you cannot tell anyone. Not Mum, not Dad, not Skye...nobody. Okay?"
"Okay. What is it?"
"...Amara is a black wolf."
Malcolm slammed on the brakes, the tires screeching to a halt. When the car jolted to a stop, Malcolm looked at Rory with a bewildered expression.
"Amara's a what?!"
