Alpha Gray by C.J. Primer

CHAPTER NINE

Gray

I have to stay away from her. Fallon is a distraction, and I can’t afford any distractions right now. Not when we know the shadow pack is on the move.

The next day, Brock and Jax are back in the mix so I decide to sit out one-on-ones and observe. It sucks. I’ve got a lot of pent-up frustration that I need to get out, but I don’t want to wind up in a one-on-one with Fallon. I’ve got to actively avoid her. I somehow manage to do it for the next few days, working off my energy by shifting and running in the evenings after I take care of my pack business.

Theo has picked up on the fact that I’m acting a little strange lately. I tell him it’s nothing, but he knows I’m lying.

“At least come have a beer with us,” Theo urges. He’s standing in the doorway of my room in the squad barracks, leaning against the doorframe.

It’s the end of the week, and both the squad and the recruits have Sundays off from training. A lot of them usually go out and whoop it up on Saturday nights since it’s their only opportunity to get out and blow off some steam each week. I stopped in my room to change my clothes after training, and I’m rifling through my drawers for something to wear.

“I don’t know, man,” I mutter over my shoulder, pulling out a clean t-shirt and a pair of jeans and tossing them onto my bed.

Theo groans. “Ah, come on,” he grumbles. “You skipped out last week!”

“I don’t really feel like going out,” I shrug, toeing my gym shoes off.

Theo folds his arms across his chest, still leaning on the doorframe. “This doesn’t have anything to do with that recruit, does it? The twin?”

I peel my shirt off over my head, ball it up, and toss it in Theo’s direction. “No.”

Theo catches the shirt, then tosses it back at me. “Liar.”

I catch it, rolling my eyes as I chuck it into the hamper.

“Come on,” Theo urges again. “Just come for one.”

I grunt, grabbing the clean shirt off of my bed and putting it on. I tug my shorts down, replacing them with the jeans.  After a moment, I breathe a long sigh. “Fine,” I say, stabbing my fingers through my hair. I glance in Theo’s direction as a satisfied grin spreads across his face. “Just for one.”

Theo, Jax, Brock, Reid and I head into town a little after dark. It’s my pack’s town and a bar sits right on the edge, beckoning the squad members every Saturday. The half-mile long path through the forest between the squad complex and the bar is well worn, and people are already starting to fill the tables scattered around the edges of the bar’s interior when we arrive. We grab our usual high-top table tucked off in a corner by itself and a waitress immediately appears with a tray of beers.

“Alpha Gray,” she greets, tipping her chin in respect. “I was wondering if you’d join us tonight.”

The waitress, Kelly, is a member of my pack. She’s been after me for years, always dropping not-so-subtle hints that she’d like me to take her as my mate. I’ve been on plenty of full moon runs with her, so I know she isn’t my fated mate, but not every wolf is lucky enough to actually find their intended mate. A lot of wolves wind up choosing a mate on their own if they don’t find their fated mate by their mid-twenties.

I’m still holding out for mine. Not that I’m some sappy romantic or anything, I just haven’t had the time to date around or pursue other options. As Alpha, there’s always pressure from the pack to choose a luna. It’s a lot easier to say that I’m waiting for fate to intervene than to say that I’m not interested in finding a mate right now.

If I do choose my own mate eventually, Kelly could be an acceptable option. She’s cute, with a round face, button nose, and platinum blonde hair that she’s added light pink streaks to. She’s sweet, a little fiery, and she’s got a great pair of tits. I could do worse.

“How’s training camp going?” Kelly asks, sidling up between Theo and I and setting a bottle of beer in front of each of us. She slides beers across the table to Reid, Jax, and Brock.

I reach for mine eagerly and take a long sip. After I swallow, I give Kelly a curt nod. “Good. The new recruits show a lot of promise.” I tip the bottle toward her. “Make sure you don’t overserve them,” I say sternly, arching a brow.

Kelly giggles, brushing my arm with her fingertips. “You got it, Alpha.” She pushes her tits out, tucking her hair behind her ear with the other hand.

“Hey Kelly, what time do you get off?” Theo pipes up. He starts to slide his hand onto her ass, but she swats it away and jumps back. The dude’s shameless.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Kelly teases, sticking out her tongue. She spins around to head back to the bar.

Jax chuckles to himself. “A swing and a miss.”

Theo shoots him a glare, and all of us laugh. I take another sip of my beer. I’m glad Theo talked me into coming out tonight. It feels good to get away from my responsibilities for a while and just relax with the guys.

“At least I took a swing,” Theo shoots back. “How long has it been since you’ve gotten laid, Jax? You saving yourself for your mate?” He waggles his eyebrows and Jax tosses a coaster at his head.

“Not all of us will fuck anything with a pussy and a pulse,” Jax retorts.

I’m taking another sip of my beer, and I choke at Jax’s words. I sputter as I manage to get it down, then laugh.

“At least we’ll have some new blood for the full moon run,” Reid says.

He’s been messing around with one of the squad girls for a couple months, but he wants to find his mate. He’s alpha of his pack and they’ve been putting heat on him to choose his luna.

Brock shakes his head. “Not a good idea to hook up with a recruit.” He darts a sideways glance in my direction.

“Hey, if one of the recruits is my mate, there’s nothing I can do about it,” Reid responds, shrugging and holding up his hands. “It’s fate.”

Theo rolls his eyes. “Sure it is. You just want an excuse to hook up with one of those hot little newbies.”

We all chuckle jovially.

Jax takes a swig of his beer. “Hey, if one of them winds up being my mate, I definitely won’t be complaining. Some of them are smokin’ hot.”

“Oh yeah?” Theo asks, finishing his beer and sliding it to the center of the table. “Any specific girls in mind?”

Jax shrugs. “I’ve got my eye on a few.”

Theo grins, then turns to me. “What about you, Gray?”

I nearly choke on my beer again. All of the guys glance in my direction, but I just shake my head.

“While you’re all checking them out, someone has to do the actual training.”

Theo gives me a knowing smirk but moves on. “Brock, Reid?” he asks.

Both of them shake their heads.

“I’m surrounded by liars,” Theo mutters, grinning.

He throws up his hand to beckon Kelly back over. After a moment, she makes her way to our table again.

“Another round, boys?” Kelly asks, placing her hand on my shoulder. She’s a nice girl, but she’s too damn forward.

“Not for me,” I say, polishing off my beer and sliding it onto the table.

“Aw, c’mon, Gray,” Theo urges. “Just one more.”

I knew this would happen. He knows I only agreed to come for one, but one always turns into two. I don’t have the energy to argue with him tonight, so I just heave a sigh.

“Fine,” I say. “Just one more.”