Yvette Hines - The Club

“Trae, it’s time you mated and prepared to take your place in this pack,” growled Romel Wulfene, the pack Alpha.

Leaning his shoulder against a far wall in his father’s office, Trae observed his sire as the older man paced around behind his desk. This argument was an old one. They had one of his father’s ‘talks’ every few weeks, never to any avail.

“Look, Dad, we’ve been over this. I’m not trying to play Beta to your Alpha.”

“Damn it, Trae—” His father slammed his fist against the wooden top of the desk, cutting off his own words.

The furious anger of the Alpha wolf would have sent most of their pack members running for cover, but his father’s anger, which he translated to mean his father’s lack of understanding, caused Trae’s teeth to gnash.

Romel’s chest expanded as he inhaled. “Listen, son, I’m no fool. I know an Alpha male when I see one.” Straightening his tie as he raised himself up to his full six-foot-three height, his father composed himself. “As your father, it makes me proud that I have produced an heir who will have the strength and skill to lead the pack.”

Trae didn’t respond, he only shifted to lean his back against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest.

“However, as your Alpha, it grieves me to see you wasting precious time at that club you frequent nightly instead of sniffing through our pack to find a bitch to stand beside you and continue our blood line.”

It was no secret to Trae what his father thought of the place he and some of the other pack members frequented after work and at the weekends. It was a popular spot that many unattached paranormals visited. A place of lust and music. It was an environment where uncomplicated pleasures could be enjoyed—not an establishment for mate-finding. Trae knew this, and when he was honest with himself, he admitted it was his personal diversion tactic. Not that he wasn’t ready to settle down, he just didn’t want to be forced to stand second in command with a woman with whom he would have no connection besides the physical.

“It’s my time to waste.” Since puberty, Trae had understood the importance of finding a mate. The ability to keep the pack large and strong would ensure the safety of all who looked to them for protection. “Besides, we each have our own way of finding the right woman.”

His father shook his head. “You will not find her at that club.”

“Who knows?” Trae shrugged, pushed away from the wall and moved to stand behind the chair on the other side of the desk.

“We were too lenient with you. Your mother and I should have selected a mate for you from the pack, as my father did for me.”

It was Trae’s turn to growl as he gripped the back of the plush leather chair, his claws extending for a moment. “Yes, Dad, but don’t try and make it sound as if you took one for the pack. Mother turned out to be your mate, so there was no reason for you to fight the mating order.”

Romel sighed and ran a strong hand through his short, brown hair. “You’re right, Trae. But I need you to stand with me. You will either choose soon, or I must make the decision for you, and to hell with your anger.”

Retracting his claws, Trae closed his eyes, an attempt to rein in his resentment. He opened his eyes and gazed at his father. “What’s the rush, Dad? Am I not doing my job in the company? Pulling more than my own weight?”

Romel nodded. “You know I can’t find fault with your work at the office, Trae. I can bear witness you are the first one there in the morning, and usually the last one to leave.”

Tossing his hands high at his sides, Trae demanded, “Then what? What more, Dad? All I ask is for more time to find a mate who will be to me what mother is to you, someone the Great Spirit created with the other half of your soul.”

Coming around the desk, his father stopped before him and spoke in low tones. “I want that for you, too. But you ask for time when there is none left to give.”

The older man placed his heavy hand on Trae’s shoulder.

“The original pack in Oklahoma have sent word they are receiving pressure from a new, covetous pack to forfeit the land and town.”

This was the first Trae had heard of this issue. The Oklahoma pack was mostly made up of older weres, the descendants of those who had migrated to Oklahoma to protect the Native Americans there. Just as many of the tribes’ men had been lost, so the pack had been thinned out by natural deaths and by killings. Those who had survived had claimed land and built a town. At one time, the town had thrived, pack membership had grown and prospered, but over the years the younger weres had left for greener pastures, leaving the older members of the pack to fend for themselves. Trae’s grandfather and father had always taken an annual trip out there to ensure the mature members were all right. Evidently, this was no longer the case. “Why am I just hearing about this?”

“They believed they could handle things by themselves. The council only called a few hours ago requesting aid.” Lowering his hand, his father rounded his desk and stood behind it once again.

Never having known his father to lie to him or withhold information, Trae believed his Alpha’s words. “What are your plans?”

“I’m relocating to Oklahoma with your mother and sisters, and some other members of the pack, in a few weeks.”

Frowning, Trae asked, “Wouldn’t it make more sense for me to go?” He was beginning to see the bigger picture and the full reason his father had brought up the issue of his mating again now.

“No, son, it wouldn’t. Our pack here is thriving and strong. They will need a leader who can carry them through to the next stage. That’s you.” His father’s declaration rumbled like thunder.

The burden of his Alpha’s words rested on his shoulders like a boulder. “What do you need me to do?”

Pulling out his high-backed chair, Romel sat. “We’ll solidify the details this week. So, continue to enjoy your club at night while you can. Pray to the Great Spirit that he delivers your mate to you. And know this, son of mine—if he hasn’t by the time we have the induction ceremony instating you as Alpha of our pack, then your mother and I will see you bonded to a female that very night.”

“Good night, Dad.” There was nothing more to say.

“I’ll see you at the house, tomorrow evening. I’m sure your mother will want to talk to you, too.”

After agreeing to show up at the family home, Trae turned and headed out of his father’s office.

Normally, Trae would have been angry about his father’s intention to force a mate on him, but he wasn’t. He couldn’t be. His pack needed him. Needed him to be Alpha and show he had the ability to lead them and provide strong heirs.

A part of him no longer wanted to go to his nightly hangout spot. The thought of slaking his carnal lust with a partner or partners who would not be of benefit to his pack wasn’t appealing to him. However, the other part of him wanted this last night of freedom before the pressures and concerns of his pack became his first priority.

After tonight, he would have to resign himself to the knowledge that he had not found his mate. He also had to be truthful with himself and admit he hadn’t put in the right energy to locate her, either.