Page 17 of His Rejected Alpha Mate
“Nothing is ever easy. This man, his family, will be in your life for a long time, The Luna willing. If you want anything like the relationship you had with your son before, you need to make steps now towards repairing this rift.”
“You’re right,” I sighed.
“Oh, honey, I know.”
Her words lightened my mood. A chuckle escaped, and everything seemed just a little easier to handle.
Taking a deep breath, I settled comfortably on my bed and made the call that was long overdue.
“Hey, son. Could I speak to Blake, please? I owe him an apology.”
“Papa? Are you okay?” his voice was filled with concern. He was far better than I deserved.
“Yeah. I just… I was pretty awful when I first saw you both. There’s no excuse, and I’m sorry. I’d like to say that to Blake, too. He’s been so generous with his time, the job offer–” My words stopped my throat and I had to close my eyes against tears.
“I told him this wasn’t you. We get it, Papa. You had to come alone to a strange place, to see me after years apart. Then I looked so different and was mated already. I’m not going to lie. It was strange and a little hurtful, but I just needed to see it from your side.”
“How’d you get so mature?” I tried to joke.
“I had the best papa.” Kade’s voice was teasing. “Can I put the phone on speaker? Blake is here.”
“Please.”
“I can hear you now,” said Blake. Not being able to see him made it difficult to tell what he was thinking. Not that his facial expressions gave much away, usually. I think that was part of what I struggled with. Never knowing how to adjust my actions to keep him calm.
“Blake, this is long overdue, but I need to apologize for my behavior the day that we met and every time since then. I’ve been cold and rude. There’s no excuse –”
“Jasper,” Blake interrupted. “Like Kade said, you’ve been through a lot, and maybe we all just needed a little room to breathe and work through our feelings. It was such a tense time for us all. I think we can make allowances.”
“You are perfect for my son. I don’t know how I didn’t see it sooner. Can we start over? I’d like to get to know you properly. Work up to you calling me Papa one day. Do you think that would work?”
“Starting over sounds like a great idea. I’d love nothing more than for us to all get along. Maybe one day you’ll call me Son.” There was a crack in his voice and I imagined he was trying to hold back tears, too.
“When Angelica and I come for dinner with the omegas and to tour the school, could we join the pack? I’d like to make it official. Sweetwater is our home now.”
There was no mistaking the warmth in Blake’s tone or the gasp that Kade let out. “Of course. Welcome to the Sweetwater pack, Jasper.” We’d work up to him calling me papa. There was plenty of time now that we were settling here.
Revenge
Dakota
Forthepastfewdays, Jasper’s words played on repeat in my mind, repeatedly, until I wanted to roar and drown them out. Nothing that I did worked to stop me from going over them, torturing myself with my third rejection from my fated mate. This one had been worse because he wasn’t giving me the closure that came with a formal rejection. He didn’t want to acknowledge the bond was even there!
If I thought about it, I could understand some of his reasons, like reconnecting with Kade and getting his life in order somewhere new. There was no guarantee that he would stay in Sweetwater. Bitter disappointment rose and choked me. This was fate’s gift he was throwing away. To not even give me a chance was hurtful and offensive to our goddess. Who was he to decide that he knew better?
I knew I was letting my anger get the best of me. Days alone weren’t helping. I’d spoken to Papa about my conversation with Jasper. I couldn’t keep it bottled up inside. It helped slightly that he was struggling with it almost as much as I was.
Jasper didn’t seem to be. I’d seen him at the compound spending time with the omegas, hanging out with Kade and Blake. I’d even seen him in Sweetwater shopping at the grocery store. Every time I turned around, he was there. Each time he’d look through me, or if forced out of politeness, I’d get a simple hello. My heart would crack and splinter further, over and over.
I needed to get a grip on myself and show Jasper he didn’t have the power to hurt me. I wondered if he was getting some sort of sick thrill from being in control of an alpha. The idea made me determined to put Jasper out of my head and move on. I’d meant what I’d said. He would have to beg for forgiveness.
Kade had invited me over for dinner at the compound. I’d managed to subtly ask if his Papa would be there, only accepting when I knew he wouldn’t be. I was grateful for the reprieve. Hiding my hurt and anger was difficult at best, and I missed being able to relax in Kade’s presence.
The guard at the gate was unknown, as was one of the guys at the door. Melody greeted me in her usual friendly manner, directing me through the mansion to the comfortable living room where Alpha Blake was relaxing with his mate at his side on the comfortable-looking sofa. Blake’s brothers, Axel and Chase, were on another, and Roan had an armchair with a direct eyeline to the door.
When I’d been told that Roan had been guarding Kade for years, I’d been skeptical, but the man still monitored Kade’s every movement in the same way that Axel shadowed Blake.
I bared my neck for my alpha, still getting used to being part of the Sweetwater pack rather than the Sweetwater sleuth. The bears were still transitioning over to the pack, but I’d already taken my oath, making Blake my alpha officially.
