Page 90 of Alpha Gray

I roll my eyes, grinning as I bounce Mason on my knee. “Well I’m gonna ask. We’ll see if she does.”

Deke returns to the coffee pot as Holly rushes over to slide into a seat beside me at the table, her interest piqued. “Do you think she’s your mate?”

I chuckle, adjusting Mason on my knee. “I don’t know, Holl. I’m kinda twisted up over the whole thing, but let’s keep it between us for now, huh? At least until I know where I stand with her.”

Holly raises her eyebrows, nodding. “Oh yeah, of course!” She drags her fingers across her lips like she’s closing a zipper. “I won’t say a word. I’m just excited for you, is all!”

I shake my head, chuckling again.

“Why are you eggsyteds?” Mason asks in his cute little toddler speak, furrowing his brow as he peers up at me.

I ruffle his hair again. “Nothing for you to worry about, little man. Grown up stuff.”

Deke clears his throat from across the kitchen. “Alright, what are we thinking for breakfast today? How about omelets?”

“Sounds great, babe,” Holly replies, beaming over at her mate.

“Gray?”

I shake my head, lifting Mason off of my lap and rising to stand. “None for me today. I’ve gotta get to my office, lots to catch up on.”

Honestly, my stomach is growling, but I need to be alone with my thoughts for a while. If I stay for breakfast I’m sure the conversation will circle back to Fallon- and I’ve gotta sort those things out for myself before I get Holly’s and Deke’s hopes up.

It may have come late, but I guess I’ve finally come to terms with the fact that I’ve got real feelings for Fallon- and that I’m not ready to give up on her. If anything, I’m ready to fight to keep her, try to prove that I’m worthy of being her mate even if fate has other plans.

“I’ll be over in a while,” Deke says as I head out the door, and I toss him a little wave of acknowledgement over my shoulder.

I do have pack business to sort out in my office, but I doubt I’ll be able to focus much today. I’ve gotta get my head on straight, figure out what the fuck I’m going to say to Fallon. And if I figure that part out, and it goes well, I’ll have to determine what to say to my pack to get them to accept her.

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

Fallon

I feel like shit. I’ve been bottling everything up since Saturday night- I haven’t even gone to Brooke to talk things over. I don’t know why… maybe I’m embarrassed? I feel like a fool for getting involved with Gray. Hannah’s words still haunt me. As I jog onto the practice field on Monday morning, all of my muscles are achy, like the pain I’ve tried to bury deep in my soul is physically manifesting in my body.

Then I see Gray standing out there with the other alphas and the sight of him cuts like a dagger straight to the heart. Even in his workout attire- gym shorts and a cutoff t-shirt- he’s an Adonis. His magnetic eyes immediately find mine.

I dart my gaze away quickly, staring at the back of Davis’ neck instead as I follow him to the center of the practice field and take a spot beside him. I’m now close enough that I can smell Gray, my wolf stirring in response, but I can’t bring myself to look at him- it hurts too much.

“No whiteboard today,” Davis comments quietly, shooting me a sideways glance.

I give him a wry smile. “Maybe we all just made it?”

He chuckles, shaking his head and returning his attention to the alphas. They’ve yet to speak, but their very presence commands attention.

“Good morning, recruits,” Gray barks in his usual greeting.

I keep my eyes trained on the ground as my wolf whines at the sound of his velvety voice.

“You’ve all made it to the final week of training camp. Well done.”

One of the recruits lets out a little “Woo!”, and we all chuckle to ourselves while Gray waits for us to quiet down before continuing.

“From here on out, there will be no more rankings,” he says, and I glance up to see him folding his chiseled arms across his chest. I dart my gaze away again. “We want you each to perform every day like you’re holding that top spot and fighting to stay there. You’ll be put through a series of trials all week and on Saturday we’ll decide who makes the cut.”

We all nod, mumbling in affirmation.

“Go ahead and get in a few warmup laps,” Reid adds. “Then we’ll start with some sparring, you can choose your own partners.”

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