Page 70 of Wulf's Pack
I sigh. Of course that information is already out there. Why the nation is so fascinated with my love life, I will never understand, but at least the she-wolves will back off.
Elise shoots me a questioning look, and when I nod, she says, “Yes, I can confirm he’s taken a mate. We’re not releasing any other information at present.”
“Is Alpha Winters available for an interview?” the man on the phone asks.
Elise stays warm and professional with her response. “Not at this time. He’s a bit busy at the moment, as I’m sure you can imagine. But once he’s ready, we’ll see about doing a press conference or scheduling interviews. There’s an interest form on the pack website you’re welcome to fill out, and someone will get back to you once we have more information.”
“Thank you, ma’am. I’ll do that. I appreciate you speaking with me.”
“You’re very welcome. Have a wonderful day.”
Elise hangs up and gives me a sheepish smile. “Sorry. The phone has been ringing off the hook for the last twenty-four hours.”
I flounder, unsure where to start with my questions. “How did the news break? And when?”
Elise shakes her head. “We’re not sure how word got out, but the story broke day before yesterday. Luna Skylar was outed as your mate, and Matt, Preston, Sophia, and I were outed as wolves and linked to you as your first official pack members.”
I groan, but this was inevitable and bound to come out sooner than later. I was hoping for another week at least, but I’m not surprised it got out so quickly. Still, worry fills me. “What has the response been?”
Elise scrunches her mouth sideways and bobs her head from side to side. “Reactions have been mixed, but more positive than negative.” She smirks. “You’re pretty popular. People are excited that you’ve found a mate and more curious about you having a pack than anything. The shifter community seems thrilled about it, though. At least, that’s the attitude here in Detroit.”
“What about you guys? Have you had any trouble?”
She shrugs. “Nothing too outrageous. There’ve been people with cameras stalking the warehouse, but Oliver was kind enough to place a strong ward around the edge of the property that’s keeping everyone out. Leaving has been a bit of a challenge, but Parker got us in contact with a security team he trusts, and they’ve offered to escort us whenever one of us needs to go anywhere.” Her mouth falls into a crooked smile. “The most interesting side effect so far has been Sophia’s books. When she was outed as a werewolf, her book sales skyrocketed. I guess the country is curious about the wolf who writes werewolf romance. She hit number one overnight.”
I chuckle. “Silver linings, I guess.”
Elise grins, her eyes twinkling with amusement. “Sophia can’t decide if she’s excited or mortified.”
This time I full-out laugh, and Skylar giggles. I’m glad there’s some levity in all this chaos. “We’ll have to do something to celebrate her success,” I say, surprising everyone. “Everything is messed up right now, but it’s important to acknowledge the positives whenever we can. It can’t all be stress and doom and gloom. That’s not healthy for morale. We need as much balance as we can get.”
Elise and Preston both give me grateful smiles, and Elise says, “Well, if we’re looking for things to celebrate, Sophia’s not the only one who needs a party.” Her pointed look tells me she’s referring to a mating ceremony.
I’ve never been opposed to a good party, and I like the idea of celebrating my mating, but we need to complete the bond first, and Skylar deserves a real party. “Oh, we’ll get to that,” I promise. “But it’ll take time to plan, and I want things to be settled first so that we can all enjoy it without so much stress. For now, let’s stick with crowning Sophia the werewolf romance queen.” Preston snorts a laugh, and I smirk. Sophia is never going to live this down. “We can make it an impromptu pack social and get to know each other, since we’re all basically strangers.”
Skylar squeezes my hand. “That’s a great idea. If you’d like, I’ll see if I can put something simple together for this evening. I’ll bet Isabella and Ben could help me with that.”
That’s my beautiful omega. She’s going to make a great luna.
I’m such a sucker. This one offer from my mate has me swooning like I’m Romeo and she’s my Juliet. She’s so caring, and compassionate, and beautiful, and I’m just so damn lucky to call her mine. I lean over and kiss her. “That would be great, babe. Thank you.”
Skylar blushes. I’m not sure if it’s because I kissed her or because I called herbabe, but I like it. I wish I could sweep her into my arms and carry her off to my bed, but there’s too much to do right now. Tonight, though… After Sophia’s thing, I’m booking the nicest room in Parker’s hotel, and I’m going to enjoy some alone time with my mate.
Skylar feels the shift in my mood, and her eyes widen a fraction. Her blush deepens to a bright crimson, sending heat through me, and straight to my tightening jeans. Damn it, I need to control myself.
Shifting in my seat, I take a breath and try to focus on the current situation with my pack instead of the one in my pants. “So where does that put us?” I ask Elise. “How did people get your phone number?”
Elise holds up the phone. “This isn’t mine. It’s the pack’s. When our story broke, the FUA was flooded with calls about us. Director Jacobs asked us if we could set something up so that they could direct all inquiries to us. I had Preston take out a group phone plan—five lines to start.” She picks up two more phones and holds them out to Skylar and me. “I gave one to Bree, one to Carl, and these are for the two of you. They should be good to go. I’ve got all the numbers programmed in along with a few others like Sophia’s, the FUA, and your old clan. I’ve got the last phone for now, but I figured it’ll be for whoever you appoint as your pack secretary.”
I smirk. “I’m thinking maybe you should hang onto it.”
Elise’s brow creases. Her confusion only makes me smile more. “How married are you to your job at the casino?”
Her head jerks back, as if she’s startled by the question. “I—” Her mouth snaps closed, and she blinks. “Well…I suppose I like it, but I’m notmarriedto it.”
My grin shifts into a wide smile. “Excellent. Want to be the new pack secretary?”
Elise’s eyes pop wide, and her face flushes. “Alpha?” she asks, stunned and unsure.
