Beyond Beta s Rejection

Harper

“There, you are done,” Katie, my best friend, declared and turned me around to look in my full-length mirror. I gasped at the sight of myself. I looked amazing, like really amazing. My normally boring straight brown hair cascaded in curls, framing my face and gracing my bare shoulders. My makeup, which was all silver and white, accentuated my features, from my prominent cheekbones with iridescent sparkles on them to my blue-grey eyes that looked bigger with the silver shadow. And all this was complete with my white lace dress that was fitted to my top and flared out at the waist and fell to just above my knee.

“Oh, Katie, I love it!” I squealed and hugged her.

“Anything for the birthday girl.” She winked as she admired herself in the mirror. “You never know. The entire pack is going to be there tonight. Your mate could be one of them.” I squealed again at her words.

The thought that my fated mate could live here in town right under my nose was enough to send goosebumps fluttering down my skin. And tonight was the night of the midsummer ball. It was a big deal and the Alpha and Luna of the Midnight Moon pack went all out. And it just so happened to fall on my eighteenth birthday.

When a werewolf turned eighteen, they could detect the mate that the moon goddess Diana decided was their perfect mate. It was called a fated bond, and there was nothing that compared to it in power.

“Oh, I hope my mate likes me.” I was suddenly worried. I mean, I was no one special. My family didn’t hold any sort of special rank in the pack, and I wasn’t beautiful like Katie, with her mass of blond waves, piercing blue eyes, and ample chest size. Or even smart like my other best friend Louise, who was currently laid on my bed, refusing to get ready for the ball.

“Why would he not love you?” Katie exclaimed. “You are stunning and loyal. He would be lucky to have you.”

Louise scoffed over on the bed but remained silent.

Katie stalked over to her. “And you, missy, need to get your sweet behind ready. We leave in an hour.” Louise gave her a sideways glance.

“Told you I’m not going,” she stated. “I don’t see why I have to dress myself up for the lecherous dogs of this town to paw over, hoping they will get into my panties.” Katie rolled her eyes, and I giggled. Louise was a firm believer in equality and hated pack life and pretty much anything werewolf. She thought the pack ranks favoured patriarchy, and the concept of the fated mates was supernatural mind control. She often declared that she planned on rejecting her mate if, and when she met him. She made her opinions very clear, loudly and often. I suspected she might have been kicked out of the pack if her father wasn’t the pack Gamma.

“Louise, it’s my birthday,” I put on my best whiny voice. “Please come and spend it with me.” Louise glanced at me and scowled.

“Fine,” she gave in with a sigh. “But do not expect me to enjoy myself.”

“Oh, we wouldn’t dream of it,” Katies said sarcastically. “Now up and ready, lady.”

***

Forty-five minutes later, we were all downstairs in my small living room, with my mum taking pictures of us and my dad telling me how beautiful I looked. The pack colours were black, white, and silver, so all the balls and events had that colour code, and we were expected to comply. My father had a simple black suit with a black tie that held the pack seal in silver. He also had a silver seal on the collar of his jacket, which signalled him as a pack employee. My dad was the bookkeeper for the pack, and whilst there were no rank privileges, it gave the family enough money so that my mum and I were comfortable. My mum wore an elegant black evening gown that hugged her figure and ended just above her silver stiletto heels. Katie wore a silver-grey dress that left nothing to the imagination, and Louise had on a black fitted knee-length dress that showed her long legs.

We were all ready apart from one other person. I looked around

“Where’s Tommy?” I asked. My mum rolled her eyes, and my dad scowled.