Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
FINNEGAN
I direct the boat to the third island of our trip, watching as Alora bounces on her toes at the bow of the ship. Jordan and Wells stand at her side, shaking their heads.
I’m very glad I decided to take them out on the boat. Alora has been having a blast exploring the islands.
The one we’re pulling up to now is the largest, and it’s where we’ll be having lunch. None of the other islands are big enough for anyone to live on, but there are a few hundred inhabitants who live on Ayr. It’s named after one of the seaside towns that fell into the ocean during the Event.
I’m not sure if it was actually part of the town it’s named after, but it’s nice to think it is.
As beautiful as I find Ayr, there’s no way I could live over an hour from the mainland by boat. Ayr is only about twenty-six square kilometers, so about ten square miles.
If I thought growing up in Glenmore was suffocating, it’s got nothing on Ayr. Everyone knows everyone else, and they don’t get too many visitors because of the distance and lack of touristy things to do .
As I pull up to the dock, a man waves, and I cut the engine. Wells tosses the man the rope, and he secures us.
“Welcome to Ayr!” Moving closer, I realize he’s not really a man but a boy. He can’t be more than sixteen.
“Thanks, lad. I’m Finnegan. These are some friends from the States—Alora, Wells, and Jordan. I just wanted to show them the island.”
The kid nods. “Make sure you show them the ruins. It’s what everyone comes here for anyway.”
I climb onto the dock and shake his hand. “That’s exactly what I was planning to do. I have a picnic lunch for us, and figured that was the perfect spot.”
“Do you need any help with transport? I can drive you over and show you the island.”
My plan was to walk over, but it is quite a trek, and it’s clear he’s trying to make money—something that can be hard to do on such a small island. I also shouldn’t assume that Alora, Jordan, and Wells are up for a nearly ten-mile walk.
“Saving up to leave the island?” I ask as Jordan passes me the backpacks and picnic basket.
He ducks his head. “That obvious was I?”
I slap him on his back. “I recognize the hunger. I think a personal tour is just what we need. What are your rates?”
“Oh. I…uhh…” His face turns as bright red as his hair.
“No one has taken you up on your offer yet?”
He shakes his head. “We’ve only had one visitor since I got the okay from the town council. Winter is a slow time.”
“Aye, that it is.” I pull out my wallet and remove a sizable chunk of money. “Will this do?”
His eyes go wide. “That’s too much, Mr. Finnegan.”
“It’s not. Take it and please, for the love of everything holy, just call me Finn. And do you have a name?”
“Sure. Finn. Got it.” He stares at the money for another moment before shaking his head as he shoves it into his pocket. “The name is Ian.”
Alora gives him a soft smile. “It’s nice to meet you, Ian.”
His blush had just begun to fade, but it comes back now—somehow even brighter. “Oh. It’s nice to meet me too. I mean you. You’re very bonnie.”
We all have a laugh at that.
“Alright, Ian. You’re much too young for our omega,” I tell him as I grip his shoulder. “Why don’t you take us to your vehicle?”
“Right. Yeah.”
Alora sidles up to me, grabs my hand, and twines our fingers together. “I like the sound of that.”
“The sound of what, lass?”
“You said our omega like I’m already yours. I like it.”
I sigh. “I didnae realize I said that, but I’m glad you like it. I like the idea of you being mine.”
“It’s practically an inevitability at this point, Finn.” Jordan laughs as he joins us. “I saw this shit with Wells and her at the beginning. You’re already hers—you just don’t know it yet.”
Gods, that’s all I want. To be hers.
This woman I’ve spent only a few hours with, has me under her spell. I don’t think I could say goodbye to her even if I wanted to.
“Belonging to Alora sounds like a dream come true,” I finally respond.
Behind us, Wells scoffs. “Kiss ass.”
Without looking back, I flip him off. When he laughs, my shoulders immediately relax. It’s how I would respond to my friends, but I wasn’t sure how it would go over with Wells.
To say we’re still finding our footing is putting things mildly—even after using my bark on him last night.
He doesn’t seem to mind when I touch or kiss Alora, but it’s like he’s testing my boundaries.
It’s what I would expect of someone much younger than him, but he’s been the only alpha in their pack for nearly a decade.
I’ve already proven that I’m the stronger alpha, and I don’t want to rub that in his face.
I stop when something occurs to me, even though we’re still a few feet from Ian’s truck. I turn to face Jordan and Wells, pulling Alora along with me. “Were either of your parents alphas?”
“No, they’re both betas. It’s why it was a surprise that Wells revealed as an alpha—especially since I was also a beta.”
“Ahh.” I nod. Everything makes more sense to me now.
Wells looks at me questioningly. “What’s the ahh for?”
“You’ve been testing me today in small ways.
It’s something I see in young alphas as they try to figure out where they are in the hierarchy.
You’re old enough that it usually wouldn’t be an issue after my bark affected you.
” I give him a quick smile. “But you haven’t been around alphas in this kind of situation before, so you’ve never had to test another alpha. ”
“Was I?” He winces. “I didn’t mean to do that. I’m sorry.”
I shake my head. “No, there’s no need to apologize.
I’m a psychologist, so my brain needs to understand why people do the things they do.
The fact that you’re subconsciously testing me makes even more sense.
It’s not you, the human part, trying to test me—it’s the alpha.
Which, aye, is part of you, but also not. Does that make sense?”
“Makes sense to me.” Alora grins. “It also makes other things make more sense. It explains some of his possessiveness, too, right?”
“It does, but I thought you were an engineer. How do you know that?”
She sticks her tongue out at me. “I’m a well-rounded person, Finnegan Abernathy. I have depth and shit. But really, I took multiple psychology classes for electives. I find it interesting to learn about how the mind works and why we do the things we do.”
“Yes, Alora, you’re perfect. We all know.” Wells grins before leaning down to kiss her. “But I don’t really feel like being psychoanalyzed at the moment, so why don’t we let Ian take us to the ruins?”
I nod, letting the topic drop even as my head goes through everything I know about Wells and the interactions we’ve had. Seeing it through this new lens makes it easier to understand why he said certain things. Which means I know how to deal with him better now.
Ian turns out to be an excellent tour guide as he drives us through town, then to the ruins at the far side of the island.
They’re all that’s left of the town that existed before the Event. There isn’t much left of the buildings, but it allows us to see the small differences between how they lived back then and how we live now. It’s like a living part of our history, and I love that kind of stuff.
We explore the ruins for about thirty minutes before settling down for our picnic. I packed food I knew they would enjoy as Americans, but also some Scottish foods for them to try.
“Finn, these are delicious.” Alora’s eyes are wide as she takes another bite of a Scottish egg.
Wells is obsessed with the pork pies I brought, but it’s the desserts they really fall in love with.
Thank goodness my aunt is staying with us because she’s the one who made the food for me—all while trying to drag information out of me about Alora and her pack. But she made shortbread biscuits and teacakes that they devour.
I only manage to eat one biscuit before handing them off. Aunt Maisie’s just aren’t as good as my ma’s, which sent me into a bit of a tailspin when I realized I’d never get to eat Ma’s biscuits again.
“Are you okay, Finn?”
I turn my head to find that Alora has scooted across the blanket to press her body against mine.
“Aye, Alora. I just had the realization that I wouldn’t ever get to have another of my ma’s biscuits.”
She nods. “And it made you sad.”
I don’t bother answering aloud as I fight back tears. She wraps her arms around me, a quiet purr starting up.
There’s no way I can’t smile while she’s purring for me, so I lie back and pull her with me. My eyes fall shut as she snuggles into me, her purr vibrating through my body.
I thought the day couldn’t get any more perfect, but it just did.
Damn. I am so gone on this girl.
And now I realize why Bree didn’t pick me, and why that didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would.
Because Alora was out in the world waiting for me to find her.
I know there’s no such thing as fated mates, but at moments like this, I can’t help wondering if there isn’t a bit of truth to the fairy tales.