Chapter 06
Tarra’s birthday party was in full swing in a small banquet hall at the pack’s hotel.
With guidance from Tarra’s parents, Gammas Peter and Holly Carter, Jaxom had helped Asher create the perfect birthday party for Asher’s future mate.
He’d matched the color scheme to her favorite color, forest green.
She kept talking about how she wanted to run through the forest just as the moon was rising.
They’d hung pine bows woven with ribbon of blue and silver to match her dress.
Asher’s parents, Beta Tim and Wendy Ellis, had been in charge of food.
Wendy had baked a cake and decorated it with the help of Luna Ellen.
“I’m going to have a heart attack,” Asher wheezed as he leaned over the table.
“No, you’re not,” Jaxom laughed at his friend.
Asher ran a hand through his close cropped brown hair.
In high school, Jaxom had been told by more than one girl that Asher was handsome.
Then, random girl would ask if he could set her up on a date with Asher, as if he was Asher’s keeper.
The fact it had happened more than once had been a running joke for Jaxom.
Asher had generally shied away from girls in school.
He’d wanted to wait for his mate. And, being the Beta’s son, he was steered towards training not dating.
It had done him well. He was one of the best up and coming warriors in the pack, next to Jaxom.
The time spent planning and decorating the party had helped distract Asher.
To Jaxom’s immense amusement, it had been a rough two months for the poor guy.
Their birthdays combined with shifting for the first time had been awesome.
What had been surprising was Asher’s wolf’s obsession with Tarra.
Not that Asher wasn’t excited to have her as his mate, but that his wolf had known so soon was unusual.
Knowing so early also had spiked Asher’s fear Tarra would reject him.
Jaxom had spent the last two months battling ‘what if’ scenarios from his overly anxious friend.
Jaxom had been spending a lot of time either distracting Asher or herding Tarra towards him. He’d come up with game nights, poetry reads, movies, and picnics. Anything to help his friend cope, be near Tarra, and keep other randy wolves away from her.
Luckily, their spending time together was a usual occurrence. It was just more intense now. And, pretty little Tarra ran with it. She’d once confided her fear they’d grow apart after they became adults. How little did she know that the Moon Goddess had other plans.
It usually took both wolves to be over the age of 18 to scent each other.
Asher and Tarra were two months and a day apart in age.
Asher’s wolf had been chipping at him to mark her from the moment he’d arrived.
There’d been more than one moment Jaxom thought he’d get attacked by Asher for Tarra mildly ‘flirting’ with him.
It hadn’t really been flirting. They’d simply been talking.
“You only have to wait until 12:45,” Jaxom said under his breath.
“Yeah, but he’s hitting on her again.” Asher was clearly working hard to hold back a growl as Mason Cowell kept trying to get Tarra’s undivided attention.
Asher’s wolf was afraid Mason was going to steal Tarra way from him.
Plus, Asher couldn’t tell Tarra he was her mate which made the fear even worse.
The belief was that telling an underage mate could make them make bad decisions before they knew for sure that person really was their mate.
To protect the vulnerable party, they needed to turn 18 before any mate-bond pressure was placed on them.
Then they’d have verification on whether or not that person really was their mate.
A wolf that had scented their mate lived in fear that mate would reject them.
The only thing that stopped that fear was mating and marking.
Any move made by, or towards a mate, was overanalyzed by the overanxious wolf.
It was usually considered best to fulfill the mate-bond quickly to keep other wolves alive, unless one of the wolves was underage
Underage wolves flirted with each other with a greater amount of safety. But if a wolf knew that an underage wolf was their mate, they had to work hard to stop their own wolf from attacking to protect their mate. Mason was testing the limits of Asher’s control around Tarra.
Mason had spent most of his teenage years hitting on any girl that walked past him.
He’d been told too many times that he was handsome, swoon worthy.
In point of fact, Mason was a good looking kid.
He had sandy blond hair with just a bit of curl to it.
Brown eyes and a chiseled jawline kept a looker’s attention.
His dad was a pack warrior and had been training Mason since the kid could walk.
All that physical activity had built a body that was hard and muscular.
Mason knew it and used it to his advantage.
Recently he’d been working pretty hard on Tarra.
She’d ignored him for the most part, but today was her birthday party.
Jaxom knew Tarra well enough to know she felt responsible to make people happy at her birthday party.
And in Asher’s defense, he’d done an amazing job reining in his wolf from any predatory actions towards, or because of her.
It’s not fair, you getting to be amused by all this, Asher ranted through the mind-link.
Your pain is almost over. We have an eye on her and Mason will get distracted by the next skirt that walks by. He’s still 17. He really doesn’t understand. Jaxom tried to be the voice of reason.
Pup needs to be taught a lesson. Asher did growl that time.
Down boy, Jaxom barked through the mind-link. Partiers were looking their way.
Sorry, sorry, Asher straightened up. Oh, shit. She’s coming.
Jaxom turned to smile his winningest at Tarra. She looked concerned. Asher had rarely been in a temper before he turned 18. Since he’d turned 18, he’d had the hardest time not being seriously grumpy. And, that was all Tarra’s fault. She just didn’t know it.
“You two arguing again?” She tried her best to look stern.
“Yeah, I’ve been teasing him again,” Jaxom sighed. “Guy can’t take a joke.”
“He used to be able to,” Tarra tapped her toe and pointed a stern, for Tarra, finger at Asher. It made her look cute not stern. “I miss happy you. You’ve been angry since you got your wolf. Bring back happy Asher now or leave my party.”
Jaxom hid a grin as Asher’s wolf melted before his mate’s censure. The guy was going to be groveling in a moment. While it would be fun to watch, it would be too humiliating having all these people watching, too.
“I’m sorry, Tarra. This really was my fault this time. Asher, I know I’m not better than you. I’m sorry,” Jaxom said with a bow, hoping Asher took the hint.
“Damn right. I’m better at video games than you. My name is all over the Tri-Max with high scores. You need to practice more.” Asher smiled and flipped Jaxom off. Arrogance filled him up again, saving face in front of his soon-to-be mate.
Mason strutted up to the table and leaned in towards Tarra.
Jaxom could feel Asher’s wolf rising up to kill the idiot.
Jaxom grabbed Mason by the nape of his neck and hauled him to the door.
Mason protested and struggled the whole way.
Party goers were laughing at his exit. The guy had developed a reputation.
“You don’t want to be here right now,” Jaxom huffed as he hauled Mason out the door.
“Not your party. Let me go,” Mason protested.
“Listen, pup. I’m saving your life. Literally. Go play somewhere else,” Jaxom growled back, letting his wolf slip the leash to push the lesson home. “And, keep your hands off the ladies. When you get your own mate, you’ll understand how important that is.”
Mason stumbled backwards, hit a tree, then ran like his life depended on it.
Must have been pretty convincing if the idiot reacted that way.
He needed to have an older male wolf have a chat with him.
If Asher hadn’t controlled his wolf, things would have ended differently.
It was stupid to play games like that. Wolves got killed when they ignored propriety.
He needed to learn to respect mate-bonds.
Jaxom wandered back inside. People moved out of his way, not wanting to be the next to get ejected from the party. All the guys were eyeing Jaxom and Asher. The question was there. None of them were stupid enough to approach Tarra now. Luckily, the birthday girl was oblivious.
Asher had her sitting at the table. He had a plate of food and cake for the birthday girl.
She hadn’t sat, ate, or drank since she’d arrived all dressed up in a blue dress with silver accents.
Not real silver, of course. Jaxom didn’t have any idea how they achieved the look, but it was pretty nonetheless.
It set off her dark brown hair and beautiful brown eyes.
Those eyes closed as she finally took a bite of her own birthday cake.
The drape of the dress around her bosom had really upset Asher’s wolf. He didn’t want any other male looking at her. That dress was too revealing to a wolf trying to keep it together. Jaxom knew it was Asher, too, but it was easier to just blame his wolf. Both were to blame. Dang horny wolf.
Thirty minutes to go.
Tarra’s parents arrived to be with their girl as she got her wolf, and her mate, if Asher’s wolf was to be believed.
And boy, was that guy anxious. He was afraid Tarra would reject him.
They’d known each other all their lives.
Maybe she was looking for someone different?
Familiarity sometimes bred contempt. Jaxom had heard that so often the last two months that he was never going to let the guy forget it.
Asher moved to sit next to Tarra as her family got food and came to sit with her, too. She was a beauty to behold as her loved ones surrounded her. She had a way of simply enjoying the moment. Asher, on the other hand, kept shooting glances at the clock.
It’s not going to move any faster by glaring at it. Do I need to take it down? Jaxom teased through the mind-link.
Asher blushed, No. Ten more minutes.
That’s nothing in the scheme of things.
Thank you for kicking Mason out.
Notice all the guys backed up against the wall watching you?
His friend’s face blossomed into a mischievous smile. They know.
Male wolves were taught the signs of a mate bond early in their teen years.
The girls had a version of the same lessons, of course, but they were less likely to start a physical fight.
So, their lessons were not as intense as the male wolves.
Male wolves were simply much more aggressive and those lessons had kept fights from breaking out.
Mason had ignored the territorial signs Asher was throwing off.
His personality had definitely changed for the worse, but would bounce back as soon as he and Tarra were mated.
Both him and Jaxom hovering over Tarra the past two months had been another sign.
Jaxom kicking Mason out had been a major sign for the guys at the party.
Some claimed a male wolf put off a pheromone that, while it didn’t have a smell, did cause a reaction in other un-mated male wolves.
It was a warning for them to back off. The boys at the party had definitely retreated as far as they could go in the confines of the building.
Jaxom nodded his head and raised his glass to say out loud, “To Tarra, my friend since we could crawl. For all the times you’ve scolded, pampered, and laughed with us. Happy birthday, pretty lady. May the Moon Goddess bless you with a handsome mate and a bright future! Happy birthday, Tarra!”
The whole room raised their glasses with a resounding, “Happy birthday, Tarra!”
Asher shot a glare at Jaxom, You trying to call me ugly? he mind-linked.
Nah. Was fun to imply, though, Jaxom snickered. She’ll remember I said that. Jaxom ducked behind Tarra’s dad so Asher couldn’t throw cake at him.
“Ladies and gentlemen, it’s officially 12:45,” Tarra’s dad, Gamma Peter, declared.
He watched as his daughter’s eyes closed.
Her wolf was rising. A growl erupted from her lips.
Tarra gave a girlie scream after she growled and then cheered.
One deep breath in and shock ran across her pretty face.
Jaxom felt jealousy raising it’s ugly head.
He squashed it as Tarra turned to look at Asher.
“Mate!” she shouted as she flung herself into his arms.
“Mate,” Asher growled as he held her close. He had his eyes closed and was obviously breathing in her scent. He nuzzled her neck and kissed her cheek.
“You knew? For how long?” She was looking at him with concern. Her hand stroked his chest trying to sooth all the emotions he’d been struggling with. Tarra leaned in and kissed his lips.
“Since my birthday.” Asher sounded gruff as he basked under her ministrations. Her concern was more than reassuring to a guy who’d had to rein in the desire to murder anyone who simply looked at his mate.
Asher pulled Tarra close and kissed her as her family and friends cheered.
Tarra’s mom and dad looked extremely pleased at the new addition to their family.
Asher had already told his parents about Tarra as he’d struggled to go home every night instead of camping out in front of her bedroom door.
He’d been firmly told that wasn’t going to happen.
Tarra sat back and cupped his face, “No wonder you’ve been so grouchy. I thought I’d made you mad, but then you kept pestering me to do stuff with you and Jaxom. Jaxom!”
“Yes?” Jaxom gave her a cocky smile.
“You knew, too?”
“Yes.” Jaxom was enjoying the irritation on her face.
Keeping the secret for Asher had been fun, most of the time.
He was just grateful all looked to be ending well.
No more worries Asher was going to gut a wolf for looking at Tarra wrong.
No more worries Tarra was going to reject Asher for greener pastures.
“You didn’t tell me!”
“Against the rules. Happy birthday.” He bowed to her.
Tarra dove in to kiss Asher again. “I’d hoped it was you. I’ve been so worried we’d all get split apart. Now, you’re all mine! Best birthday present ever!” she squealed, throwing her hands in the air in victory. “I love you all, but Asher and I are leaving.”
Jaxom couldn’t stop smiling at his friend’s hasty exit. That was going to be him someday soon. He’d do as Hazel suggested. The least he could do would be to let his mate, or mates, mark him. He wanted it all.