Chapter 4- Training with the Beta
I head up to my room and put on my work out clothes. These are tighter clothes. About the only time I wear stuff like that. But I am going to sweat all over them so I don’t see the point in wearing something impractical. I throw my hair in a pony tale.
I start to trudge down the stairs when Hunter joins me. “Look, I think we need to start acting civilly. We do have to run this pack together.” He directs it at me.
“I have always been civil, it is you who thinks you’re better than me.” I keep my head held high.
I stopped for a moment. There has to be a reason why Hunter is acting like this all of the sudden. Never mind, it doesn’t matter. I start walking again. “Jasmine, I mean it, let’s start over.”
I turn to look at him. “Hunter, I was never mean to you. I have never been anything but courteous. You are the one calling me names. So if anyone needs to start over it’s you. I have someplace to be if you don’t mind.” I turn away from him and continue to the training grounds.
HUNTER’S P. O. V.
Once I leave the Alpha’s office, I know I am deep shit. The Alpha had mind linked me in the meeting. “You better treat her better.” It wasn’t a friendly warning. He fully intends to make sure that I treat her better. I don’t know if it was just me who got the warning or if Allison did too. My relationship needs to be stronger if we are to work together.
I head to my room to get ready for the double training that the Alpha directed, when Allison puts her hand on my arm.
“Hunter, do you want to go fool around for a little bit.” She is biting her bottom lip trying to look sexy. I just had fun with her, mostly. You know scratch your itch. I haven’t had that itch for a couple of months now.
“Not really. I have double training, remember.” I keep walking leaving her behind. I am sure she will find someone else. As much as I liked being with her, she wasn’t very loyal.
After I change I come out and see Jasmine. I know I need to be better. Not only that but most of it was for show anyway. I don’t want to be the odd man out in the pack. I know most of the wolves in the pack think she is fat. She doesn’t look it to me. I have actually felt slightly attracted to her since my birthday. Quite a bit longer if I am being honest. Like the last two years. This has me wondering if she is my mate. At this point if I am, I think she is going to reject me, maybe even just out of spite. Her words this morning ring in my head.
“Look, I think we need to start acting civilly. We do have to run this pack together.” I try to start the conversation, maybe get her to see that I am not all bad.
“I have always been civil, it is you who thinks they are better than me.” She doesn’t even really turn to look at me. She is proud. I will give her that.
She stops for a moment. I figure this is my chance to get her to listen to me. “Jasmine, I mean it, let’s start over.”
She looks right at me. “Hunter, I was never mean to you. I have never been anything but courteous. You are the one calling me names. So if anyone needs to start over it’s you. I have someplace to be if you don’t mind.” I watch as she disappears out the door. I figure we are going to the same place. After all, she was dressed for training.
Sure enough when I get out to the training fields she is stretching. I joined her. She probably doesn’t want me here since she is pretending I am not here. I really don’t care, I like being around her. She is driving me a little crazy. She falls for that human like he is god or something. Yet here I am, just as good looking, if not better and she acts like I am gum on her shoe. Ok, honestly I think I am better looking.
She takes off on the track. Running at a pretty good pace. I have to fight to catch up with her. “So, your dad gave you double training too.” Why else would she be out here? It isn’t to spend time with me that is for sure.
“I have always done double training. You know when you are called fat ass everyday you want to do whatever it takes to make them stop.” She doesn’t sneer like I would have expected. Instead she keeps her voice completely neutral.
“So you don’t mind if I join you then?” I am trying to be friendly. Maybe defuse the anger she has towards me.
“The training grounds are for the pack, not just me. Do what you like.” She keeps her voice completely the same. She does pick up her pace. I am not sure if she is just trying to push herself. Or if she is trying to get away from me. I keep up with her pace. After the second lap her phone dings. She has it in one of those pockets that they put in yoga pants. She stops and pulls it out, looking at the message. I can’t help the jealousy that flares through me when she gets a big smile on her face. I have been being nice here and she is giving me nothing. This person gets a smile with a text.
After she types something back she puts her phone back and starts running again. I decide to hold back, I watch as she runs. There is nothing really wrong with her body. Some people say she jiggles. I don’t see any of that. Tone muscles are what I see. Allison is one of the number one people that talk shit about her. I listened because she was filling my needs. Now, I know I really screwed things up. If I am not mated to Jasmine, I still have to work with her for the rest of my life. Unless she decides that she doesn’t want me to be her Beta. Then I will be the disgrace of the pack.
She stops and answers another text. Ok I have to know who is on the other end. I run to catch up. She is slipping the phone back in her pocket. “Who are you texting?”
She rolls her eyes at me. “I don’t really think it matters to you.” She takes off again. This time, I will keep up with her.
“I am just curious as to who is messing up your running. You can’t be doing all that well if you keep stopping all the time.” I try to make it sound normal, but really I am still fuming.
“Still none of your business. None of my friends are in this pack, so no one you need to concern yourself with.” This attitude hurts. She is making it clear that she doesn’t see us as friends.
“What if I want to be your friend?” I try to keep my confidence. Sometimes Jasmine has a way of exuding it, I wish I had that.
She starts laughing. “Really you think one talk with my dad and you are going to change all the years you treated me like shit. I’m not buying it. You can go sell that shit down the street.” She picks up the pace. I stayed with her.
“I am trying to have a working relationship with you. We are going to need to work together in the future. It would be better if we were friends instead of enemies.” Appeal to her Alpha side that should work, right?
She stops and looks at me. “What is this?” Jasmine isn’t even breathing hard. She should be. I reach out my hand subconsciously and brush a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
“Like I said. I want to be friends.” I look at my hand like it offended me. What the hell am I doing?
“Ok, I think you might have hit your head. Or maybe this is one of those pod people situations. I can be civil with you. There is nothing that says we have to be friends. I know it is typical for Alpha and Beta to be best friends, that just isn’t going to happen with us. Nothing to get upset about.” She turns and starts running again.
I am starting to think I should drop it for the day. If I push her too hard she might try to kick my ass. I am not so sure she can take me, but hell if she’s been training hard enough and her having Alpha blood, she just might.
I fall back and start to go to the weight room. I am pretty sure that Jasmine won’t be in here for a while. She looked pretty content to run. Besides during morning training she doesn’t usually show up here. When she does I watch and she sure doesn’t disappoint. Never does she need a spotter to step in. Smooth fluid lifts, not light weights either.
After I am done in the weight room I walk by the field, just to see what she is doing. Jasmine is running maneuvers. I should probably have done that. I watch as her body moves around. They are fluid and smooth. Like everything else about her.
Now I think it is time to get as far away from her as possible. I don’t get where this attraction is coming from. Well, maybe I do. If she is my mate then I will know next Saturday. That seems like an eternity from now.