"Who was that?" asked Dylan, his dark eyebrows furrowed.

I shook my head, looking down at my phone with confusion. "I don't know. They didn't say anything."

"Really?"

"My Dad was telling me about these calls. They won't leave him. He said they're just cold callers."

"Are they trying to sell you anything?" questioned Dylan.

I shook my head. "No, they don't say anything. They just...breathe."

"Block them," ordered Dylan, gesturing to my phone.

"I just did," I replied, tucking my phone back into my pocket. "Well, anyway, I should probably go. It's getting late."

"Didn't you just get here?" chuckled Dylan, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yeah," I said, running my hands through my dark hair. "But like I said, Alpha Paul will probably be on his way down here thanks to Jen, and I don't particularly feel like getting my head ripped off today."

"He'll be asleep. He's leaving early. Jen won't bother him."

"Yeah, sure," I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes.

"Did you just roll your eyes at me?" smirked Dylan, causing me to smile. "Well, that's not the kind of treatment an Alpha appreciates."

I laughed, folding my arms over my chest as my mate stalked closer to me, his lips turned upwards slightly as he ogled me, causing me to squirm in place. I took a few steps backwards, resulting in Dylan's raising his eyebrows, shaking his head at me.

I gasped as my back hit the cold cabin wall, my cocky smile quickly disappearing as I gazed up at Dylan in front of me, his body inches from mine. My body became flushed and I fiddled with my fingers nervously as Dylan chewed his bottom lip, studying me with piercing ocean blue eyes. He inched his face closer to mine, brushing a strand of my hair away from my face, his large soft hands gently brushing my pale skin.

"You're right, it's getting late," spoke Dylan, stepping back, his breath fanning across my face, sending shivers down my spine; tingles erupting throughout my body.

I furrowed my brows at Dylan, not enjoying the fact that he had teased me. He knew what he did to me. It was blatantly obvious that I became flustered when he came close, but my wolf was begging me to grab him, pull him to us and kiss him. However, I pushed the thought away, quieting her.

"Yeah, you're right. I should go," I said confidently, clearing my throat and stepping sideways so I was no longer standing in front of Dylan.

He studied me, his eyes widening for a split second before he composed himself, clearly shocked that I had reacted to his teasing.

Dylan chuckled to himself, shaking his head, opening his mouth to say something, but he stopped, sniffing the air, rolling his eyes.

I turned at the sound of a fist aggressively banging against the wooden cabin door, nervously chewing on my bottom lip, knowing exactly who it was. Dylan flung the door open, revealing a frustrated looking Paul, dressed in his old dressing gown.

"Did I not make myself clear enough?" boomed Alpha Paul, shaking his head at me, gesturing for me to follow him outside, which I did.

"I'm sorry Alpha Paul. I didn't mean to go against your orders, but-"

"There are no excuses. What is your name?" asked Alpha Paul, his Alpha tone creeping into his voice as he spoke, making my wolf cower.

"Clara Mason," I mumbled, turning to look at my mate quickly, who was scowling at my Alpha, his ocean blue eyes morphing into a stormy grey colour.

"Well Clara, I expect you-"

"Do not speak to my mate like that," growled Dylan, stepping forwards, causing Alpha Paul's eyes to widen, his mouth parting slightly in shock. He looked between Dylan and I before dropping his head, closing his eyes and sighing, quietly muttering something to himself.

"Clara, is this true? Is Alpha Dylan your mate?" asked Paul, his mouth set in a firm line.

I nodded, taking a step back away from him, not liking his reaction.

"Dylan, can you give us a moment?" asked Alpha Paul, gesturing for me to follow him, not waiting for my mate's response, causing him to growl.

"Dylan, it's fine. Just go inside for a minute," I said, causing Dylan to curse under his breath, slamming the door behind him after entering the cabin.

"How old are you Clara?" asked my Alpha as he led me far enough away from the cabin so that Dylan wouldn't hear us.

"Twenty one," I replied, wrapping my arms around my waist as I shivered, the harsh crisp wind rushing past me in gusts, freezing me to the bone.

"You're young. Do you even know what you want at this age?" laughed Paul, smiling at me sympathetically.

My eyes widened, taken aback by his comment. "Yes, I know what I want."

"Really?" questioned Paul, chewing on the inside of his cheek. "Clara, you need a strong, caring, empathetic mate- someone who would drop everything and anything for you. Alpha Dylan is none of those things."

Rage flowed through me veins, causing me to hold down a large growl. "Alpha Paul, I mean no disrespect, but you don't know Dylan."

Paul leaned in closer, raising his eyebrows at me. "I know a lot more than you do Clara."

I swallowed, my head starting to spin as I glared at my Alpha with hard eyes, causing him to growl at me.

"Now, of course, I can't stop you two from seeing each other because you're mates, but might I remind you that Dylan is here on a business trip? I'm paying him to train my fighters and teach them everything he knows, and he has agreed to do so. I will not tolerate any distractions."

I nodded my head once in understanding, trying to remain respectful towards my Alpha, but also let him know that I wasn't happy about what he was saying. "Alpha, Dylan takes his work very seriously."

"Good, because I don't want him cutting any sessions short so he can go and have a picnic with his mate in the meadows," taunted Alpha Paul.

"Isn't an Alpha supposed to be happy for their pack members when they find their mate?" I replied through gritted teeth, averting my gaze.

"Oh, of course, no doubt, and I would be happy for you Clara," said Paul, holding his palms up defensively. "If it was anyone but him."

I shook my head, letting out a big sigh, my wolf begging me to allow her to take control, but I pushed her back down, refusing her.

"Now, I'm going out of town for business reasons, but Beta Charles will be taking over whilst I'm gone. He will be keeping an eye on Dylan during training sessions to ensure they aren't interrupted."

"That's fine," I said, raising an eyebrow.

"Very well, goodnight Clara, and I'm truly sorry," said Paul, turning and walking away back to the grounds.

"Sorry? For what?" I asked, but Alpha Paul ignored me, only walking faster through the darkness until I could no longer see him.

I ran my hands through my long hair, pulling it into a messy ponytail as I inhaled deeply, shaking my head. Alpha Paul had struck a cord with me, confusing me. I didn't know why he disliked Dylan so much, but I could only put it down to healthy Alpha rivalry, or just plain jealousy.

I slowly trudged back to the cabin, pushing the door open as I stepped in, seeing an irritable looking Dylan sitting on the couch, his elbows resting on his knees. He looked up at me with confusion, raising his eyebrows. "What did he say?"

"He's accepted the fact we are mates, but he made it clear he didn't want you getting distracted or losing focus," I replied, deciding to leave out the part where Alpha Paul tried to change my mind about Dylan, knowing it would probably cause more trouble than it was worth.

Dylan shrugged, smiling. "We're all good then."

I averted my gaze, Paul's comments almost stinging me. I couldn't stop his words from echoing in my head, making me wonder what he meant. Although, I knew he was right in one aspect, I didn't know much about Dylan.

"Can you tell me about your pack? When did you become Alpha?" I asked, settling myself down on the couch next to my mate, taking him off guard.

"What's with the sudden questions?" laughed Dylan.

I shrugged. "I just want to know more about you."

Dylan nodded, chewing on his bottom lip and running his hands through his messy dark hair. "Okay, um, I took over the pack when I was pretty young. I was seventeen."

I raised my eyebrows, cocking my head slightly. "Why were you so young?"

Dylan shifted uncomfortably, averting his gaze as he fiddled with his fingers, focusing on them intently. "Well, my Father was a schizophrenic, for the most part, he was a good Alpha, but he sometimes did things that would put the pack at risk. He almost started a few wars. Eventually, my family sat him down and told him he was no longer fit to be Alpha, he was getting worse over time and we finally had to step in."

I studied Dylan as he turned to me, looking me deeply in the eyes as he matched my body language, slightly cocking his head at me.

"He told us he would rather die than give up his Alpha position. The next day, my Mother found him. He had hanged himself."

My eyes widened, and I stared at my mate in shock. He swallowed, furrowing his brows as he dropped his gaze, sighing gently.

I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him close to me, caressing his back gently. I didn't know what to say, but I wanted to comfort Dylan as he seemed uncomfortable talking about it, causing me to feel guilty for asking.

"I'm sorry I asked. I didn't mean to-"

"Clara, it's fine," said Dylan, smiling slightly as he pulled away from the hug, leaving his fingers lingering on my skin. "It would have come up eventually anyway."

Dylan stood up, leaning down, planting a soft kiss on my forehead before taking both of my hands in his. "Come on, I'll walk you back to yours."

.......................................................................................

I know some people have asked why I wrote 'hanged' instead of 'hung'. For some reason, when referring to someone doing this, the past tense it 'hanged'.

Just wanted to let you know :)

I hope you all enjoyed this long chapter! Please let me know what you thought of it! What do you think of Alpha Paul, Gia, Jared, Dylan and Clara?

What do you think about the phone calls?

What do you think about what Alpha Paul said?

If you can, please vote and comment as it really helps me out!

I hope you've all had a good day!