2. Ananas

Nivia’s pov

“You are fucking nuts, Krullebol. You can’t be serious.” Dad said, staring at my mom in disbelief.

“Do you trust the Moon Goddess?” Mom asked, and dad sighed before confirming he did.

“So, why do you think she paired these two wrong, then? You don’t even know the guy, and neither does Nivia.” Mom said, looking at me and dad.

“I’m going to ask Ash to join us; maybe your dad can talk some fucking sense into you.” Dad replied.

“Snitch. And no, you will not. Storm, it’s not your choice; it’s our daughter’s. And I think it’s worth considering that they might be right for each other.”

“He’d almost twice her age! He’s fucking old, krullebol.”

“You’re older than me by nine years, old man. So don’t fucking start with that. You just don’t like him.”

“I don’t like him either, by the way.” I chimed in.

“See…” Dad said. I have always been a daddy’s girl, and he knows it. I guess that’s why he’s having a hard time letting go, and for once I am not complaining.

Mom sighed, “I just think you should give him and yourself a chance. He has a pack and kids, so I can’t just ask him to spend time here so you two can get to know each other. What if I sent someone to come join you in a few weeks? That way you’ll have a way out.”

"Maybe,” I replied. Gwyn wanted to give this a try, but I could not figure out how it would work.

Even if there wasn’t a heart of stone inside the annoying man, there was so much that made our situation difficult. First of all, I did not want to be a stepmother to some kids. I only turned eighteen six months ago, and I don't feel mature enough to be a mom, even though mom was eighteen when she had me.

Then there’s the whole alpha thing. He’s an alpha, and I am training to become one for my pack. How would that work? Would we combine packs? His pack isn’t exactly around the corner.

Then there’s the age difference.

We’re just so different. He’s so cold and mean!

I might not know Alpha Dashwood personally, but I have learned a lot about him through videocalls the last few months.

He’s polite, but not out of respect, but because it’s proper. It’s forced politeness instead of respect. He’s stubborn in an extreme way, loves to blame everyone, and never takes into account how his own actions could have caused problems.

He never smiles—not a real smile. Only a fake ass grin or a smirk when he’s done something to irritate me.

He loves proving me wrong, showing me how insignificant I am. Alpha Dashwood needs to be the biggest man in the room always. He’s a control freak and probably has a bit of OCD, based on the look of his office.

Maybe in his personal life he’s a totally different man, but I doubt it.

How would it work? Would we have sex and he’d roll over and ignore me? Would he be gentle with me or act like it was all a chore or be forceful? Would he expect me to be demure and submissive? Because he had another thing coming. I am opinionated, loud at times, and messy.

I’m flawed.

But I am also one of the best fighters in this pack. I’m smart, and I am kind.

I could be a good mate.

But Alpha Dashwood does not seem to care if I’m good enough. He just wants me because the Moon Goddess chose me for him. Like I’m some possession to have and control. He’s probably expecting me to have some pups, like I’m a breeder, not a mate.

Will he even let me go if I don’t want to stay? Will it be like how it was for Uncle Airk?

‘You’re strong. I will stand by you and reject our mate if it comes to it.’ Gwyn reassured me.

I remember the talks I had with my parents over the years about meeting my mate. I had imagined countless scenarios, but this was not one of them.

Mom touched my shoulder gently; I didn’t even notice she had walked towards me. “Look, Niv, it’s ultimately up to you. I would never force you, but if you have learned anything from our family, I hope it’s that love always finds a way. Unfortunately, some of our stories have a shitty start, but they always have a happy ending.”

I sighed, “I’ll go. But only for a week.”

“What if you spent the winter there; you hate how cold it can get here?” Mom suggested.

“She’s not leaving for the whole fucking winter, that’s three fucking months she’ll be gone! One month!” Dad counter-offered.

I sighed; I did not want to be the reason my parents were fighting. “Two months. Now, go make up, because that’s your thing, right? You fight and then, -“

“…we fuck,” Dad said with a smirk, looking ready to tear mom’s clothes off.

“That’s my cue to leave.”

Mom chuckled, “if by then you’re not marked and mated, we’ll come get you ourselves and there is nothing Alpha Rutherford can do to stop us.”

“How come you can call him Alpha Rutherford and I’m still forced to call him Alpha Dashwood?” I joked. Okay, it wasn't exactly a joke, as I wasn't laughing.

It’s ridiculous.

“He calls you miss. Omari… He’s fucking nuts.” Dad scoffed.

“It will be fine; it just takes some time.” Mom said, ever the positive one. "Your dad also didn't call me by my first name at the beginning."

“That’s because I didn’t know it!” Dad yelled. “It’s fucking different, and you know it.”

Honestly, it was like mom was the angel on my shoulder and dad was the devil. In the end, it shouldn’t matter what either of them thinks. It’s up to me.

Unfortunately, I have no clue what the hell I'm doing.

I went to my room and tried to fall asleep, but I was too stressed out. After a few hours of staring at the ceiling, there was a knock on the door.

“It’s me.” Marley’s voice said from the other side. They are one of my uncles, Beta Riker’s kids, and a good friend of mine.

“Come in.”

As soon as Marley was inside my room, they plopped down on my bed next to me. “So, you couldn’t tell me yourself? I had to hear it from dad.”

“I was too preoccupied with freaking the fuck out.” I admitted.

“Do you want me to come visit while you’re there?”

I nodded and looked at my cousin, “yes, please. I need some backup that I can trust over there. But only if you want to come, Mar.”

Marley chuckled and nudged my side, “I have nothing better to do, so why not? It will be fun.”

I rolled my eyes, “yippie. So much fun to watch your best friend be mated to a giant asshat who is old as shit and crankier than Grandpa Os and dad combined.”

They giggled, “that does sound like fun.”

“Did I mention he’s British and uses the most difficult words just to fuck with me?”

Marley laughed, “did you know you curse more when you’re angry?”

I shrugged, “it’s the least of my problems at this point.”

“Consider it Alpha training. You went to study with Uncle Isaac and Uncle Brax a few months back, right? And you were set to intern with a few more, weren’t you? Maybe you could learn from Alpha, um, what’s his name again?”

“Dashwood.”

“That’s a weird first name.”

I faked a smile, “it’s his last. He doesn’t allow me to call him by his first name, since that’s something that’s only reserved for people he deems worthy. If you’re an alpha or beta, you get a pass, I guess. I wonder if his pack is allowed to call him Alpha Rutherford or if they are forced to use his last name as well.”

“Rutherford?! That’s his name?” Marley shouted. “That’s even worse.”

“I know,” I giggled seeing my friend help make light of the whole thing, if only for a moment.

We continued to talk about my mate and our weird family until my eyes grew heavy. Marley dozed off next to me, and my mom woke us up.

“It’s time to get ready and pack. I’ll head to my future son-in-law’s room and tell him you’re on his way.”

Goddess, I did not like hearing my mate being referred to as her future son-in-law. I didn’t even like calling him my mate.

‘Just see it as an opportunity to travel and learn,’ Marley mindlinked me, but it wasn’t helping.

Nothing was helping. I knew this was something I needed to do, but I did not want to do it. At all. Like my science homework.

Or flossing.

Or changing my niece’s diaper.

I suddenly realized that even though I knew Alpha Asswood has kids, I had no clue what their name or age were. I had tried making small talk once, during one of our videochats, but my mate had refused to answer the most basic questions.

What if one of them was a baby?!

Or what if they’re like a teenager, closer to my age than Alpha Dashwood himself?!

“You’re freaking out again…” Marley said.

“How can you tell?”

“You’re not even looking at what you’re packing; you’re just grabbing stuff at random, and honestly, you look like a rabid dog while doing it.” Marey replied, with an awkward face.

What does pack appropriately even mean?

I usually just wear some leggings and a shirt when I’m going about my day. It’s easier to train in, and it’s comfortable. I don't mind dressing up occasionally.

I’ve never seen Alpha Dashwood without a suit, except yesterday. He actually looked pretty good in just his sweatpants and shirt. If he wasn’t a giant asshat.

Does he expect me to look well dressed all the time?

Because that won’t work for me.

In the end, I had packed a bunch of stuff—something for every occasion and three pairs of shoes. One for running, one that were my favourite sneakers, and a pair of heels, just in case.

Marley helped me carry the stuff down where mom, dad, and Forrest were waiting for me.

“I still wish you’d stay.” Dad admitted.

“Dad…” Forrest scolded him. “You promised.”

“Yeah, whatever. Fucking hell, I’ll just miss you, that’s all. I’m going to visit in a few weeks, though. After what happened with Airk and, -“

“Storm, it’s going to be fine.” Mom said, hugging dad from behind.

Dad was there when they found my uncle Airk. Airk had been mated to dad’s younger half-brother, Jace. Jace was nuts. He had marked my uncle, then locked him up and basically tortured him. Dad hadn’t talked much about how he found Airk, but I knew it haunted him.

He felt responsible.

“What if I came up with a codeword? I’ll call every day or mindlink you. If I say the codeword, it means I’m in trouble.”

“Okay, but if I don’t hear from you for a day, I’ll come get you.”

I nodded in agreement, “deal. I call every day and I’ll use codeword in case I’m being held against my will.”

Suddenly Alpha Dashwood appeared in the doorway. Had he been waiting outside all this time?

“Miss. Omari, I don’t tolerate tardiness.”

“I’m saying goodbye to my parents,” I scoffed.

His jaw tightened, “and coming up with secret code words in case I am mentally disturbed.”

I ignored my mate and gave my mom a hug. Forrest was next, and then dad.

‘Codeword is um… ‘ I tried to mindlink my dad something, but all I could come up with was pineapple, which was weird.

‘Ananas.’ Dad uttered the Dutch word for pineapple. Goddess, we are the same people, just in different bodies.

‘Deal. Love you, dad.’

‘I fucking love you, Niv. Now, go kick this Asswoods ass and show him nobody messes with the Omari’s.’

I let go of my dad, who kissed the top of my head, before glaring at Alpha Dashwood.

“If you as so much hurt a hair on my daughter's head, I won’t kill you quickly. I’ll hurt you so fucking bad that you wish you were dead. It won’t be just me, though, that will be hunting for you. Nivia is loved by many. And every one of them would kill for her.”

Alpha Dashwood swallowed. The only sign my dad’s word made an impact. “That will not be necessary. No harm will come to your daughter under my care.”

Great. That filled me with confidence.

Not!