Chapter 5 | Bowling

Archer

Well, this isn’t how I planned on meeting my mate.

But things seem to be going well. Her younger brothers, Harry and Todd, are having good conversation with Brandon and Caleb which leaves me to have some time alone with Riley.

She sits with her legs crossed and leaned forward as she watches her brothers intensely. She seems worried about them, even though there’s no one else here besides the owners. But after that scare with Zane, I understand her apprehension. I’m just grateful she isn’t scared of me. I ask, “Is everything okay, Riley?”

She looks at me and seems startled by my voice. She nods, “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. Sorry, just thinking.”

She pulls her hair out of its ponytail and nervously begins to braid it. I press my lips together and say, “I know this must all be overwhelming for you.”

She shrugs her shoulders as if silently telling me that it isn’t a big deal and I say, “You seem to be taking the knowledge of the existence of werewolves pretty well.”

Her lips twitch up in a smile and she says, “Well, I dated Zane for a while. I didn’t know he was a werewolf, or at least I wasn’t positive. I noticed some things about him that I thought wasn’t normal, so I googled it and a lot of things lined up with werewolves.” She laughs softly and I wish I could hear that sound on repeat.

She looks at me and says, “I know I must sound ridiculous right now, but… I’ve always been intrigued by supernatural creatures. Seeing that my suspicions about him were correct,” She shrugs again as she continues, “I don’t know, it just seems normal.”

I nod slowly, and I ask, “And… what do you think with me?”

She looks towards me with one eyebrow cocked up and says, “Well, I don’t know you, Archer. But apparently, you’re an Alpha, whatever that means… I agreed to stay here so obviously I don’t think you being a werewolf is necessarily a bad thing.”

I smile at her whenever her brother Todd says, “Ri, you’re up!”

She smirks at me before walking away. I smile as I sit back watching her. Her curves are perfect, and I have to force myself to look away from her, so I don’t look like a creep. When I look away, I see her other brother Harry sat beside me and he’s glaring at me.

I say, “Hey, Harry… you okay?”

“Don’t hurt her.” He says in a low tone. From his expression and his crossed arms, I can tell he’s trying to intimidate me. I would laugh at him for thinking he’s intimidating, but I don’t want to get off on the wrong foot.

My eyebrows knit together as I ask, “What makes you think I would?”

He looks back at his sister and says softly, making sure she wouldn’t be able to hear as he says, “She’s fragile right now. Don’t hurt her.”

I nod in understanding, and I say, “I don’t plan to.”

He nods, and I look back at Riley as she jumps up smiling wide as she says, “Booyah! Beat that!”

Caleb and Brandon laugh at her response, and she says, “Come on, Mr. Alpha man, let’s see what you’re made of.”

I smirk from her comment as I stand up. She’s cute, if only she really knew what it meant me being an ‘alpha’.

Riley

It’s kind of fun right now pretending like I’m just some human fascinated by the supernatural. I can tell that Archer is attracted to me which makes this all the more fun.

But at the same time, I am looking at the long-term goal of this. By becoming friends with Archer, who is a freaking Alpha of a nearby pack! Means that I will be able to learn more about my people. I’ll be able to get an inside look to what goes on in the werewolf world and what areas really need the Luna Queen’s help!

What’s even more fun though, is that I can taunt Archer and treat him the way I would want to treat stuck up alphas. And he doesn’t get mad at me because he thinks I’m just some clueless human!

After he rolls a spare, he sits beside me and says, “So, tell me about yourself Riley.”

I shrug, “I doubt I’m as interesting as you.” I put on my most awestruck face as I lean towards him and say, “Tell me about you, Alpha.”

I notice redness that creeps up his neck towards his face and I smirk knowing that I made him flustered. He suggests, “How about we take turns? Then we can both learn about one another.”

I nod, “Sounds fair enough.”

He smiles, “So, me being an Alpha means I’m in charge of my entire pack and a pack’s just like a group of people or well, werewolves who all live on the same land and work together as a unit.”

“Ah, so you’re the boss man!” I exclaim making him laugh as he looks at me with amusement and says, “Exactly.”

I offer some information about me, “I’m 17, I just finished my junior year of high school, um and I really like art.”

His smile gets wider just because he heard some things about me. I look at him curiously, he seems to be entertained by me easily. It’s kind of weird. He says, “I’m 18.”

I nod and ask, “And? What else? Like how did you become Alpha? Isn’t 18 a little young to run a whole pack?”

“Well-”

He gets cut off by Todd calling me over again and I give him an apologetic look as I get up. I look over at Caleb and Brandon and notice their eyes glaze over. They must be talking to their Alpha about me. I take my turn and when I walk back Harry looks at me and says, “We need to go. Mom and dad heard about the accident here and want us home now.”

I nod as I grab my bag and Archer says, “Wait, we can escort you home!”

I dangle my keys and say, “Not necessary. It was nice meeting you.”

“Could I have your number?” He asks quickly. I look him up and down, he’s attractive and this does give me an inside look at what’s going on in the packs.

I can feel that Harry is frustrated by my interaction with Archer, but I ignore him. I say, “Give me your phone.”

He hands it to me, and I enter my number quickly before passing it back and say, “Text me sometime.”

I wave at Caleb and Brandon and say, “Nice meeting you guys. And thanks for protecting us.”

“Anytime.” Caleb says with a big smile as he flips his hair back. I resist the urge to laugh at him, he’s definitely used to catching every girl’s attention. I bet he’s a bit of a playboy.

As we go out to the parking lot Harry murmurs, “Mom and dad aren’t going to be happy.”

I sigh, “I’ll handle them, Harry.”