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Not that I was thinking that far ahead with her, but the possibility of a future with her was far more appealing than anything else. The more I thought about it all, the more agitated I became.
Turning back to my desk, I booted up my computer. I might not be able to do any official work, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t dosomething. Pulling up my email, I typed in Amelia’s address.
She’d returned to her pack a few days ago after completing the first round of alpha training. Holden had wanted her to stay longer to really get a feel for the job, but she’d insisted she needed to return, that her pack needed her present. I had to agree with her. The longer she stayed away, the higher the chance that someone else might take control. With all the corruption that had been going on behind the scenes, it was a risk none of us could afford to take.
That was another issue I was eager to deal with—getting to the bottom of the fight ring her old alpha had been running. Just because he was out of the picture didn’t mean the issue had been extinguished.
On the one hand, I couldn’t wait to get to the end of the Contention so I could get back to my regular life. But on the other hand, it meant I would have to select a mate. I hadn’t even begun to think about the real ramifications there.
Aside from my attraction to Jessica, we’d developed a real friendship over the past month. I had fun with her, enjoyed her company, and she just made me happy. What would happen once I had a mate? Would I no longer be able to spend that time with her? I wasn’t sure if I could trust myself to do that. If nothing else, I wasn’t a cheater. I would be true to my mate, even if it cost me everything I really wanted.
I let out another frustrated growl, tired of the same thoughts circling in my mind when there was no good solution. I banged out a quick email to Amelia, checking in to see how she was doing back on her own pack lands, and if there were any updates or concerns, and then I went to breakfast with the women.
As usual, there was more idle chatter than anything else. Some of the women, like Elizabeth and Reagan, seemed to have good heads on their shoulders, but others seemed more interested in the status and prestige that would come along with being selected as my mate. It was discouraging, to say the least.
“Garrett.” Jessica’s voice stood out among the others, drawing my attention as she walked toward me. She looked beautiful this morning, with no visible signs that she’d had too much to drink yesterday. As she approached, smiling, I wondered how much she actually remembered from last night. “Can I speak with you for a minute?”
“Of course.” I stood, barely registering that Melissa had been speaking to me. “What’s up?”
She pulled me aside, her hand warm on my arm, and I smiled down at her. “How did you sleep?”
Her brows furrowed. “Pretty well, but I don’t remember much after you came to see me, other than you telling me Reagan had won the competition.”
I chuckled. “Don’t worry. I didn’t take advantage of you.”
She rolled her eyes. “I should hope not. So anyway, I wanted to remind you that you really need to schedule a one-on-one with Reagan. You forgot to invite her the first time.” Her cheeks turned pink, and I grinned. “And now she’s won another competition. That makes her a front-runner, and I really think you ought to get to know her better.”
I gave her a wink. “Can’t say I regret messing up that first date. It turned out much better than I expected.”
“Garrett,” she hissed, her eyes darting frantically around the room.
“Relax. No one knows what we’re talking about.”
“Still. You can’t be so dismissive about this.”
I raked my gaze over her, lingering on her mouth. “Believe me, I’m not dismissing any of it.”
Jess huffed out a breath. “That’s not what I mean. You need to invite Reagan out. People will start questioning why you haven’t had any one-on-one dates.”
“Fine. How about tonight?” I looked back at the group of eight women, who were watching us curiously. “I can invite her right now.”
“Oh.” She blinked, clearly taken off guard, her mouth opening and closing a couple of times. “Um, okay. Yeah. That will work.”
“See?” I smirked. “I can follow instructions and play by your rules.”
She rolled her eyes but didn’t say anything else as I walked back to the table.
“Reagan,” I said loudly enough that everyone could hear me. “I wanted to congratulate you on your win yesterday. Excellent job. Would you like to join me on a date tonight, just the two of us?”
She smiled, tucking a strand of dark hair behind her ear. “Thank you, Garrett. I’d love to.”
Kelly and Kenna were the picture of jealousy, while most of the others just looked disappointed. Elizabeth, however, gave Reagan a friendly smile and warm words of encouragement. Interesting. It seemed she wasn’t quite as petty as the others.
“Perfect. I’ll get the details to your assistant, and I’ll see you tonight.”
I left the room after that, not wanting to rejoin the table and pretend to be charming now that I’d publicly announced my date with Reagan. I did glance at Jessica, who didn’t look as if she approved of my methods. But what else was new?
I spent the day going for a long run then checking in with Holden to see if I could take any work off his hands. He said no, of course, but I’d keep trying. It really was killing me being unable to do my job.
