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“That was not the only thing that they had to say. They also informed me that I need to find a mate,” Dean said. “I wasn’t really ready for that either.”
“What are you going to do?”
“There is a woman who I’ve been in love with since I was about ten. She has no clue and I’m pretty sure that she looks at me as more of a brother than anything else. But I can’t imagine being with another woman,” Dean said.
“Who is this lucky woman?” Micah asked.
Dean shook his head and said, “Well, I’ll let you know after I talk to her. I don’t want to jinx anything.”
Micah nodded and didn’t press Dean for the name, although Micah was pretty sure that he knew exactly who the object of Dean’s affection was. Micah had suspected that Dean had a thing for Lucy for a while. Dean hung on every word that Lucy said and practically jumped through hoops anytime Lucy said that she wanted or needed anything.
Micah thought about casually mentioning that he and Lucy were betrothed, but that information had been kept quiet all these years. Only a handful of people knew. Plus, he would let Lucy make her own decisions. If she decided that she wanted to be with Dean, then he wished them both nothing but happiness. He would do his part by formerly ending the betrothal between the two of them.
A few days later, Micah was summoned to a meeting with the elders and his father. With a sinking heart, he stepped into the conference room. He knew exactly what this meeting was going to be about.
“Sit down, Son,” his father said, pointing to a chair.
All of the elders leaned in close to his father, so they could hear what he had to say.
Micah took a deep breath and pressed his lips together. He waited to hear the words that he knew was coming.
“I’m getting older,” his father said. “I would like to take your mother to visit all the different places in the country that she has always dreamed about going and maybe even to places in Europe, Asia, and South America. You have made me proud with all the hard work you have done over the years, preparing for the role of alpha. You are smart, responsible, and you are able to analyze a situation before making any kind of rash decisions.”
Micah held back a sigh, so that he wouldn’t seem disrespectful, but he did wish that his father would just hurry up and spit out the words that Micah knew were coming.
“In two months’ time, I’m going to step down in my role as alpha and you will assume it,” his father pronounced in a booming voice that made Micah wonder if the older man was expecting a standing ovation for his declaration.
Instead, Micah merely nodded as all the heads turned toward him.
“You know that in your new role as an alpha, you will be expected to take a mate,” one of the elders informed him.
Micah looked at him with a straight face, but bit back the immediate response that was on the tip of his tongue. He was not ready for a mate and did not want a mate.
After a couple of seconds, he said, “I would prefer to assume the role and become comfortable with it before changing my life further by taking a mate.”
That comment went over as well as he thought that it would. All of the elders’ faces puckered, like they had just sucked on a lemon, at the same time, making Micah wonder if they practiced that reaction. He would have laughed if the situation wasn’t so tense.
“It is tradition. It is the way that it has always been done,” the elder said.
“It is tradition. It isn’t law. Times have changed since that tradition was established,” Micah argued.
Another round of puckered faces made Micah groan. He had an idea that he wasn’t going to win this argument.
Ignoring his comment, his father asked, “Is there anyone special in your life who you love and you could make a life with?”
Micah looked at his father and said, sardonically, “You know that there isn’t.”
The elder stapled his fingers and said, in a very serious voice, “You remember that when you were children, you and Lucy Stratton were betrothed together.”
“That contract is not fair,” Micah said. “We were both too young to even know what was happening to us. We both should have a right to choose who we love and mate with.”
“The contract is formal and is binding. The two of you will go through the mating ceremony one month after you have taken your place as alpha of this clan,” the elder said in a voice that brooked no argument. “It is your duty, and you have no choice.”
Micah sucked in a huge breath and was about to make another argument, but his father said, “You and Lucy have a great relationship. You are friends and hang out all the time.”
“Friends, not lovers,” Micah argued, weakly.
“Enough of this,” the elder said, his fist crashing down on the table, making a thunderous sound echo through the room. “You will go through the mating ceremony with Lucy. End of discussion.”
