"Guys, be quiet, I'm calling my grandparents!" I yelled at the group, swatting my hand viciously. We had all piled into Jason's 2013 black Suburban to head to the party. I was already having a hard time focusing on the phone call because I had ended up sitting in between Nate and Sienna. Nate's warm body was touching mine from our shoulders to our ankles and he smelled like an Abercrombie model. Everyone got a little quieter and my grandfather answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hi Papan, its me, Terri" my voice shook as we hit bumps in the road.

"Hi Terri, how was the game?" My grandpa asked.

"Great! We won and Sophie and the group wanted to take me to a celebratory after party. Is that alright?" I asked

"Ummm, of course dear, just be careful and don't tell your grandma, she'll worry. See you tomorrow, and don't have too much fun. Tomorrow is training day and pack picnic starting at twelve p.m." He told me kindly.

"Alright, thank you papan" I said in a confused tone. I hung up the phone and saw Nate looking down at me with concern.

"Everything ok?" He asked.

"Oh, yeah. My grandfather is fine with it. But, what is training day and pack picnic? My grandfather mentioned it" I answered with a furrowed brow.

"We train from noon to five and then eat dinner together as a pack" Jason explained form the front.

"Oh man, I am going to be in so much pain tomorrow" I groaned.

"Why?" Brett asked, "You don't even workout, why would you hurt?"

"Haha! I do workout! Two on one intensive training with Beta the-wannabe-marine Andrew! Nate and I are dying by the time we get done, and that's only two hours, not five! Ugggghhhhhh" I moaned again. Nate started laughing and I could feel his body vibrating with the action.

"You'll be fine! It's always fun. Oh and we're here!" We had taken a curve around a cluster of trees that let out into wide open beach space. Tons of people were standing on the beach surrounding a giant bonfire. Some people where braving the freezing ocean while others danced and jumped around near a vehicle that had music pounding from it. Jason parked the Suburban and everyone began piling out. Nate opened his door then held it open so I could get out. Before exiting the vehicle, I took my phone out of my pocket and put it in the pouch on the back of the driver's chair. I also took my shoes off and left them on the floor. Nate looked at me with a crooked eyebrow.

"I don't want to lose my phone and I hate sand in my shoes" my mom had always made me do tests involving cardio, which meant running through sand. It took me years to convince her to let me run without shoes because of the sand.

"Oh, that's smart" Nate smiled and put his hand on the small of my back, leading me to follow the rest of the excited group.

When we reached the bonfire, the twins had already picked up two miscellaneous bottles of liquor. Sophie and Sienna were walking towards me with what looked like bottles of Smirnoff but the label was scratched off. They went to hand me one and I shook my head but they insisted.

"We don't get crazy drunk, just enough to unwind, just one. Besides, Nate's not going to drink, he will watch you" Sophie said with a wink and a giggle. I took the bottle and took a sip. It tasted like a cross between fire and battery acid. I sputtered and choked, trying to erase the taste from my mouth.

"What the holy hell was that?!" I yelled, throwing the bottle down and wiping my mouth.

"It's liquor...but, with a high proof percentage. Like ninety percent. That's the only way liquor can phase a wolf, is if its strong. I thought you knew?" Nate looked at me innocently but I swear he wanted to laugh.

"Oh that was awful. I should have just drunk rubbing alcohol." I had had wine and champagne with my mom on special occasions, but that stuff now covering the ground was no where close to what I was used to.

"Sorry" Nate said rubbing my back, but a small smile was pulling at his lips. I saw Sophie and Sienna sitting on a long log drinking the acid-in-disguise, and I planned on giving them a piece of my mind when I saw Jason and William sneaking up behind them. What were they doing? Quick as lighting, my question was answered when the two boys scooped the girls up and booked it into the water twenty feet behind them. They proceeded to throw the girls into the chilly ocean water.

"Did you just see that?!", I yelled over my shoulder, "that's awful! Jason and William just-" And then I was floating. At first I panicked, thinking that I had let my powers go, then I realized, as I was feet from the ocean, that Nate was carrying me. His deep laugh rang out as we headed straight into the ocean.

"What are you-" and he tossed me.

The water was freezing and I immediately jumped out of the water and booked it to shore.

"Nate Searing!" I screeched, but I couldn't fight the happiness in my voice nor the massive smile on my face. He stood a few feet away from me, hands up in surrender, laughing. "Run...Now..." And then I booked it toward him. My adrenaline from being thrown and my desire to catch him made my pursuit short and sweet. I talked him and we rolled in the sand until I stopped us, me on top, straddling his hips. We were both breathing hard from the laughing and the running.

"What are you going to do to me now that you have me here?" he asked with a provocative smile.

"Tickle you" I said bluntly.

His eyes dilated but he blew off my comment quickly, "I'm not ticklish".

"Goober guys like you are always ticklish" and I started tickling his side. He couldn't get me off without hurting me and I would not let go, so he was stuck struggling and pushing me while I tickled him mercilessly.

But then, a strange feeling came over me and I stopped moving. In fact, I went limp. It was like supreme peace. Nate flipped us over and pinned me, but then stopped moving when he realized that everyone on the beach had ceased all movement. They were all looking at one spot on the beach. A spot that was actually occupied by a someone. Nate had sat up on his knees and I rolled to the side a bit so that I wasn't staring upside down any longer. In a dark clearing at the edge of the beach stood a tall, muscular man with black hair and black clothing. He had a little bit of scruff on his face as if he intentionally hadn't shaved recently. His face held absolutely no expression what so ever, but his eyes were green, and they were glowing, like his wolf was right on the edge.

I felt like he was looking at us...at me.

"Alex!" Jason yelled, and the man snapped his head toward his voice. Jason sprinted through the sand to hug his best friend, and Alex hugged him back in a manly hug, but his body was tense and he never returned Jason's happy smile.





And the elusive Alpha is here! Thank you for reading! Alpha Alex on the side! Comment and vote please!