Chapter 102
“Did I forget to tell you”? Caleb frowned, taken aback by the sudden outburst. He tried to recall if he missed that detail while he was giving him all the ideas in brief of what was taking place. Being overwhelmed, it might have slipped away from his mind so he simply shrugged it off. “Well, nevertheless it’s happening. Being the Alpha’s son, it’s important that the other packs are aware about me, and that includes telling them about me finding my mate”. Caleb explained.
“As if they are aware of everything about you”. Ashton snapped, implying his secret omega status. Caleb frowned, not expecting to get attacked suddenly like this. “I am sorry, I didn’t mean to snap like this. I really don’t want to be a part of this”. He explained.
“I get it, but...” Caleb sighed. “Please! Do this for me” Caleb tried to insist on him again.
After a brief pause of contemplation, “Fine!” Ashton sighed with frustration, finally giving into the request. “But don’t drag me into this. Announce whatever you want, but don’t you dare ask me to give a speech or something”. Ashton glared.
“Oh, I wasn’t going to”, Caleb gave a tiny smirk. “What I meant earlier by ‘talking’ was that when they find out who you are, they will surround you themselves”.
Ashton’s glare intensified, “Nevermind, I am out of this” Ashton spoke and tried to run away while Caleb tried to stop him by grabbing his hand tightly. “Let me go”. Ashton tried to get out of his grasp, not that he couldn’t, given he was far more stronger than Caleb, but for some reason he simply didn’t.
.....
The twins were long gone from the scenario, not wanting to be a third wheel of this weird couple. Their playful banter was suddenly interrupted by a deep familiar voice, “Hello there”.
Ashton, who was trying to get out of Caleb’s hold a moment ago, grabbed his arm reflexively. “Oww” Caleb winced as Ashton grabbed him way too hard. Now it was Caleb’s turn to try and get out of his grip. “Do you need something”, Caleb asked Cyrus amidst his struggle to escape his mate’s grip.
The aura and the scent Cyrus radiated was appealing enough to grab a lot of attention. Some marveled at his godlike beauty, while some avoided looking directly at him, clearly getting intimidated just by his presence. All over, they left the place he was standing and tried their best to mind their own business.
“Oh, nothing in particular”. Cyrus smirked. “Since I am not familiar with a lot of people around here, I was hoping maybe we could talk? You can introduce me to your guests as well. They seem to be a bit wary of me”.
Caleb smiled, despite feeling a bit disgusted by his expression. While Caleb would admit that Cyrus had a certain charm, his actions gave off a suspicious but smug vibe which repulsed Caleb to his very core. Ashton who was about to burst like a volcano stepped in before Caleb could reply, “I’m sorry he can’t. He was about to introduce me to others”. Ashton forced a smile on his face.
His displeasure didn’t go unnoticed by either Caleb or Cyrus, however neither of them decided to bring it up. Instead Cyrus replied to him with a sickeningly polite voice, “That seems convenient. Introduce the both of us”.
Ashton put his arm around Caleb, hugging him from the side before he replied, “As you can see we are a couple. Do you really want to be a third wheel”? Ashton said, earning a glare from Cyrus for a very tiny moment.
“Now, now... Calm down. Both of you”. Caleb interjected, not willing to let this Banquet turn into a fist fight of pureblooded Alphas. “If you want to get to know the people here, I can help you with that”. Caleb smiled, but soon felt Ashtom grab him tighter.
Ignoring the pain of the tight grasp for the time being, he continued. “Christian”! He called out to his brother who was standing a feet away talking with a middle aged woman. “Alpha Cyrus, here wants to get to know other people here, can you help him?” he asked. Christian nodded at him before turning around to bid a polite farewell.
Looking back at Cyrus, Caleb continued, “My brother knows these people far better than I do. He is usually responsible for arranging all of this. I am sure he will be able to help you better”. Caleb gave him a polite smile.
He removed Ashton’s hand from his waist with a tiny bit of difficulty. Instead of pushing it away, he intertwined his fingers with his and dragged him away to a much private location. “What was that”! Caleb whisper-shouted at him.
“What do you mean”? Ashton cleared his throat, pretending to be oblivious.
“Just so you know, you were not as discreet as you think. Are you... jealous of Cyrus”? Caleb asked cautiously.
“Should I be”? Ashton frowned.
“I don’t think so! Even though I agree he gives off a bit creepy vibes, there is no reason that would affect us. So why do you get so possessive of me whenever he is around”? Caleb continued to scold him.
“It’s not just when he is around” Ashton blurted.
“What”? Caleb blinked.
“I feel possessive of you all the time. Sure it shows around Cyrus, but I feel like that every time I see you with anyone who is not related to you. Even at times, with Matt”. Ashton admitted, while avoiding Caleb’s gaze. He was not very proud of how he felt, and neither was he prepared for whatever negative reaction Caleb would give him.
“Why didn’t you say something before then”? Caleb asked him softly, feeling bad for Ashton. He could tell Ashton didn’t intend to feel this way on purpose given how embarrassed Ashton was right now.
“Because...” Ashton sighed. “This is one of the typical Alpha behaviors I hate which I am having trouble controlling with. It’s my issue, I think it would take some time for me to get adjusted to this”. Ashton mumbled.
“I am your mate, Ashton. Your feelings are directed towards me and that is definitely my business” Caleb sighed. “Listen to me” Caleb instructed, while using his hand to turn Ashton’s face so that he looked directly at him. “We are both wolves, and we are both bound to have these irrational feelings sometimes that comes with it. There are times when I can’t control it, and I don’t blame you for that either”.
“Like what”? Ashton asked, unconvinced.
“Like...” Caleb trailed off. “Like how I jumped on you in my heat”.
“Heat or rut is a different scenario. This is me in my prime”. Ashton huffed. “I should be able to control these urges, I have always been good at controlling them”. Ashton whispered
“It’s not the end of the world if you can’t. Yes, it’s true that I like that you’re different. But I don’t like you because you are good at self control. I like you because you try to control your basic urges. That effort means a hell lot to me”. Caleb smiled.
Ashton blinked at Caleb, not sure what the right words would be to reply to him. So instead he slammed his lips at Caleb, despite not being so far away from the whole crowd, and kissed him passionately for a while. At first Caleb was taken aback, but recovering from the initial shock the very next moment he responded with equal enthusiasm. The kiss made them ecstatic and neither of them wanted to let go this time. Last two days they really didn’t get to spend some quality time together, and therefore the intensity of the kiss increased by four fold.
When finally they pulled away, Caleb swiped his tongue over his lips, still trying to focus on anything other than the kiss. Ashton however, who didn’t fail to notice that tiny action wanted to kiss those lips once more. He closed his eyes and breathed heavily a few more times before he looked at Caleb who stared at him with a curious gaze.
“In the name of honesty, I have something else to admit” Ashton whispered. Caleb nodded, encouraging him to continue.
“Remember the day back at the waterfall. I am really sorry for ruining the moment. I-”
“Don’t worry about it” Caleb cut him off mid-sentence. “I was a bit pissed at that time, but I am glad that you stopped. I don’t want you to do something you are not ready for”. Caleb assured him.
“It’s not that”. Ashton cleared his throat. “I do feel ready, I just...I don’t feel so sure of myself”. Caleb frowned, trying to decipher his words. “As you saw, when it comes to you... I have a tad bit of a problem with self control. What if, you know... we go all the way, and I go all crazy on you. I don’t want to end up hurting you”. Ashton mumbled.
“You won’t”. Caleb smiled. “The fact that you are worried so much is very sweet. And I think that the fact you don’t want to end up hurting me is why you will not lose control of yourself”. Caleb assured him.
“But what if I do”? Ashton voiced his concern.
“Then bring it on. We will make do with it”. Caleb declared. “Also, on case you forgot, I am not really that fragile”. He smirked followed by a wink. Ashton shook his head before breaking into a smile.
“Don’t attack me with your baseball bat tonight”. Ashton whispered in Caleb’s ear, leaving him frozen at the spot, while he dissappeared in the crowd.