The Alpha's Guardian

Wade

POV

I have never in my life smelled such an intoxicating smell. Ali's scent wafts around me, filling me with lust, desire, and the need to never leave her side. She smells of the morning dew in the early hours of the day, fresh like lavender and honey, with a touch of crispContent rights belong to NôvelDrama.Org.

tart apple.

My wolf is gently howling in blissful happiness. Leaping around like I have released him into a meadow of flowers after a lifetime of solitude in a cement prison. She's my mate. Ali is my mate. She has no clue and I can't tell her. That wouldn't be fair, for her to be torn between the lie that Liam is spinning and the truth only I can know.

She has her mission, and now I have mine. I can't fathom the idea of Liam sneaking back in here. It has nothing to do with her not being able to take care of herself and more to do with the undying need to just be near her. I sit up slightly to catch a glimpse of her in her bed.

"Wade," she whispers.

"Mm-hmm," I respond, trying to act like I hadn't just been trying to check on her.

"Do you think the mate bond is really important?" she asks, sounding scared.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean like, what if I don't like my mate?"

"You can't deny half your soul, Ali."

"Oh," she says. "It's just... I don't want Liam to be my mate."

My heart aches with the desire to tell her, scream from the top of my lungs 'It's not Liam, it's me!' But I know it's selfish and wrong to just add to her confusion.

"You don't know that he is," I say.

"He went crazy when he ripped my amulet off. He said I smelled so good," she says, trying to convince me.

What she doesn't know is that her scent sent me running to her room. I had followed it until the moment it disappeared behind her door. And then I walked in, and I knew it was her.

"Well, you do smell good," I say, mentally slapping myself. "That doesn't mean that he scented you as his mate."

"You still don't believe him?"

"He's not done a whole lot to elicit any trust from me," I say truthfully. "I think you are being blinded by the potential of finding your mate. You need to focus on what you know. Not what people keep telling you." "But Wade, I felt the sparks."

"And you have sparks with me. Big deal right?" my voice sounds clipped as my jealousy slips through.

"I'm sorry." She breathes.

"Ali, it's fine. I just think you have put so much stock in finding your mate that it is now being used against you. My advice would be to step back and hold to the truths that you know."

"Which are what?" she scoffs.

"You are here on a mission. You are bonded to me. No one knows who your true mate is other than your true mate, and you when the time comes. Hold true to who you are until you finish your mission."

"How can you be so wise? You were so annoying when I first got here." she jokes.

"Hey! I was poisoned. I literally plead insanity." I say chuckling and she laughs.

"Hah! Plea denied." She says. I sit up and throw my pillow at her. It lands with a thud and she releases an 'oof'

"I'm going to kill you!"

"That would be suicide, for more than one reason," I say, smirking in the dark. She sighs heavily.

"Ok, true. I'll just wait until the bond is gone. Prepare yourself for death, Alpha. Your days are numbered." I'm not sure my stomach can handle more knots if it tried. I can't wait for the day the guardian bond is gone and she can finally see me the way I see her. I wake up and find that Ali is gone. Assuming she got up early like usual, I head to my room and toss on jeans and the first shirt I can find. Eager to see her this morning, I sprint down the stairs, almost colliding with Francis on the landing. "Woah!" He says, his hands flying up to protect himself.

"Sorry." I rush out, offering him a curt head nod. And move past him.

"Alpha Wade, Alpha Nick is on the phone."

I stop where I am and twist around.

"Sh!t, I forgot to call him last night," I ask him.

"I called him for you and informed him. I asked him to call you back at 10 am. And it is now 10:02 am."

I begrudgingly change course and head to my office, plopping down in my chair like a chastised child. I sigh heavily, reaching for the phone and bring it to my ear.

"Alpha Nick, I'm sorry for the wait,"

"It's no problem. What is a problem is your capture yesterday. How did they manage to swipe you along with your guardian?"

"We both agreed to go with them since they had about 70 rogues waiting to fight us. I'm not one to back down from a fight, but I will admit to using my brains before my brawn." I smirk.

"More than I can say for most alphas these days," Alpha Nick chuckles. "Now, let's get down to business. I know you weren't able to make it to the meeting yesterday, but we still had it with a few of the others. We have some interesting information for you." "I am all ears." Finally, some headway.

"The committee is making a move to unite the packs on this continent. Almost as if creating a nation within the human nation. Not all the Alpha's are so in line with this idea."

"I'm not sure how that would differ from what we currently have," I say

"That's what I said. Now, this part is mostly speculation, but there are whispers about the committee wanting to add an active alpha as an overseer of affairs."

"Like a king?"

"I suppose, in a way. They would get a vote, but they would mostly travel to ensure that the Alphas are complying with the new set of rules."

"As a sort of agent of justice?"

"That is what it sounds like to me." I can hear him rifling through papers.

"So what does this have to do with me?"

"Well, rumor has it they have already selected their Top Alpha."

"And you assume it is me?" I scoff.

"There are 8 guardians active on missions right now. All of them are guarding Alphas under orders of the committee. You are one of them. We believe you could be the top choice." "That seems highly unlikely. Only 4-5 alphas actually know my name, so I think we can safely remove my name from the list."

"Wade, you are severely underestimating yourself and the weight your name carries. Alphas may not know your name, but when we were digging, the one name we heard the most out of every single pack member's mouth, even in my pack, is Alpha Wade." "I'm not understanding."

"Alpha Wade." He sighs. "How many pack members have you had leave your pack grounds, turn rogue?"

"I have had 1 since becoming alpha," I say, feeling terrible about Jacob's disappearance.

"And you have been an Alpha for 6 years? 1 in 6 years. More and more lately, alphas are becoming meaner, unruly, and unchecked. Larger packs are losing 10 a year to the rogue lifestyle. Your pack is loyal, and they love you. When they leave to visit family in other packs, they speak of you as if you are their brother."

"I had no idea," I say truthfully.

"When is the last time you have turned someone into an omega?"

"Never," I say sternly.

"What do you do with those who don't comply with the rules?" he asks, taken aback.

"We have never had that issue until recently. Occasionally we will whip and chastise. But most recently, a young woman poisoned our pack. Her mate rejected her as punishment, though it seemed hardly effective."

"Interesting. Why don't you strip them of their wolves?" He asks.

"Being an omega should not be punishment. People are born into that rank. By forcing wolves to become omegas, we are telling our born omegas they are as worthless as the criminals we make omega. I choose to value them because they take care of us. Here in my pack, they are grateful for our protection and happily work on the tasks within their abilities."

"Interesting," he says, sounding in deep thought, then clearing his throat. "Well, that's all I have. If it is you, I'd tread lightly. I'm not too happy that the committee isn't doing more to inform you if you are the chosen alpha." and then the line clicks off.

The rogues must also think I am the top choice since they have been attacking us for years. Now the new question is why was Ali only just recently placed with me if the rogues have been watching us for so long.