Magnus

When was the last time I had such a truly shitty day?

I honestly couldn't remember. Every example I came up with was still somehow better than this: April 2nd of last year when Mel decided to do a surprise late April fool's day prank, all of the hard days integrating into the Tourmaline pack, two winters ago when I was sick as a dog and spent most of my day curled over my toilet. None of it was as bad as today.

Roy had sat me down in the morning with his polling results. Overall, the pack liked me just fine. There were feelings of loyalty, but they didn't run deep. Felix had stopped by my office before lunch with an alarming list of Opal's supporters. He and his alpha friend were still working on adding to the list, but it was already much longer than I ever thought it could be. If she didn't get her way with the Summit, she was well equipped to attack us and take my position by force.

Of course, then she would face an investigation... but if she had the right backing or found the right loophole then she just might do it.

I didn't know what I would do if it came down to a fight. I didn't want to have to ask people to put their lives on the line for me, but was it arrogant to think that keeping Opal from taking over was good for the pack, too? That I could do better than her? I had no answers to that.

I had been so sick over the news that I had skipped lunch, which left me distractingly hungry for the next part of my day, which currently consisted of attempting to write up a memo to the pack explaining the Opal situation. Roy had said it would be better for them to hear about it from me so we could make sure the right sequence of events was the first version everyone heard. I knew he was right, but it was hard to find the words to tell my pack someone thought I wasn't their rightful alpha.

And now, the coup de gras: this was the first day in over a week I wouldn't be seeing Lachlan. After we met almost a month ago, we had found time together every single day, either for a meal or at the very least for a long walk around his neighborhood. He was just as busy with work as I was, so I was grateful he was making time for me like this. Today, however, was different. Lachlan was meeting with a client a couple of hours from here all day, then having dinner with his dad.

I checked my phone. There were no texts from Lachlan, but that was hardly surprising. He would likely still be in his meeting right now. I hoped it was going well for him.

I looked back at my laptop screen and read over what I had written so far. I sounded overly formal and definitely too defensive. I sighed and erased everything. I'd just have to start over... again. Roy had offered to help me write the memo, but I had insisted on doing it myself. Maybe that was a mistake. It had seemed better at the time for this to be in my own words, my statement to my pack. Now I wondered whether that was overly optimistic.

I wasn't a great writer. I definitely wasn't a great leader. Honestly, if Opal had come to me instead of going to the Summit, I might have handed over leadership to her. She was probably more qualified to run the pack. I couldn't let her take control of Tourmaline now, though. Not now that I had seen the lengths she was willing to go to just to gain a little power.

There's a saying: "Those who seek power are not worthy of that power." I read it in a book once and it stuck with me. This philosophy was the main reason I didn't trust Opal with my pack.

If only I were more qualified as an alpha.

But at least I was doing my best for the people of Tourmaline. Opal had already shown she was willing to trample them just to get her way. If she cared what they thought, she would have gone to my pack and talked to them about how I was doing or about what she thought she could accomplish for them that I couldn't. Sneaking around and trying to seize control without ever speaking to my people or understanding their wants and needs was just wrong.

The thought sparked enough anger in me that my insecurities faded and my fingers flew over the keys, confidently typing for the first time all afternoon.

"Opal Reyes, daughter of Alpha Edward of the Lazuli pack, has filed an appeal against me with the Summit. Though I challenged Marcus and defeated him under his own law, she claims that I am not the rightful alpha of Tourmaline. We await the Summit's response, but please be aware that you may be contacted as they investigate her allegations. I will keep you all updated as we learn more and will be requesting that the Summit provide their reports to you, as well. Though I take this investigation seriously, I have no reason to believe there is any cause for alarm. Please let me or Roy know if you have any questions or concerns."

I read through the memo one more time, nodding to myself. I thought I did a good job of staying confident and hopefully putting people's concerns at ease. If I had read a memo like this from my former alpha back in Lakota, I would have been really worried about an attempt at a hostile takeover. I had trusted my alpha, though, and would have believed his assurances that there was no reason to worry. My people didn't have the same level of trust in me. That was also why I intended to have the Summit make their findings public – anyone who suspected I might be telling a slanted version of events to make myself look better would hopefully be reassured by their reports.

I sent the memo off to Roy so he could look it over before I sent it out to the whole pack. I really would be lost without him. Maybe someday, I could rely on Lachlan, too. Roy was an incredible assistant, but he didn't provide me emotional support – and I didn't want him to. I didn't want to lean on anyone like that except my family and my mate.

My phone buzzed and I scrambled to pick it up, nearly dropping it in my eagerness. Lachlan was calling. My heart raced in anticipation of hearing his voice. Not to mention, we hadn't spoken on the phone before. This was a first, and it could mark growth in our relationship.

"Hello?" I answered breathlessly.

"Magnus? Sorry, did I catch you at a bad time?" he asked.

I laughed. "No, not at all." I would have added that no time was a bad time for him to call, but that seemed a little much. Better not to come across as too clingy. "How are you?"

Lachlan sighed. "Fine. It's been a long day. My meeting just let out and I'm driving back home."

"You're driving? Lachlan, hang up the phone!" I demanded. I badly wanted to talk with him, but not at the cost of his safety.

Lachlan laughed and I couldn't even properly enjoy the sound because I was so irritated with him for not taking this seriously. "Relax, Magnus. I have Bluetooth. Both hands are on the wheel."

I relaxed and felt a little foolish for worrying. I knew he took car safety seriously – hadn't he asked about my driving record the first time he got in a car with me? "Sorry. Let's back up and try this again. How did the meeting go?"

"Fine. Just long. And I'm not looking forward to a long drive home. Never mind my complaining, though. How was your day?"

"Long," I said, which made Lachlan laugh. "I'm still dealing with that legal issue, and it sucked more than usual today. I'm pretty sure that's your fault."

"Mine?" he asked disbelievingly. "How do you figure?"

"Looking forward to seeing you has been getting me through my work days. I didn't have that today" I told him. It was the absolute truth. If I hadn't found him when I did, this Opal situation would probably have overwhelmed me.

Lachlan groaned.

"What?" I asked.

"You," he said. "You say things like that and I know I shouldn't take you seriously, but I can't help it. Are you for real, Magnus?"

"Lachlan, you have no reason to believe me on this, but it's the truth: I will never lie to you. I will never intentionally mislead you." Could he hear the burning sincerity in my voice? I really hoped so.

Lachlan didn't reply right away. After a while, he cleared his throat. "Well... thanks. That's good to hear. I won't lie to you or mislead you either."

"Glad that's out of the way. When can I see you again?"

Lachlan laughed again, and the sound was a balm on my frayed nerves. "I don't know, when can you?"

I leaned back in my chair, feeling relaxed and happy for the first time in too long. "That's a dangerous question to ask, Lach. Give me an opening and I'll take advantage of it."

"What are your work hours tomorrow?" he asked.

I grinned. That meant I would see him tomorrow. How desperate was I willing to come across?

Really desperate, turns out.

"I can make any time work for you," I said. I had, after all, promised him the truth. Or, I had promised not to lie. Those two things weren't as different as people liked to believe.

"I was thinking we could have breakfast," Lachlan said, sounding shy. Adorable. "You can come to my place in the morning and I'll cook?"

"I'd love that. When would be good for you?"

"Eight?"

Of course I agreed.

It was already almost dinner time, so I decided I was done working and started shutting down my office and getting ready to go home. While Lachlan and I chatted, I walked home and started fishing around in my refrigerator, looking for something I could bring to contribute to our breakfast in the morning.

My head was in the refrigerator while I dug through the back for inspiration when my shirt was suddenly yanked up. I yelped and jumped, hitting my head on the ceiling. I yelped again and dropped the phone.

"Mel!" I yelled, whirling around and facing the only possible culprit.

She snickered. "Too easy! How did you not hear or smell me approaching?"

Eek! "I'm on the phone with Lachlan!" I told her in an aggressive whisper. The last thing he needed to hear was about weird werewolf stuff I couldn't explain yet.

She clapped her hand over her mouth with wide eyes. "I'll just... go upstairs."

She'd better. Mel was strong-willed and not easily daunted, but even she knew better than to get between a man and his mate. I reached for my phone, which was wedged between two cartons of milk in the fridge, and said, "Lach? I'm so sorry, are you still there?"

"Is everything okay?" he asked. There was real worry in his tone, and it warmed me.

"Yes. My sister snuck up on me. And I hit my head. I'm fine, though." Actually, my head was throbbing, but no need to mention that when it would feel better within the hour.

"Your sister? I thought you were at work. Also, should you be on the phone this long if you're at work?"

Since I was definitely not up to sticking my head in the refrigerator again, at least not tonight, I admitted defeat. I wouldn't bring anything to Lachlan's for our breakfast tomorrow, but I'd make it up to him. I headed upstairs and laid on the bed while I answered him. "You caught me at a good time for talking, but I'm actually home now."

"Oh, I didn't realize. If you need to go, I understand."

Note that he hadn't said he wanted me to go. I was taking that as a win. "I don't," I assured him. I couldn't imagine ever passing up the chance to talk with him, especially on hard days like today. Also, there was something really nice about laying in this big bed meant for two and having his voice in my ear. If everything turned out the way I hoped it would, Lachlan would eventually share this room with me. I'd lay down on this bed at night and hearing his voice would be completely normal because he would be lying next to me.

"Magnus?"

"Yeah, sorry?" How stupid was it that I was missing what present-Lachlan said because I was too busy dreaming about future-Lachlan?

Since my mate was pretty much perfect, he didn't get irritated about having to repeat himself. We talked for the rest of his drive, and for once, I didn't feel an ounce of loneliness in my bedroom.

--

I pulled into Lachlan's driveway at 7:55 the next morning. The clock mocked me. I didn't want to be that jerk that arrived before I was expected – it could be stressful to have company when you weren't ready yet.

The clock ticked to 7:56, which felt like a very minor victory. Four minutes left. I could do this.

"Magnus! Get in here!"

I looked up and grinned at my mate, who was leaning out his front door, watching me with an amused expression. I got out of the car and hurried up the driveway. "What were you doing in there?" he asked.

Honesty, I reminded myself. I had promised him honesty. "I was watching the clock. I'm a little early."

Lachlan rolled his eyes and shut the door behind us. "A few minutes is nothing."

"Okay." I took off my shoes and placed them next to his where they rested neatly against the wall. This was my first time in Lachlan's house and I made myself take in the room slowly, wanting to absorb every possible detail about him. Only, there wasn't much to take in. The walls were bare and there was only the most basic furniture. Nothing cluttered his end tables or coffee table, making me wonder what the point was of even having them. The whole place looked impersonal, like a hotel. But even a hotel would have something – pamphlets, take-out menus.

I glanced at Lachlan and saw that he was watching me as I appraised his living room, which made me blush. "It's nice," I said.

He rolled his eyes. "I know it's not much. I move around a lot, so I ditched the clutter years ago."

Something about that seemed really sad. How could you move around so much that you gave up on taking anything personal with you at all? Maybe the other rooms in his house had more. Photos in the bedroom or something like that.

"Why do you move around so much?" I asked.

If I hadn't been looking at Lachlan already, I might have missed the fraction of a second when alarm flashed across his face. His wide eyes met mine and I would have sworn I could see his mind racing in them. Finally he said, "I always had more reason to leave than stay."

It wasn't really an answer, but I could tell it was the only answer I would get, at least for now. Maybe this was a touchy subject for him? I nodded and decided a subject change was in order. "Do you need a hand with breakfast?" I offered.

It was easy to see the relief in Lachlan's eyes and he gave me a grateful smile. "Sure. You can cut up the honeydew."

I grimaced – honeydew was my least favorite melon – but Lachlan had already turned around and was leading me through the living room, which led through an archway into the kitchen. The scent of cinnamon rolls wafted through the air and bacon was sizzling on a stovetop griddle. A big green bowl held the soupy yellow of uncooked eggs. It was shaping up to be a great breakfast, even with the honeydew.

"This is incredible," I told him. "You didn't have to go to all this trouble. I would have been happy with cereal and your company."

Lachlan glanced at me over his shoulder. His eyes were full of warmth even as he rolled them. "There you go again," he said.

I knew what he meant – he was always complaining that I was too sweet, too complimentary. His tone always betrayed him, though. He liked the things I said. "Just telling you the truth."

Lachlan handed me a large knife and gestured toward the island counter, which held a honeydew and a medium-sized lavender bowl.

"Do you have a cutting board?" I asked, turning back to Lachlan. He was already holding one out for me, and we smiled at each other.

We worked to finish breakfast together without much conversation, but it felt really good just to be with him. I also enjoyed how effortless it was to move with him. We already worked together like two gears that fit perfectly. When he pulled out the cinnamon rolls from the oven, I had trivets set up for him to set the trays on. I washed the dishes while he plated our food and when I opened my mouth to ask for a towel, he was there holding one out. It was all so effortless and for the first time in my life, I experienced such piercing happiness that it almost hurt.

Please let me keep this, I pleaded silently to whatever deity might be listening. Please let me keep him.