Chapter 38

☆☆ Beta Morgana ☆☆

I stood there for a moment more and realized that this phone call would take a while, so I decided to go ahead and let Alpha Gray know that my mate was Beta Darius. I found him in his office and said, "Sir, may I have a moment?" Alpha Gray looked up from his computer, and his expression turned worried as he saw the prominent bite mark on my neck. 

Alpha Gray sighed deeply, "Beta Darius?" I grinned sheepishly, "Yes, Alpha." He paused, not sure how to respond to the news; I'm sure he was happy that I finally found my mate but saddened by the fact that it was likely that I would have to be replaced.

I had been a damn good Beta, not to toot my own horn, but I knew it would be difficult for him to find someone to replace my shoes. It would also be hard for me to renounce my title to become the wife of a Beta in an unfamiliar pack.

Alpha Gray finally spoke, "Congratulations, Beta Morgana; I hope you can remain with me until this prophecy issue has been resolved. It would not be easy to find a replacement on such short notice, one worthy of training and commanding the others when I'm not around, especially one who already has earned the respect of the pack."

I replied, "I wouldn't dream of leaving you right now, Sir; however, I did want to inform you so you weren't blindsided." Alpha Gray sighed again, "Have you told your sister?" I said, "You are the first. I will tell her after Beta Darius and I review our plan for the reconnaissance mission." He chuckled, "It's always business with you." I nodded and said, "Would you expect anything less?" He shook his head, and I left the room, unable to contain my smile.

I walked back downstairs to meet with Darius and escort him to my office. He just so happened to be entering the pack house at that time. "Perfect timing.", I said with a smile on my face. I looked down at his suitcase and said, "We were going to put you in a guest room, but that's unnecessary now. You can just stay with me." Darius nodded, and we walked back to my room so he could put his suitcase away. 

I grabbed my manila folder and the scattered papers off the floor of my room, from where Darius had knocked my suitcase off my bed earlier. I would repack after we discussed our plan. "Would you rather meet in my office or discuss things here?", I asked. Darius responded, "You office with the door open; otherwise, I'll be too tempted to taste you again." 

I smiled again and led him out of my room and down the hall. I sat at my desk as he pulled a chair close enough to view my laptop but far enough away to maintain a sense of professionalism. I reorganized the paperwork and laid them out on the desk, separating the blueprints of the Biltmore Estate and the map of the Estate grounds.

Darius also laid out our plane tickets, hotel information, car rental agreement, and the tickets to tour the Biltmore Estate.

Our flights were leaving tomorrow at 11:20 a.m. from the Bishop International Airport, about 20 minutes away from the pack house. We had a layover at the Chicago O'Hare Airport before arriving at Asheville Regional. The flights would take four and a half hours on the way down. We would return three days later, allowing us two full days to explore the grounds and two days for travel. Our return flight would leave at 4:13 p.m. and take five and a half hours, stopping at the same layover airport. 

We were scheduled to stay at the Hilton Garden Inn of downtown Ashville, 20 minutes from the Airport and a mere seven minutes from the Biltmore grounds. I noticed that two adjoining rooms were booked with a king-sized bed in each. "We don't need both rooms.", I mentioned. Darius spoke, and his sultry voice purred against my ears, "I already called to cancel the other." "Oh.", I blushed, "I assumed when I saw you own your phone that you were calling Ulfric Draven to inform him of your new mate status." 

Darius chuckled, "I did that, too. You'd think my big brother would be happy for me, but no, he was all. Don't bother me with trivial nonsense right now." "I didn't realize he was your older brother." I said. Darius leaned back in his chair, "Yeah, and he's super stressed out right now, though he won't show it to anyone." 

I cleared my throat, "It's a tense situation for everyone involved. Try not to be so hard on him." Darius seemed so light-hearted and carefree. "Ah, that's just how brothers are; I have to give him a hard time; no one else will." I spent my entire life in my sister's shadow, and Darius didn't even seem bothered by the shade his brother projects. 

I continued, changing the subject, "So what's our backstory?" "Isn't it obvious? We're taking our honeymoon.", Darius said with a big grin on his face. "All expenses paid by my big bro.", he chuckled as he pulled out his brother's credit card. 

I rolled my eyes and sighed deeply, "I don't like to mix business and pleasure, and though I want to enjoy our honeymoon phase, this situation at hand supersedes my wants." Darius scoffed, "Damn, you're uptight; you need to relax, mate." He chuckled, "We can do both. They are only open from 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. We can make business hours from 7:30 a.m. - 6:30 p.m."

He paused, awaiting my response, but when I didn't give one, he continued, "We can spend the rest of the time getting to know each other and sleeping..." Darius smiled deviously, "Or not sleeping." I blushed and cleared my throat, "Deal. Well, now that that's settled, I need to repack my suitcase."

Darius chuckled and scratched his head, "Sorry about that." I shook my head and smiled, "It's alright." He followed me to my room and helped me gather my things from the floor. I checked the camera to ensure it wasn't damaged and aimed it at Darius, snapping a quick candid photo. 

I looked down at the screen, and my heart fluttered; he really was the most handsome man I had ever laid eyes on. Seeing that the camera was still functional, I turned it off, with him none the wiser, and packed it back into my bag alongside the clothes he had refolded. 

Darius commented, "I noticed you didn't have any pajamas packed in your bag." I looked up at him with lustful eyes, "I sleep in the nude." Darius grinned deeply, "We definitely won't be sleeping if that's the case." I interjected his wandering thoughts as I zipped my suitcase up and set it next to his, "I'm famished. Do you want to have an early dinner?"

He nodded, "An early dinner means we get to bed early, right?" I chuckled, "If you behave, I just might let you have dessert." His forest-green eyes lit up at my comment. I smirked, "Did I mention you'll be meeting my sister?" Darius smiled wickedly, "I'll be on my best behavior. Scouts honor."

I called the Montrose Pub and placed a reservation for four at 5:00 p.m. "My sister is the Luna, so I'm sure Alpha Gray will be joining us for dinner as well.", I added while Darius sat patiently on my bed. 

I straddled Darius and kissed him again. I wanted to feel him inside of me, but we didn't have time right now, so I would just give him a taste of what was to come. I needed to let my sister know about dinner. Given the circumstances, I'm sure someone else could tend to Jayce in her absence for an hour or two. 

I popped off of his lap as soon as I felt his member begin to pulse. I bit my lip, "I need to talk to my sister real quick to let her know about our dinner plans; meet me downstairs in fifteen minutes, and we can head out." Darius let out a disgruntled huff as I left the room, and I heard his weight flop on my bed.

I went downstairs to the cells with a bounce in my step to find my sister. She was right where I thought she would be tending to Jayce; she had wanted to be a nurse and was most of the way through her schooling before she met Alpha Gray, and becoming the Luna of his Pack took priority. 

I quietly said, "I need to speak with you privately when you are finished treating your patient." She responded without looking up, "I'll be done in five minutes. I briefly went over to Layla's cell, "How are they treating you now?" Layla nodded, "I'm okay." I nodded in response before turning to leave. "Congratulations, I hope your mate brings you happiness.", Layla said as she noticed his mark on my neck. I nodded once more and went back to the main floor.