Reaching You

Chapter 3: Paige

The sounds of birds chirping wake me up and I open my eyes to the warm sunlight entering my room. I get up and shower. I put on a white sundress. I make my way downstairs to see my mother already dressed with a smile on her face. I give her a hug and I take her hand. Together, we make our way to the meadow. The meadow is filled with familiar faces and I greet them with smiles. My heart drops to my feet as I watch Ryder make his way towards us. I keep my smile plastered to my face and remind myself that it was just a custom for the Alpha to greet pack members.

His brown hair is tousled and his grey eyes are friendly. He looked heavenly. "Alpha! It's a lovely day today!" My mother greets him with a smile. I watch as his grey eyes darken and he replies, "It is very lovely. Please enjoy yourselves." His voice sends shudders down my spine but I ignore it. He opens his mouth to say another thing but blond blue-eyed female skips over and grabs his arm. Ashley. She grins and greets us. "Hi, Ms. Smith! Hi, Paige." I offer her a smile. She was perfect for him. She was gorgeous and sweet. She was exactly what the pack needed.

"I'm sorry, the elders are calling for us." She explains, giving Ryder a look. They exchange glances and I briefly look away as it was too intimate. I watched as she then dragged him away to greet other pack members. I turn away as I watched him turn his head back towards me.

He was not mine. His heart belonged to another. My wolf was seething at the sight of another female claiming her male. But I reminded her that we had no right to him. I watched from afar as he chatted with her. His eyes were soft and gentle. Not like the stormy grey eyes that I knew. His muscles were relaxed. I couldn't keep my eyes off of them. She ruffled his hair affectionately. I shook my head. These thoughts were not helping me.

He was happy with her. It didn't matter if he chose her over me. Perhaps the Moon Goddess makes mistakes once in a blue moon. It was clear that I was the home wrecker. I start walking away into the woods. I sit down on a log, enjoying the cool breeze. Just as I was calming myself down, I feel a pat on my shoulder. It was Lindsey. She was the daughter of the Gamma of our pack. She shyly gave me a flower and I grinned. She takes my hand and tugs me away from the woods. We make our way back to the meadow. I see children giggling and laughing. They greeted me warmly with hugs and some punches.

"Age!" Lindsey shrieked as we played together. I loved children. They were so innocent but so much smarter than you'd expect. I teach them a game of tag and I found myself laughing as I stumbled chasing the children. That's when I see Dr. Jones heading towards me with a stern expression. I stop playing and he marches to me. "Paige, I have given your mother a light dose after she had another episode. Please take her home." He explains, his face full of pity. I nodded.

"I have to go. I'm sorry! We'll play again." I say, giving the children a hug. I walk away and make my way to my mother who is sitting in the grass, babbling to herself. I feel the pack staring at my back. I can't help but hear whispers. I reached my mother. She grins as she sees my face. "Paige!" She greets me. I give a smile and pull her off the ground. I gently guide her back towards our house away from the meadow, away from him.

"Your father and I loved to run in this meadow. Paige? Paige? Where is he right now?" She asks, her voice getting worried. "He went to get you a drink," I replied, holding her hand. She relaxes and smiles. "Such a thoughtful man." She declares. I laugh. She stumbles but I manage to hold her up. She looks at me with surprise as she says, "I guess you'll meet your mate next time." The words sting but I nodded.

I hear footsteps approaching us and I keep walking. A hand grabs my wrist and sparks fly. My wolf yips excitedly. Without looking up, I know who it is. "Paige, let me help," Ryder says, quietly. I shake my head. I try to move away from him. Tears that I was holding back run down my cheeks and I turn away from him. He pulls me to face him and his grey eyes are in shock as he sees me crying. "Please just go! Leave us alone!" I whispered as I escape his loosened grip.

I leave him standing there. My wolf yells at me to return to him but he smells like her. He belongs to her. I make my way through the trees. My mother is busy staring at nothing. He was right in rejecting me. I was broken. Perhaps this was meant to be, our paths were only meant to cross once. I enter the house and place my mother on the sofa where she falls instantly asleep. My mother's condition was deteriorating fast. School was not something that I could go to at the moment. So I sneaked out when she was asleep and delivered a note to the school to alert them that I would not be returning. I returned to the house to see my mother still asleep on the couch. I place a blanket on her and make my way upstairs.

I felt embarrassed that he had to see me in my most vulnerable state. I had tried so hard to convince everyone that I was fine but he had to see me.