Cordelia thought for a moment before responding, a sly smirk pulling at her lips. “Then I pity the hell out of the man, cause you won’t need to reject him. He’ll be dead.”

This made Amelia burst out laughing, so much so her sides started to cramp. She grabbed her friend’s hand, dragging her from the bathroom. “Come on. I need a drink.”

Downstairs the party was already in full swing. She could just make out her brother's silver blonde hair in the crowd, working his way through their guests. Her heart nearly busted with pride. She couldn’t believe he was the new Alpha now. He was gonna be an amazing leader. She knew the majority of her friends would be outside so she kept hold of Cordelia’s hand, weaving their way through the groups of chattering people.

Once outside she took in a deep breath of humid warm summer air. The smell of food made her drag her feet over to the huge buffet table. The table was piled high with grilled chicken, burgers, hotdogs, ribs, steak, and every side dish imaginable. Amelia piled her plate high with grilled goodies. Being a werewolf left her starving all the time.

The lawn was littered with picnic tables and chairs, scattered across the field. She looked out, spotting her usual group of friends, motioning for Cordelia to follow. She stuffed a roll in her mouth before picking up her heaping plate and walked towards the table. She slid onto one of the benches beside Daniel, Cordelia taking up residence beside her.

“So, the gossip of tonight is that you have a mate.” Daniel whispered in her ear.

Amelia looked out over the table at her friends. They were all staring at her like she’d grown a second head. “If that’s the rumor, then it must be true.”

“Are you saying it’s not?” Michael asked, sitting across from her.

“I didn’t say that.” She mumbled through bites of her food.

“Makes sense why you broke up with Daniel.” Gabby said flippantly, taking a swig from her solo cup.

“Right, cause I totally knew I would meet my mate today.”

“Just saying. It is funny timing.”

“How about the fact that I was supposed to be leaving tomorrow and didn’t know when I’d be back? It’s not funny timing. I didn’t want to leave him waiting.”

“Good thing you did, now with your mate around there’s no longer any competition.”

Amelia narrowed her eyes at her cousin. Did she really need to bring that up now? “I’m gonna get a beer.” She announced before standing up, walking away from the awkward conversation and hurt expression from Daniel.

She walked over to the pile of kegs situated near the buffet table. She grabbed herself a red cup, filling it up from the tap. She leaned back on the heavy keg, drinking deeply from the cup. There wasn’t enough alcohol in the world to erase her troubles.

“Drinking already?”

Amelia looked over the rim of her cup to find her brother and Dominik approaching. Dominik was the oldest of her cousins, son of her father’s Beta. He had the typical blonde hair, hereditary trait of their family, except for his was more of a dirty blonde. He had always been her favorite cousin. He was laid back, the best sparring partner, apart from her brother, and he knew how to party. His twinkling green eyes winked at her as she handed him her half-drunk cup, filling up another for her herself. She didn’t waist her time trying to offer her twin any. He was the good boy.

Dominik took the drink gratefully, finishing its contents in two large gulps. She moved aside to let him refill it, standing beside her brother. She looked out over the party. It was a great turn out. Most of the pack was celebrating. She knew the cake would come out soon and she couldn’t wait to dive into its rich, yummy center.

“I didn’t expect him to announce it in front of everyone.” Damon whispered down to her.

Amelia snorted, her cup resting just in front of her lips. “You and me both.” She said. “But did you see dad’s face? He was pissed.” She giggled.

“Of course, he was. The man was staring at you naked.” Damon growled, his anger rising.

Amelia made another unladylike sound. “Wouldn’t be the first time that’s happened.” She took a swig of her beer, leaving her brother speechless before heading back to her table.

Her table had a few more empty seats than before. Daniel had disappeared somewhere along with a few of the other guys. Leaving just Cordelia, Gabby, and their friend Jasmine. She stepped over the bench, taking back her seat beside Cordelia, once again digging into her plate. She noticed a few items were missing. Those damn boys. They knew how much she hated when someone took her food.

She growled into her chicken as she stabbed at it violently with her fork before tossing it into her mouth.

“You know sometimes I forget you’re a girl.” Gabby commented, watching as her cousin savagely ravished her food.

Amelia grinned at her cousin, her mouth full of chicken, earning her a snicker. She loved tormenting her cousin. Gabby was one of those girls who preferred maintaining her manicure over training. Amelia could appreciate a good manicure but she had never been afraid to get her hands dirty. She loved her cousin dearly but sometimes she annoyed the piss out of her.

Damon came up behind her, taking the empty seat beside her, Dominik choosing to sit across from them next to his sister Gabby. Damon leaned over, snatching a chicken wing from her plate before his sister could catch him. Amelia smacked his shoulder in protest, earning her a laugh as he ate her food.

“Hey Cordelia.” Damon said around his sister’s body.

Cordelia picked her head up, looking back over at him. Her cheeks flushed red, her hazel eyes all wide and doe-eyed. She had the biggest crush on her brother for as long as she remembered and as they got older, it only got worse.

Amelia tried not to laugh at her friend’s embarrassment. Instead she pretended to ignore them as she finished off her food before her brother could snatch any more.

“Hey Alpha. Congratulations on the ceremony.” Cordelia said shyly. Cordie was never shy with anyone, anyone except Damon.

Damon rolled his eyes. “Please don’t get formal with me. It’ll always be Damon for you.”

This earned him an even deeper shade of red across her smooth skin.

“Goodness will you two just get a room already.” Amelia said aloud, earning her annoying glares from the two of them. “I bet you two will end up married one day and I’ll get lots of little nieces and nephews.”

“Oh yea? You may beat me to the punch on kids with that mate of yours.” Cordie snapped back.

Amelia snapped her head at her best friend, her eyes narrowed. “Like hell. It’ll be a decade before I even consider having kids.”

“Like you get a say. If he wants to mate with you, he will.” Gabby said.

Amelia looked at her cousin, seriously considering what the repercussions might be if she smashed her pretty little face into the table. “Don’t you have some new beau to screw?”

Gabby looked out over the visiting packs, smirking. “So, many to choose from.”

Dominik rolled his eyes, looking as if he might be sick. “Gabby, you're disgusting.”

Gabby waved her brother off with her well-manicured hand before leaving the table in pursuit of her latest conquest.