The Maverick Pride Tales - Chapter 184: Chapter 184

Cole growled as he hefted a new tire off the shelf and walked it over to the Harley Davidson Breakout he left on the lift in the center of his workspace. He was customizing the badass bike for a Wolf Shifter client from nearby Maccon City. Rap from the nineties blasted in the background, but he was more focused on his work than whatever Dr. Dre and Eminem were rhyming about.
He loved his work. Being one of the rarest, most powerful Shifters in the world, Dire Wolves were known for their nomadic lifestyle. Sometime in the 1940s, they started traveling under the guise of a motorcycle club. Liking the speed, freedom, and possessing an endless passion to roam, more and more of his people flocked to join that very first Chapter of the Dire Wolf MC.
Soon, the MC grew so large it had to divide its forces. Now there were over a dozen clubs, roaming and riding up and down five of the seven continents. When Derrick, his Alpha, proposed his plan to purchase land and settle, Cole had scoffed at the idea. His Dire Wolf, on the other hand, had perked up and listened.
It wasn’t the first time man and beast disagreed on how to proceed with their dual-natured existence, and likely, it would not be the last. Why, in fact, just lately, the ornery critter had gotten it into his head, it was a good time to find a mate.
His animal scratched and snarled, howling incessantly inside the metaphysical plane where he waited for Cole to swap flesh with him. The noise he made was deafening. Hence the loud music.
Need a mate.
Fuck no, we don’t.
Grrrr.
Cole rubbed a hand over his face, the snarl on his lips loud and angry. Fuck. His Wolf needed to get a damn grip. Or his human side would have to put a stop to all this. Something had to be done. He couldn’t eat. Couldn’t sleep. Could hardly fucking think without the animal riding him. Suddenly, the music stopped, and Cole jumped up, growling at whoever the fuck thought it was a good idea to interrupt.
“You wanna rethink that snarl?” Derrick, his Alpha, grunted at him.
Cole gritted his teeth. Sometimes his Wolf was crazy enough to want to challenge his Alpha, but his human side knew better. He might look docile now that he had a family, but if anything, that only made his beast more rabid. Derrick Rand was a motherfucking monster. Cole had not forgotten. Even if his Wolf was momentarily blinded.
He’s our Alpha. Cool it.
“Sorry, Derrick. Did you need something?”
“Nah, man. Lucy said the music is keeping the cubs awake.”
“Is it? Wait, do they have our hearing already?”
“Yeah,” Derrick said proudly. “They should be too young for it, but those three hear everything. Sometimes they wake up the second Lucy or I open our eyes. Like they can hear us wake up.”
“That’s cool,” Cole replied, eyebrows raised.
He wasn’t lying either. It was pretty cool. Derrick was a great Alpha and an excellent mate to his Lucy. It stood to reason he would be an outstanding father. Cole’s Wolf watched the exchange with equal parts joy and sadness. He wanted the same for them. A mate. Cubs. Family. But he knew better than to hope for more than he was allotted in this life.
No women, Wolf. That was what I swore when she left. No more women.
“Dude, did you hear me?” Derrick asked, eyebrows raised.
“Sorry, man. What did you say?”
“I said I’ve arranged for you to meet someone⁠—”
“Uh, sorry, but no way, boss. I don’t need you to find me a date,” he growled.
“Look, Cole, I know it sucked the way Carly walked out on you like that. But that was years ago, man. You’ve been burying yourself in work at the bar or you got yourself holed up in here working on a machine, but Cole, the Pack misses you. It’s time to bury the past.”
“Bury the past? Carly fucking gutted me, Derrick.”
“I know, man,” Derrick said. “But Lucy and me, well, we’ve been talking. We can feel the strain on your animal. You’ve been blowing off runs, staying in your skin too long.”
“My Wolf, my problem, Derrick.”
“That’s where we disagree. You are my Wolf, too, Cole. Mine and Lucy’s. We are your family, man. All of us. Brock, Weylin, Phoenix, Sheila, Thor, all their mates, me, Lucy, we all care about you,” Derrick said, eyes glowing as the Alpha Dire Wolf lurking inside the man made himself known.
Cole felt his dominance pressing down on him, making the air so thick it was difficult to breathe. He averted his eyes, tilted his head, and showed his throat to Derrick. He respected the shit out of the man, and he knew he was trying to help, not hurt. But fuck, what problem would be solved by Cole dating some stranger?
His inner monster of a Wolf snapped his jaws, the beast’s silver eyes glowed bright with rage and power. Cole struggled to contain him, but he managed. Barely. Derrick’s rough hand on his shoulder was comforting, even if he didn’t want to admit it to his Alpha.
“I know you care⁠—”
“Good. Then it’s settled. Lucy will be happy you agreed.”
“But I didn’t. Look, I’m sorry Alpha, and I mean no disrespect, but I am just not ready to date.”
“Cole, I’ve watched you struggle to put your life back together after Carly left. You didn’t listen then, but I think it’s time you did. Carly wasn’t your mate.”
Cole shook his head. His Wolf snarled, snapped. The beast was mad. But whether he was angry at Cole for not being able to hold on to the female, or at Derrick for bringing her up, he did not know for certain. Carly was supposed to be his. At least, that was what he’d thought.
“She wasn’t my mate because I couldn’t hold her. I wasn’t strong enough,” Cole replied, but his voice sounded unsure even to his ears.
“No, Cole. You couldn’t hold on to her because that female was never for you,” Derrick said earnestly. “It is time you and your Wolf understood that. She. Was. Not. Yours.”
Cole’s entire body vibrated with emotion. Fuck. It was a decade ago, but the wound still felt fresh. Especially now, with Derrick picking at it all over again. Shit. He was right. Cole had tried everything he could to please Carly, but the she-Wolf hadn’t been able to settle. He would have done anything she wanted, but even that was not enough.
“Lucy and I feel your struggle, Cole. We’d both like to see your Wolf settled. We want you involved. More than that, we want to see you thrive. Everyone is paired up now. And with all the cubs being born, fuck, bro, we need you. The Pack needs you.”
“I get it,” he replied, and rubbed the back of his neck.
“Good. Your date will meet you at the bar on Friday, seven PM.”
“What? This Friday!”
“Be there with bells on, motherfucker. That’s an order,” Derrick rumbled, nodding at the bike as he left. “Nice job, by the way.”
“Thanks,” Cole replied, but inside he was dying.
A date? Mother shitting fuck biscuits. He did not want to go on a date.
Yes. We do, the Wolf growled.
Cole snarled, kicking the steel box of tools at his feet so hard it shot clear across the renovated garage. The place used to be a barn, which was why it was so big. Perfect for a pack of Dire Wolves with hard ons for Harleys.
“Shiiiit,” griped Cole.
Derrick had set him up on a date with some fucking stranger, and he was too damn loyal to go up against his Alpha. Even in this extremely personal thing. Fuck. He was really doing this then.
“Well, looks like I’m fucked. Godsdammit,” he growled and wiped a hand across his face. “Guess I’m going on a date, then.”