My Own Alpha Reject Me

Damon stared down at the text message on his phone for the third time, frowning as he read the words from his boss. He threw it on his desk, leaned back in his chair, and scrubbed his hands over his eyes. She couldn't be serious! He sat up with a sigh and stared around at his new office, wondering what the hell he'd gotten himself into.

He thought back to the conversation he'd had with Jasmine James.

"We need somebody for both positions; you're more than qualified for them," Jasmine said as she poured the tea.

"What exactly is going on in the city?" Damon asked as he took the cup from her hands, holding his hand up when she offered him the small jug of milk.

"It's a mess; I had no choice but to remove the head; he was running the station into the ground," Jasmine said with a sigh. "It's all-out war, Damon," she said, placing her cup on her desk and leaning forward, her head in her hands.

"When was the last time you got any sleep?" Damon asked, concerned for his friend. She looked tired, as if she hadn't slept in weeks. "You're taking on too much. You need to delegate; you're going to make yourself ill if you continue to worry like this," he said, resting his hand on top of hers on the desk and giving it a quick squeeze. As an Alpha female, if it had been anyone else that had made that move, she would have torn their hands clean off. Only the fact that they had been friends for fifteen years saved his hand.

"Damon, I'm the leader of our Royal Wolf community; it's my job to worry," Jasmine said with a tired smile. "What am I supposed to do? I have no inquisitor and nobody to run the city station. On top of that, I have a war with the mixed-blood Wolf's and other creatures on all fronts; none of their leaders will meet with me, and I have the Royal Wolf trying to revolt and come for my job at every turn," she said, scrubbing her hands through her hair in a very uncharacteristic show of frustration.

"Ha, I'd pay to watch that!" Damon said with a grin, "You would annihilate anyone that came at you. You are the leader for a reason, Jasmine; there isn't a single royal wolf that can best you in combat or an Alpha that would stand a chance against you," he said with a chuckle.

"Damon, I could activate every cell on my body, and I still wouldn't have a hope in hell against you," Jasmine said as she stared at him incredulously. "We both know you can put me on my ass with three moves; I'm only the leader because you refused it," she said with a grin at the expression on his face.

"Am I in charge of the entire community?" Damon asked with a shudder of horror, "It was bad enough heading up the multitude of stations I've already had to deal with; you think I want to be responsible for the entire tribe of idiots? Internal politics, squabbling Alphas, and a dagger in the back at every turn? No thanks; you can keep it. I have enough power within the leadership as it is; I don't want any more," he said, chuckling when she just rolled her eyes at him.

"I have a suggestion, if I may?" Damon said as he set his cup aside, having finally come to a decision. "Why don't you make Jack the new leader? You know he's fair and respected by just about everyone. He chafes at being stuck in another city, and he would make a powerful ally," he said.

"He wants the position less than you do," Jasmine said, her eyebrows practically in her hairline. "I asked him already, and he flat-out refused," she said with a frown.

"That's why he would be perfect; he's probably the only one aside from me that won't come for your job," Damon said. "Anyway, that was six months ago; a lot of things can change in six months," he said with a wink, pouring himself a second cup before topping Jasmine's cup up.

"If you are referring to that... debacle with the werewolf and Valeria Ravencroft..." Jasmine said, the cogs starting to turn in her head as she thought about how to entice him into accepting the position.

"Just order Jack to accept," Damon said, reading her thoughts on her face. "That way he can save face; you have an inquisitor, and Jack can escape his problems," he said, laughing as she sat there, practically rubbing her hands at the idea.

"Thank you, Damon; I knew there was a reason we were friends," she said as she pulled her phone out and fired off a quick text to Jack, ordering him back to the Gard. "Wait, if Jack takes the inquisitor position, who's going to take over the SA station?" she asked, almost slamming her head against her desk as a whole pile of new worries settled over her. She couldn't stop the growl that rumbled through her chest.

"I don't envy your job." Damon chuckled. "Jenny has been chomping at the bit for a promotion. I think she's ready, and she's already there. Make her the head and Ally her second. They might as well run it together," he said, grinning when Jasmine's head shot up.

"I need a mated pair," Jasmine said, the Alpha in her tone clear as her frustration slipped through the cracks of her self-control. "The rest of them won't follow anyone but an Alpha and Omega that are mated! You did a great job, Damon, but without the right leadership, the station will revert to what it was before you dealt with them," she said.

"Haven't you heard?" Damon asked, surprise coloring his tone when he saw the question on her face. "Mike claimed Emma last month; she's already pregnant. How have you not heard? If there's one thing the Royals like more than bickering and squabbling with mixed blood wolves, it's gossiping," he said, both of them bursting into fits of laughter at his understatement.

"They gossip like old female wolves!" Jasmine said, howling. "Thanks to Luna, we were shoved into training together. I don't know what I would do without you, Damon. You've saved my ass yet again," Jasmine said, wiping the tears from her eyes before fixing her gaze on him. "Does this mean what I think it means?" she asked him hopefully.

"You need a mated pair for SA but not Nigaland?" Damon asked her, reigning his expression in and shutting down his internal wince when he reminded himself that he hadn't found a mate yet. How do you get to the age of twenty-eight and not find your mate? He asked himself bitterly. He had accepted that he would be one of those Alphas whose other half was lost to them and that he or she must have died. You do not get to his age and not find your mate, especially if you are as widely traveled as him. Everyone he had grown up with had already been mated for ten years, and here he was, doomed to spend his life alone. He had accepted it, but that didn't mean the thought didn't shatter his heart into a thousand pieces and scrape at his soul like a rusty blade.

"Mike and Jenny are barely out of training. They might have the potential to become great leaders, but they need each other if they are to keep that rabble under control," Jasmine said, leaning back in her chair and folding her arms as she studied her oldest friend. "Whereas you could take on half of the Nigaland station on your own and walk away without a scratch. You're a powerful Alpha, Damon; you don't need a Beta or an Omega to run that place," she said, watching as he sat ramrod straight in his chair, his face an emotionless void. She hated it when he closed himself off like that, something he did far too often.

"Don't underestimate yourself, my friend," Jasmine said when she saw a sad frown crack his hardened exterior. "You earned the respect of even the most hardened Wolf veterans when you overhauled the other station. If it weren't for you, it would have been all-out war with the mixed-bloos wolf. That's why I need you there; they are a mess. And who knows, maybe you will find your mate in Nigaland," she said gently, watching his shoulders slump as his face crumpled for a second. He reigned it in, but not before she saw it. It broke her heart that if anyone deserved to be happy, it was Damon.

"You're far too shrewd for my own good," Damon said with a sigh. "I'll take it on one condition: you pull my best friend from the London station and promote her to my second. It's been far too long since we've been together, and I've missed her. If I'm to take on that shower of shite, I'm going to need her, just for the comic relief if nothing else," he said with a chuckle. "You owe me this much, Jasmine; if I hadn't been stuck in Australia for the last year, we would have been together, as it should be. She's my best friend," he said.

"Done!" she said, pulling her phone out and firing off another text. She waited a moment, smiling when she read the reply. "It's going to take her a week to find someone to take over her combat training classes, but after that, Moni is all yours," she said, grinning at the first true smile she had seen from him in a long time.

"Excellent!" Damon said, jumping to his feet and making his way over to the secret drink stash she kept in the cabinet behind her desk. "May we celebrate by getting extremely inebriated?" he inquired as he closed the door with a swung of the doorknob with one hip. He was holding a couple of bottles in his hand.

"Only if you make me one of your martinis," Jasmine said, laughing when he spun around, a bottle of Gin in one hand and a bottle of vodka in the other.

Damon couldn't stop the growl ripping out of him when he considered the text he had received. He sat there, stewing angrily for several minutes, before he heard a ruckus outside his office. His head shot up as his door was almost kicked off its hinges. He launched himself over his desk, not in the mood for any of them at the moment. As his hand shot to the blade in his left thigh holster. He whipped it out a second before realizing who it was, almost sagging with relief when he saw her.

"I could hear that growl on the other side of the station," Moni said, sauntering into the office, throwing her jacket into the nearest chair, and kicking her suitcases out of the way before she launched herself across the room and into her Damon arms. "Have you missed me, Damon?" she asked, almost lifting him off his feet as she squeezed the life out of him.

"More than you know," Damon said as he hugged his best friend, his one and only best friend. "I hope you're ready for this; these assholes are hard work. Thank the Luna, you are here, Moni. I want to put every one of them in a choke hold. Sebestian really fucked up," he said as he let go of her and walked back around his desk, slumping into his seat.

"It's that bad?" Moni asked, walking over and slamming the door closed before throwing herself into the chair in front of his desk, propping her feet up on the desk, and leaning back into her cupped hands behind her head. "Who's ass am I going to have to kick?" she asked, laughing at the sly grin that spread across his face at the thought.

"Jasmine's, for sending me to this stupid place," Damon said, almost yanking his hair out. He couldn't help but laugh at the shudder that ran through his best friend. "I'm kidding... kind of; the worst one is Ram. He was another Sebestian; he seems to think it's my fault his partner was sent to Wrangel Island, and he isn't too impressed with you either," Damon said with a sign.

"I've only just got here; what could I have done already?" Moni asked, spinning on the spot as she dropped the book she was inspecting, unable to resist poking around her friend's office.

"You took his job," Damon said with a chuckle at the outraged expression on her face. "He was Victor's second, plus, you do have that effect on people, Moni," he said, howling at the superior expression that spread across her face. Seriously, he had missed her! She was able to make him laugh without even having to say a word.

"It looks like I'm going to have to make this Ram my bitch then," Moni said as she continued to inspect his things. "Make him my assistant, Damon; you might as well really piss him off if he's bitching and complaining already. You know I can't stand the whiney ones," she said, smiling as Damon roared with laughter.

"Are you joking?" Damon asked as he wiped his eyes. Ram had been a pain in his ass from the second he arrived, a week earlier. The thought of turning him over to Moni was tempting. If he would do as he was told, that is. "None of them listen to me," he said with a frustrated shake of his head.

"Have you gone full Alpha on any of them yet?" Moni asked as she slumped back down in her chair with a scowl. She hated seeing her friend stressed out. He was too young to be hunched over with the weight of the station on his back.

"I've kept it to a minimum for now," Damon said. "I wanted to earn their respect, not their fear," he muttered, thinking back to his time at the Melbourne station, the SA station, the London station, and the Hong Kong station before that. He had reformed so many of them that they had started calling him the station whisperer, much to Moni's delight and his annoyance. He had tried to start out as their friend every time. And failed every time, having to revert to being the ALPHA each time. He had hoped this one would be different.

"Tomorrow morning, we are going to call a station-wide meeting," Moni said, ready to wrest some of the responsibilities from her friends' shoulders. "You are going to introduce me to the bunch of reprobates, and you're going to hulk out on them. It's about time they learn who their Alpha is," she said with an evil grin, which turned into a full-on cackle when he started laughing.

"I've missed you, you crazy bitch," Damon said, laughing harder when she jumped up, executing a graceful.

"This crazy bitch is here at your beck and call," Moni said as she straightened up and grabbed the handles of her suitcases. She threw one across the room without warning, testing his reflexes. She laughed when he snagged it out of the air before it could crash into his face. "Come on, you can show me to my royal quarters," she said as she dragged her other suitcase behind her.

"This way, your majesty," Damon said, leading her through the station, past the scowling faces, to her room. He couldn't stop himself from laughing as she traipsed around the room, deeming it fit for purpose. Things were already starting to look perfect.

"So, what were you growling about when yours truly rocked up?" Moni asked as she flung herself on the bed, leaving the unpacking for later. Her grin faded when she saw the look on his face. She sat up, realizing it was time to be serious. She loved playing the joker, but she would end anyone who put that look on her best friend's face.

"I received a text from Jasmine this morning," Damon said with a sigh. "I told her I wanted to sort this lot out before I tried to get a meeting set up with any of the mixed-blood wolves; apparently she had other ideas though. She set up a meeting with the leader of one of the most powerful mixed blood wolves, the new leader of all mixed blood in Nigaland, tomorrow on my behalf," he said, wishing he had something to kick.

"That was kind of her," Moni said with an eyeroll, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "I love Jasmine, but she sure knows how to throw you in at the deep end," Moni said, feeling sorry for her best friend. She had heard of the woman before. Most mixed blood Wolf had; she wasn't exactly known for her tolerance of their group. She supposed it could only be a good thing that Damon would be the one to meet her. He could be extremely charming and diplomatic when he needed to be.

"Oh, don't feel sorry for me," he said with a sly grin when he saw the pity on her face. "If I have to meet this person, you are coming with me. She has thrown us into the deep end, not me," he said with a chuckle at her grimace. "Prepare yourself, Moni; tomorrow, we meet Miss Clary. The leader of Nigaland mixed blood with Wolf's. And I hear she is an Omega, actually," he said with a sigh. This should be fun, he thought sarcastically to himself.

An omega can really hurt their ass if they want to.

Damon's eyes snapped open when he heard a commotion coming from down the corridor outside his room. He glanced at the clock on his nightstand: 06.37. Great, he had slept in! He climbed out of bed, swiftly throwing a plain black t-shirt on before opening his door and peering down the corridor.

"See the vampires face..."

"I wasn't expecting that."

"Damon will hear..."

Damon sighed internally before marching through the door and following the voices down the corridor. He turned a corner to find Ram laughing and joking with two other wolves, shaking something that rattled in his hand. Damon had seen the two wolves around over the last few days-Marcus and Mateo, he remembered. He grinned a predatory grin when he looked over his shoulder, catching sight of him.

"Damon has already heard, gentlemen," Ram said as he stalked toward the three men, his bare feet silent on the marble tiles. "I suggest you hand that over to Ram," Damon said, pushing a fraction of Alpha into his tone, warning Ram that it would be in his best interests to comply. Damon watched his internal struggle as he clutched the small jar tightly. "Don't make me ask again," Damon growled as he held his hand out, smirking when the other wolves placed it in his hand.

Damon looked down at the small jar in his hand, raising it to eye level to inspect its contents. His blood ran cold when he realized what was in the jar. He stared up at Ram, finding him glaring back with not an ounce of remorse on his face. Damon barely stopped his hand from shooting out and gripping the man by his neck. "The three of you, in the Ops center, five minutes," he breathed, turning on his heel to return to his room.

"We've been out on patrol all night, Damon," he heard Ram say behind him, stopping Damon in his tracks as the man sneered his name. "We are going to bed," Ram said, causing Damon to turn on his heel.

"It wasn't a request; it was an order." Damon roared, pushing a small amount of alpha into his tone. He remained expressionless as the three men took a step back, flinching when his tone washed over them. "You WILL be in the Ops center in five minutes," he said, turning once again and storming down the corridor, almost ripping the door off its hinges when he flung it open and marched into his room, slamming it behind him. He snatched up his phone from the nightstand, dialing as he tried to breathe through the fury coursing through him.

"Moni, get dressed, Ops Center, five minutes," he snapped out when she groggily answered her phone. He mashed the end call button before sending an institute-wide text, demanding they all be in the Ops center in five minutes. He tapped the screen a few more times, sending another text, before he threw his phone on the bed and got dressed. He stalked through the institute to the Ops Center.

Damon stood silently fuming as he waited for them all. Moni was first, strolling into the room with a shit-eating grin on her face. It soon disappeared when he showed her the contents of the jar, seeing his horror mirrored on her face.

"Where did you get this?" Moni asked as she stared down at the jar Damon showed her, catching the silent shake of his head. She could feel the anger rolling off him in waves; she didn't even feel sorry for whoever the target of his ire was; she was too disgusted. She looked up to see a few people shuffle into the room, yawning as they shuffled in. "Are you fucking shitting me?" she asked Damon as she stared at them; half of them weren't even dressed, still in their pajamas. "Do you still think you will win their respect?" she asked, turning to her best friend as he watched them with narrowed eyes.

Damon counted them as they made their way into the room. He looked up at the clock, seeing that ten minutes had passed as the trickle of wolves petered off. Only half of them had shown up. He stormed over to the computer screens, tapping away as he got angrier by the second, slamming his finger down on the enter button. A predatory grin spread across his face as the alarms started screaming, announcing an attack. It didn't take long for the room to fill up. He counted them as they all poured into the room, weapons ready, fifty of them all together. He turned the alarm off as the last of them arrived.

"So nice of you all to join us," Damon shouted to the crowd as they all stared around, confused expressions on their faces. "What part of that text made any one of you think it was okay to ignore a direct command?" he barked out, watching as half of them scowled at him. Nobody answered. He turned and walked over to join Moni at the top of the steps, catching her eye as she glared around.

"Everyone, this is Moni; a few of you may know her already," Damon said as he stared down at them. "She is now second in command at this station. If she gives you an order, you will follow it without hesitation. She speaks for me and has full authority in all matters that are brought before her; do I make myself clear?" he snapped at them. "I SAID, DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?" he roared out, pushing every ounce of Alpha into his tone that he could muster when they all stared insolently up at him.

Moni smirked when she saw the entire room cringe, their faces turning white as Damon tone smacked into them, like a physical blow. She watched as heads started bowing, not one of them strong enough to look him in the eye. A few of the Omegas in the room even started to whine as they realized that they were in the presence of a true Alpha.

It was only the fact that she was his best friend, their bond lending her some of his strength, and his oldest friend that she wasn't cringing back herself, having built up a tolerance for him over the years. He was powerful! Every instinct in her Alpha body was driving her to submit to him, to bear her neck and stare at the ground; she could only imagine what they were all experiencing. Her smirk turned into a full-blown grin when she saw faces start to turn towards her, staring up with incredulous expressions on their faces as she stood erect, staring down at them.

"RAM," Damon barked out, watching as Ram jumped, trying to stare up at him definitely. "Front and center, and bring your friends," he snapped. He watched as the two Beta practically tripped over their feet to get to the front of the room, their instincts telling them to obey the powerful alpha, Ram trailing after them as slowly as he could. Damon could see the tremble in the Alpha's body as he desperately tried to fight his instincts-the instincts that were telling him to submit to the apex predator in the room-his Alpha instincts to fight, warring with the instinct to run from the stronger Alpha.