A Surrogate To the Omega

Julian

Today was one of those days.

The kind when I just wanted to sit back and relax, enjoying some peace and quiet. My week had been long and busy, which was to be expected when you had a successful business like mine. Not that I spent that much time in the office, no. That unfortunate torture was left to my Chief Operations Officer, who loved the job more than anything and could hold her own in my absence. I only needed to be hands-on when changes were taking place, which had been the case this week.

My plans for some peace and quiet were ruined, or at least slightly delayed, by the pack meeting this afternoon. I was never one to complain, I respected our Alpha far too much to do that. If he called for a meeting, it meant that a meeting was indeed needed and if something was important to him, then we all followed. That was the way things were, as they had always been and would always be. Hence the slight delay in my plans.

I stretched and relaxed in my seat, waiting for the meeting to start. As usual, I had come early. A good habit instilled in me from a very early age, and something that had played a huge part in my success today.

"Feeling sleepy already, old man?"

I looked up at a grinning Martin and chuckled, "It takes one to know one."

At forty-four, Martin was only a year older than I would be in a few days.

"Even your comebacks are becoming a little slow!" he laughed, shaking the hand I had extended to him before he sat down.

"They might be slow, but so is my aging. Too bad the same can't be said about you," I replied.

He laughed at that and raised his hands in mock surrender

"It is nice to see that we are all in good spirits," a familiar voice said, and we both looked up to see our Alpha, Meshack, entering the room.

He was tall and strong, his presence filling up the space with each step he took. He was a force to be reckoned with, especially when he fought, and his aura screamed power. We stood to greet him, as did everyone else in the room.

I smiled and extended a hand. "Good afternoon, Alpha."

He gave me a short, firm shake as he smiled in turn. "Good to see you, Julian."

He turned to everyone and nodded. "Now that everyone is here, we can begin."

We all sat down, and the meeting began, starting with updates from our last meeting and then the new developments that had taken place after that. The first big topic on the agenda was the expansion of the school for the little ones and the second one was all about pack security.

My thoughts started to drift, far away from the meeting. The first topic on the agenda didn't really concern me, because I had no children. It was not that I hadn't been thinking about children. In fact, the fact that I had no offspring had been weighing on my mind for a while now. I had accomplished more than I had ever dreamed of in my life, but what good was all of it if I didn't have an heir to enjoy it after I was gone? A legacy to pass down to my own blood; my hard work and pride passed on to another generation.

The main reason why I had no children was, of course, that I didn't have a mate, someone to share my life with. I had never been a shy one among women, quite the opposite in fact. From the day I'd had my first kiss and discovered how pleasurable it was, I'd had my fair share of flings. Even more so in my later years when I had gained the confidence that only age and success could give you. The kind of confidence you achieved when you stopped trying too hard; when you stopped the chase and let your prey come to you instead.

Human women seemed to be attracted to my mysterious side, to the animal magnetism they had no idea existed under the surface. But my magnetism turned out to work on female shifters too; my assistant called it the 'Julian charm.' Whatever it was, I had surely enjoyed it over the years, and I'd enjoyed it to the fullest. But a point comes in a man's life, whether human or not, when exchanging numbers for a night and forgetting names the very next morning just didn't quite do it anymore. It left one feeling empty and unfulfilled in a way physical intimacy couldn't fix.

That was why I had started thinking of having a family; a mate and a child to pass my skills and knowledge on to.

"Penny for your thoughts, Julian?"

I looked up and found the Alpha giving me a knowing smile as if he knew I had been lost in thought and not been paying attention at all. In my defense, I was tired and getting older. I even had the gray hair at my temples to prove it. Not that forty-two was an age for any shifter to complain about. We were much stronger, even in old age than humans. I shook my head and smiled back, trying to reassure him that I was paying attention to this meeting a hundred and one percent. An extra one for good measure, of course.

"What is your opinion on the matter of security?" the Alpha said,

"I would like to hear what you think."

"Of course," I said as if I had any idea what they had discussed so far. It was a good thing that I was roughly up to date with the issues currently being talked about amongst pack members. "Well, I think it's a great idea to keep tabs on nearby packs, especially with the violence that started last year. We need to remain several steps ahead."

"And you have a solution in mind?" the Alpha asked, and I nodded.

"We could implement a biometric system," I suggested. "It's important to advance our security, and this would be a great way to do it."

The Alpha considered this for a moment as someone raised a question directed at me.

"Can we even afford that right now? Those systems are very expensive. Plus, it is very inconvenient trying to verify your identity every time you try to get inside."

I nodded. "It is a bit expensive, I agree, but so is trying to rebuild our village if we are attacked unawares. With evolving technology all around us, we need to take advantage of all we can to protect our pack. After all, we all work hard for the betterment of our families."

Several pack members nodded, and I continued, pleased with the way things were going so far. It had been something I had been thinking of for a while and now was a great time to put my proposal on the table.

"Having a guard twenty four seven is great, but what's left as a line of defense if those guards are taken down?"