Derek
He could no longer deny it. Derek had fallen for her. He didn’t just want to date her, he wanted her to join the pack as well. He still wasn’t prepared to call her his mate, although the word did frequently pass through his mind.
He pushed it away each time, not ready to deal with it. She was reluctant enough as it was. There was no way he wanted to put any pressure on her. When she joined the pack, he wanted it to be done freely, without any heavy-handed coercion from him.
It was clear that she had some kind of hang up about packs. Whenever he asked about how she’d grown up, she clammed up. He’d thought it was just about the grief she’d felt for her parents, but the longer they knew each other, the more he doubted that was the only reason. There was something holding her back. He just had no idea what it could be.
Despite her naturally reserved manner, Kyra had been a great sport about meeting Everleigh and Eliza, and kept the little girl entertained. She held the baby and put up with Eliza’s questions, never seeming to tire of her rapid-fire chatter.
Roman had been impressed with her once again. She’d impressed him the first time with her willingness to look for Jesse, and now he was impressed that she was so friendly to his rather energetic child. “I never thought I’d see the day,” he said, slapping Derek on the back.
Derek suppressed a groan. Roman had been the same when any of their other brothers had fallen for a female, so Derek knew what was coming. “See what day?”
“The day you were smitten with a female.”
“We’re just dating,” Derek said, knowing any protests were pointless.
Roman just grinned. “Is she going to join the pack?”
“Would she be allowed in?” Derek asked. They hadn’t had anyone join the pack who wasn’t a blood relative or a bonded mate of a current member since they’d been in Anchorage. They’d often discussed what kind of criteria they’d use to make a decision, but so far they hadn’t finalized any type of guidelines. They really needed to come up with that.
Roman scoffed. “Of course. You’re my second in command. If you vouch for her, that’s all I need.”
“Okay. If you think the rest of the pack is okay with it.”
“Why wouldn't they be?” Roman exhaled. “I mean, I know a few were volatile about Everleigh, but we got rid of those assholes. And if it makes you feel better, we can put together a committee and discuss it so that you and I aren't the sole decision makers.”
It was well within Roman’s rights as the pack Alpha to make the decision by himself. Traditionally, Derek would only intervene if he thought the decision was way off base and very unpopular with the pack members. But Roman, and Derek by extension, had always run the pack a little differently.
One of the things that a second in command was best at was questioning the Alpha's decisions. Often the pack would go along with what the Alpha wanted simply because that was the way the hierarchy worked. It was customary and it was how they were raised, and instinct played a large role too.
Everyone wanted the Alpha to be happy with them. And the Alpha generally wanted what was best for the pack. Every now and then he could go horribly wrong, but in their pack, it went right more often than not. But as second in command, one of Derek’s roles was to make sure that Roman had someone to answer to.
It wasn’t a democracy, but he wasn’t a tyrant either.