Chapter 26: Chapter 26

Brad had no idea what was wrong with her and had a pretty rough night too. I felt bad for him. He looked like he’d been up all night too. I smiled and opened up the door to let him in. He walked in with a tray of delicious looking breakfast, and my stomach growled loudly. I quickly closed the door for Brad as he went into the room and power walked to the kitchen. I could smell bacon and my stomach growled again. I followed the heavenly scent of bacon to the kitchen, but I was nowhere near prepared for what I saw as I turned the corner and entered the kitchen.

A blond bimbo was hanging off of Reece, leaning into him, pressing her breasts up against his chest. She had on far too much make-up and her overpowering perfume was making me gag. I heard a chilling growl echo through the kitchen, and realised it was coming from me.

Anger flared and Lana was ready to come out and wanted me to shift. I stopped her, but only just. She snarled ferociously, and I felt her anger erupting in me, ready to tear this bitch to shreds. Reece pushed the bimbo away and came rushing over.

“Sweetie, calm down. It’s not what it looks like. Honey please calm down. Your eyes are glowing,” he begged, trying to reach out and touch me to use the mate bond to calm me. I pushed him away. I was mad at him too. Why was he letting this she-wolf bitch touch him?

The room started to shake, the clatter of plates and glasses jiggling around in their cabinets was deafening, and I was seeing stars as a tingling sensation swamped my whole body. It was me. I was making the room shake. This was getting way too scary.

“Lana, we have to calm down,” I begged her. “This is getting out of control. We might hurt Reece.”

“Kill her!” Lana screamed.

“No, Lana. STOP!” I demanded. I suddenly remembered the breathing exercises. I breathed in deeply, fighting for control, and breathed out shakily. The tingling started to feel less intense. I kept breathing in and out slowly, focusing on each breath.

“She’s out of control, Reece,” the she-wolf cried, “Do something!”

“Oh, I’ll do something,” Reece replied, “But you’re not going to like it!”

The room stopped shaking, and I saw Reece manhandling the she-wolf out of the kitchen roughly, with her protesting wildly.

“She’s dangerous! She could have killed us both! She could have destroyed the pack house and everyone in it!” she continued to rage.

I was calming down now. And now that there was no danger of Lana coming out, I had to get out of here. I turned to leave. Although I had calmed down enough to keep my powers, and Lana, under control, I was still angry. Who was this she-wolf? I wasn’t sticking around to find out. It was too risky; I didn’t have full control of my powers yet. I made for the door and tried to dart out, but Reece managed to get there before me and blocked the doorway, stopping me escaping.

“Allie,” he said, “Stop. Listen to me.” But I didn’t want to listen to him. Now that I had calmed down, I just wanted to hide. The she-wolf’s raging, although pretty fucking annoying, was right. For a moment there, I was out of control and if I hadn’t managed to calm down, somebody could have got hurt. The anger I felt at seeing them together had now been replaced by fear and all of my insecurities that I thought I had dealt with came screaming back. Tears threatened but I swallowed them back.

“Nothing is going on with Mikayla. She is just a nobody trying to mate with power. Forget her,” he said, gently stroking my arm, allowing the sparks of the mate bond to calm us both.

“Ok,” I said slowly, “So, who is she?” I braced myself for the answer and he took a deep breath. I don’t think I’m going to like this answer.

“She’s an …. Old friend.” He said, sounding unsure.

“Friend?” I said, unconvinced. “It looked a little more than friendly!” A frown appeared on his face, making him look grumpy. He didn’t answer.

“Well?” I prompted. He was holding something back.

“Ok,” he finally said, “I slept with her once. It was months ago, long before I found you. It was a mistake. I had been celibate since I turned 18, in respect of my future mate but I had spent the whole day looking for you and I was frustrated that I hadn’t found you. It was a stupid mistake. One that I regret.”

“I should have told you about it. I’m sorry, sweetheart,” he said, softly.

“Does she still think you two are together? Doesn’t she know you’ve got a mate?” I asked. I believed what he was saying to me, but it didn’t explain what I just walked in on.

“She knows I have a mate. She just can’t take the hint. You are my mate, Allie. My destined Luna,” he said, vehemently. “Speaking of which, my dad has scheduled the Alpha and Luna ceremony for Friday.”

“But that’s only two days away!” I said frantically, my panic rising to the surface, “I’m not ready!”

“Yes, you are, Allie,” he said, “We’ve marked each other and mated. There’s nothing holding you back from becoming Luna now. I know it seems scary, but you will be an incredible Luna,” He leaned in to kiss my cheek. I hoped he was right. He seems to have so much faith in me, but I had no idea how to be Luna or have any control of my powers.

“I don’t know anything about being Luna,” I said quietly, choosing blunt honesty and laying my fears bare.

“I know, sweetie. You already know more than you think you do. Before I turned 18, I didn’t know anything about being Alpha either. But I’ve paid attention and learnt a lot from my dad. You will learn too, because you will have me with you to teach you everything you need to know. The Moon Goddess has chosen you for a reason, remember?” he squeezed my hand, “We will do it together.” He always knows the right thing to say to make me feel better. He pulled me into a hug, and I let out a sigh. It had been a crazy morning already, and I had my powers practice later with Melissa.

“Let’s get some breakfast?” he suggested. He rustled up some bacon and eggs effortlessly. This man could definitely find his way around the kitchen! I poured some orange juice for the both of us. We both ate gratefully, replenishing much needed energy.

“What shall we do this morning?” Reece asked.

“Actually, Lana has been bugging me to go out for a run,” I said. It had been a crazy few days and I knew Lana was right; a run would clear our head. He looked instantly unsure and started shaking his head slightly.

“I don’t know, sweetie. I’m not sure it’s safe for you in the forest just yet,” he said, gently, trying not to disappoint me.

“But the guards on the boundaries will alert if there are any intruders,” I bargained, “and I’m perfectly safe in our grounds.” He thought about it for a moment, and then said, “Ok, but make sure to stick close to the pack house. Don’t go near the borders.” But he didn’t look too pleased about it.

“I’ll come with you,” he offered.

“No, honestly, I’ll be fine. I promise I won’t be long,” I insisted. I admit, I would love to see his wolf, but right now I felt I needed a little time on my own to think.

“You’re not still mad about Mikayla, are you?” he asked, “There is absolutely nothing going on. I love you and nobody else. You are my whole world.” He cupped my cheek.

“I know,” I said, smiling. “I love you too. I just need some time out on my own before my lesson with Melissa later.” He smiled and planted a soft kiss on my lips. Every kiss left me wanting him more. It was like a drug.

“Ok, have a good run. Remember to stay close to the pack house. I’ll see you later.”

“See you later,” I said, and left for the forest. Lana was excited.

“Run. Time to run,” she said, cheerily.

“Then let’s run,” I said to her.

Reece.

Shit! What the fuck was Mikayla trying to do? She knew I had found my mate now; the entire pack does since we announced the Alpha and Luna ceremony. The pack house was buzzing with excitement and preparations for the ceremony were well underway, with Omegas bustling everywhere with supplies, and my mother flitting from each room like a whirlwind. But as soon as Brad had left the kitchen to return to Penny, she appeared from nowhere with more make-up in her face than I’d ever seen. And she was relentless, practically jumping on me. Her hands wandered under my shirt and tugged on my belt buckle insistently. Her touch repulsed me, and Maddox was close to coming to the surface. He only has eyes for Lana. Since the announcement was made about the ceremony, she has doubled down on her efforts to get back into my bed. Finding my mate hadn’t put her off one bit. If anything, it seems to have spurred her on.

As soon as I was sure Allie was in the forest, I went to look for Mikayla. She needed to be put in her place. That behaviour will not be tolerated when I am Alpha. She was crossing a line and it was seriously pissing me off. I didn’t have to look very far. She was lurking just outside the doors to the dining room. When I saw her, my anger bubbled up again.

“What is your problem?” I demanded.

“Why are you wasting your time with that nobody?” she launched, unashamedly, “She’s dangerous!”

“She’s not dangerous, you moron. She’s my mate and your Luna, and you will treat her with the respect she deserves,” I yelled. She recoiled slightly but recovered quickly.

“You saw what she did in there,” she babbled, “if she hadn’t come to her senses, who knows what she could have done. To me or to you!”

“You’re talking rubbish,” I said, angrily as I grabbed her arm and led her to the door jerkily, “Allie would never hurt me. Now stay away from me and stay away from Allie!”

“Reece, she’s not right for you. There’s no way she can be Luna,” she said, desperately. “She doesn’t listen to you, and she doesn’t care about you. Not like I do.” She reached out for my hand.

“Enough!” I yelled. Maddox wanted out now. I had to end this now or I would lose control of my wolf.