Chapter 98

(Tommy POV)

“Hey dad!” After things had finally calmed down in our world, my dad allowed me to take on most Alpha responsibilities to prepare me from my new role.

Today being a day for phone calls and paperwork, thanks to Noah everything had been organized and filed already. My best friend loved these kinds of tasks, but as much as I loved letting him handle these things so I could spend quality time with Maya, I had to pull myself away to do some real work. I kept my phone close though in case she needed me at any moment. After everything she has gone through and all the times I had lost her, I was constantly worrying about her.

Eli had decided to spend today with her and had been updating me all morning. I was sure if Maya knew she would be annoyed, but she had a habit of disappearing or being put in life threatening situations and I was done feeling the pain of losing her over and over again.

“Hello son, how are things going? Did you find the vendor list I left for you?” My dad asked sitting down across from me.

I sighed and relaxed back in my seat. “Yeah, Noah organized everything for me the last few days, he knows me way to well!”

“Well, you guys have been friends since you were pups, and now live together so of course he knows you. He will also be your beta, which means he needs to know how you work if he is to council you.” My father said letting out a sigh as his body relaxed.

He had been fighting hard to keep things here in line while me and my friends fought for our mate, but it was clear that this side of the world had not gone unscathed by the mess. Our pack was not as unified as it had been in the past. Things seemed uncertain because of my mate, and the pack was beginning to question my family’s ability to lead them. A pack was only as strong as their alpha, and their fear had all but drained my father. Because just like the pack can feel the power of their alpha, he can feel their fear and emotions.

My mate had unknowingly brought our pack to its knees, and never would I blame her because this pack was her home too. She was my mate, and this would always be here home, but she had brought pain with her and our pack had a long road to go to heal.

“How are you dad really?” I asked giving him a serious once over.

He smiled and laughed a little. “Nothing I can’t handle son! I just don’t bounce back as quick as I used to.”

Even now he was trying to shield me from his pain, but it was clear as day. I needed to become alpha soon, sooner than planned because I wasn’t about to let my father suffer any longer. He had sacrificed enough for us in the name of protection and peace and now it was time for me to grow up and take my place. With Maya and my other mate brothers by my side I knew we could handle anything. Maya was stronger than she admitted to herself, and that was holding her back. She was afraid of the power that lived inside her, and she wanted so badly to run away. She thought I didn’t know what she was really feeling, but she was not that good at hiding her concerns.
It wasn’t that she lied to us, but she didn’t want to worry us. She put on a brave face but also tried to distract us or deflect when it came to her wolf or her lost powers. The thing was, I had spoken to the witch and she had told me that Maya’s powers were not lost but dormant. After Maya’s wolf had killed the Fae council and nearly died, Maya had locked away everything that could hurt anyone again. My girl was selfless in every way even to the point of hurting herself. She was locking away a part of her that would let her be her true self, but fear of harming others the way she had was holding her hostage.

She still woke in the night screaming as the memories of what she had done flash in her mind. We were wolf shifters, and that meant shedding blood sometimes, but Maya had taken lives without a second thought. My girl had a heart of gold, and the fact that she had it in her to kill like that was terrifying her. At the same time, she wants to be the best Luna for our pack even with the looks and whispers from them. She feels the duty and call to lead her pack, but she can never truly lead and protect them without accepting her whole self.

Me and the other guys tried our best to tell her every day that she was strong and powerful in every way. We tell her that she is everything to us, all of her even her darker sides. I promise her ever night that I will never let her get lost in that darkness again, and she simple thanks me. I wanted to give her time to find it within her to accept the powerful creature she was, but the pack couldn’t wait any longer. We needed to do this, ready or not.

“Son I know your mind is running trying to decide if this is the right time to do this, if Maya is ready but I can tell you she is. She is everything a Luna should be and so few are. Her love for people is what drives her fear. There is no one in this world she wishes to harm again, and that means when the time comes, she will protect the pack with a ferocity they have never seen. You may not see it because you worry for her, but I see it. Her presence alone has changed the emotions of the pack. They are in awe of her, but she sees it as they are afraid. That is not true. They see her as something stronger than they have ever known, her actions in the Fae world have spread to all the packs. She is looked at as being one sent from the moon goddess herself.” He gives me a soft smile, but I am speechless.

I had seen the pack around Maya and most of them watched her carefully but kept their distance, and I heard them murmur about what had happened because of her. I had thought it was because they feared her, but my father was telling me that I was wrong. The pack saw Maya as a strong being capable of leading them and more. I let out a shaky breath as I thought of the moments, I had noticed between her and different pack members. She didn’t understand them because she had not known them long and had not lived in a pack for most of her life. My heart raced as these new thoughts raced in my mind. We needed to make my mate Luna of this pack; it was the only way for her to find the power in her to accept her true self. She needed something in her life to fight for, and that would be her need to protect the pack.

“Dad we need to do it now, tonight!” I said standing and walking around the desk.

He seemed a bit surprised by my urgency, but I was not going to let my mate hurt a day longer. I knew who I was, I had my whole life, but my mate was drowning in self-doubt. She didn’t know where she belonged in this world outside of our mate group. She needed a purpose, something that defined her and gave her something to live for.

“Son are you sure?” My father followed after me as I rushed from the office.

I needed to find my mom and have the pack begin preparations, because tonight we would introduce Maya as Luna of this pack. Ok yes, I would be alpha as well, but all that mattered in this life was my mate and as much as I wanted to take my role on as alpha part of me always longed for only her happiness. Maybe that wasn’t a good trait as an alpha, but I didn’t care! I had lost her too many times that all my thoughts surrounded her making her the most important thing in my life. The others were the same I knew, the way they cared for her and even by the way they looked at her. Maya was the center of our world, and everyone came second to her. She was everything to us, and we loved her with everything we had.

I had heard others describe the feeling they had for their mates, but nothing compared to our bond to Maya. She was the sun and moon and our thoughts and our everything revolved around her. Yet she was the humblest person you would ever meet, not even knowing how much we adored her. She never asked us for anything that we wouldn’t give freely a thousand times over. Like I said we were crazy for our girl, even if she was adorably unaware, which made us even more crazy about her.

“I need mom to start the preparations, and indeed to talk to…”

“Son!” My dad interrupted me and pulled me to stand in front of him.

“I will handle all that, just go let our girl know!” He gave me a big smile.

Even after everything, the hard choices he had to make, he adored my mate like she was his own blood. He had to think of the pack though, and that put him in a position that meant he couldn’t think of only her unlike us. I understood why and appreciated that he still loved her after everything.

“Thanks dad! Please, make it special for her. I want it to be a night she will never forget.” She deserved nothing less.

“Of course! Now go!” He ushered me out of the door, and I started running toward our house immediately.

I reached out for Noah and Eli in my mind and told them my plan and asked them to meet me at home. I wasn’t able to contact Thomas, but I knew he was beside Maya. I could feel her quite calm and that always meant Thomas was with her. He had a way of calming her like none of us could, and I knew it was his Fae powers at work. He was bonded to her in a spiritual way through their Fae side, and he knew just what to do to make her relax.

I didn’t understand their bond well, but I was glad he could give her peace when she needed it. The funny thing was Thomas had pushed past most of his Fae reserve and stoic personality to meet our girl halfway. He had started being more affectionate with her on occasion, and I appreciated his efforts. He recognized that she was not raised like the Fae and that she needed those small touches from him too. To be honest I was kind of curious about how Fae reproduced with how reserved they were, but I never asked. I figured that if Maya didn’t mind, I shouldn’t either.

Actually, the thought of reproduction had been popping in my mind here and there since things had become so calm in our life. As wolves we take pride in producing young and wear such news with pride. The more time I spent with my mate made the urge to have a family grow. We loved taking care of our mates as they carried our young, and she would be treated like a queen! I wanted to be there for her in that way and watch her grow our pup inside her. I couldn’t think of anything more beautiful, but I knew the time wasn’t right. Although we had barely been able to stay away from her the last few days that news of a pup would probably not come as a surprise to me.

I smiled to myself at the thought but decided to push it away for now. When she was ready, she would tell us, and we would have to just wait patiently. But it did have my mind working trying to figure out how that would all work with us all. There were three of us wolves and a Fae! Would we discuss who would have the honor of impregnating our mate, or would we just leave it to chance? I wanted to leave that choice to her, but it would affect the group. Would the others become jealous that our mate was carrying the pup of one of us and not all? What would Thomas think? Would he want to have a child with Maya as well? Would he mind that she would have children that were not his?

I did not know what brought on these sudden thoughts but as I drew closer to home and the scent of my mate hit me like a punch to the gut, I realized why I had suddenly been thinking such things. Her sweet scent drifted toward me and a low rumble grew deep within me, and I rushed toward her faster than before. She was going into heat, and my wolf had taken over my thoughts with the idea of our mate carrying pups because of it. Her scent was still subtle enough that the pack may not pick up on it, which should make tonight still move forward easily enough. Then we would have to whisk her away until her heat passed because with a scent like that she would draw every male to her in no time!