Chapter 78

**Luna**

*"Mom you're here." *I sign.

She smiles at me and I see tears fill her eyes to match my own. It's only been a couple of days since we saw each other, but it feels way too long.

*"How are you? You look beautiful.*" She signs back to me.

I can't help but pull her back into another hug and squeeze her as tight as I can. I'm not sure how long we stay like this, but we only break apart when someone's hand rests on my shoulder. When I pull away I look up to see Ben smiling down at us. I let go of mom and give him a hug as well, and imagine that it's Bailey I'm hugging too. Thinking of her makes my heartache. She should be the one visiting me too and telling me all about her pack and how happy she is. We should be doing this together, but...she's gone.

Ben must see in my eyes what I'm thinking because he nods and holds his hand over his chest. It's something he and I would do any time either of us thought of Bailey as a sign that we are thinking of her. Mom moves closer and wraps her hand in Ben's and the movement makes something catches the light. I fix my eyes on their joined hands and notice an amazingly beautiful diamond ring on my mother's hand.

*"Mom! You're engaged?"* I sign and her face lights up instantly.

*"I was going to tell you soon but I wanted to give you time to settle first."* She suddenly looks sad. *"I'm sorry."*

I shake my head. *"I am so happy for you. Both of you."* I sign and pull them both in for another hug.

Ben and my mom are both Betas, and even though technically they could become part of a pack if they wished to they never wanted that. They wanted to live just the two of them once Bailey and I found our packs. Many Betas who decide not to live in a pack have traditional marriages since they won't have any bond marks.

Speaking of marks, I recognize two very steady anchors sitting in the back of my mind.

*"I have something to tell you too."* I sign. "Let's go inside."

I weave my arm through my mom's and turn to lead them back inside the house, and I smile because all of the guys are standing in the doorway waiting for us. They even look a little nervous even though they met my mom and Ben before.

*"They look scared."* Mom signs as we move closer.

*"Things are more official now. You are their family too now."* I sign back and her shoulders shake wiht laughter.

I can still remember the sound of her laugh when she does that.

*"Are you okay?"* Milo signs to me as the others step back and let mom and Ben inside.

I nod and he threads our hands together at the same time that someone else takes my other hand. His scent gives him away and there is a playful tug on one of my two bonds to tell me it's Bennett. He is a lot more playful than I expected him to be. I turn to smile up at him and raise a brow at his teasing. That makes him smile wide at me and he leans down tugging away the shoulder of my shirt and placing a kiss on his mark. I bump him with my shoulder and he nuzzles his face in my neck before standing up straight again.

The guys lead mom and Ben into one of the other sitting rooms. It looks like a more traditional living room and a room I hadn't seen yet. I glance around but even though it's nice I prefer our usual room to this one hands down. I release the guys so that I can sit next to mom and I notice her smiling at something over my shoulder. When I turn to see what's going on I see Milo and Bennett facing each other in what looks like a heated discussion. Well, heated for them.

*"What's wrong?"* I sign to my mom.

*"They are arguing over who gets to sit next to you."* She wiggles her eyebrows at me and I roll my eyes.

These boys. I can only imagine how much they will fight once I am bonded to all of them.

Milo and I spent some...time together earlier so it is only fair that I let Bennett sit next to me. I sign this to Milo and he concedes but I feel a hint of annoyance through his bond. He can't hide behind his stone face with me now that I can feel all of his emotions. I was annoyed earlier by the fact they could do the same with me but I think I like that no one else will know Milo as I will. The real him anyway.


**Declan**


We have been sitting in this room for a good five minutes now and no one has said a word. This isn't the first tie we have met Luna's mom but it feels different now.

"I'm sorry this is a little awkward isn't it?" Luna's mom, Marie, asks wiht a chuckle.

The guys let out a sort of relieved laugh.

"It is, yes. Even though we just spoke to you on the phone this feels very monumental." Rowan says and I have to agree.

This is Luna's new home and I guess we are all a little worried about what Marie thinks about it. I'm worried that she will think we have not been taking good enough care of Luna but I am ready to assure her that I make sure Luna eats well. It might seem silly to some people but it is no small thing to me. I want Luna to be healthy and happy so I will make sure she is well fed.

It was the same thing I did for my sister when she was still alive. My mom left us when she was only a little over five years old, and I was barely eighteen. I didn't have a job or a place for us to live but I was determined to take care of my sister no matter what. We spent many weeks in a homeless shelter and I made sure that I was first in line when food was served to be sure she could eat. Growing up I had learned how to play the guitar so she and I would sit in the park and I would play for tips. I couldn't get a real job and leave her alone at the shelter, so this was all I could do.

While I was playing one day a man approached me with a job offer.

"You are a big guy, and exactly what I've been looking for." He told me before handing me a card. "My name is Carl Stein, call me when you're ready for something better than playing for change."

He was a washed-up boxer who owned a gym. I told him that I didn't know how to box, but he said he could train me free of charge. My sister was my excuse for not accepting his offer but he had a solution for this as well. He promised that my sister was welcome to sit in on my training sessions and even offered us the apartment he had over the gym. It seemed like the perfect offer in every way and I was a desperate kid, so I agreed.

As he promised, I was trained by him and I had my first fight a couple of months later. With his help, I won several fights and soon was even getting requests to fight well-known fighters. My success was hard and fast and paid off almost immediately. I should have known that it was all too good to be true. After six months I was making enough money to afford a place for my sister and me. That was the first step to when things started to go downhill. Carl didn't invite us to live above the gym from the goodness of his heart. He did it so he could keep tabs on me at all times, and mentioning moving out did not make him happy.

The next fight he told me that I needed to throw the fight as punishment for not being grateful for all he's done. He added on the threat that my sister would pay if I didn't listen to him. So I did. I threw the fight and the next and the next just as he asked. Then one day I came back to the apartment to find him with my sister on his lap. I freaked out and pulled her away from him and slugged him hard. We struggled and he hit me hard enough to have my vision spinning, and for a split second I blacked out. When I came to I saw my sister hanging on to him and screaming...trying to stop him from hurting me more.

The rest happened so fast. One second she was screaming and the next her small body was crumbling to the ground. Carl had pushed her away making her hit her head on the counter nearby. I screamed and stumbled to my feet to get to her, but when I pulled her into my arms she didn't move. I shook her to get her to wake up but she wasn't breathing. Carl ran off but I needed help. I set her down carefully and called for an ambulance. It was too late...she was gone.

I had lost my sister trying to give her a better life. Trying to take care of her...

Her loss messed me up so badly that I was ready to end things for good, and then Rowan sat next to me at a bar. He gave me a second chance and got me through a dark time in my life. All so that I could meet a beautiful Omega and care for her as in a way I wasn't able to care for my sister.