Luna On The Run!

Still Alpha Female Adlin Rain’s POINT OF VIEW

Albert Zane and David Gorgio finally come down the stairs.

Albert Zane’s eyes are fixed on me and I smile back at him. All eyes are on us now, everyone knows his desire to be my mate. When he takes the last step, he walks towards me, his eyes softening. He pulls me in his arms, buries his face in my neck and breathes in my scent.

Nothing. Nothing happens.Content bel0ngs to Nôvel(D)r/a/ma.Org.

The intoxicating scent that should be driving me mad, the sparks that should be ravaging my body and the attraction that should be urging me to mark him instantly, are missing.

Reality rears its ugly head: we are not fated mates.

I feel Albert Zane stiffen as the signs fail him too. But his arms around me do not slacken; on the contrary, he tightens them like a vice.

“No! It can’t be! You are mine!” he cries in pain.

He sniffed my neck and shoulders again, but nothing changed. The result remains the same, we are not mates. But Albert Zane is not ready to let me go, he holds me tighter until I can barely breathe.

“Son, she is not the one. Accept that, please. Save yourself a total mental breakdown.” Alpha Zane gently tries to pull his son away from me but fails. With a deep sigh, he sees a repetition of his own past pain, when he clung so tightly to my mother, while she was not meant for him. Everything plays out in his eyes.

“Let’s reject our fated and be together. I swear I’ll always love you, Adlin Rain. I breathe for you, I cannot live without you”. His breath rasped out of his nose, his heart pounding like a madman. I make no effort to escape his embrace, knowing how difficult this moment is for him. Whatever happens, I want to keep him as a friend but he will have to accept the inevitable, he has little choice.

Finally, he calms down a little and lets go of me. His hands remain on my shoulders, his face distorted with grief. “Adlin Rain, please. Stay with me. This is madness, I have always felt that you belong to me. Only in your presence do I feel complete.”

“Albert Zane, that will change once you meet your mate, believe me. What you feel is a childhood crush, it’s proven just now. Let’s both wait for our true mate, it will save us heartache in the future,” I whisper.

I take his hand and turn him towards the guests. “Can you smell your mate here? You were too focused on me. Try to find her,” I urge him. Hesitantly, he looks ahead and squeezes my hand as if he never wants to let go.

“No, she’s not here. Goddess, maybe I don’t have a mate, not everyone does. Adlin Rain …”. He turns to me again but his father is in front of him.

“No, my son. Adlin Rain is not your mate and I will not allow you to sacrifice her happiness for yours. She has a mate of her own who will come for her one day. And when he does, you should not stand in the way.” He took his son from me and led him outside. The ballroom was silent, everyone felt sorry for the Alpha’s son.

But then the opening melody plays again, and my mother runs to see my twin brother, who has not found a mate either. She looked disappointed, she had really hoped to have a daughter-in-law and to become a grandmother soon. David Gorgio has to take over from our father, but Dad put the condition that he needs to have a Luna beside him first. So today does not seem to be his lucky day.

As they head for the dance floor, there is a sudden commotion in the background.

“The royal jet has just landed,” someone whispers. The music stops as everyone looks to see which Lycan is visiting our party. The King and Queen have not confirmed their presence but of course, a representative is possible.

And then Princess Michaela enters, gloriously dressed in a low-cut white gown that hangs down to her ankles. The bottom is wide with frills, her appearance is very elitist.

“David Gorgio, who said you didn’t have a mate? I’ve known you were mine for several months, but I wanted that thirsty bitch to realize she’s betting on the wrong horse. It’s shameful the way she’s chasing after you, as if she has no dignity,” she sounds merciless.

Everyone gasps at her insensitivity and arrogance.

And then it dawned on me that Michaela had actually turned eighteen a few months ago. In the kingdom, a great celebration was held to honor her but none of us ordinary wolves were invited. She must have found out about my brother a week later when she came to visit my mother on the Queen’s orders.

‘MATE,’ David Gorgio exclaimed at the sight of the princess, his eyeballs jet black with lust. The dark hairs of his wolf appear on his face as his breath falters. But then the unexpected happens.

My brother fiercely fights his wolf and for what seems like an eternity he manages to get him down. His eyes change back to the gray-blue mix of our parents. And when the princess tried to wrap her arms around his neck, he took a step to the side.

He looked at her with disgust, his eyes spitting a devastating fire.

“Never! My pack deserves a caring Luna, one who respects others’ feelings and does not see them destroyed. What you did was purposely hurt Esmee, break Clarita’s and take pleasure in it. You could have informed me that we were mates long ago but you didn’t, just to enjoy her heartbreak. I don’t want a cunning Luna,” he roars.

“I, David Gorgio, future Alpha of Eclipse Howl and son of Alpha Gorgio and Luna Ariel, reject you, Princess Michaela Vasconcellos, as my mate and future Luna. From now on, we are mere strangers and have no emotional ties.”

All the jaws in the room dropped to the floor.

Never before had a member of the royal family, a Lycan at it, been rejected. Lycans in the family are always a status upgrade, and the pups are always stronger than those of ordinary werewolves. With a Lycan like Luna, Eclipse Howl would be stronger than before. Jace’s mating with Fiona, also a Lycan, has produced strong warriors, and their eldest son, Hester, promises to be an excellent Beta for Eclipse Howl.

No one understands David Gorgio’s actions, they seem like a selfish, thoughtless impulse that does not serve his pack.

Princess Michaela is grounded in horror.

She had been so amused by Esmee Clarita’s infatuation. She and her friends had been laughing at the girl behind her back.

“David Gorgio, you can’t do this. I’m a royal, a Lycan. No one rejects us!” she cried, her face white as a sheet. Her lips twitched in humiliation; she had not expected this to come. She had counted on herself being a coveted trophy that my brother could never reject.

“Yes, I just did. And now, accept my rejection or I swear there is much more I can say about you,” he threatens. He grabs her upper arm and shakes her.

“Now!”

“I … I accept,” she stutters, trembling in fear. I almost feel sorry for her.

I think I’m a lucky one here. Surely it is better not to find a mate on your anniversary than to be rejected on the spot. Holy Goddess, I hope my mate is happy with me, that he finds me worthy enough to stand beside him. I pray to Selene that I will not end up like this princess.

“Esmee Clarita, where are you?” David Gorgio’s eyes now scan the crowd in search of the girl who has been a thorn in his side for years. But can’t find her.

“She’s gone, she’s not here anymore,” I tell everyone…