Luna On The Run!

Alpha Female Adlin Rain’s POINT OF VIEW

When I arrive at the high, wide staircase of the packhouse, my parents are already there waiting for me.

My mother, Luna Ariel, sports a big smile on her face, while my father is watching me warily with slit eyes. He is clearly uncomfortable, today may be the day he has to let his firstborn daughter go. No father takes this occasion lightly.

I am the apple of his eye, and along with my twin brother, he has protected me from harm and discomfort all my life. Albert Zane too, of course, whenever he got the chance to be near me. So, I grew up very sheltered but today all that could change. The three men will have to let me go, or I might end up being Albert Zane’s mate.

Albert Zane.

He is my best male friend, always concerned about what I am doing, my great advisor in the business I have set up with Esmee Clarita. He is madly in love with me, and if I had agreed, we would have been mated by now. But I don’t see the point in this, we have to wait for the right time. And that is now, we are both eighteen today, our wolf has the lead to tie us together if we are meant to be.

The plan is that when Esmee Clarita and I come down the stairs, our mates will take us from our parents. If we don’t have a mate tonight, the father will do the opening dance with us. After that, it will be the turn of our twin brothers to appear at the top of the stairs, and we’ll see how that goes.

Albert Zane is not really happy with this arrangement, jealousy burns within him at the possibility of another man being my fated. He wants to be the first one I see when I come down the stairs, he told me last week. He had hugged me for the first time, buried his face in my neck and sniffed my scent. Moon Goddess, I hope tonight doesn’t break his heart.

My father plants a kiss on my temple, while my mother squeezes my hand reassuringly.

“Adlin Rain, today is an important day. Goddess, I wish I could postpone everything, I’m not ready to let you go yet.” My father’s words don’t surprise me, I don’t think he will ever be ready. I already feel sorry for my mate, he will have to love me very much to put up with my father. Not to mention my brother. Hopefully David Gorgio will find his mate today, which will make him pay less attention to me.

“Father, it’s not the end of the world. Wherever I end up, I will always come back to visit you. I will still be your pup,” I try to reassure him. I see his eyes water, this big, strong Alpha clearly struggling to control his emotions.

And then we started the descent.

I look beside me and see that Esmee Clarita is also taking her first steps down. Her face is tense, obviously, she doesn’t want a mate now, at least not until David Gorgio appears.

Looking down, I see one familiar face after another, all handsome men. Unmated Alphas and sons of Alphas stand waiting, some sniffing for the scent that must confirm if I am their fated. Also, my underage friends, sons of my Uncles Zane, Eric, Jace and Kensley, all extended family.

As I approached, one disappointed face after another fell as my father’s mood improved. When I went down to the last step, none of them recognized me as his mate. I guess Albert Zane is getting some good news, his chances of having me all to himself are much better now.

Next to me, I see that no one has claimed Esmee Clarita as their mate either. But there is no smile on her face, on the contrary, she is staring down at the ground in horror, trying hard to find a good position. Something is so wrong with her, I can feel the tension in her as if she would rather be somewhere else than here. I will have to talk to her about this later.

My father takes me in his arms as the opening tune begins.

He looks relieved, he’s probably the only happy wolf in the room at the moment. Smiling, I join him in the first dance moves as we swing across the big dance floor. “What’s up, Dad? You look relieved,” I tease him. He grins, his eyes are shining.

“The fight isn’t over yet, one more hurdle to go. Albert Zane is impatient, according to my son, he can’t wait to show up and claim you. He is a thousand percent certain that you are his fated, as none of those present have been able to recognize you as his mate”.

At this point I must burst out laughing, this male game is certainly amusing. Protective father and brother, lots of admirers around and a confident mate-to-be. To be honest, I let it pass, although the attention is surely flattering. As for me, I accept the Moon Goddess’ choice, she knows better who suits me and what her plan is for my life.

After the opening dance, we walked up to my mother who hugged me. “Happy birthday, my girl. I can’t believe it’s been so long since I gave birth to you. Your father and I have always been proud of you and want you to be happy,” she says softly.

“Without a mate? No one has claimed me. Looks like you won’t be getting rid of me soon and will have to look after me for a few more years.” Grinning, I look from one to the other.

“Hey, Eclipse Howl will always be your home, no matter what happens. And I’m sure your mate will show up one day and make it all worth waiting for. Besides, Albert Zane still has to show up, you know how crazy he is about you.” All three of us laughed at my mother’s words, this young Alpha son has never been very discreet.

“I’m going to join Clarita for a while. I see she’s already done the formal part but she doesn’t seem very happy. And then her crush hasn’t shown up yet, I wonder what went wrong”.

When Clarita saw me coming, she ran towards me. Her hug is desperate, something is definitely going on.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“Hey, David Gorgio is still coming. All is not lost. Didn’t you want my brother to be your mate? Here are your chances”, I tell her in surprise.

“He’s not my mate, Adlin Rain. Let’s get out of here.” Under the surprised looks of the guests, she pulls me outside, into the packhouse garden. We sit on a bench and I look at her questioningly.

“What’s going on, Esmee Clarita? Tell me, I’m your best friend”…