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Shaking my head to her question, I continued to the dining room. I had no grounds to be upset with these females who wanted to hope that they were Nolen’s mate. I mean, if I were of age, I’d hope too! But I wasn’t; being three years younger kept me from finding my mate, and Nolen would find his mate tonight. I had contemplated asking him to choose me, and I don’t know why. Probably because I had fallen for him when I shouldn’t have. Nolen needed to have his fated mate to be able to grow stronger, to be able to be stronger, and he would not get that with a chosen mate.
Danika and I walked into the dining room, and I spotted Sawyer and Nolen talking to his parents. They were both in Ts and shorts; Nolen’s muscles rippled with each movement. The dining room had been set up with streamers and balloons. A long table sat upfront with Nolen’s and my parents sitting there, with Nolen and Sawyer standing in front of them. We sat down on my parents’ other side, and I glanced over at Nolen. He was staring at me, his eyes roaming over me. As he noticed my outfit, heat rushed through my body, and Nolen gulped when our eyes connected. I grinned at him, and he smiled back. His stare gave me confidence that he liked what he saw, making my body heat up more and my nipples to get hard. Damn it, I didn’t have a bra on.
A few omegas brought us some food, and we both thanked them. I began to eat, when Sawyer and Nolen turned and left the dining room. Watching them walk out of sight, I brought my gaze back to my plate, silently wishing he would have stayed and had lunch with me.
I had not seen Nolen since the dining room. But it was now time to start his party, Danika and I made our way to our box. Sawyer and my parents would be on stage with Nolen and his parents. I was excited but also frightened since I would be losing him forever once he locked eyes with his mate. I would be a thing of the past.
Beta Adam joined us in the box, and I glanced nervously around the crowd. Surprisingly enough, females from his pack were among the ones dressed up. She-wolves were adorned with all kinds of jewelry and make-up, trying to impress Nolen. Some gave each other dirty looks while others celebrated with their friends. It was getting closer to when Nolen would turn eighteen, and I knew he would be nervous coming out in front of the pack. He had told me countless times when we were alone.
As both my parents and Nolen’s walked through the crowd, everyone became quiet. The four of them were dressed in nice business casual wear. Sawyer walked out with Nolen, who had changed since I saw him at lunch, and I could tell he was nervous as his eyes scanned the crowd. They both walked up on stage, and Alpha Nero came forward, smiling at everyone. Nolen stood tall next to my brother, and I couldn’t have been more proud of him at that moment.
“Rhyolite pack, it’s almost time to celebrate Nolen’s eighteenth birthday! And we may even find out who will be our next Luna!”
A few of the un-mated she-wolves squealed while others stood there glancing at each other. Nolen’s father turned to him, motioning him forward. Nolen moved to his side. He wore a pair of gym shorts and a tank top; his tattoo peeked out of the shirt.
He glanced up at me and seemed to relax a little bit. That’s when a loud snap resounded through the air. Nolen’s face contorted in pain, but he didn’t make a sound. His eyes changed to a deep golden color as fur sprouted from his body and more snaps sounded out. My breath hitched with each snap of bone as Nolen transformed into his wolf.
The wolf that had taken Nolen’s place was massive; it was black with a grey underbelly. Gasps came from the crowd, and when his head turned in my direction, I felt my heartbeat rapidly in my chest. Those eyes made me weak, and I couldn’t tear mine away from them. If this was happening before my eighteenth birthday, I could only imagine what a real bond would feel like.
Nolen
After I shifted, her scent became unbearable to not glance at her. Oh! And when I did, I got lost in her eyes! She was the one, my mate! But because she was not of age, I would not be able to claim her. I could handle that, because when she turned eighteen, I knew she would accept me.
I turned Sarge’s massive head from her and glanced at my mother and father, tilting my head. It took everything in me to keep from running to her, gathering her up in my arms, and taking us away from this crowd. I had to make it seem that my mate was not here for the time being, and then after the party, I would tell my mother and father.
My mother was crying, and I quickly shifted back as Sawyer brought me another pair of shorts. Pulling them on, I went to my mother and hugged her. “Mother, what’s wrong? Everything is going to be okay.”
Sobbing into my chest, she looked up at me, “Your brother didn’t find his mate when he shifted. Your wolf and his look exactly the same! If this is an omen, I can’t take it!”
I looked up from her to my father, his face had fallen, and I shifted my gaze to Sawyer’s parents; their solemn faces did not help. Turning to Amora, her face brightened from the frown she had moments ago when I’d pulled my eyes from hers. I grinned at her and then shifted my gaze to Beta Adam. He stood there, his arms crossed over his chest, and gave me a curt nod with a hint of a grin. I nodded back to him, bringing my attention back to my mother.
Taking her face in my hands, I made her look at me. I stared into her hazel eyes for a few seconds to make sure she was paying attention to me. “Mother, I swear to you that I will not leave you. You will not have to live this life without me.”
She nodded, and I brought her back into the hug. My father stepped forward, placing his hand on my shoulder as he turned to the pack. “Rhyolite pack! I give you your future, Alpha!”
The pack cheered at the announcement of my future role.
After my shift, the real party started. I tried to stay as far away from Amora as possible, but her scent kept stalking me. Every unmated male in my pack made a move on her, which made me fight to keep Sarge from making me shift and tearing them apart. I couldn’t really blame them. I mean, come on, the outfit she had on hugged her curves, and the color looked amazing on her.
I don’t understand why you don’t go and tell them to keep away from what is ours! Sarge growled at me, his ears back against his head.
We have been over this. She is still too young to know, and I don’t want to sway her, I calmed him, looking back at Amora and the male beside her. He was one of the warrior wolves, and he was fearless for going up to the daughter of an alpha. Tonight would be tough to get through. She was beautiful; there was no denying that, and she was mine. Well, in three years, that is.
“Nolen! Are you okay? You have been staring over there at my sister and her friends for a long time.” I glanced back over to Sawyer and Danika. They both shared a glance before returning their eyes to me. Damn, people were starting to notice. This was not good.
“Yeah, I’m not too sure about that wolf next to them,” I told them, turning my gaze back to Amora and the male wolf. Trying to make it seem I was trying to protect all the females in that group and not just a particular one
“Nolen, do you think that we can talk with you?” My gaze landed on Axel, Lucas, and Daylen. I was still unsure how Axel would be once I was in the Alpha position. He was standing in front of Lucas and Daylen as they flanked him. Which was naturally what they all would do when I stepped into my role.
I turned to them, Sawyer at my flank; he still had doubts about Axel, after what I’d told him he had done when I was younger. “What is it?”
Axel bowed his head to Sawyer and Danika and then to me. Lucas and Daylen kept their eyes lowered from my gaze. “I just wanted to let you know that we will do anything to keep you safe. I will personally not make the same mistake twice.”
I stood there, watching him; Axel kept his eyes lowered and his head bowed. Sighing, I ran my hand through my hair. One of these days, I would have to learn to trust him, and to do that, I would have to start at some point. “Axel, raise your head. We will be running this pack together once I take over. And as long as you keep the promise you just made, we will run it in harmony.”
Axel brought his gaze up to meet mine and nodded, determination painted across his face, along with some sadness. “My last breath will be to protect you and this pack. And the Luna when she is found.”
Chapter Eleven: Visits
