AllFreeNovel
Share Us
EMILY
Though it had only been two days, I was hesitant to make any decisions. I spent the first day sleeping and healing from my battle with Morgan, though I still had cuts and bruises riddled all over my body. But now that I was well enough to get out of bed, I desperately wanted to crawl back under the covers and hide from the responsibilities as luna. I felt like I was overstepping boundaries when I delegated and led the pack.
I had no problem stepping into the role when Cassian was in his deep sleep. Even if I didn’t fit the shoes, I trudged myself forward, forcing each step. But now that Cassian had called me his luna, the pressure had surfaced.
The thought of him expecting me to lead should’ve filled me with the confidence to do the job. He trusted me, right? Then why did I doubt myself so much?
Fortunately, not much had happened, but what if something did happen? Could I handle a major decision without Cassian present? I felt anxious delegating tasks—how could I handle something bigger?
I have to hand it to him… Cassian has a tough job, and he does it well. The responsibility was suffocating. Seriously, I had no idea how he handled it.
Maybe it was easier for him because he was respected. He’s the son of the previous alpha and was destined for his role. It was expected of him.
A brief thought passed through my mind—What if the expectations were just as heavy for him?
Still, he didn’t have wolves giving him dirty looks.
Half the wolves around the warehouse turned up their noses when I came around. They rarely interacted with me, and conversations were tense. I’d managed to grow close—well, close enough—to the head wolves of each “department.” They didn’t refer to their skills as departments, but I found it easier to navigate through the pack if I thought of them as managers to departments that filled a store. The store being the pack, of course.
Sam was the assistant general manager. Tiny was the manager for the tracking department, and his brother Gus headed the patrol. Adina, the female wolf that had given me trouble in my first meeting, was the lead security manager and even held a position higher than Gus. She was his manager. But Cassian was the head honcho—the one who was in charge of the entire operation.
Maybe it sounded silly but thinking of the pack as such made it easier to think logically and rationally about any decisions, which was why I understood their reluctance to accept me. Here I was, an outsider, coming in to take over. They had their routines, their processes. They had dedicated the entirety of their existence to help the pack. And I came strolling in—a half-witch with not the slightest clue about being a luna—and claimed the position.
But damn, they could’ve been a bit more welcoming. Maybe I’d have a little more certainty in my actions if I was met with warm smiles and not cold sneers. But when I’d overheard two women talking about me in the warehouse cafeteria, I’d snapped. They weren’t even trying to hide their obnoxious opinions! Blatant and obvious, they loudly spoke as if I wasn’t only a few feet away.
Ember and Sam were on either side of me, and she grabbed my hand to calm me down. She called it giving me good vibes with her psychic powers, but I knew she was lying because a sudden aggression had taken over. Maybe it was my emotional state or the stress. Perhaps it was my wolf side surfacing, as Ember had said before.
Whatever it was, I turned on my heels and snapped, “Say it to my face or shut the hell up.”
The woman looked younger than me. Possibly teenagers? One girl—the timid one—apologized profusely and turned away in humiliation. But her friend, the defiant one who spoke so many cruel words about me, crossed her arms and stepped closer.
“You want me to say it to your face? Fine! I don’t think you’re fit to be a luna.” She turned around, facing her friend and the onlookers, with a triumphant smile. “For starters, you’re not even a wolf.”
Her cocky attitude made me want to smack her pretty little face. But I didn’t. Tempting as it was, I turned into the pathetic defensive mode, attempting to justify my position that she had no right to question.
“I’m half-wolf! And I’m Cassian’s mate, which means I’m every bit entitled to be a luna.”
The girl scoffed in disbelief. “Oh, you’re a wolf, huh? Show me. Go ahead, show me your wolf form. I want to see you change.”
Her friend nudged her arm, begging her to stop. “You’re being disrespectful to Alpha Cassian’s mate.”
“I’m just speaking what everyone else is too afraid to say. So, go on, witch girl. Prove that you’re one of us. Change for me.”
I narrowed my eyes, glowering at the arrogant little bitch. Who the hell was she to make such demands? “Even if I could go through the change, I wouldn’t do it simply because you asked.”
Taking a step closer, I left Ember’s and Sam’s sides and squared off against the girl. “You know, your friend is smart. You should listen to her. Let’s set aside the fact that treating your alpha’s mate with such hostility is disrespectful—it’s beyond rude to make such demands. Would you ask this of Sam?”
I gestured to Sam, my eye catching Liam and Tristan in the distance—two “managers” with whom I’d begun to feel comfortable. I pointed to them and asked, “What about Liam or Tristan? Let’s find out, shall we? Tristan!” I called out. “Liam! Could you come here for a moment, please?”
They turned to face us and came over immediately, all while the girl looked at her friend with what I could only describe as an “oh shit” expression. A smile grew on my lips as I reveled in putting this girl in her place.
When the guys came over, I thanked them for taking time from their busy schedules to settle such trivial matters. “This young woman—er, what did you say your name was?”
“Sonya,” she mumbled.
“Well, Sonya here is awfully interested in the wolf transformation. Tell me, has she ever asked either of you to show her your transition?”
Confused, their eyes traveled from me to Sonya and then eyed each other as if they weren’t sure how to answer. “Uh, no?” Liam said.
