Loving Luna - Sasha

Chapter One - Departure

Sasha Lavoie stood with her arms crossed, glaring at her father, George. He, however, was uninterested at her 'childish' behavior. She still couldn't believe what was happening.

"I truly hate you right now!" She spat out. He raised his eyebrows at her words.

"I won't tolerate that tone, Sasha." She threw up her hands in frustration. "Nor your behavior." He added, irritated.

"I just don't understand how you can send me away to another pack!" She hesitated but the wildness in her fought through and she added, "And marry me off to the alpha!" Immediately she regretted her words but her anger was burning. She watched as he continued reading some notes on his desk.  Her father's pack, Night Drifters was all she knew and she hated the idea of leaving her pack. He was ignoring her. After all, he had already explained to her in detail as to how the arrangement had been made. A friend, one that she's never heard of since now, was collecting on his debt owed to him by her Alpha father. This friend, Ayden Wood, alpha of Midnight pack, was making alliances with her father. 

"It will not help you to sulk about this. Pack your things as your husband to be will be here tomorrow." Before she could respond, he waved his hand, dismissing her. It was pointless to fight about it. The decision had been made or agreement or whatever they wanted to call it. Sasha decided to call it unfair. She wanted to find her mate and then be married. Not to be shipped off to who knows where and to promise her life to a man she doesn't even know. Sasha left his office and went upstairs, closing her bedroom door behind her she made a beeline for her bed. Throwing herself down, she battled not to cry. 

"Worst nightmare ever!" She groaned into her pillow.

"Sasha, do not be upset please." She lifted herself and looked at her mother, who had entered her room.

"It's not fair, mama. I want my love story to be like yours and papas!" She wailed like a child, although she was far from a child at twenty-two years of age. Her mother, Andrea, smiled at her.

"I know this isn't what you envisioned for yourself, but consider it an adventure. Who knows you may learn to love Ayden."

"I don't want to learn to love anyone! I want to find my mate!"

"Don't be so melodramatic Sasha. You know that finding a mate is a lot harder nowadays." Sasha sighed. Her mother was right, a lot of the pack members were falling in love with the old fashioned way. The hope of finding one's soul mate was almost a myth.

"But it does still happen." She argued stubbornly.

"It does, but a lot of the packs look to each other for safety and use arranged marriages to help and protect their packs." Sasha knew her mother was talking the truth and deep down she understood. She was just disappointed. She smiled softly and got off of the bed.

"You are right mama, I will make the best of this new journey." The last thing she didn't want was to let her parents down.

"Good girl, now pack your things and go to bed. Ayden will be here fairly early in the morning." And with a kiss on Sasha's forehead, she left. Sasha went about packing her things with dread. Tomorrow was not looking as bright as she wanted but she no longer had a choice. Her father had already married her two elder sisters off, she should've known her time would come. Emily, her eldest sister, age twenty-nine, was married off first five years ago. Sasha knew her sister had done so without a fight and she and her husband, a beta of a neighboring pack, were quite happy. Carl was the beta of the Blue Moon pack and although she had only met him at their wedding, he seemed nice. Felicity, middle child, age twenty-five, was married off three years ago to help the pack with protection from the hunters. Sasha remembered how unhappy Felicity had been with the arrangement. Her husband, Warren, alpha of the Red Tide pack was ruthless, or so rumor had it. She had not seen him nor her sister since she had left. However, she did know that the two did eventually learn to love each other.

"I can only hope Ayden is not a monster," Sasha said to herself as she finished packing and got into bed.

Sasha woke up with a heavy heart. Groaning as she got out of bed and took a shower. Dressing carefully in a pair of black pants and a grey top, she combed out her long wavy black hair and pulled on her favorite pair of boots. After giving herself a final look over, she deemed herself ready for whatever awaited her. 

"Sasha, I'm afraid Ayden has let us know that he won't be picking you up personally. He had some urgent business to attend too." Her father announced as she entered the living room. Sasha wasn't sure if she was relieved or annoyed at the news. She followed her parents silently outside where a driver was waiting by a dark blue landrover. Sasha held her head high and said her goodbyes to her parents. The pack had gathered on the grounds to bear witness to her departure. She took a look around at the pack who she had fought beside, loved and helped. The driver took her bags and put them in the back of the landrover. 

"I am Joshua, beta to alpha Ayden." His introduction was cold. He seemed distracted and uninterested in her. Not that it bothered her much. She made herself comfortable in the passenger seat and waved her final goodbyes to her parents that watched as Joshua drove away. She watched him out of the corner of her eye. A million thoughts were going threw her mind. Now normally she would have no problem speaking her mind, but honestly, she was feeling nervous. Instead of meeting Ayden she would only get to meet him when they arrived in his territory. As they left the only place she knew she tried not to give in to the tears that were threatening to fall.

"Sorry for the distraction, I was calculating the time we would arrive. How are you feeling?" Joshua smiled warmly at her and she felt herself relax. Alright, he didn't seem so bad. Maybe Ayden wouldn't be bad either. 

"Honestly, I am nervous." She laughed softly in embarrassment.

"No need to be. I am sure you will feel right at home." They didn't talk anymore after that. At some point, she just fell asleep and it wasn't until he gently shook her that she woke up.

"We aren't far now, I thought I'd make a quick stop for you to freshen up?" Sasha nodded as she wiped her eyes. She couldn't believe she'd just fallen asleep like that. She grabbed her bag and headed to the restrooms. It was late afternoon and the drive had been peaceful enough for her to give in to sleep. That was her reason and she was sticking to it. Splashing water on her face and combing her hair did make her feel somewhat better. She stared into the mirror, her bright sea-green eyes staring back at her. Once she felt as ready as she could be she made her way back to the car. Joshua grinned at her.

"Ready?"

"As ready as I will ever be." She replied with a smile. And once again they were on there way. She could only wait to see what awaited her next.