HIS SPECIAL SECOND CHANCE LUNA

Chapter five

Brian blinked, hardly willing to believe it, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. It's faint but it's definitely her scent. She's here."

"I told you lucky number seven," Brian grinned. Spying their approaching hosts, he said, "But let's keep it together for now."

Aaron growled. His brown eyes swirled amber as Ray pressed closer, wanting nothing more than to tear straight through the pack until he found his mate. He had waited long enough.

"Easy Aaron," Brian muttered, feeling Aaron's aura washing over him. "Your mate is here, right? Well, we'll be going on a tour soon, so it'll be the perfect time to find her, right?"

"Right." Aaron breathed deep, slowly regaining control.

Ray whimpered, 'Mate!'

'I know. We'll find her. We are not leaving without her.'

'Yes! Find Mate!' Ray finally receded, allowing him to withdraw his aura.

'Patience, buddy. We'll find her.'

***

Aaron stepped out of the bathroom drying his hair before dressing. After a tedious tour of Mountain Dew's packhouse and surrounding grounds, he now had to sit through a welcome party with his hosts.

Ray impatiently prowled the back of his mind. They had picked up their mate's scent just about everywhere, but it was always faint and impossible to track.

His mate was like a ghost: everywhere and nowhere, except in the packhouse. Oddly enough, her scent was everywhere except within it. It was strange.

The packhouse was the one place most wolves spent the majority of their time, especially unmated ones. It was only through mingling and meeting others that one found their mate after all. Unless...

Had his mate given up on finding him? Or did she have a mate previously and lost him? Though he was somewhat disappointed he would not be her first, his heart also ached for her if she had gone through the pain of losing a mate.

Ray whimpered his sympathy. In either case, they wouldn't know the answer until they found her.

Dressing in a pair of simple slacks and a button-down shirt, Aaron was ready long before Brian arrived to collect him. Together they headed to the back patio where tables and decorative lights had been set up. Pack members manned grills and a steady stream of omega servers brought out salads and sides from the kitchen.

Every pack he visited insisted on these welcome parties, hoping to impress him. This meant he sat through the same party seven times, only the faces changed. Still, it was a pleasant and relaxed atmosphere.

Aaron saw several of his warriors mingling with the crowd. Aside from Brian, his escort was comprised of unmated wolves.

It was not only difficult for alphas to find their fated mates but also for warriors to find theirs.

To help his warriors as much as possible, he always traveled with unmated ones, giving them the opportunity to search for their mates. Whenever his warriors found their mates, he was both happy for them and jealous. But now, finally, he was close to finding his own mate.

Reaching the coolers, Aaron considered his options. There were bottles of water and a few sodas but most were beer. That fact alone wouldn't bother him, as werewolves' superior recovery rate eliminated alcohol almost as soon as it was imbibed. However, werewolves had developed their own brews using small amounts of aconite, otherwise known as wolfsbane.

In large amounts, the herb was deadly, but in small doses, in addition to alcohol, it slowed their recovery rate and allowed them to get drunk.

There were three different strengths to this special concoction determined by how much aconite was used. It was easy to tell the strength of the three brews based on the color of the label: blue for the weakest followed by amber and finally red for the strongest.

Looking in the coolers, Aaron was rather disappointed to see the majority were red-labeled with a few amber ones but no blue.

Ray growled as Aaron grabbed an amber-labeled bottle. He supposed it wouldn't look good for an alpha to walk around with a bottle of soda though he had no intention of drinking the beer in his hand. The red-labeled beer wasn't even allowed in his own territory.

Greeting nervous pack members, he made his way to his host who held one of the red-labeled bottles with two empty ones on the table in front of him.

Aaron was careful to keep his expression neutral. Ray hated it when Aaron imbibed aconite beer as it caused some pain to their wolf spirits and weakened their connection. Aaron wondered if Alpha Carlos could even feel his wolf anymore after three.

Brian joined Aaron, shooting him a glance, seeing their host's growing stock of empty bottles. No doubt the Beta was thinking the same thing he was.

They didn't have a problem with someone kicking back and relaxing, but that didn't mean there wasn't a need for self-control.

"Alpha Aaron," Luna Jessica greeted, sauntering toward him in a rather short skirt and a blouse so tight she was practically bursting out of it. She sidled close to him fondling his arm and making his skin crawl. "How do you like our little party?"

"It's nice to see the whole pack together," Aaron agreed, gritting his teeth, trying to control Ray, who wanted nothing more than to rip out her throat as she stroked his arm.

"I'm sure it's far below what you're used to," Luna Jessica smiled, batting her eyes. "You're from an ancient pack, so this must be quaint."

Aaron's brow furrowed, trying to figure out if she was complimenting his pack or insulting her own.

A pup brushed past them chasing her brother. He chuckled at the pups' excitement. Tonight must feel like a festival.

Beside him Luna Jessica practically snarled, "Where is that useless, wolfless girl? These spawns are her responsibility."

Aaron frowned.

A Luna was the heart and soul of her pack and the one who secured its future. As such, lunas were particularly maternal, treating all pups like their own. He recalled the rumors Brian mentioned during the drive.

Though it was far from proof, he found it hard to believe she was a true Luna. "Finally!" Luna Jessica exclaimed, moving away much to his relief.

Aaron sighed as the night breeze cleared away her overwhelming perfume. A new scent reached him far more intoxicating than any artificial odor. It was a mix of sage and lilac and made Ray practically roll onto his back.

'Mate! Mate is here!'

Aaron turned into the breeze and watched as a petite she-wolf stepped onto the patio. She was rather pale for a werewolf, but her hair was a mane of rich copper waves.

Her clothing was simple: turtleneck, denim jacket and jeans that hugged her small frame and teased him with what lay underneath. But it was her eyes that captivated him. Her gaze shimmered red in the moonlight.

Aaron broke into a sweat, his hands went clammy and his throat constricted at the vision in front of him.

After a decade of searching, he finally found her. And she was perfect. Ray practically bounced off the walls of his mind.

Their mate was here!

"Miss Hope!" an excited squeal erupted from the crowd as several pups emerged from the crowd. They ran up his mate like moths drawn by a flame.