Becoming a Leader

Chapter Fourteen - Luna Ceremony

I wake up the next morning to find Merrick sleeping on the couch in our room. After I told him about the girl in the woods he sent Zane and Griffin to find her. He told me to go about my day and he would deal with it. I tried telling him that I wanted to help but he wouldn’t let me. He said he didn’t want anything to happen to me, that he’s already caused me enough pain and that he was sorry. We still haven’t talked about what happened yesterday and I didn’t see him at lunch or dinner. After time alone to myself I thought about everything. From what happened, to what Zane said, and what Emma had told me earlier in the week. I know he’s a powerful man and a strong Alpha but I never imagined that he would hurt me. I know he didn’t mean to and he wasn’t himself but that still doesn’t make it right. I get out of bed and head to the bathroom. I get into the shower after removing my clothes and the wrap on my hand. The bruises on my wrist are almost gone and my hand isn’t as swollen as yesterday. I wash my hair and body, taking my time under the warm water. After stepping out I dry off and go to the sink to brush my hair and teeth. I hear a knock at the door and walk over to open it. Merrick is standing in front of me looking exhausted. He has bags under his eyes and his hair is all over the place. 

“I just wanted to check on you.” He says and looks down at my hand. 

“I’m fine, will you actually help me wrap it up?” I ask and see hope in his eyes. 

“Of course.” He answers. 

I finish in the bathroom and grab the wrap that I removed before showering. When I step out of our bathroom I see that Merrick has already grabbed me underwear and a shirt to put on. I smile at the small gesture and put them on. I sit on the bed and Merrick joins me, taking the wrap and gently picks my hand up. 

“Skylla I can’t tell you how truly sorry I am. I know what I did was wrong and I never wanted you to see that side of me.” He says as he starts to wrap my hand up.

“Merrick I forgive you, but don’t ever think you need to hide any side of yourself from me.You are my mate and I accept you for all that you are. Yes it scared the crap out of me seeing you that way and it hurt, not only my hand but heart. We are supposed to be equals and the way you treated me yesterday wasn’t right. After I told you about the traitor you wouldn’t even let me help, I’m the Luna of this pack and it’s my responsibility to protect it just as much as yours. We need to work together on things and you need to let me help. You need to get your temper under control, can you do this for me? I’m not asking you to change who you are because I love you but I don’t want to fear you every time you get angry.” 

“I promise you I will work on my temper and start treating you as an equal. I love you Sky, so much.” He replies and kisses my now wrapped hand. 

“Thank you.” I say and cup his cheek with my free hand. “Did you guys catch that girl?” 

“Sadly no, I think she may have heard the guys coming and took off. We know exactly who it is so everyone knows to inform us if she comes snooping back around.”

“Who is she?” I ask making myself more comfortable on the bed.

“Her name is Bridgette. She’s a pack slut who took a liking to Alec before he was banished.”

“Did anyone ever take a liking to you?”

I watch as Merrick becomes uncomfortable from my question. “Not necessarily, I’ve always had girls throw themselves at me but I shot them done. There was one girl who I had…. Relations with but it was a one time thing and I soon regretted it. We both did, she found her mate a week later. I was closing in on my nineteenth birthday and felt sorry for myself that I hadn’t found my mate. If I could go back and change things I would. You are the most amazing thing to ever happen to me and I don’t ever want to lose you.” 

I’m shocked at his words but I can’t blame him. “If I was in your place I would have done the same thing. We expect to find our mates right away but for some that doesn’t happen. I’m glad we found each other though”

“I am too.” Merrick leans in and kisses my lips but my stomach growls, interrupting us from going any further. “Let’s go get you something to eat before you have to get ready.”

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My hair and makeup are finally done and Emma and Sydney are helping me into my dress. Lucy did an amazing job with picking everything out. My dress is the most beautiful thing I have ever worn in my life. It’s a light blue silk gown with a plunging neckline and back. It fits tightly to my body to show off my curves and there’s a slit that comes up to my thigh on the left side. My hair is pulled into a side bun with small ringlets that fall around my face. My makeup is simple, with light foundation, some light blue eyeshadow and some eyeliner to finish the look. Valencia walks up with a pair of silver heels and a velvet box. She helps me into the shoes and hands me the box.

“Alpha asked me to give this to you.” She says and takes a step back.

I open the box to find a pearl necklace with matching earrings. “They’re beautiful, will you help me get them on?” 

Valencia gives me a small smile and takes the necklace fout of the box. She fastens it around my neck then removes the earrings to put them in. 

“You look amazing.” Lucy says while coming into the room.

“Thank you, you did a great job picking out my dress. I love it.” I tell her.

“Are you ready?” Lucy asks.

I take a deep breath and answer, “Yes.”  I follow her out of the room with my friends behind me. When we make it downstairs I see Merrick leaning against the frame of the front door. He looks over to me and smiles. He has on a dark blue suit and a light blue tie that matches my dress, black shiny shoes and his hair is slicked back. He looks so handsome and I can’t help but stare at him. 

“You look stunning.” He says while taking my hand. 

“Thank you, and thank you for my gift.” I tell him.

“You’re welcome my love.” He kisses my head and we start making our way out of the house. I see that they set up a table on the front porch with a small knife. Merrick stops us at the table and I become nervous. “Don’t worry angel.” He whispers in my ear. All our people are standing in front of us, waiting for the ceremony to begin. “I know we already had Skylla take her vows as Luna but I would like for her to have a proper ceremony.” I watch as he picks up the knife and takes my hand. He puts the tip of the knife into my palm,pressing down gently and making a small cut. “As you promised to protect this pack, we promise to protect you.” Merrick takes the knife and cuts his hand like he did to mine. He puts the knife back down on the table and puts our hands together. The wind around us sturs and I feel a surge of energy flow through my body. I feel physically stronger and I feel the ties to the pack become even more powerful. “I present you Luna Skylla Layton.” Merrick shouts and the crowd goes wild. “Let’s eat!” 

We make our way to the back of the house and I see that Lucy had a buffet style dinner set up for tonight. There are tables everywhere, flowers and lights floating in the pool, and strings of lights hanging in the trees. 

“Did the pack do all of this?” I ask, amazed by the sight in front of me.

“No Mom had her restaurant cater the food and drinks. But she had some pack members help with the decorations.” He answers as we pick up our plates to get food. 

“It all smells and looks amazing.” I say. I start getting a few things to try but realize there is too much for my small plate. 

“I’ll take you to the restaurant soon so you can try whatever you don’t get here.” Merrick whispers in my ear. I forget about the fact he can read my thoughts because of the mate bond. We get our drinks at the end of the buffet and Merrick leads me to our table. 

“Your mom has really outdone herself.” I say after taking my first bite of food. 

“She’s great at party planning. She’s always enjoyed doing them.” He replies. 

I watch as all of our pack members stand in line and get their food. I can’t believe I am Luna to such a large pack. Even though they are dead, I hope I can make my parents proud of the person and leader I will become. The celebration goes on for hours. I swear Merrick and I don’t get to our room until after midnight and we are both exhausted. We get undressed and shower so I can wash the makeup and hairspray off before turning in for the night. As we crawl into our bed Merrick looks at me and says, “I am so happy you are my mate and the Luna to this pack. I couldn’t do this with anyone else by my side. I love you.”

“I love you too.” I reply and scooch in closer to him. “You seriously know how to make me feel better. I was so nervous today, I don’t want to let anyone down.” 

“Angel, you are not going to let anyone down. We all make mistakes but I have faith in you. I know it’s scary at first but after a while you will get the hang of being a Luna and be amazing.” He kisses my nose and holds me close to his chest.