Mark You in This Life

2: The Party

2: The Party

Freya's POV

I made my way down from the Alpha floor, and to the packhouse ballroom. There was an open bar, and a table laden with snacks of all kinds, and it was already pretty crowded. I spotted Darius and Mei at the front of the room, with Mom and Dad by their sides, as they mingled with guests who were giving their congratulations. Darius had one hand on Mei's waist, and the other on her stomach, where her baby bump was. I was filled with pride for both of them. My brother was going to be an amazing Alpha, and my best friend was going to be his Luna. Darius looked at Mei like she was the entire world, and Mei was glowing, not just because of her pregnancy. It really was true what they said, the mate bond did bring out the best qualities in a pair.

I snapped myself out of my state and ordered a glass of white wine, as I looked around the room. Everyone was mingling, especially the unmated members of our packs with the visiting Alphas and Betas. Everyone was hoping that they'd meet their destined mate, and I could see the wheels spinning in some of the unmated pack members' heads, full of thoughts of Luna or Beta ceremonies. And truly, I hoped that it worked out for them. Everyone deserved to meet their mate, and from what I'd been told, the longer one went without finding a mate, the harder it became.

I took a sip of my wine, perfectly content to just people watch for the moment. I was so absorbed in my observations, that I was caught completely off-guard when I felt a tingle go down my spine. A faint scent caught my nostrils, and I sniffed hints of sandalwood, honey, and lavender. My heart started to race, and even though it was cool in the room, thanks to air conditioning, it felt like it was just a little bit hotter, and my breath was short.

Mate is here, Freya. It's faint, and he's not nearby, but he's here. He's at the party.>

Kai's POV

Earlier that same day

"If we miss Darius Wilder's Alpha Ceremony because you just had to flirt with the woman at the diner we stopped at to get lunch, I'm making you run twenty-five miles in human form for training for a month," I said to my Beta, Sergei Tanaka, as he drove us to the Forest Moon territory.

Sergei laughed, flashing me his trademark smug grin. "C'mon, Kai, give me some credit. I could've had a quickie if you weren't in such a hurry."

I rolled my eyes. Sergei was unmated, and not in any rush to find his mate. He had charm, charisma, and good looks in spades, and he knew it better than anyone else. His bedroom was a revolving door of unmated wolves, both male and female alike. And while I wasn't a pure pristine virgin myself, either, I kept telling Sergei he was going to be in for a rude awakening when he met his destined mate. Though whoever ended up mated with Sergei was going to be extremely lucky. Though I didn't think about him in any sort of romantic way, and more like a brother, I couldn't deny that my Beta was a very good-looking man. Sergei was tall, almost as tall as me, but definitely more muscular. He had piercing brown eyes, tan skin, short black hair, and a smile that could kill someone.

"I knew I should have taken Zach with me, "I teased. Zach Jeong, my Gamma, was unmated, and unlike Sergei and I, was making it very clear that he was saving himself for his mate. "He wouldn't have risked us being late because he wanted to get laid."

Sergei laughed loudly at that. "Zach might be the more diplomatic choice, but I'm more fun." I couldn't really deny him that. Zach was great, but he was definitely the more pragmatic out of the three of us. Sergei was definitely the more impulsive of the three of us. That was how it had been since we were kids. I couldn't have asked for a better Beta and Gamma. With the three of us in charge, Silver Mountain only managed to get even stronger since I took over at Alpha at eighteen.

"Who knows," I said, giving him a teasing smile of my own, "Maybe you'll meet your mate, and your days of bed-hopping will be over."

Sergei shrugged. "Nah. I have a feeling that this weekend is going to be pretty uneventful in terms of mate finding, and so does Okami," he said, referring to his wolf. "What about you? You think you might find your mate, Alpha?"

Sergei rarely used my title when it was the two of us unless he was being an ass, which he was now. At twenty-five, I felt no closer to finding my mate than I was at eighteen. And it wasn't like I didn't have anything to offer. I was the Alpha of the Silver Mountain Pack, one of the oldest packs in the United States. I could trace my lineage back to some of the first North American werewolves, and we were one of the first packs to allow werewolves from Europe when they started coming over on boats into our pack. I came from a long line of Alphas. And I definitely had the looks to go with it, too. I kept myself in really good shape, though I definitely wasn't as buff as Sergei, though I liked to joke that being half-Russian, he had an unfair advantage. I had long black hair that fell just past my shoulders that I usually kept in a ponytail or a braid, despite my little sister's efforts to get to, as she put it, "rock a man bun". I had deep russet brown skin and brown eyes, and I was the tallest Alpha in our pack yet. I didn't like to seem too arrogant, but I did take pride in how I looked.

I paused for a moment, looking out the window. We'd entered the forest a while ago, and we were getting closer to Forest Moon's territory. "I don't know," I said, sighing. "Orion says he has a good feeling, but I don't know. I've been looking for my mate for seven years, Sergei. I've had no luck so far."

Sergei took his eyes off of the road for a brief moment to give me a sympathetic look. Aside from Zach, Sergei was the only person who I confided in with my doubts of finding my mate. "C'mon, Kai," he said, his tone supportive and encouraging, "You can't give up. They're out there somewhere, right?"

I chuckled lightly. "Who knows? Maybe I'm just meant to be a mateless Alpha."

"Don't say that, man! You're gonna meet your mate soon, I just know it."

I could feel Orion getting testy in my head. He was just as bummed out like me that we hadn't met our mate yet. Sure, I had the occasional fling, but I knew that Orion really wanted to meet his mate more than anything. I sighed, looking out the window.

An awkward silence settled over the car, and I could hear Sergei shifting uncomfortable next to me. "C'mon, Kai, don't get all Broody Alpha on me."

I huffed a frustrated sigh. "I am not getting 'Broody Alpha' on you," I said, pinching the bridge of my nose.

"That's exactly what a Broody Alpha would say, you know."

I rolled my eyes. It was time for a subject change. "It's about time that Darius took over for Alpha James," I said, "The last few Alpha meetings that we attended, he seemed more than ready to take over."

Sergei nodded. "Didn't he say that he wanted to wait to get as much training in as possible?"

"I think so," I said, "I can't say that I blame him for that.Not every Alpha feels ready to take over right at eighteen. I am excited to finally get to go to Forest Moon, though. I know Darius has a sister that he always said was a really great warrior."

Sergei grinned. "You think she's hot?"

I rolled my eyes at him again. "Please don't start our alliance with the new Alpha of Forest Moon by seducing his sister."

Sergei laughed. "Hey, maybe she's my mate. It's not seduction if it's destiny, right?"

I pinched the bridge of my nose, as the GPS alerted us that we had arrived at Forest Moon. I was immediately impressed with just how large their territory was. After Silver Mountain, they were the largest pack in the Northeastern United States, and the second-largest pack in New Hampshire, also after Silver Mountain. And Alpha James Wilder was a great ally, who lead his pack with fairness and respect. I had met Darius several times, as he had started to travel with his father on Alpha meetings, and I knew that the pack was in good hands. Handing off the pack to the next generation was always a little bit of a gamble. The wrong type of Alpha could either make or break a pack's reputation.

Sergei verified that we were on the guest list for the patrol guards, and we drove to the packhouse. As anticipated, it was all decked out for the Alpha Ceremony. Luna Sylvia and the house staff had truly outdone themselves. I made sure to say my greetings to her and Alpha James before Sergei and I headed up to our respective guestrooms. Luckily, though we didn't have as much time as I would have liked, I did have a little downtime to relax and get ready for the ceremony. I couldn't help but notice the gaggle of unmated wolves, waiting anxiously as the visiting Alphas and Betas came through for the ceremony.

I showered, taking time after to pull my hair back into a single braid before putting on the suit that I had brought along for the occasion. These were usually formal affairs, and as visiting Alpha, and representative of Silver Mountain, I had to give the best impression, and part of that was looking good.

Once I was ready, I went to hurry Sergei along, who usually liked to take his sweet time getting ready. "You can't rush looks this good," he'd often say. Like me, Sergei took pride in his presence, though I knew that with Sergei, it was also because he was trying to get laid. Surprisingly, Sergei was already fully dressed and ready to go when I knocked on the door of his guestroom.

"Let's do this!" He said excitedly, slapping me on the back. "Let's congratulate the soon-to-be Alpha and mingle!"

I laughed, as we made our way down the stairs, and to the packhouse ballroom. I had never seen it this full before. I was fairly certain that every member of Forest Moon was in attendance, along with a fair amount of visiting Alphas and Betas, some of them with their mates in tow. I could tell that Alpha James and Luna Sylvia had gone all out for their son's ceremony, and I spotted them at the front of the room, standing next to Darius, who was with his mate, who I had heard of, but never met. From my understanding, she was the daughter of the head kitchen omega, and they had known each other their entire lives. She was also pregnant. That was a new development. I was happy for them. That was a good start to taking over the pack, knowing that the family would continue.

"C'mon," I said, yanking Sergei's arm. "You can flirt later. Let's go pay our respects before the ceremony begins."

I started to make my way to the front of the room with Sergei when I caught the faintest trace of the most intoxicating scent that I had ever smelled. Hints of lilac, vanilla, and jasmine flooded my nostrils, and my eyes went back, as my hair stood on end. It was faint, but I could sense it.

Our mate,> Orion said, stirring in my head, She is here. She is in this room.>