His Possessive Luna

Birthday Party....

Jane's POV

Today I turn eighteen, and my parents are equally excited and anxious. This is my last real shot at shifting. They're doing everything they can to secure my future, but with everything else going on, things are already a mess.

I haven't seen Amelia in two days. Dad forbade me from going near her — everyone's furious that we lost the Opal Moon alliance because of what she did. I wish she could be here tonight.

Since it's a milestone birthday, my family's throwing a full party — at our house, with every guest Alpha and Beta from the Ceremony invited, which means Xavier will be there too. Dad clearly hates the idea, but excluding Blood Moon would be read as disrespect, and that's not something our traditions allow.

The house is chaos all day — decorations going up, food being prepared, Mom personally overseeing every detail, practically glowing at the thought of her firstborn turning eighteen. My brothers are excited too, bickering nonstop, business as usual. I can't find Dad anywhere; he's probably still buried in Ceremony logistics. Most of the prep was handled in advance, but the guest list this year is enormous, and he's determined to get every detail right.

"I sent your dress up to your room. Check it before tonight," Mom tells me.

"Already tried it on — it's perfect. Thank you," I say, kissing her cheek.

"I still can't believe you're turning eighteen tonight," she says, practically buzzing.

By evening, the lawn is full of guests. Mom picked out an elegant maroon floor-length dress in lace. I keep my makeup light and my hair in a loose side bun.

Jo and Ray arrive first, in blue and gold. "You look stunning," Ray says, winking.

"Happy birthday," Jo says, hugging me tight and handing me a small gift box. Ray joins the hug. It's genuinely good to have them back — though I miss Amelia more than I expected to.

"I wish Amelia was here," Jo says.

"Me too," Ray answers, "but what she did was unforgivable. She should've thought about the consequences."

The whole pack knows we lost Opal Moon because of Amelia, though the Blood Moon part stays buried.

"Have either of you talked to her?" I ask.

"No — our parents want us staying away," Ray says. "I still don't get why she'd break her engagement in the first place. She's been acting strange for weeks, sure, but who thought she'd actually do this?"

"She was the one lecturing us about the rules, remember?" Jo adds. "I didn't believe it when I first heard."

"Maybe she had a real reason. We don't actually know the full story," I say, wishing more than anything I could tell them the truth.

"Let's go, everyone's waiting," Ray says, and we head out to the lawn.

Guests keep coming to wish me well, but my eyes keep drifting toward one corner — Xavier, standing with his Beta, barely acknowledging me with a small nod. Sean, at least, comes over to offer his congratulations. I still can't stand him after what he did to Amelia, so I say thanks and move on quickly.

The party rolls on, but Xavier never comes closer. I can feel him watching, though, the whole night — he just keeps his distance. I consider walking over to ask what his deal is, but Mom's voice cuts through first.

"Jane! Time for the cake!" she calls, and I follow.

The cake is enormous, chocolate, and the whole thing feels absurdly childish for an eighteenth birthday, but this is Mom's dream, not mine. I know exactly why they made it this big — to settle the rumors, once and for all, about whether I'll finally get my wolf.

Midnight hits. My friends count down like we're five years old. I blow out the candles, cut the cake, and — nothing. No shift, no shift symptoms, nothing like what my friends described when they got theirs.

Mom comes close. "Feeling any different?"

"No, same as always. Just a little uncomfortable with everyone staring."

Her face falls, and the disappointment is impossible to miss. Dad steps in, wrapping an arm around her.

"Let's give the young ones some space," Dad announces to the room. "We have some serious matters to discuss." Everyone but the younger crowd files out. Even Uncle James can't hide his disappointment as he leaves.

It stings, but there's nothing I can do about it. My friends gather around as the music picks back up, and the party carries on. I keep looking for him anyway. He catches my eye one last time before he leaves.

Was he hoping I'd shift too?

I'm left with my friends, and a crowd of strangers.

Happy birthday to me.

Chapter 20 — Jane's POV (edited)

I wake up near noon, head pounding — not from drinking, since I didn't have any, but from barely sleeping at all. After a shower, I head downstairs for coffee.

Something feels different the moment I wake up. At first I chalk it up to exhaustion, but it's not that — my head feels heavy in a way I've never felt before. The coffee helps, and slowly I start feeling better. Actually, better than I have in a long time.

I think of Amelia, decide I don't care what my family says, and plan to go see her. Something inside me agrees with that decision, which is strange — feeling something inside me at all is new. Like something dormant just woke up.

Wait.

Is this my wolf?

I catch myself getting too excited before it's confirmed. Back in my room, I close my eyes and focus inward. Nothing, at first. I keep at it anyway, and after what feels like an eternity, I feel her — a white wolf, my own sea-green eyes staring back. I let her take over, and a few seconds later I'm standing in front of the mirror as an actual wolf. White fur, my eyes, paws where my hands should be. I can smell everything now — Mom's scent, all the way from her room upstairs.

I finally got it. After everyone had written me off.

I throw on jeans and a shirt and run downstairs to tell my parents, following their scents — Mom's downstairs, and Dad's there too, better to tell them both together.

But when I get there, Mom's sitting on the couch, head in her hands, clearly upset. Dad's just standing nearby.

"Mom? What happened?" I ask.

"Let me explain," Dad says. "Gabriel found his mate. The daughter of the Crescent Moon Alpha."

"So?" I ask, genuinely confused for a second, before remembering I was technically supposed to marry him. Mom shoots me a look.

"We'll still get an alliance with them, but the engagement's off the table now," Dad says, sounding almost unbothered — which is strange, considering how invested he seemed before.

"I just want her safe, and every time there's a shot at that, it falls apart!" Mom says, clearly overwhelmed.

"She'll be fine," Dad says. "We'll protect her either way, and honestly, given how the Moon Goddess seems to be handing out mates left and right this year, she might find one of her own too."

Does he know about Xavier? I doubt it — I never said anything, and I can't imagine Xavier told him either.

"Anyway, I need to go welcome the Gold Moon," Dad says, and leaves.

"The Gold Moon? On top of the Blood Moon already here? I just hope this whole Ceremony ends before anyone actually starts a war," Mom says, and leaves too.

I never got the chance to tell them about my wolf. Might as well go find my friends instead — I have nothing else to do.

I still can't believe I have a second mate. My wolf reacted to him exactly the way she reacts to Xavier. William Gold. Of all people. Everyone knows how much he and Xavier despise each other — their packs have been enemies for centuries, blood-deep and merciless.

I can't let Xavier find out. He'll try to kill William, or William will try to kill him first. Two Alphas, arguably the most powerful werewolves alive, colliding over a mate neither of them will share — that's not a hypothetical, that's inevitable. And as much as I hate admitting it, a fight between them is likely.

The moment Gold Moon arrived, everything tensed further. No one wants these two packs anywhere near each other. They're staying in separate hotels on opposite ends of town, but both packs are fully aware the other is here. Dad's doubled security across the territory, and a few other packs have volunteered to help, which our pack accepted — but the tension hasn't eased at all. Fewer than sixty wolves each, technically, but among the strongest fighters alive. A confrontation between them would be catastrophic for everyone nearby.

Moon Goddess — why put me in the middle of this? I want them both safe, and I can't pretend I don't feel something for either of them. At least our pack is on good terms with Gold Moon, so if William tells Dad and Uncle James about the bond, they'll likely welcome it without hesitation. William's reputation is far cleaner than Xavier's — people call Xavier ruthless, cold-blooded, though I don't think that's fair to him at all.