The Alpha & His Secret Luna Princess

Chapter 2 - Introductions

(Hunter's POV)

I could not believe my ears, how could I be mated to a royal when their whole pack was destroyed four years ago. The whole werewolf world knew this story because it directly impacted everyone. There was a group of rogues, a pack of rogues actually, who were hell bent on destroying the Midnight Moon Pack, proclaiming that the Royals were not there for them and that the whole system in the werewolf world was corrupt. This was not true.

I met the Alpha and Luna a few times but it made a huge impression on me. Not only were they not what I expected, but they really made sure everyone was taken care of as best as possible. They really went far and beyond to ensure that the various packs in the world functioned as peacefully as possible, making sure there were all sorts of care available.

These rogues are currently staying at the Midnight Moon Pack property, but nothing has been decided as yet as to who will take over. There is always corruption, but it would not be directly by the hands of the Royal Alpha and Luna. I believed Jade the moment she told me and let go of her aura. There was no denying what she was saying by feeling that, as I have witnessed with the Royal Alpha and Luna. No one is able to make an alpha drop to his knees unless it is by means of something or someone that powerful.

Seeing that there were no heirs left, and the whole pack was destroyed, the Court of Wolfs decided to take extra care in selecting someone worthy of the position. It’s taking longer than anticipated, but in such cases, it is better to be safe than sorry.

It was not even really up to Court because the Midnight Moon Pack blood had a very specific and powerful type of wolf, called the Midnight Wolf. This type of wolf was given to us by the Goddess herself. One would need that sort of power to run an entire world of werewolves. The other issue was to get rid of the rogue wolves, but they grew larger in number till this day, and no one has made any move to sort this out. This was one of the things I was looking in to as my own pack could be next. No one knows the real story of what seems like a growing army of rogue wolves.

“Uh uhhmm!” I heard in front of me, realising that I had drifted off, and went into a whole background story. Completely forgetting where I was, while she waited very patiently for me to react or say something.

“But… I don’t understand, how are you alive?” I said, looking at her with utter confusion.

“Well… I’m not ready to relive that night, but my mom and her most trusted guard led me away as far as possible before…. Before…” she starts tearing up again and I can see the start of a panic attack.

I can sense her dread as well, sure that she must be experiencing some traumatic flashbacks of her family on that night. I gently take her arms in mine, and pull her towards me. She’s so small compared to me, but fits perfectly on my chest and I cradle her, trying to calm her as gently as possible.

I whispered to her, “Sssshhh, it’s okay… it’s okay. I’m sorry for pushing you. You don’t have to say anything… its fine… I’m so sorry.”

Jade eventually calms down enough that she pulls away slightly, the small loss of contact feels gigantic to me, but I need to give her some space too. So I stepped back a little and held her at arm’s length before letting go.

“Are you okay now”, I asked, while she stared at me.

“Yes… thank you”, she looks down at her shoes shyly, kicking at nothing.

I smiled to myself, so adorable! Who knew such a powerful wolf could be this adorable?

I realise I still need answers as to why I found her the way I did, so I ask “I hate to do this right now, but I need to know what happened to you a day ago. I’ll give you some time if you need it, but if there is a threat, I need to know what to look out for. Especially because it’s you”.

She looks at me with that steel in her eyes again, it’s a look of strength I find highly attractive, but I make sure to focus on what’s important and try to cool my lust for her. Jade tells me about what happened that night, and that she couldn’t locate the person in question before leaving the bar. She explains that at the time she did not know it was Wolf's bane, as her body reacted slightly differently to it. All I can think about is how grateful I am to have her alive and in my room with me. Overcome with my gratitude for her life, I grab her and kiss her again, but gently this time. Pulling away slightly, I sighed, and leaned forward, putting my forehead on hers. I slowly pulled away again and looked her in the eyes.

“Thank you for being alive, Jade Rose. I’m sorry I didn’t make it to you sooner”.

(Jade's POV)

My stomach starts grumbling… Oh no, how embarrassing! I covered my face with my hands, thoroughly embarrassed. I laugh a little and come out of hiding expecting to see a disgusted face looking back at me, but instead I see a heart-stopping, lopsided grin that shakes my world.

“To prove a point, you’re definitely alive! Come on, let’s get you fed. You must be starving.” Hunter says, grabbing my hand and leading me out of the room we’re in. The scenery is all new to me and I can see that where we are is HUGE!

He looks back at me and grins again, “I couldn’t leave you at all, especially the state I found you in, and couldn’t bring myself to stay away either. I hope you don’t mind that you are staying in my room. We can always change the living arrangements now that you’re awake. I won’t rush or pressure you into anything you’re not ready for. You may want your own space and there are plenty of empty rooms on my floor. As long as you stay on my floor, where I can watch over and protect you if necessary”, he says before we enter the kitchen.

Standing in the doorway, he abruptly stops, turns around and faces me. I almost walk full force into his chest but he quickly catches me and, holding my face in his hands, stares into my soul again. My heart picks up a beat. With how close we’re standing, the electricity in the air is inevitable. I realise it will always be like this when we’re close or touching.

“You don’t have to decide right away. Let’s enjoy some breakfast, and I’ll show you around. You can take a day to acclimate and we can talk about it later. I just wanted to leave you with options that will be most comfortable for you”. Hunter smiles my smile, and slowly bends down, softly brushing his lips against mine.

“Uh uhmm! Good morning Alpha! You’re right on time, breakfast is ready!”

I quickly pulled away and out of his embrace. That must be the Omega. How long was she there?! I flush beet red with embarrassment about my PDA, and Hunter laughs lightly and takes me by the hand again.

“Good Morning Ruth, this is Jade, my mate”, Hunter says to the lady, who I now know as Ruth, and looks at me with pride.

“Oh my goodness! My Luna, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Oh Alpha, she’s a beauty! Congratulations to you both!” Ruth said. I looked at her a bit confused. Finally meet me? I gained composure, remembering that I was out for a day, so I’m sure some news has travelled since then. I'm grateful that he hasn't given her my surname. That would be a dead giveaway.

She bows down before me, and overwhelmed with such a formal greeting, I walk up to her and pick her up by her shoulders. “Please, call me Jade, and it’s a pleasure meeting you too.” I smile at her for a moment before she realises she was busy preparing the breakfast. “Goodness I must excuse myself, I am almost done Alpha! But breakfast is ready; there are pancakes, bacon, sausages, breakfast steak, some scrambled eggs, a lot of fresh fruits, croissants, and I can prepare anything extra that you may need. I will bring some beverages to the table, or would you prefer some coffee?” Ruth looked at us both expectantly and almost fidgety with excitement from being able to speak to her new Luna. Luna? Am I even ready for something like that? I haven’t even gotten out of hiding yet and now to lead a whole pack?

I look at Hunter and he smiles at me before looking back at Ruth. “Coffee for me please, and you love?” He looks at me and I flush. Did he just call me… love? I cough slightly on nothing, but the disappearing spit in my mouth, and gulp as hard as unnecessarily possible.

Why am I so nervous? I thought to myself and quickly looked at Ruth with a smile.

“Coffee for me too, please Ruth. Thank you” I say, and Ruth answers quickly, “How would you like your coffee, Luna?...Uh ‘mam… I mean Jade? I will remember your preference always from this day” and she waited expectantly again.

I answered quickly this time, “No sugar, and some soy milk if you have that, thank you again Ruth.”

“No bother at all, I will be right back. Enjoy!” Ruth runs off humming a happy tune as she goes. Hunter grabs a plate and goes to work, filling it up with as much food as possible, setting it in front of me.

“What?! I can’t possibly finish all of this! We can share. This is over enough for possibly three people!” I’m almost shouting from shock at the amount of food he put in front of me.

“Eat as much as you can. Don’t worry, there is plenty for the rest of the pack staying here,” Hunter says.

I gave him a quick look, and decided not to argue with him this early in the morning. I started digging in, because who am I kidding? I’m starving, my body told me so in the most embarrassing way. Ruth came back with our coffee, and we sat in comfortable silence, enjoying the meal she prepared.

Finally feeling more myself, I pushed the almost empty plate away from me, and Ruth appeared out of nowhere, quickly taking it away. But before she was out of earshot, I quickly said “Thank you so much Ruth! That was wonderful! I haven’t eaten anything this delicious for what seems like ages ago.” I smiled fondly at her, liking her from the moment I met her, her bubbly energy seeming very contagious.

“No bother ‘mam, I will prepare the best for my Alpha and Luna for as long as the Moon Goddess allows me to! I am always at your service!” Before I could say anything else, she quickly asked “If I may take my leave ‘mam? Call me if you need anything at all!”

“Yes, sure you must be busy. I won’t keep you. Thank you once again!” Just as Ruth took off, about 6 people entered the kitchen. Not being around so many wolves in four years really made me forget what it’s like. There were four men and two women, animatedly chatting and joking with each other before realising that apart from their Alpha, there was someone new in the room.

Everything quiets down, and before they ask or say anything, Hunter takes my hand, and looks at them, “Guys, this is Jade,” he looks at me “my mate.” Everyone starts up again, starting to rush towards us like a stampede.

Hunter quickly orders “STOP!” and everyone stills.

“She’s been through a lot in the past couple of days, so take it easy okay. Let me introduce everyone. They already know about you, seeing that I brought you here directly.” I’m a little embarrassed, because everyone seems to know about me, but I know nothing about them. He gestures first to the four men, realising that two of them are actually twins.

“ These are Beta Tucker, Beta Jason, Gamma Bryan, and Gamma Justin.” I nodded a little surprised that he had sets of Beta’s and Gamma’s. I understand the Beta’s because they’re identical twins, but how did the Gamma’s get along? I was impressed.

He gestures to the ladies, “and this is Stacy, mated to Bryan; and Kirsten, mated to Justin”. The ladies quickly came over and bowed, and gave their congratulations to their new Luna, and I did the same as with Ruth and quickly got them standing straight and introduced myself, “ Please, call me Jade!” I should be used to formality, given my family and background. But four years can change a lot, and also humble you a lot when you have nothing. Doing every job possible to make ends meet and putting food in my belly definitely changes how you see and treat people.

Hunter sees I am getting a bit flustered by so much too fast. He quickly comes to me, we share farewells and take our leave. We head back to the room, ­a shower would be nice, I think to myself, and I suddenly realise I have absolutely none of my own belongings here other than what I had drowned in.

Hunter feels my panic and looks at me. “What is it love? Are you okay?”

“ I just realised I don’t have anything here, no clothes, no phone, no bag, nothing!” I say.

Hunter visibly relaxes and says, “I figured you would need those things and sort them out while you were still unconscious. Here, look.”

Before we reach his room, he opens the door next to his, “I wasn’t too sure how you would feel when you woke up, so I prepared everything here just in case you didn’t feel comfortable staying in my room,” he looks down at me and adds,

“I think I made the right choice.” Clearly, seeing the relief on my face for the privacy he has given me.

I looked at him, “thank you so much,” I said. He looked like he was about to say something, when he paused and his eyes glazed over, indicating to me that he was communicating with members of the pack. Gosh I miss that! I miss my family and my pack. I think to myself sadly, but not letting the emotion show on my face.

Hunter’s vision clears again and he says, “Jade I’m so sorry, I wanted to show you around but I have urgent pack business to get to. I will probably be busy for a few hours, so please make yourself comfortable and I will give you that tour as soon as possible, I promise.”

He leans over quickly and gives me a soft kiss on my forehead. I blush profusely, not used to the affection. He smiles and walks away, while I stare at his sexy back and I can’t help but check him out until he's out of my field of vision.

I decide on a shower, but take a quick look at my surroundings. This is a large room. Oh my gosh! Is this the freakin Luna’s room?! I made a mental note to ask me why he put me in this room.

We haven’t spoken about anything yet, seeing that I technically only knew him for a few hours. This is way too fast for me! But before I go through another mental breakdown, I keep looking around, admiring the space and how beautiful it was prepared for me.

The walls are a shade of sage green, one of my favorite colours in the world. The dressers and the night stands next to each side of the large bed are all white. It has a very classic feel, and I can’t help but love it. If I had the money I would probably have furnished it the same way.

There is a walk-in closet as well, already filled with women’s clothing. At first, I stared in shock and started getting angry. Why would he put me in a room where someone else has been? The nerve of this guy! But before I can get angrier than I already am, I turn around, ready to storm out and hunt him down. Something caught the corner of my eye, so I paused and looked at what it was that caught my eye.

My anger quickly dissipates as I see the tag on an item of clothing. I look at the other clothes and realise that all the clothes have tags. It brand new. Wow, he must’ve bought all the clothes in the store. How did he even know my size? I blush even though I’m alone. I won’t let my imagination run away with me today.

After looking around the room, I decided I really needed a shower and grabbed everything I needed and headed to the bathroom. Again, Wow! The bathroom is large, with a bath that looks like a Jacuzzi in the middle, large enough for what seems like four people. The same goes for the shower. One side of the wall is designated for the shower only, with the glass wall completely see-through. There seems to be jets on two sides of the wall and even a sitting area. This bathroom alone must have been bigger than my entire apartment! I quickly get undressed, get the shower ready. After a little struggle with the knobs, I finally stepped into the water and let the warmth seep in to my bones, putting my face directly under the water.

Eyes closed, my mind flashes back to what happened before I was found here. Who was that? What did they want from me? I was fine keeping a low profile, I even made sure I never let my aura out, and since I’ve grown a bit, my features have matured as well. I made sure to keep a low profile, so how did anyone find me? Do they know who I am? Was it the rogues?

I quickly focus on getting myself clean and, once I’m done, I step out, dry off, and get dressed. I decided on something comfortable. Skinny jeans, comfortable slippers and a crop top, seeing as it’s quite warm outside today.

I’m fairly skinny and I’ve never had a problem showing a little skin now and then. I’m a werewolf for crying out loud, we’re definitely used to being naked. So some skin shouldn’t be a problem. What am I going to do for the rest of the day? I thought to myself. About 2 hours had already passed since Hunter left, so I decided to get myself something light to eat. I headed down to the kitchen and grabbed a quick bite to eat. I let Ruth know I would be taking a short walk to loosen my muscles. I had muscle aches from lying unconscious for a full day.

As I step out into the light, the sun immediately soaks into my pale skin. I face my head toward the sun with my eyes closed and smile at myself. I hadn’t felt this at home since… well, since my old home. I still have nightmares from time to time, and although it has lessened somewhat, it doesn’t make it any easier.

Trying my best not to dwell on thoughts that won’t help me, I decide to take the tour myself, seeing as Hunter will not be available for the time being. The packhouse itself is huge, a mansion really, and I admired the sight of it for a moment. There are about five floors, and it really does look like a mansion. What I would imagine those British mansions looked like from the TV shows I’ve seen. Not as grand as what we had, but beautiful nonetheless.

I turned around and started walking down the path, and admired the woods that surround the pack lands and the greenery in between. There are houses that have been built like you would see in a normal suburban area. In fact, if you were not from here, it would look like a normal town. From what I gathered, it is strictly a werewolf town, so they don’t have to worry about hiding to shift. I missed that freedom, seeing that I was on the run, having to hide what I am from the humans and appear harmless to the other shifters I meet. Lola really was being as strong as she could, having to hide herself and her power like that. That gave me a thought. "Hey Lola, what do you say we go for a run?!" I could hardly contain my excitement.

"It seems safe here, I feel safe. We’ll keep away from others. Just a short run, I know you must be dying to stretch out a bit.

Well, when you put it like that, it sounds amazing! Okay, let’s do it. We’ll be careful!" Lola says.

I quickly went to the quietest looking section of the woods. I go in a little further and make sure I see no one around. I quickly get undressed and leave my clothes on the branch of the tree next to me. I quickly shift, feeling my bones crack and move to the position it needs me in for the transformation. Once shifted, I immediately started running, feeling my paws beating the earth beneath me, and taking in the scents and fresh air with my heightened sense of smell. I smell a river close by so I dart in that direction, and all I can think about is how amazing all of this feels. It’s been so long since I could enjoy the fresh air like this and probably the reason I was not as careful as I said I would be. As I got closer to the river, I heard growling from somewhere on my left, just behind me. It gives me the same feeling I had when I was chased a day ago. It must be the same wolf. Dammit, can't I catch a break? Seriously?" I tried picking up a scent but I was running downwind, so all that lovely fresh air is all I’m getting.

I try to think of what to do, as I hear the growling grow more menacing, and the beating of paws moving closer to me than I would like. I haven’t regained all my strength back yet, so I’m not as fast as I would like to be. Panic swells in my chest, the river now in sight. "Lola! What do we do?!" I shouted in my head, hoping she had a better plan than no plan at all. I’m not even sure which direction we came from, everything looks the same.

"We have no choice, Jade, but to fight. We will tire quicker if we keep running."

"Sh*t! Okay, let’s do this!"

I immediately stopped and turned around, the river now behind me, and looked around to see who it was that was chasing us. Then I catch a glimpse of the wolf, but he’s hiding behind the trees so I never get a full view. I give the most menacing growl I can muster, in a way that is challenging the wolf, and I quickly take a deep breath to see if I can make out the scent.

My hair starts rising as I realise it is a rogue. The foul, sour smell of a rogue too far gone hits my nose, and as I get into a defensive position, he stalks out from behind the big tree. He’s quite large. I would guess that he was an Alpha or Beta in the pack he used to belong to. He’s eyes are shining bright red, another indicator of a rogue too far gone. But I notice his movements are quite calculated. Usually they attack without thought and kill for no reason other than to kill. This sets my panic in more, as I now have to fight this thing.

He’s getting closer, and the closer he gets I try to calm myself as much as possible and remind myself that all that training was not for nothing. He starts to lunge for me and I jump out of the way, barely making it pass him, when he quickly turns around and starts snapping at my hind legs. I’m getting a little confused, as it doesn’t look like he’s going for the kill. Which means he wants me alive, but incapacitated. Again, very calculating. I moved a little further back, not sure of what my next move should be. I could use my power to control him, but that would put me at risk to the surrounding area. Anyone nearby would be able to sense it and know that it is one of us, and if they find me here and the rogue out cold, they might question it.

He lunges again, managing to bite into my shoulder. Lola howls in pain, and tries getting back up, but now we’re limping, which is not good. We’re so screwed! I can see we’re not going to make it this time as he lunges again, going for my hind leg, and I hear the snap first before I feel it. Howling again and in too much pain, I am forced to shift back to my human form, lying on the ground panting. Black spots are starting to cloud my vision, but then the most amazing smell hits my nose, but before I can confirm that it’s Hunter, my world goes black…