The Alpha and her Luna

Forgiven

Everyone's conversation is a little stiff, and I know it's because Chloe's there, but she pipes in every once in a while and adds her voice to the mix. I'm not sure what people are expecting, but she's actually pretty down to earth, and once some of the vodka in her bottle is gone she relaxes even more. Of course, Josh has no filter and when he drinks it's even less, so he asks her, "So, what's it like to be an Alpha?" I cough, and have to swipe at my mouth with my arm, because I was not prepared for this. Our other friends stop mid-word and turn to stare at him, while Sarah hisses out a quiet, "Josh!" I turn my eyes toward Chloe, waiting for her reaction and she has a stern look on her face for a moment before a slight grin starts to pull at the left corner of her lips. She shrugs and asks him, "I don't know Joshie. How does it feel to be an Omega?" We all laugh at the nickname, never having considered she'd have picked up on it, but he turns a shade of red I'm not certain I've ever seen on him before. He sulks and murmurs, "That's not my name, dammit." Alexis comforts him through her laughter before Chloe says, "It's... a lot of responsibility. Everyone watching my every move, and a lot of them waiting for me to f**k up. Don't get me wrong, It's great too. I can do whatever I damn well please, but there's consequences if I do f**k up. You know?"

The crowd seems suddenly serious and quite surprised by her candor, and I can't help but reach for her arm and rest my hand there. "You're not gonna f**k up. You're great." A blush colors my cheek as her eyes turn toward me. There's a look in her eyes that seems almost confused, and I don't quite understand it. Before things can get too much more serious Sarah stands up and says, "I'm going swimming! Who's coming?" Sarah has always been great at diffusing tension, and at that announcement it gave everyone else an opportunity to escape this conversation that got way too serious way too quickly. Everyone stood except Chloe and I, and when they started pulling their clothing off she seemed a little surprised, but she didn't react. We've all been looking at each other naked since childhood. When you're used to shifting in front of your pack nudity doesn't have the same effect on you after a while.

Once they're all gone it's just Chloe and I sitting in front of the fire. I said a little more gently this time, "You're not going to f**k up, Alpha. You've got the rest of the pack behind you. You've got... me. I'll do anything I can to help you." Her eyes rest on the fire and her voice is quiet as she says, "I think I know, but tell me... why did you leave?" My voice catches in my throat and I take a moment to consider my answer. My hand moves to pull away from her arm, but her hand moves to the back of it, holding it in place. In a trembling voice I say, "I was a coward. The whole pack was gossiping about how your parents were going to force you to take a chosen mate so he could be alpha. When you found me that night... I thought you were going to reject me. I couldn't face that, so I ran." Her mouth moves into a tight line as she takes a deep breath and she says, "The gossip was true. They tried to force me, especially after finding out that I found my mate and it was... you. When you put in the request to leave for Paris my mother did everything she could to make sure it happened. She knew where you were all along, but she just told me you disappeared." I nodded, and tilted my head as I listened to her. "For two years they introduced me to eligible unmated men. I couldn't stomach the thought of being with any of them. I just thought of you. I guess they finally gave up, and.... here you are. She wanted you there when it was announced. That's why you were called home." Now it was my turn for my lips to purse and I took a sharp intake of breath. She continued quietly, "I know you had a life there. If you want to go back to it... to her... I won't stop you. You'll have my blessing." Her eyes lifted to mine and when our eyes locked I could see the fear in her eyes. I didn't answer her right away but after a few seconds I shook my head. "No, I'm where I belong." The relief could be felt emanating through our mate bond, and I suddenly felt a rush as it surrounded us. I licked my dry lips and whispered, "I didn't feel it before.. I wasn't of age, but I do feel it now. It's confusing, and I don't know what it means for us. I'm .. just an omega... I'm not prepared for what this means." Her head shook and she murmured, "You aren't just anything. You're mine." My breath caught in my throat for a second as I heard that and the flush moved over me again. I asked quietly, "Can we start over again? Can you forgive me for running?" She nodded, a smile gracing her lips and for the first time I thought perhaps I was getting a glimpse of the person behind the tough Alpha facade. "I'll try."

I smiled widely and stood, letting my hand slip from her arm. I nestled the vodka bottle into the sand nearby and started to remove my clothes. For a moment I heard a growl escape from deep in her throat, but it died out when my shirt hit her square in the face. I laughed and moved toward the water, and my friends, teasing her as I went. "Awww, guess you're gonna have to come get me for that, aren't you?" I was wading into the water, with my back toward Chloe as my friends all went slack jawed staring at the shore. I turned my head and there was a wicked look on her face as she lifted the shirt I had thrown at her and tossed it in the fire. I gasps, but a whoop of laughter escaped the rest of the inhabitants of the water, at least until she started gathering other pieces of clothing up and tossing them in the fire as well. Shouts of protest were mixed with laughter as she burned our clothes - one piece at a time.

While this was shocking, what was even more shocking was that her own clothes were quickly removed and tossed on top of the flames before she began to wade into the lake herself, disappearing under the water and emerging behind me, grabbing me from behind.

The silky smooth and wet flesh of her breasts pressed up against my back elicited a little moan from me, even amidst my surprise, and I think she could feel my reaction, because her hands lingered longer than they needed to around my waist. Her body, so close to mine was making me shiver and she rested her chin on my shoulder and whispered a teasing "cold?" into my ear. I shook my head, and luckily I was saved by a well aimed splash of water. Josh was the culprit and I shook my head at him, laughing. Maybe it was a combination of the vodka, the moonlight, the water, and the magic in the air, but everyone relaxed, and for a little while Chloe was just Chloe, and not Alpha. We laughed, and splashed, and caught up on what had happened in the past 2 years. I found out Sarah had met her mate, but he was away at a University in Florida getting a degree in Forensics. Josh and his mate had a baby, and they were hoping to have a few years before another one came. Sam had a girlfriend, but she hadn't met her mate yet. She was hopeful, though, and planning to tour with a minor league baseball team in a few months. Me, well, I caught them all up on my exploits in Paris, leaving out the fact that I had a girlfriend there. Chloe settled in quietly behind me, her arms wrapped around me, listening to me chat with my friends.

Josh and Alexis were the first to leave, as they had to pick the baby up from the pack nursery on their way home. We yelled "Booo!" at them, and told them they were giving in to being an old married couple, but they just laughed and made their way out of the water, shifting to their wolf before heading toward the pack house. A few others left, and then it was just Sarah, Chloe, and I. Sarah took a deep breath and looked at Chloe. She said in a serious voice, "You know, she's my best friend. Has been since we were kids. We weren't popular or anything, not like the ranked wolves, but we had each other. I just... I know you're an Alpha and all.. but... " She puffed her shoulders up and blurted out the rest, "But if you hurt her I'll... do... something." I couldn't help but laugh at this and Chloe smiled warmly. She shook her head and said, "She's lucky to have a friend like you. You're brave. I like it." Sarah lifted her hand to muffle a yawn and she gave us both an apologetic look. "Sorry ladies, but I can't keep up. I'm tired." She started to exit the water, glancing back over her shoulder, "Liv, you ok?" I nodded and lifted a hand in a little wave.

There we were, alone... watching Sarah disappear into the distance.