“Very well, I’ll let Luke know. Keep an eye on her.”
“Of course, Alpha. No one will harm our Luna.”
Jason’s lips twitched with a smile. It warmed him to know his pack members were already showing loyalty to their Luna when he hadn’t even spoken to her yet. As his mother said, she would be welcomed with open arms once he brought her home. Lobo bristled with pride. Jason dressed and was ready by the time Luke knocked on his door.
“How’d you sleep?” Luke asked with a smirk.
Jason growled warning. His Beta was trying to lighten the mood but it wasn’t helping. Questions had run through his mind all night and the urge to hold his mate wracked his every thought. He didn’t like she was so far away from the safety of the packhouse. One thing he knew for certain: he could not spend another night without her.
“Okay, bad joke,” Luke held up his hands in surrender.
He was; in fact, impressed by Jason’s self-control. When Luke first scented his mate he couldn’t keep his hands to himself. All night long he held his mate close, nuzzling her, kissing her and rubbing his scent over her before they mated and marked each other that very night leaving the party early.
“My mother called,” Jason said.
“What happened?” Luke asked immediately on edge.
“There was a breach. No casualties but the pack is getting anxious.”
“Without their alpha present I can understand why,” Luke nodded. Even with Ben, Jason’s sister and mother present the pack would still be anxious without their Alpha especially with no proper Luna to keep them calm. “So…what do you want to do?”
“I’m cancelling the rest of the tour,” Jason said. “The one thing I’ve been looking for is here. Mom said not to rush but I plan to head home as soon as possible.”
Luke nodded. Jason took the safety of his pack very seriously so it didn’t surprise him that they would drop the rest of their schedule. But he also knew Jason was anxious since he hadn’t even had a conversation with his Luna yet. Somehow he had to introduce himself and convince her to leave her home to go with him back to his pack.
Normally, if a newly mated pair came from different packs they would discuss which pack they wanted to join. But in this case there could be no discussion. Jason couldn’t simply stop being alpha. It shouldn’t be too difficult with the bond pulling her to stay with her mate but it was clear she was very attached to her pack, or at least the pups. Luke wasn’t certain how this would fall out.
Together they headed down to the dining hall. Because of his conversation with Cam Jason didn’t expect to see his mate at breakfast but he was still disappointed by her absence. As they loaded their plates a shrill voice called to them.
“Over here, Jason!”
He suppressed a growl as he looked over at the table where their hosts sat. Kristie stood waving them over enthusiastically while Graham nursed what had to be a severe hangover with a strong cup of coffee. After one day it seemed they thought they were free to address him casually.
“Well, have fun,” Luke said.
“Don’t you dare leave me alone with those two,” Jason warned. Last night had been torture in more ways than one.
“Yes Alpha,” Luke said. “But I do still need to bring Cam his breakfast so don’t take too long.”
Together they joined their hosts. Jason made Luke sit across from the overeager luna allowing him to sit as far from her as possible. An awkward silence descended on the foursome while Jason warily eyed his hosts.
“So…Alpha Graham,” Luke said after a moment, “we’re looking forward to training with your warriors today. I’m always interested in new techniques.”
Graham grunted sipping his coffee. He hadn’t shaved and dark bags hung under his bloodshot eyes. Luke was fairly certain he never saw any alpha in such a condition and certainly not Jason who took his responsibilities seriously.
Given the conversation Jason related to Luke he was inclined to agree with his pack’s former Luna. Not only had Graham taken a chosen mate but he had rejected his fated one. As a result a rift opened between him and his wolf spirit. The disconnection also damaged his bond to the pack affecting his connection to it and perhaps the pack’s bonds to each other as well. All of that could have been negated if his chosen luna was serious about her position but Kristie was not a proper Luna in the least. If her designer clothing was anything to go by she was only concerned with shopping and self-gratification.
If not for the fact Jason had found his mate they would certainly have cut this visit even shorter than the last. Hopefully the warriors would make up for their lackluster leadership.
After an arduous breakfast Luke slipped out to deliver Cam his meal before meeting Jason at the training facility ahead of their host who continued to linger over his coffee. They were disappointed to see Rimrock’s warriors didn’t have any more motivation than their leaders. Far fewer than they predicted even showed up despite knowing Jason and his visiting warriors were training with them.
Compounding the problem was the fact neither Alpha Graham nor Beta Michael showed up. Jason gritted his teeth struggling to suppress Lobo who prowled the back of his mind.
“Do you suppose this is their actual, everyday training?” Luke asked eyeing the disorganized troop struggle with inadequate equipment.
Jason rubbed his temple fending off a headache.
“Well, at least there is good news.”
“Such as?” Jason sighed.
“Now you can spend time with your Luna,” Luka smirked.
Jason blinked glancing at his Beta. That was right. If their hosts were not attending the training session than sneaking away was much simpler. Luke could handle the joint training without him. A smile twitched his lips as Lobo came to attention.
“Cam, where are you?”
“In the woods.”
“Woods?”
“Head south if you are coming from the packhouse.”
Giving Luke a silent nod Jason slipped away and headed in the direction Cam indicated. The nature of his bond with his pack members made it easy to locate them. Entering the woods he stuck to trails and eventually reached Cam standing just off of it.
“Cam, where…”
“Up ahead,” Cam nodded.
Anxiously Jason peered through the trees to see Phoebe watching over the pups as they scattered through the woods with baskets in hand. The two-year-old that normally was always on her hip was now being carried by one of the older girls eager to test their motherly skills.
“What’s going on?” Jason asked.
“I think they are looking for wild mushrooms and berries,” Cam said keeping his voice low. “It seems to be part of a lesson on plants and foraging. Looks like she’s teaching them life skills.”
Jason smiled. She was concerned with the health of her pack. Teaching them how to forage for food and healing herbs made good sense, especially considering the current state of the pack’s leadership. While the pack warriors were definitely adversely affected by their leadership the pups still held strong bonds with their fellow playmates no doubt due to Phoebe’s influence as one would expect of a proper Luna.
“Keep an eye on the pups, make sure they don’t wander too far,” Jason instructed.
“Right. Good luck, Alpha. Go get her.” Cam patted his shoulder in encouragement before slipping away.
Jason took a deep breath trying to calm his racing heart as Lobo paced his mind. They were finally going to meet their mate. All his years of waiting were at an end. But what was he going to say?
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