The Alpha's Luna in a Strange Land

CHAPTER 10: MOVING IN DAY

**NATASHA'S POV**

Lord Alexander left my room after agreeing to the arrangement made by Desmond for me to move into his house. I tried to protest, but they didn't give me an option. They both agreed that it would be a safe place for me. My wolf was really happy about this, but I was against the whole deal. Being close to Lord Alexander will make it harder for me to fight the mate pull and complicate things further.

"I'm sure Jorge won't come back a third time after the severe warning Lord Alexander gave him, and I don't need to move in with Lord Alexander," I tried to convince Desmond to let me stay in the healing center, but he wasn't having it.

"Natasha, we are doing this for your safety,"

I Sighed. "But why Lord Alexander's house? Isn't there another house I could go to, like a safe house or even your house? I promise to be a good housemate. I'm low maintenance, and you wouldn't even notice I was there."

Desmond shook his head. "I'm sorry, I can't let you stay in my house because it's not safe for you. My house is less secure than the healing center. Vampires just come and knock because I am the head healer in this kingdom. Lord Alexander's house is the only option for now."

I would have argued more with him, but I knew it was pointless. He wasn't going to listen. They had both made up their mind, much to my dismay. I was moving in with Lord Alexander whether I liked it or not.

After Lord Alexander left, Desmond helped me into the wheelchair he brought. He took the IV out, and thankfully, he didn't have to treat the wound caused by Jorge's long nails as my wolf had already healed me. She was weak but stronger than a few days ago. Desmond rolled us out of the room and started towards Lord Alexander's house.

Under normal circumstances, I would have been overjoyed to be moving in with my mate. But these were not normal circumstances. Of all the vampires in this world, I had to be mated to a lord.

It would have been easier if my mate had been a less high-profile vampire in the kingdom. But being the mate to the lord meant I would be the first lady of the kingdom, something every lady my age would wish for. However, I didn't want it because it would mean a lot of responsibility for me. I know I was once a Luna in my pack and I had been married to my late Alpha husband, but he wasn't my mate. It was an arranged marriage by my mum, since I was one of the mateless wolves in my pack. Little did I know that my mate is a vampire. How I wish my mum were here to witness all this.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Desmond asked as he pushed me into the elevator. "Nothing," I replied. "I'm just thinking about how weird it will be staying in the same house as a lord."

"If you're worried about Alexander, you have nothing to worry about. I've known him since we were little kids. We basically grew up together," he reassured me.

"So you guys are close then?" I wanted to learn more about Lord Alexander so I could know what I'm about to face in his house. But, if I'm being honest, I wanted to learn more about my mate.

"Yes," Desmond said, smiling as if he was remembering something. "We did everything together. We are basically like brothers. We both love playing football, watching TV, and reading novels. Our favorite novel is 'Can't Stop Loving the Alpha Male' . It's a Mafia novel that talks about a girl called Amanda and how she suffered for love. The book is published in all e-book reading platforms," he said, still smiling. "We also went for the same girl, which caused a fight between us."

I didn't like that last part. I didn't like the thought of Lord Alexander with any other female but me. Yeah, that mate pull was coming in strong. I was never the possessive type, but for some reason, picturing Lord Alexander with another female angered me.

"So that means you enjoyed your childhood with Lord Alexander," I asked. He chuckled. "Yes, we had fun together during our childhood. There was a time when Lord Bush, Alexander's father, traveled out of town with all the high-ranking vampires, and Alexander took over as the lord. He threw a party in the town for all the vampires to eat and drink to their satisfaction. I was among those who organized the party. We thought that by the time his father and others would come back, we would be already done with the party and have cleaned up. But we were wrong because Lord Bush came back the next day," he said and started laughing.

"What's funny, Desmond?"

"His father flogged him and gave him the punishment to clean up the whole town alone," Desmond said, laughing even more.

"I can't imagine Lord Alexander as the party-boy type. He seems too serious to be one."

Desmond chuckled. "He had to calm down once he assumed the responsibility of a lord. A lot of people depend on him, so he couldn't keep partying and messing around with girls. He had to grow up. We all had to grow up."

"Did that include Jorge?" I said to myself.

"Yes, Jorge wasn't actually like that," Desmond confirmed. "He was different when we were younger, until Alexander became the lord."

"How so?"

Desmond didn't speak for some time as we walked towards a house that stood off to the side on its own. We were almost there.

"He started to make everything look like a competition. He wanted to be the fastest, the strongest, and the smartest vampire. It was like he was planning to outdo Alexander and me. That was the reason we fell out."

"It's strange to see a lord and his second-in-command not on good terms. Usually, lords and their seconds-in-command are usually best friends, but Lord Alexander and Jorge are nowhere close to that. It's like there is a silent tension between them," I said, voicing my observation.

Desmond sighed, "Well, that's because Jorge wasn't meant to be the 2nd lord. I was."

I turned my neck to look at Desmond. What did he mean by that? He was meant to be the second-in-command? If he was the second-in-command, why was he an ordinary healer?

He cast his eyes down at me.

"I know what you're thinking. Why am I a healer if I could have had the position of the second-in-command?" I nodded.

"I never wanted to be the second-in-command. Even as a child, I knew that position was not for me. My father tried his best to convince me that it was my destiny to be Alexander's second, but all to no avail. It was in our blood to be the second-in-command. For a moment, I was about to take the position. I was ready to take it."

"Then what happened?" I pressed.

"There was a breach on the south borderline near the lake where many of us hung out during the summer. A girl named Amanda got attacked by rogues before the patrol vampires took her out,"

"Was she hurt?" I raised my eyebrows.

Desmond nodded, his eyes now looking forward. I could see the sadness that overtook his gaze as his mind took him back to that day. "Yes, so badly. The rogue bit right through her leg and ruptured an artery. She was bleeding out.

The healers had returned to the main compound, and they were coming, but she was losing blood so quickly that by the time they would have gotten there, she would have been dead."

I raised my eyebrows. "Would have?"

"I was able to save her. I had taken a course in emergency first aid at the beginning of that summer, just out of curiosity's sake. I never thought I would ever put those skills to use for something like that. If I hadn't acted that day, Amanda would have died, and our kingdom healer would have never met his mate that day."

"What?" I said in shock. "Amanda was a healer's mate?" Desmond nodded, glancing down at me.

"Yep. If she had died that day, her mate would have never found her—but luckily, that didn't happen. Fate had another plan for them. They're actually married with five little vampires and one more on the way."

"Wow, Desmond," I was very shocked. "What you did was amazing."

"I just did what needed to be done. But that was the day that I decided I could do more as a healer than as a second lord. My place was not the battlefield or behind a desk calculating and figuring out budget plans for the kingdom. My place is in that healing center."

"So how come Jorge became the second lord?"

"Alexander needed a second in command, and since I was still in school learning how to be a healer, he chose Jorge. Jorge might be an asshole, but he is one of the best warriors we have in this kingdom."

I nodded. I guess it all makes sense now. I was still suspicious of Jorge, but now I know why the two of them seem to be opposite to one another.

"Not everyone would have given up on such a high-ranking position," I said. He looked down at me and smiled. "It's a good thing I'm not most people, then."

Desmond wheeled me the rest of the way to the house that sat at the edge of the compound. Unlike other houses around, this one seemed to be very large.

"You said he is living alone?" I asked, looking at the size of the house. It seemed big enough to accommodate at least 15 people.

Desmond wheeled me into the house; the front door was left unlocked for us. I always thought big houses were uninviting, but Alexander's home was the opposite of that. Hardwood covered the floor, and the walls were painted a warm, pale brown color that added to the aesthetic of the overall space. A sparkly chandelier hung from above, and pictures and paintings lined the walls along the stairs that led to the second floor.

Desmond wheeled me down the hallway toward what I presumed would be my room. We reached the last door at the end of the hall and Desmond opened it to reveal my new living quarters. It wasn't anything grand, but it was still a nice room. The room was at least better than the forest I had been living in for many years. The room was also beautiful with a big, soft bed. I saw some clothes in the wardrobe which I suspected to be mine.

"I know it's not much, but I can't carry you upstairs right now, so you will have to stay in this guest room for the time being."

"It's okay," I said with a smile. "This is more than fine, thanks." It was really a huge upgrade for me from caves and trees to this large mansion.

"Okay then, let's get you settled in, shall we?" Desmond walked around the wheelchair and helped me to my feet. We walked to the bed so he could lay me down, then he began to do another checkup before he would have to leave. I looked to the window and saw the moon slowly beginning to show as the sky darkened.

"Moon Goddess, what have you gotten me into?" I thought to myself.