The Luna

Vodka

*Through Sage's Eyes*

    The last person who said they were proud of me was my dad when I completed Alpha School when I was 16.  And that was the only time I heard him say it. When Xander said those words, a warm feeling had blossomed in my chest and spread to my limbs. 

    But I had business to attend to. 

    I led Elijah and Jordan through the athletic fields, explaining that anyone could use them and usually there were multiple pick-up games happening at once. 

    Jordan looked towards the football field. 

    “Is it true you had the Denver Broncos come here and train for a day?” he asked. 

    I gave him a playful smirk. 

    “That was a fun day. They considered drafting some of my fighters when we scrimmaged with them.” 

    Jordan just whistled and looked jealous.

    “Am I to assume you’re a Pats fan?” I asked him. 

    “f**k no, Steelers all the way,” he said. 

    We continued talking football until we got to the hill that overlooked the solar panels. I explained how the plant was run and that the entire pack was powered by the energy. The energy we didn’t use was used for other pack businesses outside the borders. 

    I led them through the woods to the training grounds. Unfortunately it was between sessions so we were alone, but they got the jist. 

    “I’m sure Xander will have some suggestions for you,” Elijah said. I almost rolled my eyes. Of course he would. Everyone thought they knew better. 

    “But this is a very good set up,” he continued. 

    “I’m sure you’ll get a chance to see some of my fighters and security in action during your stay here. And if at any point you wish to join a training, please do. I usually train with the fighters at 6 am.”

    We continued through the village and the town quickly because I needed to show them some other parts of the territory before the sun went down. 

    I grabbed an SUV from the garage and drove them down the road and through the forest to the winding road that went up the side of one of the mountains. There was a look out point halfway up that I stopped at. 

    The view from the spot included an expansive panorama of the mountain range as well as the pack house, village and town. The power plant was just visible in one corner and my whiskey distillery was now in sight off to the right. 

    I explained to them that the whiskey was specially made for werewolves, as it was notoriously difficult for human alcohol to impact us. I sold it to other packs around the country. 

    I also explained how the plant was just outside the border and so I could employ humans like I did with Eve Shipping, my real estate company and my construction company. But everything else they saw was pack territory and only employed wolves. 

    They had already gotten a lay out of my companies in this morning’s meetings but I reiterated some of the facts while they could see the layout. We’d be discussing it all in much more detail throughout the rest of the week.

    We watched the sun start to set behind the mountains. It was a spectacular sight. My favorite view was from a different mountain but it was only easily accessible in wolf form. Before it got too dark we got back in the car and drove to the pack house. 

*Through Xander's Eyes*

    I ran around the forest for two hours. I didn’t intend to be gone that long but I had a lot of s****l frustration to run off. Also, I didn’t know where I was going so I just ran until I could find the pack house again. 

    As a beta, I was naturally aggressive. If my mate was anyone else, I would have already picked her up, carried her upstairs and locked her in my room. I would have been able to see the way each of my actions affected her body, heard what she thought about me, been able to care for her, hold her and protect her. But my mate was Sage. If I did anything she didn’t like, I had no doubt that she would retaliate. She was one of the most powerful leaders in the country and I wasn’t stupid enough to deny the immense power she had and the support of her guards. 

    None of that made me fear her. Instead, it turned me on. Every time I was near her I had to make the choice between keeping my distance or pinning her to the wall and marking her then getting my head ripped off by a guard. Or her. It was honestly a difficult decision to make each time. 

    When I got back to the pool Ben, Mark and Isabelle were in full pool party mode. A few other wolves had joined them and there were pool toys thrown everywhere. Some tables had been set up for drinking games based on the number of cups around. I spotted the three of them sitting on some lounge chairs waiting for their turn in beer pong. 

    Mark passed me a bottle of vodka when I sat down on a chair next to them. I took a long swig and when I put it back down he tossed me a beer. 

    “So how was the tour?” Ben asked me. 

    “It was good, Isabelle was a great guide. The mountains are beautiful here.”

    “You can call me Izzy,” Izzy said. “You’ll be one of the team now so none of that Isabelle shit.” Clearly she had more confidence in Sage’s acceptance of me than I did. 

    I smiled at her and finished my beer. “Yeah, we’ll see,” I mumbled.

    Of course they heard me, stupid werewolf hearing. But they just laughed. 

    “She’ll come around,” Mark said, correctly guessing my concern about Sage. 

    “And until she does, you hang with us!” said Izzy. She was very nice once she got past my rather aggressive introduction. My questions on the tour had demonstrated my respect for Sage, and in turn Izzy didn’t hate me anymore.

    “Oh, speaking of, if you want to join, training for fighters and security is at 6 am every morning. On weekends it’s at 8. I lead it and that’s the session Sage and those two come to. Or you can go to any of the other ones throughout the day. I’d also like to pick your brain for ideas and such,” Ben explained. 

    “Thanks, I’ll definitely be joining you at the first one. That’s the time I’m used to.”

    Izzy hopped up and ran over to a recently vacated table. 

    “Our turn!” she yelled. “Xander, you’re with Ben!” She did a little butt wiggle, earning a low growl from Mark. 

    We were all pretty decent at the game, although it was clear that the three of them had been drinking for a while. 

    “Does Sage ever join you guys?” I asked. 

    “Ha! No, I doubt she even knows how to play,” Mark said. 

    “Xander, she’s gonna take some work on your end. She was more fun when we were little but her dad was pretty hard on her. Her life has been all about her job since she was like ten. She was born to be in charge, but she needs someone to remind her that there’s more to life,” Ben quietly said to me as Izzy and Mark argued who would take the next shot. They both missed. 

    I took my turn and hit the second to last cup. 

    “How did she become Luna?” I asked everyone. 

    They all paused and looked at each other. Ben and Mark’s eyes briefly flashed with sadness. It was Ben that finally spoke.

    “That’s kind of a long story and you should hear most of it from her. But long story short, she challenged me for the position and won,” he said, smiling as he mentioned the challenge. 

    I wanted to ask more questions but Mark quickly changed the subject and I could tell they thought Sage should be the one who told me everything. 

    We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening playing games and drinking and chatting. They were a fun group. 

    At least I was getting to know some members of the Strong Mountain pack...