Fated to Two

Crescent Moon

The trip to Hunter’s pack lands was quiet. Hunter didn’t say much the entire 3 hours we were in the car besides asking if I was comfortable, if I was cold or hot, and if I needed anything to drink. Hunter was on his phone and laptop the entire time working, I assume preparing for the meetings he spoke of before we left.

As we got closer to Crescent Moon, the land started becoming more mountainous. Blood Moon was pure forest, we had cliffs and lakes, but nothing like these ginormous mountains, reaching clear into the sky above. As we made our ascent into the mountains, I let out a gasp. I was staring at the most beautiful waterfall I’d ever seen - and at the bottom sat a majestic pool of water that appeared to sparkle in the sunlight. “Opal Moon Falls, magnificent, isn’t it?” Hunter asked, as I noticed he was now leaning into me, so he could get a good look at the waterfall, too. “It’s beautiful,” I manage to say, trying not to make it too obvious I’m enjoying his closeness.

“We are about 5 minutes out from the pack house. I’ve asked our kitchen staff to bring lunch to your bedroom when we arrive - I figured you would want to get unpacked and rest a little before looking around. I have meetings until about 4:00, but afterwards I’ll give you a tour of the pack house and the grounds,” Hunter says all this while still typing away on his phone. “Yeah, that works,” I say, not realizing there’s a sadness to my tone. Hunter must not realize it either because he doesn’t say anything more.

I look out the window just in time to see a castle - a castle?! This is where he lives?? Surrounded by a tall, stone wall, a huge medieval castle jutted out from the mountain with oversized stained glass windows, beautiful oversized double doors and tall towers at each corner. It looked as if the mountain had grown around the castle. I hadn’t even noticed the truck had parked and Hunter was holding out his hand for me to take. I reached for his hand and instantly felt sparks shoot through my entire body. Hunter gave me a knowing smirk before pulling me out of my seat, saying, “Welcome to Crescent Moon, Luna.” I almost stumbled out of the truck, hearing him call me Luna for the first time. He was quick to steady me.

Dax, Hunter’s Beta, stepped out of the truck behind us and immediately ran over to a small group gathered by the front steps of the castle, as he embraced a stunning blonde. She narrowed her eyes at me, as if confused by who I was and why I was here. Had he not sent word to his pack that he found his mate? Was he hiding something from me, or hiding me from his pack? Hunter walked me over to the small group, “Everyone, I’d like to introduce you to Reese, my mate,” he nodded towards the blonde, still being held by Dax, “This is our Beta female, Elaine, Dax’s mate and wife.” Her eyes widen, registering who I was to her pack. She broke into a huge grin as she pulled me into a hug, “Thank the Goddess! I’m not the only female that has to deal with these assholes anymore!” They all laugh at her words, even Hunter to my surprise. Standing next to her is a bulky man, about 5’10 with a buzz cut and another man almost identical to him, just a tad taller. Hunter nodded towards both of them as he introduced them, “These are my gammas, Bryce and Bran. Bryce is the pissy one, Bran is the jokester.” Bryce rolls his eyes as he shakes my hand. Bran gives me a huge bear hug, picking me up off the ground as he laughs, “Finally someone to put Hunter in his place!” This earns him a snarl from Hunter as Bran sets me back on my feet.

Dax steps forward and bows his head, “Luna, we haven’t had a chance to really be introduced. I’m Dax Meyers, Beta of this pack. Please let me know if you need anything while you’re here. It’s my honor to serve you,” he says as he lifts his head giving me a genuine smile.

“Thank you, Dax. It won’t be necessary to bother you, I’m sure you’re busy with far more important things than helping me settle in,” I tell him. Elaine grabs Dax’s hand, then turns to me, “Luna, I will help you with anything you need. It’ll give us a chance to have some girl time - I’m in desperate need of it! Dealing with this bunch will do that to you!” She says, winking at me.

I can’t keep the smile from spreading across my face. Girl time sounds wonderful - I had friends at my pack, but I never really got too close with them. We were always with Eli’s family growing up and his parents were a little picky with who their boys hung out with. Not that they were stuck up by any means, more so over protective of anyone hurting their boys. They definitely didn’t want either Eli or Evyn sleeping around, in fear of it hurting their family negatively. Eli followed that rule, never really interested in dating anyone, but Evyn was another thing - he had a different girlfriend every week.

“That sounds perfect,” I get out just as Hunter pulls me inside. The inside of the castle is just as impressive as the outside. There’s a grand staircase leading up to the many floors of the castle, a sparkling chandelier hanging above us, artwork displayed on each wall.

“I’ll show you to your room and then I have to get to my meetings,” he tells me. We walk up three flights of stairs and walk to a set of grand double doors until we’ve finally reached what I would guess is the Alpha’s suite. He opens the doors and there’s a long hall lined with doors. He walks me to the very end of the hall and opens the door, this one a little further apart from the other rooms.

I step inside and it’s like stepping into a fairy tale - the ceilings are high above me, painted as the night sky, a beautiful, whimsical chandelier with crystals and opals hangs in the middle of the room. The walls are a soft blue, giving the room an airy feel that adds to the many windows that line the far wall. Gauzy curtains blow in the wind from what looks like a balcony just outside of another set of doors. I have my own balcony?! This room is amazing! I turn towards the bed and I wish I hadn’t because now I seriously want to sleep in it for the rest of my life - the bed is oversized and all white, the sheets, comforter and pillows are huge and fluffy and look so inviting, Hunter might have to drag me out of bed while I’m here. “Will this work?” Hunter asks, sounding a bit worried from my lack of words. “Yes, yes of course! This is perfect!” I tell him, not able to keep the smile off my face. He lets out a long breath and chuckles, “Good. I’ll have your bags brought up shortly. Those two doors on the other side of the room lead to the closet and the bathroom. Let me know if you need anything else - the bathroom should be stocked with everything you need. I’ll be back around 4:00.” He gives me a tight smile and leaves, shutting the door behind him.

I can’t help but feel he’s hiding something from me, or hiding me from his pack. Most Alphas would send word back to their pack that they had found their Luna and the entire pack would welcome their Luna upon arriving, yet he didn’t even tell his gammas about me. Dax’s mate didn’t even know about me until I arrived. Why would he be keeping this from the pack?

Who cares, look at this room! It’s a room for a Queen, and that’s exactly what you are! Remi says to me. Remi, it’s not all about shiny things. The pack deserves to know their Luna has arrived and that news should come from their Alpha, I tell her, making my way to the bed.

Just as I lay down, there’s a knock on my door. It slowly opens and I see Elaine pop her head in. “Luna, I grabbed your bag and lunch should be here shortly. Do you mind if I come in?” I really like this Elaine already, there’s just something about her I feel myself gravitating towards. “Of course, Elaine. And just call me Reese - no need to be so formal,” I tell her.

Elaine walks in with my bags, setting them down near a seating area I didn’t even notice before. She takes a seat and pats the spot next to her, her way of inviting me to chat with her. I make my way over to the plush, navy couch and set next to her, “thank you for bringing my bag,” I tell her.

“No biggie. Now tell me all about how you met Hunter! I’m dying to know how our big bad alpha Hunter reacted to finding his mate!” She can barely contain her excitement. I can’t help the laugh that escapes me as I tell her, “You call him that too? My wolf referred to him as that within the first 10 minutes of seeing him! It really wasn’t anything specially honestly, it was kind of like a soap opera,” I murmur that last part to myself, but she picked up what I said. “Soap opera? Believe me, with Hunter that’s the norm. What did he do?” She asks, raising an eyebrow. She must know him fairly well to be asking that.

“Well...I sorta have two mates. And they’re both alphas. My other mate I’ve been best friends with for my entire life - he’s the new alpha of my pack, Blood Moon. We found out we were mates that afternoon, and then that evening when Hunter arrived, I also realized I was mated to him too. Neither of them took it very well..” I tell her, while wringing my hands. Elaine doesn’t respond right away and I look up at her, making sure she heard me. Her mouth could’ve been on the floor and her eyes the size of moons themselves. “And Hunter didn’t kill him?” I shake my head no, not sure how to even respond to that. “I don’t mean that disrespectfully, I’ve just known Hunter for a long time, since I was a little girl, and he’s extremely territorial. I’m shocked he didn’t mark you as soon as he saw you.” Just then, there’s a light knock on the door and a young female walks in with a tray of food, “Here is your lunch, Luna Reese. Please let me know if you would like anything else.” She bows her head and leaves, just as quickly and quietly as she came.

Elaine stands and makes her way to the door, but before she reaches the exit I blurt out what I’ve been thinking since I arrived, “Is Hunter hiding me away? Most packs would have welcomed their Luna as an entire pack.” I can feel myself cringe at how pathetic I sounded. Elaine seems to go still, like she is nervous about answering me. She gives me a gentle smile as she says, “All I will tell you is Hunter is 23 and gave up on finding his mate a few years ago. I imagine now that he’s found you, he won’t give you up so easily, no matter the consequences of his previous actions.” With that, she leaves me to my lunch and to get settled.

What could she be talking about? Hunter didn’t take a chosen mate, did he?? He couldn’t have or else we wouldn’t have recognized each other as mates. If a wolf takes a chosen mate before meeting their fated mate, it basically breaks the fated mating bond without causing pain to either wolf.

Just ask him. Better to hear it straight from him. Remi’s right. I’ll just have to ask him - I won’t know unless I ask.

I just hope the answer doesn’t hurt me.