Chapter Sixty Three

Azalea

We sat there for a few minutes. Something felt different all of a sudden. I felt a shift, like Liam had given control over to Gavin. My suspicion was confirmed when I heard, “Hello, Little Mate,” in his deep, sorrowful voice.

I sat up, looking him in the face. Liam’s strong features looked sad and remorseful. “Hi,” I said, feeling less confident. He looked me in the eye but stayed silent. I reached my hand up and cupped his face. He continued to look into my eyes. “Clemencia didn’t want to leave. I was not strong enough for her. I am sorry,” I said.

His eyebrows shot up. “That is not your fault, Little Mate.”

“I am still sorry. She was your other half and now she is gone.” I waited for him to say something but still nothing. “Gavin, I do not blame you for what happened. I do not think under normal circumstances you would have done that. You work so hard to help Liam protect me and I appreciate that about you.” He nodded his head. “If it is okay with you, I would like to start over. I think I could be your mate too.”

He c****d his head like he was confused. “Little Mate, you sure are special.”

“What do you mean?”

“I should be groveling at your feet after what occurred. You should never want to speak to me again. And hear you are, apologizing to me and asking me to share you with Liam.” He reached up and placed a gentle kiss on my forehead. “Little Mate, I could never properly apologize for my actions. Influenced or not, they were unforgivable. The simple fact that we are sitting here speaking means you are far better than anything I could ever deserve.” He looked down and grabbed my wrists delicately. Bringing them up to his lips, he kissed each one right below my palm. Holding onto my hands, he ran his thumbs over my wrists where the bruises were previously. “If you are willing, I will take you any way that I can have you. I will spend the rest of our lives making up for my actions and showing you that I am worthy of your forgiveness. I will never break your trust again.”

I nodded. “Okay,” I said. Then I laid my head on his chest and just let him hold me. I think we both needed it at that moment.

-

I must have fallen asleep because I woke up in bed with Liam cuddled behind me. His scent surrounded me. I looked down to find that I was wearing his shirt with just my bra and panties underneath. I smiled, knowing he did this.

I looked over at the clock on the nightstand. It read just after 5 AM. The announcement was set for 10 AM. Lily said she was coming by at 8 to help me get ready. Nerves began to settle in a bit as I realized I was going to be facing the whole pack today. So far only about half the people I have interacted with seemed to be okay with me. That was not a very good rate.

I tried to extricate myself from Liam’s grip, but my movement only made his arms snake around my waist tighter. I turned and poked his cheek. A soft low growl came from his naked chest. “Liam,” I whispered. He did not move. “Liam,” I whispered again. Still, he didn’t move. I got an idea. Twisting just enough so I could whisper in his ear, I said, “My Alpha.” Again, a growl came from his chest, this one a little more pleasurable and less annoyed. His eyes cracked open and smirk graced his lips.

“Good morning my Little Luna,” he said running his nose along my cheek. “I think I like it when you call me that,” he said. I giggled.

“I like when you let me out of this bed to pee,” I said.

“Fine,” he said with a pout. He removed his arms from my waist but before I could move, he was overtop of me, peppering kisses on my face. I continued to giggle at his attack. “Say it again,” he said in between kisses with a devilish glint in his eyes.

“Liam, please,” I gasped.

“Say it again, Little Luna,” he said, still assaulting me with pecks. I continued to laugh. “Come one, Little Luna. Say it for me.”

“Fine, Fine!” I gasped. He paused for a moment and I tried to catch my breath. He looked at me with hungry eyes. My cheeks flamed red.

“I am waiting,” he said with a smirk on his lips. He was enjoying teasing me.

“My Alpha,” I whispered. His eyes darkened. I could feel his c**k hardening through his shorts.

“Mmmm. Yea, I think I like the sound of that from your pretty little lips,” he said with a wink. Seemingly now satisfied. He rolled off of me with a chuckle. I quickly scrambled off the bed to the floor. I could feel his eyes on me as I quickly made my way to the bathroom.

Closing the door behind me, I sighed. I went to the bathroom before heading to the sink to wash my face. Lily had also managed to redo the bathroom during our evening in the city. Now there was a double vanity with drawers for both of our things. There were more towels as well to accommodate two people in the bathroom. The shower had been remodeled as well and it now featured a beautiful tub big enough for both of us inside the walk in shower.

“Baby, I can feel your nerves,” came Liam’s voice from the doorway. He was leaning against the door frame with a concerned look on his.

I gave him a tight smile. “I’m okay,” I said.

“Are you worried about today?” he asked. Now that I was marked, our bond was even stronger, and he could feel all my emotions.

“Maybe a little,” I said looking away from him. He walked towards me slowly.

“I think more than a little,” he said. His hands lightly grabbed my chin and tilted it to face him. “If you aren’t ready….”

“No!” I said quickly. I knew I would be letting him, and Lily, down. I was just worried about the pack members accepting me, especially seeing as the former Alpha and Luna certainly do not. “I am just worried about what people will think of me being your mate. We know how your parents feel…” I trailed off.

“I don’t care how anyone feels. You are my mate and trying to defy the Moon Goddess got me nowhere. I would give up being Alpha before I gave up you,” he said, caressing my cheek. I relaxed slightly under his touch. He knew exactly how to calm me down. “Come back to bed with me. We still have a couple hours until Lily kicks me out anyway,” he said. I nodded giving him a smile. He bent down giving me a soft kiss.

-

We laid in bed cuddling until Lily was banging on the door. Liam had fallen asleep quickly as I cuddled into his arms, letting his body wrap around mine. I laid there trying not to worry about this afternoon.

Liam groaned at Lily’s banging. “Is it time already?”

“Let’s go! Get your Alpha butt out! Come on Liam!” she shouted from the hallway. I giggled.

“You are enjoying this aren’t you?” he said looking down at me. I looked up at him with a small smile and shrugged. He bent his head and whispered, “Except you are about to be stuck with her for the next two hours. You thought trying on dresses was bad?” My eyebrows shot up in surprise. I had not thought about that. He laughed as he rolled out of bed, leaving me feeling cold without his warmth surrounding me.

He walked over to the closet and reemerged with a shirt in his hand. He tossed me a pair of my own pajama shorts with a wink. I slid off the bed pulling them on. Liam grabbed his phone and walked over to give me a quick kiss on the cheek. He walked to the door throwing it open. Lily looked at him with her arms crossed.

“Finally,” she said looking him up and down. “All that time and you couldn’t even put a shirt on?” He gave her a lopsided smile and scooted past her.

She rushed in the room, excitement erasing her irritation. “Ready to do this?” she asked excitedly.

-

Lily really had some serious magic. In the past couple years, I had learned how to style my hair and found a style for myself once I finally had money and the ability to shop for myself. But Lily was in a league of her own. Yesterday, we had finally found the perfect dress. It was more of a vintage style dress with a fitted bust and swing skirt that fell to my knees. It was deep blue with a baby blue sash around the waist. It had a sweetheart neckline and sleeves that barely came over my shoulders. The fabric of the dress had small sequins woven throughout, so it sparkled underneath bright light. The dark fabric brought out the freckles against my pale skin.

She had done very little with my makeup, but I felt better that way. My hair was curled to accentuate its natural wave. The front part was swept back into some Dutch braids that came together at the back of my head. She had also clipped a gorgeous brooch with gems that matched the dress at the conjunction. We had also found a pair of baby blue saddle shoes that went well with the dress and prevented me from having to wear heels. I had confessed that I was nervous about falling over my own feet during the announcement.

Liam came in while I was slipping my shoes on, Lily having left to go get herself ready as well. Her and Damien would accompany us in front of the pack. I was happy to have them with us as I could count on their support. I stood up as his eyes came up from his cellphone and landed on me. They widened in surprise.

“Is it okay?” I asked.

“Wow,” he said. “Baby, you look amazing.” His eyes swept up and down me. I could feel my cheeks warm up under his gaze.

“Thank you,” I said quietly.

He groaned. “If this wasn’t so important, I wouldn’t let you leave this room.” He turned on his heel and went into the closet. I checked myself over in the mirror. When Liam emerged, he was handsomely dressed in a baby blue dress shirt to match the sash on my dress. He looked absolutely dapper with his dark locks tousled on top of his head, still untamed from bed last night.

“I have something for you,” he said coming up behind me in the mirror. I gave him a questioning look. “Close your eyes,” he whispered. His words sent a shiver down my spine. I closed my eyes and waited for his instruction. I felt something cold and small against my chest. I opened my eyes as Liam clasped a necklace around me. My mouth dropped open in surprise.

“I was going to wait, but I am just so happy you agreed to be introduced to the pack and be my Luna. I wanted to give you something to help remind you that you will always be my world,” he said sweetly. I looked at the pendant of the necklace. It was a white gold wolf howling at what appeared to be a blue topaz moon. It was gorgeous. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes.

“Liam, it’s so beautiful,” I whispered. “Thank you.” I turned around to him. Reaching up on my tiptoes, I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed his perfect lips.

Wrapping his arms around my waist, he kissed me back. Before it went too far, he broke our kiss. “We need to go. I am sure there is a Beta downstairs with a neurotic mate waiting for us,” he laughed. I nodded and removed my arms from him. He smiled at me, holding out his hand for me to grab. I gladly grabbed on, wanting every bit of comfort I could get. But it was not helping as every step we took towards the outdoor reception set up outside the back of the pack house I got even more nervous.

Liam

I held her hand as we descended the steps to the bottom floor of the pack house. We would be meeting Lily and Damien by the back doors. Damien, Lily, and I would go out on stage first then Austin would bring Azalea out as she was introduced to keep any murmurs from starting before I could say anything. I could feel her nerves through our link and if I were being honest, I was a little nervous as well.

I hoped this would go well, but my parents not being present for the announcement would send a message. There was a real possibility many pack members would hold a grudge against her. Damien and Lily were waiting for us with Austin by the back door when we got there.

“Good Morning, Luna,” Austin said, flashing her a big smile. After talking with both Austin and Jacob about their escorting Azalea to the clinic the other day, Damien and I agreed that it would be best to leave Azalea’s protection to Austin until we could find a permanent guard.

“Good Morning, Austin. And please, will you call me Azalea?” she said nicely to him.

“No can do, Luna. So, are you ready to go?” he said. She nodded shyly. “I got it from here, Alpha,” he said to me. I nodded tightly to him.

I turned to Azalea. I cupped my hand on her soft face. “You ready?” I asked her quietly. She nodded to me. “We’ll only be apart for a few minutes and Austin will be with you the whole time, okay?”

“I’m okay, Liam. Everything will work out,” she said. I gave her a quick kiss before letting her go with Austin.

“Let’s get this over with,” Damien said in a flat voice. I knew he did not mean much by it; he just hated dealing with formalities like this. I could not say they were my favorite either.

Damien, Lily, and I walked out to the backyard and made our way up the small platform we used as a stage. Most of the pack was in attendance. The murmuring of the crowd died down as we took the stage. Damien and Lily stood to the side of me holding hands while I got the pack’s attention.

“Good Morning everyone and thank you for joining me today. I have a very exciting announcement,” I started. “As you all know, almost three years ago now, my father passed down the Alpha title to me even though I had not found my mate. As many of you know, I have been diligently searching for her since my 17th birthday. I am happy to announce to you all today that I have found my mate and our future Luna!” There was a round of applause and cheers. I let it die down before I continued. “Now, she is very shy so I would like everyone to give her a warm welcome.”

I looked to Damien who nodded telling me he already linked Austin. Austin and Azalea emerged from the back door. I could see from where I stood that she was a little pale. He led her with a hand on her back towards the stage. I would have to talk to him about touching my mate. She was quickly by my side and Austin went to stand with Damien and Lily. I grabbed her hand.

“Everyone, please welcome your future Luna, Azalea Simmons,” I announced. She looked up with a shy smile at everyone. There were some cheers from the younger members of the pack that would not know anything about her. There were confused whispers from some that clearly had heard rumors but did not know anything firsthand. Then there were some downright enraged looks from some of the older members of the pack. I can only assume they were involved in stopping the overthrow of my father and knew who she was.

“Don’t you mean, my future Luna?” came a loud voice from the back of the crowd.

“No…” came Azalea’s voice in my head.