Before I Rise
The Dinner

“Are you sure we weren’t supposed to bring anything with us?” I asked Marcus for the tenth time since we’ve left our house.

Marcus chuckled and squeezed my hand as we walked towards the light gray cottage. “Yes I’m sure Love. Now relax, it’s just a simple dinner with Dave and his mate. I also asked and was informed that all we had to bring was ourselves, nothing else.”

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. If I was this nervous over hanging out with Dave and his mate, how was I going to function at bigger events when I’m finally Luna? Speaking of being Luna, I needed to tell Marcus a decision I had finally made before we have this dinner. I pulled on his hand to stop him in his tracks.

“What’s wrong?” He asked me.

“I have some good news. I finally picked a day to do the Luna ceremony, well more like I finally convinced Alicia.”

Marcus’s eyes lit up. “Really? When did you decide to do it?”

I lightly cupped his cheek with my hand and placed my other hand over his heart.

“How does two weeks from today sound?” I asked him.

“Two weeks… from today?”

“Yeah, think you can pencil that into your schedule Alpha?” I teasingly asked.

All of a sudden, Marcus wrapped his arms around my waist and spun me around. When he put me back down, the biggest smile I have ever seen was placed on his face.

“Two weeks sounds like an amazing idea.” He said, as he leaned in and set his forehead against my own. “I can’t wait to be tied to you in every single way possible.”

My heart swelled with the love I have for this man. I too, couldn’t wait to be tied to him forever and ever. We stood there just staring into each other’s eyes, appreciating the love we had between us. I honestly believe Marcus is and always will be the best thing to ever happen to me.

We stood like that for a while when we heard the front door open, causing us both to jump and look at who had opened it.

“Hey are you two lovebirds done yet? Cause mom wont let us eat until you both come in, and I’m starving!” Jacoby said.

Marcus let out a long sigh and rolled his eyes. He grabbed my hand and led us up the porch to the front door.

“Impeccable timing like always.” Marcus said, as he walked up to Jacoby.

Jacoby chuckled and punch Marcus on the arm. “Anything for you Alpha.”

They continued to banter back and forth as we walked into the house. It was always entertaining watching Jacoby and Marcus argue. They were the complete opposites in every way. According to Marcus, this was one of the biggest reasons he chose Jacoby as his Beta. He wanted someone that wouldn’t be afraid to speak his mind to him, and Jacoby definitely isn’t.

We walked into the house and straight into the living room that was decorated with warm brown tones. The living room opened up into a farm style kitchen, where Julie and a woman that looked slightly similar to Jacoby stood.

The woman turned away from the stove and gasped as soon as she saw me. She then proceeded to run across the living room and collide into me, wrapping her arms around and squeezing the life out of me. If Marcus had not been standing behind me, I’m sure I would have fallen onto the floor with her on top of me.

“Oh thank the Moon Goddess!” She cried out. She stopped squeezing me, allowing me to free my arms and return her hug. The second I did, a warmness appeared in my chest. Hugging Lilly felt amazing. I imagine it feels exactly how it would feel if I hugged my own mother. It was the kind of hug that made you feel safe and protective in a maternal way.

“I’m so glad you are finally here.” She said as she let go of me and took a step back, wiping the tears that had spilled onto her face.

She had curly black hair that ran past her shoulders and vibrant blue eyes. She had a petite figure and was slightly shorter than me. On her left shoulder was her mate mark. It was a black outline of a circle, symbolizing she was marked on the new moon. The mate’s mark is the shape of the moon phase on the night you are marked. I can’t wait until I get mine. I haven’t even looked up what phase the moon will be in the night of my ceremony, I wanted to be surprised!

“Geez mom, why haven’t you ever been that excited to see me before?” Jacoby asked with a pout on his face.

Lilly rolled her eyes. “You are so dramatic, just like your father.” She turned her attention to Marcus and opened her arms up wide. “Hi sweetheart!” She pulled him into a tight embrace. A look of contentment covered Marcus’s face.

“Hey Auntie. I’m glad you and Dave are finally back home, life isn’t the same without you two.”

They pulled apart after a few seconds. “I’m happy to be back as well, especially now that the Luna is here.”

Lilly flashed me a dazzling smile that was infectious.

“Why don’t you boys go hang out with Dave in his office while us girls get to know each other and finish up dinner?” She suggested to Marcus and Jacoby.

“Wait, dinner isn’t done? I thought dinner was ready and we were just waiting on these two. I’m wasting away here!” Jacoby dramatically declared as he walked to one of the couches and fell onto it face first.

“See, total drama queen.” Lilly said as she rolled her eyes.

“I agree. I’m going to go and let you ladies get to know each other.” Marcus kissed me on my cheek and walked towards the hall that I am assuming held Dave’s office.

Lilly gently wrapped her arm around mine. “So Em, can you cook?” She asked as she led me to the kitchen area. Julie was standing there in front of the island chopping up some apples.

“She’s slightly better than Alicia, but I still would warn you to proceed with caution with this one, since she almost gave Marcus food poisoning.” Julie teasingly said.

“Oh! Then why don’t you just sit on one of the bar stools and hang out with us. Would you like anything to drink?” Lily asked me.

“I’ll just take some water.” I said as I walked to the other side of the island and sat on one of the stools. As soon as Lily turned her back, I stuck out my tongue at Jules. She winked and silently chuckled. I have been getting better at cooking ever since I started taking lessons with Sarah. Though, those have been put on hold since I’ve been so busy planning the Luna Ceremony.

Lily set a glass of water in front of me and began to knead some dough that was sitting there.

“What are you making?” I asked her.

“My famous apple pie! Do you like pie?”

I thought for a minute. “I’m not sure.”

“You’re going to love this. Every year on my birthday I ask her to make this. It’s the best thing you’ll ever eat.” Julie said.

“You are too kind Jules. Anyways, how are you adjusting Dear?” Lily asked me, as she started to roll out the dough.

“Pretty good! I love it here and I love the people. Everyone has been so welcoming towards me. It really feels like home here.” It really did feel like home here. The more time I spent here, the less I wanted to gain my memories back. This felt like I belonged here and I was creating new memories here with everyone I’ve come to love. What would I gain if my memories came back that I don’t already have here?

“That’s good. I had a hard time adjusting at first, I’m glad you aren’t!” Lily said.

A lightbulb went off in my head. “Adjusting? Are you a human like me?” I asked her.

Lily laughed. “Yes I am, and I freaked when Dave showed me what he truly is. I remember thinking I had stepped into a complete nightmare at first, which saddened me because I had already fallen head over heels for him. When he showed me, I ran as if my life depended on it. Bought a bus ticket for Nevada where I had family members, and got the hell out of here. It tore Dave up when I left.”

“So what made you come back?” I curiously asked her.

“Actually it was not a ‘what’ but a ‘who.’ A friend of Dave's tracked me down and she talked some sense into me. Told me I was being stupid and that I should be grateful that I had found my soulmate because there were people out there, like her, that would never be blessed with a mate. She also said that if I didn’t come back with her willingly, that she would drag me back by my hair kicking and screaming. So I decided to come back and hear Dave out. We’ve been together ever since.”

“Wow, that’s amazing! Though the woman sounds a bit harsh.” I said.

Lily let out a laugh. “Oh she was, but at the end of the day you knew she met well by it. She was trying to help Dave and me. And, I honestly needed the kick in the ass. She became one of my closest friends after that.”

“Who is she?” I asked her, wondering if I have already met her.

Lily’s eyes grew in sadness. “She was a force to be reckoned with and a heart of gold to go with it. She and Dave were close like siblings. The same with Jensen. Though, there was always some sort of tension between her and Lucas.”

My eyes grew in shock and wonder. “Is she part of the pack?”

Lily shook her head, “No. She was not, she isn’t a part of any pack as far as I know. However, she was always very close with this pack and with Jensen’s. Actually, she was Annie’s best friend.”

“Annie? As in Marcus’s mom?”

“Yup, those two were tied to the hip. Always running off and getting into trouble. It’s actually how Lucas and Annie met. Annie always stayed with her during the Summer months when she was a teen, and one time Lucas decided to stop for a visit. Lucas for a long time tried to put the moves on her, but she was never interested. She was slightly thankful that Lucas and Annie found each other, because his unwanted advances would stop.”

“So where is she?" I asked her. "I would love to meet her."

“Well, we actually haven’t seen or heard from her since a year after Annie died. She took it extremely hard when Annie passed. She wasn’t ever the same after that”

I had thousands of questions running through my head. I wonder if Marcus knows about this friend? And it was so strange the way Lily wasn’t really giving up any tangible information about her.

Lily turned around and stuck the pie in the oven. “Well, I believe dinner is finally ready. I’ll let the pie bake while we eat. Jacoby, can you let…”

“Already on it!” Jacoby yelled on his way to let Dave and Marcus know dinner was ready.