Forever in the Past and Forever in the Future
Chapter 80

Bronx's POV

I don't know how she did it but Kas has flown through the first semester of her senior year classes. She wakes up with me so she can meet the tutor early while I am training with the pack warriors, then stays up late to get her homework done, except for essays. She saves those for our lazy day - Sundays. Her tutor tells me she has straight A's except for History. Lex keeps telling her the books are wrong and convincing her to change the answers to be accurate. I mean, chances are, she was there, so how can anyone be mad at her?' English on the other hand is her best subject. One of her projects is to write a poetry collection. She refuses to show it to me and tells me she doesn't want me to criticize her work. I leave it alone but the tutor tells me it is inspiring. He wants to put them in a booklet to share with the high schoolers if he can get her to agree.

"Kas, you don't have to show me, but Mr. Ankers says he would like to publish it for the pack high school. That's a big deal, Baby. Think about what an honor it will be for those kids to have a book of poetry written by their Luna," I try to convince her to approve of the publication.

"You promise you won't pick up a copy?" she asks.

"I won't. I promise, but can I ask why you're so against me reading your poetry? You let me look at everything else," I question, truly unsure of why it's a deal breaker for her.

She sighs heavily, "Because it's the story of my life. From my first memories until now. And if there is anything you want to know, I would rather you just ask, than look at my thoughts on a piece of paper and there is some stuff that you might be upset about. I mean, it's all in there, the good and the bad. I don't want you to think any of it still bothers me or misconstrue anything. It was just part of the assignment. Make the reader feel something. So I did. I just don't want that reader to be you," she explains with a little whine. Kas is mature for a seventeen year old, but sometimes she has her moments. This is one of them. I always forget that while it's my duty to protect her, she wants to protect me too, even if it's from her.

I pull her into my lap and kiss her gently, "Okay, Baby. Thank you for telling me. I promise I won't read it."

In addition to school, she has been training with James and Marco, volunteering at the pack hospital, teaching cooking classes to my walriors, perfecting recipes with Delilah, and planning the wedding. She also helps Lenora with Codi. They really do have a special connection. Even for such a young pup, it's amazing to see how her demeanor changes as soon as Kas walks into the room. She even already smiles when she hears Kas's voice. I mean, I can't blame her. I'm the same way. Ask anyone.

I'm a little worried Kas is going to get burned out or worse yet, have a vision from being too stressed out, but we have Sundays. She and I don't leave the apartment. She works on her homework and does some baking, but other than that, we just relax. It's good for both of us.

Reggie has worked hard on getting the crews to have the new packhouse done on schedule and he did a great job. All the amenities are as modern as we could have possibly hoped for. We make sure every piece of security equipment we can add is in place and ready to go when we are ready to move in. He even comes in under budget. Ashley was responsible for the new decor and it was no surprise that she di an amazing Job too. The guest suites look like modern luxury hotel rooms and the residences were exquisite.

Everyone had a say in what they wanted their spaces to look like and she made the visions come to life. The common areas are fresh and welcoming and constantly being utilized by the pack. Having the hustle and bustle back in the place I call home makes me feel so good.

As for me, MasonCo has never been more successful, things with the pack are running smoothly. We even make alliances we have been working on for years with two nearby packs. I have also been keeping up with my therapy sessions. The doctors finally reduced my medication dosages and I am really feeling better, so is Saint. We are both ready to get married to the love of our life.

kek

Wedding and the summer solstice guests are starting to trickle in for the long weekend. They are all excited for the wedding and for those who are wolves, excited for a huge stampede led by Kas and me at midnight tomorrow night. The omegas are doing a fantastic job ushering people around and accommodating last-minute requests. Food is coming out of the kitchen ata breakneck speed. I peek in just to tell them they're doing a great job and sneak a cookie. Mrs. Miller catches me and smacks my hand with a spoon.

"Out, Alpha! Let Carly know if you need anything," she scolds but lets me take the cookie anyway.

Around three-thirty, I take a break from greeting guests and go up to the apartment. I open the door to replace it is full of women surrounding Kas in the living room.

"Oh look! It's the groom! Bronx, come in, dear," I hear my mother say. Kas turns around with wide eyes and shakes her head just enough that I can see she doesn't want me to see what's happening in my living

room.

"Help me!" she mouths at me.

"Mom? What's going on here?"

"We decided to throw a little surprise bridal shower for Kas. Since you two refused to register for gifts, we're just getting together to give her some things just for...her...and having some mimosas and pastries before dinner," Mom smiles. I wonder how many mimosas she has had today.'

I look at Kas who is sitting on the sofa looking bright red with embarrassment. "Sorry Baby." I mouth back at her. Several of the women sitting around her, giggle to each other.

"Hi Sweetheart, do yourself a favor - just go directly into the bedroom and close the door," Kas smiles a broad artificial at me. She doesn't have to tell me twice. I sprint to the bedroom and slam the door shut. I need to take my clothes for tomorrow down to Milo's apartment. I'm not allowed to stay in my own apartment tonight, "girls only" according to Lenora, Ashley, and Delilah. I'm totally using my Alpha voice to make Milo sleep on the sofa tonight.

I grab my toiletries and my suit bag and sprint back out of the apartment before I could get pulled into whatever little party the ladies are having.

I don't get to see Kas until dinner. She's so beautiful in a long strapless cotton candy pink dress. I seriously can't explain it, she just seems different. Her hair is extra sparkly, her eyes are extra purple. Almost like she is trying to control her spirit so she doesn't walk around glowing. I can't help myself. I pull her into my lap and make her stay there throughout dinner so I can breathe in her delicious scent. I feed her forks full of food in between kisses until she pushes the fork away. The guests around us giggle and coo at us, but I don't care. Kas is all I can think of right now. I can't stop smiling, tomorrow she's going to be my wife. Saint is genuinely happy, which is a relief. He doesn't even have anything snarky to say as I pull her close and breathe in her delicious scent.

We have a small get-together in my office after dinner with the wedding party and my parents. I refuse to let go of Kas's hand. What if I let go and she disappears into thin air?

Iclink my glass to give a toast. As everyone quiets down so I can speak, "As I look around this room, I see family and I see friends. Honestly, I can't tell the difference between the two. If you are a friend you are family, if you are family you are a friend. We've all been through a lot in nine months and we could not have gotten through any of it without the support of every single wolf in this room."

look around at all the smiling faces. I look down at Kas before I continue.

"Kas has made me a better wolf. A more patient leader. I'm a more compassionate man because of her. She and her wolf Elexis have tamed the savage beast that is Saint. They're still working on me," there is a chuckle around the room, "In turn, I have watched her grow. From a wolf who we weren't even sure would survive the trip from Silver Moon to Blood River to an actual goddess with a zest for life that cannot be contained. She is selfless, full of endless love, and determined. She is the true definition of strength. She is exactly the Luna Blood River deserves. "You all know that last year, Kas spent a significant amount of time at a coven in France. We still have a close connection due to their generosity. We even gained a pack member out of the experience, who has become one of Kas's best friends," I tip my glass to Delilah.

"During a trip to the coven, we found out that our wolves have been mates for over eight hundred years. They told us that Kas and my human spirits have been connected with our wolves for just as long. When I was trying to understand the significance of this, Kas explained it very eloquently to me. Enough so, that I got it tattooed on my wrist. Hate tried to erase the message, but my tattoo artist is stronger than hate," another chuckle goes around the room, "So, I would like to make a toast to you all, your wolves, and something we can all pray to the Moon Goddess for; May the love you and your mate have today, last forever. Forever in the past and forever in the future." >

Everyone raised their classes, some cried out 'Cheers!' Others gave a little howl. Kas wrapped her arms around my waist from beside me. I looked up to see everyone looking at their mates, some giving each other a little kiss, some of the women were crying at the touching words, being consoled by their mates. As everyone was filing out of the room, the girls tried to pull Kas away from me, but she pushed them off with a little growl so she could give me one last kiss. "T'll see you tomorrow evening, Baby," I pepper her with kisses.

"I don't know how I'm going to sleep tonight," the little frown on her face pings my heart.

"Elope! It's not too late!" Saint yells. I consider it for a millisecond then tell him to knock it off. +

The bridesmaids are all whining now and Lenora comes over with her hands on her hips, "Alright big brother, hand over the bride. I have a babysitter for the night and I am not wasting it watching you two make out." Begrudgingly, Kas and I take our arms off of each other. The girls take her by the hands and pull her away. My heart immediately feels empty as soon as she leaves the room.

I head down to Milo's apartment with him, Reggie, and James.

"Do you think we added enough security?" Should we have them do one more sweep?" I ask Milo.

James chimes in, "Alpha you got Marco, Archie, and Tyree in the hall upstairs, two snipers on the roof, and six guards protecting the entrances. She's gonna be just fine. If anything, we should bring the treasures of Fort Knox here, they'll be safer." 2

Milo and Reggie laugh and clap my back while I sulk. We have a couple more drinks before we call it a night. It feels good to sit in the quiet for a while, relaxing with my best friends.

"Guys, there was something different about her today. It was like everything about her was amplified. Her hair seemed extra sparkly and did you notice how vibrant her eyes were? They were practically glowing in the dark. Her skin was softer, even her scent was crisper," I quip.

"It's because she's turning eighteen. The same thing happened to Lenora right before she turned eighteen. If you thought the last nine months were incredible. Just wait until you see her tomorrow," Milo says.

"What do you mean?" James asks.

Milo responds, "It's one of those things they teach girls but they never bother to talk to guys about, because it doesn't happen to us. A female werewolf doesn't have all her hormones when her wolf first wakes up. Lenora says it is to protect girls who are only seventeen and have older, more experienced mates. Like you and Kas for example. It gives them a chance to get to know their mate better before things kick into high gear. That's why when Marco met Musu, they were fine spending two days locked in a room.

She's already twenty she's ready fora full blown mating relationship. I'm not sure how that works for you James, sorry. But now that Kas is about to be eighteen, the spigot gets turned to full open. You know how we can smell other guys' mates? Just as a way to identify them?"

"Yeah, of course," James confirms. "Well, what does Kas smell like to you?" I throw out the question. I don't try to sound menacing but I'm pretty sure I fail to cause all three of them to flinch a little.

James looked at me and furrowed his brow, "Now that you mention it, I have never really thought about what her scent is before. i mean she smells like a wolf, but I don't think of a scent specifically associated with her."

"Well, get ready for tomorrow because you will!" Milo says with his signature goofy grin and a finger in the air, "My money is on those oatmeal toffee cookies."