My Luna Mate
Chapter One

"I miss you, mom."

My fingers traced along the grey stone, feeling the rough texture of the rock beneath my touch.

It had already been over three years since my mother migrated to her new home and three years since I last saw her beautiful smile.

So much had happened and she was not around to see any of it. I tried to visit her as often as I could, sometimes alone and other times with Alexander.

Today, I was visiting her alone. Alexander was occupied with preparing the pack venue for tonights event. With such a big event being hosted, I decided to come and dump my nerves on my mother, who really had no other option but to listen.

I smiled, knowing exactly how she would have responded to that thought if she was alive. I missed her more than I let on.

When a rumbling sound erupted from the hungry clouds, I snapped back to my surroundings and realised I should head back home before my mate started to worry.

As always, I placed a kiss on top of my mother's tombstone before I bid her adieu.

My heart felt heavy on the way home, but I tried to think of the good memories. The man responsible for her death was no longer in this world and that thought was enough to calm my wolf.

When I pulled up to the house, I squealed excitedly when I saw the big box awaiting me on my door stop. The dresses that I had ordered for Ava were finally here.

Half an hour later, I was in my bedroom rummaging through the dozen dresses, deciding on which one to pick for Ava, when the auburn haired girl burst through the door, grinning from ear to ear.

Snapping my head in her direction, I watched with curious eyes as my best friend plopped herself on to my bed.

"You're in a good mood," I commented, eyeing her.

A wide smile covered her face until she noticed the dress in my hand. "I am but you're about to ruin that by telling me that dress is for me," she gaped, her smile completely wiped off.

"Correct. It is for you," I confirmed, holding the maroon sequinned dress up to eye it properly.

A groan escaped from the girl. "Can't I just wear a casual dress?"

"You know if it was just our pack, I wouldn't ask you to do this, but we have other packs attending tonight, Ave. I need my members to look the part. Plus, you can change after the main event if you want."

I didn't see what the issue was anyway. The dress that I had chosen for her was chic and in style and would really compliment her auburn hair.

"Fine," she agreed. "I guess it will help me feel comfortable in formal dresses. I can't exactly walk down the aisle in casual wear."

At first, I hummed along in agreement until her words registered and I glanced at the girl with wide eyes. "The aisle? As in, marriage?"

Ava bit her lip and held her hand up, revealing the sparkle on her finger. "Surprise!"

"You're joking," I squealed, before I placed the dress in my hand on to the hook on the wall and leaped on the girl. "Oh my god, Ave."

The girl shrieked as I practically jumped on her, before she burst out laughing. "I know, I can hardly believe it!"

I could feel tears prickling at my eyes. She had reacted the same way when I had showed her my ring, the day after Alexander had proposed. We had both dreamed of this moment, and now that it was finally happening, it felt really overwhelming in a good way. Ava was getting married.

"Oh, I'm so happy for you," I cried, feeling tears warm my cheeks.

"We're both fiancées," she said, proudly. "It's actually insane, Lyra. We're getting married!"

I pulled away to give her a proper hug, since I had just been laying on top of her, basically suffocating her. After pulling away, I turned my gaze on her hand.

"When did this happen?" I asked whilst examining the perfectly shaped diamond on her finger.

"A couple of hours ago," she responded, grinning. "Matteo proposed by the waterfall, it was so romantic. I never thought we would get married, you know, the whole wolf thing."

I knew exactly what she meant, so I simply placed my hand in hers and smiled at her adoringly.

"We've come a long way, huh?" Ava said, sighing in content. "I hope Jaxon can replace his mate too."

"Me too," I agreed, all of a sudden feeling a sense of sadness wash over me.

Jaxon had already been through so much, and despite his playful stance on the topic of mates, both Ava and I really prayed he could replace his other half too.

"I just don't see him with anyone," Ava told me lowly.

"Ava," I warned, not wanting to manifest the opposite of what we wanted for the boy.

"I know," she quickly added. "I know, it sounds bad, really bad. I'm not trying to disrespect you or Alexander, but this ceremony..."

"What about it?" I asked, my voice unintentionally harsh.

"Are you sure it will help? I mean, what if Jaxon doesn't replace his mate? Won't that make him feel worse?"

Biting my lower lip, I sighed softly. She was right, it would possibly make Jaxon feel worse if he didn't replace his mate. But at least this ceremony would allow wolves across different packs to mingle and have a chance at replaceing their mate.

"I'm sorry. I'm being completely selfish right now," Ava's voice echoed, bringing my focus back on her.

She swung her legs off of the bed before standing on her feet. Giving me a once over, she smiled sadly before grabbing the maroon dress from the wall.

"Thank you for this, and I will see you tonight to celebrate," she excitedly said and gave me a quick wink before she trudged out of the door.

Dragging myself off of the bed, I turned to my own dress on the wall. It was a green sparkly dress gifted to me by Alexander and he was adamant that I wear it.

The low v-neck and the slit in the dress was enough to make me understand why he wanted to see me in it.

It had already been a year since I had met him and we had installed the "Mate" ceremony that we were attending tonight. I was grateful because it allowed mateless wolves across various packs in the country to have a chance at replaceing their person. I had quickly learned how much the pack and his people meant to my mate. And as their Luna, I wanted to match up to him.

The thought was more exciting knowing that Ava was newly engaged and we could celebrate her as well in this ceremony. But her words lingered on my mind.

Before I could ponder any further, the door to mine and Alexander's room burst open. When I thought it would be my mate, I was surprised to replace a girl on the other side. One that I had never met before.

The stranger on the other side made me frown.