Once Rejected, Twice Desired (Book 1 of Blue Moon Series)
Once Rejected, Twice Desired Chapter 63

Alaia POV

I had no idea what was going on, but I needed to replace out. As quickly as I could, I swung my legs out of reached the second floor, my a*s was beyond sore. I had given up.

Matt, could you come to help me, please? I'm on the second-floor landing.

A couple of minutes later, Matt was racing up the stairs with a look of panic on his face.

"I'm fine. I didn't fall, and I didn't exactly 'walk' down, either so there's no need-"

"I just got off the phone with Xander. Come on; we're going up to his office." He scooped me up and ra pressed the panic button, completely locking the room down.

"Uhh, Matt? Is all this really necessary? We don't even know who the guy is. It could all be some sick jo He looked over at me quizzically. "How do you know what's going on already? Xander just told me to g "Well, I had a premonition or vision or something while I was napping. I saw Xander's meeting at Cres "Who the f**k does this guy think he is? Threatening my Luna and my pack?"

I thought I'd never see this. For my first time ever, I saw Matt seething with rage. I walked over and hel pretty state.

"I'm so sorry, bean. I never wanted you to see me like that."

"No worries. I'm sure Xander will be even worst. So, how long are we locked in here exactly?" "Until he gets home. So, a couple of hours, maybe?"

I hoped there were at least snacks. I would absolutely need snacks.

I heard footsteps running down the hall, then someone banging on the other side of the door.

Matt pushed me behind him and prepared to shift when we heard Alexi's voice.

"Alaia, baby, are you alright? Open the door and let me in."

I relaxed a bit and started walking toward the panic button.

"No, bean. Xander said not to let anyone in until he gets here. We can't open the door."

"You've got to be kidding, Matt. It's just Alexi. I'm letting him in."

"Alaia, I have orders. Please."

Matt was seriously freaking out about this. I'd never seen him act this way before.

nd pushed myself up. I made it to the stairs before I remembered my shitty balance and decided to sit and scoot down-three flights of stairs. By the time I

ck up all those stairs I had worked so hard to get down in record time. When we reached the office, he sat me on the couch and went behind the desk and

somewhere safe, and he'd explain when he got here."

pon." I filled him in on what happened and watched as his usual happy and sweet face grow angrier and angrier.

ands in mine. "Calm down, Matty. We're going to get through this just like everything else. Okay?" I smiled up at him, and soon his face returned to its normal

More knocking came through the door. "Guys, this isn't cool. Open the door." I could hear the frustration and worry in Alexi's voice.

"Matt, Xander gave you orders, and I respect that. But Alexi is my mate, and I'm not leaving him out there worried about me. It's not fair to him. So, please, open the door. I'm asking you as your friend, please don't make me order you as your Luna." Matt let out a deep sigh before he finally walked over to the door.

"Press the button, bean. If it's anyone other than Alexi, I'll tear them to shreds."

I sat behind the desk and unlocked the door.

As soon as it clicked, Alexi rushed in and ran straight into Matt, who was blocking his path. "What the f**k, Matt? Move."

He just stood there for a few more seconds, looking Alexi up and down.

"Matt! It's Alexi; I can smell him. I know it's him. Let him pass, please."

His shoulders fell before he finally stepped out of the way.

Alexi looked beyond pissed, but he ignored it momentarily to come to check on me. "All you alright, angel? Xander called me and told me what happened." He looked me over from head to toe, then stood me up before taking my seat and pulling me into his lap. He pressed his face to my neck and inhaled my scent, calming himself down.

"I'm fine, Alexi. Nothing has happened. It was just a warning or a joke. I'm not really sure which yet."

"It's not a joke, baby. Anyone trying to take you away from us is not a joke. And what the hell is wrong with you, Matt? You were just going to leave me out there?"

"I had orders, Alexi. You may not like it, but that wasn't my concern."

I could see this going bad real quick. Matt was the Gamma, and technically Alexi held no rank. But he was my mate and had every right to be by my side. We were in some weird gray area. "Cool it, guys. I'm not going to have you two at each other's throats. Not right now. Alexi, you know Matt can't go against Xander, an order is an order. And Matt, you have to understand where Alexi is coming from. How would you feel if an 'order' kept you from your mate? We just have to be more specific moving forward."

Both of them nodded their heads and relaxed a bit. Disaster averted; thank goodness.

I then tried to lighten the mood more with a change of subject. "So, how was your first day? Did you fire anybody?"

Alexi laughed, and I felt the last bit of tension leave the room. "No, I didn't fire anyone. I barely saw the staff, actually. It was mostly administrative today. Getting me into the system, payroll, that sort of thing."

"Do you like your office?"

"Yeah, it's cool. Not as fancy as Xander's, obviously. I don't have any interrogation rooms connected to mine, but it's nice. I need a picture of your beautiful face on my desk, and it will be perfect."

"You two are gross," Matt joked.

"We are, aren't we? And I love it."

"So, when can I come to see it? Come to think of it; I've never seen Xander's office, either. I can come to visit both my guys." I smiled at him, but it wasn't returned.

"What's wrong?"

"You can't come to the office, angel. What if that a*****e comes looking for you there? No, you should stay at home where you are protected."

I couldn't live like this. Locked in a glass cage under the guise of being protected. I wasn't some fragile flower, and I wouldn't have the men treating me like one. "Alexi, listen to me. I'm not staying locked up in this house forever. I won't do it. I have a life, and I'm going to live it. Starting by going down to that office and making all the women green with envy when they see that not one but both of the sexiest men there belong to me."

Alexi laughed and kissed my nose. "We'll see what Xander says love, but I'm sure he'll agree with me."

Yeah, we'll see. They wouldn't gang up on me, not with this. But I let it go for now. I leaned my head against his chest as he began to rub circles on my back and belly. Soon enough, I had drifted off in his lap.

***

Xander POV

I rushed back home as quickly as I could. I was livid at Jackson for what he had done, and when this was all over, I'd deal with him accordingly.

Kade calling my name pulled me out of my head and back to the present. "What's up?"

"Everything is quiet at home. Alexi made it back, and he's in the office with Matt and Alaia. Although he almost had to fight his way in."

s**t. That was on me, and I'd fix it as soon as possible.

"In any matter regarding Alaia, Alexi's orders are just as valid as mine. Make sure the entire pack knows it. When it comes to our mate, he is Alpha as well."

"I'll spread the word. So, what's our play here? This guy seems serious, but he did say that he only wants her after she's had the babies. So, that gives us roughly six weeks to figure it all out, right?"

"I don't even know. We need to replace out everything we can about Edwards and hybrids. I can handle a cocky a*****e wolf trying to take my mate, but this is on a different level. We've got to be smart at all times."

"We'll start researching when we get home. I know the library has a lot of books that should help. Did you want to let Aaron know what's going on? He would absolutely want to help when the time comes. And he may be able to replace something out, as well." "That's a good idea. I'll do that now." I made a quick call to Aaron and filled him in. We had become more like sister packs than allies, and as Alaia's brother, he had every right to know of any threat to her life. He offered to send a team of his top warriors to help with patrols and security, which I gladly accepted. The more eyes we had on the area, the better.

Once that was all done, I hung up and let Kade know to be prepared for the new arrivals.

I sat back and closed my eyes, running through different scenarios of how this could all play out. The only one I was satisfied with was Vincent lying dead at my feet. Anything short of that would be a failure in my eyes.

***

We finally made it back home, and before the car had come to a full stop, I jumped out and ran to my office.

Matt, open the door. I'm on my way up to you now.

Yes, Alpha.

I heard the lock click just as I was reaching for the knob. When I walked in, I found Alexi sitting sideways on the couch with Alaia curled up in his lap, asleep. "How is she?"

"Better than we are. She thinks we're all overreacting," Alexi answered while stroking Alaia's head.

I walked over and touched her face; I just had to feel her warmth to know for sure she was alright. Once that was done, I went and slumped behind my desk. I didn't realize how wound up I was until I got back here and saw her okay. "Alexi, I want to personally apologize for earlier. I was so focused on keeping her safe; I didn't even think of how you may feel. I've made it clear that any matter regarding Alaia moving forward, your word is just as powerful as mine." "I appreciate that, Xan. It's tough feeling powerless when it comes to her. I'm happy you understand."

Kade came in a short time later providing an update. "Aaron's team should be here within the hour. I'm having all eight of the guest rooms on the second floor prepared since they'll likely be here for a while. Our guys have been briefed, and I have a few people in the library looking for anything that may help us out. We're covering all our bases."

"Make sure Geoff and the kitchen staff know of the new arrivals. It's going to be a lot more mouths to feed around here. Also, see if we can get a welcome dinner put together for them. I want them to know how much they are appreciated." "On it."

Kade walked out, and I looked over to see Alexi smiling at me. "What?"

"Nothing, it's just that you're a pretty good Luna as well as Alpha. That was sweet."

"f**k you, Lex. I know how to be hospitable, and I had to run this house and pack for three years by myself, so I learned a thing or two." "Yes, ma'am."

"I'm ignoring you now. So, do you think you'll be going into the office tomorrow?"

Alexi signed and looked down at Alaia. "I want to. I just got the job and don't want to miss any days so soon. But I want to be here for her."

"Listen, she's covered-110 %. If anything even looks like it's going to happen, we'll let you know immediately. But she'll hate herself if she thought she was keeping you from something so important to you."

"Nothing is more important than she is."

"We all know that. And you and I both know how our mate is. She'd want you to continue to go."

Alexi chuckled lightly before he said, "She wants to go, too."

"Go, where exactly?"

"To the office. Angel feels the need to stake her claim on the two of us."

We both laughed. Alaia had every bit of our hearts, but she still felt like she had something to prove to the rest of the world. There would never be any other woman for us, but if she wanted to stake her claim, who was I to argue? "How about all three of us go in tomorrow? It'll be a lot of activity around here, making sure everything is safe and secure. Letting her get out for a little while before things get too crazy will be good for all of us."

"That sounds perfect, guys." Alaia sat up in Alexi's lap and smiled at us. She'd probably been awake this whole time.

"You heard all that?" I asked.

"Just what I needed to hear. So, what time do we leave?"