Author's note: picture of Serenity.
"We've decided we will take care of Michael. That we'd do it no matter what, but we would like to ask you for permission to move," he said. "We want to move to a more progressive state like California or New York."
"You can't come to New York. That's where we'll be fighting," I said.
"We're not planning on moving immediately and we wouldn't move to Shadow Moon anyway. We heard of a pack near there though that we would like to go to," he said.
Jace's smile widened.
"Oh? Which pack is that?" My mother asked.
"The Black Moon pack," he said.
"But isn't that…," she trailed off.
"Yes it is. It's his pack," he said, pointing at Jace.
"And you sympathize with their beliefs? Both of you?" I asked.
"We do," they said.
"He has other packs in California, Florida, Maine, Washington and right here in Texas, but we heard you live in the New York pack. Is that true?" Simon asked.
"That is true," Jace says. "You missed a few of my packs though."
I looked at him incredulously.
How could you have so many packs at once?
He didn't even mention my packs overseas.
You failed to tell me any of this.
I said all in good time.
How many wolves do you have in your packs.
A couple hundred.
That's not so bad.
Thousand.
A hundred thousand?!
A couple.
Like two?
A few more.
I stood up horrified, but Jace pulled me back down.
Now is not the time for this.
Then when? When you take over the world?
Let's talk about this later. We have to take care of our son.
"I will allow you to move," my mother said. "In a few years. Hopefully we can clean this up before then."
"You can't go to Black Moon until we do. She will be targeting there," Jace said.
Jessica moved to take Michael and I held him tighter, accidentally waking him up. My mom gave them the supplies we brought. Simon gladly took them.
The door opened and their kids came crashing through. Two boys and a girl. I couldn't help but feel like this was a mistake. Of course Jace would like them. They shared his mad ideas.
Simon introduced his kids to Jace and then my mother. He saved me for last. I handed Michael over to Jessica then teleported us away before I started tearing up.
I got us back to my room where I cried on my bed. My mother rubbed my back while Jace held my hand. Neither one of them was consoling me. I was too angry at Jace to receive comfort from him and it was my mom's friend who now had my son.
"Can you leave me alone with my mate?" Jace asked, and my mother left.
"How could you? The only reason you wanted to leave our son there is because they are your followers," I said.
"That was just a bonus. The first thing they talked about was what they had to offer our son. Then they did a pros and cons list and none of the pros were selfish. They didn't want a thing in return," he said. "All they wanted was to keep our son in good health. They are good people. Just like the rest of the people in my packs."
"Is this why you wanted to be able to teleport? To visit all of your packs?" I asked.
"Yes. Astral travel is fine but it would be so much better if I could do it in person," he said. "You could share that with me if you wanted to."
"Why would I want to? So you can travel all around the world and I can sit at home alone constantly waiting on you?" I asked.
"You can always come with me. This dream is something I want to share with you. A world where we don't have to live in secret. A world where we can freely share the planet with humans," he said.
"A world where they hunt us down and kill us because they fear us," I said.
"That's a very shortsighted view. We are not that easy to kill," he said.
"I'm just so angry with you. How could you keep this a secret from me?" I asked. "The humans outnumber us. We would be so vulnerable if we were exposed. Why would you do that to us? What's your endgame? You take over as supreme being? The Moon God lording over us all?"
"Actually, I always assumed we would retire quietly. I am not a tyrant or dictator. I only wish for the wolves to be free," he said.
"So when is this grand plan supposed to take place?" I asked.
"May 15th. The day I met you," he said.
I was speechless for a moment. He was going to make the day we met a grand anniversary for everyone. A day that would be remembered forever. As horrified as I was, I was touched. That wasn't even far away.
"I don't want to talk about this anymore," I said, feeling defeated.
He pulled me into a hug. I took in his scent to calm myself. When he kissed me, I didn't resist. I took everything he gave to me. He was mine after all. Every great and terrible thing he did was done with me in mind.
The problem is what he's proposing is dangerous and I don't know how to stop him. I don't know if I want to anymore.
I took off his shirt and he lifted mine. I marveled at his beautiful body taking down his pants. When he entered me all I could think about was how much I loved him. To hell with everything else.
I pulled his body closer to mine so I could feel his entire length. He sucked on my mark drawing out moan after moan. When he let go, I latched on to his neck licking and sucking his mark. He groaned and thrusted harder. I lifted my legs as I felt my orgasm build.
He kissed me as I let loose the ecstasy I was holding back. His release came with a grunt and a bite to my lip. I tasted my blood and his tongue invaded my mouth. He laid on his back putting his hand behind his head. I climbed on top.
We cuddled until I fell asleep. I could feel him getting out of bed but had no energy to stop him.
He woke me up for dinner where I saw Serenity had decided to join us. She made sure to sit away from Ezra though she kept sneaking glances at him.
Dinner was meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy, with an assortment of vegetables. Jace kept piling on my plate making me eat like I was pregnant. Which got me thinking. We haven't been using protection. I will have to make sure we fix that.
I ate then ran upstairs to look for condoms. I realized we left them at his pack so I shot over there really quickly to retrieve them.
No one was in our house. It was eerily quiet. I grabbed the bag of condoms and was about to leave when a noise caught my attention. Something was going on at Aiden's house. I zipped over there and walked in on him and Abby. Thankfully they didn't see me as I teleported back to my bedroom immediately.
"Where were you?" Jace asked.
"I just went to the house to grab these," I said, showing him what's in the bag.
"And you couldn't wait for me?" He asked, getting angry.
"It was just a quick trip," I said.
"You're supposed to be with me at all times but you left me for some fucking condoms?" He asked. "News flash. I don't need condoms to keep me from getting you pregnant. I could impregnate you right now if I wanted to."
"But can you make yourself pregnant?" I asked. "Then I would be impressed. Wait. Does that mean you planned for Michael? Did you make him a boy? Did you plan that with your mother?"
"No, Addison. I did not plan Michael in any way. I was letting things happen naturally. Why are your first thoughts about me always negative?" He asked.
"Because. You are the Boogeyman of my childhood. While other kids were afraid of monsters under their beds, we were afraid of you," I said. "I didn't see you as a sympathetic character until much later."
"Sympathetic?" He asked.
"Well yeah. I could see you as a lonely wolf who just wanted your mate," I said.
"Is that so?" He asked.
"That's what you seemed like to me," I said.
"And now I have my mate, you, and she thinks I am a monster," he said. "Happy endings all around."
He took a step towards me and I moved back on reflex. He gave me a broken smirk and then walked out of the room. I felt so guilty but I knew he needed his space. He would not thank me for going after him.
I got ready for bed then put on the Rookie intending on waiting for him. I fell asleep on the couch within five minutes. I woke up with a blanket over me and Jace asleep in bed. I got up and joined him in the bed.
He sucked in a deep breath then looked at me. His gorgeous green eyes appeared to pierce my soul. I looked within their depths loving what I saw.
"I'm sorry," I said. "I shouldn't have said those things. I love you."
"Despite all of my obvious faults or because of them?" He asked.
"A little of both," I said.
"You know, you remind me of my mother. Well my adoptive one. She was the sweetest woman, but every now and then, she turned into this evil tyrant," he said. "Then she'd go back like nothing happened. I was a teenager when I realized it was because she was being possessed and an adult before I realized it was actually my real mother."
"That's crazy," I said. "I'm sorry you went through that."
"It was normal for me. Just my mom being my mom. Once I reintegrated myself I realized I had to do something different. I had to make a change, but I had already promised my son. I tried to take it back but she wanted no parts of it," he said. "She wanted no parts of what she called a weak man who had taken over her son."
"I don't think you are weak," I said. "Then again, you keep me away from your interactions with your pack members. I don't know what you're like around them or anyone outside of my family."
"You want to watch me around my pack?" He asked.
"I want to watch you around anyone," I said.
"Get dressed," he said. "Dress for warm weather."
I wore a floral tie neck top and button shorts with white sunglasses and white slip on heels. Jace wore a pair of jeans with a white shirt sleeve button down, loafers and brown shades.
"Put on a sweater," he said, so I grabbed one. "Give me a second to get this location right. Okay go."
I let him take the lead on this, closing my eyes. We arrived outside a house I have never seen, in a town I've never been to at night. Jace took my hand and we walked up to the house.
He knocked on the door and a tall handsome man answered. He looked surprised to see Jace and even more surprised to see me.
"Alpha, Luna how ya goin'? He asked.
"Addison, this is my Beta, Cooper. Copper, this is my mate, Addison," Jace said.
"You'll be needing tea?" Cooper asked.
"No Cooper. Tone down the Aussie for my
mate," Jace said.
"Nice sunnies. Are you spending the night?" He asked.
"No we're not," Jace said. "My mate wanted to see me interact with some pack members."
"Shall I call a meet?" Copper said.
"No. It's late and I think you'll be enough," he said. "What's the latest update?"
"We received your message and passed the word," he said. "Did you need more?"
"No. That's perfect," Jace said.
"Is there anything else?" Cooper asked.
"Yes. My son will be traveling to Black Moon if something happens to me. Make sure he is well taken care of," Jace said.
"Traveling with who? You can bring him here. We'll take care of him," Cooper said.
"He's with the Queen's friend. I will leave him with instructions if things start to go south," Jace said.
"Maybe you should leave word with Black Moon. They can get the word out until you come back. Will she come back with you?" Cooper asked.
"I guess we'll discover that when the time is right," Jace said. "For now we'll plan on her not returning. Even though she has my powers, she doesn't know how to use them and she's not a Goddess yet."
"And she's sitting right here," I said.
"Of course you are, sugar. We meant no offense," Jace said, kissing the back of my hand. "This has been fun but we need to run. Later Coop."
"Nice meeting you Luna. See ya mate," Cooper says.
I teleport us back to my bedroom not feeling like I learned anything. I look at Jace and he is smiling.
"Breakfast? Then we can go to a different one," he says.
"I feel like I'm not going to learn anything," I said.
"You will. Probably not what you think you will," he said.
We ate breakfast in the dining room with Serenity who was also up early.
"I think what you're doing is romantic," she says. "You have to wrap it up soon though. Phase one is about to begin."
"What's phase one?" I asked.
"You don't have to worry about that darling," she says.
"Excuse me," I said. "Where's Ezra? He'll tell me."
"Darling, you don't need to know because you are like your mother. Better at reacting than you are acting. You being blind will only benefit you. Trust your mate," she says. "He won't steer you wrong."
I look at Jace trying to decide if I do trust him. His eyes are searching mine probably for the same reason. I look away.
"Don't worry, darling, when it matters you will know," she says. "You already know that Jace. Stop doubting."
He grabbed my hand and kissed my fingers. I lean over and give him a peck on the mouth. He holds my head and deepens the kiss until we're being rude by making out at the table.
Ezra entered the room and Serenity went to leave. "Stay," he said. "I just want a word with my sister."
I rose to go over to my brother, but Jace held my arm. "If he has something to say, he can say it in front of me."
"Now I'm definitely leaving," Serenity said, but Ezra put a hand on her shoulder holding her down.
"Fine. Then you can come too," Ezra said between clenched teeth.
"We can talk here. It's not like she doesn't already know what you have to say," Jace said.
"This is getting ridiculous. Let's go Jace," I said.
"Anything for you," he said.
Ezra's hand tightens into a fist and I immediately become nervous. He has never been openly hostile to Jace but it seems something has changed.
We walked into my bedroom and closed the door. I sat down on the bed and Jace sat down next to me with a smirk on his face.
"What have you two been doing?" Ezra asked. "I can see the world changing and lots of people are attributing it to you two."
"I just found out that Jace has multiple packs and we were visiting some," I said. "It's not a big deal."
"Do you agree with what he's doing?" Ezra asked. "Because you showing up with him is a sign that you approve. Is he pressuring you to do this?"
"No, Ezra. I asked to see how he was around his pack members. I've only seen him interact with me and you guys. I want to know more about my mate," I said. "Maybe you should try to get to know yours and stop butting into my life.
Jace obnoxiously starts slow clapping. "First of all, every single one of my pack members knows who and what my mate is. They know she is not aligned with our beliefs nor do I expect her to be."
Ezra cleared his throat but Jace plowed on.
"Secondly, it's none of your business what goes on between me and my mate. Third, I would never pressure my mate or make her do something she isn't comfortable with," he said. "You've had a problem with me since you were five and I get that, but do not question MY intentions with MY mate."
"And there's that possessiveness. My sister is not one of your things," Ezra said, angrily.
"That's right. She's the mother of my child. My second half and partner. She's my everything," Jace said.
"Come out of there my son. Come out alone," a disembodied voice calls from outside.